BANKE, March 21: The Indian customs has obstructed the movement of 140 tankers carrying petroleum products at the Rupaidiha customs, citing problem in online.

Customs officer at the Nepalgunj customs office Sharad Kumar KC said the Indian customs has also stopped more than a dozen trucks loaded with fruits and vegetables since two days.

According to him, although agreement has been made to allow the fruits and vegetables-laden trucks through paperwork, there was no possibility of petroleum tankers being allowed to enter Nepal until the online service was restored.

“We have been coordinating with the Indian Customs since Wednesday. We have the information that they have problem with the server and are mending it,” he said. KC added that the Indian Customs has been obstructing the fuel tankers and goods trucks at the transit point at various times ever since it switched to online system.

The Indian customs employees have stated that they have to take permission from the customs deputy commissioner for customs clearance of goods with invoice worth more than one million.

They said that there is problem to get permission from the deputy commissioner as the customs deputy commissioner’s office is situated in Lucknow. They argue that it takes time to prepare the papers for releasing the fuel tankers.

Chief of Nepal Oil Corporation’s fuel depot at Nepalgunj, Abhisekh Kumar Thakur said initiatives have been taken to bring the fuel tankers into Nepal. “We are continually making efforts to bring the tankers,” he reiterated.

According to him, NOC’s depot at Nepalgunj has diesel in reserve that will last for a week and petrol in store lasting for three days. It is said discussions on alternative ways of bringing the tankers into Nepal are also underway. RSS

KATHMANDU, June 5: Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) has increased the price of petroleum products for the eighth times in the past six months citing hike in international fuel market.

With the newer adjustments that came into effect from Sunday, the price of petrol now costs Rs 113 per liter while the price of diesel and kerosene has gone up to Rs 95 per liter. The price of aviation fuel has been increased by Rs 5 to Rs 100 per liter. Likewise, the price of air turbine fuel for the international carriers has been increased by 75 USD to 1075 per kiloliter.

But the NOC hiked the price of fuel despite fall in international markets, according to Republica Daily.

The price of crude oil in the international market is on a decreasing trend. It fell from USD 68.23 to USD 67.10 per barrel between May 30 to June 1, but the NOC increased the prices by Rs 3 to Rs 28 per liter for the different kinds of fuel, said the Daily.

The price of diesel and kerosene has surged by nearly 30 percent and the cost of petrol and aviation fuel has been hiked by 15 percent in the past six months. Similarly the price for international carriers has been soared by 27 percent.

In November the price of diesel and kerosene was around Rs 74 and the price of petrol was fixed at Rs 100.

NOC officials have said that the price revision– being carried out every fortnight under the automatic pricing mechanisms– is according to price list sent by Indian Oil Corporation.

According to NOC, the corporaton gains a profit of Rs 1.95 per liter on kerosene and Rs 2.86 and Rs 25.36 in domestic and international aviation fuel. Meanwhile, NOC bears a loss of Rs 3.74 per liter in petrol, Rs 28.54 in diesel and Rs 16.52 per cylinder in LPG cooking gas.

The price of LPG gas, which has been raised only two times, from Rs 1325 to Rs1350, remains Rs 1375 per cylinder.

KATHMANDU, Nov 1: The Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) has increased the price of the petroleum products (petrol, diesel, kerosene and cooking gas). The price hike will come into effect from Wednesday midnight, according to the NOC.

With the new price adjustment, petrol will cost Rs 100 per liter while diesel and kerosene would be availed at Rs 75.50. Likewise, the new price of the LP gas has been fixed Rs 1350, according to the NOC.

According to NOC, the price was hiked in accordance with the new price list sent by the Indian Oil Corporation.

GOVT TO FURTHER INVESTIGATE ON NOC LAND DEAL SCAM

KATHMANDU, Sept 20: Minister for Supplies Shiva Kumar Mandal said that the ministry is determined to protect the consumer rights by further increasing the monitoring of the market and taking action against those found overcharging customers.

As the Hindus’ greatest festival Dashin and Tihar is in the offing, the price of the items of daily use is about to rise uncontrollably. “But the ministry is determined to control such black market on the eve of and during the festivals,” said Minster Mandal while speaking at the Reporters’ Club Nepal on Wednesday.

“Many dishonest shopkeepers and shop-owners will fleece the customers by overcharging them during Dashain and Tihar and Chhat. The ministry will monitor market during the festival season and will take strict against them,” added Mandal.

Stating that the government had already carried out 17,000 monitoring actions in the last five years, he added that the government is committed to protect consumer rights. He added, “The ministry is doing this to save the customers from fraud people. Such monitoring actions should be done regularly and professionally.”

He also said that the government is preparing to increase the number of low-priced shops as the existing number was not able to match the customers’ demands.

Minister Mandal also said that the government is preparing to move legal proceedings against the traders of Durbarmarga who were caught while charging unreasonably high price to the customers.

A team of Department of Supply Management and Protection of Consumers Interest led by Minister Mandal had raided the some stores of Durbarmarga earlier this month and sealed half a dozen stores.

“If investigation proves them innocent, the seals would be opened,” added Mandal.

Mandal, on the occasion, also said that the government is preparing to further investigate the state owned Nepal Oil Corporation land deal scam.

A cabinet meeting on Monday decided to sack the NOC Executive Director Gopal Bahadur Khakda, after he was found to have committed financial irregularities worth multi-million rupees while procuring land for building oil storage facilities in different parts of the country.

