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Not a penny for Nepal King

Ameet Dhakal

KATHMANDU: Further tightening the screw against the monarchy, the Government of Nepal has stopped allocating salary and allowance to the King and his families from the state coffers.

In his $2.6-billion annual budget announced in the interim Parliament on Thursday, Finance Minister Ram Sharan Mahat, for the first time in Nepal’s history, did not allocate a single penny to the King and the royal family. The Minister removed the budget head under which the royal family used to get state funds. Last year, the King and his family had received more than $500,000 from the state as allowance.

Mr. Mahat said the Constituent Assembly election slated for November 22 was the main goal of the Government and allocated $54 million for conducting the poll.

The budget also gave a reason for civil servants to cheer: It has raised their salary by 15 per cent.

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