<img width="640" height="269" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110121152/636ce60d9c7e80680e096746jpeg.jpg" alt=""/>The Supreme Court on Tuesday declared the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority's  (CIAA) use of <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/labour-recruiter-netted-in-sting-raid/">sting operations</a> unconstitutional, putting an end to two decades of scare-mongering fueled by personal agenda and impunity.Acting on a petition filed by Advocate Bishnu Prasad Ghimire, the Constitutional Bench of the SC led by Chief Justice Cholendra Shamsher Rana declared the provision for sting operations set out by CIAA Rule 30 (2002) as contrary to the spirit and essence of the Constitution. “The nature of the stipulated provision is found to be encouraging the investigating officer to act in an arbitrary way”, the brief judgment issued today stated. Decried by critics as a tool to further personal interests, Rule 30 gave CIAA operatives the power to procure and set up bribes for stings and exempted them from constitutional law which criminalises the giving of kickbacks.Opportunists then exploited this loophole, conspiring with operatives to set up bribes and implicate low-level employees they had disagreements with.Enforcement of Rule 30 was noticeably higher, and random, over the last few years. Of 206 cases of graft registered in the Special Court by the CIAA last fiscal year, 181 had sting operations, from which 99 involved kickbacks less than Rs 25,000.There were 277 arrests, among whom 69 ranked as non-gazetted officers or lower and 16 were office peons. It is clear that the CIAA is focused merely on the ‘easy work’ of luring low-ranked officers and making arbitrary arrests in an extralegal manner. As the CIAA goes around chasing after small-time offenders and innocents, corruption in the larger scale flourishes. Over the last three years, only four percent of cases registered by the CIAA concerned serious offences, including revenue embezzlement and illegal acquisition of property. “Despite the instructions of the parliamentary committee and the emergence of huge scandals such as Ncell and Wide Body, the CIAA has failed to conduct any meaningful investigation.” says former Chairman of the Special Court Gauri Bahadur Karki. “Sting operations are their way of fudging case numbers to inflate performance.”     <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/ciaa-traps-small-fish-lets-big-ones-go/">A Centre for Investigative Journalism (CIJ) report</a> in July last year detailed instances where sting operations had led to arrests of low-level employees.For example, contractor Sujan Poudel filed a complaint at the CIAA against police deputy superintendent Shyam Kumar Rai, accusing him of soliciting a bribe. The CIAA decided to catch Rai red-handed in a sting operation. Poudel went to Rai’s office and surreptitiously planted Rs140,000 in cash in the police officer’s drawer. Immediately after, officials from the CIAA who were hiding outside barged into the office and arrested Rai.The media ran the news: ‘DSP Rai arrested with Rs140,000 bribe money’. The CIAA took Rai under custody and filed a corruption case at the Special Court. Rai later accused Poudel of framing him because he had taken action against the contractor for illegal sand mining and quarrying. “CIAA can file corruption case if someone is caught taking a bribe,” said constitutional expert Bhimarjun Acharya told CIJ then, “but a constitutionally empowered body’s involvement in using cash to trap someone is not really acceptable matter in any civilised society, and it goes against the rule of law.”Former police chief Hemanta Malla who has worked at the CIAA says the agency’s use of stings goes against the basic principle of ‘secret action’. He admits that sting operations can be used to expose serious crimes like match fixing, human trafficking and drug trafficking, but says the use of sting operations against petty crime is ‘overkill’.“The target of secret action should be to break organised crime networks, but the CIAA’s operation seems just focused on arresting junior-ranking officials. This should be stopped because the sting tool can be misused,” Malla added.

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Sting operation ruled illegal

