SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT (SCM) IN THE PROCESS OF MANUFACTURING OF NON-CONVENTIONAL FERTILIZERS TO BRING BLESSINGS IN COURSE OF REPLACING CONVENTIONAL FERTILIZER

WHICH IS A CURSE.
Abstract: Conventional chemical based fertilizer is used extensively in India in Agriculture since the decades of sixties of previous century. To increase agricultural output presently such fertilizer is being used in significantly growing quantity. From the study presently undertaken by different national and international experts it has been observed that excessive use of chemical fertilizer became the cause of adverse effect upon environment. Agricultural scientists have worked upon the scope of using non conventional fertilizers. These facilities are produced by using the rural wastes. By suitably developing Supply Chain Management (SCM), the procurement and supply of rural wastes, usable for non conventional fertilizers, to manufacturing units can be streamlined. By this development of suitable SCM system and streamlining its activities both, the rural sector generating resources and sectors manufacturing non conventional fertilizers are benefited. Present work is an effort in this respect to identify the different related areas and to find out the observation thereof. Key words: Conventional fertilizer.\, societal development, environmental effect

SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT (SCM) IN THE PROCESS OF MANUFACTURING OF NON-CONVENTIONAL FERTILIZERS TO BRING BLESSINGS IN COURSE OF REPLACING CONVENTIONAL FERTILIZER WHICH IS A CURSE.
1 Introduction: India is a developing country in world scenario, is in a process of massive agricultural and industrial development. Different successive Five year plans show the trends of growth in this respect till the 11th Five year plan. Much of natural infrastructural resources have been earmarked towards this process of growth. In this process of national growth endeavor of both these areas (agriculture and industry), some sectors being related with agriculture and industry has got some special privileges. Fertilizer is such a sector. The wheels of vehicles of green revolution had been based upon, among very few important items, improved fertilizer and irrigation. Since India during post independence planning era was much underdeveloped in process of fertilizer production, during decade sixty much effort was made in growth of fertilizer manufacturing in public sector Government organizations. However private sectors also had been allowed for manufacture of fertilizer by Government since the decade of seventies. Different large scale industries (both private and public) like Fertilizer Corporation of India, Hindustan Fertilizer Corporation, Indian Farmers Fertilizer Co operative Society and Hindustan Lever etc. had been on the scenario for production of different conventional chemical fertilizer. These fertilizer are mostly different chemical based like potassium (K), Nitrogen (N), phosphate (PO4) etc. Though these fertilizers had been used successfully in agriculture sector, some adverse effects had been observed to be developed out of the continuous use of these fertilizers. The chemical ingredients have been observed to possess injurious effect upon environmental ecological condition, upon sea water sustainability, upon plant quality and its usability, soil fertility etc. Also such massive fertilizer production does not have any other indirect favorable effect upon rural India and its people, other than the direct users of the product, people related with trading of fertilizer and people on direct employment in plant and its ancillaries. Agricultural scientists working on agricultural fertility has identified the use of an alternative non conventional fertilizer called Pancha Gobya containing material like Cow dung, , Curd, Butter and Ghee. This mixture has been proved to be of highly fertile for agricultural use and far from any adverse effect. All the constituents are available and produced in rural India. These ingredients can be taken for mass production in rural India. And machinery can be developed in rural India to collect these ingredients and supply to plants commercially producing Pancha Gobya. The general process of production and distribution of the ingredients can be splitted up into several segments like collection from the small rural manufacturers, storage and distribution to manufacturing plants manufacturing the non conventional fertilizer. This interaction of the small scale manufacturers (as suppliers of ingredients), taking possession of these ingredients and giving delivery to large scale manufacturers manufacturing Pancha Gobya may be called 2

