Government forms task force to combat loan sharking

KATHMANDU: The government has formed a task force to take steps for the containment of loan sharking.

The six-member taskforce formed by Home Minister Bal Krishna Khand at the direction of Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba is coordinated by Home Ministry’s joint-secretary Dr Bhishma Bhusal.

It follows the ministry-level decision.

Nepal Police Central Investigation Bureau’s Senior Superintendent Dinesh Acharya, Home Ministry’s under-secretary (law) Shree Krishna Poudel, Kathmandu Valley Crime Investigation Office’s Superintendent of Police Krishna Prasad Koirala and National Investigation Department’s deputy-investigation director Mukund Marhattha are its members.

Likewise, CIB Deputy Superintendent of Police Roshan Khadka has been designated as the task force member-secretary.

Prime Minister Deuba this morning summoned the Home Minister, Inspector General of Police, Dhiraj Pratap Singh, Armed Police Force Inspector General, Raju Aryal, and Home Ministry’s joint-secretaries and directed them to assess ways for resolving the problem, bringing those involved in the practice of lending money at unreasonably high interest rates under the purview of law and for preventing it in the future, too.

The formation of the taskforce follows the same order from the Prime Minister.

The taskforce has been assigned to submit a report within a week. It will visit those districts reporting the incidences of loan sharking, find out the causes of it and ways for the solution.

It will establish inter-bodies coordination to book those involved in this practice and recommend ways for containing the crime in the future.