KATHMANDU: Economic Digest, a daily morning email digest, is basically a relatable summation of important business news from Nepal into easy-to-understand summaries.
Gautam Buddha Airport completes 92 percent physical construction
The construction of the physical infrastructures of the Bhairahawa-based Gautam Buddha International Airport has almost completed.
The only remaining works to be fixed include installing equipment and lights. The airport, a national pride project, has seen 92 percent physical progress and 63 percent financial progress.
The airport would have come to its final preparation for operating commercial flights had there been no coronavirus pandemic.
The technical work of the project construction has been delayed due to COVID-19. According to Project Chief Prabesh Adhikari, technical work is challenging.
Even though most of the equipment have arrived, the challenge lies in importing technical human resource due to the absence of international flights.
The task of devising equipment inside the terminal building of the airport is yet to be done. Fixing baggage handling, passenger security screening machine and Air Condition are still in the process.
Making public the annual progress report recently, Minster for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Yogesh Bhattarai said the airport construction is gaining momentum and necessary efforts are underway to expedite remaining works in the airport.
Nepse closes week on a positive note
The stock market started the day on a green note. However, the trading halted due to some technical issues on mid-day.
Later on the market resumed its trading and continued to maintain a positive stance in the latter trading hours.
At the close, Nepse registered a gain of 12.49 points to settle at 1,520.69 points. Adding to Thursday’s gains, Nepse has continued to hold ground above 1,500 points mark.
Further, the stocks market has continued to see active market participation. The exchange recorded the total turnover of Rs. 2.209 billion.
200 additional Nepalis stranded in Saudi Arabia
Two hundred more Nepali migrant workers have been stranded in Saudi Arabia.
Nepali migrant workers associated with Mawarid Supply Company based in Riyadh have appealed for rescue, saying that they have languishing in a room without jobs for the last seven months.
Some of their visas have already expired. Even those who are willing to return home on their own expenses have also been hit hard due to the lack of enough flights.
They have accused the Nepali Embassy in Riyadh of not listening to their woes. According to Suman Nepal, a staffer of the company, said Nepali migrant workers have been deprived of their salaries since the last seven months.
Buddha Air bags TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice Award
Buddha Air has won the ‘TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice Award, 2020′ for the third consecutive year for its service in operating mountain flights. TripAdvisor, the world’s famous travel website, has established the award.
Buddha Air is the only one air service provider in Nepal to bag the award. The company operates half a dozen mountain flights and around 100 domestic flights on a daily basis.
It operates flights to 13 destinations including Biratnagar, Tumlingtar, Bhadrapur, Simara, Bhairahawa, Janakpur, Pokhara, Bharatpur, Dhangadhi, Nepalgunj, Surkhet-Biratnagar-Tumlingtar and Pokhara-Bhairahawa through its 11 ATR aircraft and two Beechcrafts.
Sugar mill owners yet to pay due to farmers for their produce
Sugar mills are yet to clear dues worth more than Rs 500 million of the sugarcane farmers despite their earlier commitment to settle all the outstanding dues after selling the products.
According to sugarcane farmers, sugar mills have been denying to clear the dues citing prolonged lockdown, which they say made them unable to receive the money of their sold out products.
Hari Shyam Raya, secretary of the Sugarcane Farmers’ Action Committee, said the government has assured to make the sugar producers clear all their dues after the lockdown is lifted.
“If the promise is not fulfilled, we will be forced to launch a fresh street protest,” Raya said. Earlier in January last year, the agitating farmers had staged a demonstration at Maitighar area in Kathmandu.
As per the farmers, Shree Ram Sugar Mill is yet to clear the dues of Rs 390 million, the largest of all. Similarly, Annapurna Sugar Mill has not paid Rs 250 million to the farmers.
Likewise, Mahalaxmi Mill is still to pay Rs 105 million to the farmers.
(Compiled and prepared by Nitish Lal Shrestha)
Nepal Economic Digest is a daily morning email digest, basically relatable summations of the most important business news, happenings from Nepal into easy-to-understand summaries.
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