Babu’s body arrives to a mournful reception

By Binaj Gurubacharya

KATHMANDU, May 1 - It was the same domestic terminal of the Tribhuwan International Airport where Babu Chhiri Sherpa was given a hero’s welcome after his record speed climb Everest last year. But almost a year later on Tuesday when he was flown back from the same mountain, neither were there any celebrations nor any smiles to greet one of the greatest mountaineers of all times.

Family members, friends, supporters and fans wept and tossed flowers, bouquets and khadas as this Everest hero’s dead body was brought back from the treacherous mountain slopes which took his life Sunday night.

Babu Chhiri was guiding a team of mountaineers from Kathmandu Metropolis Corporation on Everest when he slipped and fell into a crevasse at Camp II, situated at 6,200 meters. The Ministry for Tourism, Civil Aviation and Culture said that Babu fell 200 metres in the crevasse. Teammates only noticed him missing during dinnertime three hours later. Chhiri had left the camp alone to take photographs around 4 p.m. They followed his footprints on the snowy slopes and found his body only around midnight.

The body was put on the back of an open truck and taken to the Sherpa monastery at Boudhanath. People on the route stopped to get a last glimpse of the Everest hero. When his body arrived at the Sherpa Monastery, monks played the traditional drums and trumpets were blown amid the smell of burning incenses. His wife Ang Phuti and daughters received condolences from government ministers, fellow mountaineers and supporters of the famous Sherpa.

"This was a loss not just to the Nepalese people but to the entire world community. His contributions will be remembered forever," said Tourism Minister Omkar Shrestha.

The body covered with flowers and khadas, has been put in the monastery to perform the last rituals according to traditions. Hundreds of people lined up to pay their last respects to the fallen hero.

Babu Chhiri was named in the Guinness Book of Records for having climbed Mount Everest in the fastest time, last year, he sprinted to the summit from the base camp in just 16 hours and 56 minutes. He shattered the previous record set by Kaji Sherpa in 1998, who climbed the mountain in 20 hours and 24 minutes. Most climbers take two to four days to cover the distance from the base camp to the summit.

On May 6, 1999, Chhiri had also became the first man to remain on the summit without bottled oxygen for 21 hours. Most climbers typically remain at the peak just long enough to have their photo taken.

Babu Chhiri got his first taste of mountaineering when he was 13 and worked as a base camp porter for the experienced Sherpas who guide foreigners all the way up the forbidding summit. In 1989, he successfully led a Russian team up Kanchenjunga, the world’s third-highest peak. A year later, he conquered Everest and had since reached the summit 10 times.

In 1995, he became the only man to reach the peak twice in 14 days. Family members said the body will be kept at the monastery for two days for the public to pay their last respect and conduct the rituals. Funeral is scheduled for Thursday.

Meanwhile, as news of his death spread, condolence messages continued to pour in from all over the country. Major political parties, tourism organizations, business associations and governmental and non-governmental organizations issued statements on Monday condoling the famous mountaineer’s untimely demise.

Minister Majagaiya resigns

By Hari Bahadur Thapa & Balaram Baniya

KATHMANDU, May 1 - At a time when the government is walking on a razor’s edge, Minister for Water Resources Baldev Sharma Majagaiya tendered his resignation citing ‘differences in secretary appointment’, Tuesday morning.

His Majesty King Birendra has accepted the resignation on recommendation of Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala this evening. PM Koirala himself has taken the portfolio of the Ministry of Water Resources (MWR).

Ex-Minister Majagaiya, who is often referred to as the PM Koirala’s ‘close confident’ for last 28 years, has resigned because of his dissatisfaction over the appointment of Lok Man Singh Karki as the Secretary at the Ministry. Majagaiya was absent in the Cabinet meeting, which decided to appoint Karki as the Secretary at his Ministry.

"It shows that the PM has no faith over a minister if the minister is prevented from the process of appointing the concerned secretary," Majagaiya told The Kathmandu Post, adding, "I heard the news of appointment of the secretary through the FM radio."

"I did not like the game of the appointment of a controversial secretary in my Ministry without my consent," Majagaiya added. Few years ago, Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority had relieved Karki from his post for short span of time for his alleged involvement in gold scam.

