Farmers Await Over Rs 2.57 Billion in Payments as Government Vows to Settle Dues Before Dashain
Farmers producing milk and sugarcane are still awaiting payments totaling over Rs 2.57 billion from the government for their sold products. According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development (MoALD), milk producers are owed more than Rs 1.27 billion, while sugarcane farmers have yet to receive Rs 1.30 billion in subsidies.
During a press conference on Sunday, Agriculture Minister Ram Nath Adhikari acknowledged that the government has cleared Rs 335.70 million of the outstanding payments to milk producers. He assured that the remaining dues for both milk and sugarcane farmers would be settled before Dashain.
Minister Adhikari also announced that the MoALD would soon disclose the names of individuals found misusing agricultural grants provided by the government. The ministry has received numerous complaints regarding the misuse of these funds, which were intended to enhance agricultural production across various sectors.
Reaffirming the government's plan to categorize farmers to better allocate state-provided facilities, Adhikari noted that the distribution of farmer identity cards based on this categorization has yet to be implemented. The MoALD's Farmers Enlisting Program, launched in 2020, has registered over 1.8 million farmers to date, with a goal of enlisting at least 1.2 million more in the current fiscal year. The ministry aims to link agricultural grant facilities to these registered farmers to boost productivity.
In the meantime, the government projects a significant increase in food grain yields, including paddy, corn, and wheat, for the current fiscal year. MoALD data indicates that Nepal produced over 10.96 million tons of these cereals in 2023/24, with an expected increase to over 11.04 million tons this fiscal year. Paddy production is projected to rise to 5.735 million tons from 5.724 million tons, corn to 3.095 million tons from 3.089 million tons, and wheat to 2.215 million tons from 2.155 million tons.