Supply Chain Management (SCM) system in the process of production of Pancha gobya. In the present work, an analytical approach is intended to be done to identify how this process of Supply Chain Management of pancha Gobya can be suitably used for societal development and agricultural development and the adverse effect of conventional fertilizer can be avoided. 2 Fertilizer: Decreasing fertility and less fertility are the big problems in present day agricultural system. In the days of scarcity of cultivable land and high cost involvement in agriculture process, output in form of per capita return or per acre return is very important factor. Also unlike previous days land has got usability in several areas i) agriculture ii) site for industrial production iii) place for commerce and trade iv) residential usage and others. Usage of land likes other scarce and costly resources, need to be justified. There must be optimum utilization in terms of revenue generation and other usages of this resource. Also there is not much scope for using agricultural land for purpose other than agriculture, since agricultural output is used for satisfying the hunger of millions of starving Indians. There is no other alternative but to generate maximum agricultural output- this is must. For this purpose usage of fertilizer is must, there is no alternative to usage of fertilizer- only alternative is whether to use conventional fertilizer or non conventionalfertilizer. For centuries it was realized that roots of terrestrial plants obtained nourishment from soil. The addition of farmyard manures, plant tissue debris, wood ashes, ground bones, composts and other materials of plant and animal origin to soils was found to increase their productivity long before the nutritional needs of plants were understood. Only during the fist half of nineteenth century did plant scientists begin to understand that plant growth and development can precede only when plants are supplied with certain chemical elements referred to as essential elements. These elements are absorbed by roots principally as inorganic ions. Inorganic ions in soil are derived mostly from mineral constituents of soil. The term mineral nutrient is generally is used to refer to an inorganic ion obtained from soil and required to plant growth. Analyses have shown that a surprisingly large number can be detected in tissues harvested from plants grown in soil. Of the many elements detected in plant tissues only 16 are essential to all higher plants. 2.1 Conventional Fertilizer: Several chemical inorganic or organic based fertilizer containing above elements are used as fertilizer. These fertilizers are selected depending upon particular requirements of the elements by the plants and availability of the elements in soil. Different types of fertilizer are produced on commercial basis in different fertilizer manufacturing industries. These fertilizers are directly applied to the plants depending upon requirements of the plants of agricultural firms. The conventional fertilizers are produced in fertilizer factories and commercially used in accordance with requirement.

Table- 1. Essential Elements known to be Essential for growth of higher Plants. C K Ca Mg B Cl Cu Fe Mn Mo Zn H O N P S

Source: Introductory Plant Physiology by G. Ray Noggle, George J. Fritz For each of these essential elements, experimental evidence that the element is required for growth has been obtained. In the absence of each essential element, plant develops deficiency symptoms characteristics of the deficiency elements and dies prematu 2.2Non conventional Fertilizer: The process of utilizing conventional inorganic or organic fertilizer is not a very old one. It has been started being utilized in India since the second half of earlier century or post independence period. However since the beginning of Green Revolution and initiation of large scale fertilizer factories in public sectors as well as private sectors, the usage of conventional inorganic and organic fertilizers has been started in large scale. Prior to this, Indian farmers, when these conventional chemical fertilizers were not available, used different types of non conventional fertilizers like Cow dung, wood ash, Plant tissue debris, composites and other materials of plant and animal origin etc. Agricultural scientists presently has undertaken massive research work over non conventional fertilizers and found out several suitable alternatives no conventional fertilizers. Pancha gobya is such fertilizer containing five basic elements like Cow dung, Curd, Ghee, ., Butter. This fertilizer had successfully undergone laboratory test and as, these agricultural scientists observe, may be taken for commercial production. 3. Adverse Effect of Conventional fertilizer: The adverse health effects on plants, elements and human are visible in several part of India and some of the studies have proved that use of synthetic fiber in neighboring agricultural firms have been the cause of these adverse effects. Several studies have been undertaken and the studies found the effects of synthetic nitrogen fertilizer in ground water in agriculture intensive areas. In several areas of Punjab like Bathinda, Muktsar, and Ludhina etc. this type of adverse effect has been observed. It showed 20% of all sampled wells have nitrate level above the safety limit of 50 mg. of nitrate per liter established by WHO.