The Cabinet, on April 19 had appointed 17 secretaries on the recommendation of Administration Committee headed by PM Koirala with members Deputy PM Ram Chandra Paudel, Ministers Govinda Raj Joshi, Dr Ram Sharan Mahat, Mahesh Acharya and Mahantha Thakur. Ex Minister Majagaiya did not attend his office for last 12 days, hoping that the Cabinet would change the secretary.

However, Majagaiya, after tendering his resignation, expressed his continued support to the Koirala-led government, which is marred by Maoist violence, intra-party conflicts and the controversial Lauda deal.

NEA sends price hike proposal for approval

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KATHMANDU, May 1 – Soon on the heels of the government’s recent decision to allow hikes in electricity prices, Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA), the state-run monopoly, has called for price revisions in a proposal sent to the Electricity Tariff Fixation Commission.

According to reliable sources in the NEA, the Commission is expected to meet soon to approve the proposal. The new electricity tariff is expected to come into effect from July 16 (Shrawan 1).

The new tariff has been fixed in such a way as to maximize revenue collection, curb power leakage and improve NEA’s financial condition as demanded by the multilateral lending agencies, NEA sources said.

According to the new proposal, a household with a 5-Ampere Meter will be charged with a minimum of Rs 80 at the rate of Rs 4 per unit, while the one with a 15-Ampere Meter will have to pay a minimum of Rs 350 at the rate of Rs 7 per unit every month.

Similarly, those with 30-Ampere Meters will be required to pay a minimum of Rs 700 at the rate of Rs 7 per unit, but those consuming more than 300 units of electricity in a month will be charged Rs 9.25 for a unit of electricity.

Presently, households consuming up to 20 units of electricity in a month have been paying Rs 3.90, those consuming up to 250 units Rs 6.50, and those consuming more than 250 units have been paying Rs 9.25 for a unit of electricity.

Almost half of NEA’s nearly 700,000 consumers have got 5-Ampere Meter installed in their houses, according to officials.

The new proposal also plans to discourage consumers against overusing or misusing electricity, NEA officials said. For instance, households having 5-Ampere Meters will be charged Rs 7 for a unit of electricity should they consume more than 20 units of electricity, and those with 15-Ampere Meters will be required to pay Rs 9.25 for a unit every time their meter crosses the 300 unit mark.

Officials say they will not need to spend much of their energy on reviewing electricity tariff "every now and then" in future because they plan to adjust the new rates "semi-automatically based on Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB)’s consumer price index" as suggested by some lending agencies.

LPG-vehicles fail emission test

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KATHMANDU, May 1 – Vehicles running on Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG) are not as environment-friendly as claimed by their importers and operators, a new study has shown.

In fact, according to the study, some of the vehicles were found to emit more than double the permitted level of toxic gases.

The study was conducted recently by experts of Clean Energy Nepal, an environmental organization. It says the LPG-run vehicles are emitting considerable amount of Carbon monoxide (CO) and Hydrocarbon (HC) gases into the already-polluted atmosphere of the Valley.

Of the total vehicles tested, 55 per cent LPG-run four wheelers (microbuses) and 54 per cent three wheelers failed the emission test, says a copy of the test report obtained by The Kathmandu Post. CO concentration in the four wheelers ranged from 0.08 to 7.24 per cent, while the concentration of HC ranged from 10 PPM to 4,000 PPM.

However, according to the emission standard published in the Gazette by the Ministry of Population and Environment, the concentration of CO and HC in the LPG-run four wheelers should not exceed the 3 per cent and 1,000 PPM mark, respectively.

And the concentration of CO and HC in the three wheelers ranged from 0.06 to 8.16 per cent and from 80 PPM to 3330 PPM, respectively. Like in the case of four wheelers, the level of CO in three wheelers should not exceed the 3 per cent mark. While the level of HC should be less than 7,800 PPM.

All the three-wheelers passed the emission test for HC. "This shows that there is some kind of flaw in the HC emission level (of 7,800) fixed by the government for three wheelers," said Atmospheric Expert Dr Usha Sharma, one of the team members involved in the study.

A total of 20 LPG-run four-wheelers and 15 three-wheelers were tested at the Valley Traffic Police Office by the group using police emission test equipment.

