I will end favouritism in civil service: Minister Neupane

By Amarraj Naharki,Tanahun, Aug. 16: Minister for Federal Affairs and General Administration, Bhagwati Neupane, has said that ending discrimination among government employees is her top priority.

Addressing a staff meeting and briefing programme in Bandipur Rural Municipality during her visit to her home district on Friday, Minister Neupane said she had prioritised the issue after consulting with the Prime Minister.

She said the long-standing practice where some employees never leave the capital, Kathmandu, or other accessible districts, while others are always posted to remote areas, will be brought to an end. 

“I have prioritised ending the situation where some employees always try to stay in accessible locations and refuse to go to remote areas, creating discrimination among staff,” she said.

Minister Neupane explained that employees posted in remote areas often feel discriminated against, as some are allowed to serve in accessible locations for years. She said hundreds of employees and their associates visit the ministry daily regarding transfers, and she pledged to end favouritism and ensure that transfers and promotions are based on fairness.

She also said that by September, the government aims to end the situation where rural municipalities are run solely by acting chief administrative officers. A review found that 173 municipalities are currently dependent on acting officers and work is underway to change this.

The minister said work is being carried out to reduce to zero the number of civil servants in additional services who are not assigned to their duties, as well as municipalities run by acting officials. “The reliance on acting officials will end, this month; we will manage and reduce their numbers to zero,” she said.

She added that the budget had been frozen in 10 municipalities run by acting officials. In addition, three joint secretary-led teams have been deployed to end the problem in about 100 municipalities that failed to bring their budgets on time. She said the deployed teams found that some municipalities delayed budgets due to disagreements over budget allocations. The teams have been instructed to resolve such problems within a set timeframe.

Meanwhile, Minister Neupane also inspected Bandipur Hospital, located in the old district headquarters of Bandipur, Tanahun, on Friday.

The inspection aimed to assess service delivery, infrastructure and staffing. Due to a shortage of human resources, hospital chief Dr. Anil Giri requested the minister to assign four additional doctors, including a gynaecologist and medical officers.

He also requested additional infrastructure and equipment for the under-construction hospital building. On the occasion, Minister Neupane pledged to review the files and help improve the hospital’s delivery service.