KATHMANDU: Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Prem Bahadur Ale has directed the top level management of the Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) to allocate at least 40 low-fare tickets in respect of the Nepalis going abroad for foreign employment.

So far, the NAC is offering 20 such seats to the abroad going migrant workers.

During an interaction with the NAC management on Tuesday, Minister Ale asked the NAC team to prevent the intermediaries from coming in the process and to provide air tickets to the migrant workers on the NAC premises.

On the occasion, Minister Ale expressed his voice against the privatization of the national flag carrier.

Also speaking at the event, Ministry’s Secretary Maheshwor Neupane said that the ministry was serious to uplift the NAC’s credit and increase its business share.

Neupane asked the NAC to concentrate on profit-making through maximum utilization of its available means, resource and human resources in line with business plan.

Likewise, Chairperson of NAC Yubraj Adhikari demanded that the NAC be provided with Rs 15 billion from the federal government for adding new planes for both domestic and international destinations.

Adhikari said that the NAC management would submit the proposal with a plan of action to the Tourism Minister for the procurement of planes in the near future.

Currently, the NAC is flying to nine destinations of seven different countries from its two wide body and two narrow body planes. In the domestic flight, the NAC has just two planes in operation to fly to 17 destinations.