Tuesday. Mai Jogmai Rural Municipality of Ilam has started providing grants to the local people of Ilam to make biscuits from millet flour. The municipality has started distributing grants to the residents of the municipality under the Vice-President Youth Program.

A woman has started producing biscuits from millet flour in Nayabazaar of the rural municipality after receiving the grant. Parbati Bhattarai of Naya Bazaar started manufacturing biscuits from millet flour. According to him, he has started producing biscuits from millet flour by cooking it in an oven machine.

Entrepreneur Bhattarai has started its production by operating the factory. According to him, Bhattarai established the industry under the name ‘Millet Biscuit and Bakery Industry’. The prepared millet is prepared, ground and mixed with honey or sugar and some flour into a round shape, cooked in an oven machine and then dried in the dryer. He said that the production has just started and now the local market as well as tourists and guests are carrying biscuits as koseli.

Bhattarai said he established the industry through a grant from the vice-chairperson of Maijogmai Rural Municipality under the Youth Entrepreneur Programme. Millet is considered to be a potency. The sweetness of sugar, and sugar added to it gives more sweetness.

Along with this, Bhattarai also made bread and other dishes. He said that consumers like the prepared millet biscuits. Bhattarai said that they are thinking of expanding it after it becomes good for health. According to him, biscuits are being produced and sold on the basis of demand.

Kush Bahadur Thebe, chairperson of the rural municipality, said that the programme was expected to help in the branding of Koda at the local level. He mentioned the possibility of making millet as a ‘brand’ once he started making biscuits. Lately, the number of millet farmers has been decreasing and its production has also decreased. According to the rural municipality chairperson, the number of millet farmers will increase and farmers will benefit from the production of biscuits.

Vice-chairperson of the rural municipality, Prabina Rai, said that the program will support the youths who want to do something in Nepal. According to him, the rural municipality has supported to establish the industry. The rural municipality is said to have helped in the purchase of equipment. He informed that this program has been launched to connect the youths of different wards to work and to make them self-reliant.

He said the rural municipality would provide additional support if the programme could be implemented in an effective manner and suggested the rural municipality to carry out works in a professional way. He believes that not only the industry operators but the entire rural municipality would benefit if the youths and entrepreneurs work in a new and creative way. The rural municipality needs support not only in the production of goods but also in taking the products to the market.