NBL board opposed to management hand-over

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KATHMANDU, Jan 5 - The management hand-over of Nepal Bank Ltd. (NBL), the country’s oldest bank, could land into trouble as the board of directors from the private sector today vehemently opposed the management transfer.

The private board of directors appearing at the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) today said that they are averse to management hand-over, but said, they would accept technical assistance to improve the ailing bank.

Experts say the board of director’s resistance to management transfer could throw cold water over the government’s move for banking sector reform since the private sector holds majority of shares in NBL. Private sector holds 59 percent stake in this bank, which has been reported as "technically insolvent" by a foreign auditor firm, KPMG Barnets Group, after a thorough investigation few months back.

Following the investigation, the government had decided to hand-over the management of NBL and Rastriya Banijya Bank(RBB), the only state-owned bank, to the private operator and has already short-listed eight such aspirants. The government is currently pursuing Nepal Financial Sector Reform Project aided by the World Bank to rescue the messy banks.

Talking to The Kathmandu Post, Rajendra Khetan, one of the Board of Directors of NBL, said "What we told at PAC today was a decision of NBL Board of Directors, which recently decided to retain the control of the bank management."

Khetan, at the PAC, said that only 20 people were responsible for the present mess of NBL bank. He asserted that if proper action is initiated against the defaulters, the bank could bounce back into a profitable bank within a short span of time.

"If NBL itself could not initiate any action against the defaulters, why did NRB, the regulatory authority of the banking system chose to keep mum?" he questioned.

However, Ram Babu Pant, Deputy Governor of NRB, speaking at PAC said, "It is not the duty of NRB to recover the bad debts of NBL."

He also claimed that the management hand-over was initiated only after the two banks failed to come up with viable options to overcome their faltering financial position.

The management hand-over, which NRB expects to take place by April this year, will be initially for a period of two years. The management team will be responsible for taking complete control of day to day running of the banks, providing immediate help to stabilise the banks’ operations and restore their financial health to an acceptable level, among others.

The KPMG Barnets report had pinned the net negative worth of NBL in the range of 6-10 billion rupees, while the figure for RBB was estimated in between 9-15 billion rupees. The combine losses of the two banks represent 4.5 to 8.5 percent of GDP and 24-45 percent of budget in 1999 - an amount enough to trigger a financial melt-down elsewhere under a prudent banking system.

Despite deep-rooted systemic flaws, the two banks are in a good liquidity position and control over 50 percent of the banking system deposit and have over 400 branches spread throughput the kingdom. NBL has a total deposit of 35.50 billion rupees and loan and advances of 23.40 billion rupees as of June 2000. Similarly, RBB has a total deposit of 37.19 billion rupees and loan and advances of 29.71 billion rupees.

Mongolian President arrives on historic visit
Presented with key to Kathmandu city, official talks tomorrow

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KATHMANDU, Jan 5 - The Mongolian President, Natsagiin Bagabandi, landed in the capital this morning marking the first ever visit by the Head of State of Mongolia since the diplomatic relations were established in 1961.

The President arrived here on a Mongolian Airlines’ jet along with A. Oyunbileg, the Mongolian first lady. Minister for Foreign Affairs L. Erdenechuluun and Minister for Industry and Commerce Ch. Ganzorig are also accompanying the President. The visiting dignitaries, on arrival at the Tribhuvan International Airport were received by Their Majesties the King and Queen accompanied by the panchakanyas. The dignitaries were greeted with a twenty-one gun salute.

Hundreds of school children welcomed the motorcade of their Majesties accompanied by the visiting high-level dignitaries, who arrived here on a historic visit, at the invitation of King Birendra and Queen Aishwarya, as it proceeded from the airport to Kasthamandap, Basantapur Durbar square.

Some 15-motorcycle outriders escorted the two limousines. The President and his wife are staying at the Narayanhity Royal Palace.

President Bagabandi is slated to hold official talks with Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala tomorrow. High-level officials said that the two land-locked countries are expected to focus on Nepal’s export of plastic and plastic goods to Mongolia. As for import from Mongolia, the talks will center on woolen thread, Nepal’s chief import from the Mongolian Republic.

