24 June, KATHMANDU: Finance Minister Shankar Prasad Koirala has said that the new budget would give top priority for the development of energy sector to end the long hours of power cuts.

Receiving a memorandum submitted by journalists at his own office, the Finance Minister said that the new budget would be free from political influence and would focus on investment-friendly environment.

Koirala also pledged to implement Working Journalist Act and work for the professional development of media sector.

On the occasion, Minister Koirala said the government was planning to hike the salary of the government employees as per the provision of the Civil Service Act. According to Act, the government should review the officials’ salary in every two years. However, the officials have been drawing the same amount of salary for three years.

Minister Koirala said that the salary increment would be based on size of revenue and country’s capacity to bear the rising general expenditure of the country.