WWF accepts 26 ‘sacred gifts’

By Surendra Phuyal

BHAKTAPUR, Nov 15 - Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, husband of Queen Elizabeth II of England, today accepted 26 different ‘sacred gifts for a living planet’ from the representatives of the world’s major faiths at a gathering of conservationists and religious leaders from around the world in this historic city.

His Majesty King Birendra inaugurated the colourful ceremony billed Journey to Kathmandu: Sacred Gifts for a Living Planet as part of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)’s 39th annual conference which got underway here Tuesday by lighting a traditional lamp - Panas.

Her Majesty Queen Aishwarya and His Royal Highness Crown Prince Dipendra were also present at the ceremony. The gathering has been described as the continuation of a similar religious meet held in the Italian town of Assisi in 1986 during the 25th annual conference of WWF.

The religious faiths represented at the conference are: Baha’is, Buddhists, Christians, Hindus, Jains, Jews, Muslims, Shinto, Sikhs, Taoists and Zoroastrians. Taoists and Zoroastrians are the new entrants in the Alliance of Religion and Conservation (ARC), which has been described as the brainchild of Prince Philip. Prince Philip is the President Emeritus of WWF.

Bhaktapur Mayor Prem Suwal and highranking WWF officials welcomed the guests as dozens of school children holding flags of the 11 faiths and the symbols of the 26 ‘sacred gifts’ participated in the musical procession that went around the 17th century Durbar Square.

The celebration, which started after a Bhaktapur priest rang the huge bell at the temple of Taleju Bhawani, the protectress of the city, also saw religious representatives and local students performing traditional dances and prayers of Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, Sikh, Zoroastrianism and Taoism.

"This ancient land has been home to different faiths and cultures that have blended with each other in an environment of tolerance and harmony," said His Royal Highness Prince Gyanendra, also Chairman of King Mahendra Trust for Nature Conservation (KMTNC) in his welcome address.

Prince Gyanendra who had also attended the Assisi meeting added, "Religious establishments and environmentalists must be regarded as natural allies...The Journey to Kathmandu is yet another step in our efforts to come up with a tangible programme of cooperation for common action. This meeting will remain another landmark in our endeavour to forge a beneficial partnership for promoting the cause of environmental conservation."

WWF and ARC see a Sacred Gift as a practical, concrete and active expression of a religious tradition and its belief about the natural world, according to a statement issued today. This initiative will honour what is already happening and specific Gifts indicate significant new commitments.

The Sacred Gifts announced today are:

* The Mongolian Buddhist leaders have announced the reintroduction of a centuries-old ban on hunting the snow leopard and the saiga antelope; Japan’s Shinto religion is expanding its commitment to sustainable management in all of its sacred forests.

* The women’s division of the US United Methodist Church is launching a new initiative to eliminate the use of chlorine in paper products throughout the church in an effort to reduce the amount of dioxins released into the environment.

* The 7,000 Sherpa people living in Nepal’s Sagarmatha National Park will participate in a major drive towards sustainable forest management shaped by traditional religious and cultural practices.

* Two archbishops and six bishops, representing 1.5 million catholics in the US states of Idaho, Oregon, Montana and Washington and the Canadian province of British Columbia, are calling for action to stop degradation of Columbia river.

* The Union of Liberal and Progressive Synagogues (ULPS) whose members account for about one quarter of the United Kingdom’s Jewish Community has launched a wide ranging environmental audit, focusing on key issues including climate change and forest conservation.

* The Mexican state of San Luis Potosi in partnership with indigenous Huichol Indians and Conservacion Humana have recently enlarged its Huiricuta Ecological and Cultural Protected Area by 50 percent.

* The Sikh community in India has launched an important initiative to promote environmentally sustainable lifestyle, focusing on energy and water conservation.

* The Maronite Church of Lebanon has created the first Maronite Protected Environment in 400 hectares of the Harisa Forest located north of Beirut on the hills facing the Bay of Jounieh, the Jain community worldwide recently created the international Ahimsa Award to be given annually by the Jain Institute to those Jain companies, communities and individuals who promote good environment practise.

