Two new members appointed to NEA Board of Directors

KATHMANDU: Two new members have been appointed to the Board of Directors of the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA).

Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Biraj Bhakta Shrestha appointed them for a four-year term through a ministerial decision on Wednesday.

Among the newly appointed members, Anshukiran Shahi of Kathmandu Metropolitan City-15 has been included on the board representing the private sector. Similarly, Krishna Basel of Nagarjun Municipality-5 has been appointed as the consumers’ representative.

According to officials, this is possibly the first time that the consumer representative on the NEA board comes from the Dalit community.

Meanwhile, the NEA Board of Directors has assigned acting Managing Director Dirghayu Kumar Shrestha the responsibility of officiating as Managing Director.

The decision was made during the board’s 1030th meeting held on Wednesday under the chairmanship of Energy Minister Biraj Bhakta Shrestha.

Dirghayu Kumar Shrestha has been actively involved in the NEA’s technical and managerial responsibilities for the past 29 years. He joined the authority in 2054 BS as a seventh-level officer.

A resident of Kathmandu Metropolitan City-12, Shrestha holds a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering and a master’s degree in Information and Communication Engineering.

The authority expressed confidence that Shrestha would continue efforts related to energy sector management, expansion of transmission systems and improvement of electricity services.

The newly appointed board members and the acting Managing Director took the oath of office and secrecy from Minister Biraj Bhakta Shrestha on Wednesday itself.