On/Off the Record
By P.R. Pradhan
Since the 1990 political change, above 200 government-run industries earning profit have been ruined. Many of them have already been deposed by the government in the name of economic liberalization. Even during the disposal of these industries, the concerned authorities and political leaders in power enjoyed a hefty amount of commission by selling such industries at very cheap prices.
King Mahendra and King Birendra, in the process of industrialization in the country, had established industries by taking support from friendly countries.
Above 200 industries had provided employment to thousands of Nepali youths within the country.
The Janakpur Cigarette Factory was the No one industry paying the highest amount of revenue to the government. The Factory was closed down after the dawn of the multiparty democracy in the country. Today, some ministers in the federal government, in the process of gaining cheap popularity, are saying that the government is planning to reopen those factories which have been closed. The government has stated it in the budget of the current fiscal year for the reoperation of the Hetauda Textile Factory, Agricultural Equipment Manufacturing Industry, Birgunj Sugar Factory, and Janakpur Cigarette Factory, among others. These are just for public consumption that we know.
Immediately after the federal minister’s remarks about reopening the Janakpur Cigarette Factory, a delegation from Madhesh Pradesh led by its chief minister landed in Kathmandu and demanded the land occupied by the factory to construct the provincial secretariat.
If the factory is established, the government can provide employment to the youths and if the provincial secretariat is constructed, the nation will produce political activists. However, political leaders are keen to produce more and more political activists supporting their political parties instead of providing employment opportunities to the youths by contributing to a greater extent by substituting foreign imports.
The saga of the (Royal) Nepal Airlines is the same. The bad days of the Airlines started along with the introduction of multiparty democracy in the country. The Corporation, flying to Japan, China, and European destinations and preparing to fly to the USA, was earning profit and adding one after another aircraft from the profit. Unfortunately, the Corporation became virtually an aircraft-less airline as the political leaders turned the Airlines into the commission center as well as the political activist recruitment center.
The new management in the Corporation was trying its best to improve the lost performance of the Airlines, but the minister for tourism decided to terminate the executive chairman when the latter denied recruiting the minister’s men. He was illegally terminated. However, through an interim order from the Supreme Court, he has been reinstated until the final verdict by the court.
Different past managements were unable to pay the loan installments to the different financial institutions but the present management has been able to pay regular loan installments. Presently, there is a cash balance worth two billion and the Corporation has paid one billion 350 million rupees as loan installments to the Karmachari Sanchaya Kosh. The Corporation has managed an instant operative fund worth 3 billion 270 million rupees, a report states.
For the past two years, the Corporation was unable to pay back the loan installment. In the past eight months of the previous fiscal year, the Corporation has earned 8 billion 380 million rupees. This is 47 percent higher than the record of the previous year.
The Corporation has been able to reopen destinations closed in the past and also has been able to start operations in the new destinations.
The above balance report is evidence that without any doubt, if the government will stop interference and if the management works honestly, the Airlines can fly high. Corruption and bad governance are the main enemies of the prosperity of the Airlines, which will also apply to other government undertakings. The only thing is the political and administrative level commitment to the development of all the government undertakings.
Unfortunately, when someone will come with good intentions, he will be terminated in the personal interests of the ministers and the government officials. Unless the act of interference will not be ended along with ending corruption practices, we cannot accept good performance from such government undertakings.
In Nepal-like landlocked countries, the importance of such government undertakings is very important. However, an effective management system has to be developed to save such government undertakings.
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