The District Coordination Committee (DCC) of Solukhumbu has not been able to spend Rs. 220 million it earned from tourism royalties six years ago.
The then District Development Committee had earned Rs. 400 million in the fiscal year 2015/16 from its 30 per cent share of the total mountaineering fees collected from tourists. Of that amount, Rs. 220 million still remains unspent.
Bir Kumar Rai, chairman of the DCC, said that the money has not been utilised because of the delay from the Ministry of Finance in sending an official letter. “The Ministry has released the funds for spending, but it has not sent an official letter stating the same. This has prevented us from utilising the money,” he said.
Had the ministry forwarded the letter, the money would have been used to office buildings for the local levels of the district, the DCC informed.
Rai informed that discussions had been held with representatives of the local, provincial and federal governments for the utilisation of the amount. “But the problem is that the Ministry of Finance has not yet formally authorised the use of the money,” he said.
Source : THE RISING NEPAL,
