India prepares app-based tracking for urea sales to curb hoarding and improve access
India is developing a mobile system for urea sales with Aadhaar-based authentication to reduce hoarding, diversion and supply bottlenecks during peak sowing periods.
India is building a digital system to track urea sales as it tries to tighten control over the distribution of its most widely used fertilizer. Mint reported that the Department of Fertilizers is leading the effort and that the first layer will use a mobile app with Aadhaar-based biometric authentication. Later stages are expected to link land records, crop details and fertilizer requirements based on farm size.
The policy arrives at a time when subsidy costs, import dependence and food-security concerns are all under pressure. India is the world’s largest urea importer and the second-largest fertilizer consumer. In the current fiscal year, the country expects to spend 1.71 trillion rupees on fertilizer subsidies, with urea taking a major share. The urgency has increased because West Asia, disrupted by war and logistics stress, supplied roughly two-thirds of India’s urea imports and nearly 32% of its diammonium phosphate imports in FY25.
The new system draws heavily on state models already used in Haryana, Rajasthan and Telangana. In Haryana’s fertilizer control framework, farmers register Aadhaar details, land information and crop data, which are then used to determine entitlement based on acreage and crop type. Officials see that approach as a way to limit diversion to non-agricultural use, reduce hoarding and align supply more closely with actual farm demand.
According to Mint, the platform is expected to let farmers place advance orders for urea and DAP by phone, choose nearby retailers, check real-time stock and receive booking confirmation or expected delivery timelines. The practical goal is to reduce last-mile bottlenecks, long lines at retail outlets and panic buying during peak sowing windows. A pilot version may be launched before the kharif sowing cycle begins in June.
The import and consumption numbers explain why distribution has become a national policy issue. India imported 5.6 million tonnes of urea in FY25 out of total consumption of 38.79 million tonnes. It also imports about 60% of its DAP needs and remains dependent on foreign supply for raw materials such as rock phosphate, phosphoric acid and potash. At the same time, the government is expanding a broader farmer identification system. Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said more than 9.29 crore farmer IDs have already been created, with a target of around 13 crore.
Economists and policy analysts cited by Mint said digital booking and transparent stock visibility could improve predictability, efficiency and fairness in fertilizer access. The government also wants to connect the system with its direct benefit transfer framework, where subsidy-linked authentication already exists. With kharif foodgrain production estimated at 174.14 million tonnes and rabi output at 174.5 million tonnes, better fertilizer logistics are being positioned as a way to support output while reducing leakage, black marketing and regional supply shocks at the most sensitive point of the crop calendar.