Yubraj Dulal slams budget over lack of transparency & project clarity

KATHMANDU: Nepali Communist Party Chief Whip Yubraj Dulal has expressed strong dissatisfaction over the national budget, saying that key development plans have not been clearly outlined.

Speaking during Tuesday’s House of Representatives session on budget deliberations, Dulal said that historical developments should be analyzed objectively while assessing current fiscal policies.

He recalled that during the fiscal year 2008/09, the government led by Pushpa Kamal Dahal had introduced a significantly expanded budget, which he said helped broaden revenue collection and strengthen the economy’s scale.

Highlighting major infrastructure achievements such as the Postal Highway, Mid-Hill Highway, expanded roads in Kathmandu, and the ambitious 10,000 MW hydropower target, Dulal credited past governments for initiating long-term visionary projects.

He also criticized the current budget process, alleging that projects submitted by lawmakers have not been included in the “Red Book” and that funds have been allocated in lump-sum blocks, raising concerns over transparency and accountability.

Dulal emphasized that budget allocation must strictly follow principles of transparency and accountability to ensure effective implementation.

He further called for the implementation of the Melamchi–Indrawati River Integrated Conservation Project and urged the government to place roads in the Melamchi Drinking Water Project-affected areas—including Melamchi–Ghyang, Sundarijal–Chisapani–Ichok, and Panchpokhari–Yangri routes—under multi-year contracting systems.