चिया निर्यातमा पुन अवरोध : कोलकता पुगेको चियाको बोरको स्याम्पल परीक्षण अनिवार्य

विराटनगर । भारतमा नेपाली चिया विक्रीमा समस्या भएको छ । नेपालबाट निर्यात भई भारतको कोलकोता पुगेको चिया विक्रीमा समस्या भएपछि नेपाली व्यवसायी समस्यामा परेका छन् ।

कस्टमबाट भन्सार जाँच पास भई आयातकर्ताको गोदाममा पुगेपछि गुणस्तरको प्रमाण पत्रको बहाना बनाएर नेपाली चिया विक्रीमा समस्या भएको हो ।

मेची भन्सार हुँदै भारतीय कस्टम जाँच पास भई कोलकता पुगेका चिया गुणस्तर परीक्षणको बाहान बनाएर विक्री हुन पाएको छैन ।

चैत्रको अन्तिम साताबाट २१ दिन सम्म चिया निर्यात हुन नसकेकोपछि व्यवसायीहरूको पहलमा चिया निर्यात सुरु भएको थियो । पुन चिया विक्रीमा समस्या भएपछि मेची भन्सार हुँदै चिया निर्यात रोकिएको छ ।

मेची भन्सार कार्यालयका प्रमुख भन्सार अधिकृत शिवलाल न्यौपानेले भन्सारमा चिया जाँच पासका लागि आउन छाडेको बताए । उनले भने, भारतीय टी बोर्डका कारण समस्या भएको भन्ने सुन्नमा आएको छ । केही दिनदेखि चियाको निर्यात एकदमै कम भइरहेको छ ।

यस पटक नयाँ खालको अवरोध आएको छ । चिया उत्पादक सङ्घका एक पदाधिकारीले भने, अहिले कोलकत्ता पुगेपछि सबै बोरोको स्याम्पल टेस्ट गर्न भनिएको छ । गोदाममा पुगेपछि पुन स्याम्पल टेस्ट गर्दा बिक्रीमा समस्या भएको छ । यस अघि मेची भन्सार कटेपछि प्रत्येक ट्रकको स्याम्पल टेस्ट गर्नु पर्ने नियम थियो ।

चिया उत्पादक सङ्घका अनुसार वैशाख १८ गतेबाट चिया निर्यात भए पनि भारतको कोलकता पुगेका चिया बिक्रीमा समस्या भएको छ । यस अघि प्रत्येक ट्रकको स्याम्पल परीक्षण हुने गरेको थियो । अहिले भने प्रत्येक बोराको स्याम्पल परीक्षण गर्न थालिएपछि चिया बिक्रीमा अघोषित प्रतिबन्ध लागेको चिया उत्पादक सङ्घले जनाएको छ ।

नेपाल चिया उत्पादक सङ्घका अध्यक्ष आदित्य पराजुलीले सीमावर्ती भन्सार नाकामा समस्या नरहे पनि भारतभित्र प्रवेश गरिसकेपछि चिया रोकिएको बताए । उनका अनुसार कोलकातास्थित आयातकर्ताका गोदाममा पुगेका नेपाली चियाका धेरै खेप परीक्षण प्रक्रियाका कारण विक्रीमा समस्या भएको छ ।

उनले भने, अहिले “आयातकर्ताको गोदाममा पुगेपछि प्रत्येक बोराबाट नमुना सङ्कलन गरेर प्रयोगशालामा पठाउने गरिएको छ । प्रतिवेदन नआएसम्म बिक्री गर्न नपाइने व्यवस्था भएपछि व्यवसायीहरूले नयाँ निकासी प्रक्रिया अघि बढाउन सकेका छैनन्”, । उनले कोलकातामा करिब ५० हजार किलोग्राम नेपाली चिया रोकिएको बताए ।

यसअघि भने सिमाना कटेपछि प्रत्येक ट्रकको स्याम्पल परिक्षण गरी गुणस्तरको प्रमाण पत्र ल्याउनु पर्ने व्यवस्था थियो । नेपालमा चियाको गुणस्तर परीक्षण मापन गर्ने ल्याब नभएका कारण व्यवसायीहरू कोलकोत्ता रहेका ल्याबबाट परीक्षणको प्रमाण पत्र ल्याउने गरिएको थियो । चैत्रको अन्तिम सातामा भने सेन्ट्रल ल्याबबाट मात्रै परीक्षण गर्नु पर्ने नयाँ नियम लगाएपछि नेपाली चियाको निर्यात वैशाख १८ गते सम्म रोकिएको थियो ।

नीतिगत रूपमै सरकारी ल्याबबाट मात्रै परीक्षण गराउनु पर्ने नियम लगाएपछि चैत्रको अन्तिम सातबाट नेपाली चियाको निर्यातमा अघोषित प्रतिबन्ध लागेको थियो ।

व्यवसायी र सरकारको कूटनीतिक पहलमा भारतीय टी बोर्डले सरकारी ल्याबमा मात्रै परीक्षण गराउनु पर्ने नियम हटाएको थियो । सरकारी ल्याबबाट मात्रै परीक्षण गराउनु पर्ने नियम हटाए पनि प्रत्येक बोरोको स्याम्पल परीक्षण गर्नु लगाएपछि गोदाममा पुगेको चिया बिक्रीमा समस्या भएको हो ।

नेपालमा उत्पादन भएको सिटी सी चियाको मुख्य बजार भारत हो । अर्थोडक्स चिया युरोप र अमेरिका निर्यात भए पनि सिटी सी चियाका लागि भारतको भर पर्दा भारतीय सरकारले विभिन्न बहाना बनाएर नेपाली चिया निर्यातमा प्रतिबन्ध लगाउँदै आएको छ ।

