217 industries closed in Rupandehi

TILOTTAMA, Aug 12: More than 200 industries were closed in Rupandehi in the fiscal year, 2079/80 BS.

According to the Office of Cottage and Small Industries, Bhairahawa, as many as 217 industries—84 production-oriented, 19  related to agriculture and forest, 63 related to service-oriented and 51 related to tourism- were closed in the district.

Industrialists said the industries were closed due to various reasons including load shedding, economic crisis and high interest rate of banks. Of the closed industries, most of them were from Tilottama Municipality, Siddharthangar Municipality and Butwal Sub-Metropolis. 

President of Rupandehi Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Madhav Poudel, said the closure of more than 200 industries in a year shows the condition of industrialists in the district. He mentioned that the condition to close small industries was created due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the high-interest rate of loans and policy-level obstacles in import and export.  

President of the Butwal Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Central Committee member of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industries, Ujjwal Kasaju, expressed the view that high-interest rate of bank loans, problems of marketization and lack of full operation of the airport are some of the reasons behind the closure of the industries. 

Some of the large-scale industries are sustaining their expenses by limiting their production capacity to 25-40 per cent, he shared.

Information Officer at Office of the Cottage and Small Industries, Bhairahawa, Netra Prasad Bhusal, informed that around 1,030 industries were registered under cottage in the district.