Prime Minister's directive to effectively operate the Pokhara and Gautam Buddha International Airports

KATHMANDU, Aug 04:Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli held a high-level discussion about the full capacity operation of Pokhara International Airport and Bhairahawa's Gautam Buddha International Airport.

The Prime Minister, discussed the options and measures to operate both international airports at full capacity on Friday, taking into account the current flight volume and passenger management at Tribhuvan International Airport.

During the debate, Prime Minister Oli directed the creation of an atmosphere conducive to regular international flight operations from the two airports. He expressed his opinion that if the regulatory body promptly resolves the issue of international airlines' flights at those two airports, the government will schedule them and move forward.

Prime Minister Oli requested that it be taken seriously because the two international airports had not been running at full capacity for a long time after their construction, resulting in losses, and there was a duty to manage more aircraft and passengers than the Kathmandu airport could handle.

The discussion was attended by Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel, Foreign Minister Dr Arju Rana Deuba, Labour and Employment Minister Sharatsingh Bhandari, Culture, Tourism, and Civil Aviation Minister Badri Prasad Pandey, Chief Secretary, Chief Advisor to the Prime Minister, and Director General of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) Pradeep Adhikari.

During the discussion, officials from the CAAN updated attendees on the airport's operational issues, work being done, and preparations being made in a variety of areas.

To that end, the joint secretaries of all pertinent ministries have been tasked with completing the assignment, with coordination from Rajkumar Shrestha, the Secretary of the Office of the Prime Minister and the Council of Ministers.