Kathmandu: In today’s meeting of the House of Representatives (HoR), lawmakers have called for immediately bringing the Federal Civil Service Bill to the process. The demand was made during deliberations on budgetary appropriations for different ministries, highlighting concerns about the stalled progress of the bill.
According to National News Agency Nepal, lawmaker Lekhnath Dahal raised questions about why the Civil Service Bill, already on the agenda, had been put on hold. He emphasized the urgent need to address issues in project selection, implementation, and the Public Procurement Act. Dahal also criticized the practice of allocating budgets preferentially to the electoral constituencies of influential individuals.
During the session, lawmaker Dr. Prakash Sharan Mahat pointed out that the Finance Minister’s previous commitment to not implement projects costing below Rs 30 million was not evident in the budget. He argued that the anticipated results could not be achieved with a scattered budget and noted that budgetary anarchy persisted in both provincial and federal governments.
Lawmaker Rajendra Kumar KC added that budgets focusing on specific ministers and regions would not contribute to the nation’s prosperity. Meanwhile, parliamentarian Purna Bahadur Tamang refrained from expressing his views in the absence of the Minister for Physical Infrastructure and Transport. Earlier, Chief Whip of the CPN (Maoist Centre), Hitraj Pandey, voiced concerns over the absence of line ministers during discussions on the appropriation bill.
Speaker Devraj Ghimire temporarily adjourned the meeting for 15 minutes, responding to the lawmakers’ concerns. When the meeting resumed with the presence of Minister Dahal, lawmaker Tamang criticized the government’s negligence regarding the reconstruction of the BP Highway.
Other lawmakers, including Prabhu Hajara, Ranendra Baraili, Tshering Lama Bhote, and Kaluram Rai, echoed concerns about the ministry-wise appropriation, describing it as neither balanced nor judicious.