Govt to lift ban on pulse exports

KATHMANDU, Nov 21: The government has decided to lift four month long restrictions on the export of pulses. Traders had long been demanding the government to lift the ban, stating that ban on exports was adversely affecting country´s foreign trade. [break]



“We took the decision taking into account the requests from business people as well as officials from Sri Lanka and Bangladesh -- the major importers of Nepali pulses,” said Purushottam Ojha, secretary at the Ministry of Commerce and Supplies (MoCS).



Ojha said a series of meetings were held with representatives from Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry, as well as officials of the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives before taking the decision.



Reacting to the mounting price of pulses in domestic market, the government had imposed ban on export from July 30 to easy supply and tame market prices.



However, the MoCS is considering quantitative restriction on export of pulses so as to avert shortage due to outflow of pulses in the coming days.



Nepal exports about 80 percent of the total domestic production of pulses. In recent months, price of pulses has been skyrocketing in domestic market with price of some pulses doubling over the last few months.

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