Non-budget expenses touch Rs 8 billion

Non-budget expenses touch Rs 8 billion

Increased salary and pensions take away Rs 7.28 billion

Maoist combatants to get additional Rs 380 million

KATHMANDU, July 21: Barely a week after budget announcement, Ministry of Finance is combating hard to manage a record eight billion rupees worth of non-budgetary expenditure arising mainly from pay hike of government employees. [break]

A high-ranking official told myrepublica.com that the precarious fiscal balance is under tremendous pressure and if the targeted revenue mobilization falters even slightly, there will be no option than to bring a supplementary budget, probably in April next year. "At this state a possibility of a supplementary budget to facilitate inter-head transfer of resources and their reallocation can´t be ruled out," said the source.

According to sources, the decision taken by the cabinet meeting to increase salary and allowances of civil servants in response to their five-day long protests has added direct financial liability worth Rs 7.28 billion to the state coffers. Of the amount, Rs 6.35 billion will go for paying increased salary and dearness allowance for 450,000 incumbent employees while the remaining Rs 930 million will be used to raise pension of about 150,000 pensioners, he said.

The official further informed that the MOF has categorically mentioned in the decision passed by the cabinet on Sunday that taking decision to raise salary and allowances for civil servants is not impossible but financially risky and there might be a necessity of supplementary budget if fiscal balance worsens.

The government on Sunday had decided to increase basic salary of gazetted officers by four percent and non-gazetted employees by six percent. In addition to this, the meeting also decided to provide Rs 1,200 per month as dearness allowance to all government employees. The MOF had witnessed a non-budgetary expenditure during the first quarter of the last fiscal year mainly due to the devastating Koshi floods.

Likewise, new salary for around 19,500 former Maoist combatants that is widely expected to be in line with the civil servants´ increment, will add an additional burden of Rs 380 billion for the government.

If the salary increment is also applied for Maoist combatants, their salary will increase to Rs 6,500 per month from Rs 5,000. The salary is in addition to monthly Rs 1,800 food allowance to former rebels.

Picture of couples to be posted on website

Ministry of Finance is planning to post pictures of the bride and groom one of whom is a dalit,in an attempt to control possible misuse of the government provision of incentive. The government has announced an incentive of Rs 100,000 for each newly married couple, one of whom is a dalit.

Given widespread practice of fake marriage in foreign countries, we are serious about taking every possible steps to curb such practices in Nepal, said an official. Likewise, MOF is also brainstorming other measures within the existing rules, like producing testimonies of prominent members of society, to attest the marriage.

prem@myrepublica.com