Food crisis becoming acute in western Nepal
Thousands of people in the mid-western and far western
region of the country are facing severe food shortages,
raising concerns that it might soon turn into a famine
like situation there.
Reports said that thousands of people in rural areas of
mid-western Rukum and Rolpa in the far western region are
starving due to severe shortage of food items, while
efforts to get food to them have been hampered by lack of
road connectivity, bad weather (for helicopters to supply
food), strikes and fuel shortage.
Worsening the already stark food crisis in Rolpa, the
office of Nepal Food Corporation in the district
headquarters Libang has stopped selling rice from Sunday,
saying that it has run out of stock. Reports said this has
caused panic among the people living in Rolpa, sending
them in hordes to the office to demand for rice. People
come to NFC to purchase rice as the prices here are low
compared to private shops.
A report published in today's edition of the Himalayan
Times says a decline in maize and wheat production this
year was another reason for food scarcity in the district.
The report said that Dalit communities in northern parts
of Rolpa are the worst hit by food shortages.
People from rural areas have started coming to the
district headquarters Liwang in search of food, the report
adds.
"If we cannot take rice from the NFC office, we will have
nothing to eat," Budi Maya Buda of Dhangsi told the paper.
Similarly, people in Rukum, Accham, Bajhang and Bajura are
also reeling under acute food shortage caused by
obstruction of roads by
floods and landslides, with some VDCs reeling under food
shortage for nearly a month. District officials say that
their efforts to send food items by air has been dampened
due to bad weather.
Many families in these food hit district are coping by
simply eating less or sending their meagre possessions to
buy food items.
A recent World Food Program (WFP) report says that rising
food prices coupled with destroyed harvests are hitting
the poor people in rural Nepal very badly. nepalnews.com ag Aug 05 08
Related news
- Nepal becoming food insecure: WFP
