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Second Armed Police AIG appointed

Basudev Oli Wednesday took over as the second Additional Inspector General (AIG) of the Armed Police. IGP Sahabir Thapa presented Oli the insignia after his promotion. Oli joined the police 20 years ago. nepalnews.com br April 4

Shrestha re-elected Chamber Chairman

Rajesh Kazi Shrestha was unanimously re-elected Chairman of the Nepal Chamber of Commerce at its golden jubilee year annual general meeting Thursday.

Jagadish Prasad Khetan was elected first vice chairman. Surendra Bir Mallakar has been elected second vice chairman and Shekhar Kumar Basnet general secretary.

Man Bahadur Shrestha, Bhakta Bahadur Malla and Kishore Kumar Agrawal were elected secretaries and Ganesh Prasad Upadhaya joint treasurer. nepalnews.com br April 3

Chinese exhibition

China is holding a two-day education exhibition from April 12 to familiarize students going to the
northern neighbour for studies under a self finance scheme. About 30 universities specializing in medicine, engineering, business and arts will put up stalls at the exhibition.

The Arniko Society and China Scholarship Council are co-sponsoring the exhibition. Organizers said 800 Nepalese went to China for studies last year alone. nepalnews.com br April 3

Tribhuvan Club, MPC in football final

Tribhuvan Club and Mahendra Police Club (MPC) will meet in the resurrected final of the Mahendra Gold Club Invitational Tournament in Biratnagar Saturday. Tribhuvan Club beat Three Star in one semi-final Thursday; MPC beat Sahara Club 4-0 in another semi-final. Hari Khadka scored a hattrick for the MPC. nepalnews.com br April 3

One soldier was killed and four others were injured when they accidentally jumped on a minefield following a helicopter accident, a security source told Nepalnews. The Russian manufactured M-117 transport helicopter was one of two donated recently by the British government to the Royal Nepal Army.

The helicopter was ferrying supplies to an army contingent guarding a repeater station of the Nepal Telecommunications Corporation (NTC) at Mahadev danda about 50kms south of the capital.

One report said the helicopter crashed in bad weather conditions. "We have just have preliminary reports, we don't know know how badly the helicopter was damaged, or the condition of the crew or how the accident occurred while landing, " the security source said.

A rescue team could not land at the accident site because of the minefield around the repeater station. The rescue team finally cleared the minefield after trekking nearly 3 hours from the foot of the hill where they were dropped. nepalnews.com br April 3

Nepal acts on SARS fears

Nepal, directly linked by air with Hong Kong and China, finally acted Thursday to combat the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) contagion that has killed dozens in Asia and the Americas. 

A special desk will be set up at the Tribhuvan International Airport from Friday to screen passengers, the Department of Health Services said. The government has also convened a special meeting Friday to discuss the spread of the disease that originated in South China. 

Cases of SARS have not been detected so far in Nepal, an official announcement said. Besides Hong Kong and China, Nepal's flag carrier Royal Nepal Airlines also flies to Singapore where the disease has also spread. 

WHO put out an alert asking travelers to defer non-essential visits to Hong Kong. Nepali aviation officials said air traffic between Nepal and East Asia is normal after the outbreak of the disease that has pneumonia-like symptoms. nepalnews.com br April 3

Bhutanese refugees call off strike

Bhutanese refugees at the Khudanbari refugee camp in Jhapa called off a three-month relay hunger strike Thursday until the 14th ministerial meeting between Nepal and Bhutan to decide the fate of the displaced persons in the camp, refugee leaders said. 

The refugees launched the strike to press for repatriation following joint verification in 2001; they demanded the verification of refugees in six other refugee camps in Jhapa and Morang. 

Nepali Foreign Minister Narendra Bikram Shah said repatriation of the refugees will begin after the 14th ministerial meeting in Kathmandu in May following official talks with his Bhutanese counterpart in Thimpu earlier this month. 

