E-Kantipur

KATHMANDU, JUL 15 -

In a bid to establish tourism as the backbone of the country’s economy, the government has accorded high priority to the tourism sector. It has increased the budget to the sector by 25 percent for the fiscal year 2011-12 compared to FY 2010-11.

According to a Finance Ministry source, the government has allocated Rs 1.22 billion for the next fiscal year, up from Rs 983 million of the current fiscal year. The government has devised a long-term plan to establish Nepal as one of the world’s model tourism destination by 2015. The budget will focus on developing infrastructure for the target.

The government plans to develop tourism in the Mid and Far Western regions by exploiting their untapped potentials as a part of the ongoing Nepal Tourism Year campaign. Infrastructure development in Shey-Phoksundo Lake, Rara Lake, Ramrosan and Budimalika will be carried out. The government plans to integrate Rara, Sinja, Pupal, Dhorpatan, Sisne and Jaljala of the Mid-Western region in a trekking circuit.

Similarly, trekking trails will be developed in the Annapurna and Manaslu regions. Potential tourist destinations across the country will be exploited. For this, the government has put forward a concept of capitalising 17 tourist areas.

The ongoing Nepal Tourism Year campaign will also be continued and the government will prioritise infrastructure development of the aviation industry. Tribhuvan International Airport will be improved, while construction of Second International Airport in Nijgadh will be carried out.

Necessary physical infrastructure for the development of regional international airports—Gautam Buddha, Pokhara, Janakpur and Surkhet—will be constructed. Airports in Biratnagar, Nepalgunj and Dhangadi will be developed as regional hub airports.

The ministry source said funds have been allocated to construct advanced technology-equipped airports in the Karnali zone and other remote areas. The government will launch effective programmes for the capacity building of Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) and the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal.

Aircrafts for NAC will be purchased on government guarantee. An advanced international standards seminar hall will be built in Butwal so as to develop the Lumbini area. The government will also make efforts to collect donors’ funds for the development of Lumbini as an International Peace City.

Programmes will be formulated to make political leaders to visit all geographical areas of the country in a bid to educate them on the country’s geographical distribution. The government has also allocated Rs 20 million for the first Dalit Mt Everest expedition campaign.

Posted on: 2011-07-15 08:53

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