Taplejung: Farmers in Taplejung are celebrating as the price of cardamom, often referred to as 'black gold' in the region, has more than doubled compared to the previous year, marking an all-time high in the past five years.

The current price surge has brought immense joy to local producers who have witnessed cardamom reaching up to Rs 80,000 per 40 kilograms in the local market.

Bhadra Bir Regmi, Chairman of the Cardamom Entrepreneurs Association in Taplejung, shared that this season, most farmers sold cardamom at prices ranging from Rs 70,000 to Rs 80,000 per 40 kilograms. The initial selling price was around Rs 60,000, gradually reaching Rs 80,000 two weeks ago, and currently stabilizing at Rs 79,000 per 40 kg.

Dinesh Adhikari, a cardamom entrepreneur from Phungling Municipality-5, attributed the price surge to the heightened demand for Nepali cardamom in the international market and the limited production in India. Adhikari noted that more than 80% of farmers in the region have successfully sold their cardamom at these lucrative prices.

Cardamom cultivation covers approximately 4,500 hectares of land in Taplejung, yielding around 2,500 metric tonnes annually, as reported by the Agriculture Knowledge Centre in Taplejung. Favorable weather conditions and a low incidence of diseases have contributed to increased cardamom production in the district.

The farmers, drawn to cardamom cultivation as a lucrative cash crop, are not only pleased with the good prices but also benefit from the crop's ability to generate decent earnings with relatively little cultivation time. Approximately 60 wards in the district engage in cardamom cultivation, and the recent surge in prices has further incentivized this cultivation among local farmers.