Himal Press 
KATHMANDU: Nepal Police fears it may not be able to pay the salary of its personnel due to a lack of budget.
SSP Dipendra GC, the spokesperson for the Nepal Police, said it would be difficult to pay salary regularly as the additional budget for a salary hike in the current fiscal year has not been released. “There is a problem as the government hasn’t released the budget for the increased salary,” SSP GC said. “Further, we created new positions like Senior Head Constable and Senior Sub Inspector after the budget speech. Promotions were made accordingly, and the salary of promoted officers was raised. It also caused a shortfall of budget.”
The Nepal Police headquarters is likely to release the salary for three months – Baishakh, Jestha and Ashadh – in Shrawan (mid-July) only.
GC said the Nepal Police has already notified the Ministry of Home Affairs about the problem. “We have learned that the home ministry has already alerted the Ministry of Finance,” he said. “We won’t face any difficulty if the budget is released as requested by us. Otherwise, it will be difficult.”
Nepal Police has approved positions for 79,500 personnel. But many positions are lying vacant.
According to the police headquarters, Nepal Police currently has 77,000 personnel. The salary of police personnel ranges from Rs 21,480 for the constable to Rs 66,860 for the Inspector General.
