KATHMANDU, Nov 20: Minister for Agriculture and Livestock Development, Chakrapani Khanal has said that the ministry was doing its homework for revising custom duty on banana import.
The move aims at encouraging Nepali agricultural produce, according to the minister. For that purpose, the ministry has been discussing with Finance Minister Yuba Raj Khatiwada, he added.
Minister Khanal said so while receiving a memorandum from banana producers from 10 districts who had come to Kathmandu to press the ministry to take measures to protect their produce.
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Currently, 5 percent custom duty is levied on bananas imported from India. Domestic producers have demanded to increase it to 30 percent.
Raising the custom duty will enable them to compete with Indian bananas, the domestic producers claimed, adding that they have to dump their produce in lack of home market while Indian bananas were making profit here.
“At this moment, we need a right policy at the state level. Apart from the custom duty adjustment and promotional activities, measures are needed to reduce the investment cost of farmers,” minister Khanal said, adding that the ministry will soon take an effective decision in that direction.
The entrepreneurs handed over a seven-point memorandum to the minister demanding Kailali, Kanchanpur and Bara to be declared as banana zones. They have also requested the minister to implement Prime Minister Agriculture Modernization Project.
Currently, commercial farming of banana covers around 18,000 hectares of land in Kailali, Kanchanpur, Banke Bardiya, Dang, Rupandehi, Nawalparasi, Chitwan, Bara, Sarlahi, Morang, and Sunsari districts.
There are around 25,000 commercial banana farmers in the country while around 50,000 are employed in banana farming. Every year, the country produces 700,000 tons of bananas.
