Approximately 7.6 tons of ginger belonging to Samtse farmers are stored in Food Corporation of Bhutan Limited’s (FCBL) auction yard, as exports from the district stopped more than a month ago.
A ginger farmer from the Pemaling area said he has left 4 tons of ginger at the auction yard in Samtse. According to this grower, farmers in Pemaling depend on ginger sales for more than 70 percent of their annual income.
“Farmers are bringing in ginger without any soil this year,” one trader told kuenselonline.com, adding that quality is better compared to previous years. “But the export is not happening. I hear ginger is not listed on India’s import list.”
Although there is a bigger market in Siliguri, where traders from many parts of India participate, locals in Chamarchi want the export to be routed through them and not directly with the Siliguri parties, the suppliers said.