Province Government Faces Cabinet Reshuffle Amidst Budget Preparations

Dhangadhi. In the second term of the Sudurpashchim Province government, changes in government and reshuffling of ministers have become commonplace. Four governments have been formed in the second term of the Province Assembly, and the incumbent Chief Minister Kamal Bahadur Shah is serving his second term.< /p>

While Chief Minister Shah is leading the government for the second time, he has expanded and reshuffled the cabinet time and again. 'It is natural for ministers to come and go in the government. There is nothing surprising about it,' said Chief Minister Shah.< /p>

At this time, provincial governments should be busy preparing the budget. The Sudurpashchim government, however, is busy changing ministers. Although the ruling coalition parties, Nepali Congress and CPN-UML, announced that all their ministers would be replaced, only the Nepali Congress ministers were changed on Monday. The UML ministers are yet to be changed.< /p>

On Monday, Bikramsingh Dhami was appointed as the Minister for Economic Affairs, Bal Bahadur Ranabhat as the Minister for Social Development, and Man Bahadur Rawal as the Minister for Industry, Tourism, Forest, and Environment. Similarly, Madhu Bharti and Juna Dani received responsibilities as state ministers.< /p>

With the budget ceiling already prepared and the policy and program being discussed in the house, the question arises as to where the change of ministers will lead the province's budget.< /p>

The main opposition party considers the change of ministers at the final stage of budget preparation as irrelevant. Akkal Rawal, a Member of the Province Assembly from the Nepali Communist Party, states that the government's move will seriously affect the balance and quality of the budget.< /p>

'Changing ministers might be an internal matter of the government. However, this decision has been made at an inappropriate time. When new ministers come at the time of budget, they will not have enough time to understand and study the ministry's plans. This will only create confusion among employees and disappointment among the public,' he said.< /p>

Currently, the policy and program for the upcoming fiscal year are under consideration in the Province Assembly. The opposition is skeptical about how the new ministers will manage the technical aspects and balance of the budget at such a time, he said.< /p>

Although the technical preparation of the budget is done by employees, the political influence on it rests with the minister. According to Dr. Hemraj Regmi, Secretary of the Ministry of Social Development, the change of ministers may lead to a shift in the priorities of the plans in practice.< /p>

'If the plans are made based on facts, there should not be much difference, as the ministry has its own priorities. In practice, with the arrival of new leadership, some priorities may change. The change of individuals will definitely have some impact on the working style,' he said.< /p>

Similarly, Bishnu Bhandari, Secretary of the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure Development, states that there will be no impact on work in his ministry as the minister has not changed. However, he said that some fluctuations in budget prioritization are natural in the ministries where ministers have been changed.< /p>

Newly appointed Minister for Economic Affairs, Bikramsingh Dhami, however, states that although the budget ceiling has been prepared, they will focus on the needs of the public. He believes that the budget should be a means to solve the problems of the people.< /p>

'If the prepared budget does not meet the public's expectations in areas like education, health, and infrastructure, it will have to be revised. The budget is brought for the people. If it is not in the interest of the people, some things may be amended,' he said.< /p>

With the date for presenting the budget drawing near, the new ministers have very little time to study the old files and proposed plans of the ministries.< /p>

According to Professor Ramhari Joshi, employees who were working on a particular task with the old minister may be confused by the new minister's new interests and directives. He said that if the plan is changed in haste or new plans are added due to the change of ministers, the feasibility study and budget balance may not match, which could cause problems in the implementation phase later.