By A Staff Reporter
Kathmandu, Nov. 8: Sugar being imported by Salt Trading Corporation (STC) has started arriving in Nepal.
Of the 20,000 tonnes of sugar that the Corporation is going to import, around 5,000 tonnes has entered Nepal so far, said Brajesh Kumar Jha, Divisional Manager of STC.
He said that the first batch of 1,250 tonnes of sugar had arrived in Birgunj on October 20, while the second and third batch of sugar arrived last week.
Through the global tender, Renuka Sugar Mills Private Limited of India had been selected to supply 20,000 tonnes of sugar.
The STC had issued a global tender to supply 20,000 tonnes of sugar on August 3 after it received the government’s decision targeting to import the sweetener before Dashain festival as its price tends go to up in festival season.
Saying that about 5,000 tons of sugar was in transit, Jha said that all the sugar that was being imported by STC would arrive in the country ahead of Tihar.
"We have already started selling the imported sugar. Currently, STC has also started selling sugar to wholesalers, which had been stopped after we ran out of stock in our depot,” he said.
However, STC has been selling sugar continuously to consumers from its outlets.
“We are also selling sugar to individual customers at discounted rate through the fair price shops targeting the festival. An individual can purchase four kilograms of sugar at Rs. 70 per kg from the fair price shops within discount offer period,” he said.
Due to delay in starting the process to import the sugar, the price of imported sugar has increased slightly this time, he said.
The rate of sugar in Birgunj stands at Rs. 74.50 per kilogram and Rs. 77.20 per kilogram in Kathmandu Valley, he said.
He said that the STC had been selling sugar to traders at Rs. 77.20 in Kathmandu.
However, consumers have been compelled to buy sugar at above Rs. 90 per kilogram in the market, he said.
Even after the increased supply by the STC, price of sugar has not dropped in the market, he said.
He claimed that around 81,000 tonnes of sugar had been imported by traders during the last three months. But the imported sugar has not been supplied to the market smoothly, he said, and asked the concerned authorities to search for the whereabouts of imported sugar. The import of sugar during the period of three months was higher compared to the import in the same period in previous years.
He believed that the artificial price hike of sugar in the market would be controlled after the STC started selling the sugar to the wholesalers.
Around 20,000 tonnes of sugar is required for Tihar festival. However, the demand for sugar is likely to drop this year due to the closure of sweetshops, many hotels and restaurants amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
He said that the STC had also begun the process for the import of additional 20,000 tonnes of sugar in concessional customs rate.