Budget
-India is likely to earmark
nearly $19 billion in the federal budget to compensate fertiliser companies for
selling their products to farmers at lower than market prices, according to
people with knowledge of the matter.
The finance ministry has penciled
in Rs 1.4 trillion ($18.8 billion) as fertiliser subsidy in the budget due Feb.
1, up from Rs 1.3 trillion in the year ending March 31, due to higher raw
material costs, the people said, asking not to be identified as the information
is not public. Discussions are still going on and a final decision is yet to be
taken.
The increased spending comes
ahead of crucial assembly polls and amid efforts by the ruling Bhartiya Janata
Party to win over farmers after facing massive protests against new laws that
have since been scrapped. Nearly 60% percent of India’s 1.4 billion population
depends on farming directly or indirectly for their livelihood and their support
is key for winning elections.
A finance ministry spokesman was
not immediately available for a comment.
Read our full coverage on Budget
2022
No comments:
Post a Comment