The ripple effects of the ongoing West Asia conflict, which began on February 28, are being felt across Nepal’s agrarian hubs, as a sharp rise in petroleum prices pushes up production costs and squeezes rural livelihoods.

Farmers, contractors and small-scale entrepreneurs said the surge in fuel prices has made it increasingly difficult to operate machinery essential for both farming and infrastructure work. The situation has been exacerbated by dry conditions across many parts of the country, forcing farmers to rely heavily on diesel-powered pump-sets to irrigate their fields.

With wheat harvesting under way and pre-monsoon rice nearing maturity, the timing has added pressure. Farmers said the cost of running threshers and other equipment has risen sharply, turning what is usually a peak harvest period into a financial burden.

High costs in the Tarai

In Bardiya, the diesel price hike in April has come at a critical moment for farmers preparing to harvest wheat. Diesel is currently priced at Rs234.5 per litre, a level many farmers describe as unsustainable.

In areas without access to canal irrigation or electricity, dependence on diesel-powered pump-sets remains absolute. Farmers said the rising cost of fuel has left them with few alternatives.

Meghnath Godiya of ward 4 in Gulariya Municipality said harvesting costs have gone up quite high compared to last year. “I paid Rs8,000 per bigha [20 kattha= 72,900 square feet] to machine operators,” he said. “The next planting season is approaching, and if diesel prices remain high, farmers will face serious hardship.”

Ratan Lal Tharu of ward 5 in Thakurbaba Municipality, Dungrahawa, said the shift from manual labour to mechanised farming has increased vulnerability to fuel price fluctuations.

“We used a power tiller for cutting and a tractor for threshing. Because of the diesel price hike, harvesting wheat costs much more than last year,” he said. “On top of that, the government has set a low support price for wheat.”

Although his village has a canal system, maintenance work has halted water flow, forcing farmers to rely on diesel for irrigation. Tharu said he has been compelled to use pump-sets for maize, sugarcane and vegetable farming, adding to his expenses.

In ward 7 of Gulariya Municipality, Mehbub Khan, who leases 50 katthas of land at Rs3,000 per kattha annually, said the heat has further highlighted the irrigation needs. He grows gourds, pumpkins, cucumbers and watermelons on sandy soil. “I have to irrigate using a boring pump every day, otherwise the crops will dry up,” he said.

Laxmi Roka of ward 8 in Gulariya Municipality said her maize crop requires daily watering due to rising temperatures. She said the cost of diesel has made routine irrigation increasingly difficult to sustain.

Struggles in the hills

In the hill district of Palpa, farmers reported similar pressures, aggravated by limited access to infrastructure and markets.

In Nisdi Rural Municipality-5, Galdha, Dhunganabesi, farmer Ganesh Dhungana said he is uncertain about how to manage future farming seasons. He had sold his oxen and shifted to a mini-tiller to ease labour shortages. However, rising fuel costs have made mechanised ploughing unaffordable.

“It was easier to plough terraces with a mini-tiller, but now I cannot afford the fuel,” he said. “At the same time, oxen are no longer easily available.”

Dhungana, who also chairs the Lekbesi Krishi Jagaran Farmers’ Group, said subsidised mini-tillers distributed by local, provincial and federal governments have not delivered the expected benefits due to high fuel prices.

“We used to charge between Rs600 and Rs800 per hour for members,” he said. “Now we are unsure how to set rates. Either the operator loses or the farmer suffers.”

In Rampur Municipality-6, Tikapur, farmer Narayan Parajuli said rising costs across inputs have created a sense of despair among growers. Tractor rental for ploughing has increased from Rs3,000 to nearly Rs4,500 per hour.

“What is the point of farming if we cannot recover our investment?” he said. “It is becoming harder to continue.”

Livestock farmers have also been affected. Krishna Kumar Aryal, a commercial buffalo farmer rearing 45 animals, said feed and fodder costs have surged. The cost of transporting a load of chopped straw has risen from Rs7,000 to Rs8,500, while the prices of silage, the preserved fodder, have increased from Rs14 to Rs15.5 per kilogram. Feed prices have also gone up by Rs100 per bag.

Nurdev Paudel of ward 7 in Tansen Municipality said transportation costs have doubled. “A sack that cost Rs50 to transport now costs Rs100,” he said.

Officials and farmers said more than 10,000 mini-tillers and hand tractors have been distributed in the district in recent years, contributing to a decline in traditional ox-rearing. However, the shift has increased dependence on fuel.

Exploitation concerns in Madhesh

In Madhesh Province, farmers said the rising demand for threshers and maize shellers has resulted in higher service charges, which many described as exploitative.

Before the diesel price hike, machine operators typically charged 15 to 25 percent of the produce. Farmers now said the share has increased to as much as 40 percent.

Senam Jimba, a farmer from Maira in Rautahat, said operators are citing fuel costs to justify the increase. “They say oil prices have gone up and are using that as a reason to charge more,” he said. “At this time, we have no option but to pay.”

With labour shortages and the decline of animal-based threshing, reliance on machinery has grown. However, operators said they cannot continue working at previous rates due to increased fuel expenses.

Entrepreneurs warned that rising production costs will eventually be passed on to consumers, pushing up food prices.

Policy gaps and growing anxiety

Farmers and local representatives said the crisis has exposed gaps in policy implementation, particularly in managing the cost of inputs in an increasingly mechanised agricultural sector.

Dukha Chaudhary of Rautahat said that without intervention, high fuel prices could force farmers to revert to traditional farming methods, reducing productivity. “For small farmers, the cost of hiring machines is already higher than the profit they can expect,” he said.

Yubaraj Bhattarai, a member of the Madhesh Provincial Assembly, said rising costs have undermined the promise of mechanisation. “Technology should reduce labour and save time, but high rental rates are adding to farmers’ burden,” he said. “The government has not introduced any targeted subsidy despite the global energy crisis.”

Rudal Chaudhary of Bhawanipur, Simara, said local governments need to regulate machine rental rates. “The cost of hiring machines consumes most of the value of our produce,” he said. “Authorities should fix and enforce rates to protect farmers.”