A recently formed study committee has concluded that Nepal Television incurred a financial loss of over Rs 20 crore 61 lakh due to irregularities in its satellite bandwidth purchases and related agreements.
Government Receives Report on NTV’s Satellite Bandwidth Scandal
A study committee, established to investigate the satellite bandwidth purchases made by Nepal Television (now known as Public Service Broadcasting Institution), has handed over its detailed report to the government. The committee submitted its findings to the Minister of Information and Communication, Dr. Bikram Timilsina, on Friday.
The report points to serious issues in satellite bandwidth purchases and agreements carried out at different times. These include actions that went against the law, procedural weaknesses, violations of financial discipline, and activities that caused financial harm to the institution.
Over Rs 20 Crore Loss Identified
The Ministry of Communication formed this study committee on Jestha 22, 2083 B.S., after receiving complaints from various sources, reviewing reports from the Office of the Auditor General, and considering public concerns about satellite bandwidth procurement. The committee’s report, submitted last Friday, states that Nepal Television suffered a significant financial loss due to violations of the Public Procurement Act, 2063, and Public Procurement Regulations, 2064, during various purchase processes. The total loss estimated from these irregularities is approximately Rs 20 crore 61 lakh 73 thousand 469.
Serious Irregularities Uncovered
According to the report, during the rental purchase of satellite bandwidth, competitive procedures was not followed. Instead, contracts were extended at old rates without proper bidding. Payments were made for rent even before services had commenced, and inflated bills were cleared after services began. The committee also found that cost estimates were unreasonably increased, leading to the purchase of more bandwidth than what was actually needed. A serious analysis in the report revealed that a technically unsuccessful bidder was chosen for service acquisition back in 2012. Furthermore, the committee highlighted that an agreement to buy an additional 10 MHz bandwidth was made with same service provider when the ‘design life’ of the satellite already in use was almost over.
These actions, spread across different periods, have caused significant financial damage to Nepal Television. The study committee also noted that tax and other revenue liabilities, which should have been deposited into the Nepal Government’s revenue account during the payment process for satellite bandwidth, were not fully complied with. This indicates severe weaknesses in financial discipline and revenue management, according to the committee’s findings.
Negligence and Lack of Accountability
The study committee pointed out that high-level management members and board of directors involved in decisions from the original 2012 agreement up to later supplementary agreements acted against the best interests of Nepal Television. The report suggests initiating necessary legal actions against these individuals for directly or indirectly harming the public broadcaster. It was also noted that negligence in decision-making by the board led to all Nepal Television channels going off-air for about 30 minutes on June 6, 2022.
Additionally, the report identified that realistic information was not provided by internal high-level management to officials appointed to the board from outside the institution. Technical staff from both the ministry and Nepal Television were also found to have not effectively carried out their responsibilities as per their expertise. The committee concluded that carelessness and unreasonable decisions during the preparation of cost estimates placed a heavy financial burden on the institution.
Nepal Television has been continuously signing agreements with foreign satellite bandwidth service providers since 2002 to broadcast its channels via satellite. Over the years, questions had arisen multiple times regarding decisions related to adding channels, upgrading from Standard Definition (SD) to High Definition (HD), making supplementary agreements, and purchasing equipment. The report concludes that issues like procurement without competition, procedural irregularities, unnecessary financial burden, violations of financial discipline, and conflicts of interest were evident. It recommends that the government take necessary legal action against the individuals involved as per the law.
AI Disclaimer: This article was originally published on https://bajarkochirfar.com. It has been translated with the help of AI. For the best understanding and accurate facts, we recommend reading the original Nepali version.
