The operation of the PM-headed National Reconstruction Authority (NRA) has faced a setback. This was because of the dispute between the three major parties—Nepali Congress, CPN-UML and the opposition Unified CPN-Maoist. At a time when there is an urgency to carry out reconstruction works after the massive damage caused to the infrastructure by the major earthquake of April 25 and several strong aftershocks, it is unfortunate that the efforts of the government to have the bill on reconstruction passed could not succeed. The bill on reconstruction had instead been forwarded to a concerned committee of Parliament so that it could be discussed further. The Minister for Law, Justice, Constituent Assembly and Parliamentary Affairs Narahari Acharya sensed that the bill would meet opposition from the UML and UCPN-M who were against it and preparing to vote against it. After much bickering among the coalition partners, the government had appointed Govinda Raj Pokharel, vice chairman of the National Planning Commission, as the CEO of the authority. But the ordinance which had created this authority lapsed after a replacement bill could not be endorsed by the parliament within sixty days after it was tabled.

Meanwhile, the NC lawmakers were divided in Saturday’s voting when the bill was sent by the Chairman of the CA Subas Chandra Nembang  to the related committee of the Parliament. Some were for sending the proposal to the committee while others were dead set against it, although the bill was proposed by a Nepali Congress minister. This was the outcome of the lack of coordination among the NC lawmakers that caused confusion. It is believed that because of the time constraint and a huge stack of other amendment proposals the reconstruction bill could not move forward to its logical conclusion and the Prime Minister decided to have the session of the House prorogued on Saturday.

All this has put NRA and its CEO in limbo. Now that the new Constitution has been promulgated and that Prime Minster is expected to step down after a couple of weeks as per the new Constitution, it is unlikely that the Parliament will pass the bill during the fag-end of his tenure. During the International Conference of Nepal’s Reconstruction held in Kathmandu, donors had pledged nearly half of the reconstruction budget amounting to a sum of US$ 6.7 billion. However, as there was a protracted delay in naming the authority’s CEO this has led to delay in allocation of budget and the start of reconstruction works. The Prime Minister finally persuaded UML chairman K. P. Oli to agree to decide on the appointment of the new CEO. Home Minister Bam Dev Gautam, Finance Minister Ram Sharan Mahat, Urban Development Minister Narayan Khadka and Tourism Minister Kripasur Sherpa are members of the authority. Some more members have to be appointed. To make matters worse, the non-passage of the replacement bill has made the delay even longer. It seems unlikely that the replacement bill will be made into a law until a new Parliament session is called after the return of PM Koirala from his visit to the UN in New York and a new government is formed.

Shortage of drugs

Bajura is one of the impoverished districts in the far-western region where shortage of drugs and essential goods always makes media headlines. This time the prolonged agitation and bandhs in the Tarai have caused the acute shortage of essential drugs in this mountain district. It has been reported that the health posts in the district have run out of drugs for months due to the bandh in the plain districts called by agitating Madhesis and the Tharus.

The truckloads of drugs have been stranded at several places in the Tarai region. It is the duty of the government to make sure that the essential medicines reach the destinations without any obstructions. The agitating parties/groups should also cooperate with the law enforcing agencies in transporting the medicine in the said areas as they are associated with the life of the people. The National Human Rights Commission should take up this issue with the concerned so that the drugs can be ferried to the designated areas. Medicines are those items that cannot be prevented from reaching their destination even in wartime.