It was decided during the 10th Five Year Plan that every house in Zhemgang should have a kitchen garden. This was mainly to pursue vegetable self-sufficiency in the Dzongkhag.
The initiative “in pursuit of a kitchen garden for every household” is being seen as a blessing, especially, with the Country experiencing the Indian Rupee shortage. The recent Zhemgang Dzongkhag Tshogdu saw unanimous support for enhanced vegetable production.
“Every household is to maintain a kitchen garden basically to curb the effects of the rupee shortage and ban on import of vegetables, while improving local production,” said Mani Sangay, Dzongrab, Zhemgang
The initiative also hopes to increase the cultivation of fallow private land by the end of the 11th Five Year Plan. “We aim to increase vegetable production from the current 640 metric tonnes to 1280 metric tonnes by the end of the 11th FYP,” said the Dzongrab.
Jafala of Trong village has been growing various types of vegetables in his kitchen garden and claims that he has benefitted from the practice. “We don’t have to buy from others as we grow enough to sustain ourselves. We even have enough to sell. There is also no dearth of customers.”
A compact was signed this month, between the Dzongkhag administration and the Gewog leaders from the eight Gewogs of Zhemgang to boost the kitchen garden initiative. The compact signing is also in line with the executive order issued in September, this year, by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forests to enhance vegetable production in all Dzongkhags.
