Pesticides manufacturer Dhanuka Agritech posted a consolidated net profit of Rs 46.07 crore for the October-December quarter, up by 8 per cent from Rs 42.52 crore year-ago.
Revenue rose 10 per cent to Rs 393.37 crore in the quarter, from Rs 356.86 crore in the corresponding period of the previous year, Dhanuka group said in a statement Friday.
With few instances of insect attack, insecticide consumption was impacted, said M K Dhanuka, Managing Director.
“Dhanuka had reasonable growth in the top line in spite of the odds . The climatic conditions were not favourable for insecticide usage. Excessive rainfall in October led to delayed harvesting and sowing of Rabi crops,” he said.
However, government data pointed to early sowing of wheat and mustard crops in many parts of northern India over the previous season.
A 3 per cent increase in Rabi acreage had boosted the outlook, while the overall condition of standing crops was good. With commodity prices increasing, farmers could expect a good return on their crops. “So they will be ready to spend more money to safeguard their crops from pests and diseases,” he added.
“Overall, prices were declining, and since the company could not pass on the burden of a high-cost inventory to the consumer, it had to bear losses on account of carry forward of this inventory,” he said.