Himalayan News Service

Kathmandu, January 26:

Government is all set to amend the Bank and Financial Institution Ordinance-2061, considering the private sectors’ strong opposition to some provisions over the appointment of board of directors and blacklisting procedure.

Bharat Mohan Adhikari, deputy prime minister and finance minister, today disclosed that the amended version of the Ordinance will be brought before a cabinet meeting on Thursday. He, however, declined to comment further on the issue.

Adhikari was speaking at a programme organised today by the department of customs (DoC) in association with Nepal Chamber of Commerce (NCC) to mark the 53rd International Customs Day.

The Ordinance, better known as Umbrella Act, came into force about one and half years ago, amalgamating four different regulating legislations of commercial banks, finance companies, Agriculture Development Bank and Nepal Industrial Development Corporation.

The private sector has raised concerns over some provisions including appointment of board of directors, black listing procedures and fixed qualification for directors. The amended version of the Act is said to have relaxation on these provisions. “We have tried to do as much as we can to help the private sector,” said Adhikari without further elaboration.

He also reiterated that the increment in value added tax (VAT) was obligatory for the government to finance additional funds needed for increased recurrent expenditure. “We are in a difficult time and we need help from every walk of life to overcome the present situation,” he said.

Adhikari also released four publications of DoC on the occasion.

Speaking on the occasion, Krishna Hari Baskota, director general of DoC, highlighted about various reform initiatives taken by the department in an attempt to make customs administration business-friendly and vibrant. “The customs reform has been taken as a key pillar of economic liberalisation, facilitating trade in the context of globalisation,” he said.

Stating that customs has become a backbone of the national economy in terms of revenue mobilisation, he said that the customs administration targets to generate as much as of Rs 35 billion revenue during the current fiscal year.

Baskota also announced that the DoC plans clear customs procedures in two hours, under its three year customs reform plan. He also urged the government to right-size the number of customs, as the department lacks adequate manpower and infrastructure to regulate the flow of goods and human being throughout the country.

Binod Bahadur Shrestha, president of FNCCI, said that the government vigilance should be increased for checking illegal trade, especially in bordering areas. He also proposed a partnership approach for building infrastructure. Continuing their campaign against VAT rate hike, NCC president Rajesh Kaji Shrestha, urged the government to review its decision at the earliest. He also warned that the government’s decision is an impractical one which would encourage illegal trade.