About 13 per cent of the total budget has been allocated to the Ministry of Home Affairs and Defence Ministry and its agencies for the coming fiscal year 2021/22 by giving top priority to the internal security and defense.
The government has allocated budget by giving priority to border security, disaster management, modernisation of immigration administration, peacekeeping and crime investigation and control, prison management, construction of physical infrastructure of security agencies.
According to the budget book, Rs. 217.94 billion has been allocated for the Ministry of Home Affairs and Defence and its agencies. This amount is about 13.22 per cent of the total budget.
For the current fiscal year, the government had allocated Rs. 186.15 billion security budget for the Home Ministry, Defence, Nepali Army and its other agencies. The allocated amount for the fiscal year 2021/22 is Rs. 31.79 billion more than the current fiscal year.
Out of this, Rs. 166.90 billion has been allocated for the Ministry of Home Affairs and all 77 district administrations including Nepal Police, Armed Police Force, Immigration Department, Prison Management Department, National Identity Card and Registration Department.
Of the total allocated security budget, a sum of Rs. 51.44 billion has been allocated for the Ministry of Defence and the Nepali Army alone.
In the last fiscal year 2020/21, the budget allocated of the Home was Rs. 105.68 billion and Rs. 48.24 billion was allocated for Defence.
In comparison, the annual budget for defence and security is increasing annually.
Salary for the civil servants including security bodies was also increased by Rs. 2,000 this year. The government has increased the salaries of all civil servants by 2,000 with effect from August.
Ration allowances for all security personnel have also been increased by 15 per cent from the new fiscal. More than 200,000 security personnel are working in the four security agencies. Similarly, ration allowance has been adjusted after six years by 15 per cent in Nepal Police and Armed Police Force. Ration allowance is provided to them in cash.
Border security, cross-border crime investigation and control programmes are also given priority. For border security, it was proposed to add 112 BOPs on borer with India and 120 BOPs on the side of China by the next fiscal.
Similarly, the immigration administration will be made efficient by keeping the mandatory biometric details of foreign nationals entering from the land borders in electronic system.
It is mentioned in the budget that the army will be given the responsibility to control the fire which is getting worse every year. Helicopters and other equipment like aerial fire-fighting will be kept in readiness. The budget also mentions multipurpose robotic fire-fighting, multi-seater ambulances, rescue vehicle and fire brigade in all the municipalities for disaster rescue and management.
Necessary budget has also been allocated to the army this year under the bunker-to-barrack programme.
This programme had begun in army since 2009. Similarly, establishment of physical and educational infrastructure of the National Defence University has also been given priority by the budget.
Source : THE RISING NEPAL,
