Ministerial discussions on checking airfare rise

KATHMANDU, Nov 10: An inter-ministerial meeting was held on the issue of the rise in international airfare.     

Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Badri Prasad Pandey today held discussions with Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Arzu Rana Deuba and Minister for Labour and Employment Sharat Singh Bhandari.     

Tourism Minister Pandey had a discussion with the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Minister for Labour and Employment, and the representatives of the Overseas Employment Promotion Organization on the issues including financial burdens to the labourers bound to overseas employment due to the rise in airfare.     

According to the Ministry of Tourism, discussions were held on allowing the use of the New Delhi-based Indira Gandhi International Airport for foreign employment and facilitating for operation of additional flights at Gautam Buddha International Airport in Bhairahawa.     

During the discussion, Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Rana said she would take the initiative to check the rise in airfares.     

An inter-ministerial meeting would be held to resolve the issue, she further said a request would be made through the embassy to operate flights from Delhi keeping passengers at the centre.     

Minister for Labour and Employment and Social Security Sharat Singh Bhandari said although Nepalis used to go to labour destinations from New Delhi in India earlier, it was stopped following complaints on the rise of human trafficking from manpower agencies.     

Minister Bhandari urged to operate flights from Bhairahawa and Pokhara airports. The increase in the price of air tickets has hit hard the tourists inflowing to Nepal, Minister Bhandari said, stressing the need for stopping syndicates.     

Tourism Minister Pandey said that the airline operators might have increased airfares due to the reduction in night flight time at Tribhuvan International Airport for the expansion of runway. "The airlines had already planned to reduce number of flights after the disclosure of information about the expansion of the runway. Flights are being diverted to Pokhara and Bhairahawa international airports".     

During the discussion, it was shared that some airlines might have involved in carteling the fare in the pretext of airport closure at night for the expansion of the taxiway of the airport. In this context, the entrepreneurs associated with foreign employment stressed that the government should take necessary decisions.     

President of the Democratic Foreign Employment Entrepreneurs Association, Deepak Thapa said that international airfares from Nepal have been invariably increasing blaming airline companies and some travel agencies for this.