<figure><img width="1245" height="1000" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110914110/636ba4d89c7e80680e07368cjpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>Illustration by Subhas Rai in Nepali Times #51 of 13-19 July 2001. </figcaption></figure>As a former broadcast journalist and ex-employee of the World Bank’s Nepal office, Rajib Upadhya is the right person at the right time to come out with an account of the political economy of Nepal’s development since 1990.The title of Upadhya’s book released on 5 August, Cabals and Cartels: An Up Close Look at Nepal’s Turbulent Transition and Disrupted Development, pretty much sums up its content. During his tenure at the Bank between 1995-2018, Upadhya served as the eyes and ears for successive bosses in their dealings with Nepal’s politicians and bureaucrats.The result is an insider look at how the powerful multilateral lender interacted with Nepal’s officialdom. Over the years, the Bank has on the one hand been criticised for meddling too much in state functions, and on the other for not meddling enough when Nepal was in deep crisis. So, it must be doing some things right.The book begins in the heydays of the mid-1990s when democracy and the market economy brought hope that Nepal could finally take a great leap forward. However, some comrades took ‘great leap forward’ to mean something else, and decided to wage a ruinous war.Upadhya’s first task at the Bank was to work on a report titled Political Economy of Reform in Nepal which concluded that politicians with short-term time horizons, a rent-seeking culture, and vested interest groups were preventing reforms. Sound familiar? Cabals and Cartels takes us through the early reform years of the 1990s, the insurgency, Gyanendra’s reign, the peace process, and finally the new federal system – with Nepal’s politico-business nexus as the thread running through it all. The book is a roll call of World Bank experts who visited Nepal: <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=13470#.XyqDLi0w0Wo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D13470%23.XyqDLi0w0Wo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1596790855128000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGi1iPSWx6ymMP6vwzHvrzD9d42Yw">Ashraf Ghani</a>, Mac Maharaj, Emmanuel Tumsiime. There were Bank’s successive South Asia chiefs like <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=4985#.XyqE0S0w0Wo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D4985%23.XyqE0S0w0Wo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1596790855128000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHhwZZVKGekQ_CabL85P1C5Mp9AIQ">Mieko Nishimizu</a> and <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=3763#.XyqEPi0w0Wo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D3763%23.XyqEPi0w0Wo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1596790855128000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGxL15PSwhbzH08TVl5XXRR4feW2Q">Praful Patel</a>, as well as past Country Directors that Upadhya advised: Hans Rothenbühler, <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=1794#.XyqAiy0w0Wo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D1794%23.XyqAiy0w0Wo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1596790855128000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFUxDdPAyapxlumLn_Lt-l5U9ae6g">Ken Ohashi</a>, and Johannes Zutt.They all came and went at various historical milestones in Nepal’s past 25 years, and Upadhya’s book has revealing anecdotes about their meetings with Nepali officials. <figure><img width="904" height="1000" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110914110/636ba4db9c7e80680e07368djpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure><a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=8194#.Xyp_6y0w0Wo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D8194%23.Xyp_6y0w0Wo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1596790855128000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGuc4LlcLwGLuuXeTTSBP22kKKy2g">Rothenbühler</a> arrived in Nepal in 2000 just as ‘shit was about to hit the fan’ (in his own words) over the Bank’s insistence on <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=5545#.XyqBvS0w0Wo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D5545%23.XyqBvS0w0Wo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1596790855128000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEwhkrhBgZOVpU4o2tHc2aXgsF1kg">reforms</a> in <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=8591#.XyqF7C0w0Wo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D8591%23.XyqF7C0w0Wo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1596790855128000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHoM4z6vwnRiI5-Em0cFqr6hUtP_g">Nepal Bank Limited</a> and Nepal Banijya Bank which were being <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=7397#.XyqFiC0w0Wo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D7397%23.XyqFiC0w0Wo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1596790855128000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEA8FX4CCWXw-8dXaozcZvi65Xpxw">bled dry by wilful defaulters. </a>Needless to say, they were cartel members with cabal protection, as the <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=10996#.XyqFsS0w0Wo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D10996%23.XyqFsS0w0Wo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1596790855128000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEwxrDATtYarQjNVSRYGS2VlJKKfw">Nepali Times reported at the time</a>. They were <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=1485#.XyqGPS0w0Wo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D1485%23.XyqGPS0w0Wo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1596790855128000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEDzGmI0ixiVkOq_Y71R3oZkX5YzA">so powerful</a> that they could collude to get the CIAA to frame reformers on trumped up charges, and lean on Supreme Court justices to convict them.Upadhya becomes close to Madhav Ghimire at the Foreign Aid Division of the Finance Ministry who fought hard for reforms, and later in his career conducted the <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/madhav-ghimire-true-patriot%20,3299" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/madhav-ghimire-true-patriot%2520,3299&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1596790855128000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHwfM4ZaGSbFwmL-bO2wtpdhPUxRQ">tricky 2013 elections</a>. He was <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/On-the-way-up/hardened-and-automated-when-confronting-death%20,834" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/On-the-way-up/hardened-and-automated-when-confronting-death%2520,834&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1596790855128000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHrTn75eenh8ICVCRWwr8hhv_j3lg">tragically killed</a> in a car crash in 2016.Madhav Ghimire was in a panel discussion with David Dollar of the report Assessing Aid, which the Bank had asked me to moderate in 2000. Upadhya’s account of that conference reminded me of something I had long forgotten: how difficult it was to get government officials in the audience to ask a question. Ghimire was irritated because he had coached them to be pro-active. Nepal’s misfortune is that we do not make bureaucrats of the calibre and integrity of Madhav Ghimire anymore. Upadhya recalls that Ghimire went to Manakama Temple in 1998 to ask for his wish to be fulfilled. But he did not have a personal request for the priest, he asked for divine help to complete the Melamchi Water Supply Project. Twenty-two years later, plagued by corruption and mismanagement, the project is still in limbo.Upadhya played a behind the scenes role in setting up the Society of Economic Journalists of Nepal (SEJON) with a bunch of bright young boys, some of whom like Ameet Dhakal, Prateek Pradhan, and Kiran Nepal have gone on to become editors of influential media. <figure><img width="1333" height="750" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110914110/636ba4de9c7e80680e07368ejpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Cabals and Cartels has some fascinating chapters on how even an honest prime minister like K P Bhattarai could be forced by the cartels to appoint <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=10866#.XyqHki0w0Wo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D10866%23.XyqHki0w0Wo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1596790855128000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEts1aeI8cebK2fMY6rN5EerdipZQ">Tilak Rawal as Rastra Bank governor</a>. Some at the World Bank office in Kathmandu described this as akin to  ‘putting an arsonist in charge of the fire department’. Finance Minister Mahesh Acharya <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=1357#.XyqHmS0w0Wo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D1357%23.XyqHmS0w0Wo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1596790855128000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGJypCcB8V3pfN9TQm_fF8DXYfJvw">resigned over the appointment</a>, and Rawal had so much clout he got his own <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=1468#.XyqIMi0w0Wo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D1468%23.XyqIMi0w0Wo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1596790855128000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFS05f_bKDOE6nRNwp41tZIss5ldg">dismissal overturned</a> by the Supreme Court. The next Country Director Upadhya worked under was the soft-spoken but plain-speaking <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=13060#.XyqA7y0w0Wo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D13060%23.XyqA7y0w0Wo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1596790855128000&amp;usg=AFQjCNE2sqB_Vm_2LViXpdrDmWP3Z-n_zw">Ken Ohashi</a>. He wrote surprisingly critical op-eds, <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=919#.XyqBZC0w0Wo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D919%23.XyqBZC0w0Wo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1596790855128000&amp;usg=AFQjCNF90Y_dmfs-Ou82tyziPmrscgC7_g">including for Nepali Times</a>, but in one of them in Kantipur he defended the government raising fuel prices that triggered student protests. Ohashi summoned the student leaders to his office, and convinced them about why it needed to be done. Among the student leaders was Gagan Thapa, now an opposition MP. Upadhya is also critical of the Bank’s colonial heavy-handed approach. He cites how bosses in DC even suspected Ohashi had <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=5031#.XyqCcy0w0Wo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D5031%23.XyqCcy0w0Wo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1596790855128000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEXP4A9oO9f_7XHIAzBxmAq7x5-HA">‘gone native’ </a>when he started engaging with <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=15223#.XyqDZy0w0Wo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D15223%23.XyqDZy0w0Wo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1596790855128000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFPuCLKUY-O1c_tSTq0-q3BmjUrsA">Babu Ram Bhattarai</a> and Pushpa Kamal Dahal after the peace process. The Bank also got flak for its $50 million grant for Maoist camps, after  Dahal boasted on candid video that he had hoodwinked donors by <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=17494#.XyqKgi0w0Wo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D17494%23.XyqKgi0w0Wo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1596790855128000&amp;usg=AFQjCNESWBE13Tsalyr8eUmvtPNuLvf_Cw">inflating guerrilla numbers</a> four fold. Experts the Bank had invited accurately analysed Nepal’s malaise. <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=12143#.XyqC4y0w0Wo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D12143%23.XyqC4y0w0Wo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1596790855128000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEhI0eHzBxf0B06w9c3AkS6raqVPQ">Asraf Ghani</a>, the author of Fixing Failed States, who is now Afghanistan’s president, put his finger on the root causes: over-politicisation, last-minute problem fixing, lack of rule of law, and low performance.  Mac Maharaj, a confidante of Nelson Mandela, advised Nepal not to follow South Africa’s example in the peace process. Ugandan public finance expert Emmanuel Tumusiime said ‘lack of money is not a problem in Nepal, access to easy money is’. Even as far back as 1964, an early World Bank consultant had concluded about Nepal: ‘The central government in Nepal is not conditioned to get things done … money is certainly not the problem.’  Upadhya notes rather depressingly: ‘For all the outward signs of progress, our structural problems remain fundamentally unaddressed since the early 1960s … the World Bank economists could be writing about present-day Nepal.’  Indeed, Nepal’s progress is stymied because of state capture by a cartel of cannibals. We know what the problems are, we know the solutions. Nepal just does not have leaders with the political will and capability to implement them.  <img width="1250" height="1150" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110914110/636ba4e19c7e80680e07368fjpeg.jpg" alt="">Cabals and Cartels: An Up Close Look at Nepal’s Turbulent Transition and Disrupted Development by Rajib Upadhya FinePrint Books, 2020 <a href="http://www.fineprint.com.np/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://www.fineprint.com.np/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1596790855128000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGczCDqfyYKmIYDigNnAmYNZ6fefA">www.fineprint.com.np</a> 282 pages     A <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/when-will-nepals-future-ever-arrive/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">summary by Rajib Upadhya of his book</a> will be online on nepalitimes.com Weekend Longreads on Saturday.

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Why Nepal is stuck

<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109141140/636bae749c7e80680e077ff4jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1600" height="900"/>Last September, contractor Sujan Poudel filed a complaint at the Commission for the Investigation for the Abuse of Authority (CIAA) against police deputy superintendent Shyam Kumar Rai, accusing him of soliciting a bribe. The CIAA decided to catch Rai red-handed in a sting operation.A month later, Poudel went to Rai’s office and surreptitiously planted Rs140,000 in cash in the police officer’s drawer. Immediately after, officials from the CIAA who were hiding outside barged into the office and arrested Rai.The media ran the news: ‘DSP Rai arrested with Rs140,000 bribe money’. The CIAA took Rai under custody and filed a corruption case at the Special Court. In his statement, Rai accused Poudel of framing him because he had taken action against the contractor for illegal sand mining and quarrying.As evidence, the CIAA had submitted a video footage of the cash in Rai’s drawer. But when police examined the video, they found that the CIAA team seemed to know exactly where to look for the cash. “Take out money from the drawer,” a member of the CIAA team is overheard saying.The Special Court analysed the video, and ruled that Rai had indeed been framed by Poudel. The justices said in their judgement: “It seems the CIAA has worked at the behest of special interest groups unhappy with a strict ban on illegal sand extraction,” said one of the judges of the fast-track court established to deal with corruption cases.Pralhad Dhital, an assistant forest officer of the Kavre District Forest Office, was attending a training organised in Kathmandu last month when Jagatlal Tamang, an entrepreneur of Kavre, repeatedly telephoned him asking for a meeting. Tamang came to Kathmandu and the two went out to a cafe. At the table, Tamang abruptly put Rs20,000 in Dhital’s hand, and suddenly CIAA officials lurking nearby pounced on Dhital.The media reported: ‘Kavre Forest Official Caught Red-handed accepting Bribe’.Tamang later confessed that he had indeed decided to frame Dhital after he refused permission to fell 56 pine trees in a private property. He added that CIAA officials helped him write his application and showed him how to carry out the sting operation. As with many other cases, Tamang framed Dhital with the active collusion of the agency mandated to fight corruption. Dhital was suspended from his job.Not only does this show that media headlines about corruption may be misleading, it has also exposed questionable practices at the CIAA. Records show that the anti-corruption agency is regularly using sting techniques in petty offences to catch small-time criminals. Last November the agency arrested traffic policeman Nabin Kumar Jha of Dhanusha, while receiving a Rs1,000 bribe. Jha was arrested shortly after receiving ‘bribe’ planted on him by a CIAA driver.In Kaski the CIAA’s Pokhara Regional Office acting on a complaint, planned a sting operation against land revenue officer Dipak Subedi by getting an official posing as someone needing a job done. Subedi was caught while accepting a Rs3,000 bribe from an undercover CIAA official, and agency filed a case against him.The CIAA has even conducted a sting operation to arrest a messenger at the Land Reform Office in Itahari. In a clear case of entrapment, it offered Arjun Mandal Rs2,000 for a service, which he accepted. He was arrested and charged.Instead of going after officials and politicians who embezzle billions with impunity, critics say, the CIAA is targetting corruption. They say the agency is carrying out these operations so it can boast about the number of corruption cases it has cracked. Indeed, the CIAA’s annual report for 2018-2019 cites ‘a record number of corruption cases’.At a press conference in January, CIAA spokesperson Pradeep Kumar Koirala patted himself on the back by saying that the agency had performed “a great achievement” by busting so many corruption cases. Out of 351 graft cases filed by the CIAA last year, 147 were bribery and of these in 40% the accused was apprehended using sting tactics. This year, the number of sting operations has shot up to 181 cases – of which half were cases involving less than Rs25,000 in bribes. Of the total 277 arrested 69 were junior civil servants and 16 were messengers and peons.“Previously, cases of fake academic credential used to top other corruption cases,” said Gauri Bahadur Karki, former chair of the Special Court, ‘these days, they have been replaced by sting operations.”Details of the CIAA’s own annual report reveal that the powerful constitutional body that is entrusted with controlling graft and malfeasance in government and ensure good governance is busy with petty bribes, and arresting junior-most government employees.The CIAA is obviously taking the easy way out to fulfil its case quota, while trying not to ruffle any feathers. It is not going after powerful officials involved in tax evasion, investigating ill-gotten wealth, or following the money trail in corruption involving senior officials. It is enticing low-level officials who put their hands in the honey pot.“CIAA has not followed the instructions of parliamentary committees to go after big fish in high-profile cases like the Airbus deal, Ncell tax and Yeti Holdings. None of those scams were investigated, but it is targeting petty corruption just to show that it is meeting targets,” said Karki.The sting operation has raised ethical issues of whether entrapment is an acceptable way to nab public officials. Should the CIAA even be tempting junior bureaucrats by using a bribe as a trap. Is it even legal?As per Article 239 of the Constitution the CIAA can investigate wrongdoings of any public position holder and file corruption case against them if charges are established. Section 30 of the regulation states that the CIAA can provide money to informers if any public position holder seeks bribe. But there is no provision of legal action against bribe receivers and providers.The CIAA has been using this Section to conduct sting operations whereas Section 3 of Corruption Prevention Act-2002 clearly states that both bribe receivers and providers should be punished for bribery. Ironically, this may actually make the CIAA also liable for corruption.“CIAA can file corruption case if someone is caught taking a bribe,” said constitutional expert Bhimarjun Acharya, “but a constitutionally empowered body’s involvement in using cash to trap someone is not really acceptable matter in any civilised society, and it goes against the rule of law.”Another advocate Bishnu Prasad Ghimire argues that the CIAA’s sting operation is guided with the intent of improving its success rate in controlling corruption by trapping citizens.  “State agencies should not be involved in such activity, and the use of state coffers to entrap citizens is not acceptable,” said Ghimire.Ghimire says sting operations by a state agency is actually illegal and objectionable. As per Nepal’s criminal law, only Parliament can determine which act is a crime and which is not.Acharya recalls that sting operations have been used in the United States and India, but the courts there have set a precedent by annulling the provision of providing money to trap criminals. He says as democracy with the rule of law, Nepal should follow that practice.The US Supreme Court in <a href="https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/503/540/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/503/540/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1595658441786000&amp;usg=AFQjCNH07kw3Z3XtVIHIDEfMKSIkPMbtAg">an order issued on April 1992 states</a>: ‘In their zeal to enforce the law, government agents may not originate a criminal design, implant in an innocent person's mind the disposition to commit a criminal act, and then induce commission of the crime so that the government may prosecute.’In a ruling, India’s Supreme Court has also raised moral questions about sting operations with the <a href="https://indiankanoon.org/doc/120178732/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://indiankanoon.org/doc/120178732/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1595658441787000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFD_9ZxQf78QImt73MtvIr34R_USg">order</a>: ‘Being essentially a deceptive operation, though designed to nab a criminal, a sting operation raises certain moral and ethical questions. The victim, who is otherwise innocent, is lured into committing a crime on the assurance of absolute secrecy and confidentiality of the circumstances raising the potential question as to how such a victim can be held responsible for the crime which he would not have committed but for the enticement.’ ,” states theIn Nepal, too, a case has been filed in the Supreme Court challenging the CIAA’s use of stings. However, Pradeep Koirala at the CIAA defends the practice saying the agency provides money to victims of corruption to break the chain of bribery. “We facilitate it only when service seekers do not have the money for the bribe and approach us with an application,” he added.Even former police chief Hemanta Malla who has worked at the CIAA says the agency’s use of stings goes against the basic principle of ‘secret action’. He admits that sting operations can be used to expose serious crimes like match fixing, human trafficking and drug trafficking, but says the use of sting operations against petty crime is ‘overkill’.“The target of secret action should be to break organised crime networks, but the CIAA’s operation seems just focused on arresting junior-ranking officials. This should be stopped because the sting tool can be misused,” Malla added.Advocate Bhimarjun Acharya is clear about how to complain about corruption in Nepal: “There are so many ways citizens can lodge complaints against bribery, but entrapping someone as part of an investigation is not the way in a civilised society.”<a href="https://cijnepal.org.np/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://cijnepal.org.np/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1595658441787000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFNx-tiTfqcQt1OnemJShWk6Bp_yQ">Center for Investigative Journalism-Nepal</a>

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CIAA traps small fish, lets big ones go

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108131140/636a4e8a9c7e80680e04fcbejpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1200" height="1584"/><figcaption>Illustration: BHANU BHATTARAI</figcaption></figure>When Prime Minister KP Oli and NCP co-chair Prachanda had a luncheon meeting at the home of business tycoon Durga Prasai last year, a photo posted on social media (pictured below) went viral spawning memes and widespread ridicule. The word ‘marsi’ for the red rice they were seen eating entered the Nepali lexicon as a <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/from-the-nepali-press/whats-so-funny/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">synonym for sleaze</a>.This was not the first time politicians have been wined and dined by captains of industry, nor were Oli and Dahal the only leaders to do so. Such politico-business nexus has been standard operating procedure no matter what form of government Nepal has had in its history. The only difference is that these days they do not even try to hide the collusion.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108131140/636a4e8d9c7e80680e04fcbfjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="427"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Private medical colleges are a glaring symbol of this symbiosis. Durga Prasai was accused of attempting to lobby for laws to open his B&amp;C Medical College in Jhapa. In fact, medical colleges have become such a lucrative way to rake in money that political connections are essential for those investing in this medical-industrial complex.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/red-rice/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Red rice</a>, Editorial<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/from-the-nepali-press/whats-so-funny/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">What's so funny?</a>, Nepali Times<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108131140/636a4e8f9c7e80680e04fcc0jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1050" height="652"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Businesses provide politicians with the funds they require at election time, the intention being that they will extract their pound of flesh when the politician comes to power. "This negative culture of paying politicians and influencing policy is growing in Nepal, and is at the centre of the corruption epidemic," says political scientist Krishna Khanal.The <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-power-and-pull-of-pathibhara/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">death of Ang Tsering Sherpa</a> of Yeti Airlines in a <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/helicopter-carrying-tourism-minister-crashes/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">helicopter crash in February</a> was a big blow to Prime Minister K P Oli, who had close personal dealings with him. Sherpa served as a fixer for Oli, and bagged coveted real estate and other deals for his conglomerate in return.Sherpa allowed the UML and now NCP to work out of his Ring Road villa. Last month, Oli inaugurated a monastery (pictured below) in Sherpa’s memory in Lumbini, and appointed relative Dawa Futi Sherpa ambassador to Spain. Sherpa's company Thamserku has leased several hectares adjacent to Narayanhiti Palace, which the Attorney General's  report says cost the government Rs5 billion. The lease renewal gives Thamserku the upper hand.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108131140/636a4e919c7e80680e04fcc1jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="320"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>NCP leaders now often meet at the house of businessman Capt Rameshwar Thapa, and that was where negotiations for the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/one-body-two-heads/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">party’s unification</a> took place last year. Construction contractor Sharada Prasad Adhikari is untouchable because of his proximity to Pushpa Kamal Dahal -- even though most of his projects are abandoned half-complete.Dahal is also known to hobnob with businessman Ajeya Raj Sumargi, who often acts as a frontman for the politician’s business dealings. Sumargi's Nepal Satellite Telecom got a license for cheap and has refused to pay Rs740 million in taxes it owes to Nepal Telecom. There is political pressure on many organisations to legitimise Sumargi money transfers into the country without disclosing their source. But due to political pressure most investigations are stalled.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108131140/636a4e939c7e80680e04fcc2jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="770"><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108131140/636a4e959c7e80680e04fcc3jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="333" height="316">Nepal Communist Party co-chair Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda with businessman Ajayraj Sumargi during an inauguration of Prasad Homes in Pashupati (left) , Kathmandu and at the factory of Himalaya's Spring Water in Rasuwa district (right). Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/absolute-power-numbs-absolutely/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Absolute power numbs absolutely</a>, Damakanta JayshiThere are many other examples of what critics call ‘crony communism’ which has  flourished especially after the NCP government took power. The impunity and corruption associated with this style of governance has made the neo-rich richer, and the Nepali middle class sink into poverty."When the distance between politicians and businesspersons is blurred, policies are made not in the favour of the general public, but specific interest groups," admits Yubaraj Gyawali, who himself is an NCP leader. "That is where the plunder of the country's resources for personal benefit begins."After Nepal’s sugar barons convinced the government that imported sugar was harming domestic industry, politicians first raised the taxes on imported sugar, then completely banned it at the behest of business. The price of sugar soared immediately from Rs65 to Rs100 per kg. The new budget also protects domestic tea, coffee, dairy producers as well as the footwear and cement industries -- even when domestic cement is 30% more expensive than Indian cement, and double the cost of the same grade of Chinese cement.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/crony-communism/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Crony communism</a>, Editorial<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108131140/636a4e979c7e80680e04fcc4jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1050" height="838">All this is, of course, nothing new. UML Finance Minister Bharat Mohan Adhikari was criticised in the 1990s for serving the interests of businesses. Adhikari’s Finance Secretary Rameshwor Khanal resigned then during a budget formulation process, accusing industrialist Binod Chaudhary of exerting undue pressure on state policy. Chaudhari is now Nepal’s only dollar billionaire, #1349 on the Forbes List of the world’s wealthiest men, and has just wangled a license for CG Telecom.Real estate broker Shobhakanta Dhakal is also in the news for transferring a part of public property in Baluwatar to NCP general secretary Bishnu Poudel. Khanal is influential enough to gain a berth in the UML’s list of proportional representation candidates in the 2017 election. Poudel claims to have bought the land, but critics claim it was transferred to his name for free in return for unspecified favours.Nepal may have gone from monarchy to republic and seen many changes in governments, but that does not seem to affect Deepak Malhotra and his businesses. He accompanied PM Oli on visits to China, Cambodia, and Vietnam. Even while he was being investigated for involvement in the gold smuggling racket, Malhotra was leased airport real estate to build a commercial complex. (see box)."If a country's democracy is well developed, then a politician's career plummets if he or she is seen to have unethical dealings with business," says former Finance Secretary Rameshwor Khanal. “That is not the case in Nepal.”<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108131140/636a4e9a9c7e80680e04fcc5jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="251"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Businessmen like Suraj Vaidya of the Vaidya Group, Chamber of Commerce President Rajeshkaji Shrestha, former NRN president Upendra Mahato, and construction magnate Madan Adhikari all have multifarious political connections. Some freely admit that being close to power is the only way to do business in Nepal.Even opposition leaders like the NC’s Sher Bahadur Deuba have close links in the business community, although he is not with them much these days because he is out of power. Deuba was embroiled in controversy for trying to rush a contract for the Kathmandu-Tarai highway to the Indian company IL &amp; FS, and was also accused of pressurising bankers to waive almost Rs2 billion in loans taken by hotelier Piyush Amatya.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108131140/636a4e9c9c7e80680e04fcc6jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="345"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Nepal’s tycoons are now not satisfied with just influencing politicians, some are becoming politicians themselves. Rajyalaxmi Golchha became a member of parliament through then UML’s PR quota, and publicly admitted she paid Rs70 million to the party for the honour. Many other businessmen in Parliament today have also paid their way into the legislature.Punarjan Acharya a former political adviser to the NC is aghast. "This growing unhealthy nexus between businesspersons and politicians does not just hurt the economy, it puts democracy itself in danger," he says.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/illiberal-ills/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Illiberal ills</a>, EditorialNepal's only international airport hostage to business interestsSharad OjhaIn December 2018, PM KP Oli declared that Tribhuvan International Airport would be made a "boutique airport." However, a 5-storey building in front of the airport, built not just against 'boutique' aesthetics but also against regulations, makes a mockery of his declaration.The building is constructed by 'Rasuwa KD Joint Venture' company, owned by controversial businessman Deepak Malhotra, alleged gold smuggler Bimal Poddar, and MP from Rasuwa, Mohan Acharya. The company was supposed to construct a parking lot, a modern park, a waiting area, a playpen for children, and other infrastructure. But except for a tall building and a parking lot that is highly inconvenient to arriving passengers, nothing else has been constructed.After much protest from airport officials themselves, an investigation committee was formed under the airport's Deputy Director, Jagannath Niraula. The committee submitted its report in April 2019. The report concluded that the building had been constructed against agreements and should be demolished if needed, and that its impacts on airport security should be investigated.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/try-visiting-nepal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Try visiting Nepal</a>, Sewa BhattaraiBut more than a month later, the recommendations have not been implemented. "We know the building goes against regulations, but what can we do if the person we are supposed to investigate hobnobs with the Prime Minister?" says an engineer who did not want to be a part of the investigation committee. He was referring to Malhotra, who is seen accompanying PM KP Oli on many international visits.Malhotra's company had started enjoying impunity after Lokman Singh Karki became the head of Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of in April 2013. Anyone who dared question his company was called for questioning by the CIAA instead. But even two and a half years after Karki was deposed, Malhotra's influence continues to grow stronger through his associations with even higher political connections. He evades investigation despite being accused of VAT corruption and gold smuggling.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/kathmandu-airport-is-nepal-in-a-microcosm/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kathmandu Airport is Nepal in a microcosm</a>, Anil Chitrakar

The business of politics undermines Nepal’s democracy

<img width="1050" height="696" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108101144/636a25c89c7e80680e0439dfjpeg.jpg" alt=""/>The Supreme Court’s verdict on Wednesday requiring the Malaysian company Axiata and Ncell Nepal to pay billions capital gains tax on their purchase of Nepal’s largest private telecom provider Ncell will end a <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/2016/06/03/taxing-time-for-ncell/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">controversy</a> that has dragged on for three years, but is expected to further chill <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/Comment/making-nepal-fdi-friendly,853" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nepal’s foreign investment climate</a>.A full bench of the apex court headed by Chief Justice Cholendra Shumsher Rana decided after two days of hearings that Reynolds Holdings Ltd was a shell company and the real owner of <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/2016/05/16/the-tax-in-question/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ncell</a> was <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/2015/12/21/axiata-buys-80-stake-in-ncell/comment-page-1/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Axiata</a>, and it was liable to pay the tax along with Ncell Nepal.Justices Rana, Mira Khadka, Bishwambhar Prasad Shrestha, Ananda Mohan Bhattarai and Tanka Bahadur Moktan were deliberating on a public interest litigation writ filed by former secretary and advocate Dwarika Nath Dhungel and six others that Ncell Nepal and Axiata were responsible to pay capital gains tax when they bought the company from the <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/interview/Nepal-very,1104" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Swedish-Finnish telecom company TeliaSonera</a> in 2016.When TeliaSonera sold Reynolds Holdings shares in Ncell to Axiata for over $1 billion, Nepal’s Large Tax-payers’ Office had said Reynolds owed the government Rs35 billion in taxes and demanded it pay the amount and fines to a total of Rs61 billion.Ncell Nepal refused to pay that full amount, and transferred only Rs21 billion capital gains tax. After this, the writ was filed, and the Supreme Court on Wednesday also rejected a case filed by Ncell.The case became controversial after two foreign investors traded ownership of a Nepal-based telecom company. Since TeliaSonera has already left Nepal, the Court found that the buyer is liable to pay capital gains tax if the seller did not.Senior advocate Surendra Bhandari says that it is international practice that the seller has to pay capital gains tax on any sale of assets, but says the Supreme Court is right in assessing that the seller was allowed to leave the country without paying tax and to put the onus on the buyer.Wednesday decision now sets a precedent for the buyer to also be responsible for paying capital gains tax. Officials at the Internal Revenue Service say that although the country’s treasury will benefit from the tax payment, there has been no investigation into why the seller was allowed to get away without paying taxes, and fears that the case will have negative repercussions on future investment.Eighty percent of Ncell’s ownership is with Reylonds Holding registered in the British Virgin Islands and 20% with Niraj Govinda Shrestha. Ncell’s main promoter was Reynolds Holding through TeliaSonera’s office in Norway.According to Nepal’s tax laws, TeliaSonera’s sale of Ncell to Axiata had a capital gains tax liability of Rs35 billion. Axiata had written to the Internal Revenue Office before the sale if it was liable to pay capital gains tax in Nepal, but there was no reply from its director at the time, Chudamani Sharma.After that the tax controversy got mired in politics, with various party leaders and former CIAA chief <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/Legalese/parliament-and-court-plays,822" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lokman Singh Karki</a> vying for underhand deals that would let the guilty go free. Says advocate Bhandari: “The Supreme Court decision seems to be driven by the logic that any buyer should first inquire about the liabilities of the seller before any purchase.”However, other retired revenue officials say it is unfair to blame Axiata, and ask it to pay capital gains tax that should have been paid by TeliaSonera. He says the really guilty party here are the politicians who allowed TeliaSonera to leave without paying taxes, and this will dim Nepal’s investment climate just before an Investment Summit planned for next month, and after <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/to-davos-with-hammer-and-sickle/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Prime Minister KP Oli’s visit to Davos</a> with the message that <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/crony-communism/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nepal was open for business</a>.The Surpeme Court verdict has also exposed a loophole in Nepal’s tax laws that allows shell companies to get away without paying taxes. TeliaSonera had its dividends frozen in Nepal by the Large Tax-payers’ Office, but the Supreme Court allowed the company to repatriate its profits.   According to the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepalis-in-tax-havens-swiss-banks-money-laundering/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nepal Leaks exposes</a> by the Centre for Investigative Journalism and the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, Ncell owners had used the company to launder money as foreign direct investment. Ajeya Raj Sumargi, a businessman close to the former Maoist party and Birendra Mahato of the Federal Socialist Forum Nepal and brother of billionaire overseas Nepali Upendra Mahato were implicated in documents leaked through the Panama Papers about tax havens.The verdict this week opens the door for Nepal to tax FDI that is coming in from offshore tax havens.   Read also: <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/Comment/making-nepal-fdi-friendly,853" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Making Nepal FDI friendly,</a> Shyamal K Shrestha<a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=962#.XFwMylUzaUk" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Fight for FDI</a>, Ashutosh Tiwari<a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/from-nepali-press/Ncell-has-complied-to-all-obligations,3047" target="_blank" rel="noopener">"Ncell has obliged to all obligations"</a>

