KATHMANDU, June 5: Although the government has formally scraped the ‘Constituency Infrastructure Development Program,’ the Ministry of Finance (MoF) has indirectly allocated a budget of over Rs 50 billion to projects benefiting ‘MPs and senior leaders’ personal interests.
Finance Minister Bishnu Paudel, in the budget for Fiscal Year (FY) 2025/26, has allocated generous funds not only for lawmakers but also to please power holders ranging from the President and Speaker to other influential political figures in their constituencies and districts.
Although Finance Minister Paudel had announced that projects under Rs 30 million would not be included in the federal budget, smaller-scale, petty projects have still been allocated funds.
Even though the Supreme Court has halted the Parliamentary Constituency Infrastructure Development Program, the upcoming FY’s budget includes allocations ranging from Rs 150 million to Rs 210 million per electoral constituency through various ministries.
According to a source at the MoF, a minimum of Rs 150 million has been allocated for the projects proposed by directly elected lawmakers. Not only that, but projects proposed by proportional representation lawmakers and National Assembly members have also been included in the budget.
Although the budget ceiling for the Ministry of Urban Development was set at Rs 51.89 billion, the total allocation has reached Rs 118 billion after including road, building, school, drainage, and sports infrastructure projects recommended by MPs and influential leaders.
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Of this, Rs 26 billion—part of the total—is conditional grants, including foreign aid, allocated for projects in the provinces. The remaining Rs 92 billion has been allocated for projects under the Ministry of Urban Development.
A joint secretary at the ministry stated that although the ceiling was around Rs 52 billion, nearly Rs 40 billion has been allocated for so-called personal interest projects of MPs, ministers, and top leaders. “The ministry’s budget size appears large mainly because of these leaders’ recommended projects,” the official said, “Most of the projects were included without proper preparation and based on MPs’ suggestions.”
Through ministries related to development infrastructure—such as Urban Development, Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport, Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, and Ministry of Water Supply —Finance Minister Paudel has allocated the budget with high priority to projects proposed by MPs and political leaders.
Minister Paudel has allocated the highest amount of the budget to his home district. He has allocated Rs 9.80 billion to Rupandehi, his constituency. This amount is for local-level governments. In addition, he has also funneled funds through central-level projects.
Specifically, in Rupandehi, he allocated Rs 848.3 million to the sub-metropolitan city, Rs 5.32 billion to municipalities, and Rs 13.62 billion to rural municipalities.
Similarly, Rs 7.86 billion has been allocated to local governments in Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli’s home district, Jhapa. In the Minister for Communications and Information Technology, Prithvi Subba Gurung, home district, Lamjung, the allocation stands at Rs 3.17 billion. Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak’s home district, Kanchanpur, has received Rs 3.97 billion, while Minister for Labour, Employment and Social Security Mr Sharat Singh Bhandari’s home district, Mahottari, has been allocated Rs 5.69 billion. Likewise, Rs 7.11 billion has been allocated to Kailali, the electoral constituency of Foreign Minister Arzu Rana Deuba.
In most ministers’ home districts, substantial budgets have been allocated not only for local governments but also through national-level projects.
Significant budget allocations have been made for various projects in the districts of the President, the Speaker, and other influential leaders.
According to plans shared on social media by President Ram Chandra Paudel’s personal secretary, Avagya Paudel, projects worth Rs 320 million have been included for Tanahun, the President’s home district, from the Urban Ministry alone. Additionally, Rs 170 million has been allocated through the Physical Infrastructure Ministry, Rs 60 million from the Water supply Ministry, Rs 30 million from the Ministry of Youth and Sports, Rs 32.5 million from the Ministry of Tourism, and Rs 15 million from the Ministry of Energy.
Looking at it this way, about Rs 600 million worth of projects have been allocated to Tanahun, the President’s home district. Tanahun is also the home district of Health Minister Pradip Paudel. The district is represented by proportional representatives Swarnim Wagle and Shankar Bhandari as well.
Some consider it natural that MPs recommend projects for development in each electoral area. On the other hand, an MP’s role should ideally be limited to policy-making. Although MPs’ formal role is to legislate, voters expect development and construction from them. This creates pressure on MPs to secure budgets for their constituencies. Experts in the economic sector warn that when budgets are allocated and distributed under such pressures, the expected results often do not materialize.
To ensure balanced budget allocation across the country’s 165 electoral constituencies, parties participating in the House of Representatives submitted lists of MPs’ projects through their parliamentary parties. The MOF has made arrangements to include these projects in the budget.
Priority has been given to projects related to roads, drinking water, irrigation, and building infrastructure.
In addition to projects proposed directly from the central government, plans submitted by lower-level bodies and ministries are also regularly included through established procedures. These projects are prepared based on detailed studies conducted in sequence and according to actual needs.
In the past, the Parliamentary Development Program faced criticism and was halted by a SC order. As a result, the Finance Minister has addressed MPs’ demands through indirect means. The SC had ruled that spending funds from the ‘Parliamentary Constituency Infrastructure Development Program’ on the personal interests of certain representatives goes against the principles of planned development and good governance.
