The government has banned the import of flowers and flower garlands for the Tihar festival this year, giving relief to domestic florists, farmers, and customers.
In the past, especially during festivals, including Tihar, the import of flowers from outside the country would have an impact on the market for domestic flowers. Last year, flowers worth Rs 110 million were imported from neighboring India, the biggest flower supplier to Nepal.
The country is heading on the path to being self-sufficient in flower production. Floriculture has expanded to 44 districts in the country. Flower farming has been done on 178 hectares of land, said the Floriculture Association Nepal (FAN). At least 2.4 million flower garlands worth Rs 140 million are estimated to be used for the festival this year. The surge in the production of flowers with timely rain this year has eliminated the need for the import of flowers, said FAN.
Meanwhile, FAN has urged customers not to use plastic flower garlands during festivals. "Farmers have done floriculture with the aim of selling flower garlands during Tihar. But, the use of plastic flower garlands has affected farmers. So, we have urged consumers not to use plastic flower garlands," said FAN General Secretary Bishwo Mani Pokharel.
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