Due to continuous rain, rice that was about to be harvested has fallen in the fields. Farmers are concerned that both production and quality will decrease as the rice gets soaked in the rain.
Ramraj Wagle of Pokhara-32 Malmul, who planted Pokhareli Jetho-Budho rice in 12 ropanis last year, brought in 60 bushels. This year, he planted half of the Jetho-Budho and Bigo Mansuli varieties. He had expected to bring in 75 bushels of rice as the irrigation was good. But due to the continuous rain, the rice that was about to be harvested collapsed in the field. He is worried that both the production and quality will decrease if the rice gets wet due to the rain.
In the Malmul field, 1,600 ropanis of paddy have been planted with the varieties of big mansuli, pahenle, anadi and jetho budho. Some of them had cut pahenle and anadi and left them in the field, while others had made kuniu. But big mansuli and jetho budho were not cut because they ripen only in the last week of Kartik.
The unseasonal rain has soaked the rice that was cut and kept in the field. Water has also seeped into the kuniu, soaking the rice, said Regmi, who is also the coordinator of the ward agricultural network. ‘The rice that was cut and kept in the field before the rain came is just that,’ he said, ‘The rice that was left to be cut has also fallen.’ He said that after the rice gets wet, the rice becomes sticky and even cattle do not like such straw.
The rain has affected the fields across Fewa Lake, including Pame, Birauta, Sisuwa, Hemja, where a lot of jalapeno is produced. The rains that came with the storm in Hemja field washed away the paddy that was ready to be harvested, said Pokhara Metropolitan Agriculture Division Chief Manhar Kadaria. ‘Most of the hybrid paddy has been harvested, but it was not yet time to harvest the elder ones,’ he said. ‘The rain has affected the paddy that was ready to be harvested, and the monsoons.’
He said that some farmers had protected the harvested paddy by covering it with plastic tarpaulins. ‘Other paddy was ripe, but the elder ones were just about to emerge,’ he said. ‘If it rains at this time, it will also affect production.’ He estimates that only 30 percent of the paddy has been harvested and imported in Pokhara so far.
Paddy is cultivated on 11,200 hectares in Pokhara. Of that, elder ones are planted on 40 percent. The metropolis even provides subsidies for the cultivation of the fragrant elder ones, which has become Pokhara’s identity. Last year, 38,000 metric tons of rice were produced in Pokhara. Although it is expected to increase this year, it is seen that the rain will affect the production.
When rice is stored for a long time and cannot be dried in the sun, the quality and price also decrease. After receiving signs of rain, the metropolis disseminated information to farmers to protect rice through the Pokhara Agriculture Mobile App and social media, but it was not effective for all farmers.
