March 28: Minister for Energy Shakti Bahadur Basnet has urged one and all not to believe in the rumors about load shedding.

Speaking at the Finance Committee meeting of the House of Representatives on Wednesday, Minister Basnet said that there is no truth in the news circulating in media about the likelihood of load shedding and urged the public not to believe in the rumor that load shedding is about to happen.

“We have to renew the agreement within the deadline every year to import electricity from India’s competitive market. We are in the process of extending the deadline. All the rumors that have been heard now are false," he told the house committee.

Despite the minister’s assurance, the Indian government has been reluctant since the last three months to renew the permission to import from the competitive market.

Currently, the Nepal Electricity Authority has been importing more than 600 MW of electricity from India to meet the domestic demand. Energy Secretary Gopal Prasad Sigdel held a telephone conversation with India's Energy Secretary on Tuesday after India refused to renew the permission to import electricity.