Agriculture Minister Pledges Reduced Reliance on Chemical Fertilizers

Kathmandu. Agriculture, Forest and Environment Minister Gita Chaudhary has expressed commitment to gradually reduce dependence on chemical fertilizers.

Responding to questions raised by MPs on the allocation title of her ministry on Wednesday, she clarified that the government has adopted a policy to increase the use of biological and organic fertilizers to reduce the import and dependence on chemical fertilizers, and has also arranged the necessary budget for it.

Minister Chaudhary also informed that the Ministry of Finance has assured that there will be no shortage of budget to ensure that there is no shortage of fertilizer in the country.

The ministry has made arrangements to provide subsidies for organic fertilizers to reduce dependence on chemical fertilizers and promote sustainable agriculture. For this, a budget of 35 crore rupees has been proposed at the federal level and 11 crore 24 lakh rupees under conditional grants at the provincial level, informed Minister Chaudhary.

In addition, for the smooth supply of chemical fertilizers in the upcoming fiscal year, a sum of 32 arba 46 crore rupees has been allocated. She clarified that farmers will not face fertilizer shortage as the Ministry of Finance has already committed to provide additional budget if needed for fertilizer purchase and supply.

To ensure that farmers receive fertilizer on time and transparently, the distribution system has also been improved. Arrangements have been made to make the distribution of fertilizer systematic and transparent with equal participation and cooperation of all three tiers of government: federal, provincial, and local.

Stating that the supply and management action plan for fertilizer for the upcoming fiscal year has also been fully prepared, Minister Chaudhary claimed that the government has made proper arrangements for the necessary subsidy budget to provide relief to the farmers.