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| Kathmandu, Friday August 08, 2003 Shrawan 23, 2060. |
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Govt hands over trolley bus
services to local bodies
Post Report
KATHMANDU, Aug 7 : Materializing the
long-running saga of resuming the operation of Trolley Bus Services (TBS), the government
formally handed over the TBS to a consortium of Kathmandu Metropolitan City, Bhaktapur and
Thimi municipalities.
A formal agreement to this effect was signed
here toady between the representatives of the government and concerned municipalities.
Dhurba Sharma, spokesperson of Ministry of Labour and Transport Management and chief
executives of the three municipalities signed the agreement on their respective behalf.
Talking to the pressmen after the signing
ceremony, Ram Prasad Sharma, chief executive of the Kathmandu Metropolitan City, said the
joint consortium of the three municipalities is planning to operate the service by
September 1.
As per the agreement, the government has
formally handed over the TBS to the local bodies for 20 years and all the liabilities of
the company would be borne by the consortium itself. However, the local bodies will
acquire approval from the government in case they wish to sub-contract the management. The
consortium will also require submitting report of operation in every six months.
The consortium is planning to invest some Rs 30
million to bring the services into operation. Of the total, Rs 10 million will be invested
for the maintenance of the buses while some 20 million for repair of its cable system.
Despite the signing of the agreement, both the
government and the consortium have not yet fixed the amount of royalty. Dhurba Sharma told
The Kathmandu Post that the amount of royalty to the government would be fixed through
mutual understanding.
Speaking on the signing ceremony, Minister for
Finance, Labour and Transport Dr Prakash Chandra Lohani said the hand-over is a part of
the government policy of empowering local bodies through enhancing their participation in
public utilities. "The government is ready to extend co-operation with all
municipalities, where the feasibility of trolley bus operation is possible," said
Lohani adding the government has recently asked proposal from the interested
municipalities for the operation of trolley bus services.
Kamal Thapa, Minister for Information and
Communications, said there is a high and immediate possibility of operating trolley bus
services in sectors like Biratnagar-Dharan, Hetauda-Birgunj and Nepalgunj-Kohalpur and
added that the government is ready to extend necessary co-operation if proposals regarding
the operation of services are forwarded.
The bus service was closed in 2001 after the
company incurred unbearable loss due largely to political interventions and financial
anomalies.
The TBS is expected to resume its services on
its route between Tripureswor of Kathmandu and Surya Binayak in Bhaktapur. The decision to
hand over the TBS to local bodies was taken on the recommendations of Nepicon Engineering
Consultancy, which the Chand government had hired to study its feasibility for revival.
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