Paddy output down 1% in current fiscal year from record high

Published On: January 4, 2020 12:54 PM NPT By: Republica  | @RepublicaNepal


KATHMANDU, Jan 4: Paddy production in the current Fiscal Year 2019/20 has declined by one percentage point, or 59,000 tons, to 5.55 million tons, according to a government projection. 

Releasing the initial estimate of paddy harvest for the current fiscal year, the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development said that the paddy output fell by 59,000 tons in the current fiscal year from the record high production of 5.61 million tons in the last Fiscal Year 2018/19.

Issuing a statement, the ministry attributed barren land due to low plantation coverage, delay in monsoon arrival, damage wrought by insects to the major cereal crops and problem related to seeds to the lower output of the paddy.

However, the paddy productivity has gone up by 1.17 percent to 3,804 kg per hectare in the current Fiscal Year 2019/20 from 3,760 kg per hectare, according to the ministry.

“While the production figure looks lower compared to the last fiscal year, the current fiscal year is the second highest paddy output year and the record high in terms of productivity,” read the statement.

Economists voice concerns that the decline in the paddy output, which has the highest share in the agriculture sector, could affect the economic growth of the country.


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