With just under two months remaining till the end of the current fiscal year, the<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepal-government-changes-again"> Nepal government</a> this week is set to announce its budget for the year 2025/26.&nbsp; Nepal’s budget has grown steadily over the past decade, from Rs618 billion in the fiscal year 2014/15 to Rs1.79 trillion in 2022/23. But this upward trend tells only half the story, as the total expenditure has consistently fallen short of the planned budget.&nbsp; Short of flamboyant promises and populist schemes, successive Nepali governments, regardless of party, have consistently failed to utilise the allocated budget. This year, Nepal spent just 36% of the allocated development budget. Such recurrent underspending diminishes the government's ability to simulate the<a href="https://www.econlib.org/library/Topics/Details/aggregatedemand.html#:~:text=What%20Is%20Aggregate%20Demand%3F,%2C%20services%2C%20and%20capital%20goods." target="_blank"> aggregate demand</a> and slows economic growth.&nbsp; The country’s current annual average total expenditure shortfall is just over 20%, largely due to bureaucratic and institutional inefficiencies that continue to hamper budget implementation. Furthermore, poorly-made project proposals, shoddy planning, slow-moving procurement activities, quick turnover of technical staff, and inefficient inter-ministerial coordination contribute to a limited capacity to administer development across Nepal.&nbsp; This has led to a culture of frantic, &nbsp;last-minute budget spending on Nepal, with <a href="https://internationalbudget.org/wp-content/uploads/Nepal-Budget-Credibility-and-the-Sustainable-Development-Goals.pdf" target="_blank">40</a>% of the allocated development expenditure spent on the final month of the fiscal year, leading to a misuse of resources and poor project results. These inadequacies are compounded by the lack of coordination between federal, provincial, and local governments, especially as capacity constraints at the subnational level have been a long-standing issue. Experts express particular concern over provincial and local governments, where staff are often short on technical skill and administrative know-how required for budget implementation.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250528030544_6eb2a05152532fbffd1ec32f130b0d030baf2b46963be269b68bc50417d1a814.png" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20250528030544_6eb2a05152532fbffd1ec32f130b0d030baf2b46963be269b68bc50417d1a814" data-rendition-name="original" width="512" height="485" loading="lazy" alt="Budget NT"> </figure>  For instance, provincial governments spent just 34% and local governments spent 24.4% of its budget in the fiscal year 2022/2023, which suggests a persistent deficit in planning, implementation, and resource management. &nbsp;&nbsp; A breakdown of the recurrent and capital expenditures reveals even deeper dysfunctions and gaps between the allocated and actual spending of recurrent and capital expenditure. Recurrent expenses are government spending to maintain <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/comment/nepals-uncivil-servants">public services</a> and administration, including interest, pensions, salaries, social security, and subsidies. Meanwhile, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/till-debt-do-us-part">capital expenditure</a> involves investing in long-term assets such as development programs, equipment, and <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/climate-smarter-himalayan-infrastructure">infrastructure projects </a>to expand the productive capacity of the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/now-the-economy-stupid">economy</a>. As it stands, Nepal’s recurrent expenditure is staggering compared to capital spending. <a href="https://scispace.com/papers/relationship-between-capital-and-recurrent-expenditure-with-hpoenzfmk4" target="_blank">Studies</a> show that the money spent on recurrent expenditure tends to have a stronger and more immediate effect on the GDP.&nbsp; In the fiscal year 2022/2023, Rs1.18 trillion was allocated for recurrent spending, while Rs380 billion was earmarked for capital expenditure. However, actual spending fell short of allocations in both expenditures, with recurrent expenditure falling short by an annual average of 14.7% and capital expenditure by a much larger average of 35.30% over the last nine years. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; This consistent underspending in capital expenditure is particularly alarming, and has direct impacts on the macroeconomy. It also plays a crucial role in creating economic momentum through the proper business <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/why-invest-in-nepal">investment </a>climate and business confidence.&nbsp; When capital expenditure falls short, aggregate demand contracts result in fewer<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/few-jobs-created-by-nepal-employment-drive"> employment opportunities</a>, reduced household consumption, and delayed infrastructure projects that discourage business investment.&nbsp; Meanwhile, the dominance of recurrent expenditure driven by rising administrative and social security expenditures continues to crowd out funds for capital investment, perpetuating a cycle where budget numbers grow, but transformative development fails to take shape. &nbsp; The core challenge in Nepal's budget execution can be explained by the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/social-sciences/principal-agent-theory" target="_blank">principal-agent</a> problem theory - an economic theory that explains the misalignment of conflicting incentives between two parties. In the context of Nepal, the Ministry of Finance is the principal authority that allocates the budgets and resources, while the line ministries are the agents assigned to propose and execute the budget.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250528030544_3b3b12a4065ae34b9703e848ff91f40ff570ce4b771e44d4338c4b134054f42e.png" data-media-id="editor_12" data-image-id="20250528030544_3b3b12a4065ae34b9703e848ff91f40ff570ce4b771e44d4338c4b134054f42e" data-rendition-name="original" width="512" height="377" loading="lazy" alt="Budget NT"> </figure>  However, a disconnect in incentives between the Finance Ministry and line ministries often leads to budget misallocations, which in turn cause inefficiencies and poor budget outcomes. &nbsp; One of the key dimensions of the problem is asymmetric information. The Line ministries possess detailed information of their needs and priorities in projects that are unavailable and unverifiable to the MOF. This information gap further incentivises ministries to propose higher budgets than actually needed.&nbsp; This is common behavior and expected in budget negotiations, as ministries compete for limited funds and seek to maximise their budget. Consequently, funds may be disproportionately allocated to ministries that lobby more effectively or exaggerate needs rather than those that would deliver the greatest public benefit. &nbsp;&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepal-in-the-red">Nepal in the red</a>, Ramesh Kumar This budgetary misallocation distorts not only priority projects &nbsp;but also induces &nbsp;inefficiencies in implementation. Where funds flow into inefficient use as a result, the government cannot deliver effective services or complete development projects within scheduled deadlines. This results in delayed spending, wastage of resources, and underperformance, which undermine economic growth and confidence in government. &nbsp; Closing the persistent gap between allocated total budgets and total expenditures and between the allocated and actual recurrent and capital expenditures requires the Finance Ministry to strengthen its <a href="https://ieg.worldbankgroup.org/what-monitoring-and-evaluation" target="_blank">monitoring and evaluation</a> to appropriately administer resources after the budget announcement.&nbsp; For this, the Finance Ministry must ensure effective monitoring of how line ministries spend their allocated funds throughout the fiscal year, so that it can hold the other ministries accountable and identify bottlenecks or time delays in budget implementation. This can be achieved through periodic reporting of progress, linking budget release with performance, and using combined financial management information systems. In addition, linking future budget allocations to ministries’ past performance in budget utilisation would create stronger incentives for responsible and efficient spending. When ministries know that their ability to secure funds in the next fiscal year depends on how well they manage and execute their current budget, they are more likely to submit realistic proposals and prioritise timely implementation. Doing so would help to synchronize the incentives of the Finance Ministry and line ministries in order for Nepal to effectively execute the budget and direct resources toward projects aligned with our national priorities, ultimately minimising the country’s budget deficit. Siddhartha Rayamajhi holds a BA in Economics from Kathmandu University.

