23rd National Paddy Day Celebrated Across Nepal

Kathmandu. The 23rd National Paddy Day and Plantation Festival was celebrated by planting paddy across the country. The National Paddy Day has been celebrated since Ashar 15, 2062 BS, following a ministerial decision on Mangsir 29, 2061 BS.

The government organized the main ceremony at the National Grain Research Center under the Nepal Agricultural Research Council in Khumaltar, Lalitpur, with the main slogan 'Climate-friendly technology, self-sufficiency in paddy, and prosperity'. The Department of Agriculture stated that the day was celebrated with the objective of strengthening food and nutrition security by increasing paddy production amidst the challenges of climate change. On the occasion of the day, plantation was done using technology, and fertilizer was sprayed using drones.

At the main ceremony, Ashok Kumar Chaudhary, Chairman of the Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee under the House of Representatives, said that while the concerned bodies are making efforts for paddy production, if the problems of the farmers are also considered, Nepal can produce the required amount of paddy. He suggested to the government to pay proper attention to the expansion of irrigation, availability of fertilizer, and market management.

Similarly, Dr. Rajendra Prasad Mishra, Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forests and Environment, said that the average productivity of paddy is still low, and the challenges seen for increasing production must be resolved. He stated that currently, it is focused on a single paddy crop, but two crops of paddy can be planted if there is irrigation and fertilizer availability. He mentioned that due to the international price increase of fertilizer, there is a lack of budget to bring sufficient fertilizer.

According to the Department of Agriculture, out of 4.131 million farmer households in Nepal, 2.765 million households are involved in paddy cultivation, and paddy is cultivated in 54 percent of the total arable land.

The department stated that in the fiscal year 2081/82, paddy was produced in 1.420636 million hectares of land, yielding 5.955476 million metric tons. However, since the country requires about 7 million metric tons of paddy annually, about 1 million metric tons of paddy is still deficient.

This year, due to insufficient rainfall in all parts of the country until mid-Ashar, the expected amount of paddy plantation has not been done. Farmers have complained about the lack of chemical fertilizers in many places.