The NoC was found to have paid four-fold price while buying land plots in Chitwan, Bhairahawa, Jhapa and Sarlahi for fuel storage. And in doing so, some high-level officers also had illegally pocketed handsome commissions.

“The ministry will further investigate on the NOC land deal scam. Even the previous owners of the land have personally promised me to give statement against the NOC officers,” said Mandal.

KATHMANDU, Aug 4: A meeting of the Public Account Committee in Parliament has directed the Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority to take legal action against the Managing Director of the Nepal Oli Corporation Gopal Khadka for his alleged involvement in irregularities of millions of rupees while procuring land for setting up storage facilities.

The PAC meeting held on Friday has concluded that the NOC’s handling in land procurement was against the Land Acquisition Act 2034. The price paid for the land was too inflated than the market rate.

The Committee has also concluded that Khadka was involved in misappropriation of about 670 million rupees in the land purchasing in Chitwa, Jhapa, Bhairahwa and Sarlahi districts.

KATHMANDU, Aug 4: Minister for Supplies Shiva Kumar Mandal has warned strict action those involved in the Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) land procurement scam, if proved.

Speaking during an interaction program organized by the Reporters’ Club Nepal on Friday, Minister Mandal said, “The issue is under investigation in a parliamentary committee. We will not make any compromise for any irregularities if proved in the committee’s report.”

“Everyone involved in the misappropriation of money will be punished,” he added.

He also urged the news media to press the Public Account Committee, Parliament’s Finance Committee for fair probe into the land dealing irregularities and to find out the truth as immediately as possible.

Minister Mandal further said that he has already directed to investigate over the tender procedure followed while procuring the land.

NOC has been accused of being indulged in financial irregularities worth Rs 670 million in the purchase of 84 bigha land while procuring land plots to build storage facilities across the country.

Parliamentary Committees have already started investigating into the alleged irregularities. Lawmakers have claimed that the NOC officials, in collaboration with numerous land agents, have pocketed handsome commission in land deal while purchasing them at three-fold price than the existing market price.

On the occasion, Minister Mandal said that black marketing and artificial shortages would not be allowed under any circumstances, especially during the festival period.
He said the process for amending the related laws and Acts have been initiated with the aim of removing the existing legal hurdles for checking such malpractices.
“The food supply and distribution would be eased during the festival months and discussions are being held with Nepal Food Corporation for transporting food grains to the remote districts,” the Supplies Minister said, adding that efforts were on to contain the market price of goods and petroleum products.

The Minister said that he has been taking information on the Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC)’s land purchase scam. “Action would be taken if any kind of irregularities is found in the NOC’s land purchase process,” he stressed.

Stating that the government was to purchase land for building storage facilities for petroleum products in all the seven provinces, he said the storage facilities would have the capacity to store fuel to meet the demand for at least 90 days.

On a different note, he said that the government is seriously trying to gather two-thirds majority in support of the under discussion constitution amendment proposal.

He added, “If the main opposition party CPN-UML supports, the constitution will be amended before the third phase of local level election slated for September 18 in Province 2.”

He also appealed the dissatisfying and agitating parties to participate in the election.

KATHMANDU, Aug 4: Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) Executive Director Gopal Bahadur Khadka has denied that the NOC has been indulged in financial irregularities worth multi-million rupees while procuring land plots across the country.

The corporation has been accused of misappropriating Rs 670 million in the purchase of 84 bigha land plots to build new storage facilities.

The local media have claimed that the NOC, in collaboration with numerous land agents, has paid four-fold the market price while procuring the land and in doing so the high-level officials illegally pocketed handsome commissions worth millions of rupees.

But NOC Director Khadka claims that no irregularities were done while purchasing the lands.

“The lands in Rupandehi, Chitwan, Sarlahi and Jhapa districts were bought in following the due process,” said Khada while talking to Journalist Rishi Dhamala at a radio program ‘Nepali Bahas’ on Friday.

“We have paid lower price for Bhairawa land plots comparing to the price the government paid while procuring land for airport,” he claimed.

But the local media has accused the NOC of paying about Rs 150 million in surplus for the land in Bhairahawa alone without following the legal tender procedure.

The NOC has also been blamed of paying Rs 600 million for 24 bighas of land at Lothar Bazaar in Chitwan which the local brokers had sold the NOC for Rs 1.4 million per kathha.

“The media have disseminated false reports,” Khadka vented ire adding, “The allegations are framed based on some personal enmity.”

“We procured those lands in coordination with the District Revenue Office. Not a single penny has been scammed in the land deal,” he further claimed.

Meanwhile, Parliament’s Finance Committee and the Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority have already started probing the alleged irregularities in the land purchase.

KATHMANDU: Chief of Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) depot at Bhalbari Nagendra Kurmi has been arrested by police for his alleged involvement in the theft of petroleum products imported by the corporation from India.

Kurmi was booked for the crime after NOC officers Rabindra Kumar Raut and Dipendra Basnyat, who are in police custody for the past five days, and drivers and helpers of the tankers, from which the petroleum products were stolen, named Kurmi during interrogation.

SP Thapa said that further investigation would reveal Kurmi’s involvement in the theft.

Police had found 19 tankers taking out diesel deceitfully during a raid conducted at two petrol pumps and two godowns at Padsari and Madauliya in Rupandehi and confiscated 17,000 litres of diesel.

Following the revelation of petroleum theft, arrest warrant was issued against 16 tanker owners.

Meanwhile, Paschimanchal Tanker Entrepreneurs Association has continued to halt the transportation of petroleum products from India demanding the release of the tanker owners who were arrested after the raid.