PAC concerned over Pokhara cable car project

KATHMANDU: The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) under the Legislature-Parliament has drawn attention of the concerned authority not to allow construction of a cable car project in Basundhara Park, Lakeside in Pokhara.

The proposed Rs 1.3-billion cable car project was going to be undertaken by the Manakamana Cable Car Pvt Ltd across the 108 ropani public land in Basundhara Park of the Lake City.

In today's meeting of the PAC, various lawmakers from Kaski district including Rabindra Adhikari, Sita Giri Oli and Kumar Khadka have drawn the attention of Committee not to allow forwarding the 1.3-kilometre cable car project in light of accusations that the project is misusing the public land for a commercial purpose.

The Ministry for Physical Infrastructure and Transport (MoPIT) had granted permission to the Pokhara Valley City Development Committee to allow the land for the Manakamana Cable Car Pvt Ltd for the same.

Earlier, the locals in the area were reported to have criticised the idea of running a cable car in the public land although it was proposed to be developed as per the build-own-operate-transfer (BOOT) model and the ownership of the company to be handed to the government after 20 years.

The PAC Chairperson Janardan Sharma shared that the Committee will make decisions on the same after examining the issue as it had directed the MoPIT to look into the matter and inform the Committee. "The action will be taken accordingly," he added.