Govt pledges smooth supply of essentials

KATHMANDU, NOV 11 -

Finance Minister Shankar Prasad Koirala has said that the government will ensure smooth supply of essential goods during the banda announced for Monday by an alliance of 33-political parties.

These parties led by the CPN-Maoist have called a nationwide shutdown in protest against the Constituent Assembly (CA) election scheduled for Nov 19 which they said they would boycott. Originally, the 33-party alliance had planned to call a 10-day banda, but relaxed their stand amid pressure from other political parties, the media and the general public.

Finance Minister Koirala, who is also the Minister of Commerce and Supplies, said that the government had adequate stocks of essential goods including fuel for 10 days.

Speaking at an interaction with the private sector in the presence of senior government and security officials on Sunday, Koirala urged the private sector to maintain smooth supplies of daily essentials during the planned shutdown.

"As the government has pledged to provide compensation for any damage caused by banda enforcers, it is the responsibility of everybody to maintain regular supplies," said Koirala. The government has announced it will pay compensation amounting to up to 90 percent of the loss caused to their property during the banda.

Similarly, it has said it will pay the entire medical bill for the treatment of injuries suffered by anyone during the shutdown. Minister Koirala also said that a five-member cabinet committee headed by the home minister would take care of matters related to the supply of goods.

Meanwhile, security officials said they were fully prepared to provide security to traders during the banda.

Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) Kesh Bahadur Shahi said they had arranged special security for suppliers of essential goods. "Apart from deploying police patrols, separate squads have been formed to arrest those involved in vandalising shops and harassing suppliers," he added.

According to Shahi, the police will reach the trouble scene within five minutes of being called. He added that the police would organize and escort convoys of 10-12 trucks transporting daily necessities.

Meanwhile, representatives of the private sector said they were ready to maintain regular supplies of essentials during the strike but were concerned by security threats. They added that bandas had increased the economic woes of the nation.

"We are ready to join hands with the government to maintain regular supplies of essentials. But we don't want to become targets of miscreants for doing that," said Surendra Bir Malakar, past president of the Nepal Chamber of Commerce.

Similarly, Suraj Vaidya, president of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry, said the banda would make life hard for daily wage earners and the education and tourism sectors besides affecting the upcoming poll. "At a time when European countries and the US have issued travel advisories warning their citizens to stay away from Nepal, the banda will affect the tourism business for at least the next one and a half years," he said.

The FNCCI said that a day of banda would cause losses of Rs 2.5 billion to the country. Vaidya said that traders did not want to be involved in any type of confrontation, and that they were constantly making efforts to convince the organisers to withdraw their banda.

Likewise, Narendra Basnet, president of the Confederation of Nepalese Industries, said the banda could scare away foreign investment. "The political parties should consider the minimum economic agendas at the national level."

Another industrialist Hari Bhakta Sharma asked the government to remain alert with regard to the supply and pricing situation.

Source: The Kathmandu Post