They also said that the budget, which was presented by Minister for Finance Ram Sharan Mahat on Tuesday, is completely private-sector oriented and that it fuels inflation. They lamented that the government did not introduce any program to improve supply of essential goods and tame inflation."Effective supply of food stuffs and consumer goods to stabilize market price should have been the first priority of the government. But the government overlooked this aspect," Jyoti Baniya, president of Forum for Protection of Consumer Rights (FPCR), told Republica.
Baniya said consumer issues could not get priority in the budget as Finance Minister Mahat is driven by capitalistic principles. "Instead of stabilizing market prices, the budget will fuel inflation," added Baniya.
Similarly Prem Lal Maharjan, president of National Consumer Forum (NCF), said that government has undermined consumer rights in the budget for 2015/16. "As the budget lacks programs and policies to control inflation and market anomalies, consumers are sure to face difficulties in the near future," Maharjan said. "The quake-hit districts are sure to see shortage of food stuffs. Black-marketers will flourish in such situation."
The government on Tuesday unveiled a budget of Rs 819 billion for 2015/16, prioritizing reconstruction, education, hydropower, and infrastructure development.
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