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Kathmandu Friday June 01, 2001 Jestha 19, 2058.
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Eighteen
brick kilns close down in Siraha
SIRAHA, May 31 (RSS)- Eighteen of the 37 brick kilns of
Siraha district have closed down because of the smuggling of low quality bricks from India
through various check points along the open border.
According to entrepreneurs involved in producing bricks in
Siraha district, 15 to 20 tractor and truck loads of bricks are smuggled daily into
various villages through Madar, Bariyarpatti and Thadi check points in collaboration with
the employees of the customs office and the police.
The smuggling of Indian bricks into the Nepalese market has
caused a decline in government revenue and affected the local brick kilns, according to
the local brick entrepreneurs.
The closure of 18 brick kilns has caused an annual loss of
Rs 1.8 million in excise duty to His Majesty’s Government.
The Lahan VAT Office had collected Rs 905,000 from the
brick kilns of Siraha and Saptari districts a few days ago.
According to chief of the Lahan VAT Office Bhim Prasad
Adhikari, the main reasons for the closing down of the local kilns are the entry of cheap
Indian bricks into Nepalese market and the inability of the local kilns to pay excise duty
by competing with the bricks produced in India.
The excise office receives Rs 100,000 in three installments
from each brick kiln in the district. The kilns being run in the VDCs are exempted 25
percent in excise duty.
Meanwhile the smoke emitted by the kilns using coal has
polluted the environment and directly affected the health of the local people.
The local kilns are given permission by the Cottage and
Small Industry Office to operate within the prescribed limit of pollution.
Likewise, about 2,000 children are involved in producing
bricks in the local kilns.
The local industrialists demand that His Majesty’s
Government promote Nepalese industries by giving attention to the problems of raw
materials and market management.
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