BUTWAL, Sept 20: The Constitution of Nepal, promulgated in 2015, marked a decade on Friday. As part of its implementation, the second term of provincial governments is now underway.
In Lumbini Province, the first meeting of the Provincial Assembly was held on February 4, 2018. Since then, the assembly has passed 57 core laws. During this period, it also endorsed 17 appropriation (budget-related) bills, 12 amendment bills, and introduced one ordinance. Of the 87 bills passed so far, 86 have been authenticated, with 57 classified as principal laws and the remainder relating to budgets, organizational matters, and amendments.
Provincial Assembly spokesperson Lokmani Pandey confirmed that a total of 87 bills—including budget-related and amendment bills—have been passed to date. “Across both the first and second terms of the Lumbini Provincial Assembly, 57 core laws and 87 bills in total have been enacted, most of which have already entered the implementation stage,” Pandey said.
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Altogether, 103 bills have been registered in the Provincial Assembly. Of these, 15 were withdrawn, and three remain under consideration.
While the first term saw rapid lawmaking, activity has slowed significantly in the second term. During the first term, 83 bills were registered, with 73 passed and authenticated. In contrast, over nearly 33 months of the second term, only 19 bills have been registered, of which 15 were passed and 14 authenticated. Among these, only five were major laws: the Provincial Temporary Tax Revenue Bill, Disaster Management Bill, Provincial Civil Service Bill, Provincial Local Service Bill, and the Lumbini Training Institute Bill. Officials attribute the slowdown to political instability and disputes among parties, which have hindered the provincial government’s legislative agenda.
Concerns have persisted over the government’s accountability to parliament and parliament’s responsibility to citizens. Ideally, laws should be drafted based on public need and participation, but this has often not happened. As a result, several laws have faced implementation challenges, with stakeholders struggling to adopt them. Legal experts cite difficulties with acts such as the Forest Act, Entertainment Act, Provincial Road Act, and Mining Act.
Implementation has also been hampered when provincial laws conflict with the federal constitution or federal legislation, or when required regulations are not prepared on time. Another major challenge is delays in federal legislation on matters of shared jurisdiction with provincial and local governments. For example, although Lumbini Province passed the Provincial Police Act nearly three years ago, it has not been implemented because the federal government has yet to introduce a new national Police Act. Officials note that the absence of a provincial police has hindered administrative work.
Similarly, the Provincial Public Service Commission Act, introduced about four years ago, was annulled due to federal intervention. Education-related legislation has also faced similar delays.
Under Schedules 6, 7, and 9 of the Constitution, provincial assemblies have the authority to legislate for provincial and local governments. “In line with the federal structure and parliamentary system, the Lumbini Provincial Assembly has not only enacted laws but also formed governments, overseen government activities through parliamentary committees, exercised legislative oversight, and endorsed policies, programs, and budgets,” Pandey said.
