SATV April 07, Kathmandu: The National Potato Festival has kicked off on Sunday in Hemja of Pokhara Metropolitan City-25, a pocket area for potato production in the district of Kaski.    

The organizer stated that the festival will conclude on April 16.    

Chairman of the organizing Bishnu Paduka Club, Basanta Shrestha, mentioned that the festival was organized to promote the production and publicity of potatoes and other vegetables grown here in the area, as well as to establish Hemja as a popular commercial agricultural tourist destination.    

Potatoes grown in Hemja are well-known in Pokhara and the surrounding areas, thanks to their good taste and minimal use of pesticides.    

For getting massive attention, locals have created a massive pile of 50,000 kilograms of potatoes, the potato collection and agriculture mobilization sub-committee coordinator Jayraj Timilsina said.    

Out of the total 13,500 hectares of land in Hemja, potato farming is done on 550 hectares of land and some 2,000 households rely on agriculture here.    

During the inaugural session of the festival, Mayor of Pokhara Metropolitan City Dhanraj Acharya expressed that the city would provide the best possible support to the local community for the development of agriculture and other sectors.    

Mayor Acharya urged local farmers to take benefit from the Agriculture Ambulance introduced by the Pokhara Metropolitan City for the sale and distribution of agricultural.