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CPN (Maoist Center) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal has a lot of challenges to overcome as prime minister. Above all, he needs to improve the national economy, which is getting worse. The soaring interest rate, liquidity crunch, and a sharp slowdown in business activity are major causes of concern. The private sector has already submitted a long list of demands to PM Dahal.  On top of their agenda is the postponement of the guidelines on working capital loans introduced by Nepal Rastra Bank. The two leading private sector organizations–Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) and Confederation of Nepalese Industry (CNI)–separately briefed Dahal about the health status of the economy. The private sector says reviving the economy should be the first and the foremost priority of the government. The Dahal-led government needs to take immediate and drastic measures to improve the economy. The second challenge obviously is to improve the service delivery. As parties remained busy in the elections and intra-party and inter-party fighting, the quality of service delivery has suffered. Corruption and irregularities are thriving. The first meeting of the Dahal Cabinet has decided to improve service delivery, particularly in the passport and transport offices. This is indeed a welcome step, but it is not sufficient. If the past is any guide, proactive measures like these last just a few days. People are still forced to pay bribes to get their job done. So, the Dahal-led government should launch a special campaign to improve service delivery. The next step would be to revive people’s trust in key state institutions, such as the parliament, the judiciary and other constitutional bodies. Politicization of state organs has shaken the basic democratic tenet of checks and balances. The judiciary is without a full-fledged chief justice, with an impeachment motion pending against the high officeholder, Cholendra SJB Rana. The damning exposé on Rana’s political ambition whilst leading the Supreme Court has eroded public trust in the judiciary. Rebuilding the court’s image and its legitimacy will require hard work and a long time. To perform these tasks effectively, the government needs to take a consultative approach. Before taking any decision, the PM should take all the coalition partners and even the opposition into confidence. Previous governments failed to take decisions on time because coalition partners were not on the same page on various issues. The new PM faces the challenge of accommodating more than seven coalition partners and their conflicting interests. This government’s failure to deliver will further fuel people’s dissatisfaction with the mainstream political parties. The November 20 elections have clearly shown that frustration against the mainstream parties will further strengthen the rightist forces challenging the constitution. So, to build on the progress made so far, the current government should work seriously. PM Dahal has said on several occasions that he will not repeat past mistakes and will work to revive people’s faith in the political parties. The onus is on all political parties to lend their support to the Dahal-led government, enabling it to serve the people in a difficult time.

Winter is here, and with it comes cold-related and respiratory illnesses. The worsening air quality, particularly in urban centers like Kathmandu, is fueling such diseases. The Ministry of Environment and Kathmandu Metropolitan City have come up with a grand policy and program to curb air pollution, but they have little difference. Kathmandu is rated as one the most polluted cities in the world. This winter season, people need to pay extra attention, as the coronavirus is still circulating among us. It is difficult to distinguish covid infection from common cold or flu. In the Tarai, many people do not have warm clothes to see them through the winter. Distressing news is coming from Tarai that people are dying from extreme cold. Two persons from Musahar community died of cold in the last two weeks. Those losing lives to chill are from Pidari of Haripur Municipality-9 in Sarlahi.  Ramesh Majhi,40, from ward no 9 and Ram Bhagat Majhi, 65, from Haripur Municipality-6 lost their lives due to severe cold, according to the District Police Office. Ramesh used to work as a laborer. He died while sleeping. He had slept in a straw. Many families, particularly in poor communities, rely on bonfires to keep them warm. The practice of making bonfires to ward off cold not only contributes to air pollution and respiratory diseases. It also raises the risks of death due to smoke asphyxia and household fire. Availability of warm clothes could greatly minimize these risks. From an individual level, we could donate warm clothes to the least fortunate ones, either in person or through various charities and social organizations. When covid epidemic was at its peak, many people came out to support the poor. It is important that we show the same spirit of goodwill. It is equally important that all three levels of government—federal, provincial and local governments—raise awareness among people about diseases associated with cold weather and the ways to prevent them. They should also equip health facilities with medicines because poor people cannot afford to go to private clinics and hospitals.  As our healthcare system is still centralized, the federal government should take immediate measures to increase and improve the medical resources of health facilities in outlying regions of the country. We are currently in the government transition process. The incumbent Sher Bahadur Deuba-led government has been rendered into a caretaker role, and the process of new government formation is likely to take some time. For our political parties and their leaders, preventing winter-related diseases and deaths is not a priority.  But this cannot be an excuse not to address the issue. Government agencies should collect the data of people who do not have proper shelter and clothes, and take steps to protect them.

