Committee begins deliberation on water resources bill

Kathmandu, Aug 18: The Infrastructure Development Committee of the federal parliament has begun a discussion on a bill designed to amend and integrate the existing laws on water resources.     

Committee Chairman Dipak Bahadur Singh informed that discussion was held among the lawmakers who had sought amendment to the bill.     

Then energy minister Shakti Bahadur Basnet had presented the bill in parliament on June 13. The House of Representatives had held a general discussion on it and forwarded it to the committee for clause-wise deliberation.     

The lawmakers registered a total of 157 amendment proposals on the bill.     

The deliberation was launched to gradually sort out the problems in the bill and make amendments accordingly.     

The document has aimed at devising legal and institutional arrangements to enforce the policy on conservation of natural resources in accordance with Article 51 of Nepal's constitution.     

Similarly, the bill will focus on utilization of groundwater resources, implementation of the principle of the integrated water resources, quality control and pollution reduction, scientific management of information and data on water resources.     

The multi-sectoral use of water resources would be made sustainable through the new law.(RSS)