Nepal: Farmers loot trucks laden with fertilizers amid shortage in cultivation season

Hundreds of farmers looted fertilisers from two trucks en route to Kathmandu which were being escorted by the Armed Police Force (APF) in Dharke of Nepal's Dhading district.

The looted trucks were carrying fertilisers that were seized after being procured illegally without clearing customs, according to the Department of Revenue Investigation, Nepal.

"Farmers looted two trucks being brought to Kathmandu under the protection of the Armed Police Force. We are investigating it," Diwas Acharya, the Spokesperson at the Department of Revenue Investigation toldover the phone.

About 400 to 500 farmers obstructed fertilizer-laden trucks being brought to Kathmandu under the protection of armed police on the highway and looted the fertilizers.

A brief clash also is reported to have occurred at the site of the incident. Local Police personnel were rushed to the spot and were able to take control of the remaining fertilizers.

"We had seized those trucks because they falsely declared the possessions as other goods. One of the trucks had disclosed that wheat was in the vehicle and the other said it was carrying cement," Acharya said.

"During the screening of the vehicles, it was found that fertilizers were being brought. After that, vehicles were taken under control and kept under APF custody," the official added.

With the start of the annual cultivation season in Nepal, a shortage of fertilizer has been hitting the farmers hard. Government-designated fertilizer distribution agencies have always been running short and issuing warnings of price rises and food scarcities.

About two-thirds of the Nepali farmers still are dependent on the monsoon rains but the fertilizers which they rely on the most always have been falling short.

As per the government estimate, there is an acute shortage of Diammonium phosphate (DAP) and urea in stock for this paddy season in almost all seven provinces.

Paddy- the main cash crop and most consumed food item in Nepal is transplanted in mid-June in the Southern Plains of Nepal commonly known as Terai, the breadbasket of the Himalayan Nation. The Hilly areas on the other hand transplant the saplings from mid-April.

( With inputs from ANI )

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