* The Catholic Benedictine Sisters of Erie, Pennsylvania, will significantly expand their innovative environmental education programme;

* The China Taoist Association, the umbrella organization for all Taoists in China, will use its influence and extensive network to actively promote environmental sustainable alternatives to the use of endangered species in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). The Association will also join forces with the Buddhist Association of China to develop a programme to protect and restore Taoist and Buddhist sacred mountains.

* Starting this spring, the Zoroastrian community in India will establish groves of baval trees--which is used to fire their temples--to supply temple fires, besides planting non-use groves with the aim of re-establishing forests woodlands in areas of deforestation.

* Pariah Pumps, a christian environmental network, primarily comprised of Church of England parishes in association with the Conservation Foundation, is establishing a network of 4,0000 parishes to promote environmental awareness and action.

* The Church of Sweden, one of the country’s largest forest owners, will certify at least 100,000 hectares, one quarter of its forests, as sustainably managed forest.

* The Muslim fishing communities of Pemba and Misali islands in Tanzania will conserve one of the most important turtle nesting sites in the Zanzibar archipelago and home to some of the most magnificent coral reef in the western Indian ocean.

* The Episcopal Power and Light Ministry of the US is expanding its programme to combat global warming. This Episcopal Church-related project encourages individuals, groups and institutions inside and outside the Church to purchase renewable energy.

* The US National Council of Churches in co-operation with the National Religious Partnership for the Environment will significantly expand their highly successful state-by-state effort across the US to form coalitions for reduction and advocacy work on global warming.

* Representatives from a range of Hindu groups and of the local government in Orissa will restore and re-establish the state’s sacred forests to provide sustainably-produced wood for the ancient Hindu festival honouring Lord Jagannath.

* The Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, called the first among equals in the orthodox church, recently announced the creation of the River of Life environmental network along the Danube River.

* In a joint action, the leaders of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism and the Union of American Hebrew Congregations will call upon their members to undertake the most ambitious environmental programme ever launched by American Judaism.

* The Gift will promote the conservation of the natural environment of the Dodecanese Islands, Greece, through the support of organic farming by the Ecumenical Patriarch.

* Saudi Arabia’s National Commission for Wildlife Conservation and Development will establish in the country’s first Biosphere Reserve as a Sacred Gift.

* And the United Methodist Pension Board is spearheading a drive to convert all the denomination’s funds to ethnical investments, a move affecting up to US $ 40 billion of Church assets.

Bandh called off after agreement

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KATHMANDU, Nov 15 - The Left parties today decided to withdraw the two-day bandh call after reaching an agreement with the government at an all-party meeting on reducing the kerosene price by four rupees per litre.

The new open market price of kerosene will be Rs 22 per litre which will remain in force for one month during which an all-party committee will study Nepal Oil Corporation’s (NOC)’s past and present price structure and its management aspects and make recommendations.

The coupon price remains at Rs 15.50 per litre. The all-party committee will be headed by Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supplies Ram Krishna Tamrakar. The committee will also have members from the concerned government units. Its recommendation will be final and binding upon all. With today’s developments the 39th WWF annual conference, currently underway in the capital, and other events are expected to go on without any hitch.

Speaking to The Kathmandu Post after the meeting, R K Mainali of Communist Party of Nepal-Marxist Leninist, one of the constituents of the group of Nine Left parties, said they agreed to withdraw the bandh considering the international events going on in the country. "There was also pressure on us by tourism industry," added Mainali.

The two-day Nepal bandh for Thursday and Saturday was called by the Group of Nine Left parties on October 18, demanding a roll back in petroleum products. Subsequently, CPN-UML, alongwith its left allies, and the underground Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) too had extended their support for the 48-hour bandh.

The government had hiked the price of petro-products on October 14.

Today’s marathon meeting, which lasted several hours, ended at 10.30 p.m. It was attended by Deputy Prime Minister Ram Chandra Poudel, Finance Minister Mahesh Acharya, Minister Ram Krishna Tamrakar, Subhash Nembang and Bharat Mohan Adhikary of the main opposition CPN-UML, R K Mainali, representing the Nine Left and Dr Prakash Chandra Lohani of RPP.

