KATHMANDU, April 14: The Department of Commerce, Supply and Consumer Protection (DoCSCP) has made it mandatory to mention the maximum retail price (MRP) on iron rods and cement from Monday, the beginning of the Nepali New Year 2082.
Kumar Dahal, director general of the DoCSCP, said the department has asked the concerned manufacturers to maintain price tags on the construction materials from April 14. “The manufacturers have agreed to put the tags of factory gate price, while the dealers have also consented to sell the construction materials at the listed MRP,” he said.
Issuing a public notice, the DoCSCP had made the MRP rule mandatory for all items, except those sold by weight or measurement, starting from April 2. However, the cement and iron rod manufacturers have been expressing their dissatisfaction over the government decision.
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The government authorities were prompted to enforce the rule after facing heavy criticism from various fronts regarding the controversial surge in prices of construction materials. Last month, cement manufacturers increased the price of their product by around Rs 150 per sack, while the price of iron rod has also been increased to Rs 90 from Rs 76 per kg.
Dahal said manufacturers of a large number of products have now been prompted to put MRP tags in their outputs. “Along with assisting them in technical ground, we have also increased the market inspection drive to make it effective,” he added.
The measure of the DoCSCP is expected to safeguard consumers from being cheated by unfair prices in the market. Along with the MRP, the regulatory body has also directed the manufacturers to mention details of producers, manufactured and expiry dates, batch number and all the tax details included in the final price of the products. In case of the certification related issues, the products concerned must be labeled with quality certification and informative signs and pictures.
The department has also made it mandatory to label the imported vegetables and fruits that come in packaging. However, the rule is not applicable for the locally produced farm products.
The government has been struggling to implement the MRP rules effectively for over a decade mainly due to the pressures from businesspersons. Earlier on September 17, 2012, the Commerce Ministry published a notice in the Nepal Gazette making price tags mandatory for daily necessities. This time, the DoCSCP appears firm to secure consumers’ rights provisioned in the Consumer Protection Act 2018.
