Government opens fair price shops in 73 places across the country

The government has today opened 73 fair price shops in seven provinces across the country targeting major festive including Dashain, Tihar and Chhath.
Every year government sets up fair price shops during the festive season aiming to control the arbitrary hike in price of food items and other goods in the market. Aiming to control market during festive season, the government has also deployed market monitoring teams in association with DoCSCP, Department of Food Technology and Quality Control, Department of Livestock Development, Nepal Bureau of Standards and Metrology and other concerned authorities.
The Salt Trading Corporation (STC), Dairy Development Corporation (DDC) and Food Management and Trade Company (FMTC) have opened the fair price shops, according to Department of Commerce, Supply and Consumer Protection. “The STC is operating a total of 35 fair price outlets, including three mobile outlets, while Food Management and DDC are operating 23 and 15 fair price shops, respectively, within and outside the Valley.”
The fair price shops that will be opened till November 2 could not be opened in all 77 districts, the department said, adding that the STC and DDC do not have a network across the country to set up outlets in all the districts, though the government is trying to expand the area of Food Management and Trade Company (FMTC) that is recently formed by merging Nepal Food Corporation (NFC) and National Trading Ltd (NTL).
But the number of fair price shops has increased this year to 73 compared to the last year, when the government had opened fair price shops in 47 places across the country.
The STC is operating nine fair shops inside the Valley – at Kalimati, Koteshwor, Teku, Singha Durbar, Satungal, and other places of Lalitpur and Bhaktapur – and 24 different outside the valley in different places of Banepa, Birtamod, Biratnagar, Rajbiraj and Lahan.
Likewise FMTC has set up five outlets inside Kathmandu, while it is operating 18 outlets outside the Valley. The DDC has four outlets inside the Valley and 11 outside the Valley.
The fair price shops offer special discounts on different food items. The FMTC outlets are giving discounts from Rs 5 to Rs 10 per kg of rice. Likewise there will be discount of Rs 10 per kg in beans, Rs 10 a kg in meat of mountain goats and goats. The company has also targeted to sell around 2,000 mountain goats and 1,000 goats in this festive season.
Likewise, STC is offering discount of Rs 2 per kg salt and Rs 5 on a kg of sugar, whereas DDC is offering discount of Rs 50 on per kg ghee and Rs 10 on per kg paneer. 

Government to open fair price shops from September 9

The government is opening fair price outlet in Kathmandu on Monday.
Department of Commerce, Supply and Consumer Protection is going to operate fair price shops – like always – from September 9 targeting Dashain, Tihar and Chhath, the key festivals, said director general of the department Yogendra Gauchan speaking at Parliamentary Committee on Industry and Commerce, Labour and Consumer Welfare meeting.
He also informed that Salt Trading Corporation (STC), Food Management and Trade Company Ltd (FMTCL) – the merged entity of two state-owned entities National Trading Limited (NTL) and Nepal Food Corporation (NFC) in August – and Dairy Development Corporation (DDC) decided to run integrated fair shops. The government has already allocated the required budget to open the fair price shops, he informed, adding that the department will provide a discount of Rs 10 in a kg of mutton, Rs 5 in a kg of sugar and Rs 2 in a kg of salt through those shops.
Addressing the meeting, the committee members criticised the government for poor market monitoring.
Gauchan, on the occasion, also said that the department will monitor the market to check black-market. “For this purpose, eight different teams will be deployed in Kathmandu from next week though the department currently has 15 staffers for monitoring purpose.”
According to the spokesperson of FMTCL Sharmila Neupane Subedi, the first integrated fair price shop will open at Ram Shah Path from Monday. “Similar shops will be opened across the country after few days," she said, adding that the private firms can also distribute their products at discounted rates at such shops that will be opened at 23 locations across the country. 

