For a cleaner Bagmati

The Bagmati sewerage project near the Guheswari temple to treat water flowing through Aryaghat of the Pashupatinath temple has surprisingly raised some doubts. The reason for this is that the tunnel will by-pass excessive sewerage from Aryaghat and Gaurighat and hence, it is unnecessary. However, such a controversial comment comes only after nearly four years of having implemented the project in complete good faith. What makes it equally surprising is the statement attributed to civic personnel who has gone on to cast serious doubts on the entire efforts of the Pashupati Area Development Trust (PDT). No project is ideal, least of all projects designed to improve environment and sanitation.

Contaminated water that flows through Aryaghat has been a matter of grave concern for those who carry out traditional rites. But it has also been a pin prick for all those who desire to see a cleaner Bagmati river. Additionally, the river has immense religious value. In fact, the Bagmati is considered a holy river where devotees, especially Hindus, not only take regular bathes but it is also a place for many Nepalese to pay their last respects and perform religious rites. Had the river not been considered a holy site, the building of a sewerage plant at Guheswari would not have created such a furore.

Four years ago, PDT has begun the Bagmati Sewerage Project to treat polluted and contaminated water at Guheswari temple. For this, it has had to construct a 522 meter long and two meter wide tunnel to divert water that will bring some relief to those who perform the last religious
rites at Aryaghat and visit the Pashupatinath temple. Of the total length, the China Shandong International has completed 185 meters. The object of the horse-shoe modelled tunnel is to provide clean-looking water that flows through Aryaghat and Gaurighat in the Pashupatinath temple area. In fact, the government should have realised the problem of increasing pollution in Bagmati and have thought of such a treatment plant earlier, which it failed to do.

The project will cost more than 89.3 million rupees and PDT has already spent 29 million rupees for acquisition of land, sewer line and treatment plant. The project has been further delayed since municipal authorities have opposed the proposed tunnel. While it may be true that the tunnel and treatment plant are by themselves no solution, even municipal authorities have failed
to come up with alternative arrangements which may make the PDT project redundant. But, in the absence of any alternatives, the PDT will do well to complete the project in time and ask the Municipal Corporation to initiate new projects that will perform better than the PDT project. The PDT can close down its treatment and tunnel project once the viable alternative is given. What people want to see is water--and not sewerage--flowing along the Bagmati, especially between Gaurighat and Aryaghat.

Population explosion : Concern of Third World

By Krishna Prasad Acharya

The term ‘population’ refers to the total number of persons in a given area at a given time. Population is a living and changing organism. It is affected by the demographic character like fertility, mortality and migration. These are the main components of population change. The composition of population has both positive and negative impact in the economic development of a country. An economically active population contribute to the all round development of a society.

There is the problem of overpopulation in every developing country of the world whereas negative growth rate can also be seen in some European countries. Today, world’s population has exceeded six billion. Therefore, population growth has resulted in poverty in most of the countries of Asia, Africa and Latin America.

We can put as examples the two largest populated countries of the world—India and China. India’s population has recently crossed one billion. The average annual growth rate is more than two percent. If the present growth rate remains unchecked, India would become the world’s most populous country by the middle of this century. Likewise, China’s population is by far the largest in the world. In 1995, it was estimated at 1.2 billion and growing at a rate of 17 million per year. The population growth rate is around 1.5 percents. If current fertility rates remain unchanged, China’s population will reach two billion by 2050. The Chinese government has introduced a policy of one or two child per family which would bring about zero population growth. Therefore, the population policy of China has been successful to some extent. Although, an active labour force becomes a boon to the economic development of the country, which is in short supply like in the Gulf countries. The rise in the size of population has hampered the economic activities of the government.

Population explosion is sudden increase in population resulting from an increased birth rate and a reduced death rate. One of the reasons of the increase in population in the Third World is that the death rate has decreased tremendously because of the medical facilities provided to them by the state. Unfortunately, the state cannot meet the demand of the whole people in the developing countries; as a result majority of the population is deprived of basic needs like nutrition, health care and education. However, the Chinese government has maintained and stabilized its population. On the other side, the rapidly expanding population of India has not only retarded economic progress but also put increasing pressure on natural resources resulting in environmental deterioration. The growth and size of labour force has exceeded the economy’s absorptive capacity.

Nepal’s total population is approximately 22 million, growth rate is 2.38 percent. The total fertility rate is 4.58 per 1000. The growth rate of population is expected at 1.5 percent in the next 20 years as a long term projection. On the one hand, there is natural increase in the population, and on the other, there is a flow of immigrants from India and Tibet. These factors have resulted in the increase in the number of people in Nepal. Population grows according to the principle of compound interest rather than of simple interest as indicated in the Malthusian theory of population. The result has been in an absolute poverty in Nepal. According to the Ninth Plan, about 42 percent of the total population are below the poverty line.

