Nepal could boost its lentil export with proper government initiatives
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, NOV 01 -
Nepal could boost its lentil exports to Rs. 25 billion annually if the government does proper research, provides improved seeds and improves links with the international market, a government official said.
The country’s three-year interim plan, which is in the final stage of endorsement, has targeted increasing production of pulses to 377,000 tons from 262,000 tons presently.
The plan aims to increase output by 115,000 tons in three years. If this quantity is exported, the country can earn another Rs. 12 billion. Lentils are one of the country’s high-value crops. According to the Agriculture Ministry, lentils account for 90 percent of the total export of pulses. Bangladesh and the Middle East are the largest importers of Nepal’s lentils.
In 2008-09, exports jumped to 56,767 tons worth Rs. 5.66 billion from Rs. 1.62 billion in 2007-08 to become the country’s largest export. However, exports shrank to 37,779 tons worth Rs. 3.74 billion in 2009-10, according to the Trade and Export Promotion Centre. “The rise in exports recorded in 2008-09 shows that lentils are a potential commodity to narrow the increasing trade deficit the country has been facing for a long time,” said Hari Dahal, spokesperson at the Ministry of Agriculture. According to Nepal Rastra Bank’s annual macroeconomic statistics, the plunge in the export of lentils was reflected in a drop in the overall export volume. Total exports dipped 9.7 percent in 2009-10 to Rs. 61.13 billion.
Traders said that exports of lentils dropped as a result of a government ban imposed last year in response to pressure that the country might face a food deficit after India stopped exports. However, after entrepreneurs assured the government that exports would not affect the country’s food supply, the government lifted the restriction.
Lentils are well received in the international market. Considering the fact that
the international market for lentils
has increased by 6.8 percent in terms of value and 6.2 percent in terms of volume in the last 10 years, traders say lentils have massive prospects.
“An appropriate trade facilitation policy and introduction of accredited food
quality certification to link with the global market would boost production and exports,” said Dahal. In 2007, Nepal was the sixth largest producer of lentils in the world. In 2008, Nepal rose to the number three slot with an output of 161,147 tons after Canada (1 million tons) and India (810,000 tons).
Production slipped to 161,147 tons in 2007-08 and further to 147,725 tons in 2008-09, according to the Agriculture Ministry. Similarly, the area under cultivation declined to 189,497 hectares in 2007-08 and to 183,798 hectares in 2008-09. The ministry said that improved seeds introduced by the Nepal Agricultural Research Council had boosted production to some extent.
“Unfortunately, the government does not have any special programme to boost lentil production that has such a tremendous export potential,” Dahal added.
More than 90 percent (139,700 tons) of the lentils grown in Nepal come from the Tarai. Output in the mountains and hills amounts to 1,171 tons and 6,437 tons respectively. Dang district is the largest producer of lentils in the country. In 2008-09, Dang produced 27,568 tons followed by Sarlahi (19,230 tons), Rautahat (15,920 tons), Bara (14,146 tons), Kailali (12,836 tons) and Bardia (10,246 tons).
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Saturday, October 30, 2010
NAC move sees a revival
Govt mulls forming high-level body to handle aircraft purchase for national carrier
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, OCT 30 -
Nepal Airlines Corporation’s latest plan to enlarge its fleet, which has bogged down in controversy like many times before, has regained pace after a 10-month lull with the government mulling forming a high-level body to handle the procurement.
The new move, initiated by the Ministry of Finance, has been brought forward as repeated efforts to purchase aircraft for the national flag carrier have ended in dispute. With Nepal Tourism Year 2011 round the corner, NAC is in dire need of additional planes. The Finance Ministry says it is ready to provide a guarantee for the aircraft procurement, but its only concern is that the process should be transparent and that the aircraft should fulfil NAC’s requirement.
The government, according to a senior Finance Ministry official, has dropped the plan to purchase wide-body aircraft. “Now, two narrow-body planes will be purchased for NAC,” said the official. “There is broad consensus on a narrow-body jet.”
However, the new process will move forward only after the Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) gives the final verdict on the aborted Airbus deal. The CIAA is currently at the final stage of its investigation into the Airbus purchase plan and is expected to give its final decision soon. It had seized all the documents related to the proposed aircraft purchase in the second week of August.
NAC’s plan to acquire two new aircraft stalled when the parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) directed the government to cancel the Airbus deal in December 2009 citing violation of the law governing public purchase. The NAC board had decided to purchase two aircraft from Airbus on Oct. 26 to enlarge its international fleet. In its proposal, Airbus had quoted US$ 41.28 million (Rs. 3.08 billion) for a narrow-body aircraft and US$ 92.84 (Rs. 6.93 billion) for a wide-body aircraft.
Apart from PAC, the Finance Ministry had also instructed the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation to dump the purchase plan. In May 2010, the Finance Ministry had written to the Tourism Ministry that it would be unable to provide a guarantee for the loan required to purchase the aircraft and had asked it to scrap the planned purchase and initiate work to recover the commitment money sent to Airbus.
With its attempts to acquire aircraft having proved futile, the government is now thinking of forming a high-level body to procure aircraft for NAC. The Finance Ministry is of the view that an independent body would be the best option, given the controversy over the aircraft purchase. The Council of Ministers recently asked the Tourism Ministry to submit a proposal regarding a new purchase process.
“The Finance Ministry is willing to provide a government guarantee if the new procurement process is acceptable to them,” said Kishore Thapa, secretary at the Tourism Ministry. The new budget, according to Finance Ministry sources, will contain a specific arrangement in this connection. “If things go as planned, NAC will get two narrow-body aircraft by the middle of 2011,” Thapa said. He said that the two aircraft would operate on routes to the northern and southern neighbours considering their huge outbound potential. Nepal has signed Air Service Agreements with 36 countries as of now. However, the limited fleet of the national carrier has been unable to tap the market potential. The weak presence of the national flag carrier in the international arena has prompted many international airlines to start service to Nepal.
“We’re losing millions in foreign currency as NAC doesn’t have sufficient aircraft for international routes,” said a Finance Ministry official.” The international airlines serving Nepal are making a lot of money.” The international airlines flying to Nepal are doing good business carrying over two million passengers annually. “There is also a need for wide-body aircraft as the movement of Western tourists has been increasing each year. However, a narrow-body plane would also be fine with the country celebrating NTY and the national flag carrier being short of aircraft,” said Ram Kazi Koney, a travel trade entrepreneur.
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, OCT 30 -
Nepal Airlines Corporation’s latest plan to enlarge its fleet, which has bogged down in controversy like many times before, has regained pace after a 10-month lull with the government mulling forming a high-level body to handle the procurement.
The new move, initiated by the Ministry of Finance, has been brought forward as repeated efforts to purchase aircraft for the national flag carrier have ended in dispute. With Nepal Tourism Year 2011 round the corner, NAC is in dire need of additional planes. The Finance Ministry says it is ready to provide a guarantee for the aircraft procurement, but its only concern is that the process should be transparent and that the aircraft should fulfil NAC’s requirement.
The government, according to a senior Finance Ministry official, has dropped the plan to purchase wide-body aircraft. “Now, two narrow-body planes will be purchased for NAC,” said the official. “There is broad consensus on a narrow-body jet.”
However, the new process will move forward only after the Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) gives the final verdict on the aborted Airbus deal. The CIAA is currently at the final stage of its investigation into the Airbus purchase plan and is expected to give its final decision soon. It had seized all the documents related to the proposed aircraft purchase in the second week of August.
NAC’s plan to acquire two new aircraft stalled when the parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) directed the government to cancel the Airbus deal in December 2009 citing violation of the law governing public purchase. The NAC board had decided to purchase two aircraft from Airbus on Oct. 26 to enlarge its international fleet. In its proposal, Airbus had quoted US$ 41.28 million (Rs. 3.08 billion) for a narrow-body aircraft and US$ 92.84 (Rs. 6.93 billion) for a wide-body aircraft.
Apart from PAC, the Finance Ministry had also instructed the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation to dump the purchase plan. In May 2010, the Finance Ministry had written to the Tourism Ministry that it would be unable to provide a guarantee for the loan required to purchase the aircraft and had asked it to scrap the planned purchase and initiate work to recover the commitment money sent to Airbus.
With its attempts to acquire aircraft having proved futile, the government is now thinking of forming a high-level body to procure aircraft for NAC. The Finance Ministry is of the view that an independent body would be the best option, given the controversy over the aircraft purchase. The Council of Ministers recently asked the Tourism Ministry to submit a proposal regarding a new purchase process.
“The Finance Ministry is willing to provide a government guarantee if the new procurement process is acceptable to them,” said Kishore Thapa, secretary at the Tourism Ministry. The new budget, according to Finance Ministry sources, will contain a specific arrangement in this connection. “If things go as planned, NAC will get two narrow-body aircraft by the middle of 2011,” Thapa said. He said that the two aircraft would operate on routes to the northern and southern neighbours considering their huge outbound potential. Nepal has signed Air Service Agreements with 36 countries as of now. However, the limited fleet of the national carrier has been unable to tap the market potential. The weak presence of the national flag carrier in the international arena has prompted many international airlines to start service to Nepal.
“We’re losing millions in foreign currency as NAC doesn’t have sufficient aircraft for international routes,” said a Finance Ministry official.” The international airlines serving Nepal are making a lot of money.” The international airlines flying to Nepal are doing good business carrying over two million passengers annually. “There is also a need for wide-body aircraft as the movement of Western tourists has been increasing each year. However, a narrow-body plane would also be fine with the country celebrating NTY and the national flag carrier being short of aircraft,” said Ram Kazi Koney, a travel trade entrepreneur.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Brushing up on airspeak
CAAN asks for extending deadline to meet ICAO's language proficiency requirement
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, OCT 27 -
The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal has requested the International Civil Aviation Organization to postpone the deadline for introducing English language proficiency requirements for effective radiotelephony communication among air traffic controllers and pilots engaged in international operations. The closing date has been set for March 5, 2011.
CAAN asked that the time limit be put off at ICAO’s 37th general assembly citing scarcity of resources and manpower and inadequacy of national regulatory documents. The meeting was held in Montreal, Canada from Sept. 28 to Oct. 8. However, CAAN has not received any response from ICAO, a participant in the general assembly told the Post.
There are about 60 air traffic controllers in Nepal handling international operations. According to Nepal Airlines Corporation spokesperson Pradip Karki, there are 33 pilots operating international flights.
Nepal had pledged at the 36th general assembly that full compliance with the language proficiency requirements would be achieved before 2011. As per the call of the ICAO state letter, CAAN had posted its implementation plan to ICAO in early 2008 with a compliance target of 2009.
Pursuant to this scheme, CAAN had established a training facility under the name Civil Aviation Academy containing an audio lab and other training equipment. Nepal has two qualified trainers, Narendra Bahadur Thapa and Saurav Ranjan Baral, who have received advanced training. Two others, Bimal Subedi and Tek Nath Sitaula, have received basic training.
