AFTER 14 YEARS, THE GOVERNMENT'S PLAN to link Karnali zone with road has been fulfilled. The plan was fulfilled after the road linked Surkhet with Khalanga, the headquarters of Jumla district. Small vehicles reached Kahalanga on April 14. A team led by National Planning Commission (NPC) vice chairman Jagadish Chandra Pokharel had also reached Khalanga to mark this event. The road construction was carried out by the government, through its own resources, since 1992. The road is 232 km long. Budget constraints, insecurity were some of the reasons that had delayed the completion of this important road link.
KING GYANENDRA HAS EXPRESSED HIS APPRECIATION towards the ongoing peace efforts. In the New Year's message (Baisakh 1, Saturday), King Gyanendra has also prayed for the success of the peace process while expressing his desire for the establishment of lasting peace through meaningful participation of all concerned. "May the New Year accelerate the enthusiasm of the Nepali people in enhancing brotherhood, goodwill, harmony and unity, thereby strengthening the institutional development of democracy," the King said in the message. Two months ago, King Gyanendra's Democracy Day message had generated a huge controversy after he attempted to defend his February 1, 2005 move.
EXPERTS ON TIGER CONSERVATION ARE MEETING in Kathmandu from April 16 to 20 to find ways to save the endangered species from being totally extinct. Out of the eight sub species of tigers, only five species – Siberian tiger, South China tiger, Indo-Chinese tiger, Sumatran tiger and Royal Bengal tiger – are found these days. It is believed that around 5000 to 7000 tigers are left in the world. SC Dey, the general secretary of the Global Tiger Forum (GTF), said that around 100 representatives from 12 countries are participating in the International Tiger Symposium, which is being organized by Ministry of Forest and Soil Conservation and GTF in cooperation with national and international conservation partners.
U.S. AMBASSADOR JAMES F. MORIARTY urged the protestors outside the American Embassy to think first of themselves and their families and to call off their announced hunger strike. "As we explained to this group of protestors in face-to-face meetings with my deputy on February 5 and March 13, no visa is worth damaging your health," the Ambassador said on Thursday (April 12). "I urge these individuals to think first about their families, lives, and future in Nepal, and give up this futile protest." In the last month, the Embassy has learned, the protestors have also begun to use threats and intimidation to try to deny visas to legitimate Nepali applicants. Representatives of the group threatened violence and attempted to extort money from two Nepali doctors who provide medical clearance services to qualified Nepali applicants seeking U.S. immigrant visas. "The Embassy, on behalf of all legitimate Nepali immigrant visa applicants, condemns these actions and calls on this group to halt such behavior immediately. If such threats interfered or halted physical examinations for immigrant visa applicants, the Embassy would be unable to process any immigrant visa applications. Thousands of other Nepalis would be robbed of an opportunity to emigrate to the U.S. as a result.," it states.
MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS (MoFA) has sent a list of 80 businessmen blacklisted for nonpayment of bank loans to the foreign embassies in Kathmandu requesting them to cancel visa issued to them because their passports have been declared null and void. "The list of 80 people have come to us from the protocol section of the Ministry, and once the passports are declared null and void, the visa also becomes null and void," an official at the American Embassy said. The decision was taken by the Ministry of Finance about a month ago to cancel the passports of bank defaulters.
THE CABINET MEETING, on Tuesday (April 10), has decided to move the Second Amendment Bill to amend the interim constitution. The cabinet decided to sponsor the Second Amendment Bill as government bill at the legislative parliament soon. The cabinet made the decision after the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs presented the draft bill as per the instruction of the government. The Second Amendment Bill has been drafted as the decision of eight party leaders on April 1. In the second amendment draft, the eight parties have inserted a provision whereby the two-third majority of the legislative parliament can announce abolishment of monarchy if the latter is found conspiring to derail the Constituent Assembly polls. Likewise, the second amendment will include provisions whereby the Prime Minister can be sacked through no-confidence motion approved by two-third members of legislative-parliament. The PM can also seek vote of confidence if he so wishes. One-fourth number of MPs can also move a resolution proposing special session of the parliament. On April 1, the eight party leaders had decided to hold the CA polls on June 20 and amend the interim constitution to incorporate that date. However, on Tuesday, Minister for Peace and Reconstruction Ram Chandra Poudel said that the actual date of elections will be fixed with the consent of Election Commission as well as UNMIN.