Supreme Court weighs in on Ncell tax dispute

Nepal’s only international aviation gateway, at Kathmandu airport, will cut night-time operation hours to allow construction of taxiways, and airlines have been told to curtail flights. This is expected to lead to more than normal chaos during the height of peak autumn and spring tourist seasons at an airport that is congested even at the best of times. The airport will close from 10PM to 8AM from 8 November-31 March 2025. The taxiways will now connect to the thresholds at both ends of the runway, making the airport more efficient in handling higher frequencies of landings and takeoffs. The parallel taxiway extension will allow international flights to land every 4 minutes instead of the current every 7 minutes. At present planes have to wait to land until a plane taking off backtracks along the runway.&nbsp; Kathmandu is Nepal’s only airport with international operations, and it has only one runway that is only one way in from the south over the mountains. With the taxiway improvement, the airport will be able to handle 42 aircraft landings and takeoffs per hour — double the current capacity.&nbsp; The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) has been trying to entice international airlines to also start flying to and from the other two international airports at Pokhara and Bhairawa (Lumbini) by slashing landing and handling charges. But so far only Nepal Airlines operates a weekly flight to Bhairawa from Kuala Lumpur.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241018161016_046569e53d1d66cd445cc66c697c0ef724810aec9f54bdf827481e3cd6b80c32.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20241018161016_046569e53d1d66cd445cc66c697c0ef724810aec9f54bdf827481e3cd6b80c32" data-rendition-name="original" width="2356" height="1134" loading="lazy" alt="Kathmandu airport expansion"> <figcaption>Kathmandu Airport Expansion plan with extension of taxiways to the thresholds of runways 02 and 20 that will limit airport operations from 8 November 2024 - 31 March 2025. Areas in blue are existing structures, including the international terminal which in future will be the domestic airport, and the new international terminal near the north end of the runway,</figcaption> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241018121028_6e17cc2ee87c1b02d78cb54905825b7aa15299b7a00f5eddb01a59579ab85c1a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20241018121028_6e17cc2ee87c1b02d78cb54905825b7aa15299b7a00f5eddb01a59579ab85c1a" data-rendition-name="original" width="1353" height="1328" loading="lazy" alt="Kathmandu airport NT"> </figure>  CAAN has reportedly told international airlines to cut their flight frequency to Kathmandu citing the shorter operation hours and has told budget airlines to shift some of their flights to Pokhara or Bhairawa, or face cuts. Many airlines currently operate regular flights to and from Kathmandu between 10PM and 8AM: Air Arabia to Sharjah, Fly Dubai to Dubai, Jazeera Airways to Kuwait, Cathay Pacific to Hong Kong, Singapore Airlines, several Nepal Airlines flights, and one of four daily flights by Qatar Airways to Doha. Jazeera Airways, FlyDubai, and Thai AirAsia have applied and got permission from CAAN to begin regular flights to Bhairawa’s Gautam Buddha International Airport. Starting 9 November, FlyDubai will start making a stopover in Bhairawa before flying on to Kathmandu. Immigration, customs and security are all fully functional in Bhairawa. In Kathmandu, the next phase of the airport upgrade includes converting the current international terminal for domestic operations, the construction of a new international terminal where the domestic departure area is now, as well as moving the hangars and the Nepal Army Air Wing to the eastern side of the runway. The apron area will also double its parking space for widebody jets. This is part of a Airport Capacity Enhancement Project that was initially funded through a $80 million loan from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), and the entire masterplan is expected to cost $800 million. This project is the latest upgrade to Nepal’s only international airport since it saw its first flight in 1949. The current international and domestic terminals are too small to handle the current annual traffic volume of 8.5 million passengers a year that is growing at 20% a year.

Kathmandu airport to cut flight hours

As Kathmandu becomes more congested and polluted, and with remote online work becoming the norm, many professional Nepalis are planning to retire in Pokhara, or move there.&nbsp; With its stunning mountain panorama, balmy winters and proximity to a profusion of wilderness areas, builders are responding to this demand with new townhouses, housing development and apartments. One such block of flats is the 10-storey <a href="https://sungavaapartment.com/">Sungava Apartment</a> located at Phulbari above the Seti River, near the point where it flows into and under Pokhara. The imposing structure near Manipal Hospital is almost complete, and on a recent visit the site was strewn with huge boulders unearthed while digging the foundation.&nbsp; The Seti brought down these boulders during a gigantic flood that geologists estimate happened 800 years ago when a chunk of Annapurna IV broke off and ploughed into the glacier below. Today, Sungava (means ‘orchid’) sits safely on a high terrace, 100m above the blue-green Seti and commands a view of Dhaulagiri, Annapurna South, Machapuchre, Annapurna III and IV.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2024102411104_5f8fc736c86ea3c08d7bef43bb727081d3cc1a2caa55ae2b441717e6044de7e9.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="2024102411104_5f8fc736c86ea3c08d7bef43bb727081d3cc1a2caa55ae2b441717e6044de7e9" data-rendition-name="original" width="2016" height="1512" loading="lazy" alt="High living below the Himalaya NT"> </figure>  The soil here is conglomerate that has solidified like concrete, and the boulders were extracted by heavy earthmovers. It is intriguing to think that these metamorphic rocks as big as cars, rounded by glacial grinding, were once a part of a much higher Annapurna IV. Even for those with little interest in geology, Sungava is an ideal place to contemplate the tectonic forces that pushed these peaks into the sky to be sculpted into delicate shapes by wind, snow, earthquake and avalanche over millions of years. The view of the Himalayan panorama from Sungava’s many balconies are breathtaking when not obscured by clouds, or the haze that drifts in from across the southern border. On most days, just watching the towering pyramid of Machapuchre (Tamu name: कतासुँ क्लिको) play hide and seek with the clouds is mesmerising. There are rocks aplenty at Phulbari, and it is probably the flowers that grew along the flat terraces e that gave the place its flowery name. The boulders will hopefully be turned into a rock garden while landscaping. An nearby restaurant complex is making the best use of the stones in its design, using flat rocks as outdoor benches and tables. Sungava was designed by the husband-wife architect team of Deepak Sherchan and Jyoti Joshi of <a href="https://thedarkmermaidamarbshrestha.blogspot.com/2013/12/creative-builders-collaborative-cbc.html">Creative Builders Collaborative (CBC)</a>, which also built Heritage Plaza, Indreni Apartment and numerous other projects in Nepal. Sadbhavana retains CBC’s trademark Newari-style masonry and here it borrows from the orange brickwork of the old town of Pokhara, integrating it with modern design elements. A few of those heritage houses are still standing in Ganesh Tole and Ram Krishna Tole in Pokhara’s old quarter.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2024102411108_5eb64a4885961b6d30781cefeb1e8a313da313ac5227c7a66b60f0c7d48d6fab.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="2024102411108_5eb64a4885961b6d30781cefeb1e8a313da313ac5227c7a66b60f0c7d48d6fab" data-rendition-name="original" width="1362" height="595" loading="lazy" alt="High living below the Himalaya NT"> </figure>  About 400m from the apartment past a bend on the river, and down below three tiers of terraces in the canyon is a suspension bridge. Below it, the Seti is still swollen with post-monsoon flow as it tumbles away in a hurry to head down south.&nbsp; Back at the apartment, it is quiet, far away from the hubbub of Lakeside a 15 minute drive away, and in the lap of greenery. There are 52 units at Sungava and it already has a close-knit prospective community of professionals, including doctors, publishers, engineers, and businesspeople from the renewable energy and IT sectors.&nbsp; Some residents say they opted for a second home in Pokhara to make it a ‘base camp’ to explore the Annapurnas with its many hiking trails made newly accessible with new roads. With the NRN citizenship law, overseas Nepalis can now also buy the flats. &nbsp; The floor plans include options for north and south-facing 3-bedroom apartments with verandas, and the facility has underground parking has EV charging, heated pool, sauna and gym. There are still some unsold apartments with panoramic views of the mountains and one can imagine oneself at the kitchen with its huge window, humming a ditty while preparing breakfast: “खाना पकाउँ हिमाल हेरेर...”

