DPM Shrestha inspects Tribhuvan International Airport

KATHMANDU, April 09:Narayan Kaji Shrestha, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs, has directed line agencies to maintain complete security at Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) because it is linked to the nation's identity.

Following an on-site visit to the TIA on Saturday, Shrestha requested that the airport's help desks be made more effective and that the airport's entire operations be transferred to a digital system. On the occasion, the Deputy Prime Minister directed that the TIA be restructured within 15 days for immediate and long-term reforms.

Home Minister Shrestha stated that the airport is a highly sensitive area in terms of national security, and that no exceptions will be made for trends and activities that weaken the airport's sensitivity. "An international airport symbolizes a country's identity. We must be extremely active "He went on to say.

Shrestha also asked the TIA officials to be courteous to foreign tourists visiting Nepal and Nepali labor migrant workers traveling abroad. He argued that the tourist entrance gate should also be the entrance to the culture and civilization of the concerned nation.

DPM Shrestha stated that additional hassles, mistreatment and stresses to the migrant workers would not be tolerable, stating that the remittance from abroad has contributed significantly to the country's economy. Home Secretary Binod Prakash Singh, Director General of Department of Immigration Jhalak Ram Adhikari, chief of TIA Immigration Office Ram Babu Subedi, General Manager of TIA from Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) Pratap Babu Subedi and security officials were present on the occasion.