SAC members for more financial support to NA

Members of Parliamentary State Affairs Committee (SAC) has said that the government should provide more financial support to army personnel as their basic needs have not been met in remote parts of the country.

After visiting army barracks in remote districts, UML lawmaker Parshuram Meghi Gurung said, “They are not provided with even the basic needs and the parliamentary committee should direct the government to fulfill their minimum needs.”

“Some of the army personnel have been deployed to construct roads and some of them have been deployed for maintaining security; thus their basic needs should be met,” said Gurung.

Nepali Congress Democratic lawmaker Chirinjivi Wagle said that they are neither living in good camps as there is no good building, nor are there any good toilets.

The SAC held a ‘secret meeting’ with the chief of army staff Rookmangud Katawal and discussed these issues.

However, some of the members of SAC, including Devendra Raj Kandel of NC (D) and Gorakh Bahadur Bogati of UML who were not invited in the ‘secret meeting’ criticised SAC Chairman Hridaya Ram Thani and accused him of hatching a conspiracy.

They also said there was no need to hold such a secret meeting.

UML’s MP Pradip Nepal suggested that the government should now treat both the Maoists’ PLA and Nepali Army equally.

Chairman of the State Affairs Committee Hridaya Ram Thani said the Committee would give suggestions to the government in writing in this regard.

He, however, defended the secret meeting and said leaders of all parliamentary parties were invited. nepalnews.com pb Jan 13 07