“Although, CAAN has established an audio lab and other language training facilities, nothing more has been done,” a CAAN source said.
The ICAO assembly meets at least once every three years with its 190 member states to establish its worldwide policy for the next three years. As part of the effort to prevent aviation accidents, ICAO has introduced language provisions to ensure that air traffic personnel and pilots are proficient in conducting and comprehending radiotelephony communications in the English language. ICAO also requires that the English language shall be available on request at all stations on the ground serving designated airports and routes used by international air services.
In 2003, ICAO introduced standards for Level 4 language proficiency requirements, 26 years after the Tenerife disaster in which a 747 crashed into another 747. The accident is acknowledged to be a powerful activator for ICAO to initiate language enhancement efforts for aviation personnel, particularly air traffic controllers, pilots and aeronautical station operators. The collision between the two Boeing 747s of Pan Am and KLM at Tenerife airport is the worst aircraft accident in aviation history that occurred due to poor direction by air traffic control. The language testing criteria for global harmonization produced by ICAO was provisioned to the member states to comply with a language proficiency rating scale of Level 4 or above by March 5, 2008. However, after a majority of the developing countries requested postponing the deadline due to inadequate resources and trainers, ICAO extended the time limit to March 5, 2011. Though Nepal’s pilots and air traffic controllers engaged in international operations have met ICAO’s minimum language proficiency requirements, difficulties are still seen in improving their language proficiency to meet ICAO standards within a short period.
“We have hired an ICAO expert, who arrived on Oct. 18, to look after the technical aspect and upgrading of training equipment,” a top CAAN official said.
Meanwhile, CAAN has been working to fulfil the obligations. A working paper presented at the ICAO general assembly says that Nepal is considering participating in the 10th Aviation English Forum of the International Civil Aviation English Association which will discuss the theme of sustaining ICAO language proficiency requirements implementation beyond March 2011 from the operational and language training and testing perspectives. The forum is scheduled to be held in Malaysia from Nov. 23-24.
However, a CAAN source said that everything was progressing at a slow pace although it was not difficult to meet ICAO’s language proficiency requirements until March 2011.
Monday, October 25, 2010
TIA congestion hits domestic airlines
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, OCT 25 -
The rise in the movement of international and domestic aircraft has created a heavy congestion in the Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA). The domestic airline companies have been forced to delay their flights by over an hour daily.
Domestic aircraft have to wait for more than 45 minutes for take-off and hold around 15-20 minutes in the sky waiting for landing permissions in the TIA. The domestic air operators say it has increased their cost of operation on one hand, while they are forced to face the wrath of passengers on the other.
With the resurgence of tourism, a large number of foreign airlines has started flights to Nepal. The TIA is now handling over 27 international airlines and it is expected that the international connection will go up to 32 soon. The TIA, which has been designed to process a maximum of 30 aircraft per hour through a single runway, is now processing over 41 aircraft an hour. With such a rise in the movement, the TIA was compelled to handle 434 aircraft movement in a single day recently.
Domestic airlines operators said that the congestion problem is more in the morning because of mountain flights. The congestion is more
severe during October and November when large numbers of tourists opt for mountain flights and travel to Lukla, Pokhara and other tourist destinations.
The delay problem is more acute for aircraft flying in instrument flight rules (IFR) system. The IFR flyer normally have to wait for more than one hour for take-off. Given the hostile geographical terrain of Nepal, most flights use the IFR system. For the visual flight rules (VFR), which allow a pilot to operate an aircraft in weather conditions generally clear enough, the aircraft is delayed by almost 45 minutes everyday due to busy air schedule.
“An aircraft which used to make 14 round-trip each day is now doing only 10 roundtrips due to airport congestion,” said Rupesh Joshi, marketing manager of Buddha Air, which operates 45-50 flights every day.
Yeti Airlines and its sister airline Tara Air that has over 60-70 flights each day said they are compelled to operate their flights more often. “If an international aircraft is landing, a domestic one has to wait for over 45 minutes to take off. The airline cost surges when it is compelled to wait after the aircraft engine has started for take-off,” said Binay Shakya, manager of Yeti Airlines.
According to Shakya, a one-minute wait means losing fuel worth Rs 1,700. One aircraft consumes fuel worth US$ 2,720 per hour. “The deficit is more while the aircraft
is on hold in air,” he added. He said the airlines are delayed mostly in the long-haul sector.
Pramod Pandey, marketing director of Agni Air said the airlines has a facility to operate during evenings under the IFR, which is the only alternative to reduce air traffic congestion, but passengers are reluctant to fly during the night. “This is a prime business season for the domestic
airlines, but is not expected to
pick up although demand from visitors is high,” he said. Agni Air has over 24 flights including the daily mountain flight.
The TIA management says it can’t do much. According to TIA General Manager Dinesh Shrestha, the TIA is forced to hold the aircraft or delay take-off every day considering their safety. “Airline movement is increasing, but we have to process both domestic and international airlines at the same time from a single runway,” Shrestha said.
Shrestha added that the TIA cannot afford more flight movement as the airport space is limited. The
congestion at the country’s sole international airport has forced policy makers to look for one more international airport.
The government has speeded up the process to develop a second international airport at Nighgadh in Bara and a regional international airport in Bhairahawa and Pokhara. They are still at the planning stage.
KATHMANDU, OCT 25 -
The rise in the movement of international and domestic aircraft has created a heavy congestion in the Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA). The domestic airline companies have been forced to delay their flights by over an hour daily.
Domestic aircraft have to wait for more than 45 minutes for take-off and hold around 15-20 minutes in the sky waiting for landing permissions in the TIA. The domestic air operators say it has increased their cost of operation on one hand, while they are forced to face the wrath of passengers on the other.
With the resurgence of tourism, a large number of foreign airlines has started flights to Nepal. The TIA is now handling over 27 international airlines and it is expected that the international connection will go up to 32 soon. The TIA, which has been designed to process a maximum of 30 aircraft per hour through a single runway, is now processing over 41 aircraft an hour. With such a rise in the movement, the TIA was compelled to handle 434 aircraft movement in a single day recently.
Domestic airlines operators said that the congestion problem is more in the morning because of mountain flights. The congestion is more
severe during October and November when large numbers of tourists opt for mountain flights and travel to Lukla, Pokhara and other tourist destinations.
The delay problem is more acute for aircraft flying in instrument flight rules (IFR) system. The IFR flyer normally have to wait for more than one hour for take-off. Given the hostile geographical terrain of Nepal, most flights use the IFR system. For the visual flight rules (VFR), which allow a pilot to operate an aircraft in weather conditions generally clear enough, the aircraft is delayed by almost 45 minutes everyday due to busy air schedule.
“An aircraft which used to make 14 round-trip each day is now doing only 10 roundtrips due to airport congestion,” said Rupesh Joshi, marketing manager of Buddha Air, which operates 45-50 flights every day.
Yeti Airlines and its sister airline Tara Air that has over 60-70 flights each day said they are compelled to operate their flights more often. “If an international aircraft is landing, a domestic one has to wait for over 45 minutes to take off. The airline cost surges when it is compelled to wait after the aircraft engine has started for take-off,” said Binay Shakya, manager of Yeti Airlines.
According to Shakya, a one-minute wait means losing fuel worth Rs 1,700. One aircraft consumes fuel worth US$ 2,720 per hour. “The deficit is more while the aircraft
is on hold in air,” he added. He said the airlines are delayed mostly in the long-haul sector.
Pramod Pandey, marketing director of Agni Air said the airlines has a facility to operate during evenings under the IFR, which is the only alternative to reduce air traffic congestion, but passengers are reluctant to fly during the night. “This is a prime business season for the domestic
airlines, but is not expected to
pick up although demand from visitors is high,” he said. Agni Air has over 24 flights including the daily mountain flight.
The TIA management says it can’t do much. According to TIA General Manager Dinesh Shrestha, the TIA is forced to hold the aircraft or delay take-off every day considering their safety. “Airline movement is increasing, but we have to process both domestic and international airlines at the same time from a single runway,” Shrestha said.
Shrestha added that the TIA cannot afford more flight movement as the airport space is limited. The
congestion at the country’s sole international airport has forced policy makers to look for one more international airport.
The government has speeded up the process to develop a second international airport at Nighgadh in Bara and a regional international airport in Bhairahawa and Pokhara. They are still at the planning stage.
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Nepal is No. 4 in ginger production
POST REPORT
KATHMANDU, OCT 21 -
Nepal has become the world’s fourth largest producer of ginger after India, China and Indonesia.
In fiscal 2007-08, Nepali farmers produced 158,905 tons of ginger worth Rs. 9.2 billion compared to the global output of 1.3 million tons. Exports amounted to Rs. 1.3 billion out of which 99 percent went to India, said the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives.
Ginger is one of the agriculture products identified by Nepal Trade Integration Strategy (NTIS) 2010 having export potentials. Ginger export from Nepal has been increasing in the past six years. From 2004 to 2008, the export of ginger has increased by 34 percent, according to NTIS.
The NTIS says increased use of ginger by Ayurveda pharmaceutical industries in India and Nepal and high potential for product diversification -jam, jelly, candy, sauces- makes ginger one of the export potential products
The fact that more farmers are in to commercial ginger farming can be gauged by the fact that its farming has spread in to 16,788 hectors of land in 2009-10 from 11,830 hectors of 2003-04. However, its productivity has not increased significantly.
Ginger production has increased to 190,544 tons in 2009-10 from 150,593 tons in 2003-04. Productivity per hectare is 11 tons in comparison to 18 tons in India and 51 tons in the US. "Productivity in our country
is very low due to lack of hybridized seeds, technology and manure," said Dahal.
Although the government has not taken any initiative for commercial farming, farmers have been producing ginger at the local level. Ilam is at the top position in ginger production among two dozen ginger producing districts including Palpa, Salyan, Doti, Morang, Kailali and Syangja.
In fiscal 2007-08, ginger output amounted to 27,675 tons in Ilam, 12,688 tons in Palpa, 12,300 tons in Salyan, 9,300 tons in Doti, 8,400 tons in Morang, 7,500 tons in Kailali and 5,000 tons in Syangja. Dhading, Tanahu and
Bhojpur are also large producers of ginger. Some of the farmers from Palpa have even begun ginger export to Japan.
Though ginger export from Nepal is gradually increasing, Nepal imported ginger worth Rs. 550 million due to lack of access to markets and transportation. About 96 percent of the imports came from China with the rest coming from Hong Kong, Ethiopia, India and Canada. Hari Dahal, spokesperson of the Agriculture Ministry, said that traders were forced to import ginger despite adequate domestic production because of lack of access to markets.
Apart from the use of ginger as a spice, it is also used in medicine and oil processing. Dahal said that export prospects could be expanded by building processing plants and cold stores. The US, Saudi Arabia, England, Japan and Spain are among the largest consumers of ginger.
