Deuba likely winner

By Damakant Jayshi

KATHMANDU, July 21 - Former Prime Minister and young turk Sher Bahadur Deuba has emerged as a firm favorite to be the next Prime Minister as at least 62 ruling party lawmakers are known to have pledged support for him.

Party sources said that his rival, General Secretary of the governing Nepali Congress Sushil Koirala, has been able to muster the support of only about 48 MPs. Deuba’s stock rose after former Deputy Prime Minister decided to withdraw from the race and throw his weight behind Deuba.

Although the stated objective remains to find a consensus candidate as the next Prime Minister, hectic parleys in both the factions of the ruling Nepali Congress marked the day on the eve of the parliamentary party elections to elect the new parliamentary party leader on Sunday.

The election now seems inevitable to choose the successor of the outgoing Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala as the chances of the consensus candidate stands slim.

Tomorrow will be only the second time in its 54-year long history that the NC is going to choose its parliamentary party leader. The first time was in March last year when the current frontrunner and former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba had contested against his mentor Girija Prasad Koirala and had secured 43 votes against Koirala’s 69.

Talking to The Kathmandu Post today morning, both Deuba and party General Secretary Sushil Koirala exuded confidence of being the consensus choice of the party MPs and vowed to contest if the bid for consensus failed.

Deuba said, "I am one of the contenders and expect to get the support of all the NC lawmakers," adding that he was prepared to face the elections too. His body language suggested as much.

Observers say, he has reasons to be optimistic with both Poudel and Khum Bahadur Khadka, former minister and powerful leader of the party controlling a sizeable chunk of the MPs, have decided to throw their weight behind him.

Poudel did a see-saw with his candidacy till late evening today. Though he initially projected only himself as the best-suited consensus candidate, eventually he backed out of the race and issued a statement supporting Deuba.

Bhakta Bahadur Balayar, NC lawmaker and close Deuba-aide said that the outgoing Prime Minister Koirala could propose Bhattarai to prevent Deuba’s chances to power. However, Bhattarai has reiterated what he said after resigning back in March 1999: the leadership should pass on to the second-generation leaders. Even Deuba remarked that neither of the two senior-most leaders would vie for the top post any more.

Sushil Koirala said he "deserved" to be the consensus choice and denied that his candidacy smacked of dynastic rule in the NC. "My friends and supporters are asking me to take up the new responsibility." Speaking about his "sacrifice", Koirala emphasized that he had not become a minister even when he was offered portfolios in the past.

Speaking about how stable the next government would be, both Deuba and Koirala said if the new PM was able to take the entire nation into confidence, things would get back into right track - a mammoth asking by any account in the current situation in the Himalayan Kingdom. When asked why no NC government was able to complete its full term in the office despite the majority, Koirala denied that it was infighting in the party. "Bickering in the party is a democratic practice; but we have to follow certain values and norms of the parliamentary system which has not happened."

However, Deuba admitted that the country’s oldest democratic party had failed the people because those at the helm of affairs could not manage dissidence in the party. Both the contenders do agree that Maoist insurgency needs to be resolved at the earliest. Deuba opined that the new PM should first take the opposition into confidence and then broach the dialogue with the Maoists.

Poll schedule for PP leader

KATHMANDU, July 21(PR) – The three-member election committee of the Nepali Congress today published the one-day poll schedule for the election of the new parliamentary party leader that will be held at Nepali Congress Parliamentary Party office inside Singha Durbar on Sunday.

According to the schedule, voters list comprising the Lower House lawmakers of the party would be published at 8 a.m. tomorrow. Objection to the list and its scrutiny will take place for the next 30 minutes. The prospective candidates would have to file nominations between 8:30 and 9:30 a.m.

Candidates can withdraw nominations from 10:30 to 11:15 a.m. at the end of which the final list would be published. If there is more than one candidate, voting would be held from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Counting and declaration of the result will begin after 5 p.m.

A candidate has to secure more than 50 per cent of the votes. In case more than two candidates contest the elections, said the election committee, a second round of election would be held between two candidates.

Maoists release seven cops, five kitchen boys

By Utpal Raj Misra and Sudarshan Rijal

DANG, July 21 - A week after the Maoist rebels abducted 69 police personnel and five kitchen boys from a police post in Holeri of the mid-western Rolpa district, the rebels finally released at least 12 of them today.

The rebels handed over seven policemen and five kitchen boys to a group of local VDC officials and various political party representatives at around 3.30 p.m. The hand over took place near a PCO tower in Dubidanda VDC of Rolpa district, said Krishna Bahadur Chand, the Chairman of Dubring VDC.

Chand was one of the five local representatives to whom the rebels handed over the policemen in Dubidanda, barely 200 metres away from the Holleri Police Post from where they were abducted on July 12.

