Newly-appointed Managing Director of the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA), Hitendra Dev Shakya took oath of office and assumed his duties a day after he was controversially appointed to the post by the government at the expense of Kulman Ghising, a household name in Nepal for putting an end to load shedding.
Minister for Energy, Water Resource and Irrigation Deepak Khadka administered the oath of office to Shakya at the ministry on Tuesday.
The Council of Ministers had appointed Shakya on Monday for a four-year term, in accordance with Clause 27(1) of the Nepal Electricity Authority Act, 2041 BS.
Upon assuming office, Shakya expressed his commitment to elevating the NEA with determination. Minister Khadka instructed Shakya to expedite the recovery of dues owed to the NEA by industrialists and to address power outage issues promptly.
However, Minister Khadka's directives contradicts the government's lenient actions toward defaulting industrialists. Notably, Khadka himself had announced potential load-shedding during a recent National Assembly meeting.
The incumbent government led by KP Sharma Oli is at odds with Ghising, who was appointed by the previous government led by Pushpa Kamal Dahal, over the unpaid dues of the defaulting industries. Ghising’s bold step to defy the government’s instructions to reconnect power supply to the defaulting industries earned him multiple rounds of clarifications from the government, which eventually decided to sack him.
In response to Ghising's removal, the CPN (Maoist Centre) has protested the decision. Party Vice-President and Spokesperson Agni Prasad Sapkota issued a statement on Tuesday urging the government to reverse the decision, stating that it aims to create psychological fear among honest and skilled administrators. (With inputs from RSS)
