Oranges worth more than Rs 1.32 billion have been produced in Syanga district this year. According to Pratibha Budhathoki Kshetri, Information Officer at the Syanga Implementation Unit under the Prime Minister Agriculture Modernization Project, the district produced a total of 23,238 metric tons of oranges this year. The oranges were sold at an average wholesale price of Rs 57 per kilogram.
Compared to last year, the total value of orange production has increased by around Rs 200 million. Syanga had produced 20,084 metric tons of oranges last year. Productivity has also improved this year, with average production reaching 16.37 tons per hectare, up from 14.66 tons per hectare last year.
Of the total oranges produced in the district, about 90 percent are sold in the market, while the remaining 10 percent are used for gifts, household consumption, and other local purposes. Out of this year’s total production, 20,882 metric tons were marketable.
The area covered by orange orchards in Syanga has increased this year compared to last year. Orange orchards covered 2,250 hectares last year, which has increased by 150 hectares to reach 2,400 hectares this year. Similarly, the productive area has expanded from 1,370 hectares last year to 1,420 hectares this year. The area under growing orchards has also increased by 100 hectares, from 880 hectares last year to 980 hectares this year.
Syanga was declared a zone under the Prime Minister Agriculture Modernization Project in fiscal year 2013/14 (2073/74 BS) and was upgraded to a super zone from the beginning of fiscal year 2015/16 (2075/76 BS). Following the implementation of the orange super zone, farmers in the district have become increasingly attracted to orange cultivation.
Orange farming in Syanga is gradually being developed as a major source of income. Traditional subsistence and household-level orange cultivation is being expanded and commercialized, with a growing number of farmers adopting orange farming as their primary livelihood.
Farmers are increasingly converting marginal, sloped, and unused land into orange orchards and making better use of arable land by planting orange trees instead of other crops. Putalibazar, Waling, Bhirkot, and Galyang municipalities, along with Aandhikhola, Fedikhola, Biruwa, and Arjunchaupari rural municipalities, are the main orange-producing pockets of the district. Oranges produced in Syanga are supplied to major cities such as Kathmandu, Butwal, Pokhara, and Narayanghat, with traders often purchasing the produce directly from the orchards.
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