Dr. Reyes Tirado, a scientist from the University of Exeter, UK, who conducted the study in 50 villages in Muktsar, Bathinda and Ludhiana districts said, National pollution is clearly linked with the use of synthetic Nitrogen Fertilizer. The higher the application of nitrogen (Urea) in fields, the higher the nitrate pollution found in drinking water from nearby well. Two water samples in Doda, a village in Punjabs Gidderbaha that has a higher percentage of Cancer cases, found the Nitrate level at 94.3 mg. /liter and 72.8 mg/liter much above the WHO safety limit of 50mg/liter. Cumulatively the use of chemical fertilizer as discussed here, develop adverse effect upon national ecological system. It increases the percentage of the undesired contaminates in natural water like water available from lakes, ponds, rivers, oceans etc. It affects the health of the users of this water and people are seen to suffer from several diseases out of these. Several plants and animals available from sea are also steadily on the verge extinction. Thus the overall situation demands judicious concern and look for alternatives. Also the agricultural products produced after use of chemical fertilizers content a fair amount o0f these undesired chemicals and consequently develop detrimental long standing effect upon the health of the consumers. 4. Prospects of Manufacturing Non Conventional fertilizer: On global basis there is effort to restrict the use of conventional chemical based fertilizer. Many countries are trying to think of using more and more non conventional non chemical fertilizers. Agricultural research laboratories are working extensively towards this. An effort can be made to produce the non conventional fertilizer Pancha gobya in commercial basis. Apart from making necessary plants etc. for undertaking the production activities, it needs to arrange for procurement of raw material, planning for production, inventory management, storage of finished goods, developing warehousing facilities, market development, sales and distribution etc. Producing non conventional fertilizer, in order to replace conventional chemical fertilizer, desire specific management activities it needs identification of the relevant product, planning for raw material, planning for production facilities like plant, machineries, building etc., technology, storage and ware housing facilities, sales and distribution. Since non conventional fertilizers are produced from village and agro based products, Government provides various infrastructural facilities, subsidies, financial facilities etc. Different Government managed organizations like DIC, SISI, ISIDC, State Industrial Development Centre, WBIDC come out with different types of help. Also different agricultural research institutes come with technological support or other facilities. 5. Supply Chain Management (SCM) Process in Manufacture of Non Conventional Fuel: Process of Supply Chain Management (SCM) is involved presently in most of the big organizations undergoing activities like manufacturing, service, etc. An organization is a system following the processes as below: Output Input Value added Process There Feedback

Supply Chain Management (SCM) has drawn increasing attention from the researchers since the end of last century in view of its great potential in improving the performance of an organization in respect of productivity, efficiency, responsiveness, and other relevant parameters. Now the performance of an organization is no longer viewed in isolation in todays competitive business environment, rather the same is considered and evaluated from the perspective of the total supply chain right from upstream suppliers to downstream customers. As per definition of supply chain council (2002), the supply chain encompasses every effort involved in producing and delivering a final product from a suppliers supplier to customers customer. The focus of SCM is integration of three broad functions: namely Suppliers Relationship Management (SRM), Internal Supply Chain Management (ISCM) and Customers Relationship Management (CRM) with a view of managing smooth flow of product, information and fund among supply chain partners and delivering superior value to end customers. The concept of SCM has been considered from different perspectives ,such as purchasing and supply management, logistics and transportation, operations management, marketing, organizational theory, management information system. In a manufacturing organization producing non conventional fertilizer like Pancha gobya, where all raw material are indigenous and rural based, it needs to develop or identify the different sources of supply, the different related terms and conditions like price, delivery schedule, quality to be delivered etc. are to be scheduled in accordance with requirement of manufacturing activity . Also there need to be continuous supply schedule of the inputs. This uninterrupted supply schedule of raw material is required to maintain an uninterrupted manufacturing schedule. For Pancha gobya variety of non conventional fertilizer regular vendors should be created who will be involved in uninterrupted delivery of constituents like cow dung, curd, butter and ghee. These should be collected from the manufacturers of these items in required quantity and regularly be sent to production units in predetermined time. It is to be a regular ongoing process.

Strategic supplier partnership Customer relationship Level of information sharing Quality of information sharing Postponement

Marketing performance

Operational performance SCM Financial performance Organizational performance

SCM Process in SEZ

Price/ Cost Top management leadership Competitive advantage Quality Supplier quality management Delivery dependability Customer focus Product & services design Process management Employee training & human relations Quality data & reporting SCM Process in Manufacturing System Product innovation

