CM Karki Calls for Stronger Coordination Among Three Tiers of Government

Morang, Feb 8 — Chief Minister of Koshi Province Hikmat Kumar Karki has stressed the need for effective cooperation and coexistence among the federal, provincial, and local governments in line with the spirit of the Constitution.

Speaking at a province-level development problems resolution committee meeting held in Biratnagar on Sunday, CM Karki expressed concern that issues raised by provincial and local governments and forwarded to the federal level for approval were not being addressed on time. He claimed that nearly 99 percent of such matters remain pending at the federal level.

“The Constitution envisions cooperation and coexistence among all tiers of government, but the lack of this approach in practice has slowed down provincial governance,” Karki said. He emphasized that problems arising at the provincial level should be resolved by the province itself, while only issues requiring federal coordination should be referred to the central government.

According to Taranath Niraula, Vice-chairperson of the Province Planning Commission, the meeting discussed several key challenges, including complications caused by directives on public expenditure standards and austerity, the need to enhance revenue collection and broaden the revenue base, formulation of laws and work procedures, effective implementation of projects funded through equalization grants, and reduction of outstanding arrears.

The discussion also highlighted difficulties in implementing small-scale projects, liabilities related to multi-year projects, attempts to curtail provincial authority in the transport sector, and federal reluctance to allow provinces to levy agricultural income tax.

The meeting decided to resolve the identified issues within the month of Falgun, participants shared.