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Tejpatta farmers suffer under unscrupulous contractors
UDAYAPUR, JAN 12 - Despite the popularity of tejpatta, a kind of leaf used as spice, its supply has been affected due to the attitude of the contractors and difficulties of export to other parts of the country.
About 300 quintals of tejpatta used to be brought to the weekly market of Gaighat, Beltar and Katari Bazaar every week from various Village Development Committees of the district until a few years ago.
However, the supply of tejpatta has decreased to only about 60 kilograms a week, according to member of the Chamber of Commerce, Inkumar Shah.
The main reason of the decrease in the supply of tejpatta is due to lack of market and collection of taxes by the contractors, he said.
"I started the tejpatta farming in my 10 ropanis of land but the tax collected by the contractors created difficulties in this business," farmer Nir Bahadur Rai of Japla Village Development Committee said.
"The contractors take the benefit of our products and we just suffer," said another farmer Chandra Man Rai of Sanbu Village Development Committee.
"We cannot sell to other persons except the contractors and the contractors want the money being a middleman," he said.
When asked about the difficulties of the farmers, chief of the District Forest Office, Rajmani Dhital, said, "We have given contract to collect Rs 10 per kilogram to the contractors and we have not fixed its price."
"We do not know how the contractors are collecting money from the farmers in the market," he said.
"The contractors pay only Rs five per kilogram and we are compelled to pay Rs 13 to 18 per kilogram," the farmers said.
"Even we have to pay additional amount to the officers of the forest offices from Gaighat to Kathmandu," they said.
"Why should we collect tejpatta, if there is no benefit for us," collector of the tejpatta Govind Raut said.
The government should make appropriate policy for the collection of tejpatta, which has medicinal value and remove the difficulties of the local farmers, local people said.Posted on: 2004-01-13 03:51
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