Vegetables worth Rs 100 million in Nawarparasi district have been destroyed by floods. Because of massive flooding, fertile land has been inundated with water, submerging entire wheat, sugarcane crops as well as vegetable farms. Locals involved in commercial farming fear that their entire investment may have been washed away by the flood.

According to District Agriculture Dev Office (DADO) Nawalparasi, the flood has washed away nearly 1450 hectares of fertile land. “The flood has damaged the plantation done in the cultivable land along the river bed,” said Shreekant Ghimire, project officer at DADO Nawalparasi. “We have mobilised our officials to estimate the actual loss.”

Susta, Pratappur, Sarawal, Palhinandan along with Kawasoti, Madhyabindu, and Ramgram municipalities witnessed heavy rainfall recently which triggered massive floodding and damaged fertile land. After their investments worth millions were destroyed by the flood, farmers of Nawalparasi reached out to Agriculture Ministry to request compensations for damages incurred. Under the leadership of local Member of Parliament Devkaran Jaiswal, a letter of memorandum was sent to the agriculture minister requesting for compensations after examining the damage. As majority of the farmers in the district do not have insurance, the damage caused by the flood might push them into proverty.

Meanwhile, price of vegetables has increased rapidly in Nawalparasi after the flood washed away the vegetable plantations in the district. Vegetable price has increased nearly threefold.  The price of cucumber has reached Rs 90. Farmers who used to supply vegetables to neighbouring district in past are buying vegetable at inflated prices.