Kathmandu, Jan. 30
The Nepal Army (NA) said
that the Hetauda Textile Factory (HTF) could be revived with a cost of Rs. 1.93
billion cost and production of 2.6 million metres of textile is possible within
the next three years.
In the meeting with Prime
Minister, Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ at his office in Singha Durbar on
Wednesday, the NA briefed PM Prachanda about the findings of the feasibility
study conducted by it and said that the reoperation of the industry established
in 1975 with Chinese technical assistance is possible.
It also said that the
annual operation cost of the mill would be Rs. 780 million and it will reach at
the break-even point nine years from the commencement of operation.
The government has pushed
forward the agenda of reviving the HTF which has been in the discussion for the
last decade or so. The NA has conducted the feasibility study for the reoperation
of the factory as per the provisions announced in the Policy and Programmes of
the government for the current Fiscal Year 2023/24.
The industry had a
capacity to produce approximately 36,000 metres of cloth per day. It ceased
production of textiles in 2000 after running at a loss for many years. King
Gyanendra’s government had decided to permanently shut the mill in 2003 and it
has already been liquidated and merged into the Industry District Management
Limited.
Deputy Prime Minister and
Minister of Defense, Purna Bahadur Khadka, DPM and Home Minister, Narayan Kaji
Shrestha, Finance Minister Dr. Prakash Sharan Mahat, Industry Minister, Ramesh
Rijal, Vice-Chairman of the National Planning Commission, Dr. Min Bahadur
Shrestha, Chief Secretary, Dr. Baikuntha Aryal, Army Chief, Prabhu Ram Sharma
and high government and army officials were present at the meeting.
Poor marketing,
overstaffing ruined the mill
According to the PMO, the
study report of the NA has concluded that the factory was shut down due to its
inability in market management, lack of technological modernization, economic
burden created by overstaffing, and lack of managerial capacity to run an
industry of that scale.
It said that the factory
could be brought back into operation with the maintenance of some structures
and machines, and the budget of the Nepal Army's military welfare fund is
sufficient to manage such work. Likewise, most of the raw materials needed for this
industry are available within Nepal and the market could be assured as there is
a high demand of clothes for the army, security agencies government employees.
The report has fixed the
needs and rationales of the reoperation of the factory. According to it, the
revival will reinstall the industrial prestige of the past, contribute to the
industrial sector development and Gross Domestic Product of the country, send
positive message to the world market, substitute imports and enhance
self-reliance and check youth flight with the creation of employment within the
country.
2.6 million metres cloth in
3 years
The NA’s study task force
has also proposed the modality of the industry’s reoperation which said that it
would take three years if the government makes a policy decision to hand over
the factory to the Army in the current FY and works like preparation of the
Detailed Project Report, selection of new machinery and procurement would be
completed for the estimated production of 2.6 million metre of cloth. Test
production of cloth could begin this year, the NA said and added that it can
initiate the feasibility study for the revival of Butwal Spinning Mill.
The task force has also
proposed policy and legal assistance from the Government of Nepal to revive the
industry and sought support of the latter in policy and legal process of the
mill’s revival, clearing its remaining liability and handing it over to the NA,
and using the cloth produced by the factory in government agencies.
Speaking on the occasion,
Prime Minister Prachanda said that a decision would be made by the Cabinet
about reviving the factory however he maintained that would like to discuss the
matter at the political level and conduct a study by a government team as well.
According to him, the
privatization of the country’s industries had caused a decrease in production
as well as employment opportunities.
Revival was possible in
2016
Earlier, in October 2016,
the government had decided to run the HTF in collaboration with the Nepal Army,
Nepal Police and Armed Police Force.
Then Minister for
Industry, Nabindra Raj Joshi, had a plan that the three security agencies would
run, along with private sector representatives on board, the textile mill in
the first phase and produce uniforms for their personnel and school students.
The revival cost of the
factory then was estimated at Rs. 300 million and the government study found
that about 40 per cent machines and equipment were in condition.
A task force led by NPC
Member, Dr. Pushkar Bajracharya, was also formed in 2016 to look into the
possibility of the revival of the industry. The task force had concluded that
there was a possibility of running the mill in a profitable way.
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