Special budget focus on election, logical end of peace process

The caretaker government today brought a 'special budget' of Rs 161.24 billion through ordinance — due to absence of parliament — as an interim public expenditure arrangement largely focusing on election but not economic expansion.
"It has included the election expenses, second installment for UCPN-Maoist combatants’ voluntary retirement and expenses for the proposed directorate at the Army headquarter to manage the integration and end peace process logically," said caretaker finance minister Barshaman Pun here today.
The private sector should not be discouraged as the government is committed to create investment friendly environment," he said, adding that the government is observing fiscal year 2012-13 as Investment Year. "The government will focus on reducing cost of business and bureaucratic hassles with tax-payer friendly environment to encourage private sector," Pun promised.
However, the private sector is not satisfied with the one-third budget — a public expenditure arrangement only — as it could not help expand economy and encourage investment. "Had the government been able to bring full-fledged budget in political consensus, it could have encouraged private sector that would create employment," Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) said.
Though the government has failed to curb spiraling price hike and deliver basic services, the budget has promised to provide effective service to the people with efforts to strengthen the regulator to monitor prices in the market to crack whip on inflation.
With his long wish list including double digit growth rate, had he been able to bring the full-fledged budget in political consensus, Pun tried to be popular, according to the former finance minister and Nepali Congress (NC) leader Dr Ram Sharan Mahat. "The finance minister used the 'budget' as a cheap propaganda tool," he blamed.
"The government forgetting its caretaker status blamed the opposition for not being able to forge political consensus that forced him to bring interim public expenditure arrangement," Mahat said, adding that it was finance minister's sheer dishonesty to blame political parties. "He should have accepted the status of caretaker government and played accordingly."
The budget size — despite being it a one-third from actual one-third of the current fiscal year's estimated expenses from the total outlay of Rs 384.90 billion — has increased also due the regular expenses to the projects of 'national pride' like Upper Tamakoshi, expenses for new ministries and debt servicing.
The finance ministry has allocated Rs 3 billion for election proposed on November 22, Rs 3.69 billion for second installment for combatants, who chose voluntary retirement and Rs 3 billion for the establishment of proposed Directorate at the Nepal Army headquarters.