Harre: The pesticide examination laboratory established in Harre of Bheriganga Municipality-4 to test the pesticide residue in vegetables and fruits entering Karnali Province remains unused. The facility has been left abandoned as the provincial government has not allocated the necessary funds or human resources for its operation.
According to National News Agency Nepal, Senior agricultural economist Chitra Bahadur Rokaya, the Chief of Integrated Agricultural Laboratory of Karnali Province, highlighted that despite the laboratory’s completion six years ago, it has not been operational due to insufficient budget and lack of human resources. Rokaya stated that the office has requested the line ministry to manage funds and human resources, but these have not yet been provided.
The ministry has allocated only Rs 2.9 million for the laboratories in Harre and Kapurkot, Salyan. Rokaya noted that a budget of Rs 6.5 million was requested, but less than fifty per cent of that amount was received, which is inadequate
for procuring essential equipment and goods for the laboratories.
The office also requested a minimum of six employees for each laboratory in Harre and Kapurkot, but these positions remain unfilled. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Land Management, Agriculture and Cooperatives of Karnali Province is attempting to reallocate funds from other areas to address the funding shortfall for the laboratories’ operation, according to the ministry’s spokesperson, Agricultural Extension Officer Dhan Bahadur Kathayat.