MoI sets its sight on reviving sick pvt industries

Kathmandu, December 12

In an attempt to revive private industries that have been out of operation since long, the government has sought concrete reasons from industrialists behind closure of their industries. The main objective of this move is ‘to facilitate the private sector to restore the defunct industries’.

The Ministry of Industry (MoI) today urged defunct industries to present the reasons behind their closure and how the government could help revive such industries. MoI is set to publish a notice on Wednesday calling for the defunct industries to submit their problems and potentials to the government.

“Thousands of private industries in Nepal are not in operation following halt in production and closure due to various reasons. In addition to defunct public enterprises, sick private industries also need to be revived to achieve higher industrial growth,” Minister for Industry Nabindra Raj Joshi said, adding, the government will extend procedural, physical, infrastructure, market, among other support for the revival of such industries.

Minister Joshi said all types of private industries which faced closure due to various reasons can submit application highlighting the reason for their closure at local offices of MoI or through direct e-mail to the MoI. But, MoI will accept applications from such industries only for three weeks starting Wednesday.

A committee will be formed soon to analyse the applications to revive defunct private industries and based on recommendation of the committee, MoI will extend revival support to deserving private industries, according to Joshi. “The attempt is to first know the status of sick private industries and then extend possible government support to revive them,” Joshi added.

Industry Secretary Shankar Prasad Koirala said that MoI is attempting to revive all possible sick industries of the government as well as the private sector to accelerate country’s industrial growth. “Economic prosperity in the country is achieved through industrial growth and entrepreneurship development. MoI is currently focusing on these two areas of development,” Koirala said.

Meanwhile, MoI has said that the recently revived Nepal Drugs Ltd (NDL) would soon start production of some drugs as machine procurement process for NDL is in the last stage. MoI is preparing a concrete modality to revive the liquidated Hetauda Textile Industry with equal shares from Nepal Police, Nepali Army, Armed Police Force and the government.