PAC seeks helicopter use details from Home Ministry

By a Post Reporter

KATHMANDU, Feb 15 - In the process of investigating the use of state funds for chartering helicopters by the Home Ministry for the police force, the parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has directed the ministry to present all documents related to the matter within the next two days.

According to PAC, the ministry has been asked to present details on the process used to charter helicopters, payments made, criteria of selections and agreement with the private helicopter companies.

The documents supplied by the ministry so far revealed that in the past six months of the current fiscal year (1999/2000), the ministry has already spent Rs. 81.9 million chartering helicopters while during the last fiscal year (1998/99) Rs. 180 million was spent for the same purpose.

The Nepal Police under the ministry has used the helicopters to ferry personnel to Maoist insurgency hit areas, transporting food and supplies, rush injured policemen to the nearest hospitals and on observation missions.

PAC had asked for the details about two weeks ago, but the ministry had failed to comply. Now PAC has directed the ministry to submit all the details by the next two days.

Though the funds are allocated and spent from the budget of the Home Ministry, it is the Nepal Police that spends the money to fly these mission over the insurgency areas.

PAC had expressed concern that with the amount spent in just one year, the Nepal Police like the Royal Nepal Army, could have bought their own helicopter to be used for their missions.

A helicopter costs about Rs. 90 million, nearly half the amount spent annually. Committee members said that even if the operation costs are included, it would be worth purchasing to be used not just for missions over Maoist areas but also in times of natural calamities, emergencies and elections.

PAC began to probe into the matter while checking into allegations that the ministry is misusing funds allocated for Maoist areas to finance political activists of the ruling parties instead of being used for the benefit and relief of the real victims.

3 cops, 1 civilian die in violence

By a Post Reporter

KATHMANDU, Feb 15 - Three policemen and one civilian died in Maoist-related incidents as violence continued in various parts of the country including -- Achham, Birgunj, Janakpur, Rukum and Sindhuli.

Two policemen died in an ambush laid by the Maoist insurgents in Rukum today, according to police.

According to Mid-Western Regional Police Office, the policemen -- Naradeep Shahi of Bajura and Narayan DC of Dang were killed in the ambush in Maipang of Rukum.

Dilli Bahadur Pariyar, another policeman who was severely injured in the ambush is undergoing treatment at Birendra Regional Hospital, Nepalgunj.

Likewise, Chuna Bahadur Basnet, 76 of Ranichuri VDC in Sindhuli was shot dead by the insurgents outside his residence at around seven in the evening on Monday. According to the local residents, Basnet was a Nepali Congress supporter.

In Janakpur, Police Constable Ram Kumar Singh Danuwar, was shot dead by some strangers. However, the police has not yet confirmed "whether the strangers were Maoists or not."

Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister Ram Chandra Poudel today said that the government is ready to initiate dialogue with the Maoist insurgents.

Addressing a party-workers meet in Pokhara, Poudel reiterated that the government is always ready to hold talks if the Maoists come forward for it.

In Achham, two incidents of bomb explosion have been reported. According to our reporter, one bombs went off near the district hospital. Another bomb was thrown in Sattada Police Post. However, no damage was caused by the explosion.

According to another report from Birgunj, Maoists have suddenly increased their activities after February 13, the fifth anniversary of "People’s War".

There was heavy postering and pamphleteering even as a pipe-bomb was placed in the premises of Nepal Oil Corporation. The bomb, however, did not go off.

With this escalation of their activities Birgunj witnesses "undeclare curfew" after nine pm. The administration has given directives to "dance restaurants" that they should be closed after nine.

"We have prohibited to walk after midnight to ensure safety," said Dolakha Bahadur Gurung, chief district officer.

Maoists, who had limited their activity to only one village Biruwagadhi, abruptly spread their activities throughout Parsa, which has a police force of 700.

Meanwhile, Maoists today released Dhruva Adhikari member of Tarun Dal. He was abducted by the 13-14 Maoists at eight p.m. on Sunday. According to Adhikari, he was released by the Maoists on condition that he would no more be involved in active politics.

Minister KC 'drama' had actually occured: Indira

By a Post Reporter

KATHMANDU, Feb 15 - The truth on Minister for Labour, Housing and Physical Planning Bal Bahadur K.C’s night outs at a married woman’s Handigaon house on Sept 30 took a new twist today.

Indira Thapa, a married woman in her late 20s with two children in whose house Minister KC broke in and mishandled her and her two children, submitted a letter today appealing the ruling Nepali Congress party to punish Minister KC admitting the whole high voltage drama "had actually occured".

"A corrupt, immoral and characterless person should not be allowed to continue in a responsible position like that of a minister," states the letter, holding registration number 2577 and addressed to Nepali Congress President Girija Prasad Koirala.

