Source of commission

The Himalayan Times

16 June 2022

Source of commission

Chemical fertiliser was introduced into Nepal in the early 1950s with the introduction of a small quantity of ammonium sulphate from India, imported by private traders. Chemical fertiliser has become a political commodity for many years which has been creating havoc among the farmers when they need it the most during rice plantation seasons. This situation has been hitting hard to both the farmers and the country’s economic growth which largely depends on agriculture. It normally takes six months to procure chemical fertiliser following a global tender call under the Public Procurement Act. If so, why don’t the government and its concerned ministry begin the process on time so that the fertilizers reach farmers field on right time? 

 According to the Agriculture Ministry, Nepal's annual requirement of chemical fertiliser stands at more than 700,000 tonnes. Demand for chemical fertiliser has increased enormously in the country in the last 10/15 years after farmers started practicing commercial farming. Agricultural experts opine that the rice production would sharply decrease if the government failed to supply fertilizer to the farmers in time and this situation would push the country towards a food crisis. According to the latest estimates of the Central Statistics Office, the contribution of the agriculture sector to the country's GDP is 23.95 per cent.

Agriculture is the main source of livelihood for more than half of the country’s population. However, timely supply of chemical fertilizers to the farmers has been highly negligent of the previous and this government. It is shame on the government, which continues to claim of increasing agricultural products, for being directed by the House of Representative (HoR) to provide fertilisers to farmers at the earliest “House directs govt to ensure fertilisers for farmers” (THT, June 14, Page 1). If the government continue to fail in timely importing the required volume of chemical fertilizer, why don’t it let the private sector import on a competitive basis so that the farmers don’t have to panic for it and buy it in black market paying 300 times more than the cost price?

Rai Biren Bangdel

Maharjgunj