High living below the Himalaya

When the United Nations held its Summit of the Future at its headquarters in New York in September, many world leaders, including Nepal’s Prime Minister K P Oli, highlighted the effect of climate breakdown in increasing the frequency and intensity of natural disasters. What did not get as much attention was the long term impact of the climate crisis on food production. In fact, heat stress, weather extremes and the consequences on rain-fed agriculture is already being felt worldwide, undermining the chances of the <a href="https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/">UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)</a> being met by 2030.&nbsp; The SDG’s 17 targets commit countries like Nepal to reduce poverty and inequality, end malnutrition, protect the natural environment, and ensure that citizens all enjoy health, justice and prosperity without leaving anyone behind.&nbsp; However, besides the impact of climate breakdown on agricultural production, in Nepal the area under cultivation is impacted by urban expansion, falling productivity and the need for expensive inputs like fertiliser and pesticides.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241019041052_626413c5baf4dae407ac9579231b41daeb51510aa636b75aeb7489d94cca6a62.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20241019041052_626413c5baf4dae407ac9579231b41daeb51510aa636b75aeb7489d94cca6a62" data-rendition-name="original" width="999" height="1500" loading="lazy" alt="urban agriculture in Kathmandu"> <figcaption>Kathmandu's urban sprawl is eating into its fertile cultivable lands. Photo: TAYLOR MASON</figcaption> </figure>  Now, a new study led by Nepali researcher Prajal Pradhan at the University of Groningen in The Netherlands looks at how urban agriculture may offer a solution to falling food production and meeting SDG targets. The researchers evaluated 1,450 publications exploring the contributions of urban agriculture with both positive and negative effects, and published their findings in the journal Cells Report Sustainability. Urban agriculture can help achieve 17 SDGs, positively influencing 81 targets. However, it could also undermine 51 goals.&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-vanishing-land">The vanishing land</a>, Taylor Mason “Urban agriculture offers immense potential for sustainable development, but realising this potential depends crucially on adopting practices that minimise its adverse effects while maximising its benefits,” Pradhan explains. Urban agriculture can substantially enhance urban food security, provide employment to the urban poor, serve as ground water recharge in built-up areas, and preserve open spaces that can serve as safe havens during disasters like earthquakes. However, it also presents problems like the potential health risks from contamination and the need for expensive inputs. &nbsp; “Urban agriculture plays a definitive role in advancing the SDGs, but achieving this requires tailored, context-specific solutions that address the unique challenges of different regions,” says Yuanchao Hu of Wuhan University in China and who is a researcher at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research. “But it needs equitable access and rigorous management of environmental risks.”&nbsp; Rapid urbanisation is eating into Nepal’s most fertile agricultural land, which means farming in remaining open spaces inside cities can be a viable alternative, especially as food prices rise.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241019041052_7b7c9413086226fbdc630d45acf772cfa1ced77a8970b9056ec5ec7e5226fdf8.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20241019041052_7b7c9413086226fbdc630d45acf772cfa1ced77a8970b9056ec5ec7e5226fdf8" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="999" loading="lazy" alt="urban agriculture in Kathmandu"> <figcaption>A vegetable patch in between new houses in Thimi. Photo: TAYLOR MASON</figcaption> </figure>  “The conversion of Nepal’s most fertile land into cities is a severe problem,” Pradhan told Nepali Times. “Crop cultivation, horticulture, agroforestry, beekeeping, livestock rearing, or aquaculture can all be farming activities within and around cities.”&nbsp; The study makes recommendations for sustainable practices that build on the positive aspects of urban agriculture while mitigating the downsides, thereby promoting more resilient cities in future. Research shows that urban agriculture has been helping many countries attain SDG targets by enhancing food security and biodiversity while helping education and preservation of open spaces.&nbsp; Indeed, many farmers from the hinterland who have settled in Kathmandu Valley or other urban areas of the country have been practicing urban agriculture, leasing neighbourhood patches or cultivating roof gardens both out of necessity because of inflation and falling income to grow their own food, and also as a fulfilling hobby. Saurav Dhakal, a sustainability advocate with Story Cycle and now research fellow at the Asian Institute of Technology in Thailand, says there are socio-economic and environmental benefits of urban agriculture. “It provides benefits to all urban dwellers, regardless of their income status,” says Dhakal, “families get fresh food, and there are many other benefits like water retention, heat regulation and biodiversity. These are all public goods, so special government incentives may be needed.” It is not unusual to see vegetable patches and even paddy fields within inner city Kathmandu where an older generation of farmers are using available fertile land and <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/rooftop-gardens-kathmandu,1415">roof gardens to produce fresh, nutritious food </a>to reduce their dependence on food items that have to be bought after being trucked in from large distances.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2024101905100_1291ce98dbbb8caed8702ac4b1d469b3e13016d7ecaaf3bfd5f91c974d3c0c77.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="2024101905100_1291ce98dbbb8caed8702ac4b1d469b3e13016d7ecaaf3bfd5f91c974d3c0c77" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="999" loading="lazy" alt="urban agriculture in Kathmandu"> <figcaption>An older generation of farmers are using any available fertile land to continue farming but it is getting more and more difficult. Photo: TAYLOR MASON </figcaption> </figure>  Nepal’s urban population grew rapidly from only 3.6% in 1991 to 25% today. There is large outmigration from the mountains to peri-urban areas of the Tarai, to Kathmandu Valley and Pokhara, with many young men then moving abroad for work. Kathmandu Valley’s population has swelled to nearly 3 million, and is growing at 6.5% a year. Dilip Shrestha, 71, used to work for Nepal Food Corporation, so he knew firsthand about inflation, shortages and vegetables with pesticide residue. So, when he designed his new house in Kathmandu, he built a spacious roof where he grows cucumber, ginger, garlic, coriander, onions, tomatoes, chili, beans, okra, pumpkin and lettuce. His family eats healthier, and he has reduced dependence on the market.&nbsp; The co-author of the Cell Reports Sustainability journal article, Daya Raj Subedi who is a PhD candidate at Beijing Forestry University, says urban agriculture also promotes inclusion and psycho-social wellbeing.&nbsp; He says, “A crucial finding of the study is the identification of opportunities and challenges associated with urban agriculture, it can promote sustainable transformation of society.” In Banepa, 55-year-old Bijaya Manandhar in her lifetime has watched the fertile farms of her neighbourhood that used to supply vegetables to Kathmandu, now completely built up with no open space left. The pandemic lockdown prompted her to turn to the family’s <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/rooftop-agriculture-on-the-roof-of-the-world">ancestral livelihood by growing food</a> not on terrace farms, but on the roof terrace. Manandhar is now a part of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/rooftop-agriculture-on-the-roof-of-the-world%5C%5C">कौसी खेती र करेसाबारी क्रान्ती</a> (Rooftop Farming and Garden Revolution) which has an online membership of 52,000, and awards annual prizes to women who excel in urban agriculture.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241019041052_7257f5def8f823f35a799fa6f6825e153f2ffa406ac11325d4fe74049b79e96d.jpg" data-media-id="editor_8" data-image-id="20241019041052_7257f5def8f823f35a799fa6f6825e153f2ffa406ac11325d4fe74049b79e96d" data-rendition-name="original" width="1600" height="736" loading="lazy" alt="urban agriculture in Kathmandu"> <figcaption>Rooftop farming is gaining popularity as a form of urban agriculture. </figcaption> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241019041052_beff1a4494ce896dd8fd383ee1f518e5448bcf7ea8bb138255391c7bcb9769ed.jpg" data-media-id="editor_9" data-image-id="20241019041052_beff1a4494ce896dd8fd383ee1f518e5448bcf7ea8bb138255391c7bcb9769ed" data-rendition-name="original" width="4000" height="3000" loading="lazy" alt="urban agriculture in Kathmandu"> </figure>  Pradhan says the challenge now is to upscale such examples of successful urban agricultural practices so they support Neal’s efforts to meet SDG targets. He adds, “Crop cultivation around cities can be protected by land use plans and regulations. Promoting community-based agriculture, including rooftop gardens, requires community engagement and public-private partnerships across the food value chain.”&nbsp; Such support would accelerate the popularity of existing rooftop farming and community gardens in Kathmandu Valley, or kitchen garden initiatives in Pokhara, and building on traditional farming practices that are preserved and integrated into urban settings like in Bhaktapur and Banepa. In Lalitpur, the Women Entrepreneurship Facilitation Center promotes urban farming enhancing both sustainability and empowerment.&nbsp; Another co-author of the report, Yuanchao Hu from China says followup research of the team will aim to identify good practices in local urban agriculture practices. He adds, “There are examples of urban agriculture that optimise sustainability, ensuring that it remains a viable solution for cities globally while countries try to meet SDG targets.” Prajal Pradhan, Daya Raj Subedi, Kshitij Dahal, Yuanchao Hu, Prakriti Gurung, Sijal Pokharel, Sagar Kafle, Biplav Khatri, Sudeeksha Basyal, Monika Gurung, and Aruna Joshi. Urban Agriculture matters for sustainable development. Cell Reports Sustainability, 1:100217, 2024. [DOI: 10.1016/j.crsus.2024.100217] Prajal Pradhan (<a href="mailto:p.pradhan@rug.nl">p.pradhan@rug.nl</a>) This article is brought to you by <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/" target="_blank">Nepali Times</a>, in collaboration with <a href="https://inpsjapan.com/en/" target="_blank">INPS Japan</a> and <a href="https://sgi-peace.org/" target="_blank">Soka Gakkai International</a>, in consultative status with UN ECOSOC.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20240630110640_30c3782f9c09219bf1c249b51483a3cfb7a53a06d117d2aebd23ca7080d12758.jpg" data-media-id="editor_14" data-image-id="20240630110640_30c3782f9c09219bf1c249b51483a3cfb7a53a06d117d2aebd23ca7080d12758" data-rendition-name="original" width="680" height="103" loading="lazy" alt="SDG logo"> </figure>

