About four hundred farmers in Bhajani were waiting in line for urea fertilizer, but none of them received it.
What you should know
Farmers in the Far West are currently facing an acute shortage of urea fertilizer. Farmers in areas including Bhajani and Kailari in Kailali have been unable to obtain urea fertilizer even after staying awake all night and even through a lottery process.
Four members of the Rajaram Chaudhary family from Sonafanta, Bhajani Municipality-9, went to the small farmers' cooperative in Bhajani-1 Bhajani on Monday to get urea fertilizer. But they waited in line all night and could not get the fertilizer even till Tuesday.
About four hundred farmers from Bhajani had lined up for urea fertilizer. But none of them got it. Rajaram Chaudhary said, 'I have cultivated wheat on about 20 bighas, and we are frustrated because we did not get the fertilizer when we needed it. We returned empty-handed that day. We do not know when we will get it.'
Thirteen families from Sonafanta alone had reached Bhajani for urea fertilizer, but he said that none of them had received it. The cooperative had informed that three hundred bags of urea had arrived and would be distributed. Based on that information, about seven hundred people lined up for the fertilizer. But a clash broke out among those standing in the queue. Then, the cooperative said that it would not be able to distribute the fertilizer, saying that it would not be enough. After that, the farmers returned empty-handed.
Small Farmers Cooperative Manager Basanti Chaudhary also said that the number of people lining up was twice as high as the urea fertilizer available with the cooperative, so it could not be distributed. 'The Agricultural Materials Company Limited had provided us with 308 bags of urea, but the number of people lining up exceeded about 700. After that, we could not distribute it. Now, she says, we will distribute it after receiving another batch of agricultural materials.
The same situation is also in Kailari Rural Municipality. Tension arose at Kalika Agricultural Cooperative Limited in Hasulia on Monday when the line for urea fertilizer and the fertilizer available in the cooperative did not match. 'Only 150 bags of urea fertilizer had arrived. The number of people demanding fertilizer reached more than 400. Then we decided to give it only to share members, that number was also high,' said cooperative chairman Tilak Bohara. 'Then we decided to draw lots among the share members and get one bag.' She said that more fertilizer would be provided after a few days, so fertilizer would be distributed only after more fertilizer arrived.
Farmers also queued up all night on Monday at two other shops in Bhajani that sell government-subsidized fertilizer. Some farmers returned empty-handed after running out of fertilizer in both places. According to the agriculture department of Bhajani Municipality, although 43,000 quintals of urea are required this season, only 7,500 quintals of urea fertilizer have arrived so far as of Wednesday.
In previous years, farmers used to illegally bring fertilizer on bicycles from the Indian border area to work. But local farmers have said that fertilizer is not available in the Indian border market at this time.
Naval Singh Bogati, head of the Agricultural Materials Company Limited Provincial Office, Dhangadhi, said that there is a stock of 743 metric tons of urea for Kailali so far. He said that fertilizer is provided to cooperatives and firms at every local level as authorized sellers. 'Bhajani and Kailari municipalities receive the most fertilizer in Kailali. 17 cooperatives and firms in Bhajani are our authorized sellers,' said Chief Bogati. We have provided 304 sacks to a cooperative." Bogati said that preparations are now underway to distribute the next lot by Sunday.
Urea fertilizer is required during the planting of food crops including wheat, mustard, lentils, pulses and oilseeds, and potatoes, as well as major vegetable crops. The bodies responsible for supplying and distributing fertilizers in the Far West are Agricultural Materials Company Limited and Salt Trading Corporation Limited. Salt Trading and Agricultural Materials receive 30 percent of the fertilizer quota received by the Far West and 70 percent and sell it.
Salt Trading and Agricultural Materials do not sell directly to farmers. They sell fertilizers to private sector traders and cooperatives by determining quotas. After Agricultural Materials provides them, there is a provision for farmers to buy fertilizers from dealers.
When assigning dealers in this way, at least two vendors are assigned in a ward on the recommendation of the relevant local level, says Office Chief Bogati. 'We have assigned about 400 dealers throughout Kailali district,' he said, '47 in Dhangadhi "We have determined the vendor." Bogati says that the quantity of fertilizer that will be provided to a vendor is not certain.
