SATV, Kathmandu, Jun. 25 - Farmers in Bhogteni of Letang Municipality-1 in Morang district have received orange and coffee saplings as well as irrigation materials under a programme aimed at expanding commercial orange and coffee farming.

A total of 266 farmers in the ward are engaged in commercial orange and coffee cultivation. According to Ward Chairperson Bishnu Kumar Magar, coffee and orange farming is expanding by 10 to 15 ropanis each year.

Under the Orange and Coffee Farming Expansion Programme, supported by a grant from the Koshi Provincial Government and Letang Municipality-1, 1,000 orange saplings and 2,200 coffee saplings were distributed. 

To improve irrigation facilities, 17 water tanks with a combined capacity of 49,000 litres and more than 13,000 metres of irrigation pipes were also provided.

Karan Shrestha, chief of the municipality’s agriculture section, said the Koshi Provincial Government had provided a grant of Rs. 1.25 million to promote orange and coffee farming.

The ward added Rs. 100,000 to the budget, which was used to expand fruit and cash crops and develop the necessary irrigation infrastructure.

Magar said the programme was launched because orange and coffee farming provides quicker and better returns than many other crops. 

According to him, 16 farmers in the ward are commercially growing oranges, while 250 are engaged in coffee farming. The initiative has helped create local employment opportunities and reduce outmigration.

Shrestha said the municipality has been placing special emphasis on promoting cash and fruit crops rather than food grains. Under the joint initiative of the ward and provincial government, subsidies and technical support have been provided based on farmers’ demand.

Mayor Bhupendra Kumar Lawati said oranges and coffee produced in Letang are in high demand in the market, and the municipality is focusing on increasing the production of crops with strong market potential. He said expanding orange and coffee cultivation has been prioritised in cooperation with local farmers.

Although Morang is generally known as a Tarai district, the lower parts of Letang Ward Nos. 1, 7 and 8 lie in hilly terrain. Lawati said these areas are suitable pocket zones for orange and coffee production, which is why the expansion programme has been introduced.

Local farmers including Chandra Kumar Rai, Chandrajit Rai, Kushal Magar and Dhan Bahadur Limbu are each cultivating coffee on about two ropanis of land. Likewise, farmers such as Shukra Rai and Shabi Kumar Rai are engaged in orange farming. 

With the expansion of orange and coffee cultivation and improved road access, the number of people migrating from northern Morang to the Tarai has also been declining.