The ministers met after officials jointly verified the status of most of the refugees in Khudanbari without divulging details; officials are continuing the verification to give final touches to a report to form the basis for repatriation. nepalnews.com br April 3

Negotiating team welcomed (4:00 PM)

Matrika Prasad Yadav, a Maoist peace negotiator, Thursday threatened to retreat to the jungle if the
proposed talks between the government and the rebels fail.

"We have come to explain and to be heard. If the conspiratorial government does not listen to us,
we can return to the jungle," the rebel leader from the terai said. He boasted that the underground party was now equipped with sophisticated weapons snatched from the army to enforce change. 

Yadav was the first of the five negotiators to speak at a Maoist rally to welcome the team that
surfaced in Kathmandu Saturday for the first time in seven years. About 30,000 listeners heard them explain party policies at the first mass meeting at the Open Air Theatre; crowd estimate from the organizers and police were not available. 

When Dr. Bhattarai spoke, he again demanded a roundtable conference and an interim government that will hold elections for a constituent assembly. "The election that will choose an assembly to frame a constitution will be a referendum on the role of the King and the system of a future government," he reiterated. 

It was already dark when Dr. Bhattarai neared the end of a fiery speech at the public meeting that started at 3.15 PM.

People were moving out of the Theatre even before Yadav began speaking suggesting that many
came to watch just out of curiosity. But the crowd was still one of the largest witnessed in recent years; the event attracted a bigger crowd that a public meeting of the Nepali Congress and the CPN-UML. 

Chief negotiator Dr. Baburam Bhattarai has been main public attraction the whole week after
surfacing in public for the first time Saturday in seven years. 

Meanwhile, Chief Government coordinator Col. Narayan Singh Pun said met Thursday with Dr. Bhattarai and his team at an undisclosed place and did not divulge details of the talks. Peace talks have been stalled. nepalnews.com br April 3

King, Queen leave for Nepalgunj

King Gyanendra and Queen Komal Thursday flew to Nepalgunj where they will spend the night and
fly on to Dhangadi to attend a civic reception in their honour Friday accorded by the people of far
west Nepal.

The region is a hotbed of Maoist insurgency. The King is scheduled to tour districts of the far western development region. The reception is the second for Their Majesties since the King ascended the Throne of June 1, 2001. 

The people of the eastern region held the first civic reception for the royal couple in Biratnagar on Jan.3 

Nepali Congress and the CPN-UML have protested the reception which they claim is a precursor of
an active monarchy. nepalnews.com br April 3 

Ranabhat, Dr. Moshin leave for Chile

Speaker of the dissolved House of Representatives, Taranath Ranabhat, left for Chile Thursday to
participate in a meeting of the Inter Parliamentary Union, parliament sources said. 

Ranabhat continues as Speaker even after parliament's dissolution. Under a constitution provision, a speaker continues in office until he files nomination papers for elections. 

Speaker of the National Assembly Dr. Mohammad Moshin, the permanent upper chamber of parliament, also left for Santiago. 

Other delegation members include: parliament's general secretary Surya Kiran Gurung and
Assembly members Surendra Pandey, Yankila Sherpa and Tilak Neupane. nepalnews.com br April 3

Gurungs demand justice

Hours before Maoists held a rally to welcome five peace negotiators, several hundred Gurung men and women attired in their traditional costume, marched to the Hanuman Dhoka district police office from Sundhara Friday and delivered a memorandum to Prime Minister Lokendra Bahadur Chand through the police demanding action against Maoist excesses, including murders.

The protestors marched through the streets carrying placards that said "Punish the Killers of Nisha Gurung" and "Stop the Murders".

The demonstration was organized by National Tamu (Gurung) Coordination Council. "Let others not meet Nisha's fate," the Council said. Nisha was hacked to death with a khukari while going to a campus in Sindhupalchowk three months ago.

The organizers shifted the venue of a condolence meeting at the Open Air Theatre where felicitations are being held for chief rebel negotiator Dr. Baburam Bhattarai and four other negotiators. The entire ground with a 150,000 capacity is red festooned with flags of the underground party.

