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KATHMANDU, June 14: With the fiscal year nearing its end and multi-billion-rupee road project contracts on the verge of being finalized, the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport has carried out a series of unusual high-level transfers, sparking concerns over potential financial irregularities.
Senior officials at the ministry have expressed alarm over the abrupt reshuffling of key positions—such as department chiefs and project directors—just ahead of contract signings. The timing of these transfers has raised suspicions of manipulation, commonly referred to as "setting," within the ministry.
"This is an extreme malpractice," said a senior official at the ministry, requesting anonymity. "Transferring top officials right before major contracts are signed disrupts transparency and accountability."
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According to Public Procurement Rules, once a contract is signed, construction firms are eligible to receive up to 10 percent of the total contract value as an advance for mobilization expenses. Insiders allege that some transfers are intended to influence the distribution of commissions from these advance payments.
"It is highly irregular for one person to oversee the entire procurement process, only for someone else to step in at the last moment to sign the contract," a ministry staff member said. Another added that it is often customary for a share of mobilization advances to be funneled to department or division chiefs who authorize the agreements.
On May 25, under instructions from Physical Infrastructure Minister Devendra Dahal, the Director General of the Department of Roads, Ram Hari Pokharel, was summoned to the ministry and replaced by Dr. Bijay Jaishi. The reshuffle did not stop there.
Two senior undersecretaries—both Superintendent Engineers—were sidelined and left without active responsibilities. In their place, a relatively junior officer, Arjun Aryal, was appointed to head both the International Economic Cooperation Coordination Division, which oversees an annual budget of Rs 40 billion, and the Maintenance Division, which manages approximately Rs 90 billion.
Former Director General Pokharel was reassigned to the less influential Traffic Safety Division, while Umesh Bindu Shrestha, previously head of the Administration and Planning Division, was moved to the Water Resources Division. Prabhat Jha, who formerly served at the ministry, has now replaced Shrestha as head of Administration and Planning.
Sources within the ministry say several major contracts are in their final stages, raising further concerns about the timing of these transfers. Among the projects nearing finalization are two packages under the Karnali Corridor, valued at a total of Rs 4 billion; the Tulsipur–Ghorahi road project, worth Rs 39.9 billion (with technical proposals set to open on June 16); the Sardu Khola–Jhanda Chowk section of the Madan Bhandari Highway, valued at Rs 100 million; and the BP Highway reconstruction project.
Most of these projects fall under the purview of the Maintenance Division, which Aryal now leads. The reshuffling of top officials amid such crucial decision-making processes has raised questions about transparency and the integrity of contract awards at the ministry.