KATHMANDU, OCT 21 -
Nepal has become the world’s fourth largest producer of ginger after India, China and Indonesia.
In fiscal 2007-08, Nepali farmers produced 158,905 tons of ginger worth Rs. 9.2 billion compared to the global output of 1.3 million tons. Exports amounted to Rs. 1.3 billion out of which 99 percent went to India, said the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives.
Ginger is one of the agriculture products identified by Nepal Trade Integration Strategy (NTIS) 2010 having export potentials. Ginger export from Nepal has been increasing in the past six years. From 2004 to 2008, the export of ginger has increased by 34 percent, according to NTIS.
The NTIS says increased use of ginger by Ayurveda pharmaceutical industries in India and Nepal and high potential for product diversification -jam, jelly, candy, sauces- makes ginger one of the export potential products
The fact that more farmers are in to commercial ginger farming can be gauged by the fact that its farming has spread in to 16,788 hectors of land in 2009-10 from 11,830 hectors of 2003-04. However, its productivity has not increased significantly.
Ginger production has increased to 190,544 tons in 2009-10 from 150,593 tons in 2003-04. Productivity per hectare is 11 tons in comparison to 18 tons in India and 51 tons in the US. "Productivity in our country
is very low due to lack of hybridized seeds, technology and manure," said Dahal.
Although the government has not taken any initiative for commercial farming, farmers have been producing ginger at the local level. Ilam is at the top position in ginger production among two dozen ginger producing districts including Palpa, Salyan, Doti, Morang, Kailali and Syangja.
In fiscal 2007-08, ginger output amounted to 27,675 tons in Ilam, 12,688 tons in Palpa, 12,300 tons in Salyan, 9,300 tons in Doti, 8,400 tons in Morang, 7,500 tons in Kailali and 5,000 tons in Syangja. Dhading, Tanahu and
Bhojpur are also large producers of ginger. Some of the farmers from Palpa have even begun ginger export to Japan.
Though ginger export from Nepal is gradually increasing, Nepal imported ginger worth Rs. 550 million due to lack of access to markets and transportation. About 96 percent of the imports came from China with the rest coming from Hong Kong, Ethiopia, India and Canada. Hari Dahal, spokesperson of the Agriculture Ministry, said that traders were forced to import ginger despite adequate domestic production because of lack of access to markets.
Apart from the use of ginger as a spice, it is also used in medicine and oil processing. Dahal said that export prospects could be expanded by building processing plants and cold stores. The US, Saudi Arabia, England, Japan and Spain are among the largest consumers of ginger.
More muscle for TIA
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, OCT 21 -
Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA), the country’s sole international airport is getting some new infrastructure while the existing system is being renovated to increase facilities and enhance passenger processing capacity.
Officials at the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), the regulatory body of the aviation sector, said that the renovation and construction works had been carried out through CAAN’s internal budget considering the pressure on TIA to handle passengers’ rush during the Nepal Tourism Year 2011 (NTY-2011). NTY’s 100-days countdown began on Oct. 7, and the government as well as private sector is gearing the up for construction and renovation work more aggressively.
Due to inadequate modern facilities, TIA is compelled to face huge challenges because of the continuous traffic growth for the last couple of years.
TIA, which was designed to handle 1,300 passengers per hour, sometimes has to process over 2,000 passengers. The pressure is likely to mount as the country has targeted to attract an additional over one million inbound and outbound passengers’ movement.
“We are using the CAAN’s internal budget for the purpose although the overall TIA improvement project has been undertaken by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) funding,” said CAAN’s director general Ram Prasad Neupane.
According to him, the CAAN’s internal improvement programme would not get in the way of ADB’s TIA improvement project. “The renovation and construction work does not come under the detail design undertaken by TIA improvement project,” he added.
Some short-term programmes like constructing a golden gate at the entry point, runway maintenance, radar antenna maintenance, sterile hall construction, billboards in different places and helicopter apron construction among other projects are on in full swing to enhance TIA’s capacity.
The internal budget of CAAN will also be utilized for painting the building and improvement and cleaning of a restroom. All this immediate internal work will be completed before the NTY-2011 starts. The Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation has directed that the work be done at the earliest.
The country has targeted to bring 700,000 tourists by air during the campaign. The new international airlines connecting Nepal have created both opportunities and challenges for TIA. Currently, there are 28 international airlines operating in Nepal. According to the Tourism Ministry, international airlines in Nepal are estimated to reach over 32 soon.
In 2009, the TIA processed over 2 million (incoming and outgoing passengers). However, with the campaign target to bring over 700,000 tourists by air TIA should handle additional 1.4 million inbound and outbound passengers’ movement.
TIA general manager Dinesh Shrestha said that the golden gate construction, laying marble slabs on the ground surface of the terminal and helicoptor parking areas are in the final stage. TIA has called a tender for gardening and welding of walls. “The remaining work will be accomplished soon,” he said.
KATHMANDU, OCT 21 -
Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA), the country’s sole international airport is getting some new infrastructure while the existing system is being renovated to increase facilities and enhance passenger processing capacity.
Officials at the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), the regulatory body of the aviation sector, said that the renovation and construction works had been carried out through CAAN’s internal budget considering the pressure on TIA to handle passengers’ rush during the Nepal Tourism Year 2011 (NTY-2011). NTY’s 100-days countdown began on Oct. 7, and the government as well as private sector is gearing the up for construction and renovation work more aggressively.
Due to inadequate modern facilities, TIA is compelled to face huge challenges because of the continuous traffic growth for the last couple of years.
TIA, which was designed to handle 1,300 passengers per hour, sometimes has to process over 2,000 passengers. The pressure is likely to mount as the country has targeted to attract an additional over one million inbound and outbound passengers’ movement.
“We are using the CAAN’s internal budget for the purpose although the overall TIA improvement project has been undertaken by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) funding,” said CAAN’s director general Ram Prasad Neupane.
According to him, the CAAN’s internal improvement programme would not get in the way of ADB’s TIA improvement project. “The renovation and construction work does not come under the detail design undertaken by TIA improvement project,” he added.
Some short-term programmes like constructing a golden gate at the entry point, runway maintenance, radar antenna maintenance, sterile hall construction, billboards in different places and helicopter apron construction among other projects are on in full swing to enhance TIA’s capacity.
The internal budget of CAAN will also be utilized for painting the building and improvement and cleaning of a restroom. All this immediate internal work will be completed before the NTY-2011 starts. The Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation has directed that the work be done at the earliest.
The country has targeted to bring 700,000 tourists by air during the campaign. The new international airlines connecting Nepal have created both opportunities and challenges for TIA. Currently, there are 28 international airlines operating in Nepal. According to the Tourism Ministry, international airlines in Nepal are estimated to reach over 32 soon.
In 2009, the TIA processed over 2 million (incoming and outgoing passengers). However, with the campaign target to bring over 700,000 tourists by air TIA should handle additional 1.4 million inbound and outbound passengers’ movement.
TIA general manager Dinesh Shrestha said that the golden gate construction, laying marble slabs on the ground surface of the terminal and helicoptor parking areas are in the final stage. TIA has called a tender for gardening and welding of walls. “The remaining work will be accomplished soon,” he said.
NTB board to meet after 14-month gap
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, OCT 09 -
The board of the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) is finally meeting on Sunday after a 14-month-long delay caused by a dispute over the appointment of board members by the government.
The NTB’s board meeting is required to be held every two months.
The Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation decided to call the board meeting as the delay was affecting NTB’s
programmes and the Nepal Tourism Year 2011 campaign.
The board, chaired by the tourism secretary, has 11 members consisting of five government representatives, five private sector representatives and the chief executive officer of the NTB.
The meeting stalled when the present government appointed five members from the private sector replacing those who had been appointed by the previous Maoist-led government. The Maoist-led government had appointed Prasiddha Bahadur Pandey, Rajan Sakya, Ganesh Prasad Simkhada, Agni Prasad Kandel and Nimi Sherpa as board members.
Three of the five board members who had been bumped moved the Supreme Court challenging the government decision as their three-year tenure had not expired. The other two tendered their resignation which was approved by the board.
The NTB is now holding the board meeting after asking the three members who’ve gone to court to sit on the board meeting. Tourism secretary and chairman of the board Kishore Thapa said that they had to do it as the delay had paralysed the NTB when NTY 2011 was approaching.
“Although the NTB is conducting its programmes and meeting its expenses through an advance budget, the delay in holding the board meeting can affect its programmes,” said an official of the Tourism Ministry.
NTB spokesman Aditya Baral said that the government’s move to call the board meeting in a bid to resolve the problem was a positive one. Established to promote Nepali tourism, the NTB has been a victim of politicization with every successive government replacing the board members with its own people. “Although the NTB is an autonomous body, political interference has been paralyzing its importance,” said a senior NTB official.
“We are not against the board or any activities that the board is conducting to promote tourism, but if there seems to be any sign of the budget being misused, we won’t let it be approved,” said Simkhada who is attending the board meeting.
Simkhada added that the annual budget should be disclosed to the media also, and that misuse of the budget by ministers and sending representatives of political parties on foreign junkets under the media expenses head should be stopped.
KATHMANDU, OCT 09 -
The board of the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) is finally meeting on Sunday after a 14-month-long delay caused by a dispute over the appointment of board members by the government.
The NTB’s board meeting is required to be held every two months.
The Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation decided to call the board meeting as the delay was affecting NTB’s
programmes and the Nepal Tourism Year 2011 campaign.
The board, chaired by the tourism secretary, has 11 members consisting of five government representatives, five private sector representatives and the chief executive officer of the NTB.
The meeting stalled when the present government appointed five members from the private sector replacing those who had been appointed by the previous Maoist-led government. The Maoist-led government had appointed Prasiddha Bahadur Pandey, Rajan Sakya, Ganesh Prasad Simkhada, Agni Prasad Kandel and Nimi Sherpa as board members.
Three of the five board members who had been bumped moved the Supreme Court challenging the government decision as their three-year tenure had not expired. The other two tendered their resignation which was approved by the board.
The NTB is now holding the board meeting after asking the three members who’ve gone to court to sit on the board meeting. Tourism secretary and chairman of the board Kishore Thapa said that they had to do it as the delay had paralysed the NTB when NTY 2011 was approaching.
“Although the NTB is conducting its programmes and meeting its expenses through an advance budget, the delay in holding the board meeting can affect its programmes,” said an official of the Tourism Ministry.
NTB spokesman Aditya Baral said that the government’s move to call the board meeting in a bid to resolve the problem was a positive one. Established to promote Nepali tourism, the NTB has been a victim of politicization with every successive government replacing the board members with its own people. “Although the NTB is an autonomous body, political interference has been paralyzing its importance,” said a senior NTB official.
“We are not against the board or any activities that the board is conducting to promote tourism, but if there seems to be any sign of the budget being misused, we won’t let it be approved,” said Simkhada who is attending the board meeting.
