Palika official Ghimire making millions from orange farming

Amar Raj Naharki / Tanahun: One of the people’s representatives in Tahanun has succeeded in generating good income from orange farming. Vice-chairman of Myadge Rural Municipality Balkrishna Ghimire earns more than Rs. 2 million annually by selling oranges. Ghimire has been cultivating oranges commercially since 1996.

He said that he has earned Rs. 2.2 million by selling oranges this year. Around 850 trees of oranges are in his orchard covering around 60 ropanies of land in Myadge Rural Municipality-2, Jogithum Khonikhola.

He said that he similarly earned Rs. 2 million last year. Ghimire completed his Junior Technical Assistant (JTA) studies in agriculture in 1978 and had been in teaching profession for 8 years. Besides, he is also actively involved in politics and social service.

The climate of Nepal is so good and fertile that there is no need to worry about production, he said.“If we have self-belief and honesty towards our work, it will not be difficult to become self-dependent. Leaving such good fertile land, the youth are looking for a future in the desert abroad, what can be sadder than this,” he said.

The habit of people looking for immediate results has affected the country as a whole, he said and added that negative tendencies have taken root in our mentality. Ghimire said, “If you are engaged in positive thinking and action, you don’t need to go abroad to earn around Rs. 50,000 monthly.”

According to him, orange cultivation is not difficult. “If we take care of it for six months in a year, it will give us a good income every year,” he said. Making matters sweeter, the government also gives various subsidies to agriculture.

He informed that there is no problem with the sale of oranges and that traders come from across the country to book them in advance. Ghimire, who was elected to the post of vice chairman of Myadge Rural Municipality in the 2017 local level election, got re-elected as vice-chairman in the 2022 election.

Vice chairman Ghimire has opened a brick kiln factory in addition to orange cultivation, providing employment opportunities to hundreds of people. The problem of our country is unemployment, job creation is not only the responsibility of the state, motivation should come from the inside of an individual, he said.