The other four representatives were Santa Raj Bohara, Chairman of the Nuwagaon VDC, Devendra Bohara, Nepali Congress representative, Juddha Bahadur Chand of CPN-ML and Ratna Bahadur Basnet, a local.

The freed policemen are Assistant Sub-Inspector Lal Bahadur Basnet from Banke, and head constables Krishna Bahadur Thapa and Shiva Bahadur Adhikari from Syangja and Banke respectively. Others included constables Rajesh Kumar Gurung of Gorkha, Binod Chaudhary of Rupandehi and Shyam Lal Pun of Pyuthan.

Similarly, the freed kitchen boys are Tilak KC, Deepak BK, Dhan Bahadur Roka, Bitu Sunar and Narshing Gharti Magar, all who are from Rolpa. According to Dubring VDC Chairman Chand, the rebels organised a small function on which the local representatives were asked to sign a note stating that they had taken the responsibility of the 12 policemen after their release. Four rebels by the name of Jwar, Muhan, Anil and Karan (militia commander) also signed the note.

In the note it is mentioned that these 12 policemen were freed as per the request of the Human Rights Organisation team who had walked to Nuwagaun recently. Seven rights activists which included Dr Mathura Prasad Shrestha, Sudeep Pathak, Gauri Pradhan, Dr Bhogendra Sharma, Mukti Pradhan, Kalyan Raj Pandey and Sarba Raj Khadka had returned requesting the district level militia leaders to free the abducted policemen.

Chand mentioned that all the freed policemen headed on their own after the departure of the rebels, refusing to be escorted to the District Police Office here in Dang. However here in Dang, Superintendent of Police Prem Bahadur Gurung, said that only two of the freed personnel have contacted the DPO till now. He refused to provide their names. Another police source claimed that the two policemen have been sent to Nepalgunj.

Say good bye to Koirala legacy

By Ameet Dhakal

KATHMANDU, July 21 – Having squandered all the wonderful opportunities for a dignified step-down – as fate would have it, Girija Prasad Koirala finally settled down for an ugly exit.

The unceremonious exit was of his personal choice. By choosing so, he did injustice to his extraordinarily long and active political career. Even at 79, he wanted to "work" for democracy and society. Others said it was time for retirement; his performance found it wanting more than what anyone else.

Biratnagar Jute Mill strike in 1947 against the Rana Oligarchy was a starting point of this long political haul for Koirala. Since then, he completely erased the word "rest" from his vocabulary (least he wanted to remember, when he was suggested to retire). He remained active all through.

This activeness earned him a nationwide following among the NC cadres, much to the envy of his senior colleagues Late Ganesh Man Singh and Krishna Prasad Bhattarai. Koirala was a part of the two struggles that the NC fought against the Rana Oligarchy and the party-less Panchyat System. But he was on the steering during the two national election campaigns that returned NC to the power with majority in the House of Representatives.

He had strength to reach to the people (once he addressed 13 election rallies in a day and at the age of 77, says a journalist who covered his election campaign). Winning support from people and lawmakers easily came to this man. But retaining it has always been his problem. He upset the NC majority rule twice, not once.

"Resilient" is one word that outstandingly characterizes Koirala. Since its establishment five decades ago, NC has been confronted with a lot of ups and down. Many deserted the NC, including the promising figures like Tulsi Giri, Shree Bhadra Sharma and Parsu Narayan Choudhary, but Koirala along with Krishna Prasad Bhattarai and Ganesh Man Singh kept the NC torch high. Very few politicians have been criticized and hated so much as Koirala in Nepali politics. Yet he managed to wither all those adversities, including a bid on his life, during Panchayat days.

Resilience may have been a virtue but it increasingly gave way to rigidity in Koirala during the last few years. He became intolerant to communists and uncompromising within his own party. That eventually cost Koirala his chair.

His theorization that Male, Masale and Mandale sub ek hun (all the rightists and leftist are one, to sum up the essence) earned Koirala a life-long enemies in the communist ranks and files. The humiliating manner, in which the NC governments led by Sher Bahadur Deuba and by Krishna Prasad Bhattarai, were ousted added to the intra-party animosity.

A Koirala-aide tries to defend him saying that he was never unyielding and that "the problem was basically of communication." He argues Koirala has never been an articulate person and he could never convince his friends and enemies with his ideas, irrespective of their novelty. Koirala-critics reject this as a blatant attempt to "whitewash" dark side of Koirala’s personality.

Despite his bitter relations with the opposition, brewing dissent within the ruling party, allegations of corruption and deteriorating law and order situation, Koirala looked like concluding his political career in statesman like manner. He had a smartly crafted 14-point National Consensus agenda at hand, all willing main opposition to honour him the credit for the national consensus and a press ready to forgive him for his "mistakes and failure." In a fickle of eyes he squandered that opportunity and the possible honor for once and all.