Social Welfare Council vice chair among five sacked

The government has sacked five staffs of the Social Welfare Council (SWC) including vice chair Nil Mani Baral for their 'malicious intention'.
A cabinet meeting of February 15 had decided to remove vice chair Baral, treasurer Bir Bahadur Thagunna, members Indra Kumar Jha, Gokarna Bhatta and member secretary Dilli Prasad Bhatta, according to Communications and Information Technology Minister Gukul Banskota.
Minister Banskot – organizing a regular press meet today – said that the cabinet had decided to sack the officials for 'causing harm' to Social Welfare Council by working with 'malevolent intention' and against the law.
Banskota – who is also the government spokesperson – also informed that the government has decided carry out investigation related to financial and administrative irregularities in the Social Welfare Council according to the existing law. The case will also be sent to the Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) for action.
At a time, when the government is criticized for its inaction against the corruption, Baskota claimed that the government won’t back down from taking action against those involved in corruption.
Similarly, the government has appointed commerce secretary Kedar Bahadur Adhikari as the chairman of the Nepal Food Corporation (NFC) board. Earlier, Adhikari had served as a secretary at the Office of Prime Minister and Cabinet Secretariat for almost 2 years.
Likewise, the government has also promoted joint secretary Surya Prasad Gautam as the Financial Comptroller General and Nepal Army Colonel Ganesh Kumar Shrestha to the post of Brigadier General.
The government has also created nine temporary posts as part of the preparation to establish three medical colleges under the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology. The cabinet meeting has decided to create temporary organisational infrastructure and temporary deputation of first class officer until second week of July 2019 to run the physical infrastructure development for the medical colleges.
The government has also decided to bring five hospitals – Koshi Zonal Hospital, Narayani Sub-Regional Hospital of Birgunj, Bharatpur Hospital of Chitwan, Bheri Zonal Hospital of Nepalgunj and Dadeldhura Sub-Regional Hospital of Dadeldhura – under the federal government to provide special service, he added.
Earlier, the government had brought 11 hospitals under the federal government. 

NFC to buy 28,500-tonne of paddy rice directly from farmers

Nepal Food Corporation (NFC) is planning to buy paddy rice directly from the farmers this year.

"The corporation will buy 28,500-tonne of paddy rice directly from the farmers this year," said general manager of the corporation Dr Shivahari Shrestha, at the NFC's 39^th anniversary programme here today.

Due to the financial crisis in the corporation, it has planned to buy paddy rice, instead of rice, he said, adding that the corporation will benefit, if it buys paddy rice directly from the farmers before the harvest. "The corporation is planning to buy some 16,000-tonne of paddy rice from Banke, Bardia and Kailali."

The corporation – to improve its financial health and diversify its product and services – is also planning to trade other food grains and cereals, except rice.

In the fiscal year 2011-12, some 21 public enterprises, out of 37, were in loss and only 15 recorded profits, according to the Finance Ministry.
Like the most of the public enterprises (PEs), the state-owned food supply authority is also running in Rs 980 million net loss till the last fiscal year 2012-13 – according to the report of Public Enterprises published by the Finance Ministry – and the government has been providing it financial help to supply the food grains to the mountainous districts. This year the government has provided Rs 465.3 million to supply rice to some 23 mountainous districts.

Nepalis consume Rs 1.22 million worth sugar during festivals

Nepalis consumed around Rs 1.22 million worth sugar and over Rs 100,000 worth salt everday during the Dashain, Tihar and Chhath festivals, according to the government data.

The Salt Trading sold Rs 77.10 million worth sugar, Rs 6.8 million worth salt and Rs 25 million worth foodgrains in two months during the Dashain, Tihar and Chhath festivals from its fair price shops from September 17 to November 18, the secretary at the Office of the Prime Minister Krishnahari Baskota said during the evaluation meeting here today.

Likewise, Nepal Food Corporation (NFC) sold Rs 35.10 million, Diary Development Corporation (DDC) sold Rs 6.8 million and National Trading Ltd did some Rs 19.26 million worth commodities, according to the preliminary statistics, he said, asking the officials to collect data of annual consumption of daily consumable goods, apart from preparing the ways to effectively monitor the market, tame unnatural price hike, maintain smooth supply of consumer goods, and give continuity to the fair price shops.

He also directed the officials to take strict action against black marketers to ensure the smooth supply of consumer goods.

The Commerce Department has in the last two months monitored the market some 460 times, the department informed in the meeting. But the rare market monitoring has not been able to crack whip on rising inflation nor has it been able to penalise the blackmarketeers.

Enough food, fuel stock will be able to check inflation: Baskota

As the people have feared of price hike of most of the essential food grains and vegetables due to bandh, a high government official today claimed that the general strike could not create shortage of food grains and fuel – that could shoot the inflation high up – as the Kathmandu valley has enough stock.

"The food grain stock will be enough for three weeks and petroleum products for some nine days," said secretary at the Office of the Prime Minister Krishna Hari Baskota, here today at a programme.

