BANKE: Hassles related to ‘transit permit’ from the Indian side have shrunk the export of herbal products.

Herbal export from Nepal has witnessed challenges after the Uttar Pradesh Forest Department listed out requirements of export to businesspersons in the name of transit permit, customs, food lab and plant quarantine checks, said Nepal Herbal Entrepreneurs Association, Nepalgunj.

The entrepreneurs have complained that export of herbal products has witnessed a downward trend due to government apathy towards promotion of herbal products.

Entrepreneurs of Nepalgunj have now started using Sunauli checkpoint for herbal export when they faced recurring issues while transporting the products via Rupediya checkpoint.

This has resulted in annual reduction in volume of herbal export to India from Nepalgunj through Rupediya.

Until a decade ago, around seven million kilograms of herbal products used to be exported annually to India via the checkpoint, which has now slumped to insignificant volume, said the Association.