The government has prepared a working procedure for providing Rs 200,000 each to the then “disqualified" Maoist combatants.
According to Binod Prakash Singh, secretary at the Home Ministry, the working procedure has already been prepared.
The Cabinet meeting on March 20 had announced the decision to distribute Rs 200,000 each to the “disqualified” Maoist combatants. The government had drawn criticism for its decision to distribute money from the state coffers to Maoist cadres who had been verified as non-combatants by UNMIN.
According to Nepali Congress Chief Whip Ramesh Lekhak, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal had told the ruling coalition meeting on March 22 that no such decision had been taken.
Secretary Singh said that they worked accordingly after the Cabinet decision to prepare a working procedure for distributing money to the disqualified combatants.
“As per the working procedure, we will now verify with the District Administration Office concerned the names of those who are to receive the money,” Singh told Setopati. “Maybe the money distribution will begin within a month at the latest.”
According to Singh, the Home Ministry has the names of 4,008 Maoists disqualified by UNMIN. The District Administration Offices will verify whether those people are in the district or municipality concerned or not.
“There is also the organization of discharged combatants. We also have asked them for names. We will send the names provided by UNMIN to the districts concerned and verify whether they are there or not. We have also formed a committee headed by the Home Ministry’s deputy secretary to inquire further about the names sent by the districts,” Singh said. “People on the list are abroad, we will provide them money after 2-3 months.”
As per the working procedure, Rs 200,000 is to be deposited in the bank account of each disqualified combatant.
“We won’t give money to everybody at the same time, the Finance Ministry has also said that the money will be release in installments,” Singh said.
