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Kathmandu, Friday January 07, 2000 Paush 23rd, 2056.
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Ensure
enough kerosene
The
decision taken by Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) to distribute kerosene
under quota system to prevent hoarding and cross border smuggling does
not appear to be in the right direction. This is because most of the
poor households are dependent on kerosene and any short supply of this
commodity is bound to hit them more than others. What is more, any
move from either Nepal or India to change the existing kerosene price
has often led to cross border smuggling due to the unregulated open
border. Besides, the nexus between smugglers and businessmen has also
hampered the distribution of kerosene, particularly in border areas.
Any
hike in prices of petroleum products in India has always inspired
hoarding in the border towns and cross border smuggling. In such
situations, Nepal loses millions of rupees in terms of revenue. Again,
the chief culprit seems to be none other than the same unregulated
open border. But unlike in the past, the government has now announced
the quota system of distribution for kerosene, particularly in areas
bordering with India. In fact, the price of kerosene in Nepal remains
lower even after the hike to a level corresponding the Indian market
price.
Nepal
Oil Corporation may not have failed to ensure adequate supply of
kerosene for people in these border areas but the difference in prices
has encouraged unscrupulous tendencies among businessmen in these
areas. As a result, many consumers who depend on kerosene for cooking
and heating have been badly affected. This would certainly not have
happened if NOC had not reduced the supply of kerosene by 25 percent.
The
country’s terai region requires approximately 2.6 million litres of
kerosene every year and 60 percent of the region’s total population
depend entirely on it for fuel. In spite of the fact that there are
more than one hundred suppliers recruited to distribute kerosene in
the terai region, consumers still need to spend hours in queue just
for one litre of the commodity.
Unlike
in India, Nepal has not yet introduced the ration card system wherein
the government supplies essential commodities including kerosene at
subsidized rates. Due to this, most suppliers either hoard or smuggle
essential commodities into India, for the price of kerosene still
remains higher in the open Indian market. The government has not been
able to control cross border smuggling but it is now high time that it
realised that the open border system has done more harm to Nepal than
to India. The loss is not only in terms of revenue worth millions of
rupees but also in terms of social security, as cross border crimes
are also rising. So that the situation does not get worse, the
government should raise the border issue with India without any delay
or introduce an improved mechanism to regulate cross border movement
and check illegal activities.
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