The Department of Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and Cooperatives has started preparations for the budget of the financial year 2025 - 26. In the discussion organized on the budget in Nepal House, Minister Shilpi Neha Tirkey asked officials to focus on the schemes that are proving beneficial for the farmers. The department will work to increase the budget amount of the beneficial and welfare scheme for the farmers, while the scheme which has got very little benefit to the farmers or the scheme which has not proved beneficial for the farmers will be dropped.

The Minister instructed the departmental officials during the budget discussion to reduce or drop the budget of all such schemes. The minister has clearly told the officials that 100 per cent of the budget amount allocated for the scheme has to be utilized properly. Under no circumstances should the budget amount be pending due to the scheme not being implemented on the ground. For this, it is necessary that the field staff and officers of the department remain serious for the success of the scheme.

She said that it should be ensured at all costs that the beneficiaries get maximum benefit of the department's scheme. In the financial year 2025 - 26, the department will focus the most on the availability of seeds and seed distribution. The department has decided to establish 10 seed villages. Tirkey has talked about getting the irregularities in seed distribution in Lapung investigated. In fact, when information was taken from the beneficiary during the review regarding seed distribution, there was a big difference between the departmental claims and the ground reality. Many beneficiary farmers have also complained to the department about not getting seeds.

The Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and Cooperative Department has started preparing a report on the number of beneficiaries and the success of the scheme for determining the scheme-wise amount for the upcoming budget.