The experts were speaking at an interaction with farmers at the Western Regional Agriculture Directorate here on Friday.
Janardan Adhikari, director, WRAD, said the experts came to the conclusion that the farmers were likely to face food shortage in coming days given the limited paddy plantation in the region.
“Agriculture experts gathered here have asked the government to come up with relief packages to the affected farmers, considering the drought as a natural calamity,” Adhikari said. He further added that farmer had been advised to cultivate maize, beans and vegetables in areas which have remained barren due to insufficient rainfall.
“Cultivation of vegetables and other crops such as beans, soybeans, black gram, radish, spinach, cauliflower, lady´s finger, cucumber, maize and buckwheat have been suggested to the farmers to ward off the possible famine in coming days,” Adhikari added.
Agriculture scientists have warned of food crisis in coming days as paddy plantation has become possible in only 43 percent of paddy fields in Tarai districts and 71 percent of paddy fields in hill districts in western region so far. Irrigation facility is available to about 20 percent of arable land in the region.
Of the total 337,362 hectare of land in the region, paddy plantation has been completed in only 188, 861 hectares.
“Tarai districts are more affected than the hilly districts. If the drought continued till the end of July, cultivated fields might also turn barren,” Adhikari added.
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