PAC directs Nepal Oil Corporation to hand over fuel import contract at the earliest

KATHMANDU: The Legislature-Parliament's Public Accounts Committee on Friday directed the Nepal Oil Corporation to expedite the process of handing over the contract on airlifting petroleum products.

The PAC directed the NOC to shortlist the preferred bidder and hand over the contract within few days of getting bid documents from interested parties.

The state-owned fuel monopoly on Thursday published a global tender notice, calling on interested parties to submit bid documents for supply of aviation turbine fuel, petrol, diesel, kerosene and LPG (cooking gas) for 15 days. Bid documents have to be submitted within three days of issuance of the tender notice.

PM, ministers summoned

Also, the House panel has summoned the Prime Minister, Minister for Home Affairs, Finance Minister, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Minister for Commerce and Supplies, the secretaries of the ministries and the Parliamentary Party leaders of major parties to discuss the ongoing fuel crisis in the country at its meeting scheduled for 11 am tomorrow.

"Emergency"

During the meeting today, PAC members criticised the government for failing to do the needful to ease the supplies following the obstruction at Nepal-India border.

CPN-UML lawmaker and PAC member Pashupati Chaulagain demanded that an state of emergency be declared if need be to clear obstruction and resume supplies.

Nepali Congress lawmakers Ram Hari Khatiwada and Dhan Raj Gurung said the government side has utterly failed to make it clear whether it is a blockade imposed by India or the obstruction by the agitating Madhesi parties.

Khatiwada was of the opinion that the government should declare emergency if such a measure could normalise the situation.