India says 15 fertilizer ships stranded in Persian Gulf have cleared Strait of Hormuz

Fifteen of the 20 fertilizer ships bound for India that had been stranded in the Persian Gulf amid the Middle East war have safely passed through the Strait of Hormuz, easing supply concerns ahead of the country's peak farming season as tensions between Iran and the United States ease.

India's Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers J.P. Nadda said Monday that 15 cargo ships carrying fertilizer had passed through the Strait of Hormuz after the United States and Iran signed a cease-fire memorandum of understanding on Sunday, according to local media including the Times of India.

The vessels are carrying 330,000 tons of urea and 250,000 tons of phosphatic fertilizer and are expected to arrive in India within days.

The remaining five ships are still awaiting passage through the strait.

Nadda also said domestic urea production had exceeded its monthly targets for three consecutive months from April through June.

Total urea output over the three-month period reached 7.16 million tons, surpassing the target of 6.79 million tons.

Officials at the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers said farmers would now be adequately supplied with fertilizer as the monsoon crop-sowing season gets underway.

India's monsoon season typically runs for three months from June, during which farmers plant rice, pulses and cotton. Farmers had been worried about timely fertilizer supplies since the war between the United States, Israel and Iran broke out in late February.

Nadda said the ministry had made every effort to import fertilizer through alternative routes bypassing the Strait of Hormuz during the war.

As a result, urea was imported from Oman, Malaysia, Vietnam, Georgia, Nigeria, Russia, Finland, Egypt, Algeria, Turkey and the Netherlands, while phosphatic and compound fertilizers were brought in from Russia, Morocco, Egypt, the United States, Jordan, South Korea, Tunisia and Saudi Arabia via the Red Sea, the Times of India reported.

Agriculture accounts for roughly 17 to 18 percent of India's gross domestic product and employs 43 to 46 percent of the total workforce, making it a cornerstone of the national economy.