Kathmandu. KATHMANDU: Farmers in and around the Kathmandu Valley have been agitated after the price of locally produced tomato (tomato) dropped sharply in the Nepali market. Farmers had protested by throwing tomatoes on the road at Maitighar Mandala on Wednesday, saying that tomatoes were being imported in large quantities from neighbouring India and the domestic production was not finding a market for the same.

The main complaint of the farmers is that Nepali production has been displaced due to the uncontrolled import of Indian tomatoes.According to them, vegetables coming from the Indian market at a cheaper price have not been able to compete with the local production. As a result, Nepali tomatoes are rotting in the fields, not being sold in the market and in some cases have to be thrown on the road.

The price details released by the Kalimati Fruits and Vegetables Market Development Committee on Wednesday also confirms that farmers are not getting proper price for their produce.According to the committee, the wholesale price of big Nepali tomato has been fixed at Rs 35 per kg, small local tomato at Rs 8 per kg and small tomato produced through tunnel technology at Rs 13 per kg.

According to the detailed data of the committee, the minimum price of tomato is Rs 8 per kg and the maximum price is Rs 12 per kg, while its average price is Rs 9.50.Similarly, the average price of small tomato is Rs 14.60 per kg and that of large Nepali tomato is Rs 38.75 per kg. This shows that even though consumers are paying higher prices in the retail market, farmers who produce directly are getting lower prices.

Minister for Agriculture, Forest and Environment Gita Chaudhary had called the farmers’ representatives to the Ministry and held discussions after the farmers protested at Maitighar Mandala against the failure to get the right price for tomatoes. During the discussions, the farmers said that the government should play an effective role to ensure proper price for their produce, to ensure easy market access and to minimize the influence of middlemen. Minister Chaudhary said that the Ministry was serious towards the genuine demands of the farmers and directed the bodies concerned to manage the market management and supply system immediately.

The transportation of tomatoes from Kalimati to the Valley has started on Wednesday itself with the initiative of the Ministry and coordination of Kalimati Fruits and Vegetables Market.According to the Ministry, the supply of tomatoes has been started in different markets outside the Kathmandu Valley so as to create an environment where the farmers get a fair price for their produce.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Forest and Environment has pledged to implement market management, supply system strengthening and market expansion programmes to ensure that farmers get proper market and fair price for their produce.

The fall in the price of tomatoes has once again exposed the age-old problems of Nepal’s agriculture sector.The stakeholders have pointed out the need of a long-term solution as the farmers are facing losses time and again due to lack of effective market management, storage, processing and import regulation despite increase in production. See the rest of the image: