KATHMANDU, Dec 21: Without studying and preparing for the distribution, the provincial governments have started splitting the ministries. At present, the number of provincial ministries across the country stands at 69.

With the exception of Province 1 and the Far Western government, all provincial governments have split ministries. The Bagmati province government is in the forefront of splitting the ministries. Bagmati has split the ministry into 14 ministries, including the chief minister's office.

According to the Ministry of Federal Affairs, the provincial governments have split the ministries without conducting an organization and management survey due to which they are not able to send the required number of employees.

Spokesperson for the Ministry of Federal Affairs, Basanta Adhikari said that the provincial governments have not informed the Ministry of Federal Affairs about the splitting of various ministries. He said, "We do not have any staff in the administration group itself, how can we send staff to the newly-created ministries as soon as the ministry splits."

In February 2018, the then central government had made a temporary structure of provincial governments in all the seven provinces and accordingly, one secretary was appointed in each of the provinces. The structure created by the central government has been dismantled by all the provincial governments except Province 1 and the Far Western government.

According to the Constitution of Nepal, up to 20 percent of the total number of province parliamentarians can be made the province minister. "This is a ceiling. But the province governments seem to have jumped too high to touch that ceiling,” said another joint secretary in the federal affairs ministry.

Due to the ceiling, the Karnali province government has not been able to split more than eight ministries. At present, there are seven ministries in Province 1, nine in Province 2, 14 in Bagmati, 11 in Gandaki, 13 in Lumbini, eight in Karnali and seven in Far West.

Meanwhile, The Bagmati province government has split the ministries, including the chief minister's office, industry, commerce and supplies, culture and tourism, land management cooperatives and poverty alleviation, economic affairs and planning, internal affairs and law, physical infrastructure and development, social development, health, labor and transport, drinking water and energy, as well as ministry of irrigation, agriculture and livestock development, forest and environment, youth and sports.

The Lumbini province government is in second place to split the ministries and the Gandaki is in the third. As there is a shortage of staff in the Bagmati province government, the staff of one ministry have been asked to oversee the affairs of other ministries too.

 
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