politics
Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport (Bhutan)
The Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport (MoIT) is a ministry of the Royal Government of Bhutan responsible for roads, human settlement, surface transport and civil aviation. It was established on 30 December 2022 through the consolidation of the former Ministry of Works and Human Settlement with transport-related departments, and has been headed since 28 January 2024 by Lyonpo Chandra Bahadur Gurung.
The Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport (abbreviated MoIT) is a ministry of the Royal Government of Bhutan. Its portfolio covers national roads and bridges, urban and human settlement planning, surface transport regulation and civil aviation, including the country's airports and the national flag carrier Druk Air.[1]
MoIT was established on 30 December 2022 as part of the civil-service restructuring undertaken under the 2022 civil service reforms. It absorbed the former Ministry of Works and Human Settlement (MoWHS) and the transport-related departments of the former Ministry of Information and Communications, including civil aviation and surface transport.[2]
Since 28 January 2024 the ministry has been headed by Lyonpo Chandra Bahadur Gurung, appointed by His Majesty the King in the dakyen ceremony that conferred office on the Tshering Tobgay cabinet. Before entering politics he served as Assistant Auditor General for Policy Planning and Annual Audit Report Division at the Royal Audit Authority.[3]
Establishment
The 2022 reform consolidated the policy levers for physical infrastructure, urban planning and transport into a single ministry, ending the long-standing separation between the works-and-human-settlement portfolio and the transport-and-aviation portfolio. The reorganisation took effect on 30 December 2022 and the new ministry was inaugurated under the caretaker government that preceded the 2024 elections.[1]
Departments and Authorities
MoIT is organised into four principal departments and oversees two affiliated regulatory authorities:
- Department of Air Transport — civil aviation policy, airport development and oversight of the national air-transport sector.
- Department of Human Settlement — urban planning, housing policy and the national settlement plan, formerly under MoWHS.
- Department of Infrastructure Development — national roads, bridges and major infrastructure delivery, incorporating the work of the former Department of Roads.
- Department of Surface Transport — surface transport regulation, vehicle registration, driver licensing and road safety, incorporating functions formerly carried out by the Road Safety and Transport Authority under the Road Safety and Transport Act of Bhutan, 1999.
Two regulatory authorities sit alongside the departments: the Bhutan Civil Aviation Authority (BCAA), responsible for safety regulation of civil aviation, and the Bhutan Construction and Transport Authority (BCTA), which regulates the construction industry and transport-services providers.[4]
Mandate and Major Projects
The ministry is the policy lead for the maintenance and expansion of the East-West Highway and the southern east-west highway corridor, the development of feeder roads to the gewogs, the planned railway connection to India, and the expansion of Paro International Airport and the domestic airports at Bumthang, Gelephu and Yongphulla. It also coordinates the road and transport infrastructure components of the Gelephu Mindfulness City project, which was launched by Royal Charter on 13 February 2024.[5]
Minister
Lyonpo Chandra Bahadur Gurung was sworn in on 28 January 2024 alongside the rest of the Tobgay cabinet. He has publicly identified the southern east-west highway, the proposed cross-border railway connection to Assam, and the upgrade of the country's airports as priority areas, alongside the road infrastructure required for the Gelephu Mindfulness City.[6]
Contact
- Address: Thimphu, Bhutan
- Website: www.moit.gov.bt
References
- Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport (MoIT) is Officially Established — MoIT
- About MoIT — Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport
- Ministry welcomes His Excellency, Chandra Bahadur Gurung as the new Minister — MoIT
- Bhutan Civil Aviation Authority — MoIT
- MoIT minister sets priorities from Southern East-West highway to Railway to Airports — The Bhutanese
- Meet the cabinet ministers of the fourth democratically elected government — BBSCL
- Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport (Bhutan) — Wikipedia
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