November 26:  In the first four-month period of the current fiscal year (FY) 2080/81, the revenue collection from country’s major customs point, Birgunj Customs Office, has shrunk. The customs point has collected only 64% revenue against its target. In the review period of the last FY 2079/80, Birgunj had achieved 67.34 percent revenue target.

In the first four-month period of the current fiscal year, the Birgunj collected Rs 49 billion in revenue against its target of Rs 77 billion, according to information officer Ram Chandra Dhakal at the customs office. The revenue collection is just 63.64 percent of the total target.

Customs office has collected a revenue of Rs 18 billion in four months as excise duty and Rs20 billion as value-added tax. The data show that internal revenue of Rs 3 billion was collected during this period.

Despite the government removing controls on imports, customs officials say there has been no improvement in foreign trade. The high bank interest rates on loans and the lack of reforms in the economy have affected overall production and business in Nepal, said Ashok Kumar Temani, the President of the Madhes Province of Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry.

Birgunj customs primarily imports fuel and raw materials for industries. Entrepreneurs and traders say that production and trade have fallen to 25/30 percentage.

Despite the lifting of the restrictions imposed on the import of goods and commodities citing improvement in foreign exchange reserves, the foreign trade has not improved. Decline on the trade has hit the revenue collection at the customs office.

Despite the government adopting a policy of control in foreign trade since the last fiscal year's Ashoj, stating the pressure in the balance of payments, Bhansar reports that although there have been improvements in savings, there has been no improvement in business. Bhansar states that the impact of business will also be felt in revenue collection from Bhansar.