Both KC and Thapa had denied the entire incident a day after Thapa had lodged a verbal comment against KC at Ward Police Office in Kamalpokhari. She had also shown the bruises and her torn clothes to the police but later denied the whole incident took place.

Prime Minister Krishna Prasad Bhattarai refused to take action against the minister despite repeated pleas from both inside the party and outside saying he would not initiate investigation against Minister KC saying "no government investigates matters that lack evidence".

Thapa in a letter says Minister KC vandalized her house and physically abused her last autumn after she threatened to inform the press of his refusal to pay back Rs 1.1 million loan KC received from her during the May general elections. The amount, she says, was taken out by signing her house as collateral at Rashtriya Banijya Bank’s Bhotahity branch.

She said she feared that her son would be abducted by the minister’s people and was forced to deny the incident as KC had threatened to do so if she revealed the incident.

"I was later forced to give an interview denying the entire incident," she adds. "I was imprisoned at my own house for two days and KC even stayed there to keep an eye on me."

She said; "Minister KC even phoned the Home Ministry after he came to know of me contacting Inspector Yuv Raj Pokhrel, to whom I had spoken the truth while the Minister had gone to his office in the afternoon that day. He demanded that the film rolls shot of the vandalized house be sieged and brought to him."

Minister K.C continues to hold the portfolio despite protests from the party members including NC president Girija Prasad Koirala. The prime minister’s refusal to sack K.C had been one of the reasons for the growing gap between the prime minister and the party president.

Janakpur on the boil sans petrol

By a Post Reporter

JANAKPUR, Feb 15 - Normal life at the historic city of Janakpur is coming to a standstill after local dealers have refused to distribute petroleum since last Sunday citing differences with Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC).

According to dealers, disagreement erupted after the state-owned NOC could not supply kerosene as per their contract agreement.

After more than a month of petroleum shortage, the people here are prone to protest against both the local and government policies. "If the problem cannot be solved in time, the people here won’t hesitate to take to the streets," warned the ward-8 Janapa VDC Chairman Adwesh Pokharel.

Reliance on nuke arms regretted

KATHMANDU, Feb 15 (PR)- Foreign Minister Dr Ram Sharan Mahat today expressed concern over the nuclear state’s growing reliance on nuclear weapons.

"It is disheartening that even in the aftermath of the end of cold war, we hear, declared and potential nuclear weapons states reiterate their nuclear doctrines, postures and plans, which envisage reliance on nuclear weapons for the foreseeable future," Mahat said at the 12th Regional Disarmament Meeting on Strategic Stability, Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament which kicked off here today. "This is certainly not the road to peace."

He reiterated Nepal’s support for disarmament and said "Until and unless the weapons of mass destruction particularly the nuclear ones are eliminated from the world, peace and security cannot prevail."

Under-Secretary-General for Disarmament Affairs, United Nations, Jayantha Dhanapala expressed concern over the growth of military expenditures in Asia. "While military expenditures globally declined during the decade of the 1990s, Asia was the only region where there has been unabated rapid growth in military expenditures," said Dhanapala.

Citing SIPRI’s yearbook Dhanapala said that there has been 27 percent increase in Asia’s military expenditure. He said Indian and Pakistani nuclear test in 1998 have set back progress in nuclear disarmament and nuclear non-proliferation.

Thirty-nine participants from 24 countries are participating in the 3-day meeting. The meeting is the 12th in a series of annual meetings known as Kathmandu Process and is organised by UN Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Asia and the Pacific.

Young Sherpa vies for Everest

By Ang Tsering Shrepa

KATHMANDU, Feb 15 - Fourteen-year-old Temba Tsering Sherpa from Rolwaling, Dolkha, is looking forward to May 18 with excitement. He plans to take a shot at the mighty Mt Everest on this auspicious day, marking the birth anniversary of Lord Buddha.

Temba, inspired by other climbing Sherpa legends, has been cherishing the dream since he was a child. "When I saw others in the village leave for the mountains, I use to wonder when would my chance come," says he. Dolkha Foundation, a local nongovernmental organisation, has announced that it will sponsor his expedition.

But the teenager knows scaling Everest is not going to be easy.

And he is well aware of what happened to the dreams of another teenager last year.

Arvin Timilsina, 15, had to give up his climb near the summit due to eye problems. "It would have been great if he had made it," says Sherpa. "However, I want to make it before any foreigners manages to be the youngest person on Everest. It will be a morale-booster for Nepali children and will also enhance the nation’s prestige."

Temba is a 7th grade student at Pashupati Mitra Secondary School in Kathmandu. His mother Lhakpadiki Sherpa is confident that her son will make it to the top.

Lord Buddha’s birth anniversary this year will, however, be memorable for another reason too--at least for the climbing industry.

