Agriculture and Livestock Development Minister Ramnath Adhikari recently shared that over the past five years, the Ministry has distributed a total of Rs. 1.07 trillion (1 trillion, 66 crore, 27 lakh, and 89 thousand rupees) in agricultural subsidies. These grants have been provided to agricultural cooperatives, groups, and farms from the fiscal year 2076/2077 to 2080/81. The minister announced this during a press conference where he also revealed the names of the agricultural cooperatives and groups that received the subsidies.
A significant portion of the subsidies, amounting to Rs. 20.33 billion (20 billion, 33 million, 14 thousand), has been allocated directly to agricultural cooperatives, groups, and farms through various indigenous and foreign projects under the Ministry. An additional Rs. 87.35 billion (87 crore, 35 million, 97 lakh, and 73 thousand) was distributed indirectly.
The Ministry is committed to ensuring that these subsidies are used properly. Minister Adhikari stressed that if any misuse of the funds is detected, action will be taken. A committee has been formed to investigate the usage of the subsidies, and the Minister called on the public and media to monitor and learn about how the funds are used.
He also emphasized the importance of transparency in the government’s actions to rebuild public trust and confidence. The Minister appealed to local and provincial governments to make the names of the individuals and organizations receiving subsidies public.
Furthermore, senior Ministry officials, including Agriculture Development Secretary Dr. Govinda Prasad Sharma and Joint Secretaries Hari Bahadur KC and Dr. Matina Vaidya Joshi, pledged to take legal action if any misuse of the subsidy funds is identified.
This initiative highlights the government’s commitment to ensuring accountability and transparency in distributing subsidies for the agricultural sector.
(Source: NEPAL TELEVISION)
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