House panels issue contradictory directives on CNP hotels

Two parliamentary committees have issued mutually contradictory directives to the government on whether or not to allow operation of seven hotels and resorts inside Chitwan National Park (CNP), whose contract with the government ended earlier this year.

While, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) had advised the government to allow the hotels and resorts resume their services for three more years on September 12, the Natural Resources and Means Committee (NRMC) has instructed the government not to do so.

NRMC has directed the Council of Ministers, forest and soil conservation ministry and a finance-ministry-led panel studying the issue not to take any action in this matter until further instructions from the committee.

NRMC overruled PAC’s decision saying, the matter fell in its jurisdiction as per the parliamentary regulations as it was an issue of natural resources management.

Forest minister Deepak Bohara has said, the mutually contradictory decisions by the two House panels had put the government in limbo.

Chairpersons of both the committees are consulting Constituent Assembly Chairman Subash Chandra Nemwang to sort out the misunderstanding between them later this week.