Sudha Meiyappan ने West Asia Crisis के बीच Fertiliser‑Intensive Farming से क्रमिक रूप से हटने की अपील की

Key Insight

West Asia crisis forces India to rethink fertiliser‑intensive farming for food security

Key Facts

1. Sudha Meiyappan (Economic Affairs Committee, SICCI) addressed the issue on 13 May 2026 at a SIMATS panel.
2. The West Asia conflict has driven global NPK fertiliser prices up by roughly 30% YoY, raising input costs for Indian farmers.
3. She recommended a phased, crop‑specific and location‑based reduction in fertiliser use rather than an abrupt shift to organic farming.
4. Sri Lanka’s 2022 forced organic transition caused a ~20% drop in food‑grain output and triggered social unrest, cited as a cautionary example.
5. Col. Rajeev Agarwal (retd) linked the crisis to the strategic importance of the India‑Middle East‑Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) for alternative logistics.
6. Prof. S. Pandiaraj stressed that India’s foreign‑policy must balance pragmatic trade decisions with the Non‑Aligned Movement legacy.
7. Short‑term recommendation: retain existing fertiliser policy while accelerating research on climate‑smart inputs.

Background

Geopolitical tensions in West Asia have disrupted global fertiliser supply chains, inflating costs and exposing India’s reliance on synthetic inputs. The episode underscores the nexus of GS‑3 (agricultural economics, food security) and GS‑2 (strategic autonomy, trade corridors) in UPSC syllabi, highlighting the need for resilient, climate‑smart agriculture policies.

UPSC Syllabus

• Essay — International Relations and Geopolitics
• Prelims_GS — National Current Affairs
• GS2 — India and its neighborhood relations
• GS2 — Government policies and interventions for development

Mains Angle

GS‑3: Discuss how external shocks like the West Asia crisis can drive a shift to sustainable, climate‑smart agriculture. GS‑2: Evaluate India’s strategic use of corridors such as IMEC to safeguard agricultural inputs while maintaining non‑aligned foreign‑policy principles.