Kathmandu, Dec 7 (NationPress) The anti-corruption agency of Nepal has initiated legal proceedings at the Special Court against 55 individuals, which includes five former ministers and numerous former government secretaries, as well as a Chinese construction firm, regarding irregularities in the development of the Pokhara Regional International Airport.

This China-invested project in western Pokhara has been surrounded by controversies relating to alleged misconduct. The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA), the constitutional body responsible for fighting corruption, has formally registered these cases against the accused. This is one of multiple corruption allegations associated with projects involving Chinese contractors in Nepal.

The filed cases stem from a projected financial loss of approximately 74.34 million US dollars (NPR 8.36 billion). Among those charged are former ministers Post Bahadur Bogati (deceased), Ram Sharan Mahat, Deepak Chandra Amatya, Ram Kumar Shrestha, and Bhim Prasad Acharya. Notably, Mahat served as the finance minister during the time the alleged corruption transpired, while the others held the position of tourism ministers.

Several former government secretaries, including Ramkrishna Timilsena, who previously served as the registrar of the Supreme Court, along with Sushil Ghimire, Suman Sharma, Bheshraj Sharma, Sureshman Shrestha, Madhukumar Marasini, and others, are also implicated.

Furthermore, Pradip Adhikari, who was suspended from his role as Director General of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), and former CIAA director Murari Bhandari, both of whom have been charged in a separate corruption case involving heliport construction, are included as defendants. The Chinese construction company, China CAMC Engineering Co Ltd, along with its officials, including Wang Bo (chairman) and Liu Shengcheng (regional general manager), have also been named as defendants.

All individuals face allegations of participating in the procurement process by artificially inflating project costs.

The contract for the project, valued at US$215.96 million, was financed by China’s Export-Import Bank. However, the project's failure to generate revenue poses a significant issue for the Nepali government, which is responsible for repaying the Chinese loan.

In May, a sub-committee within the now-dissolved House of Representatives' Public Accounts Committee identified numerous irregularities in both the construction process and the tax exemptions granted to the construction firm. Despite the airport's inauguration on January 1, 2023, Pokhara continues to face difficulties in attracting international airlines, raising concerns that this multi-million-dollar venture could turn into a significant failure.

Currently, only Himalaya Airlines, a joint venture carrier between Nepal and China, has been providing a scheduled flight once a week on the Pokhara-Lhasa route since March of this year.

A prior governmental high-level study committee flagged defects in the airport's physical and navigational designs, which impose load limitations on medium-haul flights, raising concerns about operational expenses for airlines interested in maintaining regular flights through the airport.

According to the report produced by the High-Level Study and Recommendation Committee, chaired by the current Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supply, Anil Kumar Sinha — who was a retired Supreme Court judge at the time — it has been noted that the airport needs a five percent climb gradient for the Missed Approach Procedure Design Gradient, which is considered high from a technical perspective for aircraft.

This results in medium-haul jet aircraft facing a load penalty of four to six tonnes upon arrival, with weight restrictions also applying during departure due to the runway's length, ultimately affecting passenger and cargo capacity,” the report elaborates.

The current runway length of 2,500 metres restricts airline operations, particularly under conditions of high temperature, heavy aircraft weight, and/or low-pressure weather.