Inadequate rainfall hits paddy transplantation

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MORANG, July 23 - Farmers have not been able to sow paddy on nearly 50 percent of the arable land in Morang district although the season for paddy transplantation is fast approaching its end.

Last year, they had transplanted paddy on about 90,000 hectares of land, but this year, they have yet to transplant paddy on about 40 thousand hectares in the absence of rainfall.

Of the total 105,000 hectares of arable land in the district, irrigation facility is available for 60,000 hectares while farmers have to depend on rainfall for nearly 45,000 hectares of land.

Paddy is yet to be transplanted on 90 percent of the land in Pokhariya, Majhare, Bhathigach, Dainiya, Nocha, Bisbani Badara, Sarovhag, Budhnagar, Katahari, Rangeli, Jhurkiya, Govindpur, Sinjuwa, Sundarpur, Mrigouliya, Harakpur, Bahuni and Rajghat VDCs.

According to District Agriculture Office, if there is no rainfall even within a week all the remaining land will remain fallow this year and production will decline by 50 percent as compared to that of last year.

Although 50 percent of the paddy field has been cultivated, the paddy crop has been destroyed due to lack of irrigation facility and absence of rainfall.

On the other hand, the paddy shoots are drying up in the seedbed and farmers have started to graze their cattle on the paddy seedbed, particularly in Pokhariya, Nocha, Majhare, Bhathigach, Sorabhag, Budhnagar, Katahari Jhurkiya and Rajghat VDCs.

A farmer of Majhare VDC, Rajendra Prasad Mandal, who had prepared the paddy seedbed to transplant paddy on 15 bighas of land has already grazed his cattle on the paddy seedbed.

Like Mandal, many others have also started grazing their cattle on the paddy seedbed.

Newly constructed bridge found damaged

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NAWALPARASI, July 23 - A bridge constructed at a cost of Rs 30,000,000 and completed only one and a half months ago is already damaged at different places.

People are raising their voice for checking the quality of the bridge built over Jharahi Khola on the Mahendra Highway.

Any one travelling there can see that some slabs on the surface of the bridge have been broken.

The bridge was constructed by Mahalaxmi Construction Service Company under the Bridge Upgrading Maintenance Project with the financial assistance of the British orgaisation, DFID.

The 100-metre long and 10-metre wide bridge was constructed in 20 months as scheduled. The seven inch thick slab is seen damaged at different places and voices are being raised from different quarters for properly checking the quality of the bridge. The bridge lies in the border between Rajahar and Amarapuri VDCs of Nawalparasi district.

Chairman of Rajahar VDC, Shiva Hari Adhikari, said there was need to examine the quality of the bridge because it has been damaged at places before two months were completed. He added that it would be a national problem if the bridge collapsed obstructing the vehicular movement on the highway.

The company which constructed the bridge has already returned from the site after completing its work.

Chief of the Western Regional Division Road Office in Butwal, engineer Guru Prasad Dhakal, said he had heard that the bridge which was supposed to last 100 years was damaged at places on its surface. He said there was a provision under which the bridge construction company had to carry out its maintenance for a year.

Ways to curb trafficking in women discussed

KATHMANDU, July 23 – With a view to curbing the growing problem of women trafficking in the country, two-day workshop on the topic Review of the National Plan of Action Against Trafficking of Children kicked off today at the Capital.

The Ministry of Women, Children and Social Welfare in association with the International Labor Organization (ILO) and International Programme on Eliminating Child Labor (IPEC) organized the workshop.

Addressing the inaugural function of the workshop, Patrick Daru, Officer-in-charge, ILO Kathmandu said due to the dynamic nature of trafficking, the emergence of new issues and the expansion of the knowledge base, it becomes imperative that the national plan of action is regularly updated and reviewed to keep pace with the changing times.

"National plan of action can play a significant role if implemented properly," said Daru.

He said the workshop should highly focus on the plight of the trafficked children. " All children have the right to be freed from the hazardous work and they need a help to exercise their right."

Likewise, speaking at the function, Durga Ghimire, president of NNAGT shed light on why women trafficking have skyrocketed in the last decade. " The women trafficking is turning out to be a lucrative business than drug and arms-trafficking.

She stressed the need to concentrate on the innovative ways to curb the trafficking at the workshop. "The workshop should produce a comprehensive conclusion," said Ghimire.

Similarly, Officiating Secretary of Ministry of Women, Children and Social Welfare, Krishna Prasad Sharma Bhandari said that, it is high time for the NGOs and INGOs to work unitedly to implement ‘National Plan of Action’ drafted in 1998.

