Nepal Civil Aviation Authority Bill tabled in HoR

KATHMANDU, APRIL 29: During yesterday's meeting, the House of Representatives (HoR) unanimously endorsed the proposal for consideration of the Nepal Civil Aviation Authority Bill, 2081.

Minister for Culture, Tourism, and Civil Aviation Badri Prasad Pandey presented the proposal in the HoR.

Participating in the theoretical discussions, HoR member Prem Bahadur Ale attributed the current dismal state of Pokhara International Airport to the conflict of interest caused by a single entity acting as both regulator and service provider.

Lawmaker Nagina Yadav emphasized that merely enacting the law would not suffice; effective implementation was equally crucial.

Similarly, lawmaker Biraj Bhakta Shrestha asserted that construction of the Nijgadh Airport should be halted until the final investigation reports on Pokhara International Airport and Gautam Buddha International Airport are made public. He also stressed the need for the bill to address aviation safety concerns.

Lawmaker Hitraj Pandey called for a performance-based review of the Civil Aviation Training Academy's activities.

Lawmakers Sushila Thing and Sobita Gautam advocated for separating the regulatory authority and service provider into two distinct entities in the aviation sector.

Likewise, lawmaker Sudan Kirati pointed out that the technical issues related to the Nijgadh Airport project must be resolved prior to the commencement of construction.

Several lawmakers also raised concerns over the Saurya Airlines plane crash that occurred around nine months ago.

Lawmakers Yogesh Kumar Bhattarai, Rajendra Bajgain, Rupa Joshi Chaudhary, Lekhnath Dahal, Bijula Rayamajhi, Gyanu Basnet Subedi, and Bindhyabasini Kansakar also expressed their views, urging revisions to the bill to ensure meaningful reforms in Nepal's civil aviation sector.