Despite adequate budget allocation, procedural delay from govt hit farmers hard every year
KATHMANDU, April 8: The government has planned to increase budget allocation by a notable amount to procure chemical fertilizers for the next fiscal year.
According to the Ministry of Finance, the government will be spending a total of Rs 49 billion to import chemical fertilizers, targeting to solve the perennial problem of farmers. The aforementioned amount will be around Rs 11 billion more than the government’s targeted expenditure of Rs 38.50 billion for the current fiscal year, said Finance Secretary Toyam Raya at a program organized on Friday.
Every year, the government makes a lofty announcement assuring farmers to make adequate supply of the agricultural inputs on time. However, the government fails to keep its promise almost every time.
Through the budget announcement for the fiscal year 2022/23, the government at first had separated mere Rs 15 billion under the heading. Later on, the government allocated an additional Rs 23.50 billion.
The amount was considered to procure 331,500 tons of the agriculture inputs. However, due to the delay in forwarding the official process, the government has been unable to bring in the set amount during the planting season.
The domestic demand for the chemical fertilizers stands at 520,000 tons annually. Failing to get the subsidized fertilizers on time, many farmers are compelled to purchase fertilizers at higher costs.