Gorkha, December 19:

Finance Minister Dr Babu Ram Bhattarai today said financial institutions should not only invest in consumer and lavish products but also generate employment opportunities.

Inaugurating the Gorkha branch of Clean Energy Development Bank (CEDB) here, Dr Bhattarai called on banks, centred in big cities, to spread across into rural areas. Stating that peace and development were the mantras of a new Nepal, he said, “Peace cannot be established without rapid development. Peace is essential for development,” he added.

The government has an aim to to produce 200 MW of electricity within the end of this Nepali calendar year, he said.

Speaking on the occasion, president of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry Kush Kumar Joshi said that the private sector was still grappling with fear psychosis. He also said that the 70-hour power outage had added to the industrial sector’s woes.

CEDB set up its Gorkha branch on November 16. The bank has a policy of investing in hydropower and renewal energy projects. It is learnt that the bank is the first one to launch ATM service in Gorkha district.