Kathmandu, Apr 12 (PTI) Nepal has tightened imports of expensive cars, gold and other luxurious goods as its foreign exchange reserves have shrunk.

Finance Minister Janardan Sharma told reporters that a proposal had been forwarded to temporarily ban the import of expensive and luxurious vehicles and not to allow the government agencies' vehicles to be used on public holidays.

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The move came soon after the government suspended the Central Bank Governor Maha Prasad Adhikari and named his deputy the acting chief.

The government has appointed Neelam Dhungana Timilsina, acting Governor, the first female head of the central bank in its history.

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However, Finance Minister Sharma clarified on Monday that the country has not gone through any big economic crisis.

He dismissed the joint statement issued by three former Finance Ministers belonging to the main opposition CPN-UML, who claimed that the country was heading towards a grave economic crisis.

He urged one and all not to go by rumours about Nepal's flagging economy, and asserted that Nepalese economy was moving in a positive direction despite the COVID-19 crisis and war between Russia and Ukraine.

The Himalayan nation's economy has mostly been hit by COVID-19 due to a dip in tourism during the pandemic, a problem that has also led Sri Lanka into its worst economic crisis since gaining independence from the UK in 1948.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)