In order to mitigate the formidable growth of regular expenditure, the government is going to present a new income tax bill in the parliament and if passed, it would be a cornerstone in the tax reform. The government is ready even to take unpopular decision to contain the soaring expense, he said.
Agricultural production is unpredictable and export of carpet, garment and pashmina is on the wane.
He also said that there has been duplication of work in poverty alleviation program, wasting scarce resources and time. This is too much. FM Mahat said that the labor displacement trend seen in the industrial sector has raised a serious concern and the time for industrialists, unionists and laborers for their soul-searching has come. Efforts should be made by the government and all political parties to bring in new labour-intensive industries to address the problem, he added. He also recommended to strike a deal with People's Bank of China and the NRB to regulate Nepal-Tibet trade and to impose protective tariffs on the import of tea and coffee.