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How Nepal can budget wisely

<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20230208140212/63e39fed9c7e80680e0d7013jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="960" height="640"/>Bishnu Poudel has inherited the Finance Ministry at a time when the country’s finances are in a shambles because of ill-advised and inept policies of his predecessor.The Nepal government is living beyond its means. Expenses are not in line with revenue. As of 11 January, the total expenditure of the Nepal government in the current fiscal year stands at Rs559 billion against revenue of only Rs398.7 billion. This year’s budget projected a 21% increase in revenue from last year. However, data as of November 2022 shows that revenue collection has actually decreased by 20%.Revenue therefore has not kept pace with increases in government salaries, allowances, and bonuses. If this trend continues, the newly elected 7-party opposition-less coalition government will be in serious trouble.Nepal’s imports decreased by 20.17% in the last five months compared to the same time period last year due to the Nepal Rastra Bank’s ban on luxury items to sustain dwindling foreign exchange reserves.Read also:<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/nepals-political-economy/"> Nepal’s political economy</a>, EditorialWith year-on-year inflation reaching 8.08%, ordinary citizens’ demand for goods and services has fallen sharply. Meanwhile, increased interest on loans to more than 15% as a response to rising inflation has discouraged investment.Nepal’s primary sources of revenue are remittances, tourism, and export. Tourism is still not back on track post-Covid due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and the country’s exports in the last five months decreased by 34.61% as compared to the same time during the last fiscal year. This country is running just on remittance money that Nepalis abroad send home — either through official banking channels or hundi.But Nepal cannot depend on remittance forever, especially as we need workers at home to stimulate the agriculture sector, manufacturing, construction and tourism, which in turn will create more domestic jobs.Moreover, in his third term at the finance ministry, doubts as to Bishnu Poudel’s budget discipline are not exactly unfounded. Despite the country’s inability to spend, Poudel during his first term as Finance Minister in 2015 introduced a budget that was 28% larger than the previous fiscal year and passed it through ordinance. And during his second tenure in 2020, he revealed a budget that was 12% bigger than the previous one.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nepals-opposition-less-parliament/">Nepal's opposition-less Parliament</a>, Shristi KarkiAlthough the minister may have inherited a country facing financial ruin from his forerunner, his own record is not particularly stellar. He is also known for recklessly increasing spending by increasing salaries and social security allowances during his terms in office.But the finance ministry and the minister think they are beyond reproach and criticism.It might seem like a given, but the finance ministry needs to take the initiative to reduce the wasteful government expenditure. Minister Poudel must work towards bridging the communication gap formed between his ministry and Nepal Rastra Bank during Janardan Sharma’s tenure. Unlike his predecessor, Poudel cannot interfere with the central bank’s autonomy on monetary policies.Too many parties in this coalition government means that there are too many hands on the budgetary honeypot. This will not make the minister’s job easy— but he will now have to navigate the will of seven political parties and their affiliated special interest groups and not be swayed by unreasonable demands from all sides. In fact, the Minister needs to be prepared to go against the coalition in order to prevent any misuse of the budget.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/prospects-of-nepals-tourism-in-2023/">Peak tourism in 2023</a>, Ramesh KumarAs finance minister, Poudel also bears the responsibility of raising the morale of business institutions and people to encourage investment and stimulate the economy.All of this is not to say that there have not been positives. Nepal’s foreign reserves increased by 2.5% from July 2022 to November 2022, following the embargo on the import of luxury items — even as there had been fears that Nepal would become ‘the next Sri Lanka’.Likewise, Nepal Rastra Bank’s recent amendment of the Working Capital Loans Guideline to increase investment might ease the strain on the economy.But embargoes and directives can only take the economy so far. Now, Poudel needs to work not just towards undoing and repairing the mismanagement of the ministry, but actively work towards policy reforms in order to get Nepal’s economy back on track.The minister must thus focus on good governance, refuse to buy into the demands of special interest groups, and facilitate the protection and appropriate use of state resources.Read also:<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/new-year-challenge-to-new-government/"> New year challenge to new government</a>, EditorialRamesh Kumar