DoA order on historic statue still not complied with

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KATHMANDU, Nov 15 - Despite the request made by the Department of Archaeology (DoA) to demolish the terrace above the historic statues of King Pratap Malla and his two sons riding an elephant, on the southern edges of the Rani Pokhari, neither the Ministry of Local Development (MLD) nor the Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) has complied so far.

DoA, on November 9, had written a letter asking the Ministry to remove the terrace over the statue and intervene to stop the construction works of a controversial building on the northern edge of the pond.

Following the official request and the media uproar, the MLD and the KMC Tuesday decided to stop the construction work and the latter has started to demolish the half-built building on Wednesday.

The terrace built over the elephant statue is currently leased out to Tasty Cafe by the Public Garden and Auditorium Development Committee (PGADC). The cost for construction of the terrace was borne by Tasty Cafe, in lieu of rent-free ten years lease. The site around the statue is currently littered in garbage.

Khem Raj Nepal, officiating Secretary at the Ministry, said the Ministry is currently studying the technical aspect of removing the terrace. "Once it is justified from the technical perspective, we will act upon it," he said.

Hari Prasad Rimal, the Executive Officer at KMC, said KMC would soon take decision on it and hinted at the possibility of its removal.

Pushpa Lal Shrestha, the Manager at PGADC, said that the committee will abide the Ministry’s directive.

CPN-UML meeting okays political report

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KATHMANDU, Nov 15 - The central committee meeting of CPN-UML that has been taking place over the last four days, concluded today adopting, among others, the political report presented by UML General Secretary, Madav Kumar Nepal, which suggested amendment to the present Constitution through proper parliamentary procedure.

Nepal’s report almost sparked off rift within CPN-UML after it was opposed by Khadga Prasad Oli, the main opposition party’s second most powerful leader after Nepal. Oli had objected that the changes in the Constitution should be made within the Parliament and not externally, as demanded by some extremist forces.

According to Bhim Bahadur Acharya, the party office secretary, the changes to the Constitution suggested by Nepal, include a provision to form an all-party high-level election committee to ensure a free and fair election.

The report also suggests that in order to conduct free and fair elections, the constituencies should not be changed after each election, but rather left in their original position. The report also states that reforms in land management cannot be achieved unless certain changes are made in the Constitution. The report has not yet been made public.

"We will opt to gain public support to bring about the changes and even bring about a consensus within the party," said Acharya. To make any changes in the Constitution, two-thirds of the total 205 votes in the House of Representatives is required.

The meeting also discussed the Maoist issue and stressed that it must be solved through proper dialogue between the government and the Maoists.

"Even the Maoists are ready for talks for peaceful resolution of the issue through political measures and this opportunity should be properly utilized," said Jhal Nath Khanal, a UML standing committee member, after the meeting.

"The government, on the other hand, is directionless and is handling the matter irresponsibly," Khanal, who is also preparing a party report on the Maoist issue which is due to be completed four months from now, added.

Commenting on a similar report of the Nepali Congress, made public by NC spokesperson Narahari Acharya, Khanal said that the report prepared by the Deuba Committee is more positive by comparison. The report of the High Level Recommendation Committee for Resolution of Maoist Problem headed by Sher Bahadur Deuba followed immediately after the Committee’s term had expired.

Show cause notice on POL prices

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KATHMANDU, Nov 15 - The Supreme Court today issued a "show-cause notice" on a writ filed to abrogate the decision of the government raising the petro-products prices. A single bench of Justice Kedar Nath Acharya issued the order.

Advocate Chandrakant Gyawali on Monday had filed a writ demanding dissolution of Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC), ending its monopoly in the Nepali oil market, and allowing open market competition.

The writ stated that the State and its organs should not involve in monopoly transaction of daily consumer commodities like oil. "The state controlled organisations should not be involve in the act of profit making," stated the writ.

According to the writ, every year NOC remunerates its employees with large bonuses and other facilities. "This is a clear indication of how much profit NOC makes," stated the release.

Last October, the price of one metric ton of kerosene was US$ 225, diesel US$ 195 and petrol US$ 248 while the current rate is US$ 355 for kerosene, US$ 330 for diesel and US$ 376 for petrol, in the international market. The exchange rate of US dollar last October was Rs 69.05 while currently it is Rs 73.60.

