Private airline Buddha Air has provided Rs 1.5 million as part of corporate social responsibility initiative to Dangihaat VDC of Morang. The amount was meant to be spent on education, health and development activities in the VDC. Dangihaat Development Committee received the money in instalments of Rs 500 thousand. As of now, two instalments have been paid.

 

From the first instalment, assistance to set up science lab, library, buying additional land, construction of compounds have been completed in five schools in the VDC. Police station of the village was also give fans worth Rs 5,000 from the same fund. Development work in the village is financed 60 per cent by the company while 40 per cent is managed by the committee.

 

Similarly, from the second instalment, 17 community toilets were constructed in eight wards at a cost of Rs 690 thousand. Remaining two instalments were also dispersed in the second week of August.

 

Managing Director of the company Birendra Bahadur Basnet said additional Rs 1.5 million will be given to the committee this year.

 

Parliament has endorsed the Investment Board Bill 2065 through majority votes on August 15. The endorsement of Investment Bill tabled by the Bills Committee of Parliament is expected to help attract foreign investment in the country.

 

According to the Bill, fast track roads, railway, ropeway, international airport development, among others have been identified as key areas to attract foreign investment. Similarly, hydropower projects having capacity of over 500 megawatts will be given priority.

 

The Board will be the governing body and will formulate policies and programmes for foreign investment. It will also hold discussion with the investors for the better potential sectors.

 

Cleaning is an essential component of daily life both at households and commercial establishment. Now, there is a company providing a whole spectrum of cleaning services from providing a trained maid to carrying out specialised and heavy duty cleaning work on a commercial basis. Sparkling Multipurpose Company Pvt Ltd, which began its service now provides cleaning services to offices, corporate houses, departmental stores and households. The company also provides maids to offices and households on demand. The company claims to be the first commercial venture in the country to offer such services.

 

According to Rabin Bhattarai, MD of Sparkling said, “The company is dedicated to delivering high-quality service and cleaning solutions. We possess a sound knowledge and experience associated with risks and hazards involved in the cleaning services.”

 

The company provides the entire range of cleaning services, from general cleaning to dish washing and all other related jobs. According to the company, it is equipped with the latest machineries and equipment to carry out daily cleaning activities with environment-friendly chemical products. It supplies manpower, chemicals and cleaning tools on demand. It also provides house caretaker services. “We have fully commercialised the cleaning business,” says Bhattarai.

 

Currently, the company is providing services to many hospitals, supermarkets, NGOs, INGOs and normal households. Peoples’ Plaza, Ambe Complex, Kist Bank, UTL are among the customers of the company. A number of households are also being served by the maids of the company.

 

All the maids of the company are above the age of 18, as required by the law. The company says that all the employees are paid according to the rules of the government. At present, more than 100 workers are employed in the company and the employees are regularly trained. The company also provides its employees an insurance coverage. The maids come to the company through personal contact and the word of mouth.

 

Whenever a customer demands for a maid, the company studies about the works to be done and trains the maids accordingly. It takes around seven days to provide the maid to the customer. Seven days trial period is also offered to customers and they can keep or change the maids within the trial period. An agreement is signed between the company and the client regarding the terms and conditions of the work. The terms and conditions have to be followed by both the parties.

 

The company pays extra attention to the security of the clients as thefts and other accidents can occur because of the maid. “To avoid this, we keep the police record of the maids with us and we also keep relevant information about the clients. If anything goes wrong, we act according to the agreement,” said Bhattarai. In case of theft or any other damage, the company bears all the expenses if the theft or accident is proven to be caused by the maid.

 

“We protect our employees from any form of exploitation, disrespect and misbehavior. We want the self esteem of our employees to be high and we don’t compromise on that at all.” The company claims that it has terminated a few contracts when the clients didn’t act appropriately and went against the mutually agreed upon terms and conditions.

 

National Banking Training Institute (NBTI) in association with International Finance Corporation (IFC) has organised a workshop on corporate governance targeting top executives of banks and finance companies. Members from board of directors of various commercial banks, development banks and finance companies were present in the daylong workshop organised on August 11. The workshop has been organised at a time when questions being raised about corporate governance in the banking and financial sector.

 

James Christopher of IFC trained the participants. President of NBTI Sashin Joshi said such workshops must be conducted regularly as the importance of corporate governance is of utmost significance in financial institutions. Christopher said that such programmes will help minimise the problems witnessed in the Nepali banking system.