सिंहदरबार संवाददाता
Jhapa. The attraction of visitors towards traditionally produced goods from Jumla in Karnali to Taplejung in Koshi has increased at the Birtamod International Industrial Trade Festival. Gangadevi Raut of Jumla in Karnali Province said that Himalayan agricultural products including jimmu, dente walnut, flour, herbal tea and other products are on sale at the festival being held from Magh 8 to 19.
Her sales room has items ranging from millet, phapar, corn, barley and wheat flour to marsi rice. “I have brought the vegetables grown in my own village’s fields to sell as there is a lot of demand in Jhapa,” said Raut. “The flour, nuts and rice were sold out quickly, the stock was almost exhausted.”
Noting that food grains and nuts are produced in abundance in the Himalayan districts including Jumla, Humla and Mugu, he said that there is a high demand for them in the eastern Terai districts including Jhapa. He suggested that it would be better if the local provinces and municipalities could arrange subsidies for marketing, as the transportation costs of bringing goods from Jumla to Jhapa increase due to geographical remoteness and long distance.
Sangita Gurung from Pokhara is putting up bee honey for sale at the festival. She said that this honey was brought from Dolpa and Rukum. She also kept Lekali sheep ghee produced in the high Himalayan region of Gandaki Province in the sales room. Noting that Bhir bee honey is famous for its taste and medicine, it is collected from far away and sold at the Jhapa festival, she informed that there is a rush of buyers asking for a small amount of medicine.
Maya Gurung from Phungling, the headquarters of Taplejung district, has brought handicrafts made from cardamom to the festival. Cardamom is sold in the international market as the gold of the valley. She said that she has been making handicrafts from its fibers and selling them since long. She said, “I also weave goods from cardamom fibers and our friends have also told me.” ,’ she said, ‘Since people with various interests come to the fair, we have brought handicrafts made from organic materials to sell.’ She said that increasing the use of goods produced using raw materials from her own village will not only increase the respect for the craft and production of local women, but also increase their income. She said that she also provides craft-related consultation from the festival.
Khem Kumari Oli from Jhapa has trained visitors to the festival on how to produce organic camphor incense. Yam Niraula, the owner of Advance Multiproduction Company in Mechinagar, has put up for sale items such as plates, bowls, glasses, spoons, dunas, taparis made from betel leaves. Entrepreneurs have decorated the festival with various products of Nepali tea, cardamom, spices and herbs, which are gaining influence in the international market. Local products from all over the country have found a place in the festival and entrepreneurs are benefiting greatly from the sales, said Vishal Thapa, coordinator of the festival organizing committee.
‘The main objective of the festival is to help in the marketing and promotion of local products,’ he said. ‘Stalls from India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan have also been set up. However, there is a crowd of observers for traditional rural products within the country.’
Raju Neupane, president of the Birtamod Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said that sales booths have been provided at the festival at special concessions to operators of self-employed industries. Radhika Chudal Humagai, president of the group, informed that the women entrepreneurs group under the Chamber of Commerce and Industry has been selling organic snacks such as cell roti and vegetables at concessional prices. The festival, which is being run with a target of attracting 200,000 visitors, has 150 sales booths. The organizers have stated that there will be musical performances by national artists every day at the festival to attract visitors.
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