Simkhada added that the annual budget should be disclosed to the media also, and that misuse of the budget by ministers and sending representatives of political parties on foreign junkets under the media expenses head should be stopped.
Hotels, but hardly any room
Hotels are packed as the tourist season gets underway in the merry month of October.
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, OCT 23 -
It’s boom time for the country’s star hotels. With the autumn tourist season in full swing, five-star hotels are enjoying robust business. Hoteliers say their business has grown by over 30 percent this month compared to the same period last year.
October and November are the prime tourist season in Nepal that accounts about 30 percent of the total tourist arrivals. According to the data of the Immigration Office at Tribhuvan International Airport, over 2,000 tourists have been arriving daily since the beginning of October. On Oct. 21, 2,339 tourists landed at TIA. The number was the highest on Oct. 16 when the country received 2,710 tourists by air.
The tourist arrival statistics show that there would be more tourists this October and November. Till Oct. 21, 42,428 tourists had arrived in Nepal by air. There were 56,009 tourists recorded in October while the arrival figure in November was 39,784 last year.
The encouraging volume of arrivals has boosted the hotel business on the one hand while there have been problems with accommodation due to a shortage of rooms in the five-star hotels, hoteliers said. Most of the five-star hotels in the capital are sold out for October while they have over 80 percent bookings for November.
Amir K. Pradhananga, director of sales at the Everest Hotel, said that business surged by 35 percent until the third quarter of October compared to the same month last year. The rooms at the Everest Hotel have been sold out for this month while the November booking status has crossed 90 percent. “Asian, Japanese and European tourists are the major customers coming to the hotel,” said Pradhananga.
Similarly, the Yak & Yeti is booked solid till Oct. 31. The hotel has 85 percent bookings for November. “Our business grew by 20 percent this season compared to the same month last year,” said Bharat Joshi, sales and marketing director.
Joshi added that the hotel had been receiving high-end tourists who are here for leisure and trekking. The Yak & Yeti’s guests include 30 percent French, 15 percent American, 10 percent British and 5-7 percent Belgium citizens. The Shangri-La Hotel also has no vacancies this month. Bookings for November amount to about 96 percent. “We have been receiving a number of requests from visitors for rooms as all the major star hotels are occupied,” said Raju Bikram Shah, general manager of the Shangri-La hotel.
Although the Shangri-La is doing good business, growth for this month has been the same as last year. “We have had consistent business since 2007,” Shah said.
However, the number of Indian tourists coming for conferences has slightly decreased at the major five-star hotels, which the hoteliers said was due to the festive season in India. “Tourists basically arrive here for leisure and trekking in October, which can be the reason why the number of visitors coming for conferences is lean,” said Sony Chaudhary, assistant marketing and PR manager at the Soaltee Crowne Plaza. The Soaltee Crowne Plaza witnessed a growth of 20 percent in business compared to the same period last year. The hotel’s guest list mostly consists of American, European and Indian visitors.
According to the Immigration Office, TIA, arrivals till Oct. 21 consisted of 4,782 travellers from India, 3,883 from the UK, 3,833 from Germany, 3,662 from the US and 3,687 from France.
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, OCT 23 -
It’s boom time for the country’s star hotels. With the autumn tourist season in full swing, five-star hotels are enjoying robust business. Hoteliers say their business has grown by over 30 percent this month compared to the same period last year.
October and November are the prime tourist season in Nepal that accounts about 30 percent of the total tourist arrivals. According to the data of the Immigration Office at Tribhuvan International Airport, over 2,000 tourists have been arriving daily since the beginning of October. On Oct. 21, 2,339 tourists landed at TIA. The number was the highest on Oct. 16 when the country received 2,710 tourists by air.
The tourist arrival statistics show that there would be more tourists this October and November. Till Oct. 21, 42,428 tourists had arrived in Nepal by air. There were 56,009 tourists recorded in October while the arrival figure in November was 39,784 last year.
The encouraging volume of arrivals has boosted the hotel business on the one hand while there have been problems with accommodation due to a shortage of rooms in the five-star hotels, hoteliers said. Most of the five-star hotels in the capital are sold out for October while they have over 80 percent bookings for November.
Amir K. Pradhananga, director of sales at the Everest Hotel, said that business surged by 35 percent until the third quarter of October compared to the same month last year. The rooms at the Everest Hotel have been sold out for this month while the November booking status has crossed 90 percent. “Asian, Japanese and European tourists are the major customers coming to the hotel,” said Pradhananga.
Similarly, the Yak & Yeti is booked solid till Oct. 31. The hotel has 85 percent bookings for November. “Our business grew by 20 percent this season compared to the same month last year,” said Bharat Joshi, sales and marketing director.
Joshi added that the hotel had been receiving high-end tourists who are here for leisure and trekking. The Yak & Yeti’s guests include 30 percent French, 15 percent American, 10 percent British and 5-7 percent Belgium citizens. The Shangri-La Hotel also has no vacancies this month. Bookings for November amount to about 96 percent. “We have been receiving a number of requests from visitors for rooms as all the major star hotels are occupied,” said Raju Bikram Shah, general manager of the Shangri-La hotel.
Although the Shangri-La is doing good business, growth for this month has been the same as last year. “We have had consistent business since 2007,” Shah said.
However, the number of Indian tourists coming for conferences has slightly decreased at the major five-star hotels, which the hoteliers said was due to the festive season in India. “Tourists basically arrive here for leisure and trekking in October, which can be the reason why the number of visitors coming for conferences is lean,” said Sony Chaudhary, assistant marketing and PR manager at the Soaltee Crowne Plaza. The Soaltee Crowne Plaza witnessed a growth of 20 percent in business compared to the same period last year. The hotel’s guest list mostly consists of American, European and Indian visitors.
According to the Immigration Office, TIA, arrivals till Oct. 21 consisted of 4,782 travellers from India, 3,883 from the UK, 3,833 from Germany, 3,662 from the US and 3,687 from France.
No Korea job bar for HIV-hit
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, OCT 22 -
Potential migrant workers afflicted with HIV/AIDS will not be barred from working in South Korea. The government has withdrawn the HIV/AIDS test provision from its medical test list, which was mandatory for migrant workers to obtain working permits after passing the Korean Language Test (KLT).
The government has decided to allow migrant workers infected with HIV/AIDS to work under the Employment Permit System (EPS) as per the international human rights instrument on HIV/AIDS and the world of work.
The migrant workers had to pass the medical test to get work permits after they passed the EPS exam. Under the medical testing system, aspirant migrant workers had to clear medical tests for various transmissible diseases including HIV/AIDS.
Now onwards, even if any KLT-pass individual has HIV/AIDS, he will be allowed to work in Korea under EPS, said Mohan Krishna Sapkota, director general of the Department of Foreign Employment.
The decision of the government came after the United Nations appealed that the adverse policies of the government in different countries were discriminating against infected people and their working rights. The UN paper released in August 2009 at the 9th International Congress on AIDS in Asia and Pacific (ICAAP) says that the International Labour Organization is in the process of formulating an international human rights instrument on HIV/AIDS and the world of work.
“If adopted in 2010, this standard focusing solely on HIV and the world of work will give new impetus to anti-discrimination policies for migrant workers in different countries,” the paper says.
Korea, which has been one of the major labour destinations for Nepali workers in terms of financial returns and safety, has recognised Nepal as the best labour supplying country for its shortest processing period and good performance of Nepali workers.
The government of Nepal started sending workers to South Korea from 2008 under the EPS. This year, Korea has fixed a 4,000 quota for Nepali migrant workers under which the government is conducting medical tests on 4,180 who have passed the EPS.
In March 2008, when the government had conducted Korean language test for the first time, 6,768 applicants, out of 32,000, had passed the test. Of them, 6,586 were listed on the job roster and 6,400 workers had signed job contracts with Korean firms. So far, over 6,000 Nepali workers have left the country to work in Korea’s agriculture, fishery, and construction, manufacturing and service sectors.
Due to Nepal’s good track record in sending workers on time and supplying qualified labor under EPS scheme, the government had asked the Korean government to increase the quota for 2010.
“Nepalis selected for foreign employment under the EPS can earn an average of Rs. 100,000 a month,” said Sapkota. Nepal and Korea had signed a labour agreement on July 23, 2007 to send Nepali workers through the EPS. The system allows employers to hire foreign workers to meet their workforce requirement.
KATHMANDU, OCT 22 -
Potential migrant workers afflicted with HIV/AIDS will not be barred from working in South Korea. The government has withdrawn the HIV/AIDS test provision from its medical test list, which was mandatory for migrant workers to obtain working permits after passing the Korean Language Test (KLT).
The government has decided to allow migrant workers infected with HIV/AIDS to work under the Employment Permit System (EPS) as per the international human rights instrument on HIV/AIDS and the world of work.
The migrant workers had to pass the medical test to get work permits after they passed the EPS exam. Under the medical testing system, aspirant migrant workers had to clear medical tests for various transmissible diseases including HIV/AIDS.
Now onwards, even if any KLT-pass individual has HIV/AIDS, he will be allowed to work in Korea under EPS, said Mohan Krishna Sapkota, director general of the Department of Foreign Employment.
The decision of the government came after the United Nations appealed that the adverse policies of the government in different countries were discriminating against infected people and their working rights. The UN paper released in August 2009 at the 9th International Congress on AIDS in Asia and Pacific (ICAAP) says that the International Labour Organization is in the process of formulating an international human rights instrument on HIV/AIDS and the world of work.
“If adopted in 2010, this standard focusing solely on HIV and the world of work will give new impetus to anti-discrimination policies for migrant workers in different countries,” the paper says.
Korea, which has been one of the major labour destinations for Nepali workers in terms of financial returns and safety, has recognised Nepal as the best labour supplying country for its shortest processing period and good performance of Nepali workers.
The government of Nepal started sending workers to South Korea from 2008 under the EPS. This year, Korea has fixed a 4,000 quota for Nepali migrant workers under which the government is conducting medical tests on 4,180 who have passed the EPS.
In March 2008, when the government had conducted Korean language test for the first time, 6,768 applicants, out of 32,000, had passed the test. Of them, 6,586 were listed on the job roster and 6,400 workers had signed job contracts with Korean firms. So far, over 6,000 Nepali workers have left the country to work in Korea’s agriculture, fishery, and construction, manufacturing and service sectors.
Due to Nepal’s good track record in sending workers on time and supplying qualified labor under EPS scheme, the government had asked the Korean government to increase the quota for 2010.
“Nepalis selected for foreign employment under the EPS can earn an average of Rs. 100,000 a month,” said Sapkota. Nepal and Korea had signed a labour agreement on July 23, 2007 to send Nepali workers through the EPS. The system allows employers to hire foreign workers to meet their workforce requirement.
