During his visit to Gujarat, Prime Minister inaugurated the country’s first liquid nano urea plant at Kalol.

Liquid Nano Urea (LNU)

• Urea is chemical nitrogen fertiliser, white in colour, which artificially provides nitrogen, a major nutrient required by plants.
• LNU is essentially urea in the form of a nanoparticle.
• It is sprayed directly on the leaves and gets absorbed by the plant.
• Fertilisers in nano form provide a targeted supply of nutrients to crops, as they are absorbed by the stomata, pores found on the epidermis of leaves.
• According to IFFCO, liquid nano urea contains 4 per cent total nitrogen (w/v) evenly dispersed in water.
• The size of a nano nitrogen particle varies from 20-50 nm. (A nanometre is equal to a billionth of a metre.)

Significance of LNU

• This patented product is expected to not only substitute imported urea, but to also produce better results in farms.
• Apart from reducing the country’s subsidy bill, it is aimed at reducing the unbalanced and indiscriminate use of conventional urea.
• It will help increase crop productivity, and reduce soil, water, and air pollution.

Using LNU

• The liquid nano urea produced by Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative (IFFCO) Limited comes in a half-litre bottle priced at Rs 240, and carries no burden of subsidy currently.
• By contrast, a farmer pays around Rs 300 for a 50-kg bag of heavily subsidised urea.
• According to IFFCO, a bottle of the nano urea can effectively replace at least one bag of urea.

How efficient is LNU?

• While conventional urea has an efficiency of about 25 per cent, the efficiency of liquid nano urea can be as high as 85-90 per cent.
• Conventional urea fails to have the desired impact on crops as it is often applied incorrectly, and the nitrogen in it is vaporized or lost as a gas.
• A lot of nitrogen is also washed away during irrigation.
• Liquid nano urea has a shelf life of a year, and farmers need not be worried about “caking” when it comes in contact with moisture.

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