SANGAM

NOC bonus row, folk sweat

SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, AUG 04 -
Long queues were back again on Wednesday outside gasoline stations in the Capital after the agitating Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) unions’ staff stopped distributing petroleum products from the depots. This is the second time after June-end that consumers are forced to wait endlessly for petroleum products.

Around June-end, the state oil monopoly, NOC, created a petroleum shortage clarifying it was compelled to do so as Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) cut deliveries by 50-60 percent because NOC had fallen behind in its payments.

However, this time the consumers are likely to suffer the artificial shortage driven by the NOC’s staff. “It’s totally irresponsible behaviour on part of the NOC management and its staff,” said Ram Chandra Simkhada, secretary at Consumers Rights Protection Forum.

He said that the state-owned enterprise and the state recruited employees are making consumers suffer for reason as the issue is one that should remain within their own house. “We also smell a rat inside NOC,” he alleged. The government has 98 percent stake in NOC.

He added that it was not reasonable that NOC, with has millions of outstanding loans, declare bonus even if it earns profit for some period. The NOC had earned a profit of Rs 3.31 billion the last fiscal year and had provisioned Rs 200 million as bonus to employees.

“We are not hungry for the bonus,” claimed Babu Ram Rai, President of Nepal National Employees’ Union.

On Wednesday, the NOC management called the agitating unions for the talks to settle the issue. The dialogue was going on till in the late night. “We’re still discussing on the issue,” said Rai when contacted by the Post. Earlier in the day, the unions had meeting with Commerce Secretary Purushottam Ojha.

The NOC management withdrew its plan to distribute bonus after its Annual General Meeting (AGM) announced the bonus, Rai said adding, “The management has humiliated the employees and forced them to wage war for their rights.” He said NOC should implement its decision passed by the AGM. “We will be compelled to be on strike indefinitely period if the management does not heed our demand,” Rai said.

The ongoing tug-of-war between the management and the Unions is likely to impact the consumers more. As per the unions’ charted plan, fuel depots across the country have stopped their shipment to the refueling stations from Wednesday. The second and third day plan of the unions is to close the depots for a half day. Fuel tankers will be able to get fuel for three hours, i.e from 10 am to 1 pm on Thursday and Friday.

Saroj Pandey, President of Nepal Petroleum Dealers’ Association, said depots across the country were totally closed on Wednesday. “This will amplify the demand automatically and create crisis again,” he said. It would be impossible to address the needs of the refuelling stations.”