The government's fertiliser subsidy bill for 2026-27 may surge by Rs 70,000 crore to Rs 2.41 lakh crore, driven by rising import costs of urea and other fertilisers amid the ongoing West Asia crisis, a senior official said on Monday. Aparna S Sharma, Additional Secretary, Department of Fertilisers, on the sidelines of inter-ministerial briefing on West Asia developments, said, "The subsidy bill will go up, but what percentage is something I cannot say." On whether the increase could be as much as Rs 70,000 crore, she said, "may be." The budgetary allocation for fertiliser subsidies in 2026-27 stands at Rs 1.71 lakh crore.