Technical committee formed to identify sick enterprises
KATHMANDU, MAY 31 -
The Ministry of Industry (MoI) has formed a technical committee to identify sick enterprises following the cabinet’s endorsement of a report recommending providing support to troubled industrial units. The technical committee is led by joint secretary Anil Thakur.
“The committee will develop parameters based on which sick industries will be identified,” said Yam Kumari Khatiwada, joint secretary at the MoI.
MoI officials said that it was crucial to come up with parameters to determine which enterprises are sick and should be bailed out. The ministry plans to finalize the parameters within the next three weeks and then start singling out enterprises in need of help.
On Thursday, the cabinet endorsed the report of the Sick Industry Rehabilitation High-Level Taskforce led by National Planning Commission vice-chairman Deependra Bahadur Kshetri. The report has offered recommendations to revive sick industrial units besides providing easy exit measures for those beyond rescue.
Chabindra Parajuli, joint spokesperson for the ministry, said that the ministry has so far received requests for relief from more than 200 enterprises. They belong to the hydropower, tourism, hotel and restaurant, construction and service sectors.
As per the recommendation of the report, the MoI will classify sick enterprises as per the degree of their problems into three categories—fully sick, sick and close to being sick—and introduce incentive packages accordingly, said an MoI official. The ministry plans to form an easy exit policy for fully sick enterprises within a two-year period as they are beyond being revived due to their weak infrastructure, competitive market, poor technology and massive debts, among other reasons.
Parajuli said that as nominal care for sick companies would suffice, the ministry would offer them a three-to-five-year package for rehabilitation, loans at low interest rates and tax exemption, among others.
Ministry officials said that the ministry was studying ways to save enterprises which are on the verge of sickness. “Our efforts at amending most of the industry-related bills are directed at the same purpose,” said Parajuli. The government will be amending a number of industrial laws including the Foreign Investment and Technology Transfer Act, Industrial Enterprises Act, Company Act and Labour Act and introducing the Intellectual Property Act and Special Economic Zone (SEZ) Act.
Source: The Kathmandu Post