यस पटक भने निर्यात भएर आयातकर्ताको गोदाममा पुगेपछि बिक्रीमा समस्या खडा गरेको चिया उत्पादक सङ्घले जनाएको छ । भारतीय चिया उत्पादकहरूले नेपाली चिया भारत गएपछि प्रतिस्पर्धा गर्न नसकेर नेपाली चिया प्रतिबन्ध लगाउन दबाब दिँदै आएका छन् । सोही दबाबका कारण भारत सरकारले नेपाली चिया निर्यातमा अवरोध गर्दै आएको छ ।

राष्ट्रिय चिया तथा कफी विकास बोर्ड प्रादेशिक कार्यालय बिर्तामोडका प्रमुख लक्ष्मण पोख्रेलले चियामा पुन समस्या आएको बताए । उनले सरोकारवालासँग समस्याको विषयमा छलफल भई नसकेको भए पनि अनौपचारिक रूपमा चिया निर्यातमा पुन समस्या आएको जानकारी पाएको बताए ।

उनले भने, आज यस बारेमा छलफल गर्न पाइएन । सोमबार कस्टममै गएर समस्याका बारेमा छलफल गर्ने तयारी गरेको छु ।

मेची भन्सार कार्यालयका अनुसार जेठ १४ गते १० हजार ५ सय केजी चियाको सो भन्सार कार्यालय हूँदै निर्यात भएको छ । त्यस यता सो कार्यालय हुँदै चियाको निर्यात हुन सकेको छैन । कार्यलयका सूचना अधिकारी ईश्वर कुमार हुमागाईँले जेठको १२ गते १२ हजार १८३ केजी चिया निर्यात भएको विवरण दिए । भन्सार कार्यालयका अनुसार चालु आर्थिक वर्षमा २ अर्ब ९९ करोड रुपैयाँ बराबरको चिया भारत निर्यात भएको छ ।

Biratnagar. There is a problem in the sale of Nepali tea in India. Nepali businessmen are in trouble after there was a problem in the sale of tea exported from Nepal and reached Kolkata, India.

The problem with selling Nepali tea is that it passes customs inspection and reaches the importer's warehouse, but the quality certificate is used as an excuse.

Tea that passed through Indian customs inspection through Mechi customs and reached Kolkata has not been sold under the pretext of quality testing.

After tea exports were not possible for 21 days from the last week of Chaitra, tea exports had started on the initiative of businessmen. Tea exports through Mechi Customs have been stopped due to problems in tea sales again.

Chief Customs Officer of Mechi Customs Office, Shivlal Neupane, said that tea has stopped coming to the customs for inspection. He said, "We have heard that the problem is due to the Indian Tea Board. Tea exports have been decreasing significantly for the past few days."

This time, a new obstacle has come. An official of the Tea Producers Association said, "Now, we have been asked to sample test all the sacks after they reach Kolkata. After reaching the warehouse, we have to test the samples again, which has caused problems in sales. Earlier, the rule was to sample test every truck after clearing Mechi customs."

According to the Tea Producers Association, although tea has been exported since April 18, there has been a problem in the sale of tea that has reached Kolkata, India. Earlier, samples of each truck used to be tested. Now, after samples of each sack have been tested, there has been an undeclared ban on the sale of tea, according to the Tea Producers Association.

Aditya Parajuli, president of the Nepal Tea Producers Association, said that although there were no problems at the border customs checkpoints, the tea was stopped after entering India. According to him, the sale of many consignments of Nepali tea that reached the importer's warehouse in Kolkata has been hampered due to the inspection process.

He said, "Currently, samples are being collected from each bag after it reaches the importer's warehouse and sent to the laboratory. Since the arrangement is that they cannot be sold until the report comes, the businessmen have not been able to move forward with the new export process." He said that about 50,000 kilograms of Nepali tea have been stopped in Kolkata.

Earlier, there was a system where each truck had to be sampled and a quality certificate had to be brought after crossing the border. Since there was no lab in Nepal to test the quality of tea, traders had to bring the test certificate from a lab in Kolkata. In the last week of Chaitra, after a new rule was imposed that only testing should be done from a central lab, the export of Nepali tea was stopped until April 18.

An undeclared ban on the export of Nepali tea was imposed from the last week of Chaitra after a policy rule was imposed that testing should only be done by government labs.

Following diplomatic initiatives by businessmen and the government, the Tea Board of India had removed the rule that testing should be done only in government labs. Despite the removal of the rule that testing should be done only in government labs, the problem has arisen in the sale of tea that has reached the warehouse after requiring samples of each bag to be tested.

India is the main market for City C tea produced in Nepal. Although orthodox tea is exported to Europe and America, the Indian government has been banning Nepali tea exports on various pretexts as India relies on City C tea.

This time, however, the Tea Producers Association has stated that the problem arose in sales after the export and reaching the importer's warehouse. Indian tea producers have been pressuring to ban Nepali tea as they are unable to compete with Nepali tea after it reaches India. Due to the same pressure, the Indian government has been obstructing Nepali tea exports.

Laxman Pokharel, head of the Birtamod Provincial Office of the National Tea and Coffee Development Board, said that there has been a problem with tea again. He said that although the issue has not been discussed with stakeholders, he has received informal information that there has been a problem with tea exports again.

He said, "We were unable to discuss this today. I have prepared to go to customs on Monday and discuss the problem."

According to the Mechi Customs Office, 10,500 kg of tea was exported through the customs office on Jestha 14. Since then, no tea has been exported through the office. Information Officer of the office, Ishwar Kumar Humagain, gave details of the export of 12,183 kg of tea on Jestha 12. According to the customs office, tea worth Rs 2.99 billion has been exported to India in the current fiscal year.