In 1977, a 13-year-old boy decides to open a modest store at the intersection of his house and school in Hetaunda bazaar. He piled toffees, lollipops, cookies, and other treats worth Rs. 1000 into the tiny wooden store. Children flocked to the shop, which he used to operate during school breaks, and when elderly clients started approaching him with their needs, the little lad, affectionately known as 'Fuchche Byapari', added incense, yarn, and other items to his store. He opened a grocery store and rented a room on Hetaunda City's main street within two years.
Forty years down the lane! The boy expands the business to more than 40 petrol pumps and multiple gas bottling plants across the country, 40 petroleum tankers, tea estates, broadcasting companies, hydropower projects, and electric vehicle assembly plants. He led the national association of petroleum dealers, played crucial roles in formulating policies for the sector, and now heads the Road Transport and Transit Committee at the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI).
He is Shiva Prasad Ghimire, a petroleum tycoon from Nepal who even dared to run gas bullets to import liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) from India, breaking the hegemony and monopoly in its transportation. But that was just to fail due to the ugly motives of the Indian authorities and businessmen. Although Nepal's government had decided to use its gas bullets to transport LPG from Indian refineries to the bottling plants here and facilitated the private sector for the same, India denied permitting Nepali vehicles, citing security imperfections, while the bullets made by the same company were in operation in India and were allowed by the Indian Oil Corporation, a state-owned petroleum authority.
Shiva has come up with his autobiography 'Sunya bata Suru Bhayako Byapar Apar' to tell his tale, which motivates people to take risks in business and listen to their instincts while making decisions. In the last forty years or so, his business empire has expanded to include about six dozen companies with sole ownership or partnerships. But this is a hard-earned success that began with the hobby and was solidified with perseverance and risk-taking initiatives. The author also tried his luck in politics.
In the first local elections in the country after the restoration of democracy in 1990, motivated by Kamal Thapa, leader of the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP), and other leaders, Shiva entered the election fray and contested polls for the post of chairman of the then Aadarsha Village Development Committee in Makwanpur district. He won the elections.
However, it was not easy to implement the development work then. In the book, he describes the hardships that he had to endure just to manage the electricity supply to the village and construct a suspension bridge over the Rapti River.
But his life was to take another U-turn soon. While he was serving as the chairman of the village development committee, he contemplated his political future and his basic interests and found no harmony between them. He wanted to be a businessperson, not a political leader, although he became one after many years. This realisation forced him to explore new business opportunities in places other than Makwanpur, where there was a risk of being forced by the senior political leaders and his peers to remain in politics in the future as well.
He reached Itahari in Sunsari district in the eastern part of Nepal, where his maternal uncle-in-laws were conducting petroleum business. Within a very short time, he bought a plot of 10 katthas, constructed a petroleum pump, and named it 'Syarsekali, a temple of Hindu goddess Kali at Namtar in Kulekhani of Makwanpur. Then there was only moving forward in business.
The book by Shiva is a tale of how he expanded his business in petroleum, cooking gas, media, and other businesses. At intervals, he added some events that would bring smiles to the faces of the readers. Encounters with dacoits and accidents have also found space in the book. However, Shiva has not given much detail about the controversial events, like the controversy related to one of his gas bottling companies, Sugam Gas.
He was taken into custody in 2011 after his company was found collecting the empty cylinders of other companies, removing the foot rings, and fitting its rings. That was a big blow to him, as it was his first move into the LPG business. He has tried to clarify that it was not his mistake, but readers would have enjoyed it more had he treated the issue in depth. But he has extensively talked about his thrilling love affair with Gita, who is now his wife. It amuses the readers.
Shiva's autobiography is recommended for young readers who want to understand how to create objectives in life or business and how to be patient and persistent to succeed in such endeavours. With the publication of the book, Shiva has joined a select group of entrepreneurs who have come forward to share their business adventures.
To better understand business in Nepal, readers of this book should also read Binod Chaudhary's and Indra Bhakta Shrestha's autobiographies. Photographs of Shiva's life and companies are also included in the book. Now he compares himself to the middle bogie of a train, which is propelled by the other bogies and is compelled to move forward in concert with the others.
Published in the Friday Supplement of The Rising Nepal daily on 25 August 2023.
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