Economists have said that the current government is not serious even when the country’s economy is in crisis.
Speaking at a program titled “Problems and Solutions in the Economy” organized by the Nepal Council of Intellectuals in the capital, the speakers warned that Nepal’s economy would reach the level of Sri Lanka if it did not take timely steps.
Speaking on the occasion, former Minister and Deputy General Secretary of the CPN-UML Pradip Gyawali said that the country was plunged into a serious crisis as most of the indicators of the economy turned red, while, the government is not serious.
Accusing the government of showing a tendency to do what it should not do, Gyawali urged the government to curb wasteful spending, control the import of luxury goods, increase capital expenditure, stop the policy setting and stop interfering in the NRB.
Speaking on the occasion, the former governor and former vice-chairman of the Planning Commission Dipendra Bahadur Chhetri said that the parties were not serious about creating an environment for economic development.
Stating that the amount of arrears has increased, good governance has not been maintained and capital expenditure has not increased, Chhetri said that there should be coordination between the Ministry of Finance and NRB.
Similarly, former finance secretary Rameshwar Khanal said that there was a problem recently due to a lack of coordination between the finance ministry and NRB. Stating that the projects started with foreign loans should be completed on time, Khanal stressed the need to increase production capacity and bring balance to current expenditure.
Similarly, former Governor of Nepal Rastra Bank Dr. Tilak Rawal said that the current government has done wrong by suspending the well-functioning Governor Maha Prasad Adhikari.
Accusing the state of encouraging smuggling, Dr. Rawal expressed the view that exports should be increased by stopping the import of luxury goods.
Chairman of the Council and former Vice Chairman of the Planning Commission Dr. Dinesh Chandra Devkota said that intellectual intervention should be carried out above the party to build a socialist economy.
He called for building national capital, consolidating scattered capital, increasing production, reducing imports, and building a socialist economy.
