Kathmandu. A meeting of the National Assembly today endorsed the ‘Bill to Mobilize National Loan, 2083’. The bill received from the House of Representatives was approved by a majority when it was presented for decision after clause-wise discussions.

In the meeting, Finance Minister Dr. Swarnim Wagle had presented a proposal demanding that the bill be passed without consultation and sent back to the House of Representatives. Earlier, he had presented the proposal for clause-wise discussion on the bill.

Responding to the queries raised during the discussions, Minister Wagle said the government was clear on investing loan in productive sector and expressed the belief that the suggestions received would be implemented.

Stating that the country’s debt burden has increased in the last eight years, especially after COVID-19, Finance Minister Dr Wagle said the loan should be taken for necessary works and the loan would be used to achieve the goals set by the government and to pay down the past loan. Stating that the state has a debt of around Rs 300 trillion at present, he said the Public Debt Management Office was managing it overall.

Members Meena Singh Rakhal, Samjhana Devkota, Rukmini Koirala and Somnath Portel took part in the discussions. They said that collecting loans alone would not be enough and transparency should be distributed and direct returns should be shown in agriculture and energy sectors.