सिंहदरबार संवाददाता
Gandaki. Padyama GC Shrestha, Minister of Agriculture, Land Management and Cooperatives of the Gandaki Provincial Government, who had been hearing about the oranges of Baskharka, was surprised to see the orange orchard there on Friday.
Who wouldn’t be captivated by the sight of Pahelpur oranges all year round? As a minister representing farmers, the sight was even more enticing for her. Minister Shrestha, who participated in the ‘Basakharka Orange Festival’, said that Bansakharka should be known as Suntalakharka.
‘There was a discussion about the balance here in the ministry later, I had heard a lot from friends, but when I saw it myself, I felt that this place would be more suitable than Suntalakharka, not Bansakharka,’ she said during her speech.
Anyone who reached the festival organized in Bansakharka, Jaljala Rural Municipality-1 in the mountains was surprised to see the orange cultivation there. Baglung Municipality Chief Basanta Kumar Shrestha said that he was impressed by seeing the orange gardens throughout the village. It seems like a lot of work to have so many oranges on a single tree, the orchard here has become a mess, the village is covered with oranges, he said.
According to village leader orange farmer Mekh Bahadur Khatri, oranges have grown abundantly in Bansakharka this year. He informed that oranges worth 184.447 million have been produced. Farmer Khatri said that out of the 1,500 ropanis of land under orange cultivation, 26,700 fruit-bearing trees are planted and the number of trees that are growing is 24,445.
Out of a total of 51,151 trees, it is estimated that production will double to around 400 million in a few years if all the trees bear fruit. Leading farmer Jat Bahadur Khatri’s orchard produces oranges worth Rs 3.5 million annually. He has been cultivating oranges on 25 ropanis.
Another leading farmer Shanta Bahadur Chhintel has been producing oranges worth Rs 2.3 million annually and Hem Bahadur Armaja has been producing oranges worth Rs 1.9 million. Tej Bahadur Khatri and Nar Bahadur Paija said that they have been running orange nurseries. “Commercial orange farming has changed the living standards of farmers in Bansakharka. There are farmers here who earn Rs 500,000 to 400,000 per year by selling oranges,” said leading farmer Mekh Bahadur Khatri.
He said that Bansakharka oranges are consumed in Pokhara, Muglin, Narayangan, Kathmandu and other places. According to him, except for Malgaun in Jaljala-1 and some places in Ghumawane Tal, orange cultivation has been taking place in most areas of Bansakharka. He said that some orange trees were seen in Bazarare and Birmare in Bansakharka around 1997/98 BS and orange cultivation has been expanding over time.
The village’s leading farmers say that orange cultivation began in Bansakharka after the Agricultural Development Bank started providing loans to orange farmers in 2028 BS. After the road access to Pokhara was expanded, the farmers of Bansakharka started commercial orange cultivation from 2052/2053 BS. Most of the farmers of Bansakharka, which has 239 households, are involved in orange cultivation. Farmers have stopped seeing alternatives to orange farming.
Raju Gautam, the rural municipality’s agricultural officer, said that Bansakharka, which is spread over a sloping land towards the north, is ideal for orange farming. The main feature here is that the land faces the mountains, the climate is suitable for orange farming, and orange farming has flourished due to the black soil and fertile land. He said, “Even when the orchards elsewhere are empty, oranges remain in Bansakharka until Magh/Phalgun.”
Basakharka is spread over an altitude of 1,100 to 1,900 meters above sea level. Ward Chairman Jak Bahadur Roka informed that farmers would get more facilities if the road connecting Bansakharka to transport oranges is upgraded.
He said that farmers have been facing problems due to lack of irrigation facilities, landslide control and management of electric wires in orange orchards. The festival, organized jointly by the rural municipality and Ward No. 1 Office, included programs such as dissemination of technology related to orange farming and an orange exhibition. The best farmers were honored with cash prizes.
An exhibition of local art and culture was held during the festival. The festival, which was held for only one day, was attended by Gandaki Province Chief Minister Surendra Raj Pandey, Minister for Agriculture, Land Management and Cooperatives Padyama GC Shrestha, Minister for Industry and Tourism Mitra Lal Basyal, National Assembly Member Manarupa Sharma and other distinguished personalities.
On the occasion, Chief Minister Pandey expressed his commitment to the provincial government to support the development of Banskhark as an orange pocket area. He said that a plan will be included in the upcoming budget for the upgrading of the road connecting Beni, the district headquarters of Myagdi, to Banskhark.
Chief Minister Pandey informed that up to 50 percent subsidy will be provided to orange farmers for skill and technology transfer. Rural Municipality Chairman Rajuprasad Acharya informed that the orange festival was organized with the aim of promoting and marketing Bansakharka oranges as well as further encouraging farmers towards orange cultivation.
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