Koirala urges India to resume petrol supply

Nepal Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala on Saturday urged India to lift restrictions on petroleum supplies to the country.

Kathmandu, May 12 : Nepal Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala on Saturday urged India to lift restrictions on petroleum supplies to the country.

During his meeting with the Indian Ambassador to Nepal, Shiv Shanker Mukherjee, at his Baluwatar residence, Koirala discussed the issue of current petroleum shortage in the country.

Nepal has been hit by fuel scarcity, especially petrol, after the Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) on Monday slashed supplies from Raxaul, the largest import point in Nepal, by 40 percent, on the grounds of non-payment of monthly import bills.

The state-owned Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) owes over five billion rupees to the IOC, besides the bills for the last month.

Koirala urged New Delhi to resume normal petroleum supply assuring the payment of a portion of Nepal's outstanding dues after a political understanding is reached, Kantipur Online quoted sources as saying.

Nepal's political parties are having differences, since the Election Commission expressed its inability to hold Constituent Assembly elections on June 20. The eight political parties have been undecided on fresh poll dates.

According to some reports, the Nepal Government recently paid Rs 600 million to the IOC.

The current political situation in Nepal and the Constituent Assembly elections also came up for discussion between Koirala and Mukherjee.

The meeting came amidst reports of Chinese envoy expressing interest in supplying petroleum products to Nepal.

Earlier today, Koirala held discussions with Mahinder Singh, the Malaysian Ambassador to Nepal.

ANI