Automobile registration up 24pc

KATHMANDU, APR 30 -Registration of automobiles increased 24 percent in the first nine months of the current fiscal year, according to the Department of Transport Management.In the period between Mid-July 2012 and mid-April 2013, 159,532 vehicles, including two- and four-wheelers, were registered in the country. The figure was at 129,039 units in the same period last fiscal year.

Over the review period, motorcycle imports rose 22 percent to reach 135,482 units. The construction equipment segment posted a heavy growth of 166 percent in registration numbers, while the passenger car registered saw the lowest growth of 9 percent. The growth in registration of vehicles in all segments also pushed up the government’s revenue collection. The department collected Rs 3.6 billion in vehicle taxes, exceeding the target of Rs 3.4 billion for the first nine months.

Temporary TAC provision extended for third time

KATHMANDU, APRIL 28--The government has extended the temporary provision for issuance of type approval certification (TAC) to mobile handsets entering local market for the third time. The temporary provision allows mobile dealers to acquire the certification in an easy way without having to submit important documents.

Earlier in January, the Nepal Telecommunications Authority (NTA), based on the direction of the Ministry of Information and Communications, had extended the provision until April 25. The temporary provision has made optional the submission of safety certification of the manufacturer and type approval certificate issued by an international regulator.

Issuance if a TAC to a handset model means that the particular phone meets the minimum regulatory, technical and safety requirements. Going by the Telecommunication Act 1997, mobile dealers are permitted to import and sell handsets only after they acquire the TAC from the NTA.

Govt failing to regulate mobile value added services

KATHMANDU, APR 26 -Despite numerous value added service (VAS) offerings from telecom companies, the government has failed to effectively regulate VAS in the absence of a standard guideline. As a result, customers’ complaints about unauthorised activation of such services are on the rise, according to a source at the Nepal Telecommunications Authority (NTA).

The NTA is the sole agency that issues permission to telecom service providers to operate VAS, which has comparatively high charge compared to other services. Even as the NTA issues permission, it doesn’t have any rules to regulate VAS and check if customers are being charged higher tariff.

“It’s high time the government regulated VAS as the trend of luring customers with new services is increasing,” said NTA Director Ananda Raj Khanal. He said the NTA is serious about the VAS issue and will make efforts to ensure that customers are not charged high.

VAS refers to services beyond the standard voice calls offered by telecom companies or third-party VAS provider, also known as content provider.

Bullion traders defy govt inspection

KATHMANDU, APR 24 -A majority of diamond, gold and silver dealers on Tuesday shut down their shops and took out a rally in protest of the government’s market monitoring drive.

After the New Road-based jewellerty traders protested the government move to close the shops allegedly involved in malpractice, a market monitoring team which had set out to inspect more jewellery shops on Tuesday suddenly called off the inspection. Most of the shops that were closed belong to the members of the Nepal Gold, Silver, Gem and Jewellery Federation. However, shops associated with Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Associations (Fenegosida), another organisation of gold dealers, remained open on the day.

Traders have accused the government of “terrorising” jewellery traders and customers in the name of monitoring rather than adopting standard norms to check possible irregularity in the market.

But the authorities stick to their guns, insisting that the government is preparing to file cases against the jewellery traders who were found cheating customers in weight and quality of goldand silvers products.

“Even as we could not monitor jewellery shops today, we will continue inspection as it is part of our regular job to control unethical practices,” said Narayan Prasad Bidari, director general of the Department of Commerce and Supply Management.