A 31-member entourage accompanying the President includes parliamentarians, government officials and religious leaders along with a 14-member media team.

Earlier today, President Bagabandi attended a civic reception in his honour and received the keys to the historic city, before being driven to the Royal Palace on a state coach, where a state banquet was held Friday evening.

President Bagabandi also laid a wreath at the Martyr’s Memorial today, before he left to inspect the Peace Keeping Training Centre in Panchkhal, Kavre.

Likewise, Oyunbileg, the Mongolian first lady, toured around the Bauddhanath Stupa, and visited the carpet and shawl showrooms.

Meanwhile, like any other visit by a foreign dignitary in this Himalayan kingdom, the capital’s congested traffic was in chaotic snarl today. Roads were jammed and public transport was stalled at every crossroad, with commuters having to walk long distances.

However, Kumar Koirala, chief at the Valley Traffic Police Office, claimed that the traffic mobilisation, this time, was "the best" than during any other state visits.

"We have tried our best to make the traffic congestion less inconvenient," said Koirala.

President Bagabandi is slated to visit Lumbini , the birthplace of Lord Gautam Buddha tomorrow, where he is scheduled to lay a foundation stone of Mongolian Gandantek Chengling Monastery, in Lumbini. Their Majesties the King and Queen will also be present during the occasion.

NC rebels down but not out

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KATHMANDU, Jan 5 - A day after losing a battle against Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala, his rivals in the party today said that they would not let the Prime Minister to remain in power for long and would be again filing a no-confidence proposal in the future.

Sher Bahadur Deuba, who led a rebellion against Koirala and filed a proposal of no confidence, told reporters today that the no-confidence proposal that was crushed by Prime Minister Koirala yesterday was, "not the end of such proposals and the dissidents will file such proposals again in the future." Deuba, however, added that his camp would turn its focus on the General Convention where he is contesting against Koirala for the coveted post of the party president.

"Now we are concentrating for the General Convention to be held in Pokhara," Deuba said at a press conference.

Deuba along with 40 other rebelling lawmakers had walked out of the voting process on the no-confidence proposal Thursday, protesting the mode of open voting used to decide on the proposal.

Prime Minister Koirala survived the no-trust vote held in the absence of the rebel members.

The proposal of no-confidence when put to the vote at the NC parliamentary party received 69 votes against it while there were none in favour. Two members abstained from voting whereas Koirala’s rival Krishna Prasad Bhattarai was not present during voting. The rebels who boycotted the voting numbered 41.

The rebels had been demanding that the voting be held through a secret ballot while the NC Parliamentary Party (PP) stuck to its earlier decision to hold an open ballot.

The rebels feared that such a mode would discourage some of their new supporters who are still undecided, or were afraid to go openly against Koirala. Their fear did come true when their support of 56 plunged to 41.

Koirala, who has held power during most of the post democracy years, still holds big influence in the party and has many of his aides in key positions in the party.

Asked if he was thinking splitting the party, Deuba said; "Why would I split the party ... I can’t even imagine or think of splitting the party that we had nurtured and contributed."

He said Koirala had broken all the promises that he would include members of the rebel group in the cabinet and the government.

"Koirala had assured us that he would bring members from the other faction into the government ... but he kept saying tomorrow ... tomorrow ... just promises and nothing," Deuba said.

During a revolt in August last year, Koirala had bowed down to opposition demand and agreed to include members of the rebel group in both the cabinet and the central working committee.

The party’s General Convention is scheduled to be held later this month in Pokhara that will elect party officials including the president.

SC rejects demand for daughter

By Pramod Poudel

KATHMANDU, Jan 5 – A distraught mother who gave away her four-year-old daughter for foster care but now wants her back lost her bid on Friday when the Supreme Court ruled that the young girl be kept with her care-takers.

The Supreme Court bench, comprising of Chief Justice Keshav Prasad Upadhyaya and Justice Harish Chandra Prasad Upadhyaya issued the order today.

The Justices ruled that petitioner Laxmi Timilsina’s demand to get back her daughter Samjhana cannot be met as the Patan Appellate Court and the "juvenile bench" of the Kathmandu District Court were still considering the case. The cases in the lower courts were filed by the defendant Hajuri Shrestha, who is taking care of Samjhana at the moment.

