Interim Budget 2019: India may overshoot fertiliser aid bill by $4.2 bn

A rise in fertiliser prices overseas and a fall in the rupee currency made imported fertilisers more expensive, lifting the total subsidy requirement for the year to Rs 1 trillion, sources said

India is likely to overshoot its fertiliser subsidy bill for this financial year by Rs 300 billion ($4.2 billion), three sources with direct knowledge of the matter said, and the government could tap state banks to fund the extra spending.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government budgeted Rs 700.8 billion for fertiliser subsidies for the 2018/19 year ending March 31, but the sources said nearly half of the money was used to settle dues from the previous year.

A rise in fertiliser prices overseas and a fall in the rupee currency also made imported fertilisers more expensive, lifting the total subsidy