न्यूज अभियान
हरेक खबर विशेष खबर

Bagmati, Oct 31: Farmers in Padampokhari, Hetauda Sub-Metropolitan City–13, have been drawn to commercial papaya farming. As fruit farming started bringing in good income, more than 100 local farmers have got involved in this business.
According to Phenchu Lama, the president of the Adhamar Farmers' Group, commercial papaya farming has been expanding in Padampokhari for the past seven years. Currently, about 30 thousand papaya trees are producing fruits here. Suntali Maya Waiba alone has cultivated papaya on 30 kattha of land.
Last year, 500 thousand kilogrammes of papaya was sold from Padampokhari. According to the farmers, there is no problem in selling the papaya. The trend of traders coming directly to the farms to buy the fruits has increased. The papaya produced here is mainly sold in cities like Birgunj, Kathmandu, and Pokhara.
The papaya farming has been expanded to Padampokhari’s Thulothali and other areas as well.
Ranju Maya Ghalan, a farmer from Thulothali, has planted 550 papaya trees on her farm. Last year, she sold fruit worth 300 thousand rupees.
She said that she was attracted to papaya cultivation after seeing the potential for good income from fruit farming. However, Ghalan mentioned that problems such as fruit leaves rotting and fruits falling have started to appear. She said that technical advice is being sought to solve the problem.
The Hetauda Sub-Metropolitan City mayor, Meena Lama, said that the sub-metropolis has also been supporting and promoting the expansion of commercial fruit and vegetable farming, including papaya cultivation. The sub-metropolis also supports the fruit farmers in marketing of their produce.
A week before Dashain, an agricultural fair was held with the slogan 'From the Field to the Plate', aiming to deliver local produce directly from farmers to consumers. The fair featured an exhibition and sale of agricultural products produced within the sub-metropolitan area.
In the sub-metropolitan city's budget and programme for the fiscal year 2083/84, priority has been given to plans that make youth self-employed and increase self-reliance in agriculture.
Along with traditional farming, the policy has been to promote modern fruit farming and run commercial agriculture programmes through farmer groups and cooperatives. The expansion of commercial farming has also impacted local employment and other businesses.
Recently, local auto driver Deepak Lama said that around 200 autos are operating in the Padampokhari area.
The autorikshaw operators have also benefited here as the trade of agricultural products and the movement of locals increased.
The expansion of commercial farming has also affected local employment and other businesses. Recently, in the Padampokhari area, around 200 autos are operating, local auto driver Deepak Lama said.