The 33-party alliance led by CPN-Maoist has announced general strike for 10 days starting from November 11 till November 20 to foil Constituent Assembly (CA) election that is scheduled on November 19.

Though the core city area has seen enough vehicles on the road, life in the Valley outskirts and out of the Valley has seen less vehicular movements due to fear of bandh callers, who have resorted to vandalism and arson.

Kathmandu Valley consumes around 350 metric tonnes to 400 metric tonnes of food grain daily, he said, adding that the Nepal Food corporation has 16,400 tonnes of food grain. "The food grain stock will be enough to control unnatural price hike."

likewise, Nepal Oil Corporation has 19,155 kilo litre (kl) petroleum products that is enough for nine days, Baskota added. "There will be no shortage of cooking gas and air turbine fuel (ATF) either."

Though the government has repeatedly failed to crack whip on inflation in the normal times too, he claimed that the general strike would not fuel the price, as the government is regularly monitoring the market.

However, after the agreement with the government yesterday, the transport entrepreneurs have started operating their vehicles. The government has yesterday assured the transporters to pay Rs 50,000 compensation immediately, if the vehicles is damaged by the poll-opposers.

Government directs to import sugar for festive season

The Ministry of Commerce and Supplies has directed Nepal Food Corporation, National Trading and Salt Trading to import sugar to guarantee smooth supply during the festive season that starts next month.

Earlier, a cabinet meeting on May 30 had already decided to import 30,000 metric tonnes of sugar on one per cent customs duty by October 17 to maintain smooth supply during Dashain and Tihar, the greatest festivals in the country.
Every year during the festival season, the market witnesses a shortage of sugar due to government and its agencies apathy towards the people.

The ministry has asked the Nepal Food Corporation and National Trading to import 5,000 metric tones each and Salt Trading to import 15,000 metric tonnes of sugar, said, spokesperson of the Ministry of Commerce and Supplies  Deepak Subedi. “The Finance Ministry has also been asked to release budget and help set up fair-price shops during the festivals like earlier years to ensure smooth supply during Dashain and Tihar,” he said, adding that a three-member committee led by Director General of the Department of Commerce and Supplies Management has also been formed to effectively monitor sales of sugar.

Number of moderate food insecure districts up

The food security situation has deteriorated as compared to the previous quarter though the level of food insecurity was within a range of seasonal deterioration that is typically observed during the lean season, according to a report.

According to the NeKSAP District Food Security Network (DFSN), out of the total of 686 village development committees (VDCs) in the mid and far western hill and mountain districts, some 221 VDCs — representing the area of some 30 per cent of the population — were classified as the Phase-2 'moderately food insecure'.

The situation was similar last year, with four per cent decline in terms of the number of moderately food insecure VDCs compared to the same cycle a fiscal year ago in July-September 2011.

Limited availability and access to food were the main causes behind the moderate food insecurity in those VDCs, it said, adding that the population experienced a seasonal deterioration of food security like availability and access to food became limited due to the monsoon and political instability like partial budget, household food stock from the winter harvest was reportedly low, food supply was disrupted due to bad road conditions contributing to the price hike of edible commodities, and wage employment opportunities were curtailed due to limited availability of development activities.

For the rest of the area, the food security situation was reportedly stable, due to a good winter harvest that took place during April-June, cash income from sales of cash crops, non-timber forest products like Yarchagumba (Cordyceps sinensis), wage labour and remittance.

In last fiscal year 2011-12, winter crop production of wheat and barley was estimated at 1.85 million metric tonnes (MT) and 0.35 million MT, an increase by 5.7 per cent and 14.9 per cent, respectively, as compared to a year ago.

In addition, food assistance from Nepal Food Corporation (NFC), World Food Programme (WFP) and China also contributed to mitigating a further deterioration of the food security situation, the report added.

A late and weak start to the monsoon this year has affected paddy plantation timing as well as the total area planted, resulting in a decline in production and low yield in parts of the eastern Tarai.

According to the latest production estimates released by the Ministry of Agriculture Development, the 2012-13 summer crop production of paddy, maize, and millet has declined by 11.3 per cent, 8.3 per cent and three per cent, respectively, compared to a fiscal year ago.

A joint Ministry of Agriculture Development, World Food Programme and FAO crop verification mission is currently ongoing, which is expected to provide a further update on production as well as the food security situation.