The humidity center, which was built in Shrawan 2080 after a two-year delay, has not yet been put into use, although it has been tested.
What you should know
The humidity center built at a cost of Rs 70 million in Sanimdau, Manthali Municipality-1, Ramechhap, has remained idle. The humidity center, built in a 70/30 cost partnership between the Bagmati Province Government and Manthali Municipality, has not been operational.
The center, which was built at a cost of about 70 million rupees, was taken over by Easy Infra Pvt. Ltd. Kathmandu to be completed by Ashar 2078 BS. However, the construction was delayed by two years and the work was completed only in Shrawan 2080 BS. Although the humidity center has been tested, it has not been put into use yet. According to local Shanta Subedi, this has directly affected farmers dependent on junar, kiwi, potato and vegetable production. She said, ‘The structure invested in crores is closed. Farmers are in trouble due to lack of humidity facilities.’
This 500 metric ton capacity humidity center was built in the district headquarters with the aim of storing fruits and vegetable produce produced across the district including Manthali and Ramechhap municipalities.
However, farmers in some places have demanded that alternative arrangements be made as it is unusable. According to Pushkar Bahadur Karki, a farmer from Ramechhap Municipality-6, the humidity center was built in an inconvenient location for farmers. He said, "It is 25 kilometers away from Okhreni. On the one hand, there is a problem with vehicles, on the other hand, there is a possibility of damage while transporting goods on the dirt road. It seems that keeping it in humidity in the future and taking it out after a month or two will cause more loss than benefit." He said that since the humidity center is in an inconvenient location, small 'cold chambers' should also be built in the settlements where agricultural produce is produced. Bagmati Province has invested 49.7 million and Manthali Municipality 21.3 million in the humidity center. Although the main structure of the center has been built, the minimum infrastructure such as the gherbar, staff residence and toilets have not yet been built. Manthali Municipality Mayor Lav Shrestha informed that the provincial government has allocated 5 million budget for the construction of minimum infrastructure this year. He said, "After much effort, this year alone, Rs 5 million has been allocated from the province. The remaining work was to be started immediately from this budget. But the work has not been able to move forward since it was said that the budget will be sent only after preparing the working procedures." He said that now the municipality will proceed with the work by contracting after the provincial government sends the working procedures and budget.