Dawa Tsering Sherpa, who has already been on top of Everest three times, plans to join Temba. Dawa says he wants to make it to the top in 17 hours and smash a record of 24 hours set by a Frenchmen.

"I want to put a statue of Lord Buddha on top of the world so that the climbers can experience peace at the top of the world in the presence of the Buddha," he says.

Dawa, 28, has been climbing for the past 13 years and made it to a eight-thousander when he was barely 18. In the past three years, this father of three has tamed three more eight-thousanders, including that in Pakistan.

Dawa is pleased Dolkha Foundation is sponsoring his climb too. The organisation says it wants to help climbers establishing new records.

How a kind supplier footed Dreams’ bill

By a Post Reporter

KATHMANDU, Feb 15 - Hotel staff today held a Bollywood choreographer who had come for the Mr and Miss 2000 Contest in his room for refusing to clear hotel bills.

Bunty Sharma, who is credited with choreography works for the Miss Femina 1997, was not allowed to leave Everest Hotel for hours today after he refused to clear bills amounting around Rs. 45,000.

Though rooms had been provided by the hotel free of charge, the amount was for food, beverages, tobacco and phone calls.

Bollywood actress Rupali Ganguli, Femina Miss India Gul Panang and singer Dimple had stayed at the hotel. Two other people by the name of Rajan Agrawal and Raju Dev Rajak were roommates of Sharma.

Night Manager of the hotel, Omni Acharya confirmed that Sharma had been held at the hotel from morning until 8 p.m until a supplier -- whose name could not be confirmed -- footed the bill.

The show was organized by Dreams, a school of modelling. Sources said Dreams was supposed to clear the bills but did not.

Children caught between homelessness and debouched undertaker

By Subina Shrestha

KATHMANDU, Feb 15 - The owner of a children’s shelter at Gongabu is under severe attack from former wards who have accused him of drunkenness and abuse.

Nara Bahadur Raut, the owner of Helpless Handicapped Disabled Children Improvement Organisation (NHHDCIO), never took care of the children the way he was supposed to, children formerly under his care allege.

Moreover, they claim they were sexually and physically molested by Raut who was usually in a drunken stupor during the evenings. Raut had threatened to evict them from the shelter if they complained.

Raut denies all allegations, however. He told The Kathmandu Post, "my chief interest has always been the well-being of the children". He insists the allegations are baseless.

But the children vividly recount the abuse he allegedly afflicted on them. Says nine-year-old Savita (name changed), "Sir (Raut) used to make us sit with him and touch us all over." Her friend Rita (name changed) adds, "He used to do that only to the two of us. When he was drunk, we would run away."

The two girls, along with 17 other children, have left Raut’s shelter and currently live with Evelyn Dunn and Edward Gill, a foreign couple, in Lalitpur. They say, they never want to go back to NHHDCIO again.

Still, the NHHDCIO shelter houses 12 more children who have lived there for the last month. As yet, these children have no complaints against Raut. They say Raut hardly lives at the shelter.

The 19 children were "transferred" to Dunn and Gill by Raut after he could no longer afford the money for their upkeep. They, however, are still under legal custody of NHHDCIO.

Raut, meanwhile, says he took care of the children to his utmost ability. "The children have to talk about the molestations in front of me...with proof," says he. "Anybody can make verbal accusations...as long as one does not have proof, the claims are baseless," he says.

While lack of cash seems to be main cause for Raut to give up the children, it seems he always had enough money to indulge in his drinking habits.

"Sir would always be drinking in the evenings," says nine-year-old Raju (name changed). According to him, several of Raut’s friends would also join them for boozing sessions.

NHHDCIO has a short but checkered history. According to Tulsi Ram Baskota, an 18 year-old who was the first to be taken into the shelter, NHHDCIO was established two years ago. It was initially in Bijuli Bazar. It shifted from there to Ghattekulo, then to Balaju where it was for a year, and then finally to Gongabu, where it has been for four months.

According to Baskota, the organisation did not receive foreign donations till four months ago when a Dutch benefactor offered. "This NGO was formed just in a whim with only me as the first sheltered child," he says. Baskota lived in the organisation for nine months.

Locals in Gongabu don’t hold NHHDCIO in much esteem. Shopkeepers who supplied the shelter with various sundry are in fact angry over outstanding credit. Suraj Maharjan, a shopkeeper at Gongabu, said "The intentions of the organisation are not too good. It has not paid my back dues."

Raut, however, says he is not responsible for the credit. "I had handed over the organisation to Sushil Dutta, around a month ago, and he left us with a large amount of credit buying alcoholic drinks and cigarettes. We have to pay an amount of Rs. 13,000," he says. Raut claims that he trusted Dutta and he in turn cheated him.

Dutta, who offered this reporter an alcoholic drink inside the shelter a month ago during the initial phase of this investigation, could not be traced for comments. Raut says he has vanished.

