MoS distributes FAI awards; co-op giants IFFCO & Kribhco bag most

A three-day Annual Seminar of the Fertilizer Association of India (FAI) was kicked off on Monday at India Habitat Centre, New Delhi with a small number of participants due to the Covid 19 restrictions.

The first day of the three-day Annual Seminar of the Fertilizer Association of India  was devoted to distributing scores of awards in both individual and corporate categories and co-op giants such as IFFCO and Kribhco ran away with a maximum number of them.

The awards were given away by Union Minister of State for fertilizer Mansukhbhai Mandaviya in the presence of who’s who of the fertilizer industry. While IFFCO was represented by its MD Dr U S Awasthi, Rakesh Kapur, Yogendra Kumar, among others, Kribhco MD Rajan Chowdhry was also present representing the second fertilizer manufacturer from the co-operative fold.

Speaking on the occasion Union Minister of State for fertilizer Mansukhbhai Mandaviya said that Modi government is pro-poor, pro-farmer and yet industry-friendly. Mandaviya used the occasion to exhort fertilizer companies to have farmers in their mind while planning productions.

“I need fertilizer companies’ support for eliminating fertilizer diversion & ensuring it actually reaches our farmers”, the MoS underline.

The major award – The Dr. U.S.Awasthi Lifetime Achievement Award of Rs. 2.5 million each in the field of agriculture development and research and development of fertilizer industry was given away to Prof. Panjab Singh Ex-DG ICAR and Luc Maene Ex- DG IFA respectively.

Most of the IFA awards were shared between IFFCO and Kribhco. While IFFCO won as many as nine, Kribhco got four. IFFCO’s Kandla Unit received the FAI Environmental Protection Award in NP/NPK Fertiliser Plants without captive acid category for the year 2019-20 whereas Odisha based IFFCO Paradeep unit won the special prize for coming first for the 3rd consecutive year by winning FAI environmental protection award in NP/NPK Fertilizer plants with captive acid category for 2019-2020.

Besides, IFFCO Marketing Head Yogendra Kumar bagged the (FAI) first prize for an article on Nano Fertilisers published in the August, 2020 issue of Indian Journal of Fertilisers for the year 2019-20.

IFFCO won the FAI Promotion and Marketing of micronutrients in India Award for the year 2019-2020. IFFCO as well as bagged a special award for transfer of Improved Farm Technologies. IFFCO Phulpur Unit was runner up for the FAI best production performance award of an operating fertilizer unit for nitrogenous fertilizers for 2019-2020.

Kribhco got the special award for producing the best video film titled “Uchit Matra-Adhik Utpadan”. Its Marketing Director V S Sirohi received the award from the Union Minister of state Mansukh Mandaviya. The second largest fertilizer cooperative was also the winner of the FAI Golden Jubilee Award on Transfer of Improved Farm Technologies for the year 2019-2020.

Besides, Kribhco also won the FAI Award on Production, Promotion and Marketing of Biofertilizers/Organic Fertilizers/City Compost for the year 2019-2020. Kribhco, Surat was declared Runner up for the FAI Environmental Protection Award in the nitrogenous fertilizer plants category for the year 2019-2020.

The theme of this year’s hybrid mode of seminar is “Fertilizer and Agriculture during COVID-19.