Quest for prosperity on sandy banks

Dhangadi, March 18

Flood victims of Mohanpur are making good money through collective farming on the sandy banks of the Mohana River in Kailari Rural Municipality-4, Kailali.

These days, flood victims are busy planting sugarcane in over 23-bigaha land on the banks of the river. Likewise, vegetable farming is done in more than 20 bigaha land. Sugarcane, cardamom and vegetables are among the major produce.

Around 80-bigaha land had turned barren by flooding in the Mohana River 16 years ago. The land owned by 78 families in the village were washed away in the flood. The landless, however, are making millions of rupees each year. Earlier, they struggled to make their ends meet.

Collective farming has made them financially self-reliant of late.

Deshuwa Chaudhary of Mohanpur said his family had no option but to work for daily wages after the flood swept away his land. “But, after we started collective farming on the river banks, making ends meet has not become such a trouble as was in the past,” Chaudhary said.

Moreover, he added that those who had migrated after the flood have started to return lately.

Another local Ram Bahadur Chaudhary said hard work bore its fruits. “By shedding sweat on the river banks, Mohanpur villagers served as an example that even sandy river banks could provide income to those who worked hard,” he said.

Mohanpur villagers started planting sugarcane and vegetables four years ago. Their endeavour has brought them to the present state. Ram Bahadur said that farming on the barren land had transformed their lives. “Earlier, flood victims from Mohanpur sought jobs at other places. But, now they are able to create job opportunities in their neighbouring villages as well,” he said.

Nepal Red Cross Society Kailali Social Mobiliser Punam Joshi said neighbours of Mohanpur had learnt that producing vegetables and sugarcane was possible even on barren land. “Locals of Mohanpur have saved Rs 1.3 million from sugarcane sale,” Joshi informed.

Following the footsteps of Mohanpur villages, locals from Lalitpur at Dhangadi Sub-metropolis-19 also started to plant sugarcane and vegetables on sandy land. Nepal Red Cross Society Kailali has been supporting the two communities for the past four years.