KATHMANDU, July 19: Various goods as wine, cigarette, beer, chocolate, liquor and beverages imported by National Trading Corporation Limited for sale have gone to waste.
These goods are lying useless in the corporation's ware house as the corporation failed to sell and distribute them for long due to various reasons. The corporation has incurred Rs 41.7 million loss due to this.
Spokesperson for the corporation, Geeta Niraula said these goods are lying dumped in the go-down as the government levied additional tax on them. The corporation had imported the goods duty-free.
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She said out of the duty-free goods worth Rs 320 million that the corporation imported nine years back, still goods worth 77 million are lying dumped as it could not be sold. And of these goods, goods worth Rs 41.7 million have become useless while goods worth 35.27 million are useful.
Although whisky, brandy and cognac are still in usable condition, goods as wine, cigarette, beer, chocolate and liquor are not in usable condition, spokesperson Niraula added.
Corporation heading towards bankruptcy
The National Trading Corporation Limited which has been supplying and selling goods at a cheaper and affordable price to the general public is these days heading towards bankruptcy.
The corporation that had been established to retain the foreign exchange within the country is on the verge of closure as its financial health is said to be frail. The then king Mahendra Bir Bikram Shah had established the corporation in 2018 BS with the goal of making available foreign-imported goods at affordable price.
The corporation had to stand in competition with the private sector after the restoration of democracy in 1990. It is now on the brink of closure after the implementation of the provision nine years ago for it to pay tax on goods that it has imported duty-free.
General Manager of the Corporation Lavraj Joshi argued that it would be costlier to sell those goods by taxing, which have been bought by waiving tax and as a result, the transaction of such goods would be affected, leading to them to be sold by waiving tax.
"Such untaxed goods could be put up for auction if the government waives tax. Otherwise it would be difficult to sell them," he said.
Deputy Director General of Inland Revenue Department Chandra Kala Poudel however expressed ignorance about this and urged the government on providing the corporation with access to importing duty-free goods.
Meanwhile, the corporation has sold its land at Teku, saying it has to manage its long serving employees. It sold 49 ropani and 10 anna land for Rs 3.25 billion to the Nepal Oil Corporation following a Cabinet decision on May 18 which allowed it permission to this effect. The corporation said a total of 264 contract employees were to be managed with it. RSS
