Mandarin is one of the main sources of income for the people in parts of Bhutan. However, over the years, the farmers saw their income from mandarin dwindle as citrus greening plagued the orange orchards.
Citrus greening is believed to one of the most serious citrus plant diseases.
The government is now all set to come to the rescue of the affected farmers.
The agriculture and forest minister Yeshey Penjor said more than Nu 900 M has been allocated in the current plan to improve mandarin production.
Lyonpo shared this at the National Assembly yesterday in response to a question raised by the Lhamoi_Dzingkha_Tashiding MP.
The challenges, such as poor orchard management, insect infestation and water shortage among others, will all be addressed, the minister said.
“We have allocated Nu 250 M for reusing old mandarin orchards that are lying fallow. Over Nu 200 M has been set aside for improving the existing orchards and for new orchards. More than Nu 400 M will be spent on improving irrigation facilities,” Minister Yeshey Penjor said.
“Having a good production is not enough. We need to build and improve business skills and for that Nu 45 M has been allocated. Likewise, Nu 10 M will be used for building capacity of the farmers in mandarin production.”
In 2017, Bhutan produced 28,000 metric tonnes of mandarin. The ministry plans to more than double the production to 67,000 metric tonnes in the 12th Five Year Plan.