Now the economy, stupid

<figure><img width="640" height="370" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121140/636b92619c7e80680e06f145jpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>Tata's Nexon EV series lines up its 5-seater. electric-powered SUVs, the most popular electric car in India this year, and soon to be launched in Nepal.</figcaption></figure>Electric car importers are preparing to meet a post-pandemic demand for electric vehicles after the Nepal government in its new budget scrapped <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepal-takes-3-steps-back-on-e-cars/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepal-takes-3-steps-back-on-e-cars/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1623653648829000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFYlNmJFW4Nf2GDTZoi3-VpVdwjwg">taxes imposed last year</a>.The new budget presented by Finance Minister Bishnu Paudel on 29 May has <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/new-nepal-budget-sparks-electric-comeback/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/new-nepal-budget-sparks-electric-comeback/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1623653648829000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHiTOH3wA_f6Uhx78O65Lzz8aLXSQ">completely repealed excise duty</a> on battery operated cars, while cutting customs duty down to the earlier 10%. Earlier <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/plug-ins/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/plug-ins/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1623653648829000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHWqGQrv3SikN7Z6JfANYPn7kZsuA">tax cuts in 2016</a> had increased affordability and, combined with improved range of battery cars, had made them gain popularity in Nepal.Importers of electric vehicles are now rushing to cash in on an <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/electri-city-cars/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/electri-city-cars/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1623653648829000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHbj5a27VragINFKdTBxJFSdWTqEQ">expected rise in customer demand</a> once the lockdown is lifted. In addition to the brands that have a head start in e-cars in Nepal like Hyundai, Kia, Mahindra, MG, India’s TATA Motors is planning an aggressive promotion of its electric Nexon model after its launch soon.<a href="https://cars.tatamotors.com/suv/nexon" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://cars.tatamotors.com/suv/nexon&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1623653648829000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEnJAYTtlCWAsW8S3SccRE-wAHevQ">Petrol and diesel Nexons</a> are already a familiar silhouette in Nepal’s roads since they were launched in 2017, and TATA hopes to repeat here the success it has in India with the electric version of the compact SUV. More than 4,000 electric Nexons have been sold in India since its launch in January, with the slowdown only because of the second wave lockdowns. This makes the Nexon India’s best-selling electric vehicle with 64% market share already.The redesigned <a href="https://nexonev.tatamotors.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://nexonev.tatamotors.com&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1623653648829000&amp;usg=AFQjCNE6oijZeLG82VSIq1wEKbKxFghzsA">Nexon EV SUV</a> with its Ziptron powertrain looks identical to the fossil version, except for its blue highlights, snazzy looking projector lights and aerodynamic front grill. Potential buyers in Nepal will be looking at ground clearance because of the country’s notoriously bad roads, and here the e-Nexon scores better than its Korean and Japanese counterparts with 205mm clearing underneath (compared to 177mm in the MG, for instance). <img width="640" height="232" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121140/636b92649c7e80680e06f146jpeg.jpg" alt=""><img width="640" height="238" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121140/636b92669c7e80680e06f147jpeg.jpg" alt="">The Nexon comes with all the accoutrements of its petroleum-burning cousin, including the ZConnect that allows owners to remotely keep track of the status of the car. The electric motor packs quite a punch in the torque department, giving the Nexon formidable acceleration (0-60km in 4.6 seconds) that will come in handy while overtaking a line of overloaded trucks on the Prithvi Highway. Charging is also quite impressive, with its lithium ion batteries (8 year warranty) to get 80% recharge in 1 hour with DC fast charge, and 100% all night home AC recharge with a 15amp plug. A petrol Nexon needs Rs5,500 to fully top up its 44l fuel tank, while it will cost less than Rs500 in the electricity bill for a complete charge.  <img width="640" height="444" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121140/636b92699c7e80680e06f148jpeg.jpg" alt="">The only downside of the Nexon with its 30.2kWH battery pack is perhaps its range which, at 312km on a full charge, is slightly less than the Kia Niro (455km) and the Hyundai Kona (482km) both of which have 64kWH batteries — but then those models cost more. Both ranges depend on AC use. Still, the Nexon's range is more than enough to get from Kathmandu to Pokhara on a single charge even with AC.This is what is making makes all electric vehicles financially attractive over the long term. Nepali consumers who had turned away from battery cars in the past year because of the higher taxes, will now find both the upfront cost and the energy savings will make e-vehicles much more competitive compared to fossil fuel cars.<a href="https://assured.sipradi.com.np/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://assured.sipradi.com.np&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1623653648829000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEizaM9cIGMcEhfi--1Qwvgcs_KEw">Sipradi</a>, the TATA distributors in Nepal have not yet announced the price of the electric Nexon, but it is suggested that it will be less than the Rs 4.9 million price tag of the petrol Nexon. This compares favourably to its nearest rival in the performance range, the smaller Mahindra eKUV which could sell for approximately Rs 4million after the tax revision.Nepal has announced it will stop selling petroleum cars by 2031, and this is only because neighbours India and China have also announced that they will only be making electric or hydrogen-fuel cars by that time.Other electric cars in the market include the Kia Niro which had stopped being imported after last year’s budget hike that took its price tag to a whopping Rs 12.5 million. But with the new budget revision, the price is down to Rs7 million again. Similarly, the Hyundai Kona is priced at Rs5.6-Rs7.1 million depending on the capacity, while its Iconiq electric sedan is Rs 5.7 million. MG’s Chinese made eZS was also quite popular till the budget hike last year, with dozens of its vehicles stuck at customs because they arrived after the tax increase. The price of these SUVs compare well with the Niro and Kona at Rs 5.1 million.The pioneer of electric vehicles in Nepal is the Mahindra e2O, and is still the most popular for city driving with a range of 120km, a ground clearance of 170mm and a price that has now come down to Rs2.6 million for the 4-door model. Needless to say, all these are approximate, as most dealers are still in wait-and watch mode and have not announced the exact prices yet. Despite the excise and import taxes being scrapped, customers will still have to fork out 13% VAT, and the government has kept Finance Minister Yubaraj Khatiwada’s increase in road tax for electric cars.E-vehicle owners paid no road tax from 2016 till last year’s budget. Since then, it has gone up to Rs15,000 per year for battery cars in the 50-125kW range, Rs20,000 for e-vehicles of 126-225kW and Rs30,000 for cars in the 226-and above range. Khatiwada last year slapped excise duties on e-vehicles of 30-80% depending on their capacity, and levied customs duty of 60%. He justified it saying electric SUVs were luxury items, and the government needed to augment revenue to fight the Covid-19 pandemic.This pushed e-vehicles out of the market at a time when sales had just started to pick up, and various brands of electric vehicles were gaining popularity because of their expanded range. But Khatiwada’s move  spiked prices of electric vehicles by 120-140%, making them less competitive vis-a-vis fossil-fuel alternatives.  Finance Bishnu Paudel’s move appears to be geared to reducing the petroleum import bill, and also to increase electricity consumption as Nepal’s new hydropower plants come online this year, giving an energy surplus.

