Protest over budget distribution at Thalara Rural Municipality

Kathmandu - The people’s representatives elected from the Nepali Congress (NC) as well as the pro-NC people in Thalara Rural Municipality in Bajhang district have protested the budget terming it ‘undue’ allocation. They protested that the rural municipality’s leadership had allocated budget for the programmes that were related to their party cadres and near and dear ones only.

The rural municipality had presented its annual policies and programmes on June 24 while it had introduced budget towards the end of June. The people’s representatives backed by NC organized protest programmes in the rural municipality’s office after their dissenting voices were unheard.

Thalara Rural Municipality-2 Ward Chair Hem Khadka however claimed that the rural municipality had distributed programmes and projects equally. The rural municipality has nine wards and each ward has been allocated Rs 4 million. Accusing of irregularities, the NC elected people’s representatives blamed that rest of the budget was distributed among the other people’s representatives discreetly.

Thalara Rural Municipality Chair Bhuwaneshowr Upadhyay shared that the development budget was Rs 110 million for the rural municipality out of which, Rs 200 million was allocated for matching fund and Rs 40 million set aside for each nine wards from the rest of the budget.

The NC's people’s representatives had demanded that each ward be provided Rs 10 million. Upadhyay, as the chief of the local government, reaffirmed his commitment to ensure good-governance, transparency and accountability in his rural municipality and warned of taking stern action against those involved in embezzlement and irregularity.