"This study makes it clear that the LPG-run vehicles are not zero emission vehicles as claimed by some officials here," said Sharma. "That is why it is pointless to continue exempting custom and other duties to such vehicles. The government should immediately stop such facilities. Instead, the emission tests should start soon."

About 900 LPG-run vehicles are currently plying the streets of the Valley. These vehicles are not only enjoying duty waivers on import, but also consuming huge amounts of cooking gas, leading to periodic shortages in the market.

Experts mull over SC opinion 

By Pramod Poudel

KATHMANDU, May 1 - Has the Supreme Court’s opinion to His Majesty the King on the Citizenship Bill brought about a constitutional crisis as pointed out by some legal experts and politicians?

The Supreme Court on April 25 submitted its opinion to His Majesty King Birendra declaring that the Bill proposing to make sixth amendment to Citizenship Act of 2020 clearly violates the constitutional provisions. The opinion had remained silent over the proposed Bill whether it could be termed as a Finance Bill as the King had not specifically asked about it.

Some claim that the Bill passed as a Finance Bill cannot be sent back to the parliament as the Constitution clearly rules out such possibility. And others claim that the Court’s opinion was immature as the Bill was in the stage of becoming an Act.

However, Senior Advocate Ganesh Raj Sharma, a constitutional expert, argues that Supreme Court’s opinion has not created any Constitutional crisis but has solved the problem regarding the Bill.

Sharma says that there is a constitutional provision whereby the Supreme Court can play an advisory role. Referring to the Citizenship Bill, he says that the Court gave its advisory opinion after the King sought for it.

"The Court has not declared the Bill null and void but merely gave its advisory opinion. It has a right to declare null and void only Acts and not Bills," stresses Sharma.

Speaking about the fate of the Bill, Sharma says that the Bill can now be forwarded to where it originated for which the King can resort to article 54(3) and 71(4) of the constitution.

Agrees Senior Advocate Sarbagya Ratna Tuladhar that the Supreme Court’s opinion cannot be termed as immature and the King can make use of either of article 71(4) or 54(3) and sent the Bill back to the parliament.

Even the central leader of the Nepali Congress Narahari Acharya points out that the King by resorting to article 71(4) can send back the Bill to the parliament.

"It was not appropriate for the King to seek the Court’s opinion but in the current context where the Supreme Court has already furnished its opinion, the King can send back the Bill to the parliament," says Acharya.

Acharya was however quick to add that that it was his personal view and not that of the party.

Advocate Harihar Dahal, former president of the Nepal Bar Association, agreeing that the Bill could be returned to the parliament, says that constitutional crisis may arise as a Finance Bill cannot be send back to the parliament.

Advocate Sushil Pant says that the King can sent back the Bill either to the Cabinet or the parliament making use of 43(2) or 54(3) respectively. "However the present constitution is not specific over what must be done after the King seeks opinion of the Supreme Court," says Pant.

The Supreme Court’s opinion had even mentioned that the King could resort to such Articles.

Speaking at a program today organised by the Reporter’s Club, Senior Advocate Sushil Sinha said that after the Court’s such opinion the King cannot give assent to the Bill and as Finance Bill it cannot be sent back to the Parliament, so in such situation the King can keep the Bill with himself as the Constitution is silent over how long the King can keep with himself the Finance Bill unlike the Ordinary Bills.

The Lower House passed the proposed Bill when it was first introduced only to be sent back by the Upper House. It was then when most of the opposition parties demanded an amendment but the Nepali Congress government with its majority pushed the Bill through terming it as a Finance Bill. The King cannot send a Finance Bill back to the parliament.

The Bill was endorsed by the parliament on July 26 last year as the Finance Bill and was forwarded for the Royal assent in mid-January this year.

Transporters threaten to stage Chakka Jam

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KATMANDU, May 1- Federation of Nepalese Transport Entrepreneurs, Joint Transport Entrepreneurs Committee and the Federation of Nepalese National Transport Entrepreneurs Tuesday warned it will organize chakka jam if the government does not immediately provide compensation for the damages caused to a mini bus by CPN-ML students, Monday.

