Kathmandu, May 13: Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supplies Damodar Bhandari has said that for the beauty of Kathmandu Valley, the industries operating here should be shifted out as far as possible.

While receiving a memorandum of understanding of Federation of Grill and Steel Association Nepal at the ministry Sunday, Minister Bhandari said, “In developed countries, industries are built in separate places away from residential areas; we should determine industrial zones in safe places and build industries there.”

The team of Federation of Grill and Steel Association Nepal led by the president of Thulo Babu Shrestha handed over the MoU to the Minister with a request to address the problems faced by them.

The Federation has submitted a memorandum with seven different points, including the need to create an environment for grill and steel business to operate in an orderly manner.

He said that it was the government’s responsibility to fix the area and build the necessary infrastructure needed for the industry. 

Minister Bhandari expressed his commitment to address the demands of grill and steel entrepreneurs as much as possible and urged the businessmen to adopt new technology for operating the industries.

Stating that it was not possible to compete by importing raw materials from other countries, he emphasised on the need to replace foreign materials to boost the market demand for the products produced here. 

Minister Bhandari said that the customs duty should be increased when materials similar to ones produced in Nepal are imported from abroad. He expressed his commitment to coordinate with the Ministry of Finance on the matter of increasing customs duties for the imported goods.

He urged the businessmen to draw the attention of the Ministry of Finance as well. Minister Bhandari committed that the ministry would provide support for various skills and training based on new technology to the grill businessmen.