Kathmandu, October 24

The government is preparing to build an exhibition hall in Bhaktapur. The Cabinet meeting on October 14 had decided to transfer ownership of 189 ropanis of land belonging to the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) to the Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD) for the purpose. At present, the land is being used by CAAN for training purposes.

“We have received a letter from the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers (OPMCM) regarding the decision to transfer CAAN’s land in Bhaktapur to MoUD to build an exhibition hall,” informed Ramesh Prasad Singh, secretary at MoUD.

According to Singh, the ministry received the letter on Monday and that they have already appointed an officer to fulfil all the legal procedures for the land transfer.

The MoUD has proposed to build a 5,000-seat capacity exhibition hall on the land. “We are in the initial phase of planning and the consultation work to build the exhibition hall will be assigned to an eligible company within a month,” Singh added. “The exact cost of the project will be ascertained after the detailed project report (DPR) is completed.”

The ministry has planned to complete the DPR and design works and award the tender to construct the exhibition hall within the next four months. Singh also informed that the ministry plans to start construction by next fiscal year and complete the works by the middle of 2020.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Finance has pledged to provide a fund of Rs 500 million to build the exhibition hall. The Finance Ministry has also stated that the said amount will be transferred to MoUD in one single tranche and the amount will be deducted in instalments from the annual budget that MoUD is allocated over the years.

Earlier, the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation (MoCTCA) and MoUD had held discussions several times regarding the use of the concerned land. CAAN had previously proposed to use 110 ropanis of the land for its own purpose and transfer the remaining land to MoUD.

At present, the land is being utilised by CAAN for its Civil Aviation Training Academy.

Meanwhile, as per MoCTCA, it has yet to receive a letter from the OPMCM regarding the decision to transfer the land to MoUD. “We have not received any letter yet and are officially unaware about the decision,” said Ghanashyam Upadhyaya, spokesperson for MoCTCA.

In another development, the government had on July 25 decided to construct a temporary structure on the land and rent it out for the ‘Zee Cine Awards’ that was scheduled for December 8. However, the plan has been cancelled by the MoUD now.