KATHMANDU, July 30: The government entities of Nepal and India signed an agreement to supply 827,000 tons of chemical fertilizers to Nepal in the next five years.
Nepal’s state-owned Agriculture Inputs Company Limited (AICL) few days ago inked the agreement with Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilizers Limited, India, to purchase the aforementioned amount of chemical fertilizers. Of the total amount, Nepal will be purchasing 457,000 tons of urea and 370,000 tons of Diammonium Phosphate (DAP) from its southern neighbor.
Farmers to face fertilizer shortage next year too
The bilateral accord has come as significant progress in the government-to-government agreement reached between two countries last April. In the first batch, Nepal is importing 50,000 tons of DAP and 100,000 tons of urea, which is expected to enter Nepal by mid-November, according to Prakash Sanjel, Spokesperson at the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development.
Spokesperson Sanjel said 60,000 tons of DAP and 110,000 tons of urea will be imported next year while 80,000 tons of DAP and 115,000 tons of urea will be imported in the fiscal year 2024/25. Similarly, Nepal will be importing 120,000 tons of urea and 90,000 tons of DAP in each of two successive years.
Almost every year, Nepali farmers struggle to get adequate quantities of chemical fertilizers during the main crop plantation season. Despite the government’s commitment to solve the problems, farmers have failed to get any respite so far.
