One bodhichitta tree yields Rs. 9 million

BY KEDAR TIMALSINA,Banepa, June 26: A single bodhichitta tree is being sold at Rs. 9 million in Kavrepalanchowk. Samip Tripathi, a bead businessman, has agreed to buy a bodhichitta tree located in Sisakhani of Roshi Rural Municipality-5 in Kavrepalanchowk district owned by Sher Bahadur Tamang and his family. He had already given advance of five million rupees to Tamang family.

Bodhichitta is commercially cultivated in Roshi Rural Municipality and Temal Rural Municipality. It brings millions of rupees to these rural municipalities as single bodhichitta tree costs around tens of million rupees. However, such transaction is not conducted through banking system. Farmers are found to transact in cash with traders.

Farmers sell bodhichitta beads to local traders and local traders sell it to Chinese traders. All these transactions are being conducted in cash. However, they do such transactions by showing low price in an official document and taking twice or thrice the quoted price, to deceive local governments and evade taxes.

A local farmer said that bodhichitta farmers had been doing transactions in cash. He said, “Earlier, when we went to the bank to deposit money, the bank asked many questions such as income source and if millions of rupees could be earned from a single tree.”

“Farmers and traders involved in the purchase and sale of bodhichitta seeds make all payments in cash, both for advances and the final installment of seed sales," said a trader involved in the bodhichitta garland business. He mentioned that when depositing money in the bank in the past, questions arose about the source of income, stating that millions were earned from selling bodhichitta seeds.

To maintain transparent and fearless transaction, the local government and the federal government should initiate for the organised and transparent transaction. An investigation should be carried out on the payment mode between Chinese and Nepali traders. It is found that the Chinese traders are doing transactions through hundi process. 

In the district, Roshi Rural Municipality charges a 5 per cent tax on the total value of bodhichitta beads sales and Temal Rural Municipality charges a recommendation fee of Rs. 25 rupees per kilogram for bodhichitta beads.

Locals said tax charges should be corrected since the government has been charging taxes based on per kilogram. They said that they had to pay more revenue for low-value beads and less for high-value beads. 

Therefore, the government should charge taxes based on prices instead of kilograms. In order to systematise bodhichitta transactions, local governments should collect data on the bodhichitta trees within their jurisdiction and tax accordingly. 

A price of a garland of the smallest-size bodhichitta beads consisting of 108 beads depends on the buyers’ and sellers’ negotiation, while same-size garland of thee-faced beads costs around Rs. 2,500 per garland, five-faced beads costs around Rs. 3,500, six-faced beads costs around Rs. 30,000 -35,000 and no-sound beads costs around Rs. 20,000 – 25,000.

The Office of the Auditor General has suggested establishing standards for the sale and distribution of bodhichitta beads. In its annual audit report for the fiscal year 2022/23, the Office of the Auditor General advised Roshi and Temal rural municipalities to organise the sale and distribution of bodhichitta beads produced in these areas. 

The report stated that although Temal Rural Municipality's Financial Act-2022, provided for a recommendation fee of Rs. 25 per kilogram or a 1.5 per cent export tax on the value of bodhichitta garlands, the municipality usually charges only the recommendation fee. 

Similarly, the Office of the Auditor General stated that Roshi Rural Municipality charged a 5 per cent facilitation fee based on self-declaration or agreement rather than the quantity or quality of the bodhichitta beads.