Himal Press 
A farmer applying urea to his paddy crop. Photo: RSS
KATHMANDU: Although government officials have been saying that they have sufficient chemical fertilizers in stock, farmers have not been able to apply fertilizers to their paddy crops.
According to Dr. Hari Bahadur KC, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperative, the ministry has 96,000 tons of chemical fertilizers in stock. “Krishi Samagri Company Ltd and Salt Trading Corporation have been dispatching fertilizers to distribution centers across the country,” he added. “About 367,000 tons have already been distributed.”
Dr. KC claimed that there is no shortage of chemical fertilizers.
Farmers, however, say that they have not been able to get chemical fertilizers. Jivan Roka from Mulpani in Tripura Rural Municipality of Dhading said that local farmers have not been able to get fertilizers even though the planting season is about to end. “On one hand, the government says sufficient fertilizer is in stock, but on the other, we can’t find it at cooperatives,” Roka said. “I couldn’t get fertilizers for my seasonal cash crops as well.”
The ministry has announced that 131,000 tons of fertilizer will be imported by mid-July. “Once this shipment arrives, there won’t be a shortage for monsoon farming. We have invited tenders for the supply of 250,000 tons for the coming fiscal year,” KC said. “The contract to procure 90,000 tons has already been awarded.”
Speaking in the parliament last week, then Minister for Agriculture and Cooperatives, Jwala Kumari Sah, assured that chemical fertilizers will not be in short supply in the current and upcoming fiscal years. However, farmers in different parts of the country say they are not getting chemical fertilizers.
Two state-owned entities – Krishi Samagri Company Ltd and Salt Trading Corporation – have imported 390,000 tons of chemical fertilizers till the third week of June. The ministry opened tenders for 600,000 tons in the current fiscal year.
The government has already allocated Rs 27.95 billion to procure chemical fertilizers for the fiscal year 2024/25. According to the ministry, the allocated budget would be sufficient to procure 600,000 tons.
