How Efficiently is Chemical Fertilizer Used in Indian Agriculture? Challenges and Alternatives

Chemical fertilizer is one of the main inputs in Indian agriculture. The objective of the article is to study the efficiency of chemical fertilizer use in India over five decades (1962–65 to 2003–06). This period extends from the pre-green revolution to the post-reform era. Chemical fertilizer use is not uniform and efficient throughout the Indian states. For the purposes of this study, the districts of four states, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Punjab and West Bengal, have been selected, representing the southern, western, northern and eastern regions, respectively. Data envelopment analysis technique is used to gauge the input-oriented technical efficiency. The results show that there is substantial scope for reducing the use of fertilizer.