About 59 percent of the paddy plantation for the current season has been completed across Nepal, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development.

As of July 13, paddy has been planted on approximately 816,405 hectares of land, which is about 8 percentage points less than the same period last year. At this time in 2023, the country had recorded 67 percent plantation coverage.

Among the provinces, Sudurpaschim leads the progress with 93 percent of its targeted area already covered, amounting to around 164,000 hectares. Karnali Province follows with 83 percent, covering 64,000 hectares, while Lumbini has reached 73 percent with plantation on 223,000 hectares.

Plantation activities are still ongoing in many areas and are expected to reach around 98 percent of the total targeted area by mid-August.

Agriculture Ministry spokesperson Mahananda Joshi said the Terai region remains the country’s rice bowl, contributing nearly 70 percent of Nepal’s total paddy output. The remaining 30 percent comes from the hill regions.

Nepal generally cultivates paddy on about 1.4 million hectares of land each year. In the last fiscal year 2080/81 (2023/24), the country produced 5.724 million metric tonnes of rice.

Unfavorable weather conditions, including excessive rainfall, drought, and natural disasters, have disrupted plantation schedules in several areas this year. However, with the adoption of improved farming techniques, modern technology, and high-yield seed varieties, rice production is projected to grow in the coming years.

The ministry estimates that rice output this year could reach 6 million metric tonnes, yielding about 3.5 million metric tonnes of edible rice.

The ministry notes that a 10 percent increase or decrease in rice production typically results in about a 1 percent corresponding rise or fall in Nepal’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), underscoring the crop’s critical role in the national economy. -- RSS