The Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Land and Irrigation, Mr. K.D. Lal Kantha, Participated in An Inspection Tour of the National Fertilizer Secretariat.
The Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Land and Irrigation, Mr. K.D. Lal Kantha, recently participated in an inspection tour of the National Fertilizer Secretariat. During the visit, the Minister engaged in a cordial discussion with the officers, which was subsequently followed by a special discussion with the staff of the National Fertilizer Secretariat.
During this meeting, the Director of the National Fertilizer Secretariat, Mr. Chandana Lokuheva, presented an overview of the institution. The National Fertilizer Secretariat performs several key services, including the issuance and renewal of licenses, granting import approvals, providing customs clearance permissions, quality analysis, granting trade approvals, calculating fertilizer requirements, and analyzing data on fertilizer distribution and usage. Among the achievements made by the National Fertilizer Secretariat, the introduction of compost granular fertilizer, the introduction and promotion of bio-fertilizers, the production of hybrid fertilizers, and the introduction of third and fourth-generation fertilizers can be highlighted.
The Minister also expressed his views on this occasion.
“Society generally understands the importance of the Department of Agriculture when it comes to the country’s food security. However, the significance of the National Fertilizer Secretariat and the role it plays in food security have not been adequately communicated to the public. There is an issue there.
Hence, there is a need to increase public awareness and interest regarding the National Fertilizer Secretariat, to encourage closer media scrutiny, and to strengthen the relationship the Secretariat maintains with the media. To achieve this, we have connected the Director with the media. Society needs to understand the vital role that is being performed here.
Only if the role of the National Fertilizer Secretariat is communicated effectively to the public will the people working here gain a sense of respect within society when they say they work for this institution.
Our current stance is that the chemical fertilizer composition recommended by the Department of Agriculture should be fully applied, and organic fertilizer should be used additionally. However, some experts suggest that the chemical fertilizer we currently use can be reduced by about fifty percent. There are research reports available now that present this view. Greater attention must be focused on that matter.
Since the matter of fertilizer is crucial to food security, the role of the National Fertilizer Secretariat is immense.
We must break the monopoly surrounding fertilizer. That is an essential requirement. Currently, the National Fertilizer Secretariat has made a significant intervention toward achieving that goal.”
During this meeting, officials also made the Minister aware of the existing staff vacancies within the National Fertilizer Secretariat.
