'Poor will get free education, health services'

By TRN Online, Kathmandu, May 31: Prime Minister Balendra Shah has said that the government was making a plan to ensure free education and health services to the poor.

PM Shah said so while responding to queries raised by lawmakers in the House of Representatives (HoR) meeting today.

He said that although education and health services were to be free as provisioned in the constitution, the government was unable to do so due to budget limit therefore the government and the ruling RSP was trying to ensure free education, health to the poor in the beginning.

Responding to queries about the government's step for deferral to Nepal's graduation to developing nation as raised by Nepali Communist Party (NCP) lawmaker Prabesh Hamal, PM Shah said the government took the step so as to focus on export and trade as there was exemption on taxes.

"We have taken step to defer the graduation so that we can export our good to different countries enjoying the concessions we have for two years. We are in need of resources instead of confidence boosting things. Our focus is on ways to raise amount, money," said PM Shah, adding, "It is easy to provide communism and socialism in speeches. With regard to real socialism and communism, let me share one example of Kathmandu metropolis when I was the mayor. We strictly executed the rule that the private schools should provide scholarship to the poor and it should be 10 % of students. We did it by taking entrance exam, and even children of poor families got chance to study in expensive colleges. That is socialism."