Kathmandu. It has been estimated that the production of rice will decrease by five percent due to damage to the agriculture sector due to rainfall this year.

According to an analysis carried out by the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development, the incessant rains have caused loss of Rs 3.55 billion to the agriculture and livestock sector across the country.

According to Mahananda Joshi, information officer at the ministry, the production is estimated to be three percent less than 5.955 million metric tonnes last year.

According to him, the agriculture sector has suffered the most due to disasters like flood, rain and soil erosion due to the impact of climate change. The production was increasing since the last four to five years and it was initially estimated that the paddy production would exceed 60 lakh metric tons. According to the ministry, it will be difficult to reach the target due to the damage.

The farmers have suffered a huge loss as they have not been able to harvest paddy on time and harvest the harvested paddy during the rainy season. It has been predicted that the production of paddy will also decrease due to the damage caused to the paddy crop due to the decay caused by the rain.

Information Officer Joshi said that the Ministry had also disseminated information to the farmers about the possibility of rainfall in time and advised the farmers to harvest paddy only when the weather becomes completely clear. The Ministry has been providing assistance to farmers in fertilizers, seeds, technology, technical skills and other sectors.