SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, SEP 21 -
Following complaints by the Tourism Ministry and travel traders about the red tape requiring adventure tourists to obtain permits from multiple ministries and pay multifarious charges, the regulations have been changed to create a one-window system.
The Tourism Ministry will henceforth issue permits to conduct adventure activities in protected forest areas. Formerly, the Forest Ministry gave out the licenses.
The Forest Ministry used to collect separate fees for 10 tourism activities in the Himalaya and high hills which contain biological diversity needing conservation.
According to the Forest Ministry’s old regulations, anyone wanting to go skydiving, skiing, paragliding, bungee jumping, mountain biking, rafting, cannoning and abseiling, rock climbing and kayaking had to get a separate permit from the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation. “The new regulation has removed lengthy hassles and will give a boost to the tourism industry,” said Bikram Neupane, president of the Himalaya Rescue Association and coordinator of the ad hoc committee formed to lobby for simplification in the permit system.
Meanwhile, the proviso requiring a representative of the Department of National Parks to accompany tourists in the protected areas has also been scrapped. Similarly, government charges for adventure sports have been slashed in the revised regulations.
According to the new fee structure, the royalty for skydiving for tourists from the SAARC has been reduced to Rs. 2,000 from Rs. 6,000. The fee for other foreign tourists has been cut to US$ 100 from US$ 500. Charges for skiing, paragliding and para mountaineering have also been decreased to Rs. 1,000 from Rs. 6,000 for SAARC tourists and to US$ 50 from US$ 300 for other foreign visitors.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Production rate of pulse crops expected to rise 3pc
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, SEP 22 -
Production of pulses is expected to increase this year by 3 percent to 262,000 tons. After two straight years of decline, the production has shown some improvement since last year.
Output had reached an all-time high in 2006-07 with 274,375 tons of pulses including lentil, pigeon pea, black gram, soybean and other varieties being produced. Though there was only marginal decline in the production area, the output shrunk by 1.67 percent and 5.33 percent in 2007-08 and 2008-09 respectively, according to statistics of Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives.
However, the overall yield has declined in the last four years. From 859 kg per hectare in 2006-07, it has declined to 821 kg per hectare in the last fiscal year. Agro entrepreneurs and analysts said Nepal was gradually losing out on pulse production as there had been no growth in cultivable area and productivity. Despite the growth in 2009-10, pulse production in Nepal witnessed a negative growth rate of 3.25 percent over the last five years.
Pulses (particularly lentils) are one of the high-value crops of the country that government is looking to substitute imports. According to exporters, Nepali pulses are in high demand in Bangladesh and Bhutan.
In fact, Bangladesh and Bhutan are the highest importers of Nepali pulses.
The fall in production and the government’s export ban last year for six months has resulted in a decline in the net export of pulses to India. Pulse exports dropped by 92.8 percent in 2009-10. The export of pulses to India amounted to Rs. 381.6 million in 2008-09, which nosedived to Rs. 27.6 million in 2009-10. Exports were worth Rs. 314.8 million in 2007-08, according to Nepal Rastra Bank statistics.
According to the central bank’s data, exports to third countries also declined by 36 percent to Rs. 3,952 million in 2009-10 from Rs. 6,247 million in 2008-09. Pulses exports to third countries had increased by 328 percent in 2008-09.
“Exports went down as the result of a government ban imposed last year in response to pressure that the country might face a food deficit after India stopped exports,” said Ajay Parajuli, executive secretary, Association of Nepalese Rice, Oil and Pulses Industry. However, after entrepreneurs assured the government that exports would not affect the country’s food supply, the government lifted the ban. Bangladesh is the major market for Nepali pulses, Parajuli said.
He said that production had been gradually declining for the last couple of years. “Farmers are attracted towards vegetables as they yield quick and handsome income as compared to pulses. Similarly, there are no incentives from the government to encourage pulses farming,” he said.
As pulses are not an important crop for human consumption in most of the major developed countries and some of the developing economies and are mainly used as animal feed, supplies to overseas markets are limited. Thus, if the production rate of the major pulse consuming countries declines, it becomes difficult for the global markets to fill up the gap.
Prakash Oli, deputy director of Agro Enterprise Centre at the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI), said that Nepal Agricultural Research Council (NARC) conducts research on pulses (especially lentils) and has 10 improved varieties until 2008 under the seed multiplication programme.