E-vehicles prepare for post-lockdown boom

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110814110/636a539b9c7e80680e05235cjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1400" height="933"/><figcaption>Photo: BIKRAM RAI</figcaption></figure>In the past three years, federal and provincial governments spent a massive Rs216.5 million on vehicles. If we add the budget allocated to vehicles this fiscal year, it adds up to more than Rs250 million, not including the budgets for cars of local governments and projects.All three spheres of government are ignoring their own declaration to minimise expenses, and are wasting money on frivolous items. And the irony of it all is that the <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/SUV-nada-auto-show-2015,2586" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SUVs are driving along roads that are in advanced stages of disrepair</a> because the money has all gone for expensive cars.Read also: <a style="background-color: #ffffff; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/?p=31531&amp;preview=true" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Disrepair</a>Though the government has been <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/dangerous-driving/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">slow to provide development and service delivery</a>, vehicle-related expenses have grown six-fold since 2013. The federal government is the biggest spender: provincial governments accounted for just Rs20 million spent on cars in the past three years.This fiscal year the federal government spent 2.45% of its development budget on vehicles. While it is perennially unable to fully disburse that budget, it spent four times more on vehicles than the amount allocated, even transferring money from other budget lines to do so.“Using <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/nepals-fatalistic-ke-garne-culture/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">unspent development budget</a> to buy vehicles is just an unnecessary expense,” says former government secretary Purna Chandra Bhatttarai. Other experts say that it is not just elected representatives, bureaucrats are also draining state resources.According to the 56th report of the auditor-general, among the 800 vehicles in the 22 Singha Darbar-based ministries, only 622 are operational. Some are not being used even though they are in running condition — new vehicles are being bought before old ones are phased out. After an order from the PM’s office, 201 vehicles were handed over to various organisations this year, including many that were still in working order.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/no-shame/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">No shame</a>“Buying new vehicles involves kickbacks, so the tendency to buy new vehicles is increasing,” says former finance secretary Rameshwar Khanal.Four new Scorpios were bought for deputy attorney-generals last July, not because they were necessary but because the existing five-year-old vehicles were considered too old. At the end of the last fiscal year, 16 Scorpios were purchased for the chiefs of the House of Representatives and National Assembly, displacing 10-year-old vehicles.The National Inclusion Commission bought five vehicles costing at least Rs4 million for its chief and 4 members. But to date the commission has only one member — the others have not yet been appointed. The vehicles are covered and stored on the office premises. Many other new commissions have already bought vehicles for their yet-to-be appointed members.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/a-klepto-republic/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A klepto republic</a>, Editorial<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110814110/636a539c9c7e80680e05235djpeg.jpg" alt="" width="809" height="442">According to the auditor-general’s report, there are 1,323 officer-level officials in the Ministry of Agriculture, and 1,577 vehicles in operation. There are 174 vehicles for 90 officers in the Finance Ministry and 151 vehicles for 94 officials in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). Many senior officials are accused of having separate vehicles for home and office use.According to a guideline issued by the Finance Ministry, new vehicles should be bought only for newly-established organisations. Other offices should buy new vehicles only every 15 years. This guideline is considered legally binding, so ministries and other bodies are actually breaking the law. Only officials at joint secretary level and above are supposed to get vehicles, but today deputy secretaries and even junior officers are riding in government vehicles. Some officials have even acquired the habit of buying a new vehicle immediately after they are promoted or transferred.Joint Secretary Binod Kunwar of the PMO says the office has made efforts to have an inventory of vehicles in working order, but hasn’t succeeded because of lack of cooperation from government entities.Read also:<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-business-of-politics-undermines-nepals-democracy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The business of politics undermines Nepal's democracy</a>, Ramesh Kumar<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-has-to-curb-corruption-before-wooing-investors/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nepal has to curb corruption before wooing investors</a>, Ramesh KumarThe Ministry of Finance does have guidelines on the capacity of vehicles that can be bought, but they are routinely ignored. Even money allocated to build public infrastructure is being spent on vehicles.Repair and maintenance of vehicles is another area full of irregularities, including money being allocated for the upkeep of vehicles that have been in storage for years. Kunwar says the vehicles have become a long-term burden on the state.The Ministry of Finance continues to dole out huge sums of money to keep officers happy, and the government has taken no steps to regulate it, despite the fact that the Finance Ministry has issued guidelines to reduce operating costs. This includes a rule that government vehicles should not have private license plates, but this is also ignored.The government also has a <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/20-electric-by-2020/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">policy of going electric</a>, but continues to buy fossil fuel vehicles. Former Finance Secretary Rameswhor Khanal, who himself drives an <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/electri-city-cars/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">electric Kia Soul</a>, explains:  “There are fewer dealers of <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nepals-electric-transport-future-is-here/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">electric vehicles</a> in the market, so there are less kickbacks in their purchase. Besides, you cannot make up fake bills of repair and maintenance of electric cars, which is why they are less popular.”

