A ministerial panel led by finance minister Pranab Mukherjee on Wednesday referred the proposals for further reforms in the fertiliser sector to a committee of secretaries to be chaired by Planning Commission member Arun Maira. The committee will consider proposals including the extension of the new pricing scheme ?stage three for urea producers till the time natural gas is available to all producing units. This pricing scheme was implemented from April 2006.
The committee will also be asked to study and make recommendations on a new urea investment policy, designed to attract fresh investments into urea production.
The panel will also examine the possibility, timing and approach in bringing urea under the nutrient-based subsidy scheme, which now covers only phosporous and potash based ferilizers. Under this scheme, the subsidy for a fertilizer is determined based on how much nutrient it contains.
The government, however, is not considering de-controlling the price of urea at this juncture, considering the high inflation level, which at present is at 7.4%. ?The word price decontrol was not mentioned at all at the GoM meeting,? said an official who attended the ministers? meeting. The panel has to give its report by February first week.