Policy Research Institute, Narayanhiti

Policy Research Institute organized a Policy Talk on “Restoring Competitive and Commercial Agriculture in River Basins of Nepal, ” focusing on the Daraundi River of Gorkha district. The talk was delivered by Dr. Suroj Pokhrel, former Secretary of the Government of Nepal and Adjunct Professor of the Agriculture and Forestry University. Dr. Pokhrel is also a Senior Thematic Expert at the Center for Natural Resources and Technology Policy, Policy Research Institute.

The program was emceed by Senior Research Fellow, Dr. Hari Sharma Neupane. In his welcome remarks, Professor Dr. Lekhnath Sharma, Executive Chairperson, mentioned that researchers never become fully content with knowledge and should always be open to hearing from experts and experienced personnel. He expressed his curiosity about how agriculture can be commercialized in such a way that domestic production can substitute the import of agricultural products.

Dr. Pokhrel delivered the presentation based on his research paper published in the Journal of Agriculture and Forestry University. He provided substantial background information by explaining that seven municipalities fall under the catchment area of the Daraudi River, the major river system in Gorkha district. Despite having highly fertile land, the region faces challenges such as access to inputs and market information, narrow terraces, soil erosion and land degradation, and a high-cost-low-productivity problem. These issues have contributed to a significant increase in out-migration.

Dr. Pokhrel presented the results of his research under the following sub-headings:

• Socio-economic and land use assessment of the Daraudi watershed/basin
• Coverage of Daraudi River
• Cropping pattern in Khet (lowland) and Bari (upland)
• Food self-sufficiency in different municipalities
• Employment and income generation status
• Demanded activities for competitive and commercial agriculture

His findings showed that 80% of the total population of the Gorkha district lived in the Daraudi catchment area, which is primarily covered with forest area (46.9%) and agriculture area (39.88%). Among the different activities the respondents (farmers, experts, and agriculture professionals) demanded, ‘agriculture engineering interventions’ were ranked as the most important. Dr. Pokhrel also elaborated on other demanded interventions like establishing farmers/entrepreneurs’ organizations, environment risk reduction, land pooling, benefits sharing, agriculture research, linking farm activities to services, collaboration, and synergy. As a synthesis of his research findings, he provided policy recommendations under three major themes: land management (according to suitability and fertility), commodity prioritization, and community sensitization.

Researchers and interns from the Policy Research Institute participated in the talk program. Dr. Pokhrel’s presentation was followed by an interactive discussion session on participants’ queries related to the importance of achieving self-sufficiency and the urge to commercialize niche-specific high-value commodities in the current era of trade liberalization and globalization.

Executive Chairperson, Professor Dr. Lekhnath Sharma, expressed his appreciation for Dr. Pokhrel’s contribution to the agriculture sector of Nepal. He also remarked that policy researchers must give due consideration to the socio-cultural dimensions of policy recommendations.

Photo credit: Bimal Chandra Sharma
Event note by: Soniya Bashyal

Participants:
Dr. Suroj Pokhrel (Senior Thematic Expert)
Prof. Dr. Lekhnath Sharma (Executive Chairperson)
Laxman Prasad Bhattarai (Office Manager)
Dr. Hari Sharma Neupane (Senior Research Fellow)
Dr. Mukti Ram Rijal (Senior Research Fellow)
Dr. Kalpana Khanal (Senior Research Fellow)
Dr. Mohan Kumar Sharma (Senior Research Fellow)
Dr. Giri Raj Sharma (Research Fellow)
Dr. Niranjan Devkota (Research Fellow)
Dr. Subash Adhikari (Research Fellow)
Soniya Bashyal (Analyst)
Bimal Chandra Sharma (Library Management Coordinator)
Parbat Bhattarai (Senior Assistant)
Ayushka K.C. (Intern)
Ashish Bhandari (Intern)
Kumari Alika (Intern)
Juna Shrestha (Intern)
Dhiraj Bhatta (Intern)
Balihang Limbu (Intern)
Bijay Koirala (Intern)
Snehi Rijal (Intern)
Satish Sapkota (Intern)