February 19: The preparations for the federal budget for the upcoming fiscal year have commenced with Finance Minister Dr. Prakash Sharan Mahat starting discussions with stakeholders.  On Sunday, discussions were held with former Finance Secretaries, former Vice Chairmen of the National Planning Commission, and representatives from the private sector.

Present at the discussion were former Finance Secretaries Rameshore Khanal, Shankar Adhikari, and Bhanu Prasad Acharya, former Vice Chairmen of the National Planning Commission Prithviraj Legal and Jagdish Pokharel, along with the current Vice Chairman of the Planning Commission, Dr. Min Bahadur Shrestha.

While the private sector suggested an increase in the budget size, former finance secretaries emphasized the importance of drafting a realistic budget rather than creating unnecessary hype. They suggested that the government should determine the budget size based solely on revenue and spending capacity.

The National Planning Commission (NPC) has set a ceiling of 18 billion for the next fiscal year. Additionally, Finance Minister Mahat has established a revenue advisory committee, led by Revenue Secretary Ramprasad Ghimire, which has formed seven sub-committees. The revenue target for the upcoming fiscal year will be determined based on the report prepared by the Ghimire committee.