The writ argued that when the price of kerosene was hiked by 57 per cent while the exchange rate of dollar increased by only 7 per cent. Hence the kerosene price-hike is unjustified.

Last month the government made a cent per cent hike in kerosene price from Rs 13 to Rs 26 per litre. Writ petitioner Gyawali had also asked the court to issue a stay order in the writ, filed against Cabinet Secretariat, Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies, NOC and its management committee.

The same bench also issued show-cause notice in favour of an another writ filed by Gyawali. The writ had argued that all the transactions leading to the recent hike in the prices of the petroleum products should be made transparent.

Gyawali had also asked the court to issue "mandamus" directing the Cabinet Secretariat and NOC to make public the balance sheets of past three years and international agreements made on procurement of petro-products.

Sporadic incidents on eve of Nepal bandh

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KATHMANDU, Nov 15 - General Secretary of the Communist Party of Nepal--Marxist-Leninist, Bamdev Gautam, on Wednesday claimed that thousands of people participated in torch-light processions across the country, protesting the recent price-hike in petroleum products, despite the government’s ban order on torch-lit demos.

Gautam demanded that the government immediately withdraw the price-hike on petro-products.

He also accused the police of resorting to lathicharge and mass arrests at the behest of the government.

The main opposition CPN--UML and the underground Maoists have also extended their moral supports to the two-day bandh called by the nine-left parties.

Hundreds of party workers of nine-left parties were arrested on the eve of two-day Nepal bandh throughout the country.

A total of 41 party workers, including the senior party leaders, were arrested from various parts of the Kathmandu Valley for participating in the torch procession, according to the Valley Police.

Meanwhile, a powerful bomb exploded in a parked vehicle belonging to the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) at Lagankhel in Lalitpur.

The police said that the bomb went off under the driver’s seat of the lorry bearing the number plate Ba 1 Gha 406 at about 5.40 p.m. Front part of the vehicle was completely damaged due to the heavy explosion, police said. However, no one was hurt.

Similarly, a taxi bearing the number plate Ba 1 Ja 2866 was set ablaze in the evening in front of Butwal Power Company Limited at Man Bhawan. The taxi was engulfed in fire within minutes after two passengers got off it. Police is yet to confirm whether the workers of the nine-left parties were responsible behind the incident.

The nine-leftist parties called the bandh on November 16 and 17 to protest against the recent price-hike on the petro-products.

Though the government had, earlier, informally agreed with the parties to reduce the price of kerosene by Rs four from the current rate of Rs 26, the nine-leftist parties refused to withdraw the two-day bandh. They were insisting that the price for kerosene should be limited to Rs 15.

According to the press statement issued by the CPN-ML, 51 party workers from Baglung, 28 from Biratnagar, 17 from Jhapa, 49 from Banke, 7 from Kanchanpur districts were arrested by the police on the eve of Nepal Bandh.

Likewise, 45 worker were arrested from Dhanusha, 35 from Dolakha, 29 from Bajura, 27 from Dailekh, 25 from Rautahat, 6 from Makawanpur, 12 from Kaski, 9 from Mahottari, one from Sunsari, 18 from Surkhet and six persons from Syangja districts, the press statement said. The police said that two rounds were fired in the air while preventing the demonstrators from taking out the torch-light procession at Sunsari.

Three party workers were injured at Kakarvitta in Jhapa after police opened fire at the demonstrators, who were attempting to take out the torch-light procession.

Meanwhile, a powerful bomb exploded in the premises of Sarada Distillery at Mirchaiya bazaar in Siraha Wednesday, the locals said. Police suspect that Maoist could have been responsible for the blast. However, the blast caused no damage to the machine meant for brewing spirit.

NC dissidents warn of ‘stern action’

KATHMANDU, Nov 15 (PR) - Nepali Congress dissidents have called a meeting on Saturday to discuss "the wrongful denial of active membership to 618 deserving partymen and anomalies in the election of area representatives in 48 units in Kathmandu".

