The government has been directed to identify areas fit for developing residential blocs, service centers, markets, town planning areas, bus terminals, hospitals, roads and gardens among other things to promote planned development.
KATHMANDU, Sept 7: The parliament´s committee on development has instructed the Ministry of Local Development to prepare comprehensive profiles of probable infrastructure projects and basic facilities at the district and village levels.
A meeting of the committee on Sunday directed the ministry to identify areas fit for developing residential blocs, services centers, markets, town planning areas, bus terminals, hospitals, roads and gardens among other things so as to promote planned development.
The parliamentary committee meeting held in the presence of Minister for Local Development Prakash Man Singh, directed the ministry to instruct the local bodies across the country to immediately start preparing the profiles.
“Based on the profile received from the local bodies, the ministry should formulate an action plan and submit it along with a progress report to the committee within six months,” Chairman of the committee, Rabindra Adhikari, told Republica.
He said the committee took the initiative as it became urgent to stop unplanned and haphazard construction and development activities.
“The scattered infrastructures and unplanned development activities are certain to create alarming situation in the future so we must stop it and prepare an accurate profile of villages, existing markets and prospective towns and other areas fit for large infrastructures,” he added.
The committee also directed the ministry to submit a report detailing the present strength of the proposed municipalities, status of human resources there, the existing infrastructures and the possibility of delivering services required for graduating them into municipality.
The government a few months ago had proposed to develop over 100 additional municipalities across the country.
“The ministry has been instructed to submit a report describing the existing strength of the proposed municipalities within a month,” said Himlal Subedi, secretary of the parliamentary committee.
Similarly, the committee also formed a separate subcommittee headed by lawmaker Anita Devkota with a mandate to study the prospect for new municipalities across the country and make suggestions.
The decision has been taken at a time when the government is likely to propose dozens of more new municipalities in various parts of the country soon.
Similarly, the committee also directed the concerned ministries to submit a report explaining the existing situation and progress status of the national priority projects such as Melamchi Drinking Water Project, Mid-Hill Highway, Hulaki [postal] Highway, Kathmandu-Nijgadh Fast-Track Highway and Seti Lokmarga among others.