However, inadequate dissemination and research extension of the products has compelled farmers to use old and traditional seeds, which is the main reason that pulses production growth remained stagnant.
“Lentils hold huge export prospects and the FNCCI has recently discussed with the visiting Chinese delegation for the import of improved seeds,” he said. The Chinese were positive and asked for a product list of the seeds that Nepal wants to implement, he added.
“Pulse production growth rate is sluggish pace,” admitted Hari Dahal, spokesperson at the Ministry of Agriculture.
Area, production and yield of pulse crops in Nepal
2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10
Area 319,557 320,431 313,269 319,486
Production 274,375 269,776 255,384 262,000
Yield 859 842 815 821
(Area in hectares, production in tons and yield in kg per hectare) Source: MoAC
KATHMANDU, SEP 22 -
Production of pulses is expected to increase this year by 3 percent to 262,000 tons. After two straight years of decline, the production has shown some improvement since last year.
Output had reached an all-time high in 2006-07 with 274,375 tons of pulses including lentil, pigeon pea, black gram, soybean and other varieties being produced. Though there was only marginal decline in the production area, the output shrunk by 1.67 percent and 5.33 percent in 2007-08 and 2008-09 respectively, according to statistics of Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives.
However, the overall yield has declined in the last four years. From 859 kg per hectare in 2006-07, it has declined to 821 kg per hectare in the last fiscal year. Agro entrepreneurs and analysts said Nepal was gradually losing out on pulse production as there had been no growth in cultivable area and productivity. Despite the growth in 2009-10, pulse production in Nepal witnessed a negative growth rate of 3.25 percent over the last five years.
Pulses (particularly lentils) are one of the high-value crops of the country that government is looking to substitute imports. According to exporters, Nepali pulses are in high demand in Bangladesh and Bhutan.
In fact, Bangladesh and Bhutan are the highest importers of Nepali pulses.
The fall in production and the government’s export ban last year for six months has resulted in a decline in the net export of pulses to India. Pulse exports dropped by 92.8 percent in 2009-10. The export of pulses to India amounted to Rs. 381.6 million in 2008-09, which nosedived to Rs. 27.6 million in 2009-10. Exports were worth Rs. 314.8 million in 2007-08, according to Nepal Rastra Bank statistics.
According to the central bank’s data, exports to third countries also declined by 36 percent to Rs. 3,952 million in 2009-10 from Rs. 6,247 million in 2008-09. Pulses exports to third countries had increased by 328 percent in 2008-09.
“Exports went down as the result of a government ban imposed last year in response to pressure that the country might face a food deficit after India stopped exports,” said Ajay Parajuli, executive secretary, Association of Nepalese Rice, Oil and Pulses Industry. However, after entrepreneurs assured the government that exports would not affect the country’s food supply, the government lifted the ban. Bangladesh is the major market for Nepali pulses, Parajuli said.
He said that production had been gradually declining for the last couple of years. “Farmers are attracted towards vegetables as they yield quick and handsome income as compared to pulses. Similarly, there are no incentives from the government to encourage pulses farming,” he said.
As pulses are not an important crop for human consumption in most of the major developed countries and some of the developing economies and are mainly used as animal feed, supplies to overseas markets are limited. Thus, if the production rate of the major pulse consuming countries declines, it becomes difficult for the global markets to fill up the gap.
Prakash Oli, deputy director of Agro Enterprise Centre at the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI), said that Nepal Agricultural Research Council (NARC) conducts research on pulses (especially lentils) and has 10 improved varieties until 2008 under the seed multiplication programme.
However, inadequate dissemination and research extension of the products has compelled farmers to use old and traditional seeds, which is the main reason that pulses production growth remained stagnant.
“Lentils hold huge export prospects and the FNCCI has recently discussed with the visiting Chinese delegation for the import of improved seeds,” he said. The Chinese were positive and asked for a product list of the seeds that Nepal wants to implement, he added.
“Pulse production growth rate is sluggish pace,” admitted Hari Dahal, spokesperson at the Ministry of Agriculture.
Area, production and yield of pulse crops in Nepal
2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10
Area 319,557 320,431 313,269 319,486
Production 274,375 269,776 255,384 262,000
Yield 859 842 815 821
(Area in hectares, production in tons and yield in kg per hectare) Source: MoAC
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