Driving Nepal deeper into debt

From stone spouts to cast-iron mains, Nepal’s water system and its struggle to provide safe water tells a larger story of power, disease, dependency — and lessons for the future. From 1823 to 1891, the Nepali state made just two notable interventions in Kathmandu’s drinking water system. The first was when Prime Minister Bhimsen Thapa commissioned a stone pout (hiti) to tap groundwater within the valley’s traditional supply system. The second came nearly 70 years later with Nepal’s first industrial-era water system, the Bir Water Works in 1891 under Prime Minister Bir Shumsher Rana. Linking these two milestones was the spectre of cholera. From the 19th century on there were seven global cholera pandemics. <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0264410X19309995#bb0325" target="_blank">Originating in Asia</a>, the disease reached Europe and the Americas, the Vibrio cholera bacillus breeding in poor sanitation wherever it found it. The first wave erupted in 1817, followed by others in 1829, 1852, 1863, 1881, 1889 and, finally, in 1961, the seventh pandemic which still lingers on. London, the epicentre of the Industrial Revolution, was repeatedly stricken. In Britain ‘miasma’ foul air was blamed. &nbsp;In Nepal, cholera was seen as divine damnation. By the late 19th century, as Nepal’s relationship with Britain deepened, the Bir Water Works was inaugurated in 1891 as a defence against cholera. Whether cholera also shaped Bhimsen Thapa’s decision in 1823 is less clear. Contemporary records note the commissioning of Sundhara, but do not refer to the cholera epidemic raging at the time. The silence itself is telling: Nepal’s elites were ruling in the shadow of the disease. Bhimsen Thapa first resided in Thapathali Palace, which was built in 1802 by Nain Singh Thapa, father of Mathabarsingh Thapa, who would briefly become prime minister in the 1840s. In 1806, Bhimsen Thapa moved to Bagh Durbar, a new complex on the western edge of Tundikhel. Historians are vague about the water supply in the residences of the nobility, but wells and water hauled from rivers, ponds, canals, and other sources were likely the primary sources. A small hiti north of Bagh Durbar, near today’s Sun Dhara, may have supplied the palace. In 1823, Bhimsen Thapa had it enlarged, making it the last and largest state-built hiti in Kathmandu. Even as Bhimsen Thapa was involved in palace intrigues and border conflicts, Britain was engineering pipelines. By the late 18th century, Sir Thomas Simpson had invented the bell-and-spigot joint, making long-distance pipes viable. Fluid dynamics, dealing with pumps, pipes, and filters, was becoming a foundational discipline. In Kathmandu, the scourge continued. Cholera struck Kathmandu repeatedly, in 1862, 1867, 1872, 1874 and 1875. The 1872 epidemic, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/kathmandu-in-the-time-of-cholera" target="_blank">according to historian Tom Robertson</a>, claimed between 200 and 250 lives a day. On average, cholera killed between 1,200 and 1,500 people annually in Kathmandu Valley, an enormous toll for its small population. The summer of 1885 was especially calamitous: a cholera epidemic ravaged Kathmandu and its periphery from the beginning of June until late August. The disease even breached the royal palace, reportedly killing 23 people, mostly young girls. Records show that 909 people received treatment at the British Residency dispensary, and estimates suggest that as many as 10,000 people perished in a city of 50,000. In November that year, Bir Shumsher seized power in a coup. He inherited not only a premiership but a Valley ridden with disease. Cholera was endemic, and it was accompanied by typhoid, smallpox, goitre, syphilis, and chronic dyspepsia. The The British Residency dispensary at Lainchaur was inadequate. “In a poor country like ours, wealth means health,” Bir Shumsher remarked, an unusually pragmatic admission that epidemics were not divine punishment but structural afflictions of urban life. He soon pledged to expand health care. In 1889, he opened Bir Hospital and staffed it with Indian doctors to treat cholera, typhoid, smallpox, and other prevalent illnesses. PIPED WATER Bir Shumsher also recognised the need for safe drinking water. Between 1866 and 1872, he had served as Nepal’s ambassador in Calcutta, and he must have seen water mains already in operation there, and a filtration plant inaugurated in 1870. Madras had installed such a system as early as 1800, Bombay constructed the Vihar and Tulsi reservoirs in the mid-19th century. In Kathmandu British Residency personalities such as George Gimlette must have urged Bir’s government to quicken the construction of the hospital and water system, yet the archival traces of such exchanges still await historical scrutiny. By the late 19th century, the British had developed a technological ecosystem for water supply, intakes, pipes, fittings, reservoirs, and trained engineers. Bir Shumsher appealed to the British Government in India for engineering assistance. A British engineer named Mr Feigneur surveyed Kathmandu to prepare maps, and estimated the volume of water that could be brought from the Rudramati River. In 1889, a more experienced engineer, Lockhart Matthew Sinclair arrived. He was a Scotsman educated at Wellington College and the Royal Indian Engineering College, with prior experience in constructing waterworks in Jubbulpore and the Viceregal Palace in Shimla. Appointed State Engineer of Nepal (1889–1892), Sinclair reviewed Feigneur’s plans, updated them, and chose the Bishnumati River as the source of the city’s drinking water. Sinclair’s design included a reservoir at Panipokhari, at 1,330m elevation and 30m above &nbsp;Tundikhel, thereby enabling gravity-fed distribution in pipes. With a capacity of 7,327 cubic metres, the reservoir could store nine days of supply.&nbsp; The system was designed to serve about 70,000 residents through both private connections and public standpipes. The reservoir was a single-compartment tank with an arched brick roof covered in earth and turf. Its brick walls were bonded with lime mortar and aggregate, and its floor was dressed with fly stone. Work on the valley’s water supply began in 1888, three years after Bir Shumsher seized power. The following year, Bir Hospital and the Bir Water Works took shape. The project involved some 40km of imported cast-iron pipes, weighing 1.866 million kg and inscribed with the marks of Scottish foundries ‘Ally and McLean’ and ‘Glasgow’. Construction required 620,000 man-days of labour and cost over Rs600,000. Transport costs inflated prices: <a href="https://commons-nepal.com/the-first-kaldhara-in-the-four-cities-of-the-valley/" target="_blank">a load of cement</a> costing Rs10 in Calcutta was worth Rs33 by the time it reached Kathmandu. Bir Water Works was inaugurated in September 1891, six years after the cholera epidemic. Water flowed out of 131 taps, including eight in Lainchaur, six in the royal palace, eleven in the prime minister’s palace, sixteen around Tundikhel, thirteen in Thapathali, seven in Thamel, and two in Naxal. The system’s designation, the term ‘works’ , echoes the Chelsea, Calcutta, and Glasgow Water Works, underlining its industrial pedigree. Water was also supplied to Phora Durbar, Bir Shumsher’s palace of music and dance whose fountains sprayed rose-scented water in a display of opulence. The <a href="https://commons-nepal.com/the-first-kaldhara-in-" target="_blank">Bir Dhara Works</a> was more than an engineering scheme: it was Nepal’s first modern public-health intervention. Safer drinking water curbed waterborne disease, and the number of cholera outbreaks declined, but were not eliminated.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260103020144_d5c22de54c0eaab680a166c5a7482839fdc09b60679109021d0504252a810254.png" data-media-id="editor_4" data-image-id="20260103020144_d5c22de54c0eaab680a166c5a7482839fdc09b60679109021d0504252a810254" data-rendition-name="original" width="865" height="535" loading="lazy" alt="Cholera and drinking water in Kathmandu"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260103020144_a46075b6d759585df56a2bb8e5a07d85de7d9a69406165c32784fe30012c9971.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="20260103020144_a46075b6d759585df56a2bb8e5a07d85de7d9a69406165c32784fe30012c9971" data-rendition-name="original" width="2791" height="3859" loading="lazy" alt="Cholera and drinking water in Kathmandu"> </figure>  “Now we have water to fight cholera, and I believe cholera will no longer prevail. After four years of piped water, the benefits have been greater than expected,” Bir Shumsher said in a proclamation. Despite this, the prevalence of poor sanitation, open defecation, cramped housing, and malnutrition meant that typhoid, smallpox, and dyspepsia remained endemic. The Bir Dhara system marked Kathmandu’s transition from reliance on wells, rivers, springs, and hiti to piped water, operating for several decades and laying the foundation for the expansion of drinking water services across the country in the late twentieth century. <a href="https://commons-nepal.com/the-first-kaldhara-in-the-four-cities-of-the-valley/" target="_blank">Extensions followed in Patan</a> under Chandra Shumsher, and Bhim Shumsher later added the Tri Bhim Dhara. Piped water systems were subsequently constructed in towns such as Kirtipur, Bhaktapur, Dhankuta, Pokhara, Dhulikhel, and Jajarkot which itself saw a deadly cholera outbreak in 2009.&nbsp; CHOLERA METAPHOR In 1933, Nepal’s first water bureaucracy, the Pani Goswara, was established, formalising state involvement in urban water supply. Yet even till the late 20th century, households continue to rely on a mix of sources, including public water networks, private vendors, rooftop storage tanks, borewells, wells, hiti, and household filtration. The lack of reliable water supply places disproportionate financial, physical, and psychological burdens on low-income households, underscoring how decades of infrastructure expansion have not translated into universal, reliable service. during challenges in governance, investment priorities, and regulation. Bir Shumsher also attempted to introduce <a href="https://www.ukaalo.com/news/cholera-in-kathmandu-1958/" target="_blank">basic hygiene measures</a>, such as pit latrines with squatting slabs. However, there is no record of these facilities being built in his palaces, later built palaces, or elsewhere. Sanitation conditions remained poor for both the elite and the general population. Open defecation or the use of crude pit latrines without proper waste disposal was common. With no drainage or sewer systems, human waste accumulated near homes, contributing to the spread of waterborne diseases. In 2019, Nepal declared itself ‘open defecation free’, a policy milestone, but this achievement masks the persistence of deeper problems. Urban areas generate some 867 million litres of wastewater daily, yet only 7% of it is treated before being discharged. Sewage flows untreated into rivers and streams, spreading cholera, typhoid, dysentery, and other diseases, particularly among children and vulnerable communities. Safe disposal of faecal sludge continues to be a major struggle for many communities and local governments. Besides Jajarkot, Godavari in Kathmandu Valley had a localised outbreak in 2024. This year, Birganj was struck by a cholera outbreak caused by a lethal combination of unreliable water supply, groundwater overpumping, poor drainage and hygiene, and unsafe waste disposal. And Nepal’s peacekeepers deployed after the earthquake in Haiti in 2010 were blamed for spreading cholera that ultimately killed 30,000 people in the Caribbean nation. The Bir Water Works was more than a reservoir and pipes. It was Nepal’s first brush with modernity, mediated through engineering and haunted by cholera. More than 134 years on, cholera remains a threat and a reminder of Nepal’s challenges in water and sanitation governance. The issue is not merely ensuring access to safe water but also building public trust that quality essential services can be delivered equitably, sustainably, and with resilience. Ajaya Dixit is a Kathmandu-based researcher exploring Nepal’s water history since the mid-eighteenth century to inform ethical water and river management in a changing climate.