Monday, October 11, 2010
NFC hikes price of goats
SANGAM PRASAIN
State-owned Nepal Food Corporation, which has been assigned to supply goats during the Dashain festival, has hiked the price of live goats in the Kathmandu Valley by Rs. 16 to Rs. 28 per kg.
An NFC official said that live goats weighing up to 20 kg have been priced at Rs. 256 per kg while goats weighing from 20-25 kg have been priced at Rs. 270 per kg. Animals weighing more than 25 kg cost Rs. 278 per kg.
Last year, the prices set by NFC were Rs. 240, Rs. 245 and Rs. 250 per kg respectively.
Private traders have increased the price of live goats marginally to Rs. 270 per kg. Traders said that prices had remained relatively constant because of adequate supply from India.
“There will be no scarcity of goats this year. In fact, supply will exceed demand,” said Deepak Thapa, president of the Nepal Livestock Traders Association.
Last Dashain, reports about unhealthy goats being imported from India, inadequate local supply and NFC’s inability to provide sufficient goats had sent prices soaring, traders said. NFC has attributed its price hike to transportation costs and increased buying prices. The corporation aims to sell 4,000 goats during the festive season and has so far procured 3,850 goats from Bardia, Nepalgunj, Dang, Hetauda, Lahan and Kavre. Last year, NFC had planned to procure 6,000 goats, but only 2,777 were available.
“The price of NFC’s goats is lower than what is being charged by private traders as we are a government entity, and we are providing goats at subsidized rates for the benefit of consumers,” said deputy general manager Bijaya Dhwaj Thapa.
According to the Nepal Livestock Traders Association, 20 trucks carrying 250 goats each arrived in Kathmandu on Sunday. Likewise, about 10,000 sheep have reached the market in the last two days. “We have targeted selling over 45,000 goats this Dashain,” Thapa added.
Consumers are concerned that prices might increase as the festival progresses. Last year, the price of live goats rose from Rs. 260 per kg on Ghatasthapana to Rs. 275 per kg by Phulpati as there was a huge rush of customers.
Large numbers of goats are slaughtered to appease goddess Durga during Dashain.
NFC said that their daily sales amounted to more than 375 goats. Private traders report selling more than 600 to 700 goats each day. “Although sales have been slow, we expected them to pick up significantly on Monday and Tuesday, they said.
According to government statistics, Nepal imports meat worth Rs. 15 billion annually, making it one of the largest imports after petroleum, gold and motor vehicles.
The annual consumption of meat in the country amounts to 248,573 tons, said the Ministry of Agriculture. Buffalo meat is consumed in the highest quantity (65 percent) followed by goats and other livestock (20 percent) and pork (7 percent).
State-owned Nepal Food Corporation, which has been assigned to supply goats during the Dashain festival, has hiked the price of live goats in the Kathmandu Valley by Rs. 16 to Rs. 28 per kg.
An NFC official said that live goats weighing up to 20 kg have been priced at Rs. 256 per kg while goats weighing from 20-25 kg have been priced at Rs. 270 per kg. Animals weighing more than 25 kg cost Rs. 278 per kg.
Last year, the prices set by NFC were Rs. 240, Rs. 245 and Rs. 250 per kg respectively.
Private traders have increased the price of live goats marginally to Rs. 270 per kg. Traders said that prices had remained relatively constant because of adequate supply from India.
“There will be no scarcity of goats this year. In fact, supply will exceed demand,” said Deepak Thapa, president of the Nepal Livestock Traders Association.
Last Dashain, reports about unhealthy goats being imported from India, inadequate local supply and NFC’s inability to provide sufficient goats had sent prices soaring, traders said. NFC has attributed its price hike to transportation costs and increased buying prices. The corporation aims to sell 4,000 goats during the festive season and has so far procured 3,850 goats from Bardia, Nepalgunj, Dang, Hetauda, Lahan and Kavre. Last year, NFC had planned to procure 6,000 goats, but only 2,777 were available.
“The price of NFC’s goats is lower than what is being charged by private traders as we are a government entity, and we are providing goats at subsidized rates for the benefit of consumers,” said deputy general manager Bijaya Dhwaj Thapa.
According to the Nepal Livestock Traders Association, 20 trucks carrying 250 goats each arrived in Kathmandu on Sunday. Likewise, about 10,000 sheep have reached the market in the last two days. “We have targeted selling over 45,000 goats this Dashain,” Thapa added.
Consumers are concerned that prices might increase as the festival progresses. Last year, the price of live goats rose from Rs. 260 per kg on Ghatasthapana to Rs. 275 per kg by Phulpati as there was a huge rush of customers.
Large numbers of goats are slaughtered to appease goddess Durga during Dashain.
NFC said that their daily sales amounted to more than 375 goats. Private traders report selling more than 600 to 700 goats each day. “Although sales have been slow, we expected them to pick up significantly on Monday and Tuesday, they said.
According to government statistics, Nepal imports meat worth Rs. 15 billion annually, making it one of the largest imports after petroleum, gold and motor vehicles.
The annual consumption of meat in the country amounts to 248,573 tons, said the Ministry of Agriculture. Buffalo meat is consumed in the highest quantity (65 percent) followed by goats and other livestock (20 percent) and pork (7 percent).
Saturday, October 9, 2010
More flights here from Indian cities
SANGAM PRASAIN
OCT 08 -
Kishore Gupta is director of SpiceJet, India’s most preferred low-fare airline. The Kathmandu Post talked to Gupta when he visited Kathmandu to inaugurate the carrier’s Delhi-Kathmandu service. Excerpts.
Why did you choose Nepal as your first international destination?
Nepal is a country of breathtaking beauty that attracts hundreds of thousands of tourists every year. However, expensive airfares have posed difficulties in increasing arrivals. Hence, there is space for low-cost airlines on this route. If we can provide low-cost carriers, we are sure that we will achieve success here in no time.
What are your plans?
We will be increasing the flight frequency from other Indian cities to Kathmandu. SpiceJet operates daily flights on the Kathmandu-Delhi sector which is further connected to 13 other Indian destinations on our network. We are planning to operate direct flights to Kathmandu from India’s major cities like Mumbai,Bangalore, Ahmedabad and Kolkata in the future. However, our plan depends on the airport slots available here.
Where is SpiceJet in India’s aviation scene? Where are you going next after Nepal?
SpiceJet is India’s most preferred budget airline. Currently, we have 22 aircraft operating 147 flights daily to 19 cities in India. Our market share in India is over 13 percent. With Delhi-Kathmandu flights, we began our international operation. We will be commencing our next international flight to the capital city of Sri Lanka from Chennai on Saturday. Over the next few months, SpiceJet will start its operations in Bangladesh and Maldives also.
Nepal is celebrating 2011 as Nepal Tourism Year. Does SpiceJet have any plans to support the campaign?
Yes, we are planning to increase the number of flights from other major Indian destinations as the tourism market here is showing tremendous opportunity. Increased flights mean there will be more Indian tourists coming here in 2011.
OCT 08 -
Kishore Gupta is director of SpiceJet, India’s most preferred low-fare airline. The Kathmandu Post talked to Gupta when he visited Kathmandu to inaugurate the carrier’s Delhi-Kathmandu service. Excerpts.
Why did you choose Nepal as your first international destination?
Nepal is a country of breathtaking beauty that attracts hundreds of thousands of tourists every year. However, expensive airfares have posed difficulties in increasing arrivals. Hence, there is space for low-cost airlines on this route. If we can provide low-cost carriers, we are sure that we will achieve success here in no time.
What are your plans?
We will be increasing the flight frequency from other Indian cities to Kathmandu. SpiceJet operates daily flights on the Kathmandu-Delhi sector which is further connected to 13 other Indian destinations on our network. We are planning to operate direct flights to Kathmandu from India’s major cities like Mumbai,Bangalore, Ahmedabad and Kolkata in the future. However, our plan depends on the airport slots available here.
Where is SpiceJet in India’s aviation scene? Where are you going next after Nepal?
SpiceJet is India’s most preferred budget airline. Currently, we have 22 aircraft operating 147 flights daily to 19 cities in India. Our market share in India is over 13 percent. With Delhi-Kathmandu flights, we began our international operation. We will be commencing our next international flight to the capital city of Sri Lanka from Chennai on Saturday. Over the next few months, SpiceJet will start its operations in Bangladesh and Maldives also.
Nepal is celebrating 2011 as Nepal Tourism Year. Does SpiceJet have any plans to support the campaign?
Yes, we are planning to increase the number of flights from other major Indian destinations as the tourism market here is showing tremendous opportunity. Increased flights mean there will be more Indian tourists coming here in 2011.
NTB board to meet after 14-month gap
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, OCT 09 -
The board of the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) is finally meeting on Sunday after a 14-month-long delay caused by a dispute over the appointment of board members by the government.
The NTB’s board meeting is required to be held every two months.
The Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation decided to call the board meeting as the delay was affecting NTB’s
programmes and the Nepal Tourism Year 2011 campaign.
The board, chaired by the tourism secretary, has 11 members consisting of five government representatives, five private sector representatives and the chief executive officer of the NTB.
The meeting stalled when the present government appointed five members from the private sector replacing those who had been appointed by the previous Maoist-led government. The Maoist-led government had appointed Prasiddha Bahadur Pandey, Rajan Sakya, Ganesh Prasad Simkhada, Agni Prasad Kandel and Nimi Sherpa as board members.
Three of the five board members who had been bumped moved the Supreme Court challenging the government decision as their three-year tenure had not expired. The other two tendered their resignation which was approved by the board.
The NTB is now holding the board meeting after asking the three members who’ve gone to court to sit on the board meeting. Tourism secretary and chairman of the board Kishore Thapa said that they had to do it as the delay had paralysed the NTB when NTY 2011 was approaching.
“Although the NTB is conducting its programmes and meeting its expenses through an advance budget, the delay in holding the board meeting can affect its programmes,” said an official of the Tourism Ministry.
NTB spokesman Aditya Baral said that the government’s move to call the board meeting in a bid to resolve the problem was a positive one. Established to promote Nepali tourism, the NTB has been a victim of politicization with every successive government replacing the board members with its own people. “Although the NTB is an autonomous body, political interference has been paralyzing its importance,” said a senior NTB official.
“We are not against the board or any activities that the board is conducting to promote tourism, but if there seems to be any sign of the budget being misused, we won’t let it be approved,” said Simkhada who is attending the board meeting.
Simkhada added that the annual budget should be disclosed to the media also, and that misuse of the budget by ministers and sending representatives of political parties on foreign junkets under the media expenses head should be stopped.
KATHMANDU, OCT 09 -
The board of the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) is finally meeting on Sunday after a 14-month-long delay caused by a dispute over the appointment of board members by the government.
The NTB’s board meeting is required to be held every two months.
The Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation decided to call the board meeting as the delay was affecting NTB’s
programmes and the Nepal Tourism Year 2011 campaign.
The board, chaired by the tourism secretary, has 11 members consisting of five government representatives, five private sector representatives and the chief executive officer of the NTB.
