KATHMANDU, Feb 3: Senior leader of the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), Balendra Shah (Balen), a candidate from Jhapa constituency no. 5, has said that Nepal lacks the financial capacity to make education and healthcare completely free, despite constitutional provisions guaranteeing these services.
Speaking during an interaction with voters in Jhapa-5, Shah noted that while the Constitution promises free education and healthcare, implementing these rights in practice is not currently feasible due to budgetary constraints.
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“Although there is a provision for free education and healthcare in the Constitution, there is no budget to support it, making it practically impossible to implement,” he said. “With a national budget of Rs 1.9 trillion, the state is not in a position to provide these fundamental rights entirely free of cost.”
However, Shah emphasized that education and healthcare are fundamental rights and stressed the need to end situations where people are denied services due to financial hardship.
“Those who have no money in their pockets should still be able to access education and healthcare,” he said. “Those with more resources should be allowed to do business. Everyone should be able to do what their circumstances allow.”
While acknowledging that making education and healthcare entirely free is not immediately achievable, Shah said the government should work progressively toward a system that ensures universal access to these essential services.
