Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal "Prachanda" on Friday promised to make the Himalayan nation self-reliant in rice production, and urged farmers to use climate-friendly techniques to increase its output.
Speaking on the occasion of the 20th Rashtriya Dhan Dibas (National Rice Day) here, Prachanda said that his government is ensuring proper irrigation facilities for cultivating rice.
“Use climate-adopted agriculture-friendly technology to increase rice production and this is going to be this year's National Rice Day slogan. The government is working towards making Nepal self-reliant in rice, the main food item of the country," said Prachanda.
Rice is the staple crop of Nepal like several other hilly regions.
However, rice production has not increased as farmers lack advanced varieties of rice seeds, chemical fertilisers, irrigation facilities, and machine tools for planting paddy.
As the production of paddy decreased and consumption increased, Nepal had to import to address the huge demand for rice.
The nation imported 724,000 metric tonnes of rice in 2022-2023 while the domestic production was 5,486,000 tonnes, which is insufficient to meet the demand.
As the country received late monsoon rain this year, rice saplings were planted in only 11 per cent of the total cultivable land.
Prachanda said that the government is prioritising the expansion of irrigation facilities, and subsidies to support the farmers in the country.
"Keeping in mind the important role played by rice in maintaining food security and food sovereignty, the government has been prioritising expansion of irrigation facilities, subsidy in chemical fertiliser and seeds, expansion of technology, research and development and implementation of minimum supporting price for rice," he said.