Life members of Nepal Academy of Sciences, who were receiving dual government benefits, will no longer receive such benefits. Most of the members nominated by academic institutions were receiving a monthly allowance from the academy along with their government pension. Three years after the academy's decision, the Supreme Court has upheld the same decision. In this context, the chancellor of the academy Bhupal Rai Deepak Sapkota and Phanindra Sangam had an interview:

You made your first 'bold decision' after becoming the chancellor - why stop the dual benefits being received by life members?

Before being appointed as the chancellor, some journalists had asked me - what will be the first decision you will make if you become the chancellor? I had said, I will stop the dual benefits of life members. Accordingly, I made that decision within seven days of my appointment. Our entire academic body unanimously passed that decision.

Pragya Pratisthan is not only a body for debate, discussion, discussion and evaluation of knowledge, but also a place to demonstrate high morality and clean conduct. It is a cultural center that creates an advanced culture and guides the country in the light of that culture. And, academics are the cultural heroes who stand in the first wave. Such heroes should be of clean image, moral, who should not play with the people's taxes. Double taxation is not allowed. Pragya Pratisthan, which no one thought before, is not only a place to glorify the knowledge acquired so far and to indulge in intellectualism about it, but also an academic factory for the excavation of new knowledge and the creation of a new culture.

End of double privileges for lifelong members of Pragya

Corruption in Nepal is not just a purely economic issue, but rather it is a manifestation of a cultural chain. To reduce this, it is necessary to create a new culture. Now let's think, what happens if a pile of financial garbage is piled up in the very place where good manners and culture are taught? The first condition of the word 'good governance' that we keep repeating now is financial purification. And, my intention is to start the first operation of financial purification and good governance from the Academy itself.

Did you come under any pressure from the life members after this decision?

The writ petition of 11 life members was an unexpected pressure. The interim order of the Supreme Court that came on top of that was another pressure. Both these incidents were beyond my expectations. Initially, we had sent a letter to all our life members requesting that 'those who are enjoying dual benefits should declare themselves and choose one of the two institutions from which they are receiving allowances and demonstrate morality.' However, instead of responding to our letter, 11 members have gone so far as to file a writ petition. The court also gave the writ a high priority and immediately issued an interim order and stayed our decision. Thus, like a stone being thrown at the first bite, my journey was frustrated at the first step. My campaign to cleanse the academic sector with the water of economic purification, which was my moral struggle, was stopped.

This definitely had a negative impact on the institution or the state treasury. The decision that the court has just made is definitely a decision in favor of the people. I thank the honorable court for this. I express my gratitude to the honorable judges. However, what happened is too late. If we had been able to stop the decision from the date of the decision, the misuse of public taxes worth about 25 million rupees would have been avoided.

Your predecessor, Ganga Prasad Upreti, decided to make himself a lifetime member and receive double allowance while leaving the institute and he did. What is your comment on that decision?

Personally, I have no prejudice or animosity towards him. Neither do the other 10 members. My point is towards the trend. At a time when corruption and misuse of state funds are also developing as a core culture, my point is towards that culture. There are still people in Nepal who are ‘eating now and filling up’, that is, ‘eating when they are’. Let us at least be a little ashamed of the facility of being able to continue being academics by exploiting the taxes paid by such people in a double way. In other words, let us now learn to question the opportunities provided by structural facilities by sitting within the structure.

How does the institute now use the budget being given to those 11 lifetime members?

Oh my! That much saved money is like a lifeline for us. Where can we use so much money for an academic institution that does not receive a single penny of government funding for study, research, debate, discussion and knowledge creation, and has to run its 11 departments with its own internal resources? There are so many plans, all of which are stalled due to lack of budget! The Raithane Gyan Utsav, which I started as soon as the academy was established, is stuck there. The revision work of ‘Pragya Nepali Brihat Shashoki’ is the same. The writing of ‘Provincial Guide’ is in the same condition! The programs related to mother tongue are the same.

Doesn’t your Academic Council increase its own allowance?

In such a situation, I can’t even imagine increasing the allowance of my own council. This is beyond my ethics. Because I am a person who even cancels the facilities I am getting. Don’t let it be considered an exaggeration! Or let it be considered as such. I had been the general manager of a cultural institute for a short time in 2065. There was an old practice of the general manager taking an additional allowance for monitoring the morning music class. I deliberately held a board meeting there to remove that practice and cut off the benefits I was getting. I made many unsuccessful attempts to abolish the lunch arrangement for the council meeting as soon as I came to the academy. Even now, many times when I go from the academy to a program in a foreign district, I have gone without the daily travel allowance. Now let me think, with what hand will a person who cuts his own allowance sign someone else's allowance!

The court has said that allowance should not be given only to those who enjoy double benefits. But the lifetime allowance remains. Why should the state give lifetime allowance to poets and writers?

The issue that we decided and the court decided is 'abolition of double benefit allowance'. That is, only those who were receiving double allowances. It is not a cancellation of allowances for all life members. The system of life members was not established by Nepal Academy of Sciences with such a far-sighted thinking and perspective. It was also like the management of the same structural beneficiary class. Moreover, from time to time, it was distorted by making many rules and regulations that were favorable to itself. That is why it has become controversial now.