The meeting stalled when the present government appointed five members from the private sector replacing those who had been appointed by the previous Maoist-led government. The Maoist-led government had appointed Prasiddha Bahadur Pandey, Rajan Sakya, Ganesh Prasad Simkhada, Agni Prasad Kandel and Nimi Sherpa as board members.
Three of the five board members who had been bumped moved the Supreme Court challenging the government decision as their three-year tenure had not expired. The other two tendered their resignation which was approved by the board.
The NTB is now holding the board meeting after asking the three members who’ve gone to court to sit on the board meeting. Tourism secretary and chairman of the board Kishore Thapa said that they had to do it as the delay had paralysed the NTB when NTY 2011 was approaching.
“Although the NTB is conducting its programmes and meeting its expenses through an advance budget, the delay in holding the board meeting can affect its programmes,” said an official of the Tourism Ministry.
NTB spokesman Aditya Baral said that the government’s move to call the board meeting in a bid to resolve the problem was a positive one. Established to promote Nepali tourism, the NTB has been a victim of politicization with every successive government replacing the board members with its own people. “Although the NTB is an autonomous body, political interference has been paralyzing its importance,” said a senior NTB official.
“We are not against the board or any activities that the board is conducting to promote tourism, but if there seems to be any sign of the budget being misused, we won’t let it be approved,” said Simkhada who is attending the board meeting.
Simkhada added that the annual budget should be disclosed to the media also, and that misuse of the budget by ministers and sending representatives of political parties on foreign junkets under the media expenses head should be stopped.
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Govt kicks farmers in the teeth
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, OCT 07 -
Dealing a hard blow to farmers, the government on Thursday hiked the price of subsidised chemical fertiliser by 30 percent.
According to the revised rates, Urea, Di-amonium Phosphate (DAP) and Potash will now cost Rs. 18, Rs. 32 and Rs. 20 per kg, respectively, in bordering towns such as Biratnagar, Birgunj and Bhairahawa. The revised price will come into effect from Friday.
Earlier, the government had been selling subsidised Urea, DAP and Potash at Rs. 12.50, Rs. 27.26 and Rs. 14.50, respectively, through Agriculture Inputs Company (AIC). As per the new rate, the price of Urea has been hiked by 44 percent, DAP by 17.39 percent and Potash by 37.93 percent.
Fertiliser price has been increased in line with the price in the international market as well as to increase the bulk of fertilisers for the next fiscal year, said Hari Dahal, spokesman at the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives (MoAC). Inadequate availability of fertilisers has affected agriculture production and has hit paddy plantation this year. The government, in the last fiscal year, had allocated Rs. 1.77 billion to import over 100,000 tons of chemical fertilisers.
“Although, the budget ceiling for subsidised fertilisers in this fiscal year has increased to Rs. 2.30 billion, the price hike in the international market forced the Agriculture Ministry to hike the price,” said Dahal. MoAC will now purchase more quantity of fertilisers with the increased budget.
“We resorted to the move to double the quantity. The Agriculture Ministry will be able to import 200,000 tons of fertiliser this fiscal year,” he said. However, even the doubled quantity of fertiliser will not meet the country’s total demand that stands at 500,000 tons.
The fertiliser price in the international market has increased significantly in the recent days. The price of DAP has gone up to US$ 640 per tonne from US$ 439 per tonne.
Similarly, the price of Urea increased to US$ 415 per tonne from US$ 329 per tonne.
The Cabinet meeting on Sept. 28 had entrusted the responsibility to fix fertiliser price to MoAC.
KATHMANDU, OCT 07 -
Dealing a hard blow to farmers, the government on Thursday hiked the price of subsidised chemical fertiliser by 30 percent.
According to the revised rates, Urea, Di-amonium Phosphate (DAP) and Potash will now cost Rs. 18, Rs. 32 and Rs. 20 per kg, respectively, in bordering towns such as Biratnagar, Birgunj and Bhairahawa. The revised price will come into effect from Friday.
Earlier, the government had been selling subsidised Urea, DAP and Potash at Rs. 12.50, Rs. 27.26 and Rs. 14.50, respectively, through Agriculture Inputs Company (AIC). As per the new rate, the price of Urea has been hiked by 44 percent, DAP by 17.39 percent and Potash by 37.93 percent.
Fertiliser price has been increased in line with the price in the international market as well as to increase the bulk of fertilisers for the next fiscal year, said Hari Dahal, spokesman at the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives (MoAC). Inadequate availability of fertilisers has affected agriculture production and has hit paddy plantation this year. The government, in the last fiscal year, had allocated Rs. 1.77 billion to import over 100,000 tons of chemical fertilisers.
“Although, the budget ceiling for subsidised fertilisers in this fiscal year has increased to Rs. 2.30 billion, the price hike in the international market forced the Agriculture Ministry to hike the price,” said Dahal. MoAC will now purchase more quantity of fertilisers with the increased budget.
“We resorted to the move to double the quantity. The Agriculture Ministry will be able to import 200,000 tons of fertiliser this fiscal year,” he said. However, even the doubled quantity of fertiliser will not meet the country’s total demand that stands at 500,000 tons.
The fertiliser price in the international market has increased significantly in the recent days. The price of DAP has gone up to US$ 640 per tonne from US$ 439 per tonne.
Similarly, the price of Urea increased to US$ 415 per tonne from US$ 329 per tonne.
The Cabinet meeting on Sept. 28 had entrusted the responsibility to fix fertiliser price to MoAC.
100 days to go for Nepal Tourism Year 2011
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, OCT 07 -
The countdown to Nepal Tourism Year 2011 began on Thursday with 100 days remaining for the big event. The campaign to bring one million tourists during 2011 started the countdown with a clean-up programme.
Although there has not been adequate work in infrastructure and international promotion to bring such a large number of tourists, a noble move was realized on the eve of the campaign to re-establish the country’s brand image “Naturally Nepal, Once is Not Enough”.
Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal along with top government officials took part in a cleaning programme at Durbar Square (a World Heritage Site) in Kathmandu.
“We can’t think of developing any big projects within three months, however, a major step we are implementing without any spending is the cleaning campaign,” said Kishore Thapa, secretary at the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation. Thapa said that from east to west and south to north, all land points would be kept clean and urged all the people to support the move.
“The campaign not only aims to celebrate 2011 as a big year, but it is also to develop a road ahead for the envisaged vision Nepal has kept for 2020,” said Prachanda Man Shrestha, chief executive officer of the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) addressing a programme at Narayanhiti Museum to mark the 100-day countdown.
He said that Nepal had been established as a premier holiday destination. The increased number of airlines, investment mobilization in hotels, aviation and different other tourism products are a positive indication for the country that has started to move towards socio-economic transformation.
On the same occasion, Minister for Tourism and Civil Aviation Sharat Singh Bhandari said that government had given priority to five major works to make the NTY 2011 a success. Of which, enhancing Tribhuvan International Airport capacity and facility has been given top priority. “A specific team has been deputed for the programme at TIA,” said Bhandari.
According to the NTY 2011 programme implementation sub-committee, about 75 percent of the runway at TIA has been completed. There are now 1,000 trolleys and visitor’s desk for passengers and TIA committee to form 24-hour airport operation manpower. Currently, there are 27 international airlines serving Nepal.
The second priority is to make the hassle free tourist movement. During the programme, top security officials also promised to make better improvement and urged people to support the police administration. The third priority is to manage the taxis at TIA. According to Bhandari, the fourth priority is to diversify tourists to different village areas to experience rural tradition. The objective of NTY 2011 is also to diversify 30-40 percent of the total arrivals to new areas and destinations. The final priority of the government is to make the community and stakeholders realize that “We are together for tourism”.
The tourist arrivals by air in the country, as of September, has jumped by 20.6 percent to 41,331 from 34,281 during the same month last year. In the third quarter of the current year, the growth has been recorded at 40 percent to 266,988 as against 189,566 in the same period last year.
Achievements
• Garnering commitment from 19 political parties not to organize strikes
• Attracting new international airlines
• Visa fee waiver to Mt. Everest and Mt. Dhaulagiri summiteers for 2011
• Commercializing home stay
• NTY 2011 promotion at the Shanghai Expo, Japan, India, Malaysia and EU
• Providing incentives to them who bring over 100 tourists for conference and other purposes
Disappointments
• Budget constraints for international promotion
• Failure to purchase aircraft for Nepal Airlines
• No special packages for tourists from the private sector
• Unclear labour policy fearing unrest in the hospitality sector
• No proper homework and coordination among different stakeholders
• Poor capacity of TIA to handle the aviation rush
KATHMANDU, OCT 07 -
The countdown to Nepal Tourism Year 2011 began on Thursday with 100 days remaining for the big event. The campaign to bring one million tourists during 2011 started the countdown with a clean-up programme.
Although there has not been adequate work in infrastructure and international promotion to bring such a large number of tourists, a noble move was realized on the eve of the campaign to re-establish the country’s brand image “Naturally Nepal, Once is Not Enough”.
Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal along with top government officials took part in a cleaning programme at Durbar Square (a World Heritage Site) in Kathmandu.
“We can’t think of developing any big projects within three months, however, a major step we are implementing without any spending is the cleaning campaign,” said Kishore Thapa, secretary at the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation. Thapa said that from east to west and south to north, all land points would be kept clean and urged all the people to support the move.
“The campaign not only aims to celebrate 2011 as a big year, but it is also to develop a road ahead for the envisaged vision Nepal has kept for 2020,” said Prachanda Man Shrestha, chief executive officer of the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) addressing a programme at Narayanhiti Museum to mark the 100-day countdown.
He said that Nepal had been established as a premier holiday destination. The increased number of airlines, investment mobilization in hotels, aviation and different other tourism products are a positive indication for the country that has started to move towards socio-economic transformation.
On the same occasion, Minister for Tourism and Civil Aviation Sharat Singh Bhandari said that government had given priority to five major works to make the NTY 2011 a success. Of which, enhancing Tribhuvan International Airport capacity and facility has been given top priority. “A specific team has been deputed for the programme at TIA,” said Bhandari.
According to the NTY 2011 programme implementation sub-committee, about 75 percent of the runway at TIA has been completed. There are now 1,000 trolleys and visitor’s desk for passengers and TIA committee to form 24-hour airport operation manpower. Currently, there are 27 international airlines serving Nepal.
The second priority is to make the hassle free tourist movement. During the programme, top security officials also promised to make better improvement and urged people to support the police administration. The third priority is to manage the taxis at TIA. According to Bhandari, the fourth priority is to diversify tourists to different village areas to experience rural tradition. The objective of NTY 2011 is also to diversify 30-40 percent of the total arrivals to new areas and destinations. The final priority of the government is to make the community and stakeholders realize that “We are together for tourism”.
The tourist arrivals by air in the country, as of September, has jumped by 20.6 percent to 41,331 from 34,281 during the same month last year. In the third quarter of the current year, the growth has been recorded at 40 percent to 266,988 as against 189,566 in the same period last year.
