How many times has the government hiked the prices of petroleum products, say, in a year? Well, we the people have lost count of it. This time also, the government hiked fuel prices citing the price list from the Indian Oil Corporation, the sole supplier of petroleum products for Nepal, only to retract the unpopular decision owing to pressure from the Parliament and outside.
If the government had its way, cooking gas would have become dearer by around Rs 215/cylinder, petrol by Rs 2/liter, diesel and kerosene by Rs 6/liter and air turbine fuel by Rs 8/liter, that too at a time when people have been grappling with economic hardships, thanks to domestic factors like the absence of the rule of law, market regulation, political instability, unbridled corruption and the Russia-Ukraine war that has been wreaking havoc on the global supply chain.
Against this backdrop, Devendra Gautam of ApEx talked with a number of people from different walks of life to know if steep oil and gas prices are indicative of a petroleum trap that Nepal is finding itself sinking deeper and deeper in, like in quicksand. Here’s what they had to say:
Pushkar Karki, Spokesperson, NOC
The sole supplier of fossil fuel and cooking gas to Nepal, Indian Oil Corporation, sends the price list of diesel and petrol to NOC every fortnight. It sends the price list of cooking gas, air turbine fuel and kerosene every month. Let me clarify a thing: NOC does not even get a penny from the sale of cooking gas, petrol fetches it a 2.5 percent profit margin whereas diesel and kerosene yield two percent profit.
Any surge in oil and gas price in the international market causes a surge in Nepal as well. In times of an economic slowdown, such a hike only adds to the public’s woes, especially when major festivals are approaching.
Prabha Dawadi, Homemaker
A price hike hits every sector of life. From the kitchen to children’s education, every aspect suffers. The lack of domestic production is mainly behind rising inflation. The government should focus on increasing the production of food and other essentials within the country to rein in soaring market prices.
Ratna Sansar Shrestha, Researcher
Frequent hikes in the prices of petroleum products are part of a design to make Nepal completely dependent on a monopoly supplier. India’s decision to not buy hydropower generated from Nepali projects developed with Chinese investment and make Nepal completely reliant on its petroleum supplies does not bode well for Nepal. However, our political leadership does not have the spine to oppose such a sinister design against Nepal. The leaders should mend ways.
Sagun Sunder Lawoti, Spokesperson, Rastriya Prajatantra Party
The government has failed the country and the people on multiple fronts. It has been unable to deal with challenges both external and internal, it has failed to ensure law and order.
An elected government is supposed to be accountable to the people, it is supposed to be responsive. But this government lacks vision and is rudderless. This mess is one of the indicators of polity failures.
As a responsible opposition party, we have been trying to make the government take corrective measures to arrest this slide and will continue to do so in the coming days.
Binita Gautam, School teacher
A hike in fuel prices causes food prices to shoot up. Such a hike only deepens the existential crisis of the people as no sector is left untouched.
Ganesh Parajuli, Lawmaker, Rastriya Swatantra Party
A hike in fuel prices only increases the woes of Nepali people. The government should find ways to protect the people from the shocks of fuel price hikes instead of justifying such a hike citing price escalations in the international market. We (RSP) are discussing this issue within the party fold in a bid to work out ways for dealing with it.