Back to the land in the cities

The 700-year-old Lakshmi Narasingha temple in Bhaktapur houses a rare half-lion and half-human incarnation of Lord Vishnu carrying the Goddess Lakshmi. The temple was destroyed in the 1934 mega earthquake that killed 10,000 people and destroyed many monuments in Kathmandu Valley. It was rebuilt by a German project in the 1980s, but as a single-storey structure instead of its original two-tier pagoda design.&nbsp; With new findings from in-depth research, Bhaktapur municipality began re-restoring the temple in 2021, preserving its original architecture.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241017131016_2fae38cce543ad7b1f6de632feb3e212e08ed1acedd747830e949d7b8e878f18.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20241017131016_2fae38cce543ad7b1f6de632feb3e212e08ed1acedd747830e949d7b8e878f18" data-rendition-name="original" width="2048" height="1365" loading="lazy" alt="In with the old in Nepal NT"> </figure>  “Our temples and heritage sites hold deep meaning. It is disheartening to witness how often they lose their original elements, whether by design or accident,” explains Kumar Chawal of the Consumer Committee of Bhaktapur. “There is a need to preserve our architecture and protect its historical value for future generations. Otherwise, we risk losing a vital part of our identity.” The Laksmi Narsingha restoration is similar to the Bhai Dega temple in Patan Darbar Square which also collapsed in 1934, but was rebuilt with a Moghul-style dome by the Rana government at the time. Only two months before the 2015 earthquake, heritage conservationists had started to rebuild Bhai Dega as the original three-tier based on early photographs. But priorities shifted when four other temples in the square were brought down by the 7.8M earthquake on 25 April 2015.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241017131016_697ea707d9ad163be5de5f2efbf5b70d3cab771adcc22f0fae6bf937c6cb0130.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20241017131016_697ea707d9ad163be5de5f2efbf5b70d3cab771adcc22f0fae6bf937c6cb0130" data-rendition-name="original" width="2048" height="1365" loading="lazy" alt="In with the old in Nepal NT"> </figure>  This showed how damage to monuments in Kathmandu Valley spanned from one earthquake to the next. Bhai Dega restoration remains half-complete to this day because money for its restoration ran out.&nbsp; Whereas Bhai Dega restoration was done by the Kathmandu Valley Preservation Trust with grants from western embassies and international foundations, in Bhaktapur it is the municipality itself that allocated the Rs30.7 million needed to restore the Lakshmi Narasingha temple. The expected date of completion is early 2025. The municipality and local communities are focusing on two main aspects: preserving the past and promoting localisation. The restoration team has designed a blueprint for the temple by using historical photographs and insights from older generations.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241017131016_182882fdc393c99e70d1d0490319e415229563666c4934e3a582426ebf00ca30.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20241017131016_182882fdc393c99e70d1d0490319e415229563666c4934e3a582426ebf00ca30" data-rendition-name="original" width="1200" height="560" loading="lazy" alt="In with the old in Nepal NT"> </figure>  “At first, the Lakshmi Narasingha temple had only one entrance, but during the demolition process, we uncovered the foundations of four doors. Now, we are restoring all of them. This is an example of how our ancient structures have changed over time, often without our knowledge,” says Chawal. “Constructing temples is not like building houses. They carry historical and spiritual values, which is why they hold a special place in our hearts,” he adds. By replicating ancient design elements and rebuilding the temple as accurately as possible to its original form, the team has stayed true to Bhaktapur’s soul. But the restoration also revived ancient techniques that were in danger of being forgotten, generating employment for woodcarvers, masons, and contractors. The community of Bhaktapur’s Gahiti neighbourhood near the famous Nyatapola Temple has also set aside specific days for locals to volunteer in the reconstruction work. This has encouraged young people to take pride in ownership of their heritage. Families have also supported the effort by donating funds for bells, the temple pinnacle, and other structural features to the temple.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241017131016_db850ec0c084cdbe54f65bee92dad2ad8122d20fd60ec87ec086fbb9d2f72bd6.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20241017131016_db850ec0c084cdbe54f65bee92dad2ad8122d20fd60ec87ec086fbb9d2f72bd6" data-rendition-name="original" width="2048" height="1365" loading="lazy" alt="In with the old in Nepal NT"> </figure>  “I feel at peace knowing I have contributed my sweat to restoring this temple,” said one volunteer. “It is our duty to preserve our temples and heritage. The Nyatapola area will look magical once this temple is completed.” Community mobilisation is a long-standing tradition in Bhaktapur. In the past, locals have actively participated in the restoration of other temples in the city, such as Bhairav and Nyatapola fostering a strong sense of ownership. This collective engagement has not only been crucial in preserving the city's historical monuments but also in strengthening the bond between local communities and their heritage, says officials at the municipality. While securing funding is essential, and the municipality showed it values heritage conservation, the Lakshmi Narasingha restoration is proof that active involvement and sense of responsibility of the local community is as important, if not more. Local involvement also means that the monuments will be cared for into the future, When locals take ownership of these efforts, the restored monuments are not only protected in the present but are also cared for in the future.