Speaking at a meeting of the parliamentary committee called to discuss the effect of the permission with officials of the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation (MoTCA) and Nepal Airlines Cooperation (NAC), CA member Jok Bahadur Mishra said the government´s decision was not in the interest of the country and should be revised at the earliest.[break] “We should not allow a foreign company to use our land for [overcoming] their woes,” he added.
“We are ready to assist with the procedure for amending the decision,” CA member Kamala Thapa said. She said that NAC should be made more competent instead, adding that such a decision was sure to take NAC to the brink of collapse.
The permission given by the government comes as part of fifth freedom rights. Fifth freedom rights allow an airline to carry passenger from one´s own country to a second country and from that country to a third country. As per the agreement between the Department of Civil Aviation (DoCA) and the Government of Sharjah, Air Arabia is already scheduled to launch its service to Malaysia from Sharjah on December 16. The UAE-based airline entered an Air Service Agreement (ASA) with Nepal in October 1999 and the bilateral agreement was revised as per the open sky policy on December 27, 2007.
Executive Chairman of NAC, Sugat Ratna Kansakar, said that in response to a letter from MoTCA, NAC has asked the government not to allow fifth freedom rights. Citing the examples of Japan and Turkey, he said there was no compulsion for the government to allow fifth freedom.
Similarly, Managing Director of NAC, K B Limbu, said that fifth freedom in a country like Nepal was not a fruitful concept. “There should be possibilities of amendment to the MoU and the government should consider this,” he added. He stressed that air route permission should be given only for routes that NAC does not operate.
However, Kishor Thapa, MoTCA secretary, said the agreement was as per the open sky policy and the government was compelled to give the permission because of previous agreements with Air Arabia. “We are enjoying fifth freedom in UAE, and that compels us to give the permission in return,” he added.
He also said that the decision was taken considering the suffering of migrant workers who are forced to fly via Dhaka and Delhi due to lack of sufficient flights. “This will also help bring more tourists during Nepal Tourism Year 2011,” he added. “We are adamant on the decision but also ready to review it if the committee so instructs,” Thapa said.
Air Arabia has permission for six flights a week. At least 21 flights a week are required to meet demand.
Related story
167 Nepalis fly to UAE in an Air Arabia flight after rapid PCR...
