Ghorahai works halts production

Nepal-based producer Ghorahai Cement Industry (GCI) has halted output at its cement plant in the Dang district as protests by tipper operators disrupt the flow of production. The tippers, which supply raw materials to the cement factory, have remained off the road for nine days, as operators call for a revision in the transportation charge.

"We have not been able to produce cement for the past nine days as tipper operators are not supply raw materials to the factory," a GCI official told Republica.

The tippers have been putting pressure on the company for some time to increase the transportation charge by NPR150/t to NPR650/t (US$6.5). They claim that the factory has not revised the transportation charge for the past 18 months.

"We were forced launch the strike after the industry showed reluctance to address our demand,” Bharatnath Yogi, senior vice president of Tipper Operators Committee of Dang, told Republica.  However, the GCI official argues that "tipper operators have been pushing for hike in transportation charge at a time when price of petroleum products is coming down."

In support of the tippers' demands, truck operators have also stopped supplying cement and clinker to the market. As a result, finished products of the industry are lying in the plant's warehouse. According to the Ghorahi Cement official, 32,000t of clinker remains unsold.