Potatoes worth Rs 628.235 crore have been produced in the five local levels here. According to the Agricultural Knowledge Center Office, 9,665 metric tons of potatoes were produced in 478 hectares of land in the five local levels here in the current fiscal year 2082/83.

Rajesh Gurung, head of the Agricultural Knowledge Center, said that the potato production has increased by 118.4 million 75 thousand 400 rupees due to the partial expansion of potato productivity and production area in the current year compared to last year. According to the center, 20.22 metric tons of potatoes were produced per hectare in the current year. The area of ​​potato production has increased by 18 hectares compared to last year. Similarly, the potato production here has increased by about two metric tons per hectare in the current year compared to last year.

The farmers of the district sold at an average farm gate price of Rs 65 per kg in the current year, so the total production value was assessed accordingly, said Gurung, head of the center. He said that the potato production was assessed through the crop cutting method conducted in the presence of local level agricultural technicians in the joint coordination and cooperation of the Agricultural Knowledge Center and the National Agricultural Modernization Project Implementation Unit. According to him, Upper Mustang, Middle Mustang and Lower Mustang have been divided into three regions and the average production has been measured by visiting the fields of various potato producers there and collecting data on high-yielding, medium-yielding and low-yielding potatoes.

According to the statistics of the Agricultural Knowledge Center, a total of 8,496 metric tons of potatoes were produced in a total area of ​​460 hectares in the five local levels of the district last year. Last year, 18.38 percent of potatoes were produced here per hectare. According to the center, 13.76 percent of apples have been produced in the current year compared to the previous year.

Similarly, center chief Gurung said that last year, there was an increase of 1,169 metric tons of potato production in the current year. He said that while potatoes were sold at Rs 60 per kg in Mustang last year, they were sold at Rs 65 this year, an increase of Rs 5. Of the potatoes produced in the five local levels in the current fiscal year, 60 percent is consumed outside the district, 30 percent within the district and 10 percent as seed. Center Chief Gurung informed that one-third of the potatoes are consumed here for household purposes and in hotels and restaurants. Potatoes are also grown as an intercrop within the apple crop.

Mustang potatoes produced in the cold climate of the high geography of the Himalayan district are tasty and nutritious. Mustang potatoes are commonly eaten boiled and mashed. The local white potatoes produced here are highly preferred by consumers in the city market and tourists visiting the district.

Whether it is in the city market's Thakali kitchens or in big star hotels, Mustang potatoes have become established among the general consumers, so the demand for Mustang potatoes is high. Recently, as the Korala road has become easier, the demand for potatoes has increased after Mustang apples, said Ajit Thakali, a farmer from Gharpajhong-4, Jomsom.

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