The transport entrepreneurs vehemently protested against the action of All Nepal National Free Students Union, a student wing of the CPN-ML who set on fire a Ratna Park-Balaju bound mini bus BA 2 KHA 3633 near Amrit Science Campus on Monday.

The scene was potentially explosive today with the public transport coming to standstill Tuesday in protest against Monday’s incident. Large crowds of people were left stranded at various bus stops around the city impatiently waiting for the arrival of the bus.

The police sources said that the transporters were demanding the compensations following the Monday incident making the situation very tense. "However, no violence was recorded today, " police sources said.

Speaking to The Kathmandu Post, Rabindra Adhikari, President of the student Union, CPN-ML, said that the students set fire to the bus only after repeated incidences of harassment was reported by the students to the office. "We had repeatedly warned the transport entrepreneurs not to harass the students, but they were heedless," he said.

The students association accused the transporters saying that they violated the 33 per cent discount agreement offered to the students and resorted to reported acts of abuses to the students.

Meanwhile, the transport entrepreneurs called on the government to punish the culprits and provide compensations for the damages done. In a press statement issued today, they also warned the government saying they will organize Chakka Jam if the culprits are allowed to go scot-free.

Ethnic disenchantment on the rise

By Subas Risal

KATHMANDU, May 1 - The Constitution adopted after the reinstatement of the multiparty democracy in 1990 recognizes the need to integrate diverse ethnic groups into national mainstream. Ironically, it is in the post-1990s that the ethnic unrest is brewing.

Various organizations related to ethnic people have become increasingly assertive about their demands. All Nepal Conference for Ethnic People ended its conference in the Capital this week demanding local autonomy – vaguely defined as the local right to decide the development of the local ethnic people.

Is the local autonomy a solution for acquiring equality among different communities in the country like Nepal? How will it accommodate and promote the diverse ethnicity, different religious groups, multiple languages, dialects and various cross cultures?

More importantly, should decentralization process be viewed only from ethnic perspective?

Phurnamgel Moktan, General Secretary of All Nepal Conference For Ethnic People, argues it is only by addressing the legitimate concerns of the ethnic people that the society can move ahead. "Brushing aside our demand of local autonomy will only invite communal violence in the long run, which we don’t want," said Moktan.

"Ethnic people must be allowed to participate in the developmental process of the country and should be given equal opportunity in different sectors," says Moktan.

In his opinion it is only the local self-governance or the local autonomy that will promote the development process with the constructive engagement of the ethnic people.

The 1990-Constitution has also tried to catch this ethnic sentiment. Echoing the sentiment of the Constitution, the government has already formed National Committee for Development of Nationalities. The committee focuses on formulation and implementation of plans and policies for social and economic development of the various nationalities.

The government has claimed that it is its genuine move to remove all the disparities prevailing in economic and social sphere of the country among the nationalities by providing education and employment opportunity to all.

"The National Committee for Development of Nationalities moves according to the interest of the government," says General Secretary of All Nepal Conference For Ethnic-People. He says, "The committee has always ignored what we have demanded."

However, director of the National Committee for Development of Nationalities, Dr Chaitnya Subba, says that he gives priority to the proposals, which meet the criterions of the committee. "Although we accord due regard to the sentiments of the ethnic people, the proposal of All Nepal Conference for Ethnic-People pertaining to local autonomy do not meet the set criterions," says Dr . Subba.

"To support any organization they should first clearly explain what they are up-to and we will definitely help them if it is in the interest of the ethnic people."

The growing ethnic assertiveness has found an extra impetus in the bolstering Maoist movement. The rebelling Nepal Communist Party (Maoist) is the staunch advocate of the ethnic autonomy and right to self-determination to the ethnic people of the country.

"Eventhough the government has already ratified ethnic autonomy and right to self-determination unconditionally, it has not been able to satisfy people of different ethnic background," says Dr K.B. Bhattachan, an eminent sociologist.

He also criticizes the government for being highly centralized regarding the ethnic issues and says this won’t be acceptable to the pluralistic society like Nepali society. "There should be proper decentralization process, if the government is to uplift the deprived ethnic people," says Dr Bhattachan.

