Prime Minister Dr Baburam Bhattarai, who met with petroleum dealers and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) bottlers on Thursday, said he has already talked to New Delhi about the supply problem and requested its help. [break]
“I have personally talked to the Indian authorities about ending the scarcity. The supply-related problems will end soon,” Bishnu Prasad Chaudhary, Minister of State for Commerce and Supplies, quoted the prime minister as saying during the meeting.
As Dr Bhattarai did not elaborate, Chaudhary and the other participants in the meeting were unable to explain what actually the prime minister had asked and what the Indian response was. However, sources said the prime minister´s request to India was twofold: step up petroleum supply and issue the fuel on credit for the time being.
Currently, Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), the sole petroleum products supplier to Nepal, sends in supplies depending on the volume of payment it receives from NOC.
But NOC, saddled with a cumulative loss of well over Rs 20 billion, has failed to garner funds on its own and the Ministry of Finance (MoF), which has so far provided or guaranteed loans of Rs 21.36 billion, has also exhausted its resources. So the country has been unable to import enough fuel to meet normal demand over the past one month.
Although Commerce and Supplies Minister Lekh Raj Bhatta did not categorically confirm the prime minister´s request for supply on credit, he said India has responded positively and committed itself to step up the supply.
“Requests to India for more fuel and issue of fresh loans of Rs 2 billion to NOC have put multiple arrangements in place. Now the supply will ease within a week,” Bhatta told Republica.
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