Newly-appointed Tourism Minister Yogesh Bhattarai’s statements on the commencement of the Bhairahawa airport has been featured in a few newspapers along with news of Province 3 CM Dormani Paudel’s comment that Kathmandu should not be made the capital of the province. INGOs siphoned off over Rs 100 billion in the past three years, says Kantipur .
Here’s a summary of important, ignored and interesting reports that made it to the front pages on Friday:
Important

When will Bhairahawa airport open?
The Kathmandu Post reports that after nearly half- a-dozen extended deadlines, the government now plans to complete the construction of the Gautam Buddha International Airport in Bhairahawa either by December or March next year. On Wednesday, the newly-appointed Tourism Minister Yogesh Bhattarai told journalists that Nepal’s second international airport was at 73 percent and that it was on track to complete and commence operations by December. But during a separate meeting with Mukhtor Khamudkhanov, Nepal country director of the Asian Development Bank, the financier of the project, later on Wednesday, Bhattarai said that the government is committed to completing the project by March 2020.
Multiple officials involved in the construction told the paper that will be difficult to complete the airport by December.
On the other hand, Karobar reports that the Chinese contractor working on the airport has sought Rs 600 million in advance citing financial trouble.
Province 3 headquarters should be away from Kathmandu: CM Paudel

Gorkhapatra, Nagarik and Republica report that Chief Minister of Province 3 Dormani Paudel says the capital of his province shouldn’t be in Kathmandu. He said it can be fixed in any other district of the province such as Nuwakot or Ramechhap, except for Kathmandu, which is also the capital city of the country.
Paudel argued that he was against Kathmandu as the provincial capital city as he had been consistently lobbying for the last 20 years for devolving cities outside Kathmandu. He argued that the headquarters of Province 3 should be away from the shadows of Singha Durbar.
Ignored
INGOs siphon off Rs 100 billion
Kantipur reports that an investigation by the Auditor General’s Office has found that INGOs in the past three years have hidden around Rs 100 billion. INGOs, without informing the government, have deposited over Rs 100 billion in various commercial banks. According to office of the Auditor General’s office, INGOs showing fake expenses, have deposited the money in 29,000 accounts across 28 different commercial banks. The office has asked the government to freeze the money.
Provincial police to be given right to investigate criminal cases
Republica reports that provincial police are all set to acquire the authority to investigate criminal cases. This has been made possible by new legislation vetted by the State Affairs Committee (SAC) of Parliament. The parliamentary committee tabled its report on the Nepal Police and Provincial Police Operation, Supervision and Coordination Bill at the House of Representatives on Thursday after widening the jurisdiction for the provincial police.
Over 500 electrocuted in Province 2 in past year
The Kathmandu Post reports that in the last fiscal year, 527 people in Province 2 were electrocuted, according to Provincial Police Office Spokesperson DSP Gyan Kumar Mahato. Electricity leakages, naked high-voltage wires, and fluctuating voltage corrupting electrical appliances are behind these deaths, said Mahato. Locals blame the Nepal Electricity Authority for the deaths.
In Sabaila and Kuwarampur, locals had filed reports with the Nepal Electricity Authority regarding the loose wires. It was only after people started dying did the authority finally take heed of the complaints and took care of the live wires.
Interesting
Govt printing national ID card before bill is passed
The Himalayan Times reports that the government has started printing and distributing national identity cards without introducing a law, sowing doubts about safety of data collected from the public, while giving leeway to authorities to bypass public procurement rules.
The home ministry had registered the National Identity Card and Civil Registration Bill in the Parliament Secretariat on January 5. The bill was sent to the parliamentary State Affairs and Good Governance Committee for clause-wise discussion on February 3.
Retailers affected by PAN provision
The Himalayan Times reports that retailers are struggling to understand the procedures for registering at PAN, being harassed by taxmen looking to extort money from them and traders and wholesalers refusing to supply goods to them for not having acquired PAN.
While the Inland Revenue Department has said that it will be lenient towards small businesses till mid-October, the ground reality seems different.
Pabitra Bajracharya, president of Nepal Retailers Association says that as majority of retailers do not have PAN, traders and wholesalers are refusing to sell goods to them, stating that issuing goods without PAN will affect their accounting system. This has largely affected the business of retail shops.
Ruling party lawmakers press govt to finalise TJ bodies
Republica reports that key members of parliament (MPs) within the ruling Nepal Communist Party have pressed the government to form the Transitional Justice (TJ) bodies without further delay.
Amid the confusion over appointing commissioners, former peace minister and ruling NCP leader Janardan Sharma stressed the need for forming the TJ bodies at the earliest. The two TJ bodies—Truth and Reconciliation Commission and Commission of Investigation on Enforced Disappeared Commission—have been left without any commissioners since mid-April.