As the census 2001 is nearing, ethnic people have been demanding their involvement in the process of population count. They claim that if they are themselves involved in the process of population count they will be able to acquire authentic data on population.

Their increased concern regarding the census, in itself reflects the increasing awareness among the nationalities. They claim that the last census was biased against them. That is why a campaign to include the ethnic people in the census, "to make it more authentic and realistic."

Judge resigns fearing indictment

By Jagadish Bhattarai

PALPA, May 1- Palpa District Court judge Raghu Nath Aryal has resigned from his post out of fear of indictment over his controversial decision on a murder case that occurred about five months ago, sources here said.

Judge Aryal resigned from his post citing "poor health condition" last week. He had ordered the release of two Indian nationals, charged of killing another fellow Indian at Masyam VDC on November 22, 2000, on bail for Rs 100,000 to each.

The government district attorney, however, had filed a case at the Appellate Court in Butwal challenging the judge’s decision to release the accused on bail in spite of their admission of the murder of Ranjeet Singh, 38, from Ajamgadh, India.

The accused - Mohammad Arsad Khan, 35, and his accomplice Fuijal Khan, 72, from the same place - had pushed Singh towards the steep face of a rock at Charchare on the Siddhartha Highway.

The accused had led the deceased to Nepal via the Nepal-India border at Sunauli on an Indian car on the pretext of visiting Tansen, a tourist hill station in Palpa district.

Police have alleged that the judge released the Indian nationals on bail under financial temptation.

"We were surprised to hear that the accused were released on bail before we were summoned to record our statements," said Him Bahadur Gurung, 40, from Charchare, who was one of the eyewitnesses of the incident.

Another eyewitness, Bijaya Lama, 27, said that the relatives of the accused had offered him Rs 600,000 if he denied having seen the vehicle used for killing Singh.

"But I did not betray with my conscience," Lama said, adding that the accused must have offered the judge more kickback than what they had offered to him.

Interesting to note is that the accused have not appeared before the court after their release and the judge has resigned from his post at a time when the case was about to be decided.

Legal experts said that the law of the land clearly states that an accused should be held under judicial custody if there is convincing evidence that the accused may be found guilty on the said charges before the case is finally settled.

Around 77,000 child labourers in Nepal

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KATHMANDU, May 1 -There are around 77,000 child labourers in Nepal and in Kathmandu two out of every 10 houses have a minor working as a domestic help and among them 10 per cent are below the age of 10 and 70 per cent are between 11 to 14 years.

According to data published by Child Workers in Nepal Centre (CWIN) and NGO working for the rights of children, 64 per cent of the child labourers work for 10-12 hours daily and 20 per cent of them work for 12- 14 hours daily. Thirty-one per cent of the children do not get paid and 10 per cent of them even don’t know that they should be paid for any service they render.

Keeping these alarming facts in mind, various organisations all over the world have started a one month campaign against child labour on the occasion of May day today, a press release issued by CWIN states.

The release adds that there have been cases of mental and physical abuse and exploitation of children in the Nepali society. "These incidents can be called the modern form of slavery", states the release.

It also states that approximately 50 per cent of the child labourers have been the victims of violence and among them 14 per cent have been sexually abused. Thirty-one per cent of the total number of violence reported in CWIN this year was against children working as domestic help, the release adds.

Various programs are to be organised in the country as a part of the world-wide campaign against violence towards child labourers in the month of May. The program will consist of awareness campaign, interaction programs, street plays and data collections, the release adds.

CWIN also appeals to all the people to join in their fight against domestic child labour in Nepal.

Immigration bans people from boarding flights

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KATHMANDU, May 1 - At least seven Nepali passengers, heading for the Thai capital Bangkok in the morning flight of Royal Nepal Airlines were returned from the Tribhuvan International Airport this morning.

The immigration department returned the passengers after the airline officials gave them the boarding pass.

According to reports some people had raised some commotion outside the airport regarding this issue. According to immigration officials the people were "brokers who illegally send people abroad promising them jobs."

However, Sharad Chandra Poudel, chief of the immigration department at the TIA said the people sent back were ignorant village dwellers who were being duped by brokers promising them jobs in Malaysia. "They returned after the immigration officials convinced them that they would face a lot of problems after reaching Bangkok", said Poudel.