Issuing a press release, the Kamalpokhari unit of NC, where the meeting is slated to take place, accused the party’s Central Election Committee of dilly-dallying on the issues and warned of "stern action".

The statement added that the dissident group has submitted five instances of irregularities with proof to the central office of the party today but "the election committee has not paid any attention to it".

Meanwhile, reports from Syangja said election in two VDCs of the district were postponed due to infighting in the ruling NC and dispute over active membership.

According to Mukund S Poudel, central election observer, the local election official postponed the election in Fapardhum and Chhangchhangdi as per his directive when some partymen tore ballot papers, demanding registration of nomination papers after the deadline of filing nominations ended.

Kantipur bids farewell to founding editor

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KATHMANDU, Nov 15 - Kantipur Publications today bid a fond farewell to Yogesh Upadhyay, founding editor of The Kathmandu Post and Kantipur national daily newspapers. Upadhyay recently resigned from the Publications citing personal reasons.

In a ceremony to honour Upadhyay, Chairman of the Publications Hem Raj Gyawali, Managing Director Kailash Sirohiya, Director, Binod Raj Gyawali, Corporate Manager Bibek Parajuli, Editor of The Kathmandu Post Shyam Bdr K.C., Editor of Kantipur Yubaraj Ghimire and other senior staff paid glowing tributes to his long and successful innings with the Publications.

Upadhyay, whose association with Kantipur Publications dates back to 1992 when the both The Kathmandu Post and Kantipur newspapers were still in the planning phase, ran both the papers in its early years.

He edited both the newspapers till 1995, and later Kantipur till July of this year. Since then, he had served as a Consulting Editor of Kantipur Publications. During his tenure at the Publications, Upadhyay also launched and helped establish the Nepali-language Saptahik and Sarvottam periodicals as editor.

The publisher, management and all the editorial staff of the Publications wish Upadhyay success in his future endeavour.

Dollar haul

KATHMANDU, Nov 15 (PR) - Police arrested a man for illegaly possessing 7,421 US dollars which he had hidden in his private parts today, police said.

A police team headed by Police Superintendent Rabindra Pratap Shah arrested Ram Rokka, 25, of Kathmandu Metropolitan City-23, Bhotebahal with the dollars equivalent to Rs 5,52,122.40.

The police, after getting a tip-off, had gone to arrest Rokka suspecting him of possessing illegal drugs. Police has referred Rokka to Revenue Investigation Department, Lalitpur for further investigation, police said.

Young Tibetans at crossroads

By Tashi Dolma Thinley

KATHMANDU, Nov 15 - They came here first as refugees, but in two generations since, the Tibetan community in Nepal have worked themselves into an economically successful lot.

But as the older generation now gives way, a sense of identity crisis has gripped the younger lot. And increasingly, young members of the community are migrating out to the greener pastures abroad, raising concerns about the community’s future in Nepal.

Still clinging to the memories of their homeland, the old generation Tibetans are worried about preserving their rich culture, tradition and religion with a hope of returning to Tibet some day. Those coming of age now, meanwhile, are seeking their future elsewhere, mostly in Europe and in the United States.

The reasons are many. A desire to explore the world for instance, better economic opportunities, and a growing Tibetan diaspora abroad are all alluring factors. But most of all, Tibetan youths are restless because of the lack of better opportunities here, especially after the downturn in the once vibrant carpet weaving and exporting business.

"Tibetans migrate to the U.S and other places due to political instability in Nepal, bitter memories of their life in Tibet and disintegration of the carpet business," says Pema Wangyal, a Tibetan residing at the capital’s Jawalakhel.

"Tibetan settlement in America and other parts of the globe has brought about mass awareness regarding the Tibetan issue in the international arena and the Tibetans themselves are now more financially stable," adds Pema. "But in a melting pot like the US, there is always a danger of losing our unique social cultural and traditional identities."

According to Pema in such a situation, there is a great need for a political education and an awareness programme for young Tibetans.

Norbu, 22, who gave only his first name, adds, "most people are going abroad because there is a future to be made there."

Those who make it to the West might lead a comfortable life but whether they can keep their identity intact is another question.