The incumbent Sher Bahadur Deuba-led five-party coalition government is essentially a caretaker dispensation, as the country just conducted the elections to federal parliament and provincial assemblies. In this interregnum period, it has no authority to take any big decision. But Deuba has gone on to issue an ordinance that allows the government to scrap the so-called political cases—both sub-judice and adjudicated ones. The only job of the current government is to facilitate smooth transition of power. It’s clear to see where this ordinance came from and to what end. As the five-party coalition, led by the Nepali Congress, could not muster a majority in the Nov 20 polls, it will need the support of fringe parties to form a government. This is where the ordinance comes in. It was issued with a purpose of freeing Resham Lal Chaudhary, a former lawmaker and leader of Nagarik Unmukti Party, who is currently in prison after being convicted of orchestrating the 2015 Kailali massacre, where eight people including a toddler lost their lives. Chaudhary’s party has won three seats in federal parliament, and the five-party coalition needs just two seats to secure a majority. The ordinance was brought to woo the newly elected lawmakers of Nagarik Unmukti Party. This transitional government has overstepped its jurisdiction by issuing the controversial ordinance. The important thing to bear in mind here is that the newly elected members of the House of Representatives (HoR) have yet to hold the first meeting. Before entering into its main business of lawmaking, the HoR will have to elect a new prime minister, president, deputy president, speaker, and deputy speaker. The new government will take shape accordingly. Even if the five-party coalition were to form the next government, this is a bad beginning in many ways. The move clearly demonstrates that the parties are not ready to mend their ways. In the past five years, parties in power largely bypassed the parliament and tried to run the country through ordinances. They seem to be headed towards the same path all over again. The recently concluded elections have clearly shown that people’s faith and trust in mainstream political parties are fast eroding. The emergence of new political parties should have served as a warning to them. But apparently, it didn’t.

Farmers across the country are busy planting winter crops, and they are in desperate need of fertilizer. It is a problem that rears its head every six months, but the government has failed to address it. Nepal needs 700,000 metric tons of fertilizer annually; only half of that is reaching the farmers. The Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock should be held responsible for this, as it has consistently failed to procure enough fertilizer on time. Squeezed by the shortage, farmers are turning to black market in order to dress their fields with vital nutrients needed for their crops. In some places, there have been reports about big farmers with political connections hoarding fertilizer. Further, when the government calls a tender for fertilizer import, it is often the case that businesses with close nexus with politicians get the contract. And if they fail to make the import on time, they go unpunished. Political leaders are also responsible for perpetuating the fertilizer crisis. Nepal’s agricultural output is already going down due to climate change-related weather events. Chronic fertilizer shortage is making matters worse. This double-whammy situation has contributed to ballooning import bills for agricultural products from India and other countries. Severely lopsided balance of trade has already triggered an economic crisis in Nepal. Yet, the government and leaders are silent. They have refused to learn a lesson from Sri Lanka on how low agricultural productivity can impact the economy. Our top politicians, including the prime minister, should treat fertilizer shortage as a national problem and take the necessary measures accordingly. If they continue to remain idle, Nepal could soon face food insecurity. Nepal is heavily reliant on India to meet its demand for food grains. But lately, India too is under stress to ensure its own food security, particularly in the aftermath of the Russia-Ukraine war, which has severely upset the global supply chain. Given the grim scenario, the main job of the government should be to enhance food productivity at home. But Nepal seems to be headed in the opposite direction. Experts suggest that the only way to ensure fertilizer security in Nepal is to set up a factory within the country. But this will cost time and money. The stopgap solution will be to hold talks with the Indian government. Shortage of fertilizer has multiple effects, from the economy to food security. The government and leaders should take note.