First interim report of PERC out

Kathmandu, Nov. 17 (RSS): Convenor of the Public Expenditure Review Commission (PERC) Binaya Dhoj Chand presented the first interim report of the Commission to Finance Minister Mahesh Acharya at the latter's office today.

On the occasion, Mr Acharya said in the present context of public expenditure management becoming more challenging, the suggestions of the report will go a long way in ensuring good governance by maintaining fiscal and economic discipline in the country.

It would help formulate the next fiscal budget if the final report is prepared by collecting suggestions through public discussions about the work for poverty alleviation to be carried out at the central and regional levels and projects to be selected for the purpose, he further said.

Mr Chand, while presenting the report, expressed confidence that the interim report, prepared by His Majesty's Government in keeping with its commitment expressed in the current fiscal year budget, would be helpful.

The report suggests scrapping the Ministry of Women, Children and Social Welfare since a National Women's Commission has already been formed and converting the Ministry of General Administration into a central work management office functioning under the head of government.

The Ministry of Population and Environment should be removed and the Ministry of Health allowed to carry out demographic activity and the Ministry of Science and Technology out environment-related activity, the report said adding, the Special Police Department and the Public Revenue Investigation Department should be merged to form an independent investigation bureau to be headed by the head of government.

The department of printing and the office of comptroller general should be allowed to function independently, it is also stated.

The functioning of the ministries should be limited to framing, enforcing, monitoring and evaluating policies, the powers to frame, enforce and monitor programmes should be delegate to the departments or other bodies, the presence of government units below district level is unnecessary except in matters of security and general administration, ministries with independent boards, authorities, development committees or councils pertaining to particular subjects should not have departments covering the same areas, and such bodies should be removed if a department already exists for such work, it is pointed out.

Similarly, the responsibility of such services as education and health should be given to local bodies, before carrying out privatization of corporations which can and should be handed over to the private sector, the ministry concerned should remain as investor rather than manager, one single body should be set up at district level for running services of the same nature for which there may be separate ministries or departments at the centre, and regional offices should be scrapped for areas for which there are departments at the center, other than those concerning the police, the post office and hospitals, it is stated.

Legal measures suggested by the report are that authorities should be designated by the civil service regulations so that all work relating to employee administration (transfer, evaluation of performance, etc) need not go higher the jurisdiction of the department chief.

Regulations pertaining to fiscal administration should be amended in such a way that all financial transactions except those expressely under the perview of the Finance Ministry, matters falling under the purview of the office of the Comptroller General, irregularities to be cleared or origional authorisation will rest with the department chief as final authority.

Arrangements should be made not to transfer department chiefs before two years in office unless they are found involved in corruption, are facing action under criminal law or have been promoted, and a department chief will be automatically retired if any programme for which he is responsible achieves less than 60 percent success for two years at a stretch or if such programmes achieve less than 50 percent success, it is also stated in the report.

Regional offices except police offices, hospitals and project offices should be removed, district cooperative and cottage industry offices disbanded, work relating to development training hitherto carried out by the cottage industry department and the department of cooperatives handed over to the cottage industry development committee and the National Cooperatives Board, the office of the district registrar brought under the Ministry of Local Development and a district level office of physical planning and construction opened for carrying out work concerning irrigation, drinking water, sewerage, housing and physical planning, it is further mentioned in the report.

The report also suggested that the district office of physical planning and construction should be under the Department of Housing and Urban Development for ensuring administrative control and small programmes to be carried out by the department of irrigation or the department of drinking water and sewerage in the district given out to that office on the basis of programme contract.

Health posts and Ayurved dispensaries operating at rural level should be handed over to the concerned VDC and the district public health office will be required to supply basic medicines to health posts after the hand-over.

As regards projects to be launched with loans, it is deemed proper to invest foreign loans only in productive areas which are likely to yield 15 percent or more internal returns but it is not proper to invest foreign loans in the areas of education, health, training and social welfare and government should facilitate providing of loans in an institutionalized manner.

The government should not invest foreign loans in public undertakings whose accounts have not been audited for nine months even after the expiry of the fiscal year, the report said adding that it is also not desirable to invest in projects for the maintenance of which amounts cannot be collected.

The budget should clearly mention the loan amount to be spent for a particular project, and internal loans should not be used for office spending, grants and physical property, the report said.

His Majesty's Government had formed a five member public expenditure review commission on aug 31.

Falgunanda declared Kirat 'Mahrsi'

Kathmandu, Nov. 17 (RSS): The first Kirat religion international conference held in Kathmandu has declared Nardwaj Lingden Muhigum Ongsimang Falgunanda the Kirant religion "Mahrsi" of the 21st century.

Mr lingden was born in Chikchinamwama of Ilam district on Kartik 25, 1942 Bikram year.

This was disclosed at a press conference organised by the Kirant religion and literary upliftment association to inform the public about the seven-point Kirat religion Kathmandu declaration endorsed by the conference which concluded on November 11.

The conference decided to hold an international conference of the Kirati people every five years. The next conference will be organised in 2062 B.S. in Sikkim of India.

Stating that the Kirat Hangsam Mojollug Manghim area in ward No. 9 of Banjho VDC, Ilam district will be developed as the main pilgrimage site of Kirat religion, the declaration also says that it should be enlisted in the national and world heritage list.

Likewise, a Kirat world association trust will be founded and a world kirat religion and literary upliftment federation be set up in order to bring the Kirat religion into the ranks of the other world religions.

The declaration welcomes the announcement of the UN General Assembly to observe an international holiday on the birth anniversary of Lord Gautam Buddha.

Speaking on the occasion, association president Chandra Kumar Sherma said the Kirat people should also be included in the population census in a separate category.

Ginger business in a state of neglect

Kathmandu, Nov. 17 (RSS): Ginger worth Rs. 51,620,000/ was exported through the Bhairahawa customs office during last fiscal year while export through Krishnanagar customs was worth Rs 2,955,000.

There are prospects for ginger export from the Western Development Region. But the ginger business has not prospered due to lack of seeds, technology and agricultural loans and the problem of disease.

Farmers have not been able to produce ginger very well because they are using traditional fertiliser and farming methods.

If the quality is maintained Nepalese ginger could be exported to India and the farmers could benefit, says Krishna Prasad Khanal, chief of the commerce office at Siddarthanagar.

Lead farmers stress the need to plant ginger, the main source of income for farmers of eastern Palpa, in a scientific way.

Farmers of 16 VDCs in eastern Palpa district have made ginger their main source of income. Though ginger is also cultivated in Arghakhanchi and Gulmi, it is not done commercially unlike in Palpa, according to Palpa Agriculture Development Office.

According to the office, about 500 metric tons of ginger is produced in Palpa every year.

The traditional method is not suitable as farmers cannot get a proper return from the crop, according to a report by the Gulmi-Arghakhanchi Rural Development Project.

Most of the farmers of this region have been processing ginger in a home-spun fashion which takes a long time.

In this method, the ginger is immersed in limestone water and then dried 15 times in the sun. This gives the ginger polish and fetches a three fold higher price.

Thousands of farmers in Palpa district are attracted to this crop, it is learnt from Palpa Agriculture Development Office.

If a ginger processing factory is established, farmers will get a proper price for the crop, according to farmer Ram Prasad Gyawali.

Farmers have demanded loans, arrangements for selling their produce through cooperatives and setting of prices.

The need for cold storage is also felt.

Chief of the commerce office Khanal says the market for processed ginger is growing and Nepalese ginger should be processed so that farmers are attracted to this crop.