Life in a time of cholera

As someone born and raised in Patan, I knew that the city was rich in art, architecture and intangible heritage. But I never realised just how rich, and how little I knew about its hidden treasures until this book. Yala Mhasika/Exploring Lalitpur/Lalitpurko Chinari is published by the Lalitpur Chamber of Commerce &amp; Industry and introduces the city to the world, as well as to its own inhabitants. Lalitpur is popularly known as Patan, probably because of the pastures for livestock in its outskirts. Its original name in Nepal Bhasa is Yala, and is a blend of urban and rural, old and new.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260101120152_700fb4c7b27d78813f69347846403c492cd1d54e2f62e4ec097013714c4a2022.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20260101120152_700fb4c7b27d78813f69347846403c492cd1d54e2f62e4ec097013714c4a2022" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1333" loading="lazy" alt="Exploring Lalitpur book review"> <figcaption>Patan Dhoka</figcaption> </figure>  Like other kingdoms in the valley of Swoniga, the dense urban cluster of houses, temples, monasteries were situated along the higher ground, while the farmlands were on the slopes leading to the rivers below. This unique townscape combined an urban lifestyle within a distinctly agriculture-based rural setting. The fertile soil, replenished by organic nutrients washed down from the streets above, as well as Kathmandu’s location on the ancient trade route between India and Tibet, provided the Valley’s kingdoms with prosperity – and thus the flourishing of art and culture over centuries. Most of Yala’s residents were farmers, traders, or artisans. Chinese visitors who came to Nepal in the 6th century saw that there were more traders than farmers, and more temples than houses. An entire street is inhabited by the descendants of Lhasa traders. Arniko is supposed to have been born in Yala.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260101120152_0fb490355fac9b8252c9abfbf5ef1bbac844b29103744a421eb6ef6dbc77dff7.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20260101120152_0fb490355fac9b8252c9abfbf5ef1bbac844b29103744a421eb6ef6dbc77dff7" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1332" loading="lazy" alt="Exploring Lalitpur book review"> <figcaption>Kwonti area which houses five-storey Kumbeshwar temple dedicated to Shiva and Baglamukhi temple dedicated to Dasa Mahavidya shakti peeth.</figcaption> </figure>  Nepal exported goods and even minted coins for Tibet, and had a virtual monopoly of the major trans-Himalayan trade routes. This prosperity was reflected in monuments and shrines like the Kwa Baha Golden Temple. More so than the other three kingdoms of Swoniga, architecture flourished in Yala making it the centre for metal, stone and wood craft. The name Lalitpur means ‘city of fine art’ but with its sense of community, it might as well be a city of fine living. Legend also has it that the name Lalitpur comes from a farmer called Lalit who helped bring the rain god Karunamaya from Assam when the Valley was suffering a prolonged drought. Lalit’s shoulder beam stands to this day in Jhatapol. Disasters, invasion and <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/life-in-a-time-of-cholera">epidemics</a> were a recurring theme in Patan.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260101120152_b33b1024cb7a46f49fea35ecc9afa2740895907059d7a43c8bd6c463b1be05e7.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20260101120152_b33b1024cb7a46f49fea35ecc9afa2740895907059d7a43c8bd6c463b1be05e7" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1333" loading="lazy" alt="Exploring Lalitpur book review"> <figcaption>Ajima of Haugal Tole which is the oldest stone scripture in Nepal with the Gaja Laxmi in Chyasal.</figcaption> </figure>  The book was put together by the heritage expert team of Rosha Bajracharya, Sunil Pandey and Anil Chitrakar and provides a socio-economic and political history of Patan – how it was always food surplus, thanks to sustainable farming until recently. Ground and drone images by Photo Venture Nepal in the book give us a rare new perspective on Patan. There is an entire chapter on the chariot festival of Karunamaya (Machhindranath), a community-managed festival with Barahi carpenters assembling the woodwork, vine engineers Yamva weaving rope and rattan for the 25m tall chariot, and Ghaku drivers controlling the speed and brakes as the structure rolls through narrow streets in the annual festival.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260101120152_d27b23aeb4548b0b64ab8ed20f40baa331060498c6b5443e2cb999b876c670af.jpg" data-media-id="editor_4" data-image-id="20260101120152_d27b23aeb4548b0b64ab8ed20f40baa331060498c6b5443e2cb999b876c670af" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1333" loading="lazy" alt="Exploring Lalitpur book review"> <figcaption>Te Bahal in Patan which houses Karunamaya six months a year.</figcaption> </figure>  WALKING, WORSHIPPING The book can help in exploring Patan along five routes starting in Patan Dhoka, Pulchok, Shankhamul, Mahaboudha and Lagankhel with maps and details of the baha and bahil, shrines, ponds, open spaces, dhyochenn, courtyards and phalcha along the way. Because of its coffee-table size and heft, however, the guidebook is not practical to carry around. And despite detailed descriptions of the past and present of each site, readers are left wanting to know more about those places. It is proof of Patan’s vast treasures that even this book barely scratches the surface.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260101120152_31a597b7dc1bcc9f67b4f6a66b8c1c0e0a9406727389699e6aed9ac6c3c50901.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="20260101120152_31a597b7dc1bcc9f67b4f6a66b8c1c0e0a9406727389699e6aed9ac6c3c50901" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1332" loading="lazy" alt="Exploring Lalitpur book review"> <figcaption>Patukodom where visitors can view what remains of the ancient Kirant palace.</figcaption> </figure>  Some of the lesser-known must-visit sites include Patukodom which is all that remains of a palace of the original Kirat inhabitants of Patan. An archaeological dig here would surely unearth hitherto unknown facets of pre-Newa Patan. Then there are the slightly out of the way shrines like Mahabouha, a replica of a temple in Bodhgaya which houses 3,341 terracotta Buddhas with 90 big statues and which took 35 years and four generations to complete.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260101120152_ffb657dc254f707dc1755f6f13b1ef67bb7183b6573da9678c54482129fb3878.jpg" data-media-id="editor_6" data-image-id="20260101120152_ffb657dc254f707dc1755f6f13b1ef67bb7183b6573da9678c54482129fb3878" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1333" loading="lazy" alt="Exploring Lalitpur book review"> <figcaption>Mahaboudha is a replica of a temple in Bodhgaya.</figcaption> </figure>  In a recent Patan by Night heritage walk, we learnt that Pim Bahal was the labour of love of a lakhe demon (now popularised as masked dancer) who had fallen for a local girl, and he dug the pond so she would not have to walk to a faraway spout to collect water. Nearby is the Charumati Chaitya, built by the daughter of Emperor Ashoka when she visited the Valley in the 3rd century BCE to spread Buddhism in Nepal. Interestingly, if Kathmandu is a city of temples, Patan is the centre of monasteries which represent a unique Tantric melding of Buddhist and Hindu forms. Examples are: the Tadham Cuka with relocated Licchavi-era chaityas symbolic of the four major events in Buddha’s life, Ajima of Haugal Tole which is the oldest stone scripture in Nepal with the Gaja Laxmi in Chyasal, and Bignantak Ganesa temple which is a manifestation of Shiva mingled with Vajrayana Buddhism.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260101120152_17a500e77f06b9881f684329e41d3482f6f6a639ffb929d8bb44e5af7934c61c.jpg" data-media-id="editor_7" data-image-id="20260101120152_17a500e77f06b9881f684329e41d3482f6f6a639ffb929d8bb44e5af7934c61c" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1333" loading="lazy" alt="Exploring Lalitpur book review"> <figcaption>Bignantak Ganesa temple.</figcaption> </figure>  &nbsp;Besides spatial descriptions, the book also explains the temporal by curating a detailed cultural calendar of Lalitpur with dates and places of jatra, rituals, devotional dances and festivals that weave the agricultural cycle with the zodiac.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260101120152_b8e1cc03653fea85dec84a7abee4fd594c35c6ad553769f37905eb5b38774e08.jpg" data-media-id="editor_8" data-image-id="20260101120152_b8e1cc03653fea85dec84a7abee4fd594c35c6ad553769f37905eb5b38774e08" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1125" loading="lazy" alt="Exploring Lalitpur book review"> <figcaption>Mipwa Lakhe of Patan which create fire in mid aid during performance.</figcaption> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260101120152_442e10bff842214e8c7522ebf6e63663599768db73bb57d999deff9de1b59375.jpg" data-media-id="editor_9" data-image-id="20260101120152_442e10bff842214e8c7522ebf6e63663599768db73bb57d999deff9de1b59375" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1333" loading="lazy" alt="Exploring Lalitpur book review"> <figcaption>Gan pyakhan or Astamatrika dance which is performed in Patan Darbar Squre during Dasain. </figcaption> </figure>  The very last chapter is dedicated to water and nature, what sustains lives and civilisations, and how Lalitpur continues to be the city it is because of the water supply system our ancestors left behind which function still, despite encroachment and pollution. ‘In the history of the world cities have been built, they thrived for some time and then became archaeological sites because they were not able to maintain the quality of air, water, and its soil,’ the authors write. ‘This led these cities to depopulate and ultimately die and are only referred to in history books. Lalitpur is not going to make the same mistake.’ &nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260104080132_3f403388d57da82b499d6c489a8f095002bf69f11e515e92fa96fb5ca3af69e9.jpg" data-media-id="editor_10" data-image-id="20260104080132_3f403388d57da82b499d6c489a8f095002bf69f11e515e92fa96fb5ca3af69e9" data-rendition-name="original" width="1136" height="702" loading="lazy" alt="Exploring Lalitpur"> </figure>

