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Kathmandu,Tuesday May 09, 2000 Baishakh 27, 2057.
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India denies duty-free access to the products of
Kodak Nepal
By a Post Reporter
KATHMANDU, May 8 - India has informed the government in writing that it would
not extend duty-free access to the photographic papers produced by Kodak Nepal, says a
highly placed government official.
India has said photographic paper produced by Kodak Nepal is not a
manufacturing activity and therefore, does not qualify for the duty-free access offered by
Indo-Nepal Trade Treaty to the goods manufactured in Nepal.
Kodak Nepal, a US-Indo joint venture has time and again claimed that
production of photographic papers in Nepal is a completely manufacturing activity and is
similar to the standard production process as is done elsewhere in the world.
Eastman Kodak, an American parent company of Kodak Nepal, successfully
lobbied the American administration to ask the latter to grant duty-free access to the
products of Kodak Nepal. United Sates, during American President Bill Clinton’s last
visit to India sent a "wish-list" and requested duty-free access to the products
of Kodak Nepal among others.
There was wide speculation among the businessmen and the government officials
that India would agree preferential entry to the products of Kodak Nepal.
Contrary to the expectation, India informed Kodak India, Eastman Kodak’s
Indian partner, that it would not entertain Kodak Nepal’s products.
Kodak Nepal has already closed down the production
unit in Hetauda Nepal and is planning to shift the factory. However, it may postpone the
shifting until the forthcoming India visit of Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala in a
hope that the issue may be sorted out during the visit.
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