The Supreme Court today also issued a directive in the name of Shrestha, the care-taker of Samjhana, that until the case is finally disposed of by the lower courts, she should take proper care of Samjhana by giving attention to the child’s education and good health. Samjhana’s mother Laxmi, however, has been given visitation rights.

Laxmi had filed a writ of habeas corpus on November 23 stating that her daughter be released from the "illegal confinement" of Shrestha. The writ had stated that Ambika Sigdel, Principal of Nil Shishu Niketan Boarding School, Dhalku and her associate Hajuri Shrestha had taken the child illegally.

On a hearing on December 13, advocate Shambhu Thapa who argued for the defendants said that Laxmi’s petition is not befitting a regular habeas corpus case as the mother had given away her daughter on a signed agreement and she knew where her daughter was.

Thapa then had also argued that the mother had not taken proper care of her child, and the care-takers Shrestha and Sigdel had expressed no objection if the child was ready to go with her mother.

On November 29 when the child was presented before the Supreme Court, she refused to go with her distraught mother.

She was then taken away by Principal Sigdel and Shrestha.

New 250 denomination bank-note causes mess

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KATHMANDU, Jan 5 - The newly circulated 250 denomination currency notes issued four years ago to mark the golden jubilee of His Majesty the King’s accession to the throne are causing confusions in the market.

Though first issued as commemorative notes, the 250 denominations are in circulation since last week, according to Nepal Rastra Bank, the central bank.

However, the capital city’s tourism hub, Thamel Thursday witnessed incidents that had people trying to buy things with the 250 rupee-notes confused and even ridiculed. Lal Man Tamang, a trekking guide, said he was surrounded by people when he went to a shop to buy things with a 250 rupee-note. "The shopkeeper said that the note is not acceptable," he said. "People would have thrashed me had I chose to argue with them. But I did not."

Likewise, Kantipath-based Nepal Grindlays Bank on Wednesday made a payment of Rs 50,000 to Gurkha Encounters Overland Adventure in 250 denominations. The Adventure’s Managing Director Rajendra Bajgain today said nobody agreed to accept the notes.

"The notes are not accepted and, on the other hand, everyone is suspicious towards us," he added. " The authority concerned has not made clear public notification about it." Officials at the Grindlays Bank said the notes were issued from the central bank counter on Wednesday.

How local initiative can change the fate of neglected monuments

By Razen Manandhar

KATHMANDU, Jan 5 - While the Department of Archaeology, the government body responsible for safeguarding the cultural heritages of the country, is turning a blind eye to the crumbling monuments, a group of conscious people is setting an example in preserving these age-old treasures.

A royal-dome-shaped 19th century temple of Lord Ram Chandra, popularly called Ram Mandir of Battisputali, is likely to undergo a facelift soon – indeed the renovation work has already begun. Thanks largely to the Committee for Renovation and Promotion of Ramchandra Temple (CRPRT), a small committee of locals.

Out of the donation collected from the locals, the eight-year-old Committee has so far spent Rs 1.1 million on the restoration works of the temple. And another 1.2 million rupees has been spent on a rest house with carved pillars and windows at the temple premises. But the amount spent so far is only a fraction of the estimated 8 million rupees needed to complete the renovation works.

"When we started the ambitious project eight years ago, we had only Rs 501 and we were not sure whether we would be able to make any tangible difference," says cultural expert Dr Govinda Tondon, a local resident and the member-secretary of the CRPRT.

"We are now proud that we have come a long way spending millions of rupees on the temple neglected by government bodies." Ram Mandir is one of the hundreds of archaeologically and culturally significant monuments of the Kathmandu Valley, a UNESCO World (Cultural) Heritage Site.

The temple was built in 1871 AD by Commanding Colonel Sanak Singh Tondon. Some locals say that the Colonel constructed the temple after he discovered three potsfull of golden coins in that place. The site is equally famous for the archaeological findings dating back to the 7th century.

The temple consists of five black-stone idols of Lord Ram, his consort Sita, brothers Laxman, Bharat and Satrughna and a standing Hanuman, Ram’s devotee, outside.

