Minister Aryal says government conscious not to harm the Guthi spirit

Kathmandu / June 21: Minister for Land Management, Cooperatives and Poverty Alleviation, Padma Kumari Aryal has said the government is conscious lest the religion and culture as well as the spirit and sentiment of the guthis of various communities in the country are affected and harmed.

Minister Aryal said this while responding to the queries raised by lawmakers during discussions on the topic ‘Ministry of Land Management, Cooperatives and Poverty Alleviation’ of Appropriations Bill, 2076 in the meeting of the House of Representatives today.

“A resolution has been expressed on behalf the government that it will not waver an inch to work in deference to the spirit and sentiment linked with ‘our religion, customs, values and heritages like temples and shrines,” she said.

In another context, Minister Aryal said the work of measuring the height of Mt Everest has been done using the means and resources available within the country. Similarly, the work of measuring and preparing maps of 335 local levels employing the GIS system has been carried out and that of the rest of the local levels would also be completed soon.

Expressing the government’s commitment to resolving the problems of landlessness and squatting, she said land has been distributed to 152 thousand landless families and the government will further work for the welfare and rights of the freed kamaiyas and haliyas.

The Minister added that a committee has been formed for the protection of the public and government-owned land. Sixty-six land revenue offices have been computerized. She also said that the government was preparing to formulate legislation regarding establishing the tenancy rights. The programmes targeted to the poor would be started from the most backward places.

She said land pooling has been done through the Land Use Act for achieving productivity and economic growth, adding that the government has prioritized the proper conservation, management and development of the guthi land. RSS