KATHMANDU, Sept 30: State-owned Food Management and Trading Company (FMTC) is likely to start selling goats for Dashain festival from Monday and mountain goats from Tuesday.
Yogendra Gauchan, director-general of Department of Commerce, Supply & Consumer Protection, said that the state-owned company was selling some 3,000 goats in Kathmandu Valley this Dashain to intervene in market for controlling arbitrary price hike in the market. “As the number of goats that we are targeting to sell is higher than previous years, I don’t think there will be shortage in the market,” he added.
Of around 3,000 goats brought to Kathmandu by us, some 2,600 will be sold, according to Gauchan.
FMTC starts selling goats for Dashain at concessional price
The company also plans to sell some 2,000 mountain goats. It has already procured mountain goats from Mustang district. They flock is on the way to Kathmandu, he added.
FMTC will sell goats from its Thapathali-based godown.
Sharmila Subedi Neupane, the spokesperson for FMTC, said the company will start selling goats as soon as the price is fixed. “If the price is fixed tomorrow, we will start selling goats from Tuesday,” she said, adding that 550 mountain goats will enter Kathmandu on Monday.
FMTC has been buying goats and mountain goats from different parts of the country for Dashain for the past many years. “We started selling goats and mountain goats to ensure that livestock farmers get fair price for their herd,” said Neupane.
Officials of the company told Republica that company was bringing only healthy goats and mountain goats to Kathmandu.
Last year, the government entity had sold live goats at Rs 500 per kg and live mountain goats at Rs 700 per kg.
According to FMTC, an individual can buy only one goat or mountain goat.
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