INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Kathmandu, May 4
The Department of Commerce and Supply Management yesterday filed a case of black-marketing against Samakhusi based
‘Mahalaxmi petrol pump,& which was found selling adulterated gasoline by mixing water in petrol.
It also took action against a couple of
medicine suppliers yesterday for selling masks and sanitisers at more than 20 per cent of the maximum retail price.
Consumers have been
constantly complaining about being cheated by small and large enterprises after the nationwide lockdown was imposed in a bid to contain the
spread of COVID-19.
The DoCSM has claimed it took action against around 50 various business firms inside Kathmandu Valley during the
lockdown until yesterday.
Action was taken for different kinds of offenses such as hiking price, adulterating various products, and
black-marketing.
The DoCSM said they had been raiding all kinds of large and medium enterprises, firms, shops, petrol pumps or whatever the
consumers demand to maintain stock and ensure smooth supply and regular prices of essential goods and products.
A few days ago, the DoCSM
had raided Tangal based Bhatbhetini Supermarket and found that it charging more than the market price on edible goods
The DoCSM later fined the store Rs 300,000
The same fine was slapped on Kasthamandap Khadya Udhyog for selling date-expired edible goods.
Netra Prasad Subedi, director general of
DoCSM said that they normally fined the erring enterprises if they were found to be selling goods at prices exceeding the fixed maximum
retail price.
&But, we have also recently started fining such business firms on the charge of black-marketing if they are found holding the
products from the public, but selling them to some particular people at much higher price,& Subedi said.
The public can complain about the
hiked price or black-marketing to the authorities by dialling 1137
The DoCSM authorities however said that normally such callers do not provide authentic information as the majority of shops they raid have
not hiked the price to the level that they can be fined.
Until yesterday, around 120 such phone calls were made during the lockdown, but
only around 50 were found violating the provisions.
Subedi informed that normally they get complaints about hiked price in cooking gas, but
these days the complaints are about retailers who sell edible goods.
A version of this article appears in e-paper on May 5, 2020 of The
Himalayan Times.
The post 50 business firms inside valley face music appeared first on The Himalayan Times.