Achievements
• Garnering commitment from 19 political parties not to organize strikes
• Attracting new international airlines
• Visa fee waiver to Mt. Everest and Mt. Dhaulagiri summiteers for 2011
• Commercializing home stay
• NTY 2011 promotion at the Shanghai Expo, Japan, India, Malaysia and EU
• Providing incentives to them who bring over 100 tourists for conference and other purposes
Disappointments
• Budget constraints for international promotion
• Failure to purchase aircraft for Nepal Airlines
• No special packages for tourists from the private sector
• Unclear labour policy fearing unrest in the hospitality sector
• No proper homework and coordination among different stakeholders
• Poor capacity of TIA to handle the aviation rush
Monday, October 4, 2010
How NRB muffed it up
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, OCT 04 -
The Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) error in the statistics of the highest foreign exchange earner in trekking agencies in Nepal in 2009-10 has dislodged the chances of a genuine institution from getting the award conferred by the tourism ministry. The Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation (MoTCA) conferred the ‘Highest foreign exchange earner’ award on Himalaya Expedition Inc., (Pvt) Ltd, in the World Tourism Day (Sept. 27) function held at Nepal Tourism Board. In fact, it is Thamserku Trekking Pvt. Ltd that was the highest foreign exchange earner in 2009-10.
The awarded Himalaya Expedition’s earnings last year stood at US$ 822,025, while the earning of Thamserku Trekking was US$ 1.89 million, according to the amended NRB foreign exchange statistics. However, the MoTCA said that the error occurred due to incorrect statistics sent by the NRB. The NRB corrected the statistical error on Sept. 2. “We distributed the award on the basis of the central bank’s foreign exchange statistics report,” said Laxman Prasad Bhattarai, spokesman at MoTCA.
The amended NRB statistics say that Thamserku Trekking is the highest foreign exchange earner followed by Himalaya Expedition and Explore Himalaya Travel & Adventure. The Trekking Agencies’ Association of Nepal (TAAN) has sent a letter to MoTCA on Monday, drawing its attention to the error by government authorities. TAAN has also requested Tourism Minister Sharat Singh Bhandari to organize another special programme to honor Thamserku Trekking.
Rajendra Bajgai, general-secretary of TAAN, said that such irresponsibility on the part of the concerned government authorities has created an environment of distrust among the agencies. “The decision should be corrected and the concerned authorities should apologize for their mistake,” he said.
The MoTCA awards the best hotel, trekking and travel agency every year on World Tourism Day for their best performance in foreign currency earnings.
The MoTCA has also forwarded a warning letter to NRB not to repeat its mistake. Bhattarai said that they received the letter forwarded by TAAN on the issue on Monday. “We will discuss the issue with the minister and secretary,” he said.
KATHMANDU, OCT 04 -
The Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) error in the statistics of the highest foreign exchange earner in trekking agencies in Nepal in 2009-10 has dislodged the chances of a genuine institution from getting the award conferred by the tourism ministry. The Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation (MoTCA) conferred the ‘Highest foreign exchange earner’ award on Himalaya Expedition Inc., (Pvt) Ltd, in the World Tourism Day (Sept. 27) function held at Nepal Tourism Board. In fact, it is Thamserku Trekking Pvt. Ltd that was the highest foreign exchange earner in 2009-10.
The awarded Himalaya Expedition’s earnings last year stood at US$ 822,025, while the earning of Thamserku Trekking was US$ 1.89 million, according to the amended NRB foreign exchange statistics. However, the MoTCA said that the error occurred due to incorrect statistics sent by the NRB. The NRB corrected the statistical error on Sept. 2. “We distributed the award on the basis of the central bank’s foreign exchange statistics report,” said Laxman Prasad Bhattarai, spokesman at MoTCA.
The amended NRB statistics say that Thamserku Trekking is the highest foreign exchange earner followed by Himalaya Expedition and Explore Himalaya Travel & Adventure. The Trekking Agencies’ Association of Nepal (TAAN) has sent a letter to MoTCA on Monday, drawing its attention to the error by government authorities. TAAN has also requested Tourism Minister Sharat Singh Bhandari to organize another special programme to honor Thamserku Trekking.
Rajendra Bajgai, general-secretary of TAAN, said that such irresponsibility on the part of the concerned government authorities has created an environment of distrust among the agencies. “The decision should be corrected and the concerned authorities should apologize for their mistake,” he said.
The MoTCA awards the best hotel, trekking and travel agency every year on World Tourism Day for their best performance in foreign currency earnings.
The MoTCA has also forwarded a warning letter to NRB not to repeat its mistake. Bhattarai said that they received the letter forwarded by TAAN on the issue on Monday. “We will discuss the issue with the minister and secretary,” he said.
Nepal’srice bowl empty
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, OCT 04 -
Nepal’s precarious food security situation has been exposed with Nepal Food Corporation (NFC) being compelled to call global tender for the supply of rice
as local contractors failed to supply enough.
The NFC, for the first time, has called global tender for 20,000 tonnes of rice on Sept. 20. After its two attempts to fulfill the food requirement from the domestic market failed as a result of food deficit in the country, it chose to go for global tender. The situation turned worse after the Indian government also banned export of non-basmati rice.
According to a food security bulletin of World Food Programme in August, there is a total of 442,000 food insecure people in the districts including 409,200 in the mid and far western hilly and mountainous districts who are highly food insecure.
Last year, the agriculture ministry had estimated about 500,000 people remained food insecure. Paddy harvest in 2009-2010 was around 11 percent less than the preceding year, with production of 4.02 million tonnes against 4.52 million tonnes recorded the preceding year, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives. The WFP said that as a result of poor summer crop, the national edible cereal balance is estimated to be 316,465 MT deficit, which is 140 percent higher than the previous year and by far the largest deficit in a decade.
Bijay Dhoj Thapa, deputy general manager of NFC, said that the corporation called the global tender as the domestic market was unable to meet the NFC’s demand. He said that low production of food was the major reason that there was not enough food in the market. As per the recently called global tender, the suppliers have been given a time period of 45 days for submitting tender documents. Earlier, the NFC had called the latest tender at the local level in June for the supply of 2,500 tonnes of rice. But, the tender was cancelled as the price quoted by all bidders upped significantly compared to the amount maintained in the first bidding.
The lowest price for Mansuli rice maintained in Nepalgunj was Rs. 26,370 per tonne during the first bidding which climbed up to Rs. 33,285 rice in the second bidding, according to NFC. During the first tender called in February 2010, the local bidders could only supply 7,160 tonnes of rice although the contract was awarded for supplying 21,000 metric tonnes. “The failure to supply on the part of contractors was due to shortage of food in the domestic market,” said Roop Singh Bhandari, NFC’s procurement division chief.
Realizing the direness of food insecurity, the NFC is planning to stock 50,000 tonnes of rice as buffer stock. The buffer stock will be used to meet emergency requirements and control the market price.
KATHMANDU, OCT 04 -
Nepal’s precarious food security situation has been exposed with Nepal Food Corporation (NFC) being compelled to call global tender for the supply of rice
as local contractors failed to supply enough.
The NFC, for the first time, has called global tender for 20,000 tonnes of rice on Sept. 20. After its two attempts to fulfill the food requirement from the domestic market failed as a result of food deficit in the country, it chose to go for global tender. The situation turned worse after the Indian government also banned export of non-basmati rice.
According to a food security bulletin of World Food Programme in August, there is a total of 442,000 food insecure people in the districts including 409,200 in the mid and far western hilly and mountainous districts who are highly food insecure.
Last year, the agriculture ministry had estimated about 500,000 people remained food insecure. Paddy harvest in 2009-2010 was around 11 percent less than the preceding year, with production of 4.02 million tonnes against 4.52 million tonnes recorded the preceding year, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives. The WFP said that as a result of poor summer crop, the national edible cereal balance is estimated to be 316,465 MT deficit, which is 140 percent higher than the previous year and by far the largest deficit in a decade.
Bijay Dhoj Thapa, deputy general manager of NFC, said that the corporation called the global tender as the domestic market was unable to meet the NFC’s demand. He said that low production of food was the major reason that there was not enough food in the market. As per the recently called global tender, the suppliers have been given a time period of 45 days for submitting tender documents. Earlier, the NFC had called the latest tender at the local level in June for the supply of 2,500 tonnes of rice. But, the tender was cancelled as the price quoted by all bidders upped significantly compared to the amount maintained in the first bidding.
The lowest price for Mansuli rice maintained in Nepalgunj was Rs. 26,370 per tonne during the first bidding which climbed up to Rs. 33,285 rice in the second bidding, according to NFC. During the first tender called in February 2010, the local bidders could only supply 7,160 tonnes of rice although the contract was awarded for supplying 21,000 metric tonnes. “The failure to supply on the part of contractors was due to shortage of food in the domestic market,” said Roop Singh Bhandari, NFC’s procurement division chief.
Realizing the direness of food insecurity, the NFC is planning to stock 50,000 tonnes of rice as buffer stock. The buffer stock will be used to meet emergency requirements and control the market price.
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Tourist arrivals up 20pc in Sept
SANGAM PRASAIN
OCT 02 -
Tourist arrivals in September 2010 jumped by 20.6 percent to 41,331 from 34,281 during the same month last year.
The figures released by the Immigration Office, Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) said that arrivals from the South Asian region witnessed a robust growth of 49.1 percent with Bangladesh up 79.5 percent, India up 40.9 percent and Pakistan up 43.9 percent.
However, arrivals from Sri Lanka have declined by 10.6 percent. A sustained growth of 22.8 percent has been observed in arrivals from the South Asian region during the first nine months of 2010, in comparison to the same period last year.
Asia (other than the South Asian region) has continued to maintain an upward trend with a double-digit growth of 15.2 percent in September 2010.
China, emerging as the major tourist generating market for Nepal, has recorded a growth of 19.7 percent. Similarly, visitor arrivals from Malaysia (up 68.5 percent), South Korea (up 52.1 percent), Singapore (up 3.7 percent) and Thailand (up 8.9 percent) have also registered growth. However, arrivals from Japan declined by 7.7 percent compared to the same month last year.
Regarding the long-haul markets, Europe registered an overall positive growth of 9.4 percent with arrivals from Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, Denmark up by 33 percent, 5.1 percent, 8.4 percent, 8.2 percent and 45.1 percent respectively.
The markets that could not show positive results in September 2010 were the UK (-5.6 percent), Norway (-23.9 percent) Switzerland (-4.6 percent) and Czech Republic (-32.9 percent).
However, a sustained growth of 16.9 percent has been observed in arrivals from the European region during the first nine months of 2010 in comparison to the same period last year.
The figures show an increasing trend in visitor arrivals from New Zealand with a growth of 38.5 percent while Australia posted a negative growth of 0.2 percent. Likewise, the US and Canada have registered growths of 7.4 percent and 9.6 percent respectively.
