July 20: The Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development has claimed of achieving 76 per cent progress in terms of fiscal management by the end of the Fiscal Year 2021/22. Despite the ministry's claim, the farmers are unhappy as they are not getting chemical fertilizers during the time of planting rice.    
The farmers need nearly 300,000 metric tonnes chemical fertilisers in the month of Asar (mid-June to mid-July) alone. The government says 218,000 metric tonnes of subsidised fertiliser has been sold during this period.      
Farmers need 1.2 million metric tonnes of fertiliser annually.    
The progress in planting rice across the country as of July 12 during the Fiscal Year 2020/21 was 68 percent which declined by 8 percentage points to 60 percent in the corresponding period of the last fiscal year (FY 2021/22).

"The government procures 500,000 metric tonnes of chemical fertiliser and the private sector 700,000 metric tonnes," said Govinda Prasad Sharma, the Agricultural Secretary.    
The Department of Agriculture informed that the paddy cultivation has not been encouraging as the farmers have not got sufficient amount of fertiliser by mid-July. The paddy cultivation in Nepal is done until mid-August during the monsoon. Rice plantation was 97 per cent by mid-August last fiscal year.    
Joint Secretary and Spokesperson of the ministry Prakash Kumar Sanjel said the ministry has successfully carried out 13 major works by the end of the fiscal year 2021/22.    
These include: policy and legal arrangements, fixation of the price of various crops and agriculture produce, provision of relief to the farmers affected by the unseasonal rains, import and sale of chemical fertilisers, quality control, implementation of the Prime Minister Agriculture Modernisation Project, technical extension works, genetic improvement, vaccine production and management, livestock services, fishery and crop insurance, export of livestock products, agriculture infrastructure development and listing of farmers.    
The bill to amend the Seeds Act, 2045 and the Plant Protection Act, 2064 has been authenticated by President Bidya Devi Bhandari.    
Similarly, the Bird Flu Control Regulations, 2078 and the National Animal Health Policy, 2078, the National Animal Breeding Policy, 2078 have been endorsed.    
The draft of the National Fisheries Policy has been tabled at the Council of Ministers for its passage and the Food Hygiene and Quality Bill, 2079 in the National Assembly after its deliberation in the legislation committee.    
The drafts of the bills including Animal Welfare, Infectious Animal Disease Control and Agribusiness Promotion have proceeded after their deliberation in the Nepal Law Commission.  -- RSS