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Hetauda Cement Industry, which has been closed for a long time, is going to resume production from the first week of April.

Acting General Manager of Hetauda Cement Industry, Engineer Nabin Kumar Karna, said that preparations are underway to start production after the maintenance of the machinery of the industry has been completed, raw materials needed for the industry are ensured and the employees agreed to work.

"It took some time to repair the machine as it was old and damaged. It is a machine installed at the time of the industry's establishment and it had to be replaced with a new machine. But due to financial problems, it was not possible immediately and we got the machine repaired,” he said.

According to him, cement can be produced using the repaired machine and there is some stock of raw materials required for the operation of the industry while it has been ensured that some more will be brought.

"At present, we have around 100 tons of coal in stock. More coal is coming from tomorrow, so there is not much of a problem with raw materials,” said Acting General Manager Karna.

He said that the electricity problem the industry was facing would also be solved. "Talks have been held with Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) for regular power supply to run the industry. NEA has committed to provide regular electricity," he added.

The industry management had stopped the production of cement from October 1, 2024 as it had to repair various equipment of the industry.

Due to the closure of the industry, the employees have not been able to get their salaries and allowances for the last three months.

The industry, which has a capacity to produce 16,000 sacks of cement per day, has been hit hard due to financial problems and other reasons.

The Hetauda Cement Industry was established at Lamsure of Hetauda in 1977 and it started production from 1987.

The construction of three 132kV substations in Amlekhgunj and Prasauni (Bara) and Birgunj (Parsa) is in its final stage to enhance the reliability and quality of electricity supply for industrial corridors and general consumers.

Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) Executive Director Kulman Ghising, after conducting an on-site inspection, directed project managers and contractors to expedite the substation and transmission line construction. Highlighting their importance in managing electricity demand in the Birgunj region and facilitating trade with India, he urged all stakeholders to be responsible and ensure timely completion.

The Amlekhgunj 132/66 kV substation is being developed to address power supply issues in the Pathlaiya-Simara-Birgunj industrial corridor and meet rising demand. Most of the main equipment has been installed, with operations expected to begin by the end of May.

Both circuits of the 66 kV line supplying electricity from Hetauda to the Simara-Birgunj industrial corridor have been looped in and out of the substation. Previously, the long, low-capacity 66 kV line caused voltage issues, which will now be resolved as the 132 kV transmission line becomes the primary power source. The substation is equipped with 132/66 kV, 200 MVA, and 66/11 kV, 20 MVA power transformers.

A 2.8 km 132 kV underground transmission line is under construction to connect Prasauni and Birgunj substations. The underground transmission line is expected to be completed within a month, while installation of equipment and civil works at the substations are ongoing.

Upon completion, the Birgunj area will have 132 kV and 66 kV power sources, ensuring a stable and high-quality electricity supply. Currently, power is supplied to Kalaiya (Bara) from the Birgunj substation, but once the Prasauni substation is operational, supply will be redirected there, reducing the load on Birgunj.

The NEA is expanding high-capacity transmission and distribution infrastructure to support existing and future industries in Simara, Nijgadh, Birgunj, Parwanipur, Pokhariya, and Prasauni within the Bara-Parsa Industrial Corridor. A new 132 kV transmission line from Parwanipur to Pokhariya and the Pokhariya substation is also under construction to meet growing industrial electricity demands.

Additionally, a 400 kV substation is being built in Nijgadh (Bara) under the Hetauda-Dhalkebar-Inruwa 400 kV transmission line project, with an extension to Pokhariya via Ramouli. The proposed 65 km transmission line will include three 400 kV substations in Nijgadh, Ramouli, and Pokhariya. The Nijgadh-Ramouli-Pokhariya transmission line survey has been completed, and land compensation for the Ramouli substation has been finalized.

The Nijgadh substation will be funded through a concessional loan from the Export-Import Bank of India (Exim Bank), while the 38 km Nijgadh-Ramouli transmission line and Ramouli substation will be financed by the Asian Development Bank. Furthermore, the Aurahi-Simra 132 kV transmission line is being developed to serve the Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Simra, Dumarwana, and surrounding areas.

The price of gold has dropped by Rs 200 per tola in the domestic market on Tuesday.

According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association, the yellow metal is being traded at Rs 173, 300 per tola today. It was traded at Rs 173, 500 per tola on Monday.

Similarly, the silver is being traded at Rs 1, 980 per tola today.

The government has added 433,703 taxpayers over the first eight months of the current fiscal year 2024-25. In the same period of the previous year, the number of taxpayers had increased by 426,330.

According to the Inland Revenue Department (IRD), the total number of taxpayers reached 6,659,836 by mid-February of the current fiscal year. This represents a 6.97 percent increase in the number of PAN holders over the eight-month period. The total number of taxpayers stood at 6,226,133 in mid-February of 2024.

However, while the number of taxpayers has grown, revenue collection has not increased proportionally. This is largely because the majority of new registrations are for individual Permanent Account Numbers (PAN), which contribute less to revenue compared to business entities.

According to the IRD, individual taxpayers account for 69.3 percent, or 4,612,406, of the total taxpayers. Business PAN holders account for 30.2 percent, or 2,012,586, of the total taxpayers. The remaining 34,844 PANs, or 0.5 percent of the total taxpayers, have been issued to tax-exempt entities.

Total revenue collection has reached Rs 739bn as of March 24. According to the Financial Comptroller General’s Office (FCGO), tax revenue accounts for about 80 percent of the total revenue. The government has mobilized Rs 656.39bn in tax revenue, Rs 82.83bn in non-tax revenue, and Rs 9.20bn in grants as of March 24.

With less than four months remaining in the current fiscal year, the government has reached the halfway point in revenue mobilization. Total revenue mobilization stands at 52.08 percent of the
Rs 1,419.30bn target for the current fiscal year. Progress in tax and non-tax revenue collection stands at 51.11 percent and 61.32 percent, respectively.

Nepal’s revenue-to-GDP ratio, which was 9 percent in 1989-90, increased to 21.6 percent in 2021-22, only to decline to 17.8 percent in 2022-23. Similarly, the tax revenue-to-GDP ratio, which was seven percent in 1989-90, improved to 20 percent by 2021/22 but dropped to 16.1 percent in 2022-23, marking a 4 percent decline.