"It is not that we (the younger generation) want to shy away from our own culture and traditions," says 30 year-old Sonam. "But we just don’t know much about it."

Recent controversies in the community have not helped either. The controversy over Panchen Lama, ignominy of Dorje Shugden, the disruption of the community where they were born and brought up and the influence of the country where they live are a few of the reasons why young Tibetans shy away from their own culture and tradition.

At present, there are approximately 18,000 Tibetans living in 13 compact settlements in Nepal. The Tibetan Refugee Camp, established in 1960 in Jawalakhel, is the first ever settlement centre in Kathmandu. While half of the Tibetans still live in the camp, the rest live independently in places like Boudha and Swyambhunath area in Kathmandu, Lumbini in Rupandehi, besides Mustang, Kaski and other districts of Nepal.

First GIS Day 2000 observed in Nepal

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KATHMANDU, Nov 15 - The Geographic Information System (GIS) Day 2000 was observed for the first time in the country here today with the aim of raising awareness of GIS technology and its usefulness to the public at large.

Today’s celebration is a part of the Geography Awareness Week observed around the world from November 12 -18 with the theme: "Promoting Geographic Literacy through GIS".

"The GIS Day 2000 Nepal celebration is aimed at raising awareness of GIS technology and its usefulness to the public at large" said Basanta Shrestha, GIS Day Coordinator in the country. "It is being organised for the first time in the country."

GIS is a computer-based tool for mapping and analyzing objects and events that happen on the earth.

A book entitled "GIS for Beginners" and a CD-Rom was released to mark the day. "The publications can be used as supplementary materials in schools and colleges and as a complement to geography and related courses," President of Nepal GIS Society Pramod Pradhan said.

Similarly, a three- day training course "GIS for Beginners" was held from Nov 13-15 with a view to instill basic concepts of mapping and GIS and its applications to teachers, students and other interested learners. "The training would help the participants to learn the benefits of dynamic nature of digital maps as opposed to static maps," said Pushkar Pradhan, Associate Professor of Central Department of Geography at the Tribhuvan University.

Likewise, an exhibition of posters, maps, atlases and other GIS related documents, a quiz competition on geography and GIS, and a demonstration of "GIS" were also organised from Nov 13-15 to mark the Geographic Awarness Week.

Various schools, colleges, government and non-government offices, public institutions and private sector enterprises participated in the celebrations jointly organised by The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), Institute of Engineering (IOC), Central Department of Geography, Tribhuvan University and Nepal GIS society.

RA, Lauda Air trying to include new clause

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KATHMANDU, Nov 15 - The copies of correspondence between Lauda Air (Italy) and Royal Nepal Airlines Corporation made available to Public Accounts Committee revealed several other irregularities in the lease deal between the two for Lauda Air’s B-767 jet. PAC is investigating the deal at present.

Lauda Air had asked RNAC to incorporate a clause on bank guarantee that did not exist in the original agreement signed between the two on September 27 in Italy. Meanwhile, Lauda Air, in a letter of October 31, has acknowledged to the RNAC management that it has received the bank guarantee.

This new clause will be added as Annex 3. In the existing agreement there are two annexes.

A letter dated November 7 from Otmar Lenz, CEO of Lauda Air to Hari Bhakta Shrestha, Executive Chairman of RNAC had invited the Corporation boss to come to Italy on the 10th of this month "to discuss the pending issues".

Besides the bank guarantee clause, these pending issues are requirements of the Civil Aviation of Italy; clarification on Clause 8.3 (dealing with the rate of the lease); clarification of Clause 8.4 (money transfer); and training of RA cockpit and cabin crew.

Surprisingly, RNAC replied to this letter a day earlier. In a letter dated November 6, the Corporation said it was sending a team beginning the week of November 13 for the discussion.

In another example of back- dating, a letter from CEO Lenz to Chairman Shrestha pointed out it was "necessary to change Clause 8.4 of the wet lease agreement in such a way that net payments from RNAC under this agreement will have to be made to the bank account belonging to Lauda Air SpA". The new account number is 506-643-000-00 (Swift code : BAATWW). The letter says the account belongs to Head Office of Lauda Air SpA. The existing clause (8.4) calls for the transfer of money to 105-105-523 of Bank Austria. However, it is yet unclear as to who owns this account.

