NCP Secretariat discuss govt’s policies and programs

KATHMANDU, May 15: The Nepal Communist Party Secretariat has discussed the policies and programs for the fiscal year 2020/21, which the government is presenting today afternoon.

The Secretariat meeting discussed the policies and programs for the upcoming fiscal year, party Spokesperson Narayan Kaji Shrestha told reporters after the meeting.

President Bidya Devi Bhandari is scheduled to present the government’s policies and programs at the parliament today at 4 pm.

The joint meeting of the 275-member House of Representatives and 59-member National Assembly will also be attended by 29 distinguished guests including the vice-president, chiefs of constitutional bodies and security agencies. However, there will be no presence of the heads of foreign diplomatic missions and private sectors in the meeting owing to the possibility of the spread of COVID-19 pandemic.

All the members of the federal parliament have already undergone screening for the disease, and have tested negative.

Meanwhile, physical distancing and other precautionary measures such as use of safety gear, mask and sanitizer have been maintained in the parliament building to prevent the spread of the virus.

The government’s policies and programs for the upcoming year will be centered on tackling the impacts of the COVID-19 that has spread across more than 24 districts and infected 258 people since it was first detected on January 23 on a Nepali student from Chinese city Wuhan, where the virus was first reported late December last year.

The Secretariat meeting, however, did not discuss the date of the Standing Committee meeting that has been deferred twice already. Last time, the meeting was postponed on May 13 after it was found that Standing Committee member Bhim Rawal’s bodyguard, who was on leave for the past one month, was infected by the virus.