Tourism organizations asked Minister of Tourism for support to construct a tourist bus park

KATHMANDU, Jan 09:Minister for Culture, Tourism, and Civil Aviation Badri Prasad Pandey has stated that a separate 'tourist bus park' is required to accommodate tourist buses. While inspecting the temporary bus park, he stated that there is a need for tourist bus parks around the country, especially the federal capital Kathmandu.

"Nepal is a country rich in tourism, tourist bus parks are necessary for all tourist destinations, I will take the initiative for its construction," he told. Minister Pandey stated that he will discuss the Tourist Bus Association of Nepal (TBAN) initiative to build a bus park at the Pashupati Area Development Trust in Gaushala, Kathmandu, and move forward.

Deepak Raj Joshi, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB), stated that a tourist bus park in the federal capital Kathmandu is necessary to encourage tourism. He also stated that the NTB is committed to supporting the establishment of a tourist bus park.

Kumarmani Thapaliya, President of the Nepal Association of Tour and Travel Agents (NATTA), asked the minister to support the project, noting that TBAN and NATTA had already begun the process of building a bus park with the Pashupati Area Development Trust.

TBAN President Bhishma Neupane has urged the government to take action to end the situation, stating that, despite the fact that there are separate bus parks for tourists in the tourist capital Pokhara and Sauraha in Chitwan, tourist buses are forced to park on the road from the federal capital Kathmandu.

TBAN founding president Shrikant Acharya, advisors Kedar Sharma, Madan Acharya, and others have stated that due to a lack of tourist  bus park in the country's capital, Kathmandu, tourist buses must depart at 7 a.m. for Chitwan, Pokhara, Lumbini, and other destinations, and that tourist buses can depart at any time if a bus park is constructed.

Currently, nearly one hundred tourist buses travel daily from the country's capital, Kathmandu, to Pokhara and Chitwan's Sauraha, Lumbini, and Janakpur, with 3,000 to 4,000 domestic and foreign tourists traveling on these buses. Businessmen are currently 'parking' tourist buses on the Sohrakhutte road from 5 a.m. to 7 a.m. and transporting passengers, and at night, they park them at various 'garages' after paying a fee.