61% paddy plantation completes in Koshi Province

By Our Correspondent,Urlabari, July 14: As of July 12, 61.67 per cent of paddy plantation has been completed in Koshi Province, six per cent more than the last year until this period. 

The plantation was only 55.90 per cent last year until this time. Bhawani Basnet, Crop Development Officer at the Agriculture Development Directorate of Koshi Province, 27.24 per cent of the cultivation has been completed in the past week alone. 

Basnet said that the easy availability of water, fertilizer, and pesticides this year helped in 100 per cent planting in Koshi Province.

According to Basnet, Morang has the highest planting rate at 71 per cent. Morang has 116,956 hectares of cultivable land, with paddy plantation occurring in 69,817 hectares. 

In contrast, Dhankuta has the lowest planting rate at just 35 per cent. Out of 40,723 hectares of cultivable land in Dhankuta, only 4,938 hectares have been cultivated. 

Favourable weather in the past week has resulted in extensive planting in Jhapa, Morang, and Sunsari. In the past week, Jhapa has seen 20.53 per cent, Morang 26 per cent, and Sunsari 38 per cent of planting.

The Directorate estimates that paddy will be planted on 332,896 hectares in Koshi Province this year. Last year, the estimate was 340,829 hectares, with actual planting on 331,088 hectares. 

The Directorate also projects an increase in paddy production this year. The paddy production is estimated to reach 1,382,137 metric tonnes this year. Last year, Koshi Province produced 1,298,855 metric tonnes of rice, according to the Directorate.

Production of Chaite paddy increases 

Meanwhile, our Sarlahi correspondent adds: The production of Chaite dhan (spring paddy) has increased in Sarlahi this year. 

According to the Agriculture Knowledge Centre, Sarlahi, the cultivation of Chaite paddy has increased this year, and the production has also risen. 

The office chief, Dewananda Rai, said that the paddy production had been good throughout the district. “The Chaite paddy has grown well in all parts of all the 20 municipalities of the district this year,” he added.

The office reported that the details of the area added for cultivation and the production of Chaite paddy is being collected. Although drought affected the rice for a while after planting, farmers reported that the subsequent rainfall helped the paddy to grow well. 

The increase in production has encouraged farmers, said Gokarna Paudel, head of the Agricultural Branch of Lalbandi Municipality. The absence of diseases and pests in the paddy has led to an increase in production.

The agricultural branch of the municipality reported that only a few farmers in Lalbandi Municipality were left to harvest the paddy. Paudel said that if the government focused on attracting farmers to Chaite paddy, it would greatly help achieve the goal of increasing production. As soon as the farmers of the district harvest spring paddy, they start planting summer paddy.

Agricultural technicians stressed the need to launch programmes to promote Chaite paddy, stating that the paddy grown in irrigated areas had been good and yielded well throughout the district this year.