Nepal: Dependency on Indian fruits growing
Statistics of Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) shows that fruit imports from India increased by 23.9 percent over the first two months of fiscal year 2014/15 compared to import figures in the same period of 2013/14.
The country imported fruits worth Rs 561.2 million from the southern neighbor during the review period, up from fruits worth Rs 453.1 million imported in the corresponding period of last fiscal year. Nepal had imported fruits worth Rs 296.3 million in the first two months of 2012/13.
Traders say they have to depend on Indian imports to meet domestic demand for fruits as the government is not introducing any program to increase fruits production. "India has been the major supplier of fruits to Nepal for the past many years. And import is increasing with every passing year,” Khum Prasad Ghimire, president of Fruits and Vegetable Entrepreneurs Association told Republica.
“Commercial fruits farming in Nepal is still in a nascent stage. Local productions meet only around 30 percent of the market demand."
According to Ghimire, import from India accounts for almost 50 percent of country´s total fruit imports.
Ram Krishna Kunwar, executive director of Balkhu Fruits and Vegetables Market, said fruit prices are increasing due to country´s growing dependency on imports. “Price of imported fruits costs are higher compared to those grown locally," Kunwar said. He suggested to the government to launch effective programs to encourage farmers toward commercial fruits farming by allocating them suitable land for the purpose.
Traders say Nepal depends on India for popular fruits like banana, apple, guava, pineapple and watermelon, among others.
“Dependency with India will increase further if timely measures to reduce import and increase domestic production are not taken by the government,” added Kunwar.
Source: myrepublica.com
