Kathmandu. As many as 38.2 per cent of the land under cultivation in the district is yet to receive irrigation. Arable land in the district is 48,694 hectares.

According to Bindu Poudel, information officer at the Agriculture Development Office, Chitwan, farming is being done on 42,550 hectares of arable land. Only 61.8 per cent of cultivable land has irrigation facility. He said that irrigation facility has been provided to 26,308 hectares of land of cultivable land.

According to the Irrigation Division Office, Chitwan, this year the irrigated area has increased in comparison to the last year. As per the statistics of the office, irrigation facility was available on 22,630 hectares of land in the last fiscal year which has increased this year.

Irrigated area decreased by the canal

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However, the area of arable land in Bharatpur and western parts has decreased due to Narayani lift and drought irrigation. Due to the erosion of the canals, the irrigated area has decreased. According to the Narayani Lift and Khageri Irrigation Management Office, 38 percent of the total area of the project has been reduced. Chief of the Narayani Lift Irrigation System, Kul Prasad Chalise, said that the area of irrigation has decreased due to the destruction of most of the branch canals of the Narayani lift irrigation system.

According to him, the branch canals from one to five of these canals have been destroyed. It falls in ward no 10, 11 and 12 of Bharatpur Metropolitan City. “Mainly the branch canals that provide irrigation to various places via the bypass area have been destroyed,” he said. ’

The Narayani lift project is capable of irrigating 4,700 hectares of land but it is currently irrigating 2,906.5 hectares. According to him, 1,793.5 hectares of irrigated area has decreased.

According to him, the irrigated area has decreased due to the construction of roads, physical infrastructures and parks in the canal area. According to him, the beauty of the city has been affected along with the problem of irrigation due to the collapse of the canal. Purna Bahadur Ranabhat, chairman of the Narayani Lift Irrigation System, said that the irrigated area of the district has decreased after the farmers themselves stopped cultivating and started constructing roads in the canal.