Farmers to be provided with subsidies based on production: Minister Mahat

KATHMANDU: Finance Minister Prakash Sharan Mahat has said the tax has been imposed on imported goods to protect domestic agricultural producers. In a group meeting with farmers and members of Nepal Agriculture Machinery Entrepreneurs Association (NAMEA), Nepal Commercial Farmers Union and Ma Nepali Kisan, at the Ministry of Finance, on Thursday, Minister Mahat said the government was ready to provide subsidies based on production to protect industrialists and farmers who have been producing in the country. He said, 'The main purpose of imposing taxes on vegetables including potatoes and onions in the Finance Bill presented at the Parliament was to encourage and protect the local production. It has been proposed with the belief that one level of protection should be given to agriculture and other producers, he asserted. "This tax system basically makes the imported goods more expensive," he said adding it does not make local produces expensive," said Mahat. He asserted that some organised people have already increased the price in a well-planned manner although the tax rate is not applicable now. He stressed increasing domestic production instead of imports mentioning that it also helps create jobs. The government will provide subsidies based on the production, Minister Mahat said. He informed that the budget for fiscal year 2023/24 has prioritised issues such as providing subsidies based on production, Guru Kisan and other programmes. The representatives of farmers' associations welcomed the government's steps taken for the protection of domestic production and further urged the Finance Minister to address other issues in the agriculture sector. READ ALSO:

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