BAJHANG, JULY 19 The people’s representatives elected from the Nepali Congress as well NC supporters in Thalara Rural Municipality, Bajhang, protested against the budget terming it ‘undue’ allocation. They protested the budget distribution stating that the rural municipality’s leadership had allocated budget for programmes that benefit their party cadres and near and dear ones only. The rural municipality had presented its annual policies and programmes on June 24 while it had introduced the budget towards the end of June. The people’s representatives backed by the NC organised protest programmes at the rural municipality’s office after their dissenting voices went unheard. Chairman of Ward 2 of Thalara Rural Municipality Hem Khadka, however, claimed that the rural municipality had distributed programmes and projects equally. The rural municipality has nine wards and each ward has been allocated Rs four million. Accusing the rural municipality of irregularities, the NC elected people’s representatives said the remaining budget was distributed among the other people’s representatives discreetly. Thalara Rural Municipality Chair Bhuwaneshowr Upadhyay said that the development budget was Rs 110 million for the rural municipality, of which Rs 20 million was allocated for matching fund and Rs 40 million set aside for each of the nine wards from the rest of the budget. The NC’s people’s representatives had demanded that each ward be provided Rs 10 million. Upadhyay, as chief of the local government, reaffirmed his commitment to ensuring good-governance, transparency and accountability in his rural municipality and warned of stern action against those involved in embezzlement and irregularity. A version of this article appears in e-paper on July 20, 2020, of The Himalayan Times.