CIAA has filed a case against the six officials at Special Court, accusing them of misusing Rs 57.3 million while sending lock-up money to aircraft manufacturer Airbus.[break]
Most of the speakers at an interaction organized here on Monday said NAC should be closed down if new aircraft cannot be added to its fleet. They also defended Kansakar and his team´s decision of placing orders for new aircraft as the national flag carrier has not been able to expand its fleet in the last 22 years.
Speaking on the occasion, Dhurva Narayan Shrestha, coordinator of pressure group for aircraft procurement, said the price of aircraft has increased by as much as Rs 2 billion in the last two years, making it almost impossible to purchase aircraft in a new deal. He also blamed CIAA officials of pushing NAC on the verge of collapse. “If we can´t add new aircraft, there is no point operating it any longer,” said Shrestha.
Yogendra Shakya, coordinator of Nepal Tourism Year (NTY) 2011 campaign, said the target of welcoming one million international tourists in 2011 cannot be achieved if new aircraft are not added in NAC´s fleet. “The target of one million visitors was kept on condition that two new aircraft would come into operation by 2011,” Shakya said, adding that NAC at present was ferrying only six percent of the total tourists entering the country.
Ang Chhiring Sherpa, immediate past president of Nepal Mountaineering Association (NMA), said the number of tourists from England, France, Germany and Japan had dropped significantly after NAC stopped flying there. “Those involved in irregularities should be brought to book. But it´s not fair to halt procurement in the name of investigation,” he added.
NAC used to fly to London, Paris, Frankfurt and Osaka in the 1990s.
Officials of the national flag carrier said it would be wise to close NAC than to operate with ageing aircraft. “Safety-wise, there are no problems in old aircraft. But the cost of operating old aircraft is higher,” Kansakar said. He argued that the lock-up money was sent to Airbus as per the international practice.
Similarly, Raju KC, deputy managing director of NAC, who has also been suspended, said the lock-up money was sent for slot booking and not for advance payment.
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