Kathmandu, July 1: Minister for Home Affairs Ramesh Lekhak stated that the security agencies in the country are functioning with limited resources and means.
Minister Lekhak highlighted the acute resources constraints facing the security agencies such as Nepal Police and Armed Police Force (APF) during the deliberations on the Ministry of Home Affairs’ budget for the upcoming fiscal year under the Appropriation Bill-2082 BS at the National Assembly (NA) meeting here today.
Responding to the queries posed by NA members during the discussion, Minister Lekhak stated that Rs 400 million has been set aside for the development of infrastructures for the security agencies under the investment partnership modality involving all three levels of government.
Stating that there were demands to establish temporary police posts, upgrade the temporary police posts to permanent ones and upscale the existing ones, the Minister said that his Ministry has acknowledged these issues as its priority and thus pledged to address these demands gradually in spite of the budgetary constraints.
Furthermore, he appraised the Upper House that the Bills relating to transfer and promotion in security agencies as well as to make the security agencies more professional were currently under deliberation in the State Affairs and Good-Governance Committee under the House of Representatives. As for post-disaster response efforts in the wake of recent earthquakes in Doti, Bajhang and Jajarkot, he shared that the relief and rehabilitation operation has been accelerated in those affected areas.
According to him, details of a total of 77,528 quake-affected households have been collected so far and around Rs 3.95 billion is already allocated for reconstruction of quake-damaged houses across the affected districts. He added that the government was also working towards building warehouses in every local level with the support of local and provincial government to store essential materials for disaster response and relief operations.
Furthermore, the government is also increasing facilities in the prisons across the country to protect the basic human rights of the prisoners, he said. Additionally, the Minister mentioned that funds have been allocated to transform prisons into reform centres, offering vocational and skill-oriented trainings, psychosocial counseling and engaging inmates in small-scale enterprises.
