KATHMANDU: Property of late King Birendra and his family is being leased out in far less amount, thanks to the mismanagement on part of the Office of the Nepal Trust.

The Trust now has a property of total 532 ropanis of land in 12 districts. It has 2, 30,102 units of shares in the share market. Similarly, the Trust has a cash deposit of over Rs.380 million. It also has a cash deposit of pound sterling 48,466 and USD 1, 37,000 at various banks.

Nepal Trust Act, section 5 stipulates that the property under it should be utilized for greater public benefit and in contributing towards national interest, and in the sectors of education and health.

However, the Trust lacks any plans or vision on the utilization of huge property belonging to the former royal family, now under it.

Section 25 of the Act entitles the Trust to formulate regulations on the use of the fixed assets. The Trust has not yet enacted any regulations.

A report by the Office of the Auditor General (OAG) states that the Trust is unable to utilize the property belonging to the late King.

“The Trust does not have an updated record of the persons leasing the property, and the rent levied in lieu of the rented property,” said Bishnu Prasad Rijal, spokesperson at OAG.

Kathmandu Business Park is located in Teku, one of the commercial hubs of the capital city. Several structures stand on the leased land. However, its monthly lease amount comes to a mere Rs. 333,000 which is very cheap given the existing rate in the area. A similar calculation shows that the monthly rates of other leased property at other places within the capital are quite nominal.

The Trust has been leasing out the property of the late king and his family members at rates far cheaper to the prevalent market price. This is reflected in the list below.