Tributes paid to Late King
Birendra Peace Academy inaugurated, Peace Award instituted

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LALITPUR, Dec 29 - People from all walks of life paid their tributes to His Late Majesty King Birendra Bir Bikram Shah on the occasion of his 57th birth anniversary today.

This was the first time that people were offering garlands and showering flowers on the statue of the late King after he passed away in the royal massacre of June 1.

Addressing a memorial programme here, Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba said the best way of paying tribute to the departed soul was by bringing about peace in the country.

"The late King was concerned about the country and its people till the last days of his life," said the Prime Minister.

Mayor of Lalitpur, Buddhi Raj Bajracharya, said the late King had played a vital role in restoring democracy in the country and securing the rights of the people.

Ministers, members of Parliament, former prime ministers, Supreme Court Chief Justice, Lower House Speaker, National Assembly Chairman and Rajparishad Standing Committee Chairman, among others, attended the function.

The programme was organised by Lalitpur Sub-Metropolitan City.

Meanwhile, in a separate programme in Kathmandu, Dr Keshar Jung Rayamajhi inaugurated the Birendra Peace Academy today on the occasion of the late King’s birth anniversary.

The Chairman of the Academy, Jaya Prakash, urged the government to celebrate the birth anniversary of the late King as World Peace Day.

Speaking on the occasion, Angur Baba Joshi, a social worker, said, "Not only Nepal but the whole world is in search of peace. Only peace can solve conflicts, so everybody should follow Late King Birendra’s path."

Hem Raj Gyawali, the Chairman of Kantipur Publications said, "The love shown by the people to the King became more visible after his untimely death." He also said the initiative the late King took for making Nepal a Zone of Peace should continue.

The Academy has instituted a Birendra Peace Award for those individuals and organizations who play a key role in ensuring peace in the country. The Award, worth Rs. 10,000 and a shield, will be presented on February 25 every year.

Programming Committee submits its report

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KATHMANDU, Dec 29 – The Programming Committee of the SAARC submitted its report with several recommendations to the Standing Committee of Foreign Secretaries after concluding its two-day meeting on Saturday, said Pushkar Rajbhandari, the Joint Secretary at the Ministry Affairs (MoFA) and officiating spokesperson for the 11th Summit.

The report made the recommendation, among others, that the SAARC Secretary General constitute a committee to review the functioning of the seven technical committees by mid-2002, five of which submitted their own report to the Programming Committee today. The other two are expected to submit their reports next year.

Nepal placed 10 recommendations in the Programming Committee. Among the recommendations include holding workshops and seminars on chair, fellowships and scholarships in the region, Information Technology, prevention of trafficking of women and environment assessment.

Rahbhandari revealed that Japan has agreed in principle to provide additional funds under SAARC-Japan Special Fund, although the earlier fund of Rs 5 million is yet to be fully utilised.

All the Foreign Secretaries, except India’s Chokila Iyer are in Kathmandu for their three-day Standing Committee meeting beginning tomorrow. Iyer is expected to reach the capital tonight.

The Standing Committee would discuss the recommendations of the Programming Committee and prepare the grounds for the SAARC Council of Ministers to set an agenda for the 11th Summit beginning next Friday.

Journos need permission to visit troubled areas

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KATHMANDU, Dec 29 – Defence Secretary, Padma Kumar Acharya, said here today that those journalists who wanted to travel to the troubled areas in the country should first get permission from the Defence Ministry.

"At the time of emergency, anything untoward may happen, so the journalists should inform the Ministry in advance before leaving for collecting news," said Defence Secretary Padma Kumar Acharya.

Speaking at a face-to-face programme organised in the capital, Secretary Acharya said the Ministry would keep the security forces informed when a journalist was visiting a particular danger spot.

"It is the responsibility of the state to save the life of every civilian and they (journalists) are not allowed to take the risk of going on their own," he said.

However, Minister for Information and Communication, Jaya Prakash Prasad Gupta, had said two weeks ago that all journalists could visit the problem spots without any official go-ahead.

Echoing Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba’s statement a few weeks ago, Acharya said the government did not need foreign troops to fight the Maoist insurgency.

"Even if they (foreign governments) show interest in sending their troops to Nepal, we don’t need them. Our troops are capable of handling the situation by themselves," he said. But the Defence Secretary said weapons might be bought from foreign countries if they were required.

