The prime minister furnished the reasons in a meeting of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of the legislature-parliament that summoned him to clarify why the cabinet decided to award India´s state-owned company with the contract to print MRPs despite the committee´s directives to revive an aborted international bidding process for the MRPs. [break]
After listening to the prime minister´s arguments, the PAC decided to come up with a decision on the matter in its next meeting on Friday.
Nepal said it was an issue that needed lengthy procedures to get the passports printed in the latest technology and that the nine-month period of time since he assumed the office was not enough to deliver the passports by April 1.
"Nine months were not enough as I came to know that it takes at least two years to accomplish such tasks." Nepal, as a member of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), a UN agency, required to introduce MRPs by April 1.
"Though the government in 2004 took some decisions to make arrangements in this connection, the previous governments took no concrete steps," the prime minister said.
He claimed that it was only after he assumed the post that the government practically took an action by forming a committee to take the process ahead.
He argued that the government undertook bilateral talks with India as per the PAC´s directive issued to the government on February 14 that instructed the government to talk to India and other friendly countries as well in connection with MRPs.
"Following the issuance of the directive from this committee, when the government talked to various friendly countries, it was found that the proposal forwarded by the India´s state-owned company is the most suitable due to time constraints," the prime minister said. "Since the bilateral talks with India had progressed, it was not appropriate to back down from the procedure due to diplomatic as well as political reasons."
Related story
2.5 million MRP booklets contract going to French firm without...