Also participating in the function were activists fighting against the trafficking from different Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO). Reportedly, 5000-7000 women are trafficked and forced into commercial sex work in different parts of the world.

Pushpalal memorial day observed

BUTWAL, July 23(RSS)- An interaction on Relevance of the Ideas of Puspalal in the Present Context was organised here yesterday by the CPN-ML Rupandehi district committee on the occasion of the 23 rd memorial day of the founding general secretary of Nepal Communist Party Puspalal Shrestha.

Speaking on the occasion, senior leftist intellectual Gopiraman Upadhyay said Puspalal’s concept of joint struggle is an inspiration for the communist movement.

Advocate Tej Prasad Kandel said the need for following Puspalal’s concept of joint movement is quite clear.

Chairman of the Himalayan News Agency Madan Poudel said Puspa Lal was a true nationalist.

Chief editor of Dainik Janasangharsha Bal Krishna Chapagain said the present evils and aberrations have resulted from the failure to implement Puspalal’s ideas by the Communist parties, correctly.

National Councilor of CPN-ML Thakur Gaire pointed out the need to follow the ideas of Puspalal.

At the function presided over by CPN-ML district secretary Ghanashyam Bhusal, district member Dambar Aryal also expressed his views.

Likewise in Bhadrapur, the CPN-ML district working committee Jhapa organised an interaction at Birtamod on National Consensus and Possibilities at Present on the occasion of the 23 rd Puspalal Memorial Day.

Inaugurating the programme, party polit bureau member Ashok Rai called for consensus for controlling of corruption and maintaining law and order.

NC Jhapa president Sudhir Shiwakoti called for alert for the nation and nationalism.

Ex-MP Rabindra Chakraworti, advocate Lila Prasad Sapkota and Romani Bhattarai of CPN-ML and coordinator of Janasarokar Manch Surya Upreti presented separate working papers on national consensus.

Also speaking on the occasion were senior journalist Dilliram Nirbhik, litterateur Bhawani Ghimire, Ambika Upreti of the All Nepal Woman’s Association and ex-campus chief Bal Krishna Chaudhari.

Water tubewells in Morang drying up

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MORANG, July 23 - Tubewells installed for drinking water purpose in different parts of this district have become dry due to prolonged draught in this season.

As people have been unable to extract water from the tubewells in Sundarpur VDC-3, about one thousand people from 100 families have been finding it very difficult to meet their demand for drinking water.

Rudra Prasad Niraula, who had been meeting the drinking water needs by installing tubewells over the last three years, says he cannot draw water from his tubewells since the last two weeks. His family and three other families depended on the tubewell until 15 days ago. The tubewell has been pitched at the depth of 70 feet and there was plenty of water until two weeks ago, according to Niraula.

Water is available from only two tubewells. They fill up their vessels by turn and it takes nearly one hour to fill up the vessel. There are no other sources of water in the village, ward chairman Arjun Timsina said.

He said as there has been no rainfall in this area for a long time, the land has become dry and tubewells too have become dry. People are compelled to fetch water from the neighbouring wards.

Similarly, people in Jate VDC are facing the scarcity of drinking water in Jate VDC. Chairman of Jate VDC, Upendra Ghimire said the source of the drinking water had dried up and 300 families living in this VDC were facing drinking water problem.

The people of this VDC have dug up wells in Teli Khola and are extracting water from the wells.

Don Bosco denies its hand in students’ arrest

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KATHMANDU, July 23 - Don Bosco College Monday refuted the allegations that it is connected to the arrest of the students involved in the recent closure of the schools called by the All Nepal National Independent Students’ Union - Revolutionary (ANNISU-R), student wing of underground Communist Party of Nepal (Maoists).

In a press release issued here today, Don Bosco flayed the news reports appeared in some newspapers, saying it has never helped the authorities to arrest the students. Instead, Don Bosco College appeals for the immediate release of all those students who were arrested.

"Don Bosco appeals the government not to arrest the students in future," the release adds.

Meanwhile, Mutual Academic Exhibition Forum also issued a release seeking the release of three students who were arrested from the Milan Vidya Mandir on Friday. Similarly, around 24 schools today appealed the government to release the students.

Writer Baje passes SLC in 14th attempt

By Balkrishna Basnet

KATHMANDU, July 23 - Eighty-five-year-old Writer Baje of Solukhumbu district could not believe his ears when a neighbour told him that he passed in the School Leaving Certificate (SLC) examinations.

