KATHMANDU: It has been revealed that the OMNI group, a parent organization for various companies, has been involved in impeding the government to allow private suppliers to bring medical goods.
The OMNI Group is obstructing 40 tons of medical supplies at Guangzhou Airport after the government confiscated its collateral over the loss of millions of rupees incurred by the group through the supply of sub-standard materials.
The medical goods supposed to be brought by private medical suppliers have been stuck at Guangzhou Airport. With the coronavirus hitting the nation, the government has been holding talks with the private suppliers yet again to bring the medical items.
The Group is said to be lobbying with influential group not to award the deal to the private medical suppliers, hinting that it would do the job on its own, according to a highly placed source.
According to the source, the government is denying to rent an airbus to the 18 private suppliers to bring the medial supplies even though they have fulfilled all the required processes.
Secretary Kedar Bahadur Adhikari of the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, however, said the Ministry has not received any letter regarding renting the airbus.
We would allow them to bring the medical supplies as it is our top priority but we have not received any demand letter as such.
The private suppliers have said it had sent an application to the Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) four days ago demanding an airbus on rent but it has not received any response yet.
According to a representative of private suppliers, Yubaraj Sharma of OMNI Group, Chairman Tulhari Singh Bhusal and Rabindra Shrestha, brother-in-law of Sharma are lobbying with the influential persons not to provide the airbus on rent to the private suppliers.
Earlier, the government courted controversies by awarding the contract to the OMNI Group to bring medical supplies after it incurred a loss of millions of rupees through the supply of sub-standard medical goods.
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