Seven more rebels killed, 40 arrested

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KATHMANDU, Dec 29 - At least seven Maoist "terrorists" were killed and 40 others arrested in various parts of the country by the joint security forces of the Royal Nepal Army(RNA) and the Armed Police Force (APF), said a press release issued by the Defence Ministry today.

Intensifying their "Search and Destroy" operation, security forces gunned down four rebels in a jungle located between Biren Chowk and Taksar of Gorkha district, according to the release.

The release said that another rebel was killed by the security forces in an encounter in Budha Gaon, Rolpa. The deceased has been identified as Belu Gharti.

One more rebel was shot dead in another encounter with the security forces in Lohjara, Saptari district. The slain has been identified as Mishri Lal Yadav. Security forces also recovered large cache of arms from the site, said the release.

The armed forces have also seized guns, explosive materials and documents from different parts of the country, the release added. According to the release, altogether 40 suspects have been detained by the security forces from six different districts of the country.

Meanwhile, another report said at least one rebel and two civilians have died in security forces-Maoists encounter throughout the country in the past two days.

It is reported that two civilians were killed during the Maoists offensive in Jumla district headquarters on Thursday. The dead have been identified as Bhim Bahadur Sunar and Shivakali Sunar of Khalanga. The deceased were hit by shells fired by the Maoists from "long distance weapons" looted a month back from Dang barrack.

Similarly, our correspondent from Janakpur reports that at least one terrorist was killed in Kharihani, VDC of Dhanusa district. According to Superintendent of Police Biswa JB Rana, terrorist Shekhar Kumar Yadav, 25 was shot dead by the police as he tried to escape from custody while being brought to Janakpur from Area Police Office, Kharihani.

The deceased was accused of murdering police personnel Ram Kumar Singh in Yadukuwa and Gangaram Yadav, a rikshaw puller in Shivachowk of Janakpur.

Meanwhile, in Ilam the security forces have seized a large cache of arms, explosives and terrorist documents. In the process of ongoing search operations the security forces seized 34 guns from Laxmipur VDC, five from Chisapani and four from Barbote area. The security forces also seized some police uniform, combat dress, 19 khukuris, one sword and dozens of knives and bullets. The security forces also seized Rs 50,000 and Indian Rs 1,000 and terrorist documents from Laxmipur. The seized documents had plans to attack police posts, photos of terrorist training programmes, and some books about terrorism in Nepal printed in Hindi.

On the other hand a group of armed Maoist rebels shot dead a youth in Tara Khola VDC of Baglung district, Friday night. According to reports a group of more than 100 rebels shot 23 year old Moha Datta Sapkota at around 10 pm. Sapkota, a supporter of the Nepali Congress party had just returned home five days ago from India where he worked. The rebels on Wednesday had shot dead three persons in the same village. According to Hari Prasad Shrestha, Chairman of Nepali Congress Banglung unit, more than 51 people have fled the village and some 91 families since Saturday started leaving the village after the Maoists started attacking and murdering people in the village almost everyday.

Similarly, in Kalilot the rebels have abducted Bhupendra Bahadur Shahi, son of Chairman of Manma VDC Chairman Aj Bahadur Shahi, Thursday night.

Traffic restrictions: Grin and bear, after all it’s for SAARC

By Damakant Jayshi

KATHMANDU, Dec 29 – For the last four days, the security and protocol officials have been practising the escort routine of the seven VVIPs scheduled to arrive at the capital for the 11th SAARC Summit early January, causing anger and frustration among pedestrians and motorists.

Today the rehearsals were in Nagarkot. A resort at Nagarkot is the retreat place for the leaders on the second day of the Summit, revealed an official of the Valley Traffic Police Office (VTPO).

And this is only the tip of, well, the Summit. From tomorrow, the public modes of transport would be halved, with vehicles of odd and even numberplates plying on alternate days. Although this ruling was to be enforced on private vehicles as well, it has since been withdrawn.

The VTPO official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the private vehicles have been exempted from the ruling because of "pressure". But the private goods vehicles have to follow the new regulation and can only ply with special passes.

The commuters are in for a hard time on Thursday, a day before the Summit begins. For four days, beginning Thursday, all public modes of transport have been banned from plying inside the Ring Road area.

If only the decision-makers and their officials could have seen the seething anger of those people who were made to get off their buses, mini-buses and three-wheelers, and also those who were made to wait on their bicycles, bikes and cars. This was on Friday. The helpless rage on the faces told everything.

Only the school children seem to be relieved and happy at the prospects of not having to go to their school. Nothing warms the heart of a school-goer than a sudden ‘holiday’.