Peace talks have been stalled despite a ceasefire to end a seven-year insurgency on January 29. Thursday's goodwill talks between the government and rebels did not takeoff as government negotiator Col. Narayan Singh Pun again proposed fresh dates for talks before Monday.
nepalnews.com. br April 3

Former secretary held for graft

Former Water Resources Secretary Biswonath Sapkota who had been absconding so far following the registration of corruption charges voluntarily reported at the special court Wednesday and was taken into custody.

Following preliminary interrogation, Sapkota was taken into custody by the Singhadurbar ward police office since the time to complete the official procedures was not adequate. Sapkota has been charged of misappropriating nearly Rs 40.5 million while giving out the contract on the Bakraha River Control Project.

He will be presented before the court Thursday for further hearing. nepalnews.com am Apr 3

King Gyanendra to address civic reception Friday

King Gyanendra is scheduled to address the civic reception being hosted in his honour Friday morning by the people of the far western development region in Dhangadi, reports from the district said. 

Queen Komal will also accompany the King, who is attending the second civic reception after his accession to the throne nearly two years back. The first civic reception was organized by the people of the far eastern region in the historic city of Janakpur four months back. 

Prime Minister Lokendra Bahadur Chand visited Dhangadi Wednesday to oversee the ongoing preparations for the civic reception. Chand said that the King’s visit to the region would have a positive bearing on the peace process. 

Meanwhile reports from the district stated that the Radio Nepal and Nepal Television would broadcast and transmit live the civic felicitation programme. The live transmission will cover the entire nation. nepalnews.com am Apr 3

Govt., Maoist talks stalled

Goodwill talks between the Government and Maoists proposed for today (Thursday) by chief government coordinator Col. Narayan Singh Pun have been stalled. "The talks process will start only after the formation of an official talks monitoring team. The time has not come to form such a team," Prime Minister Lokendra Chand told reporters in Dhangadi Wednesday.

"Convener of the government talks team Narayan Singh Pun has proposed that goodwill talks be held by Monday, but the date has not been finalized as yet because an atmosphere has not been created," Krishna Bahadur Mahara, a member of the Maoist negotiating team  told Spacetime daily newspaper Thursday.

Rebels have demanded  release of five central committee members and withdrawal of criminal cases against them at Patan Appellate Court as minimum conditions for the talks. The rebel team is being feted at a public meeting in the capital Thursday afternoon.

The five member team headed by Dr. Baburam Bhattarai has been selling the party's position on the proposed peace and future political set-up in meetings with groups and individuals after emerging from hiding Saturday in seven years. nepalnews.com br April 3

Malaysia to open embassy

The Malaysia cabinet Wednesday decided to open an embassy in Kathmandu at charge d' affaires level, Malaysia's Transport Minister Dr. Ling Liong Sik said in Kuala Lumpur.

Malaysia will give Nepalis a 14 day visa on arrival, he said. Dr. Ling said this while attending a function to celebrate the inaugural flight between Kathmandu and Kuala Lumpur on March 31. Royal Nepal Airlines has started flying to Kuala Lumpur twice a week. 

The Malaysian Minister addressing a press conference organized jointly by Royal Nepal Airlines, Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) and the Pacific Area Travel Association in Kuala Lumpur said his government was for encouraging the Malaysians to visit Nepal. 

Nepali travelers and those going to Malaysia for different jobs are facing a lot of hassles in the absence of an Embassy here in Nepal. Only government officials going to Malaysia on official work were given Malaysian visa through the Kathmandu based British Embassy twice every week. 

Other Nepalis had to go all the way to Delhi for the visa. After the embassy at the charge d’ affairs level is opened in Nepal, the visa procedures will be simplified. Nepal is also opening an embassy in the Malaysian capital also at charge d' affaires level. 

Nearly sixteen million Malaysian tourists visit countries abroad every year. nepalnews.com br/am April 3.

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