Road obstruction leads to vegetables rotting in Darchula

KHALANGA, July 22: The vegetables produced by farmers have started rotting in the farmlands as the only road connecting Byas of Darchula district and the district headquarters, Khalanga has been obstructed by landslides.

The road has been disrupted by landslides at various places of the road caused by rains since the end of June. As a result, potatoes produced in Byas have been rotting without the supply, said farmer Harish Dhami. The vegetables were cultivated with the financial and technical assistance of the Agriculture Development Section of the Byas Rural Municipality, he said. 

The farmers have also demanded that the government also facilitates the transportation of agricultural products from the villages. The potatoes produced by the local Janabhabana Sana Kisan Krishi Cooperative Limited have started rotting in the farmlands with their transportation, said the agriculture section chief Bishseshwor Prasad Badu.

Around 600 quintals of potatoes produced by the farmers have started rotting, he informed. Of the amounts, 100 quintals have been taken from the farmlands, and the remaining 500 quintals have remained there, he said. "There is neither a good road network nor a cold store to store the agricultural products. As a result, the vegetables produced by the farmers are rotting in the farmlands," said farmer Akabar Singh Dhami. 

This is the perennial problem of a road blockade when the Nepali month of Ashadh starts. As a result, the vegetables produced by farmers rot in the farmlands without the supply, said another farmer Pramananda Bhatta.