Kathmandu, May 22
The governing is reducing its airport infrastructure development budget to a half in the new fiscal year that is beginning in mid-July.
As the ambitious Gautam Buddha International Airport has been completed and is already in operation, the amount to be allocated next year will be around half the amount allocated this year.
Whereas the Nijgadh airport project is in limbo and the government has not proposed any new airport, the amount will be limited next year.
A source at the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal says the Ministry of Finance has told it to ask for a smaller amount this time and the authority has proposed accordingly.
For this fiscal year, the government had allocated Rs 20 billion for construction work and repairing of domestic and international airport infrastructures. A big chunk of this is yet to be spent.
For the next year, the amount is expected to be around Rs 10 billion, which will be sufficient for pending tasks of the Pokhara International Airport and upgrading of the Tribhuvan International Airport.
