35 Indian firms asked to close shop in Nepal

A day before Nepali Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba begins his 5-day visit to India, the Maoist All Nepal Federation of Trade Unions has asked 35 companies in Nepal, including a unit of Dabur Nepal, to close shop.

The Dabur Nepal unit in the list is the company's greenhouse located at Banepa. However, Dabur Nepal had shut this unit several days ago under threat from the Maoist rebels. However, Dabur Nepal's manufacturing unit located at Birgunj is not in the latest list.

Dabur is one of the biggest Indian business concerns in Nepal. It is the largest exporter from the country.

The Maoist rebels had first come up with a list of 12 companies in Nepal, which were asked to down their shutters on the grounds that they were exploiting Nepalis. This included Surya Nepal, a unit of ITC Ltd. Industry sources said the closure of the 12 businesses had hit 5,000 workers and resulted in a daily loss of $4 million to the firms.

After that, several Indian companies like the Videocon Group and Hindustan Lever Ltd to suspend their operations in the country. Coca-Cola too stopped its bottling as well as distribution business in Nepal.

The latest list of 35 firms includes Bhotekoshi Power Company, a US joint venture generating hydroelectric power, and Tiger Tops Jungle Lodge in Chitaun in southern Nepal. Two local luxury hotels also have been asked to discontinue operations. The list covers companies operating in industries like tea, jute, textiles and sugar.

The closure of these companies is likely to take away 15,000 jobs in the Himalayan kingdom. "Since the government and industrial enterprises have not fulfilled demands presented by our organisation so far, we have announced indefinite closure of additional 35 industries from September 10," the All Nepal Federation of Trade Unions said.

Meanwhile, officials in the Nepalese industry chamber""Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) say that such a notice from the unions have made the other industrialists nervous.

"The government is failing in its attempt to curb the Maoists and this could lead to more firms to close down. We are having regular meetings with company representatives and they are looking at resuming operations at present. Some companies are even thinking of pulling out," an FNCCI official said.

"We are looking at building a dialogue between the unions and the companies but unless the Maoists activities are stemmed, the firms will find it difficult to negotiate," the official said.