Locals, as well as the landlord of the house where NHHDCIO is now, claim that Dutta was perpetually drunk. They claim that there would be a group drinking every evening.

Even Balaju area policeman Ananta Karki said that Raut and the others from the organisation were seen drinking at local bars. According to him, the case of a drunken brawl was also registered against NHHDCIO.

Raut, on the other hand, claims that he is "a weak person" and adds that "others are taking advantage of me." He denies that he drinks habitually.

No headway recorded in curbing smuggling of endangered species

By a Post Reporter

KATHMANDU, Feb 15 - Not much headway has been made in Nepal towards curbing cross-border illegal trade if endangered species of wild flora and fauna, experts said here today.

And the major stumbling block has been the lack of effective law and mechanism which could considerably curb such illegal trades (said to be clandestinely operated across India and China via land routes, if not abroad via air routes).

And it is mainly due to these reasons that Nepal will not have a very good report to present at an upcoming meeting of the parties signing an international convention to control illegal trade on endangered species.

This conclusion was reached at an interaction programme attended by wildlife conservation officials, experts and journalists closely following CITES (Convention on Illegal Trade in Endangered Species of wild flora and fauna) issues. The programme was organized by Nepal Forum for Environment Journalists (NEFEJ).

The 11th meeting of the conference of the parties is slated for April 10-20 in Gigiri, Kenya. The Convention was formally signed at Washington D.C., on June 18, 1975. Nepal became its signatory on 18 June 1975.

Though a draft law - National Legislation for CITES Implementation in Nepal - was drafted one and half years back, it is still pending approval at Ministry of Forest and Soil Conservation. Officials today said the draft law might take two more years to finally get approved.

"The main problem in Nepal is the absence of effective mechanism for control of illegal trade," said B N Upreti, former director general of Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation, presenting a paper on legal aspect.

He added, "Absence of special unit to take care of CITES matters is obvious. And there is no special squad to monitor and apprehend the traffickers as a proposal for creating such a squad never got priority in administration." According to officials, CITES obligations have not been followed for plant products, which are regularly smuggled out, irrespective of their protected status.

Experts also pointed out the need of bilateral cooperation from neighbouring countries to control trade in animal fur, tiger organs, rhino horn, bear gall, deer musk and valuable medicinal herbs.

Dearth of teachers leaves medical colleges struggling

By a Post Reporter

KATHMANDU, Feb 15 - The sudden upsurge in medical colleges has created many problems primarily because of the lack of skilled manpower, according to doctors.

"The gravest problem that we are facing is, a human resource crunch," said Dr B R Prasai, Director of Lord Buddha Educational Academy, Nepalgunj.

Speaking at a national conference on areas of common concern related to medical colleges and teaching hospitals organised by Nepal Medical College (NMC), Dr Sanjib Dhungel, Head of Department (Medicine) at NMC said, "this has given way to unsteadiness among teachers and severely affected the students’ studies."

Doctors from the government side, however, accused private colleges of snatching up skilled manpower from them. "Private colleges do nothing to create skilled manpower," said one doctor, under condition of anonymity. "Not a single private college has made an effort to produce skilled doctors."

Doctors emphasised the need for a regulatory body which would monitor "privately owned medical colleges." "If private colleges are unable to function, students have nowhere to go and make claims for compensation," said Bhoj Raj Joshi, Chairman of Nepal Medical Council.

Currently there are eight institutes that offer MBBS courses in Nepal. Institute of Medicine (IOM), under Tribhuvan University (TU) and BP Koirala Institute of Health Sciences (BPKIHS), an autonomous institute with university status, are both government-run colleges. Universal College of Medical Sciences is the only private college affiliated with TU. Other private colleges -- College of Medical Sciences, Bharatpur, Kathmandu Medical College, Jorpati, Manipal College of Medical Sciences, Pokhara, Nepal Medical College, Kathmandu and Nepalgunj Medical College, Chisapani are affiliated with Kathmandu University.

According to Joshi, six groups, most of them Indian, have already attained letters of approval to open medical colleges -- one in Birgunj, one in Dang and two each in Kailali and Kanchanpur. Former prime minister Lokendra Bahadur Chand with his group is the lone Nepali group to obtain a license.

For a student to complete the MBBS course in a private college, it costs nearly Rs 2.2 million. Some fear that doctors produced under such a huge investment will serve only in district hospitals.

"Students who can afford such a huge amount to study medicine will not go to remote districts to serve," said Joshi.

There are 2,300 doctors presently in Nepal. More than 50 percent of the 2,200 students currently studying in government and private medical colleges are Nepali.

According to the organisers, the two-day conference serves to "pave the way for development of better understanding among medical colleges and identify issues pertaining to medical education and health care services in Nepal."