Nepal, May 15 -- The budget is around the corner. This means lawmakers have started seeking pork barrels for their constituencies like it is an annual function they all need to participate in. Last year, under the Local Infrastructure Partnership Programme, an allocation of Rs40 million each was announced through the budget. Now, they are demanding more than double the budget, saying that it is a meagre and insufficient amount to carry out the expected development tasks in their constituencies. They are building pressure on the government to increase the budget to Rs100 million each and revive the constituency development programme. This, unsurprisingly, is one rare area where there is cross-party consensus.

Constituency Development Fund...