Government effortful to remove Nepal’s air space from EU blacklist : PM Prachanda

Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ has said the government was determined to make Nepal’s air safety systematic.

Receiving a memorandum submitted by a delegation led by the Acting Chairperson of the Rashtriya Swatantra Party (RSP), Dol Prasad Aryal, Prime Minister Prachanda mentioned that the government was effortful to remove Nepal’s air space from the blacklist of the European Union.

On the occasion, the delegation drew the PM’s attention to various issues including the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) should be serious about the issue and the purchase of new aircraft should be transparent.

In response, the Prime Minister shared that he has been carrying out efforts continuously to remove Nepal’s air space from the EU’s blacklist, and an environment of trust should be built to remove Nepal’s air space from the blacklist through further reforms.

He further said, “I talked with EU’s representatives on this issue. I also discussed with office-bearers of the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation and CAAN time and again on this matter. Air safety has become a challenging issue for us. It can raise questions about Nepal’s image in the international arena. So I am serious on this matter.”

Stating that some improvements have been made in air safety this time, the PM said although there is a belief that Nepal’s air space could be removed from the blacklist due to this, it was not sufficient.

“Our improvement was not sufficient. Activities should be carried out for further improvement. Your suggestions are important. Initiatives will be taken for result-oriented outcome after holding further discussion with the regulatory body,” viewed PM Prachanda.