Still waiting for relief

Twenty-six sick industries that were expecting relief package from the government, particularly after the Prime Minister instructed Ministry of Industry (MoI) last week to announce the package, are going to be disappointed again.

Instead of coordinating with the concerned ministries that were involved in working out the relief package, the MoI has decided to implement the ´incentives´ only after incorporating a provision of ´sick industry´ in the new Industrial Enterprises Act (IEA) that it is drafting.

MoI officials say the ministry cannot implement the package, which includes slew of incentives like taxi waiver, loans restructuring and other procedural facilities for sick industries on its own.

“We will need to incorporate a provision of sick industries in upcoming act before implementing it,” Umakant Jha, secretary of MoI, said, indicating that the package will not be implemented anytime soon.

Jha said the ministry was preparing to get rid of legal hurdles so as to implement the package as directed by the Prime Minister´s Office.

An eight-member taskforce comprising representatives from different stakeholders, including National Planning Commission (NPC), Ministry of Finance (MoF) and Nepal Rastra Bank - had prepared and submitted a report on sick industries to the Ministry of Industry a couple of months ago.

The report has labeled 26 industries, including Maruti Cement in Dharan, Bhrikuti Pulp and Paper in Nawalparasi, Basulinga Sugar and General Industry in Kailali and Shree Tiger Tops in Chitwan as sick units.

The ministry, which is supposed to be coordinating with all the line agencies to provide relief to the sick industries as envisioned in the report, is preparing to form different committees and technical teams for implementing the report prepared by the team led by Dipendra Bahadur Kshetry, vice-chairperson of the NPC.

"We will first incorporate the provisions for sick industries in the upcoming act," Anil Kumar Thakur, joint-secretary of the ministry and chief of the Industrial Promotion Division at the ministry, said.

“We are also in the process of forming a high-level team of legal experts to eliminate legal hurdles for implementing the report.”

Thakur said the ministry will expedite the process of providing incentives to the industries only after the draft of the act is endorsed. The new act will replace the existing Industrial Enterprises Act 1992.

Sugam gets govt nod to resume op

The Ministry of Industry (MoI) has allowed Sugam Gas -- a notorious gas company that circulated liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) in tampered cylinders -- to resume operations even as it is yet to be tried under Consumer´s Rights Protection Act on charges of exposing consumers´ lives to grave risk.

Officials of Department of Industry (DoI) that issued a letter to this connection to the LPG bottler on Monday said they decided to let the company resume LPG bottling and sales as it served the suspension period and paid fine slapped by the MoI.

MoI had slapped a fine of Rs 500,000 on Sugam Gas and suspended its operations for six months as punishment.

“The company has already paid the fine slapped by the ministry. The suspension period also ended last week,” said Dhurba Lal Rajbansi, director general of the DoI.
Shiva Prasad Ghimire, proprietor of Sugam Gas, also told Republica that he received a letter on resuming operations on Tuesday and that his company would resume LPG bottling immediately.

“I have already filed an application at the Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC), requesting it to supply gas to my company,” he stated.

However, both Ghimire and Rajbanshi refused to talk about the case filed against the company by the Office of Cottage and Small Industry (OoCSI) -- the local market inspector -- in Sunsari.

The office had filed the case after its inspection found the company of illegally amassing cylinders of other bottlers and refitting Sugam´s foot rings and neck rings on them.

As such tampering works erodes pressure bearing capacity of cylinders, making them vulnerable to leakages and explosion, OoCSI and consumers rights protection bodies had assessed that the company had put consumers´ lives at risk by circulating tampered cylinders in the market.

Meanwhile, consumers´ rights activists have flayed the decision. “This is a wrong decision; we urge the government to revoke it,” said Ram Chandra Simkhada, secretary of the Consumers Right Protection Forum (CRPF). He even accused the ministry officials of working hand in glove with the company.