50 crore in the name of homestay in 5 years

Even though it is said that the poverty rate will be reduced through tourism, and the working age manpower will stay in the village, the story of the homestay is not displeasing. The results of the homestays that were opened due to the lure of lahalhai and subsidy are not pleasant. Some of the homestays have been closed without even seeing the faces of tourists, even though domestic tourists have arrived in some of them.

The Gandaki state government had initially decided to spend 55 million rupees to run the homestay program with the goal of completing it within five years. Since then, the homestay program has been conducted by the Department of Industry, Tourism and Forestry and Environment under the Ministry of Industry, Tourism, Forestry and Environment of the state government year after year. Every year a program that was run by one department has become owned by another department.

In the first phase, in the financial year 075/76, through the Division Forest Office under the Department of Forest and Environment, 274 homestays were identified and a subsidy of Rs. 288.7 million was distributed. In financial year 076/77, the homestay expansion program could not be conducted due to covid. In the second phase, a homestay expansion program was conducted in the financial year 077/78 through the Office of Household and Small Industries, under which a grant of Rs. 127.3 million was distributed.

In the third phase, under the strengthening of homestays, 32 million 23 lakhs was again subsidized in the financial year 078/79 through Tourism Office Pokhara. The fourth phase of the program was completed in the financial year 079/80 by the Directorate of Industry, Commerce and Consumer Protection, Pokhara. Under this, under the name of Homestay Capacity Enhancement, Empowerment and Infrastructure Development Program, one crore rupees was distributed.

In this way, the state government has spent 458.3 million 51 thousand for homestay from 075/76 to 079/80. In the last fiscal year 079/81, the Directorate of Industry, Commerce and Consumer Protection, Pokhara, conducted the fifth phase of 'One Province Constituency at least one model homestay program', in which the target was to spend more than 40 million. In this way, the province's investment in homestay reaches 498.3 million 51 thousand.

During this period, various municipalities of the province have also spent 25 million rupees in the name of homestay. This calculation is based on the data mentioned in Community Homestay Mart 076. In this way, even though the Gandaki provinces and municipalities have paid nearly 52 crore rupees to the state in the name of homestays, the results are not remarkable.

The department that conducts the homestay program has changed every year, but the ministry remains the same. As the homestay program was transferred from one department to another, old records were also lost. When the program conducted by one goes to another, there is a situation where the new one does not even have some details of the old one. Therefore, the provincial government does not even have the record of registered homestays within the province.

'Initially, the Division Forest Offices kept records, but according to the existing law, registration and renewal of homestays are done at the local level, so we do not have any records. We just watched. We do not have the details of how much other agencies have spent before.'

The fact that the homestay grant was misused in the last year has been confirmed. In the last fiscal year, the Directorate of Industry, Commerce and Consumer Protection, Pokhara, issued a notification for submission of proposals for at least one homestay in the province constituency under the tourism infrastructure development program for the third time, but not a single homestay application was received from the province constituency (1) of Myagdi. Jhanripani Community Homestay from Constituency (2) was asked to submit a petition. This homestay was also disqualified in on-site monitoring.

Head of Tourism and Industry Office, Myagdi, says, 'After no one's application came, it came to know that the homestays were registered in the ward but not registered in PAN/VAT and were not renewed Sharma says that the subsidy amount of homestays distributed through the office is based on political access without identifying the plan, basis of selection and benefit-cost analysis.

It has been found that Righa Community Homestay in Galkot Municipality-11 Righa of Baglung has also been taking subsidies without monitoring and regulating access in the past. This homestay also came up with a proposal to renovate the community building to get the subsidy. When the relevant agency was monitored, it was revealed that the building called community homestay was actually a public house.

The homestay has been running for a while. Now asking for a grant means adding a floor to the public building of the village, but if the homestay does not have the necessary parts for its building, Kamala Pun, a member of the Riga Community Homestay, says, "There is no information about the first grant. Even though it is said that the Riga Community Homestay took the grant without monitoring and regulating access in the past There is no record of how much was taken in which year.

One has to go back to the year 2068 to understand how much the grant distribution was done with the intention of getting the allocated amount. According to the records of the then National Sanitation and Hygiene Coordinating Committee Secretariat Kathmandu, Kaski was declared an open defecation-free district for the first time in Nepal on 10 June 2068. Tanahun on the third, Myagdi on the fourth, Parbat on the sixth, Mustang on the 11th, Baglung on the 13th, Gorkha on the 20th and Lamjung on the 23rd were declared open defecation free districts. Similarly, Parasi on the 28th, Syangja on the 34th and Manang as the 41st district on 17 June 2074 were declared open defecation free districts.

It is mentioned that out of the subsidy distributed by the state government to the homestays in Gandaki, a large amount was spent on the construction of toilets in Tamse's house to run the homestays to house guests/tourists. Even before the grant of homestays, the houses in those districts were declared open defecation-free districts because toilets had been constructed. It seems that the budget has been misused by showing that the toilet was built with the subsidy of the homestay.

According to the 'Community Homestay Darpan 2076' published by the Gandaki Provincial Government, 7 out of 10 Chilaunekhark Homestays in Pokhara Metropolitan City-21 of Kaski have spent the subsidy of the Homestay on building toilets. The record shows that most of the homestay subsidy recipients in all 11 districts of the province have barely built toilets.

In the annual report of the Auditor General, it is said about Gandaki Province: 'The impact on tourism promotion has not been evaluated since the start of the homestay program until 077/78.' It cannot be said that the subsidy for homestays is being used properly because it is given in such a way as to reach, it should be controlled,' it is stated. It is suggested by the General Account that the program should be reviewed after assessing the impact of the subsidy on tourism promotion due to the fact that the homestay subsidy was spent on building structures on private land, it was spent on private purposes, and the paper process was completed to get the subsidy.

Every year, the General Secretary raises serious questions about the abuses done in the name of homestay program, but the distortions and irregularities in the name of it have not been stopped, and no action has been taken against those who misuse the subsidy.

(report prepared with the help of investigative journalism Guthi)