The newly formed government led by Prime Minister Puspa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' has promised economic austerity and effective service delivery.
The first cabinet meeting of Prime Minister Dahal decided not to take the increased salary for the current fiscal year. The budget for the current fiscal year 2022-23 has increased the salary of the government officials, including the ministers. Due to economic crisis, the erstwhile government failed to mobilise the revenue not only falling short of the target but also failing to meet the recurrent expenditure.
Dahal, in the cabinet, also instructed to prioritise good governance, better service delivery and end the hassles faced by people while obtaining passports and licenses. The eight-member cabinet also decided to make arrangements to ensure that citizens can obtain essential documents like passports and driving licences without waiting long in queue. Passport and driving licence-obtaining processes in Nepal are complicated and mismanaged, which has forced service seekers to stand in queue for hours from early morning. Likewise, there is a lot of complaints of bribery and forgery.
The new government has decided to make efforts to reform the service delivery of government offices to make the public feel change.
Talking to journalists after the first cabinet meeting today evening, Dahal said the cabinet has been formed as per the people's mandate. "Challenges galore ahead," he said, adding that the first meeting of his cabinet decided to take stock of the economic crisis and identify solutions.
Earlier in the afternoon, Dahal also instructed not to buy extravagant goods at Baluwatar, the official residence of the Prime Minister, where he will be shifting day after.
According to Prime Minister Dahal's personal secretary Ramesh Malla, the Prime Minister has instructed not to buy any luxury goods for his use. Dahal courted controversy, during his first tenure as Prime Minister, as he was blamed for buying a bed worth Rs 1 million for him.
Dahal was sworn-in as the 44th Prime Minister of Nepal at the President Office at Sheetal Niwas today and formed an eight-member cabinet immediately.
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