Minister with farmers’ programme launched in Province 4

Kathmandu, June 30: Minister for Land Management, Agriculture and Cooperatives of Province 4 Lekh Bahadur Thapa has launched the 'Minister with the Farmers' programme with the aim of listening to the issues of the farmers and supporting them.

He interacted with the farmers of Gandaki Rural Municipality – 8, Ghyalchowk on Saturday as part of the programme.

"The programme has been launched to have face to face interaction with the farmers. The provincial government is serious about the problems the farmers are facing in farming, irrigation, market access and storage of their products," said Thapa.

According to him, the province government will provide about 50 per cent grant to the farmers for vegetable and fruit farming, beekeeping, poultry and pig farming, and animal husbandry. However, priority will be given to the farmers' groups and agri-cooperatives.

“The grant will be provided on the basis of the result. We want to promote commercial agriculture,” said Thapa.

The provincial government has allocated Rs. 400 million for the programme. The money will be spent on the programmes that directly impact the lives of the common people.

Farmers of Ghyalchowk had updated the minister about the problems they were facing in irrigation and storage.

They said that the middlemen had been making huge profits instead of the farmers.

"Farmers are not getting a fair price in the villages, but the middlemen and traders are earning a lot by selling the vegetables in the cities. The government should support the farmers with easy access to the market," said Ram Prasad Regmi, chairman of Gandaki-8.

Such programmes can motivate the youth to take up commercial agriculture and stay in their village instead of leaving their homes in search of jobs in the Gulf and elsewhere, he said.

According to Regmi, ward No. 8 has received Rs. 9 million for irrigation projects from the provincial government. The ward office is also planning to create a matching fund to manage the remaining budget for such programmes.

Local farmer Sabitra Khatiwada said that the 'Minister with the Farmers' programme was good and the people were happy to see the minister listening to their problems in their own village.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 1 July 2018.