Srinagar, Aug. 7 -- At his farm in south Kashmir's Shopian district, Mohammad Yousuf was loading sacks of fertiliser onto his wooden cart when the dealer handed him a small plastic bottle.

"He said I had to buy this nano urea, or I wouldn't get my usual DAP," Yousuf said. "When I asked why, he told me it was a government rule."

It wasn't.

Kashmiri farmers like Yousuf say they're being pressured to buy nano urea, a newer, liquid fertiliser, alongside their regular, subsidised fertilisers like DAP, urea, or MOP.

The practice, often called "tagging," has become widespread in recent months, with retailers reportedly refusing to sell subsidised fertilisers unless nano urea is purchased along with them.

The Union Ministry of Agriculture ha...