It is one of the few Shah dynasty monuments which bear outstanding fresco (wall) paintings around its walls. The temple is noted for its 32 butterfly images, and locals say that the place is named after these images.

Dr Tondon says that the temple was never renovated, and that it survived 8-plus rector scale earthquake in 1934 that wrecked the parts of Bihar and Nepal and claimed thousands of lives. But as time passed, rest houses in the temple premise collapsed, its roof began leaking. Worse, the area around the temple turned into a garbage dump.

"Instead of waiting hopelessly for the government to renovate the cultural heritage site, we have mobilised a large number of locals behind," says Tondon. The initiative has not only brought changes in the temple’s appearance, but also helped bring a change in the attitude of the locals towards our monuments, he adds.

Almost deserted by devotees till few years back, now about 180 locals wait for their turn to offer daily pooja in the temple. But this is not all. The committee has also started holding religious functions and other religious events. "Temple is not only a place for worship," says Puspa Pani Gautam, Chairman of the Committee. So the process of demystifying the conventional concept of temple as such has already begun. "These days we have started holding classes of culture and classical music, recitations of Ramayana and many more."

Ambika Shrestha of the Dwarika’s Hotel, which stands close to Ram Mandir is all praise for the renovation works. "Locals who live around such historic monuments should take inspiration from this step to preserve our monuments."

SC transfers case on Special Court

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KATHMANDU, Jan 5 - The division bench of the Supreme Court (SC) today passed an order that the case challenging the formation of the Special Court, be presented to the special bench.

Division bench justices - Top Bahadur Singh and Bhairab Prasad Lamsal -- issued the order.

Advocate Jyoti Baniya filed the petition on December 27 at SC challenging the legality of the formation of the Special Court. Supreme Court had issued a show cause notice in response to the writ late last month and had summoned the respondents to be present at the court within seven days to decide on the need of an interim order.

The petitioner had argued that the Constitutional provisions had been violated by the decision to form the Special Court by the government. "The formation of the Special Court impedes the jurisdiction of the general court," the writ had stated.

The petition had named the Cabinet Secretariat, Law Ministry, Judicial Council Secretariat among others as the respondents.

Earlier on December 18, Baniya had also filed a writ petition seeking the cancellation of the formation of Special Court Act that, he said, contradicted the Constitution. The case is also under the consideration at the court.

The government established a Special Court, after issuing a notice in the Nepal Gazette on December 25, to look into the cases of crimes against the state. The notice in the Gazette stated clearly that the Special Court will look into cases of crimes against the state, drugs, foreign exchange transactions and women trafficking.

HURPEC president Karki, arrested

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KATHMANDU, Jan 5 - The police arrested the president of HURPEC, a human rights organisation today, after about five hundred people demonstrated alleging the president of trying to abscond with the money they had paid to get training on Human Rights (HR).

Milan Karki, president of HURPEC, had collected fee from about six hundred applicants, to provide pre-training on human rights. After undergoing the initial training, about a hundred of the applicants would be selected for the final training who then would be eligible for the HR jobs.

The protest started after Karki tried to accommodate all the applicants in the hall of Nepal Law College, which has the capacity to accommodate less than 200 people. "We had to protest after Karki refused to hold the program where all could be accommodated," said an applicant. "Karki said that there was no option other than the college hall," another applicant added.

"Now we don’t want the training but want our money refunded and legal action be taken against Karki," said Om KC, student of Saraswoti College, also a applicant.

Senior Human Rights Leader Rishi Kesh Shah who had reached the place to inaugurate the program returned after the agitation began.

The organisation had collected Rs 300 each from nearly 600 applicants. Many participants had come from outside the valley just to participate in the training.

The President of the Free Students Union, Nepal Law College, Basanta Basnet got the crowd more incensed after he chased them wielding bamboo stick. The crowd refused to believe Basnet’s promise that Karki would refund the money tomorrow only.

Lila KC, a student of Tribhuvan University who had herself applied for the training said, "It is amazing that even human rights organisation are involved in such messy activities. This is clearly an exploitation of the educated unemployed youths of the country who are looking for opportunities to engage themselves."