After hearing the news, Bal Bahadur Karki, popularly known as Writer Baje in his village at Kageldanda of Solukhumbu district said, "I just could not believe it when I heard about the result".

"Just imagine how one reacts when somebody passes an exam that even in the first division in his 14th attempt," said Karki Saturday over a telephone interview. Karki was one of the five examinees who accomplished the SLC exam in first division from the remote district.

Determined to succeed SLC and belong among groups of SLC passed from his village near Mount Everest, Writer Baje started studying with determination from 1970 . Finally, he realises that his hard efforts were treated fair.

Everything went almost fine until his tenth grade where he had to try 14 times to succeed. He never missed a single year to re-apply to sit in the same level examination. He registered as a private examinee in his last exam.

As his eyesights were poor, Writer Baje had demanded for an assistant who could dictate his questions and answers and that the District Education Officer (DEO) of Solukhumbu, Dattatraya Dahal, had provided a schoolboy for the purpose.

"The credit of his success goes to his devotion and hard work. The students of the present generation should learn lessons from people like Writer Baje," said the DEO.

Karki is recognised as Writer Baje as he had worked in the post of Writer in the local court for many years. "All the people know me by this name," said Karki, who has two sons, four daughters and dozens of grandchildren by now. Both his sons have left him and currently Writer Baje is living a lonesome life in his hut at one corner of the village. Apart from this, he has to take care one of his unmarried daughter who often falls ill.

Still, he has a dream to study up to the master’s level. "I wish I could go to the Capital and study with my grandson," he said. He knows that it would not be so easy for an old man to do that because of his miserable economic condition. "I don’t think this dream will materialize," he said.

Chief District Officer Buddhi Sagar Tripathi is just glad to know about the deed of the old man. "Baje is a model student not only for his district but also for the whole nation," he said.

Meanwhile, National Secondary High School, Manbhawan, Lalitpur Monday promised to provide Karki with free tuition, educational materials, residence as well as health services.

Earlier, Rehdon College of Samakhusi on Sunday had also pledged to provide him with free tuition on science or management faculty. And similarly, Managing Director of Cho Yu Treck Nimanuru Sherpa also sent Rs 5,000 through Kantipur Publications Pvt Ltd Sunday for Karki’s eye treatment.

Urge to include MPs from oppressed class in the new cabinet

KATHMANDU, July 23 (RSS) - Intellectuals among the oppressed and downtrodden classes have stated that there should be representation of the class in the forthcoming government.

At a press conference organized by the Oppressed and Downtrodden Association here yesterday, the intellectuals threatened to agitate if there will be no representation of the community in the new government.

National Assembly Member Rishi Babu Pariyar said that as the oppressed and downtrodden community has not been able to participate in the government during 12 years since the restoration of democracy, the voices of about 5 million people belonging to the community have not been properly addressed. A group of MPs had called on former prime minister Girija Prasad Koirala a few days ago to brief him about the concerns of the downtrodden community.

MP Lal Bahadur Bishwakarma said that the downtrodden MPs represented in the government should be made active in making law for the elimination of untouchability and take initiative for the formation of a powerful commission of the oppressed.

General Secretary of the Association Bhim Bishwakarma, advocate Ratna Bahadur Bagchand, Ganesh Bahadur Pariyar and Durga Sob laid emphasis on the representation of the dalit in the new government.

Nagad Panch Lakh to be aired from August 4

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KATHMANDU, July 23 - Media Co-operative is to launch ‘Nagad Panch Lakh’ literally meaning Cash Five Hundred Thousand, a program similar to some of the television programs featuring in Indian channels like Kaun Banega Crorepati and Chhappar Pharke, starting August 4 in Nepal Television on every Saturday evening after the Nepali news.

Each program is expected to cost around Rs 250,000 and will be telecast from Pranima Studio at Santikuna, Lalitpur which was raised at the cost of estimated four million rupees for this program. A total of five episodes have so far been recorded, it was informed at a press conference organized by the Media Co-operative today.

Speaking on the occasion, Madan Krishna Shrestha, a famous comedian cine artist who is going to anchor the program, said, "I agree this is copy program but we are trying our best to provide the best entertainment."

"You can’t compare me with Amitabh Bachchan of Kaun Banega Crorepati but still I have been selected for this copy program," he added in a comedian accent.

The program is being telecast in NTV with the objective of educating the masses and also to uplift the economically poor rather than for going purely commercial.

Pratap Thapa and Nita Thapa, producers of the program, also spoke on the occasion saying that the program would be conducted in a typical Nepali tradition and is expected to bring awareness on the socio-cultural values.