Talks remain inconclusive today

HIMALAYAN NEWS SERVICE

KATHMANDU: Talks between the LP Gas Industry Association Nepal and the government remained inconclusive today, according to acting managing director of Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) Suresh Kumar Agrawal.

The meeting will continue tomorrow as well, he said. The talks between NOC and the association had started on August 1 after the latter threatened to halt the supply of Liquefied Petroleum Gas.

Later, the government formed a separate committee led by director general at the Department of Commerce and Supply Management Narayan Prasad Bidari to resolve the problem. However, the government has been failing to forge consensus despite several rounds of talks.

Government had said that it would not sit for talks with the association but has failed to keep its commitment. Secretary at the Ministry of Commerce and Supplies Lal Mani Joshi had said that the government would not accept even a single demand made by the association unless they unconditionally ended their strike.

However, the committee led by Bidari continued to hold talks with entrepreneurs today as well. Similarly, the government has been failing to impose the Essential Service Act on

the trade of cooking gas though it had pledged to impose the

Act from the very beginning

of the strike.

A breakthrough has been made today, said general secretary of the association Kush Kumar Malli, adding that the talk team agreed to fulfill some of the demands made by the association.

He, however, did not elaborate the details of the agreed points. The association and the government’s talk team will announce the agreement document tomorrow, he said.

An agreement has been made in almost all crucial

issues but all of them will be documented tomorrow, claimed Malli.

“The association will end its strike tomorrow if the government continues with its positive attitude towards the LPG traders,” he said.

LP Gas Industry Association Nepal stopped receiving the Product Delivery Order from

August 7.