Home Minister Sudhan Gurung has pledged to address the market-access problems faced by farmers in Gandaki Rural Municipality of Gorkha, where agricultural produce is reportedly left to rot in fields because roads and bridges do not provide reliable access to markets. During a visit to the rural municipality for a voter meeting, local residents told Gurung that the absence of a bridge makes it difficult to transport vegetables and obtain fair prices. Nepal Press reported that a permanent bridge is to be built at Jyamireghat.
Farmers describe barriers to reaching markets
Residents raised the issue directly with Gurung during his visit, describing how the lack of a bridge affects their ability to sell their harvest. The problem, as presented to the Home Minister, is not simply whether crops can be grown: farmers also need a way to move them from their fields to buyers. Without that connection, produce can remain unsold and spoil, while growers lose the opportunity to receive a fair return for their work.
The complaints point to a practical gap between agricultural production and access to markets. Vegetables are perishable, so delays or obstacles in getting them to buyers can have immediate consequences. In Gandaki Rural Municipality, residents said the missing bridge makes marketing their produce difficult. Their concern was that crops which could otherwise be sold may rot in the fields when farmers cannot get them to market in time.
The residents’ account also linked the transport problem to the prices farmers receive. They told Gurung that the absence of a bridge has made it harder to market vegetables at fair prices. The reported difficulty therefore concerns both the movement of produce and the terms on which farmers can sell it. A bridge at the relevant crossing is intended to address the physical barrier residents identified during the meeting.
Permanent bridge planned at Jyamireghat
Following the farmers’ complaints, Gurung pledged to resolve the problem. Nepal Press reported that a permanent bridge is to be built at Jyamireghat. The plan addresses the specific infrastructure need raised by residents and offers a proposed route for improving the connection between agricultural areas and markets.
The announcement is significant for the farmers who described crops being lost before they could be sold. A permanent bridge would respond to their request for a crossing that can support the movement of produce, rather than leaving market access dependent on the difficult conditions residents said they face now. The stated commitment is focused on enabling farmers to carry their vegetables beyond their fields and toward buyers.
For local growers, the issue raised with the Home Minister is closely tied to whether their harvest can reach a market while it is still usable. The residents’ complaints and the reported plan for Jyamireghat place that concern at the centre of the proposed work. The pledge signals an intention to address the obstacle they identified, although the report supplied no additional details about the construction schedule or other implementation arrangements.
Commitment follows residents’ complaints
Gurung made the pledge during a voter-meeting visit to the rural municipality, where residents brought the problem to his attention. Their account described a direct effect on farming livelihoods: agricultural produce is left in the fields when the lack of roads and bridges prevents it from reaching markets. The proposed permanent bridge is the response reported after those complaints.
The issue remains one of basic connectivity for producers. Farmers can only market their vegetables if they can move them from the places where they are grown to places where buyers can access them. Residents told Gurung that the missing bridge has obstructed that process and limited their ability to sell at fair prices. The commitment to build at Jyamireghat is intended to address the gap they raised, with the central concern being whether produce can be transported before it spoils.
The report does not provide further details on when construction will begin or when the bridge is expected to be completed. For now, the development is a pledge made in response to farmers’ complaints. Its importance for local growers will depend on the promised crossing being delivered and on whether it makes it easier for them to take agricultural produce to market.
