A month into his tenure as Executive Director of the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA), Hitendra Dev Shakya is under fire for allegedly prioritizing external directives over independent decision-making. Sources within the NEA claim that Shakya, despite his technical expertise, has spent his first month attempting to tarnish the reputation of his predecessor, Kulman Ghising, rather than focusing on strengthening the institution.

Shakya’s actions, including an attempt to release a white paper that portrays the NEA’s profits under Ghising’s eight-year leadership as “fake,” have drawn sharp criticism.

Senior NEA officials refute these claims, highlighting that the NEA earned NPR 84 billion in profit from 2016/17 to the present, even after accounting for disputed amounts. They argue that Shakya’s efforts, influenced by Energy Minister Deepak Khadka, risk undermining the NEA’s stability.

Additionally, Shakya has been accused of wrongly blaming Ghising for technical issues like the Matatirtha and Dhalkebar substation fires, which insiders attribute to routine short-circuits.

The NEA is also grappling with financial strain, exacerbated by reduced government funding, unpaid dues, and losses from the Upper Tamakoshi project. To address a cash crunch, the NEA board recently approved a NPR 10 billion loan to cover pending payments.

As concerns grow over Shakya’s leadership, the NEA faces the risk of losing its standing as a robust institution, with critics urging him to focus on addressing real challenges rather than targeting his predecessor.