Nepal on Sunday marked National Paddy Day with Agriculture Minister Ramnath Adhikari joining farmers in transplanting paddy seedlings at Khumaltar, Lalitpur.

The event, held at the Nepal Agriculture Research Council, drew locals who participated with traditional music and dance to celebrate the paddy planting season.

Paddy transplantation is underway in various parts of the country, but only around 16 percent of the total paddy area has been planted so far, slightly down from 17.2 percent during the same period last year, government figures showed.

Planting times vary across regions due to erratic weather and inconsistent monsoon rains. While seedlings are being transplanted in some areas, fields in others are still being prepared.

Observed annually on Asar 15 in the Nepali calendar, National Paddy Day underscores the cultural and agricultural significance of rice, Nepal’s staple crop.

Here are some photos taken by the Post’s photojournalist Hemanta Shrestha.