Bhola Nath Chalise (died 2015) was a
Nepal
Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne,
सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...
ese economist and
government official who played a leading role in turning Nepal's largely statist economy into a more
free market
In economics, a free market is an economic system in which the prices of goods and services are determined by supply and demand expressed by sellers and buyers. Such markets, as modeled, operate without the intervention of government or any o ...
economy. He spent many years as an official at the Ministry of Industry, serving in turn as under-secretary, Joint Secretary, and Secretary.
Upon his death, he was described as one of Nepal's “great champions of freedom and economic reform” and as having successfully struggled against what had been the perceived view in Nepal that the “state is omnipotent.” For decades, commented one source, Chalise “was one of the very few advocates of
hefree market in Nepal’s mainstream media.”
Another source has said that Chalise, during his years at Nepal's Industry Ministry, “played a crucial role” in introducing “market friendly reform policies and acts.”
Early life and education
One source states that he was born at Subigaun in Bouddha, Kathmandu, in 1951;
another, that he was born in the village of Simaltar at the northeastern end of the
Kathmandu
, pushpin_map = Nepal Bagmati Province#Nepal#Asia
, coordinates =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name =
, subdivision_type1 = Province
, subdivision_name1 = Bagmati Prov ...
valley in 1952.
He joined Nepal’s civil service in 1975, working at the Ministry of Industry, and from 1983 to 1986 studied at the
University of Vienna
The University of Vienna (german: Universität Wien) is a public research university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world. With its long and rich histor ...
, receiving a doctorate in economics.
[
]
Career
After returning to Nepal from Vienna, Chalise resumed working at the Ministry of Industry.[ He spent a total of 23 years in government service, including 20 years in the Ministry of Industry.][
Chalise played a major role in formulating the Industrial Enterprises Act of 1987, the Industrial Enterprises Act of 1992, the Foreign Investment and Technology Transfer Act of 1992, and the Company Act of 1997, all of which were credited with helping advance economic liberalization and, in turn, economic growth in Nepal. He was also active in privatizing certain public enterprises and in decreasing the corporate tax rate.
During his career in the Ministry of Industry, Chalise served in turn as Undersecretary, Joint Secretary, and finally Secretary.][
He quit the civil service after being appointed to the National Planning Commission (NPC) in 1999, a position he held for a year. He then served for a year as managing director of the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA), and thereafter spent about three years as chairman of ]Rastriya Banijya Bank
Rastriya Banijya Bank (RBB) (translation: National Commercial Bank; ne, राष्ट्रिय वाणिज्य बैंक) is fully government owned, and the largest commercial bank in Nepal. RBB was established on January 23, 1966 ...
(RBB).[
After retiring from government, Chalise wrote extensively about privatization, national planning, economic policy reform, and related subjects. From 2008 to his death, he held the position of Senior Advisor at Samriddhi Foundation, a ]libertarian
Libertarianism (from french: libertaire, "libertarian"; from la, libertas, "freedom") is a political philosophy that upholds liberty as a core value. Libertarians seek to maximize autonomy and political freedom, and minimize the state's e ...
think tank
A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governmenta ...
.[ In 2013, Samriddhi published ''Foreign Direct Investment: Toward Second Generation of Reforms'', written by Chalise in collaboration with Akash Shrestha, Pramod Rijal, and Vivek Nath Pyakuryal.]The Road to Serfdom
''The Road to Serfdom'' ( German: ''Der Weg zur Knechtschaft'') is a book written between 1940 and 1943 by Austrian-British economist and philosopher Friedrich Hayek. Since its publication in 1944, ''The Road to Serfdom'' has been popular among ...
'' by Friedrich Hayek
Friedrich August von Hayek ( , ; 8 May 189923 March 1992), often referred to by his initials F. A. Hayek, was an Austrian–British economist, legal theorist and philosopher who is best known for his defense of classical liberalism. Haye ...
.
Death
He died on April 15, 2015, due to kidney-related ailments at Nepal Medical College, Jorpati in Kathmandu.
Honors and awards
In January 2015 Chalise was named the year's Freedom Champion at the third Asia Liberty Forum (ALF), which was held in Kathmandu by Samriddhi Foundation, and the Asia Center for Enterprise. He was recognized for his efforts to promote individual and economic freedom in Nepal and, in particular, for his role in “formulating sound economic policies” while serving in Nepal's Ministry of Industry. In his closing address, Chalise “highlighted some of the major challenges to promoting liberalism in Asia.” He stated, “Never before has private entrepreneurship and wealth creation caught the imagination of billions as it has done in Asia today. Our job to promote freedom is filled with opportunities, and so many of you present today are the beacons of hope.”[
]
Personal life
Chalise had a wife and four sons. He was remembered after his death by Samriddhi as an “extremely humble and open-minded individual” who “led a principled life that was based on values such as honesty, integrity, freedom and responsibility.”[
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chalise, Bhola Nath
1950s births
2015 deaths
Industry ministers of Nepal
Year of birth uncertain
University of Vienna alumni
Nepalese economists
People from Kathmandu