An investigation must be started to bring officials to account for their failure to collect the dues owed to TIA in time

Different airline companies, business enterprises and government offices operating inside the Tribhuvan International Airport are said to owe more than Rs 2 billion in uncleared dues to the TIA. The dues, running into billions, could not have piled up were it not for the institutional unaccountability of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), the aviation sector regulatory body. In a report presented to the Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee on Sunday, CAAN said that the dues were for rental fee, landing charge, parking fee and airport development fund. The Department of Customs and other government agencies, such as the Immigration Office, operating inside the TIA have not cleared long-standing dues running into millions of rupees. It’s hard to understand why little or no initiative was taken by the concerned authority to collect the dues that have accumulated over several years, depriving both the TIA and CAAN of the much required resources for growth and expansion.

Among airline companies, it is not only Nepali airlines — namely Nepal Airlines Corporation and Himalayan Airlines — that have not cleared their dues to the TIA. Actually the bulk of the airlines failing to do so are foreign companies, with Air Asia and Air India owing Rs 560 million and Rs 150 million, respectively. However, the TIA is facing difficulties in collecting its dues from Air Asia, as the low-cost Malaysian airline has stopped flying to Kathmandu for lack of adequate number of passengers. Other airlines not paying are Air Arabia, Bhutan Airlines and China Eastern Airlines. These companies have been asked to clear their dues as soon as possible, but will only do so if they are hounded by the concerned authority. Nepal Airlines must pay Rs 340 million to the TIA, which it has been doing in instalments.

Why is it that both government and private companies and offices are reluctant to pay their dues to the TIA, even after using its services for years? By not raising the dues owed to the Nepal government, were officials benefitting in some way? CAAN and its leadership cannot be complacent when it comes to carrying out its duties, in this case collecting the arrears from the companies, government offices and private businesses. An investigation must be started to bring officials to account for their failure to collect the dues in time. Inability to raise money in Kathmandu affects CAAN’s activities elsewhere, such as upgrading of airports and equipment in the districts. As a government institution, maybe it is not very zealous about asking another government office to clear its dues. But there is no option other than to act tough. One could take a cue from what then Energy Minister Gokarna Bista once did to clear dues owed by government offices and private companies to the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA). After the minister threatened to cut off lines to the offices that failed to pay their arrears, the NEA was able to raise a whopping Rs 610 million in no time. The authorities can no longer allow things to continue as usual. Such a condition where no one has any obligation towards anyone is no longer tolerable.

Online services

The Land Revenue Offices (LROs) across the country are considered the most corrupt and inefficient government entities. People cannot get their jobs done without greasing the palms of the concerned officials or their middlemen. The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) has been launching covert operations to crack down on such malpractices. But it has yielded no tangible changes there. Following the crackdown on corruption in the LROs, the officials are now using their agents to raise kickbacks from the service seekers from outside the office.

Considering all these anomalies, the Ministry of Land Management, Cooperatives and Poverty Alleviation has now announced online services and an electronic payment system in all the LROs to make them corruption-free and more efficient. This service will come into full operation within a year. It is a welcome move. Hopefully, the service seekers will also get their jobs done on time without having to face any bureaucratic hassles. The ministry started online services in 37 LROs five months ago. There are as many as 131 LROs across the country. Besides making land transaction much easier, it will also help curb the possibility of fraud in it. But the people must be made aware of the system.