KATHMANDU: A task force has recommended the revival of Gorkhakhali Rubber Industry, submitting its report to Industry, Commerce and Supplies Minister Anil Kumar Sinha after 10 months of study.
The five-member task force, led by former National Planning Commission member Jankaraj Shah, presented the 13-page suggestion report on Wednesday.
The report suggests that the industry could be restarted using the existing fixed assets, land and buildings, while adopting new technology under the Gorkhakhali trademark.
“Existing machinery needs to be completely replaced with modern, technologically advanced equipment,” the report states. “To achieve this, strategic investors providing both capital and technology under a public-private partnership (PPP) model would be suitable, facilitated by government initiative.”
Despite high demand for tires suitable for hilly, unpaved roads, the industry has faced financial challenges since its establishment, resulting in losses.
Factors such as rising production costs, low cash flow, negative net worth, annual production below 20% of the target capacity, and outdated technology led to the suspension of operations in 2015, and the industry has remained closed since then.
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