Bagmati Province Government Faces Hurdles in Multi-Year Project Selection and Implementation

Makwanpur. The Bagmati Province Government is encountering difficulties in selecting and implementing multi-year projects. The implementation process has been thrown into uncertainty because the Cabinet's decisions on projects worth billions have not been authenticated.

The risk of projects worth 5 billion rupees being stranded in the Bagmati Province has increased due to the tendency of the government to make decisions while the administrative leadership fails to authenticate them. On one hand, the Bagmati Province faces a situation where development budgets are not being spent, and on the other hand, there is a lack of political and administrative coordination in project selection.

Suraj Poudel, the information officer for the Ministry of Economic Affairs, stated that while multi-year plans for 46 bridges, which fall under the sole jurisdiction of the ministry, have been approved and made public, they have not moved forward due to a lack of Cabinet approval.

According to Information Officer Poudel, multi-year plans for physical infrastructure, buildings, sports, and health sectors, besides the 46 bridges, are still awaiting approval. He mentioned that a necessary number of projects should be selected according to the Cabinet's decision and multi-year plans approved.

He noted that although proposals for multi-year contracts have come from various ministries, the lack of authentication from the Chief Minister's Office and the Cabinet level has added to the uncertainty. He said, 'Although the Ministry of Economic Affairs has the authority to approve multi-year projects, some large and special projects require a Cabinet decision and authentication. Accordingly, proposals received from departmental ministries, along with source evaluation, were sent to the Chief Minister's Office for submission to the Cabinet. However, decisions on those proposals have not been made and authenticated by the Chief Secretary.'

According to Finance and Planning Minister Prabhat Tamang, approximately 17 multi-year projects worth around 5 billion rupees, decided by the Council of Ministers, have been stalled due to obstruction by the Chief Secretary. He stated that development works are being affected because the Chief Secretary is holding onto the files even after the Cabinet approved the projects.

Minister Tamang mentioned that the provincial government had selected 17 projects for the current fiscal year, most of which were related to physical infrastructure. Minister Tamang stated that road infrastructure, along with tourism, sports, and 4-5 drinking water projects, were selected to be constructed under the multi-year project scheme. He added that currently, the ministry is not exerting much pressure for authentication.

'The Council of Ministers has made a decision, but work is stopped because the Chief Secretary has not authenticated it. The Cabinet decision was made during the election period. We were told to do it after the election,' he said. 'The file has reached the Chief Secretary. It is his responsibility to authenticate it. The Chief Secretary initially said let's not do it before the election, we will do it after the election. Now, excuses like time has passed, so it's pointless to do it now are causing delays.'

Minister Tamang stated that the work on those projects cannot proceed without the Chief Secretary's authentication.

Projects Not Meeting Criteria and Procedures Cannot Be Authenticated: Chief Secretary Adhikari

Bagmati Province Chief Secretary Baburam Adhikari stated that the projects proposed for multi-year contracts were halted because they did not meet the criteria and legal procedures for approval. Refuting the political leadership's accusation that the Chief Secretary was blocking files decided by the Council of Ministers, he claimed that legally sound proposals were never submitted.

According to Chief Secretary Adhikari, the necessary preparation was lacking for about 15/16 physical infrastructure (road) projects, 2/3 health projects, and some sports projects proposed for multi-year projects.

'It is certainly true that the matter was raised and discussed in the Cabinet, but a proposal that was procedurally sound and adequately prepared was not submitted. Matters that come before the Cabinet procedurally are decided and authenticated,' he said. 'A decision that has not been prepared and does not meet the criteria cannot be authenticated as a decision.'

Chief Secretary Adhikari stated that the selected projects must fulfill the criteria outlined in the Multi-Year Project Selection Working Procedure. He questioned, 'How can projects selected without even the minimum criteria move into implementation?'

Stating that there are clear criteria for approving multi-year contracts, Adhikari clarified that projects must be registered in the project bank and a certain percentage of the estimated cost must be allocated in the budget. He explained that although there is a provision for taking projects with less budget into multi-year status using the government's special authority, the necessary preparatory stages for that were not completed.

Chief Secretary Adhikari emphasized that he has no personal or political interest and that the bureaucracy must operate according to the rule of law and established systems. He mentioned that the election code of conduct and the election environment also had some temporary impact, and files with procedural flaws could not be authenticated.

'For the selection of multi-year projects, 33 percent of the budget for a three-year plan and 25 percent for a four-year plan must be allocated in the current fiscal year,' he said. 'If that is the case, the Ministry of Finance can approve it directly. It doesn't even need to come to the Cabinet. I have no political interest.' He made it clear that he cannot do anything outside the established system.