Commerce Dept to manage ample stock of essentials

KATHMANDU, MAY 16

The Department of Commerce and Supply Management (DoCSM) has planned to manage adequate stocks of essentials considering the possibility of Prithvi Highway being cut off by landslides during the coming monsoon .

A team from the department has started an inspection of the vital road to identify places vulnerable to landslides and assess the time that will be needed to clear the debris so that the exact quantity of essentials needed during the rainy season can be stored before the monsoon begins.

Following the recent earthquakes and aftershocks, the hilly parts of the highway have been seen to be prone to landslides, raising the possibly of vehicular movement being blocked. Prithvi Highway is the main gateway for the supply of essentials to the Kathmandu valley and beyond.

Director General at the DoCSM Shambhu Koirala said a two-member team led by the department’s Director Hari Narayan Belbase has been carrying out the study on the condition of the road and the bridges on it.  “Technicians and the District Administration Offices that represent the area along the highway will also study, working in coordination with the police, the possibility of landslides in the hills that could result due to rain.”

According to Koirala, the team will be submitting its report next week. “Based on the report, we will recommend to the government the necessary steps to regulate the supply during the monsoon .” A report of the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport shows that Prithvi Highway and the bridges on it were unharmed by the two quakes and aftershocks. However, the hills in the area are reported to have developed fissures due to the aftershocks. According to the DoCSM’s preliminary report, the highway is likely to face massive landslides at just one location.

Koirala said they were planning to make the concerned authorities and organisations keep excess stocks targeting the approaching monsoon if the highway is disrupted by landslides. “We have planned to increase buffer stocks with Nepal Food Corporation. Similarly, we will request Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) to keep excess stocks of petroleum in coordination with private entrepreneurs,” he said.

Currently, the cereal stock with the government is estimated to meet demand for the next six months. Similarly, NOC has full stocks of petrol and diesel at its Thankot depot. NOC has a capacity to store 1,800 kilolitres of petrol and 8,000 kilolitres of diesel which are enough to meet the valley’s needs for five days and two weeks respectively. According to NOC, the stocks of petroleum products have increased also due to low demand at present.

Source: The Kathmandu Post