YALA

For daring to demand democracy, the Rana regime hanged activist Shukra Raj Shastri at midnight on 24 January 1941 by the side of the road at Teku. Across town in Siphal, Dharma Bhakta Mathema was also hanged. Four days later, Dasrath Chand and Gangalal Shrestha were executed by firing squad. These four young revolutionaries were members of the underground Nepal Praja Parishad that led the anti-Rana revolution with plans to assassinate key figures of the dynasty. The four martyrs sacrificed their lives for an unfulfilled cause. Monuments were put up in their honour (Shahid Gate) and their names glorified by the Shah monarchy that itself went on to ban political parties and persecute democracy activists. In 1950, the newly-formed Nepal National Congress launched an armed uprising against Rana rule after King Tribhuvan sought refuge at the Indian embassy to flee from the Rana regime. In 1951, the Ranas, Nepali Congress and King Tribhuvan signed a tripartite agreement that brought an end to 104 years of Rana rule.&nbsp; Thus began contemporary Nepal’s cycles of unfinished revolutions. Some 75 years later, on a sunny September morning, Nepal’s young and hopeful took to the streets demanding an end to the nation’s corrupt polity, envisioning a better democracy. They organised through digital platforms, played songs, danced, and chanted slogans. A few hours later, commandos fired on the protesters, massacring dozens. Over 8 and 9 September 2025, the government was overthrown, constitutional bodies were literally reduced to ashes, and 74 Nepalis were martyred.&nbsp; Nepal’s periodic revolutions have been ignited by anger against rulers, they have begun with great promise, spread with enthusiastic popular support despite rulers trying to crush them — but ultimately they have always fallen short of the expectations of citizens demanding reform. Through decades of dissent, Nepal’s periodic revolutions have remained incomplete, with the nation caught up in a cyclical search for stability.&nbsp; In 1960, king Mahendra staged a coup and overthrew an elected government led by prime minister B P Koirala -- a royal revolution against democracy. Mahendra is reported to have famously said to Koirala: “Nepal is not big enough for the two of us.” For the next 30 years Nepal resembled a one-party state under the absolute monarchy of the Panchayat. Elected leaders languished in jail or exile, political parties were banned, and the press controlled. This was the most frigid period of the Cold War, with Nepal’s neighbours India and China at war. Geopolitics was bound to have an impact. “After the 1816 Sugauli Treaty with British India, external forces magnified internal power struggles as outsiders played divide and rule,” explains editor and political analyst Rajendra Dahal. “Movements did not reach a logical conclusion because domestic politicians were forced to compromise.” Indeed, the departure of the British from India in 1947 meant that the days of the Anglophile Rana regime were numbered. Successive prime ministers sought patronage in Delhi, and the monarchy tried to counterbalance it with a policy of equidistance with China. The neighbours showed a keen strategic interest in Nepal’s domestic politics. “The Panchayat system did not deliver what it promised,” says Santosh Sharma Poudel of Nepal Institute of Policy and Research. “Nepalis suffered administrative and governance failure, politics was centralised in Kathmandu, leaving out the rest of Nepal.” With mainstream political parties and leaders were &nbsp;underground between 1961 till 1990, student activists became proxies for political parties. As pressure for change grew, a student-led pro-democracy movement spread across Nepal in 1979. In response, King Birendra announced a referendum to allow Nepalis to choose between the status quo and a ‘reformed’ Panchayat &nbsp;system.&nbsp; The Panchayat won by a slim margin with questions about the legitimacy of the plebiscite. The reforms never materialised and it would be another decade before street anger boiled over again. As the People’s Movement for democracy spread, king Birendra again relented, unbanning political parties and Nepal became a constitutional monarchy. Inspired by Mao Zedong, a faction of Nepal’s Communists felt that western-style parliamentary democracy was too slow to end a feudalist monarchy. They launched an armed struggle in 1996, and the war lasted ten years (editorial, page 2). “If the democratic government post-1990 had performed better, and brought real reform, the Maoists would not have a reason to launch a revolution,” says Poudel. After nearly a decade of bloodshed that left 17,000 dead and thousands still missing, the Maoists joined forces with the democratic parties that they had been fighting, to pressure king Gyanendra through street protests in 2006 to restore democracy. In 2008, an elected Constituent Assembly abolished the monarchy. &nbsp;Recalls Rajendra Dahal: “The second people’s movement did not aim to abolish the monarchy. In fact, the reinstated parliament even granted equal rights for royal daughters to be crowned queen. But eventually, the monarchy no longer fit the political framework that the parties envisioned.” It took two elections over the next eight years to draft a new Constitution that reflected Nepal’s socio-cultural and geographic diversity and met the demands of the Maoists. The new federal Constitution was finally promulgated in 2015, but failed to satisfy India and the aspirations of the Madhes communities for autonomy. The state’s effort to crush the Madhes movement cost 45 lives. The promise of the new Constitution was squandered over the next decade with rotating leadership of the NC, UML and the Maoists — all of whom had forgotten the sacrifices made in the name of revolution. Cronyism and corruption was the order of the day. And it was this never-ending cycle of political opportunism and malgovernance that brought Nepal’s youth to the streets on 8 September.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260101120128_bc50f6370ff80a6758199ea7ba9f4c214656a9322a8d2ba1c97e6cdfb88f7f62.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20260101120128_bc50f6370ff80a6758199ea7ba9f4c214656a9322a8d2ba1c97e6cdfb88f7f62" data-rendition-name="original" width="3372" height="1371" loading="lazy" alt="timeline"> </figure>  1951 Revolution against the &nbsp;Rana regime 1960 King Mahendra's coup, jails B P Koirala and launches the partyless Panchayat system 1979 Student protests for democracy, King Birendra announces referendum&nbsp; 1980 Continuation of the partyless Panchayat system narrowly wins plebiscite&nbsp; 1990 People’s Movement I 1996 Maoists launch armed struggle&nbsp; 2000 Royal Massacre 2005 King Gyanendra's military-backed coup&nbsp; 2006 Comprehensive Peace Accord and Parliament restored 2008 Monarchy is abolished 2015 Madhes Movement, New Constitution promulgated 2017 First 3-tier election under federal system 2022 Second elections under federal Constitution&nbsp; 2025 GenZ protests BRK ALLIANCE “The socio-political change sought in all these movements never matched the people’s expectations, because the central issue of clean and efficient government never materialised,” says Poudel. The post-September political landscape has injected new personalities and alliances still relatively new to politics, as evidenced by the new electoral partnership of the BRK — Balen Shah, Rabi Lamichhane, and Kulman Ghising (page 1).&nbsp; These leaders are not without flaws, but they have become the effective flag-bearers of the GenZ movement, hoping to represent Nepalis disillusioned by decades of democratic decay. The March election will pit them against the legacy parties. There is already criticism that BRK is behaving just like male-dominated opportunists of old parties. The troika is resembling the triumvirate of Oli, Deuba and Dahal and its culture of patronage and quid-pro-quo power-sharing between alpha males. Will this also be another unfinished revolution? Says political scientist Sucheta Pyakuryal: &nbsp;“The kind of destruction that happened after the revolution should have been followed by a ground-breaking shift in Nepal’s political ecosystem, but that did not happen. Today the situation is a lot grimmer because we have players who have learned how to use the democratic facade to sound ‘equitable’ and ‘accountable’. But look closely and you see how the same political chauvinism, cronyism and nepotism still continue.”&nbsp;