This brings into light the "stubbornly whimsical" nature of Koirala. A month ago he had asked some of his cabinet colleagues to prepare ground for his dignified exit. Hence, the 14-point National Consensus agenda was ready. "He looked so relaxed after the normal proceedings of the Parliament and reiterated his commitment to resign….But within 48 hours he was totally a different person leaving us completely shocked and dazed," says a cabinet minister who believes Koirala to have committed, "one of the greatest mistakes in his life."

As some observers point out, it may be too early to write off Koirala from Nepali politics (he is still the NC President for next four-and-half years and will remain a king-maker) but it is definitely time to say good bye to this septuagenarian leader and learn the accompanying lessons of the past ten years: society must progress - economically and socially - to remain united, otherwise it will begin to pull apart.

Maoists for new PM with different in character

KATHMANDU, July 21 (PR)- The president of the underground CPN-Maoist today said that if the new Prime Minister is not different in character and style as Girija Prasad Koirala then the country’s problem would remain unsolved.

"Attempt to choose a leader similar in character to the Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala would not solve the situation of the country even after Koirala’s resignation," stated a press release issued here today signed by CPN-Maoist president Prachanda. "Resignation of Koirala is a victory of the people," said the release. "Koirala had no option but resign as he could not escape the armed as well as peaceful struggle of the people," stated the release.

The release further said that the current problem would further aggravate if Koirala’s resignation comes as a conspiracy against the "Peoples’ War".

With the onset of monsoon comes water contamination

By Razen Manandhar

KATHMANDU, July 21 - Although late monsoons have hit the capital and rest of the country raising the water level in the water-strapped Valley, there is hardly anything to cheer about as the accumulated water is highly contaminated.

At least some people who use groundwater know that they might be using merely the extracts from the local drainage or even safety tanks.

Experts say around 80 per cent of the urban residents in the valley have bore tube-wells in their compounds as the Nepal Water Supply Corporation (NWSC) cannot meet the need of the inhabitants. Such wells may draw seepage of wastewater from the surrounding underground environment.

And not all the wells have the mandatory sanctions of the NWSC. The government is yet to introduce regulations to check the growing number of unauthorised wells. To compound the problem, the unchecked and untested use of groundwater could be harmful to public health as well as to the local environment.

Shushila Regmi, a chemist at Groundwater Resources Development Project (GRDP) says the ground water of all the parts of the Kathmandu Valley has been contaminated to undrinkable extent and the quality of water is decreasing day by day.

People say they are compelled to dig well even without the official nod as their needs are not fulfilled. According to official estimates, the water demand of the Kathmandu Valley is above 150 million litres per day. But the NWSC provides only 80 to 130 million litres in the Valley, leaving the residents to arrange the rest of their need by boring tube-wells.

A survey was done in June 1995 on the contamination of drinking water by the government which found that the faecal element was nil in the water of the Manahara River. But now, lab test traced 3,200 colonies of faecal element per 100 ml of water from the same source, according to a study done by Melamchi Water Supply Development Board in November 2000.

"The change of surface water quality directly affects the ground water. We can’t say groundwater of one place is better than another now. Even the water collected from Sundarijal is proved contaminated," Regmi adds.

Sundarijal is the prime drinking water source of the Kathmandu Valley from where it is distributed to consumers through pipelines.

The chemist blames the excessive population rise for the contamination of water and insufficiency of the drinking water distributed by the government.

"More the people, more the commotion. The water that the ground of Kathmandu holds can never meet the need of the soaring population. At the same time, the people are the most responsible factor of destroying the ground water quality," says Regmi.

She tests variety of water samples from different areas of the Valley in her lab daily.

Some areas have damaged drainage and the human waste also mixes into the ground water. Further, some groundwater receives input from the rivers which are also equally contaminated.

"In Baluwatar I found yellow substances in water whereas the water of Dillibazar is just black solution. Even the water of Shesh Narayan, that looks crystal clear, also has chemical and other injurious elements in it," she said.

The water from such wells are not only contaminated but also can cause serious damage to the environment too.

The executive chairman of Environment and Public Health Organization (ENPHO), Dr Roshan Raj Shrestha says apart from the cleanness of the water, the excessive use of ground water may accelerate decrease in the fertility of soil and even desertification.

He adds, "Because of the maximum use of ground water in the form of tube-wells, the water table is lowering and the historic water taps, considered to be permanent and most reliable drinking water source, are also drying up in the Kathmandu Valley,"

He suggests that the government should work out to control the use of boring wells in the city by imposing appropriate laws.

But Dr Chandreshwor Shah, the spokesman of NWSC said trying to control the people from digging out water would not be fair as the corporation itself has not been able to provide as much water as the city needs. The NWSC itself has planted 25 boring wells in and around the city.