Kathmandu, Jan 12 (IANS): Six international airlines have announced plans to begin operations in Nepal, Mohan Krishna Sapkota, spokesperson of the ministry of culture, tourism and civil aviation, said Monday.

Among them, Regent Airways (Bangladesh), Malindo Air (Malaysia) and Mihin Lanka (Sri Lanka) have received operation authorisation from the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal, Sapkota said.

The spokesperson told Xinhua news agency that Himalayan Airlines of Nepal, Go Air of India and Sichuan Air of China are yet to get operation authorization.

The three carriers that have obtained the approval will run daily flights to Nepal from their respective hubs.

To boost the tourism sector, which has become the backbone of the national economy, the Nepal government grants permission to international airlines as a means to attract more tourists amid criticism that conditions at the country's only international airport are poor.