Minister Basnet visits Jajarkot second time after election; people greet with demands

Minister for Forest and Environment, Shakti Bahadur Basnet, visited Jajarkot this morning. Basnet who had won the 2017 legislative election from the Jajarkot constituency 1 reached the district second time since his election victory.

The Jajarkot folks who were excited to welcome their representative to the centre as the minister utilised the moment to submit a memorandum, putting forth several concerns during the welcome programme. The demands include drinking water, electricity, bridge, road facilities and better mobile phone connectivity.

The Minister as the election candidate had used trails to visit settlement during the election campaign, but this time he travelled through a motor as most of the parts in the western Jajarkot have access to gravelled roads. In around past two years, road construction works are going on in the district and the Federal Government has partnered up with local governments for this.

Leader Basnet who had to climb up high lands to have a connection to mobile phone network that time was seen talking on his cell phone by sitting inside his vehicle.

On the occasion, Shivalaya rural municipality chair Narendra Kumar Shahi and Cheedagad municipality mayor Lal Bahadur Mahatara apprised the minister through the memorandum that development projects and other initiations of the local level faced the budgetary constraints which had hampered the progress in such efforts.

The demands are mostly centred on roadways construction and the establishment of health institutions.

The Minister was accompanied by former Minister for Peace and Reconstruction Satya Pahadi, National Assembly member Bhairav Sundar Shrestha, State Assemblymember Karbir Shahi, former lawmaker Ratna Prasad Sharma Neupane, Chief District Officer Janakraj Panta, Jajarkot police chief Kishor Kumar Shrestha, and Armed Police Force official among others.

He encouraged the locals to put issues they were facing before him without any hesitation. “I am here to listen to the voices of those who have no access to the Singha Durbar (the central administrative office),” he said on the occasion.

In response to public demands, he said the voices were not related to individual interests and aspirations. He assured that their demands would be addressed by the next two years.

As he said, their problems were the concerns of all three-tier governments. The Minister underlined the need for maintaining discipline in the development of endeavours and urged locals to keep tabs on the expenditure of budget sent by the centre.