A total of 36,921 foreign tourists departed from TIA in September 2010. The number of Nepali arrivals stood at 55,936 while 58,190 Nepalis departed from TIA.
Month Arrivals (2009) Arrivals (2010) Change (%)
Jan 21,944 26,071 18.80
Feb 25,181 33,492 33.00
Mar 33,005 44,431 34.61
Apr 37,819 38, 694 2.31
May 25,129 26,634 5.98
June 23,222 26,997 16.30
July 23,266 29,338 26.09
Aug 27,676 34,415 24.30
Sept 34,281 41,331 20.60
Total 189,566 266,988 40.84
OCT 02 -
Tourist arrivals in September 2010 jumped by 20.6 percent to 41,331 from 34,281 during the same month last year.
The figures released by the Immigration Office, Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) said that arrivals from the South Asian region witnessed a robust growth of 49.1 percent with Bangladesh up 79.5 percent, India up 40.9 percent and Pakistan up 43.9 percent.
However, arrivals from Sri Lanka have declined by 10.6 percent. A sustained growth of 22.8 percent has been observed in arrivals from the South Asian region during the first nine months of 2010, in comparison to the same period last year.
Asia (other than the South Asian region) has continued to maintain an upward trend with a double-digit growth of 15.2 percent in September 2010.
China, emerging as the major tourist generating market for Nepal, has recorded a growth of 19.7 percent. Similarly, visitor arrivals from Malaysia (up 68.5 percent), South Korea (up 52.1 percent), Singapore (up 3.7 percent) and Thailand (up 8.9 percent) have also registered growth. However, arrivals from Japan declined by 7.7 percent compared to the same month last year.
Regarding the long-haul markets, Europe registered an overall positive growth of 9.4 percent with arrivals from Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, Denmark up by 33 percent, 5.1 percent, 8.4 percent, 8.2 percent and 45.1 percent respectively.
The markets that could not show positive results in September 2010 were the UK (-5.6 percent), Norway (-23.9 percent) Switzerland (-4.6 percent) and Czech Republic (-32.9 percent).
However, a sustained growth of 16.9 percent has been observed in arrivals from the European region during the first nine months of 2010 in comparison to the same period last year.
The figures show an increasing trend in visitor arrivals from New Zealand with a growth of 38.5 percent while Australia posted a negative growth of 0.2 percent. Likewise, the US and Canada have registered growths of 7.4 percent and 9.6 percent respectively.
A total of 36,921 foreign tourists departed from TIA in September 2010. The number of Nepali arrivals stood at 55,936 while 58,190 Nepalis departed from TIA.
Month Arrivals (2009) Arrivals (2010) Change (%)
Jan 21,944 26,071 18.80
Feb 25,181 33,492 33.00
Mar 33,005 44,431 34.61
Apr 37,819 38, 694 2.31
May 25,129 26,634 5.98
June 23,222 26,997 16.30
July 23,266 29,338 26.09
Aug 27,676 34,415 24.30
Sept 34,281 41,331 20.60
Total 189,566 266,988 40.84
New trekking trails open for NTY-2011
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, OCT 02 -
Trekking agencies and the government have unveiled new trekking trails and upgraded old ones for Nepal Tourism Year 2011.
The effort aims to prolong tourist stay in Nepal. Since the trekking routes are at least seven days long, they will help to lengthen visitor stay and increase spending in remote areas. The response of over 132,000 visitors for trekking and mountaineering in Nepal last year has also encouraged trekking entrepreneurs to develop new products.
Currently, 95 percent of the 120,000 trekkers visiting Nepal annually do not go beyond the Annapurna, Langtang or Everest regions. Only around 6,200 trekkers venture off the beaten track.
On Sept. 27, the Trekking Agents Association of Nepal (TAAN) unveiled three trekking routes—Panch Pokhari-Bhairav Kunda in Sindhupalchok, Dhorpatan in Baglung and Galeshwar of Myagdi—aiming to diversify tourists to these destinations next year. Bhairav Kund will provide experience of 10 days trekking to a shaman pilgrimage site through its traditional villages in spectacular Himalayan landscapes to reach the holy lake Bhairav Kund.
Panch Pokhari gives an experience 12 days that passes five holy lakes. This area, northeast of Kathmandu, offers a combination of rich cultural heritage, unsurpassed beauty and biological diversity. The Galeshwar of Myagdi will give a seven-day experience to trekkers that starts from Beni and ends in the same place. TAAN is also introducing the Lower-Solu trekking route in the southern part of Lukla soon, Bachhu Narayan Shrestha, first vice-president of TAAN told the Post.
Similarly, the Great Himalaya Trail (GHT), the longest and highest alpine walking track in the world, is scheduled to be inaugurated on Jan. 14, 2011 in Kathmandu. The NTY 2011 implementing committee announced the launching of the trail as a new product aimed at attracting trekkers from around the world.
Trekking entrepreneurs said that the new product would help diversify a large number of tourists to different unexploited trekking destinations that would benefit the mountain people with employment and production opportunities who are isolated even though having huge tourism prospects. Mardi Trek is another new route that tourism entrepreneurs of Pokhara are looking to launch next year. The Mardi Management Committee in Pokhara plans to operate Mardi Himal Trek route explored in the Machhapuchchhre model trek area. On the other hand, the government is also planning to launch some trekking routes that were developed last year and are scheduled to be completed this year.
Rabi Shah, project manager at the Tourism Infrastructure Development Project under the Tourism Ministry, said that some new trekking trails are in the process of being launched this year while some of them are being improved.
The Tourism Ministry is planning to open a new trekking route circling the Kathmandu Valley and encompassing the capital and the neighbouring districts of Bhaktapur and Lalitpur. The route is 131 km in length.
This circular trekking route will link the four major peaks around the valley --Shivapuri (2,453 m), Phulchoki (2,765 m), Chandragiri (2,522 m) and Nagarjun (2,697 m). According
to Shah, the Budhanilkantha-Nuwakot-Gosaikunda, Dhulikhel-Nagarkot, Dakshinkali-Champagiri-Machhegaon, Nagarjun (Phoolbarigate)-Jamacho, Chandragiri-Tistung trekking routes in Makwanpur and Dhulikhel-Nagarkot are in progress, of which some will be launched within 2011.
The Nepal Ecological and Tourism Awareness Front (NETAF), the Nagar Naldum Tourism Development Committee and the Guide Association, Kavre have recently launched a hiking route from Nagarkot to Dhulikhel. However, Shah said that the trail was still not completed as work remains to be done on the Sanga side.
“The government has allocated Rs. 50 million to these projects for last year; however, the project was looking for new budget this year to get its final touch,” Shah added.
As Nepal is well known as one of the best destinations in the world for enjoying the real beauty of nature through trekking, trekking entrepreneurs are hopeful that they might double the existing number of trekkers next year.
Trekking in Nepal is an all season activity. It is possible at any time of the year depending on where one goes. However, the most popular seasons are spring (February-May) and autumn (September-November).
KATHMANDU, OCT 02 -
Trekking agencies and the government have unveiled new trekking trails and upgraded old ones for Nepal Tourism Year 2011.
The effort aims to prolong tourist stay in Nepal. Since the trekking routes are at least seven days long, they will help to lengthen visitor stay and increase spending in remote areas. The response of over 132,000 visitors for trekking and mountaineering in Nepal last year has also encouraged trekking entrepreneurs to develop new products.
Currently, 95 percent of the 120,000 trekkers visiting Nepal annually do not go beyond the Annapurna, Langtang or Everest regions. Only around 6,200 trekkers venture off the beaten track.
On Sept. 27, the Trekking Agents Association of Nepal (TAAN) unveiled three trekking routes—Panch Pokhari-Bhairav Kunda in Sindhupalchok, Dhorpatan in Baglung and Galeshwar of Myagdi—aiming to diversify tourists to these destinations next year. Bhairav Kund will provide experience of 10 days trekking to a shaman pilgrimage site through its traditional villages in spectacular Himalayan landscapes to reach the holy lake Bhairav Kund.
Panch Pokhari gives an experience 12 days that passes five holy lakes. This area, northeast of Kathmandu, offers a combination of rich cultural heritage, unsurpassed beauty and biological diversity. The Galeshwar of Myagdi will give a seven-day experience to trekkers that starts from Beni and ends in the same place. TAAN is also introducing the Lower-Solu trekking route in the southern part of Lukla soon, Bachhu Narayan Shrestha, first vice-president of TAAN told the Post.
Similarly, the Great Himalaya Trail (GHT), the longest and highest alpine walking track in the world, is scheduled to be inaugurated on Jan. 14, 2011 in Kathmandu. The NTY 2011 implementing committee announced the launching of the trail as a new product aimed at attracting trekkers from around the world.
Trekking entrepreneurs said that the new product would help diversify a large number of tourists to different unexploited trekking destinations that would benefit the mountain people with employment and production opportunities who are isolated even though having huge tourism prospects. Mardi Trek is another new route that tourism entrepreneurs of Pokhara are looking to launch next year. The Mardi Management Committee in Pokhara plans to operate Mardi Himal Trek route explored in the Machhapuchchhre model trek area. On the other hand, the government is also planning to launch some trekking routes that were developed last year and are scheduled to be completed this year.
Rabi Shah, project manager at the Tourism Infrastructure Development Project under the Tourism Ministry, said that some new trekking trails are in the process of being launched this year while some of them are being improved.
The Tourism Ministry is planning to open a new trekking route circling the Kathmandu Valley and encompassing the capital and the neighbouring districts of Bhaktapur and Lalitpur. The route is 131 km in length.
This circular trekking route will link the four major peaks around the valley --Shivapuri (2,453 m), Phulchoki (2,765 m), Chandragiri (2,522 m) and Nagarjun (2,697 m). According
to Shah, the Budhanilkantha-Nuwakot-Gosaikunda, Dhulikhel-Nagarkot, Dakshinkali-Champagiri-Machhegaon, Nagarjun (Phoolbarigate)-Jamacho, Chandragiri-Tistung trekking routes in Makwanpur and Dhulikhel-Nagarkot are in progress, of which some will be launched within 2011.
The Nepal Ecological and Tourism Awareness Front (NETAF), the Nagar Naldum Tourism Development Committee and the Guide Association, Kavre have recently launched a hiking route from Nagarkot to Dhulikhel. However, Shah said that the trail was still not completed as work remains to be done on the Sanga side.
“The government has allocated Rs. 50 million to these projects for last year; however, the project was looking for new budget this year to get its final touch,” Shah added.
As Nepal is well known as one of the best destinations in the world for enjoying the real beauty of nature through trekking, trekking entrepreneurs are hopeful that they might double the existing number of trekkers next year.
Trekking in Nepal is an all season activity. It is possible at any time of the year depending on where one goes. However, the most popular seasons are spring (February-May) and autumn (September-November).
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