Shiva Prasad Ghimire,

president, Nepal Petroleum Dealers’ Association

A powerful petroleum board with participation from petrol entrepreneurs, experts, representatives of civil society and representatives of government should be formed.

Nepal Petroleum Dealers’ Association has been urging to adopt a scientific method in price determination of petroleum products according to international market prices.

Successive governments have been collecting revenues wo-rth billions of rupees from petroleum products, while projecting the picture that losses on account of petroleum imports are running into billions.

The government determines the price of petroleum in non-transparent and unscientific manner, allowing Nepal Oil Corporation complete monopoly.

The trend has neither helped the economy nor the consumers and entrepreneurs.

The present government should not delay to turn the transaction in petroleum products into a scientific manner according to the internationally accepted practices.

The price of petroleum products like petroleum, diesel and kerosene should be equal, as it is China and Bangladesh. In the name of providing discount to people, kerosene is highly subsidised.

Kerosene has not been reaching poor people who are being targeted. About 70 per cent of the kerosene is consumed by industrial users. The government has given subsidy to air fuel, but to help which group? Since air fuel is cheap in Nepal, Indian and other international aircrafts have been filling fuel in Nepal. Who does the Rs 200 million subsidy in gas helps? Is LPG the fuel for all Nepali people?

Therefore, to avoid such controversies, the price of most petroleum products should be fixed at an equal rate and a scientific method of price determination could be adopted.