What is striking about this letter is that it happens to share the same date as when the agreement was signed in Italy - 27th September.

Several attempts to contact Chairman Shrestha today were unsuccessful.

Considering the seriousness of the issue, the parliamentary Public Accounts Committee today discussed several steps - like summoning Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala, issuing an interim order to put the lease deal on hold, among others - before December 1, when the agreement comes into effect.

Discussing the options Subhash Nemwang, Chairman of PAC, said they were still to probe many aspects, other than the policy matters and the fairness of the deal. Nemwang pointed out the cost of the lease, crew expenses, whether or not the fourth aircraft was needed at all also needed looking into. "We are told that the two jets owned by the Corporation are capable of flying the present 900 or so flight hours per month," said Nemwang. RNAC already flies China South West Airlines jet, which is guaranteed 275 hours per month. Lauda Air has been guaranteed 300 flight hours.

PAC is likely to take a decision on the options before it on November 20 when the members of the PAC are slated to reassemble.

Earlier in the day leaders of the three unions at RNAC questioned the necessity of the fourth aircraft. They too pointed out that the three existing planes "are more than enough".

"The RA management says it will add new routes in March (2001) and increase the frequency of some of the existing ones," said Capt S K Shrestha of Nepal Airlines Pilot Association. "What is the need to lease the aircraft three months earlier?"

Badri Bahadur Karki of Employees Union said "there is a well-planned move to delay the buying of a new aircraft by going for one lease after another". The leaders pointed out that a new Boeing 767 jet cost 108 million US dollars nearly a decade ago, "during which 94 million US dollars have been spent on various lease deals."

They were speaking at a press conference today. Chairman Shrestha, who had agreed to attend the press conference, did not turn up.

Jomsom air strike into third day

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POKHARA, Nov 15 - The Jomsom-Pokhara air-route strike called by the locals of Mustang continued for the third consecutive day today creating serious problem for the travellers stranded in the Mustang region.

Mustang, Jomsom in particular, is a popular tourist destination, which is only accessible by air. The locals have to rely heavily on the air services for various basic commodities in the region. And, the economy of the region depends largely on tourism.

Locals and tourists stranded at Jomsom are desperately asking the Civil Aviation Authority to provide helicopters to air-lift them. "But, this also couldn’t be done because of the protest by the locals," the Air Traffic Controller at Pokhara Airport Devendra K.C told The Kathmandu Post today.

The air services on the Pokhara-Jomsom sector is at standstill since Monday due to protests by the people of Mustang demanding reservation of one flight per day and two emergency seats on every flight for the locals.

Locals argue that the private airlines prefer to fly tourists rather than locals. This leaves the people wanting to travel-out of the district stranded or waiting for a flight for days.

"There is no fresh influx of tourists in the region and this is very bad for the economy of the district which largely depends on tourists," said a tour operator in Jomsom. "Locals themselves are suffering more by the strike," he added.

Likewise, the air services operators whose revenue intake stood at around Rs 800,000 daily, are also adversely hit by the strike.

Meanwhile, according to a source at Pokhara Airport, Civil Aviation Authority is planning to beef-up the security of Jomsom airport so that flights could be made to rescue the people trapped there.

Freezers at health posts in the cold

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KATHMANDU, Nov 15 - With the current acute shortage of kerosene in many remote hill districts, refrigerators in various rural health posts and district health offices are running out of power.

The specially-designed refrigerators which keep vaccines cool, operate on kerosene in areas where electricity is not available.

According to vaccine supervisor, Govinda Man Shrestha, the kerosene-fed freezers, donated by UNICEF, are currently dysfunctional due to the shortage of kerosene in Dolpa district. One litre of kerosene is being sold here for Rs 120, he added.

Our reporter from Lamjung said that kerosene-fed refrigerators at two health centres were not functioning due to the acute scarcity of the fuel.

Supervisor Shrestha said that the special polio vaccine programme announced by the government for November 18 in Dolpa could be severely hampered as a result of the kerosene shortage.