Currently, farmers are unable to get a fair price for the vegetables they produce when they have to sell them immediately in the market.
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Even after 8 months of completion of construction, the cold store building in Dipayal Siliguri Municipality-2 of the district has not been put into operation. The cold store, built with the aim of providing relief to farmers by storing agricultural products, has become unused due to lack of operating procedures.
The municipality had called for bids with an estimated cost of Rs 758,000. In the bid published on Poush 23, 2081, SS Construction won the contract for Rs 631,12,798. Although the construction work was completed on Asad 20, 2082, the operation process has not yet started.
Arrangements have been made to store vegetables and fruits in the cold store with a capacity of 30 tons. Six ACs have been installed inside the building and a generator worth about Rs 500,000 has also been installed. According to the municipality's overseer Sunil Bhandari, the delay in starting the service has been due to lack of operating procedures even though the infrastructure is ready.
'The structure is ready, the necessary equipment has also been installed,' he said, 'but there is a delay in putting it into use as the necessary procedures for operation have not been developed.'
According to Hikmat Saund, head of the municipality's agriculture branch, a budget of Rs 334,000 has been allocated in the current fiscal year for the operation of the cold store. 'This is a new practice for us,' he said, 'It took some time to decide on the operating modality. Now preparations are underway to operate it soon.'
It is expected that the cold store will bring great relief to local farmers. Currently, when the vegetables produced have to be sold in the market immediately, farmers are not able to get a fair price.
Naveen Bhandari, a farmer from Municipality-5 Gholtada, said, 'The vegetables we produce do not get a good price. It takes a lot of effort and expense, but the income is low. If the cold store were to be operated for a few days, it could have been sold at a good price.'
Dipayal Within the Siliguri Municipality, Gholtada, Disinpa-2 Panebata, Ward No. 4 Matela, Kumalikot-Pipalla and Dipayal areas are considered major vegetable pocket areas. Although large quantities of vegetables are produced in these areas every year, farmers have been facing problems due to lack of storage.
Although a cold store was built with the aim of solving this problem, farmers are still waiting as the structure has not been operational even after a long time. According to locals, it is believed that if the working procedures are made soon and the cold store is brought into operation, it will improve both the proper management of agricultural production and the income of farmers.