Nepal’s incomplete revolutions

One of the few Newa towns situated outside Kathmandu Valley, Panauti still evokes the feeling of a place frozen in time.&nbsp; Largely untouched by haphazard urbanisation, this town 32km east of Kathmandu used to be a kingdom revered for the sacred confluence of the Punyamati and Rosi rivers.&nbsp; The Bramhayani temple is the site of a 12 yearly Makar Mela which is attended by devotees from as far away as India.&nbsp; Panauti’s crumbling monuments were restored in the 1990s by the French government. Temples, resting places, traditional homes were rebuilt and locals trained to revive their craft. Panauti and France marked 50 years of cooperation in September.&nbsp; However, the priceless murals on the temple walls are fading and need urgent restitution. Now, these crumbling wall paintings are meticulously documented in the Wall Paintings of Panauti and Their Context.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260106090116_31f6acf06ef879037fec8274b85153eab4468566abf71616490679bf8468b85d.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20260106090116_31f6acf06ef879037fec8274b85153eab4468566abf71616490679bf8468b85d" data-rendition-name="original" width="1596" height="1074" loading="lazy" alt="Panauti murals"> </figure>  In his foreword, French researcher Gérard Toffin writes about some of the earliest wall paintings from the Malla period in Kathmandu, including a 17th century mural depicting the procession of Rato Machhindranath which has since been restored.&nbsp; Several other pieces still exist but in a pitiful state, defaced by scratches. ‘They were painted on a plaster coating made of soil, husks, or limestone, which were applied to the bricks making up the walls,’ Toffin notes.&nbsp; The book delves into the cult of Asta Matrika among Newa of all castes and classes, the first of which is Bramhayani. These all-pervading deities are linked to Shaktism which focuses on the importance of the female principle and together, combine the forces of life, sex and fertility with that of death and eros. The deities are painted on the wall, carved on the stone or moulded into metallic statues.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260106090120_836efd2b0a569d8ec0fb2c6651a29b8f2dd8f8f75b72e27bb86b0bfc0ad8461f.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20260106090120_836efd2b0a569d8ec0fb2c6651a29b8f2dd8f8f75b72e27bb86b0bfc0ad8461f" data-rendition-name="original" width="1074" height="1434" loading="lazy" alt="Panauti murals"> </figure>  Riddhi Baba Pradhan, former director general of the Department of Archaeology who oversaw the restoration of Panauti 30 years ago, writes that a colourful wall painting depicting Buddha's past life at the Chabahil Chaitya built or restored during the reign of Lichhavi king Vrisdev in the 3rd century might be the earliest mural in Nepal. As for Panauti, a fragment from a 400-year-old scroll which illustrates a scene of Triveni Ghat with Dalinchok Hill in the background is likely the oldest. But that relic is currently at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in the United States.&nbsp; Pradhan recalls first encountering wall paintings inside Bramhayani temple which were deteriorated by smoke, leaky roof, dust, vermilion, sprinkles of animal blood and lack of maintenance. The team led by chemist Bhimvar Singh Thapa treated the wall paintings and some of the details were recovered including the paintings of Astamatrika and Asta Bhairav on the east, west and southern walls.&nbsp; PAINTINGS ARE NOT VISIBLE The murals were painted during the reign of the last Malla King of Bhaktapur Ranjit Malla and Queen Viswalaxmi Devi 300 years ago. But 40 years after the restoration, Pradhan notes that the murals are again in poor condition: ‘The paintings are not visible, the plaster is severely damaged and the surface has peeled off … electrical wires hang haphazardly inside the temple.’ The second lot of murals at Ghat Sattal are thought to have been commissioned during the late Malla period or the beginning of the Shah dynasty. Exterior walls depict incarnations of Lord Vishnu as well as Sesh Narayan, Ganesh, a scene of Samundra Manthan, of angels Maya, Moha, Ganga. Their attributes, dresses, ornaments, facial expressions, body postures are all skilfully represented but in a deteriorated condition.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260106090116_88d06703ae23a271905d81f35056d41df92cbbc4b9966fac3f34821659e585a8.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20260106090116_88d06703ae23a271905d81f35056d41df92cbbc4b9966fac3f34821659e585a8" data-rendition-name="original" width="588" height="862" loading="lazy" alt="Panauti murals "> </figure>  The wall paintings of Bramhayani Dyochhen are 90% degraded even though they were restored and repaired 40 years ago by the Panauti Integrated Project. Compared to other artefacts, wall paintings are more delicate to external factors, and if not preserved an important part of Nepal’s heritage will be lost.&nbsp; Furthermore, most of the wall paintings in Nepal are temperas, and not frescos. Tempera is painted with water-soluble mineral or vegetable pigments fixed with glue on the cow dung clay plaster on the brick walls. While Nepal’s focus has been on the repatriation of stolen artefacts from abroad, religious and cultural objects within the country like the Panauti murals need urgent attention.&nbsp; This slim publication by Panauti Municipality is an important call to begin the work before it is too late.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260101120124_d0efa1e57b2710a206beb37c7e934ac34e694afc278985934eac2fc52124a92c.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20260101120124_d0efa1e57b2710a206beb37c7e934ac34e694afc278985934eac2fc52124a92c" data-rendition-name="original" width="1136" height="702" loading="lazy" alt="Wall Paintings of Panauti"> </figure>

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