Dry Spell Takes Toll on Paddy Transplantation; Output Likely to Drop by 7%

Nepal is likely to witness up to a 7 percent drop in paddy production this year as dry spell in central and eastern plains of Nepal reduced the area of paddy transplantation by more than 3.5 percentage points, according to agriculture experts.

The Department of Agriculture on Sunday released the final figures for this year’s paddy transplantation, showing a 3.64 percentage point decline compared to last year. As of this time last year, 98.54 percent of transplantation was completed nationwide. This year, the figure stands at only 94.9 percent.

Out of the 1,376,466 hectares of land used for paddy cultivation, transplantation was completed in 1,306,293 hectares. Agriculture officials said the decline was primarily due to delayed and insufficient monsoon rains, particularly in Madhesh and Koshi provinces, regarded as major rice-growing regions.

Tilak Raj Chaulagain, Senior Agricultural Economist at the Department, said that the paddy transplantation season has ended this year and explained that the decline in transplantation was due to unfavorable monsoon conditions.

“Paddy transplantation has finished for this season. Due to unfavorable monsoon conditions, the overall transplantation declined, which could lead to a production drop of up to 7 percent,” said Chaulagain.

He explained that transplantation delays in Madhesh—where it dropped by over 10 percentage points—are likely to hurt productivity. “If seedlings are not transplanted within 21 days of germination, their yield decreases. The hybrid varieties widely used in Madhesh and Koshi are designed for timely transplantation, so delays significantly reduce productivity,” he added.

The Department’s Director, Prakash Kumar Sanjel, noted that although the government initially expected higher production this year due to the promotion of hybrid varieties in provinces like Gandaki, Lumbini, Karnali, and Sudurpaschim, poor monsoon performance negated those projections.

Province-wise data show the sharpest decline in Madhesh, where transplantation dropped from 97 percent last year to 86.35 percent this year. Paddy transplantation in Koshi stood at 97.24 percent, down from 100 percent a year earlier. Bagmati recorded 97.27 percent paddy transplantation, compared to 99 percent last year, and Gandaki saw a dip to 96.63 percent from 98 percent. Lumbini reported 98.37 percent paddy transplantation, while Karnali and Sudurpaschim remained largely stable at 99.72 percent.

Earlier this season, the government declared Madhesh Province a drought-affected zone after it received no rainfall till mid-monsoon, severely impacting transplantation.

Officials warned that reduced production could increase Nepal’s dependence on rice imports and push up food prices. Last year, the country produced over 55,955,476 metric tonnes of rice, marking a 4.04 percent increase from the previous year.