The local market, already hit hard by the shortage of the DAP due to huge demand for the Kharif and Rabi crops, including rice and wheat, besides fruits and vegetables, they added.
"After the current upsurge of Rs 400 per 50-kilogram bag during the last one week in retail market, the prices of DAP have reached all time high level of Rs 1,750-1,800 per bag in the interior Sindh, " they said. One week earlier, the DAP was available in the local retail market at an average price of Rs 1,350-1,400 per 50-kilogram bag, they added.
Moreover, the importers had also raised the DAP price on the plea that the prices in the international market had also soared, fertiliser dealers said, and recalled: "They (importers) have raised the DAP prices by Rs 65-75 per 50-kilogram bag during the last three week".
"Dealers were purchasing the DAP bag at Rs 1,125 in the first week of August, and now it is available at Rs 1,195-1,200 per 50-kilogram bag from importers, " they said. They further said that besides short supply of the commodity for the last two weeks, transportation expenses were the major factor behind the rising prices of the DAP in the local market.
Dealers claimed that since the importers were not supplying DAP regularly, hence the increase in the prices in different parts of the country.
A farmer claimed that some dealers had stopped the sale of the DAP, while others were demanding Rs 1,700-1,800 per bag in different parts of the interior Sindh, including Nawabshah, Dadu and Sanghar. He was critical of the government's indifference to the situation, and added if the situation remained unchecked, then it would affect the crops.
"In July, the government, in view of enormous rise in the DAP prices in the world market, allowed the importers to increase a maximum of Rs 128 per 50-kilogram to Rs 1,125 per 50-kilogram bag," the importers said.
They argued that the prices in the international market had reached 500-525 dollars per tonne, and hinted at further rise in the DAP prices in near future.
The volumes of phosphatic and potassic fertiliser required for Kharif sowing is calculated at 670,000 tonnes of DAP and MAP, 40,000 tonnes of MOP and 20,000 tons of SOP. These quantities should be made available on a timely basis to suit the application time for rice, vegetables and other crops till September 2007.