Cabinet approves Rs. 14.38 billion ADB loan

By A Staff Reporter,Kathmandu, Dec. 17: The government has approved the concessional loan of USD 100 million (approximately Rs. 14.38 billion) from the Asian Development Bank (ADB). Making public the decisions of the Cabinet meetings held on December 11 and 15, government spokesperson and Minister for Communication and Information Technology Jagdish Kharel on Tuesday said the loan would be utilised under the ‘Strengthening Public Financial Management and Improved Service Delivery Programme.’

The Cabinet also endorsed an agreement reached on December 10 between representatives of the Gen-Z movement and the Prime Minister, directing the concerned ministries to implement the agreement on a high-priority basis.

In another decision, the government approved the movement of Indian currency notes of denominations INR 200 and INR 500, demonetised in India on November 9, 2016, up to a limit of INR 25,000 per person, allowing Nepali and Indian citizens to carry the amount from India to Nepal and vice-versa.

Other key Cabinet decisions made on December 15 include discontinuation of the practice of affixing postal stamps as revenue stamps for document authentication in service delivery processes, except where required by prevailing law. 

Further, the government has decided to exempt capital gain tax under the Finance Act 2025/26 incurred during the transfer of 1-15-10 bighas of land and buildings in Lahan Municipality, Siraha district, registered jointly in the names of Pawan Kumar Sharda and Murari Lal Murarka, to the Ram Kumar Sharda Uma Prasad Murarka Provincial Hospital under the Madhes Provincial government. 

Likewise, the government approved eight temporary officer-level posts for the remainder of fiscal year 2025/26 under the Irrigation Modernisation Enhancement Project operated by the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development and to form a Nepali delegation, led by a joint secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development, to participate in the ninth meeting of the Nepal–India Joint Working Group on Agriculture, scheduled to be held in Kathmandu from December 28 to 30.

Three AIGs of APF transferred 

Meanwhile, the government under the proposal of the Ministry of Home Affairs has transferred three AIGs of the Armed Police Force Nepal - Narayan Dutta Paudel, Banshi Raj Dahal and Ganesh Bahadur Thadamagar.

The Cabinet meeting granted prior approval for an organisational and management survey of the Ministry of Youth and Sports and its subordinate bodies and promote two Colonels to the rank of Brigadier General and one Lieutenant Colonel to the Colonel in the Nepali Army, and to transfer six Major Generals and seven Colonels.

Further, the Cabinet appointed Dr. Prakash Kumar Shrestha as Vice-Chairperson of the National Planning Commission and Prof. Suniti Shrestha (Hada) as a member to the Commission and formed a high-level political dialogue committee, coordinated by Minister for Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Anil Kumar Sinha, with Communication Minister Jagdish Kharel and the Prime Minister’s chief adviser Ajay Bhadra Khanal as members, to facilitate dialogue, coordination and engagement with political parties and other stakeholders.