Kathmandu, May 29 -- The government has allocated Rs4.15 billion to develop Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) into a boutique international airport to manage growing passenger traffic, Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel announced during his budget presentation for fiscal year 2025-26.

The plan to transform TIA into a boutique airport-designed to reflect Nepal's unique cultural and architectural heritage-was first introduced in the government's policy document in 2019 and presented by then-President Bidya Devi Bhandari in Parliament.

The boutique airport concept had begun taking shape in late 2018 under the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation. Originally built with support from the Asian Development Bank and completed ...