KATHMANDU, SEPTEMBER 3

Minister of Agriculture and Livestock Dr Beduram Bhusal has said lumpy skin disease has come under control.

In a press meet organised at the ministry in Singha Durbar today, Minister Bhusal viewed that although the disease had taken toll on livestock, it was being brought under control in recent days. 'The government continued its utmost efforts to prevent and contain the disease,' he said, adding that vaccines against the disease were brought from Jordan, Tanzania and Turkey. He further informed that over 1.3 million doses of vaccine were imported and nearly one million cattle were jabbed against the deadly disease. The number of cattle recovering is growing now.

Among over 1.5 million livestock infected by the disease in the country, nearly 1.4 million have recovered, the ministry shared.

Currently, 73,636 livestock are suffering from the disease, the ministry data shows. Similarly, the ministry recorded the total livestock fatality at 52,548.

Minister Bhusal informed the media that the government would make decision on how the farmers losing their cattle could be provided relief. 'The Finance Ministry and Home Ministry were sent a standard for relief distribution for their approval,' he said.

Moreover, Minister Bhusal shared that the government had prioritised increasing agricultural production by managing irrigation facility in cultivable land and that it was discouraging farmers from leaving cultivable land unused.

Minister Bhusal admitted that farmers had been facing shortage of chemical fertilisers.

Rice comprises 67 per cent of total food consumption in Nepal, but the country still needs 1.2 million tonnes of rice to meet the demand. Bearing this in mind, the government is for launching a campaign to increase plantation of Chaite dhan (winter rice), according to Minister Bhusal.

A version of this article appears in the print on September 04, 2023, of The Himalayan Times.