The main causes of population growth in Nepal can be categorized as illiteracy, ineffectiveness and inaccessibility of family planning methods, labour intensive economy, poverty, superstition and choice for a son. In spite of the policy of the government to check population growth, the number of population is on the increasing trend. The Nepalese government initiated the National Population Policy in 1983. Since then priority has been given to the Population Policy in each development plan. Moreover, a separate Ministry of Population and Environment has been created to deal with the population. But, it is felt that the Ministry has focused mainly on environmental aspect.

There are some challenges of the rise of population in Nepal. Firstly as indicated in the budget speech (1999-2000), rapid growth of population has been the challenge of the Nepalese economy. Second, immigration and internal migration are other challenges. The push and pull factors of migration cause imbalances in the developmental activities of the government. It leads to deforestation, which results in the environmental deterioration of the country. Thirdly, it is said that there is an inverse relation between population growth and sustainable development of the economy. High population growth brings less sustainable development and vice versa. Lastly, vicious circle of poverty is seen as an another challenge to the government because high growth rate of population breeds poverty, which is one of the main causes of rise in the number of people in the country.

Nepal is situated between the two most populous countries of the world. Although, it is a small country with a population just over 22 million, it is considered to be ‘overpopulated’ compared to its arable land, agricultural productivity and unexplored natural resources. Hence, the governments of the Third World should consider and implement the population policies of their respective countries in an effective way so that there will be no population explosion. The proponents of the Neo Malthusian theory of population put forward different view about the population problem and opine that it is not the problem of over population but the problem of proper distribution and lack of purchasing power which these countries are actually suffering. They believe that with the help of modern scientific means and methods it is possible to check population and increase food production. Generally, developed countries have surpluses of food whereas the Third World countries are in short supplies. Therefore, they should meet their demands through trade.

Lower population growth has a direct correlation with increased access to primary health care facilities, contraceptives, education, social empowering and freedom of choice for women. Population control and family welfare should form the cornerstone of a new national policy and population management that aim at providing a better quality of life. For controlling population, the governments, private sectors, non governmental organizations and all citizens must be involved.

Will of a retiring saint

By Babu Lal Bhandari

Just as my legs betrayed me so did my old wife. We have been married for 50 odd years and are both well past our seventies now. I was many times doomed to reap insults and endless humiliations for reasons god alone knows what, yet I remained thick skinned as usual and never went about the world washing the family dirty linen in the public.

Now that I’m bone tired and can’t go any further with a truckload of aching memories, all I need is a quiet place to lick my wounds, old and new. Call me paranoid or anything, I must now speak my mind though things may become a bit personal.

On second thought, our marriage should have been a dreadful misalliance. But mind you -- I didn’t marry her for any usual reasons men marry women. You may call it a political marriage. That’s it. Politics, after all, is a thing which makes strange bedfellows. But, better not mention her name and put her good name and offices to shame. Sorry, for keeping you guessing.

At home, which houses 4 generations under the same roof, my wife would never accord me the honour due a husband. She, many a times, would go so far as to dictate terms to me and it was only with little success whenever I tried to discipline her and keep her fire-breathing tongue civil.

Whenever there occurred any family dissension, she would, in advance, win me on her side by deceit and do her silly tricks to command respect from the rest. If things didn’t turn out that easy she would invoke her matrilineal connections and hush all groans and grunts against her.

Nobody has to teach her chicanery and fraudulence. Times changed but her habits she would not change and even could not think along other lines excepting her own.

I, perhaps, needn’t tell you about her new slogans and how, like a parrot that knew only 3 words, she is repeating them over and over to the point of making them boring from mindless repetition. But despite this, things are in the same fix now since, if there was insecurity before it is doubly so now. It will certainly be long before she, if ever, comes to realize she will get nowhere this way.

Power being the only obsession dominating her, she had, no doubt, the look of a cat-at-the-mouse-hole from the very first day I was anointed and tried by every art to take it from me without feeling any bite of conscience. I, a fly in her ointment that I was, finally had to oblige her with the bunch of keys, regardless of all the readings I had had from the palmists. Thank God, I’m best as I am.

Asking her to handover the key to the able young hands was just to ask the impossible. You can bet, she, sure as hell, will cling to the chair in one or the other pretext until she has breathed her last.

It has been a glorious spree for the clique who hold too good for her and adore her seeking new superlatives everyday. What is it to those unprincipled bats whether our glorious family lives or dies?

Coming now, she hasn’t enough reputation left for a good lady and, I assert, she hasn’t any religion left either. I can play her in her own coin if I choose to. A small push and she is out, if it were not for her late brother, but, far be it from me to think so, much less do it. Rest assured Wife, Dear! that just because I was wronged I can’t will it otherwise and bear any ill-will against you. How can I thank you enough?

For all your sterling qualities, overt and covert, my good gracious lady, this hat is off to you. Jai Nepal