But a man carrying a can all the way from Kalanki was not amused at all. While this reporter overtook him at Babarmahal, on the way to Minbhawan, he was heard saying, "These people cannot do anything. Why this fuss about SAARC? After all, we all know that the road will be completely blocked hours before the leaders will pass through it. So why this drama of holding rehearsals and harassing us?"

A cyclist, alternating between riding his bike and walking on the pavement was shouted at by a policeman when he ever so slightly stepped onto the road near the office of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) at Babarmahal. "We are not even allowed to reach our workplace on time. What’s all this hullabaloo about?"

Concurred an onlooker, "It is the poor who always suffer."

One of the central themes of the 11th Summit, the officials here proudly point out, is poverty alleviation. The irony could not be lost on those who know that the SAARC leaders are going to discuss elimination of poverty from the region.

With the state of emergency eliminating nightlife in the capital, the four-day rehearsal jamboree provided us with some drama. Those who missed it, missed a unique experience. Somebody compared it to watching the "diamond ring" during the solar eclipse in the last millennium or like watching the Haley’s Comet.

One of the office-goers remarked, "One should know and admit one’s limitations. Bhutan was wise to forego hosting an earlier Summit. Nepal too could have done that. These people simply do not have the capacity to organise such a huge event."

Why do our officials always go to the extremes? The way traffic is being managed in several parts of the Valley these days is causing immeasurable difficulties for the public. The line of vehicles on all the three sides at the Singh Durbar traffic intersection also says a lot.

Another VTPO official, defending the rehearsals and the new traffic arrangement said the government could not compromise on the security of the distinguished guests. And as far as the arrangements are concerned, contended the official, things would be normal once the system starts functioning in due earnest.

To be fair to the officials, the rehearsals were warranted due to high security threat to at least one prime minister and two presidents: Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee of India and Presidents Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan and Chandrika Kumaratunga of Sri Lanka.

Besides, the Department of Traffic Management had issued a notice about the rehearsal schedules. One shudders to think what would happen from Sunday when public transport would be completely banned, which is to last for more than a week.

But Kathmanduites need to take heart from the fact that their city is finally playing host to the Summit after 14 long years. Traffic restrictions, ultimately, are a minor quibble if SAARC turns the corner at this Summit.

Okharpauwa: A solution for Valley’s garbage riddle

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KATHMANDU, Dec 29 - Kathmandu Valley’s long drawn-out garbage problem is fast finding its way to a solution with work being completed on the road that leads to the dumping site, and an agreement being signed with two private companies to recycle the waste into fertiliser.

The eight-kilometre stretch of road from Balaju to the dumping site of Okharpauwa, located about seven kilometres west to the capital, is nearly ready and only the black-topping remains. The 435 ropanis of garbage disposal land at Okharpauwa has already been evacuated of the villagers.

Sources at the Waste Management Committee of the Ministry of Local Development, said today that garbage dumping at Okharpauwa will begin once the black-topping of the road is done by the middle of February.

The Ministry also recently entered into an agreement with two private firms—Luna Nepal Chemicals and Fertilizer PL—for the conversion of solid waste into manure. With this accord, the Kathmandu Municipal Corporation workers are set to collect garbage from door-to-door, which will then be sifted for recycling by the firms, and then the fertilizer distributed.

The Kathmandu Valley, consisting of three districts and home to around 1.5 million people, ejects out almost 550 metric tonnes of waste every day, with Kathmandu accounting for 350 metric tonnes, Lalitpur 150 and Bhaktapur about 50 metric tonnes of garbage.

Explaining the process that went behind the agreement, Sitaram Pokharel, chief of Kathmandu Metropolitan City’s environment department, said, "We had requested the government for a compost plan, then the Local Development Ministry called for the private sector. Now the agreement has been signed, and soon we will see a cleaner Valley."

Kathmandu Mayor Keshav Sthapit says that the manure factory idea came up after realising that around 80 per cent of the Valley’s garbage can be converted into compost fertiliser, 10 per cent recycled and the rest buried. The Mayor also informed that the factory is to be set up in Chobhar’s Himal Cement Factory, which was closed down by the government some time ago.

An official at the Local Development Ministry revealed that apart from foreign funds, the government has allocated 91,500,000 rupees this fiscal year for the management of the Valley’s waste, out of which 40 million rupees have been spent on the construction of the Balaju-Okharpauwa road.

The official hoped that the ongoing plans will solve the Valley’s garbage problem for at least a decade.