Kathmandu, June 2: Former Finance Minister and CPN (UML) Vice Chair Bishnu Prasad Paudel has said the budget for the upcoming fiscal year 2081-82 BS ( 2024-25) would be more relevant, revised, and be better if it was brought consulting other ruling parties as well. Delivering his views on the estimations of the government income (revenue) and expenditures for the upcoming fiscal year in a meeting of the House of Representatives today, the former Minister said the wider political discussions regarding the budget will increase its gravity.
“The budget size for the agricultural sector has been reduced though an upcoming decade has been announced as the ‘decade for investment in agriculture”, the Minister said, seeking a study in detail regarding the decision to validate cannabis farming and assess positive and negative sides of it. As the former Finance Minister said, it would be better if the budget remained silent regarding the ‘one local level, one downtown, and one ward-park’ concept. He said the pledge to provide land registration certificates for landless people is positive.
He said the budget is capable of supporting the national aspirations for a prosperous Nepal, happy Nepali, welcoming the announcement of forming a consumer court. According to Paudel, the government has brought a relatively brief and balanced budget for the upcoming fiscal year. It was not easy to identify and manage resources. This is not an ambitious budget, this is a budget with high aspirations.
The Finance Minister seems to be ready to face challenges by bringing such a budget. It seems he is committed to exploring opportunities amidst self-created challenges. The target of a 6 percent economic growth rate will not be easily met while analyzing the existing scenario. But this is not impossible though. The effective implementation of the budget is needed. As he said, his party CPN (UML) strongly supports the budget. The target of collecting revenue of Rs 1260 billion is positive. The government on May 28 had brought the budget of Rs 1860 billion 300 million for the new fiscal year. —