QM Practices

Time market

6. Effect of SCM for Non Conventional Fertilizer: The raw material used in non conventional fertilizer is not output of any industrial product. These are available from rural India. Cattle are domestic animal and also these are maintained in dairies. Cow dung and .may be systematically collected from such sources and poor villagers can earn a monetary benefit out of this. Curd, butter and ghee, the other ingredients may be available from poor villagers who maintain cow as domestic element. Presently the suppliers or manufacturers of these items do not get any structured market or systematic marketing system where they can sale their product. Normally, since they do not have any regular customer, they do not get fair price for their product. But once these non conventional fertilizers are taken for production, by utilizing regular SCM process, the manufacturers of these non conventional fertilizers, get their raw material regularly. The steady flow of raw material ensures regular production process. Also the suppliers of input raw material get a steady market. They ensure that they can regularly cater to the need of the manufacturers of non conventional fertilizers thus ensuring regular process of transaction for both suppliers of raw material and users of these raw materials. 7. Benefits and Development from SCM 7.1 Benefits of Producers of Non Conventional Fertilizers: The raw material used by such producers is not available from a regular structured market. There is no system of availability from a regular source of supply since there is no regular market to supply these products. An erratic and irregular input becomes the cause of irregularity in production. Absence of any SCM system causes irregularity in production. A regular SCM system come over these irregularities and develops a steady output out of the production system. In case of making a change in production schedules or planning to increase production output, existence of SCM system is considered to be helpful. It can generate additional sources of vendors or additional vendor capacity and can create additional SCM capacity to be in line with additional production capacity. 7.2 Benefit of Suppliers to the Manufacturing Plants of Non Conventional Fertilizer: The suppliers to such plants come from unrecognized sectors. They do not have regular production system, regular buyers, or regular market and marketing system. Mostly markets are controlled by buyers and these buyers are also not regular customers, they are seasonal customers, customers to buy the products occasionally. Hence the producers of these products in want of suitable market do not produce their products systematically and the capacity remains either unused or underused. Hence in absence of regular SCM system, suppliers do not get their fair return from their products and accordingly they are also not motivated to produce systematically causing wastages of capacity etc. Also in such situation, they do not get suitable return over their product or investment. In presence of suitable SCM system these in discrepancies are removed. A sense of confidence is developed among the rural people who get the scope of being involved with new activities in an organized way and get a fair return from their efforts and investment. A new scope of maintenance of livelihood is developed; a light of development is ushered among the people. Thus it is seen that SCM generate multiple benefit. 8. Observation: Generation of scope of manufacturing of non conventional fertilizer and its use is the cause of national benefit. By developing the Supply Chain Management

system in manufacture of non conventional fertilizer, the industry is provided with the opportunity of getting uninterrupted desired flow of inputs towards its process of regular production which is aimed to take the place of conventional fertilizer. This will eliminate the adverse effect which the nation as a whole face. If the process of production of non conventional fertilizer is suitably established it is expected that in course of time the country will be suitably benefited and will be able to get rid of all adverse effect of conventional fertilizer. Also once the process of production of non conventional fertilizer is suitably established; it will utilize the sources of raw material to full extent. By this process, the rural society and its people will be suitably benefited. There will be initiation of prosperity and affluence by this way in rural India- specially Indian people in agriculture sector and Indian people producing that raw material. 9. Conclusion: The world is facing the challenge of poverty and hunger and malnutrition of millions of people in one side and ill effect of science in other side. The ill effect of conventional fertilizer which has been shown in this work, is also world recognized. So what to do? There is no other way left than as has been done in cases of methods of Sustainable development, Green house technology, Alternative energy resources, world need to go for Alternative fertilizer as has been discussed over here. It is must. In this process world need to extract the associated benefits the benefits that has been shown to be available through the process of SCM. It is unique and is much desired one. It can bring smiles in the face of large number of rural people by giving them the advantage of fair markets for the resources they produce and possess. The world, specially India, need to give an effort in this regard. References: Brownell, P.R.; Crosland, C. J.; (1972), The Requirement for Sodium as a Micronutrient by Species Having Carboxylic Photosynthetic Pathway, Plant Physiology, 49:794- 797. Epstein, E. (1965), Mineral Metabolism, J. Bonner and J.E.Varner eds. Plant Biochemistry, 3rd ed. Academy Press, New York, Pp. 438- 466. Epstein, E. (1972), Mineral Nutrition Plant, principles and Prospective, John Willey & Sons, New York Mongel, K.; Kirk by, E.A.(1978), Principles of Plant Nutrition, International Potash Institute, Berne, Switzerland Rains,D.W.(1976), Mineral Nutrition, J. Bonner and J.E.Varner eds. Plant biochemistry 3rd. ed. Academy Press, New York, Pp. 596- 597. Croom, S.; Romano, P and Giannakos, M,(2000), Supply Chain Management an Analytical Framework for Critical Literature Review, European Journal of Purchasing and Supply Management, 6(1).

Chopra, S; Mendel, P. (2006) Supply Chain Management Strategy, Planning and Operation, New Delhi, Pearson Education Fynes, B; Voss, C; Burca, S (2005), The Impact of Supply Chain Relationship Quality on Quality Performance, International Journal of production. Lamming, R (1993), Beyond Partnerships; Strategies for Innovation and Supply. THE Times of India, June16,2010., Kolkata.

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