A desperate rush to secure diammonium phosphate fertilizer led to chaotic scenes and health emergencies in Bandikui town of Rajasthan's Dausa district on Tuesday. Hundreds of cultivators converged on the local purchase and sale cooperative society early in the morning upon hearing that 840 bags of DAP fertilizer had arrived after an interruption lasting nearly an entire month. The crisis unfolded right inside the home district of state agriculture minister Kirodi Lal Meena, exposing severe supply bottlenecks.
Last-Minute Procedural Changes Spark Chaos
Farmers began lining up outside the cooperative society building from around 7 AM, bracing for lengthy procedures. Before obtaining any fertilizer, applicants were required to get official verification stamps on their land ownership records and then procure designated distribution tokens. Having to form separate queues for each step had already tested their patience. The situation took a volatile turn several hours later when officials abruptly informed the waiting crowd that tokens had to be collected directly from the agriculture department office instead.
The sudden announcement triggered panic among cultivators who had been standing in line for hours. A sudden rush towards the agriculture office resulted in a stampede-like situation, with people jostling and pushing each other in a frantic bid to reach the counters first.
Two Cultivators Fall Ill Under Harsh Sun
Amid intense heat and an uncontrollable surge of people, farmer Santosh Sharma collapsed on the ground after losing consciousness. Police personnel stationed at the premises alongside fellow farmers quickly administered first aid and provided drinking water. He was subsequently transported to Bandikui Sub-District Hospital in a 108 ambulance for medical care. Moments later, a woman farmer in the crowd also took ill under the crushing physical pressure and fainted, requiring immediate evacuation from the area for treatment.
Growing Anger Over Weeks of Fertilizer Shortage
Following reports of worsening unrest, additional police personnel arrived at the center to restore order and oversee the distribution process. Local farmers voiced sharp resentment over irregular supplies, stating that they had been waiting nearly 20 days for DAP shipments. They argued that sheer administrative negligence turned an already acute supply shortage into a public hazard, warning that failure to establish an organized distribution framework would only deepen rural distress during the sowing window.
