There is an opportunity to sell potatoes to the farmers of Sinja Rural Municipality-6. Traders are selling potatoes at Rs 30 per kg after they started buying potatoes in the village. Due to the lack of sale of potatoes till last year, they are forced to rot in pits and now they are not able to deliver them to traders.
After the traders reached the village to buy potatoes with their vehicles, the potatoes stored in the ditches have been started to be taken out. Belkaura Budha, a local woman, said that because potatoes are grown collectively in the village, it is easy to sell them.
According to him, Mahadev Janaseva Agricultural Production Group has grown potatoes in an area of two hectares. That area is known as potato pocket area. Most potatoes are produced in Mazkhark of Sinja Rural Municipality-6.
The demand for Raithane potatoes is high here. Potatoes from here go from Surkhet, Nepalganj to Karnali districts. Ward President Lal Bahadur Budha said that the provision of collective farming has been brought forward to focus farmers' attention on potato production and make potato farming the main source of income. According to the
group, potatoes worth 231,000 rupees have been exported. As all the men have gone to Kalapahad, the women are busy selling potatoes. Jovana Budha, secretary of the group, said that 77 quintals of potatoes have been sold. Last year, we sold 140 quintals of potatoes and brought in 312,000 rupees," said secretary Jovana. "This year, it seems that sales will increase compared to last year."
A total of 51 members have cultivated potatoes together. "Since the road reaches the village, there is no problem in the marketing of potatoes," she said. Traders go to their homes to buy potatoes. After seeing the interest of farmers in potato cultivation, the Sinja rural municipality agriculture development branch supported 3 lakh rupees last year and 24 lakh rupees in the current financial year.
Sinja Rural Municipality-6 has started to be expanded as a potato production area, Ward President Budha said. He said, "Efforts are being made to advance the entire ward in the agricultural sector. We have come to encourage business.'
Currently, the price of potatoes is being bought and sold at 50 rupees per kg in the Khalanga area of the headquarters. In Sinja, which is considered a remote area, getting Rs 30 per kg is a good deal. Ward head Budha said that since the potato is a local variety, it is very tasty and nutritious in food. In the future, Sinja Rural Municipality will prioritize the expansion of potato farming in the budget and policy programs.
It is customary to use potatoes in crops such as corn and beans. Farmers have said that they have been cultivating potato in the recent past.
