Neem-coated urea is a fertilizer, consisting of urea that is coated with neem tree seed oil.[1] It supported by an agriculture scheme of the Government of India to boost the growth of wheat and paddy,[2] and curb the black market and hoarding of urea.[3] In January 2015, the urea manufacturers were mandated by the government to increase their production from 35 percent to 75 percent of their subsidised amounts of neem-coated urea.[4] In her 2019 budget presentation, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman spoke about increased promotion of neem-coated urea among farmers which will help to reduce the cost of cultivation.[5]
Benefits of neem-coated urea include; increase of crop-specific yields by 15-30% on average along with higher levels of soil fertility.[1]
The patent (US 9 ,884,792 B2) for neem-coated urea is owned by Aditya Birla Nuvo Ltd and its assignees are the Aditya Birla Nuvo Ltd. & Aditya Birla Science and Technology co. ltd. under the guidance of Dr. Prashant Puri, who is the primary innovator in this area.[6]
Other coatings are also used for urea: moringa,[7] sulfur,[7] biochar,[7] other oils[8] and polymers.[8]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Ramappa, K. B.; Jadhav, Vilas; Manjunatha, A. V. (31 May 2022). "A benchmark study on economic impact of Neem Coated Urea on Indian agriculture". Scientific Reports. 12 (9082) 9082. Bibcode:2022NatSR..12.9082R. doi:10.1038/s41598-022-12708-1. PMC 9156691. PMID 35641568.
- ↑ "Important Government Schemes & Programmes in Agriculture". krishijagran.com. Retrieved 2019-03-18.
- ↑ Shekhar, Kumar Shakti (May 24, 2019). "10 development-oriented initiatives that fetched votes for Narendra Modi in Lok Sabha elections 2019". The Times of India. Retrieved 2019-06-12.
- ↑ Datta, Kanika (2016-02-16). "Neem-coated truth: Urea policy isn't a game-changer". Business Standard India. Retrieved 2019-06-12.
- ↑ "Strategy in place to double farmers' income by 2022, says FM Sitharaman". www.businesstoday.in. 10 July 2019. Retrieved 2019-07-11.
- ↑ "Micky Prashant Puri Inventions, Patents and Patent Applications". Justia Patents Search. 12 October 2021. Retrieved 12 October 2021.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Ashraf, Muhammad Nadeem; Rauf, Ashar (25 July 2025). "Coated Fertilizers Enhanced Nitrogen Use Efficiency Through Reducing Ammonia Volatilization While Increasing Crop Yield". Journal of Plant Nutrition and Soil Science. 2025 jpln.70001: 1–10. doi:10.1002/jpln.70001.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Yuan, Shengnan; Cheng, Long; Tan, Zhongxin (May 2022). "Characteristics and preparation of oil-coated fertilizers: A review". Journal of Controlled Release. 345 (May 2022): 675–684. doi:10.1016/j.jconrel.2022.03.040. PMID 35339580.