Alive and well, Ganga, Jamuna return home

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KATHMANDU, Nov 18 : Ganga and Jamuna, possibly the most famous twins in the world, returned home Sunday after doctors in Singapore successfully separated the siamese twins joined on their heads.

After over a year in Singapore, the 18-month-old girls returned home to Nepal accompanied by their parents and grandparents.

"When they had left Nepal they were one but now I have two daughters," father of the twins Bhusan K.C. told reporters.

"The whole episode was a miracle. Jamuna is quite normal and more active than her sister Ganga, who has remained weaker throughout," said Arjun Dev Shrestha, grandfather of the twins. "She can say a few words in English but no Nepali."

Doctors said that while Jamuna can sit up and is quite a social child, Ganga has trouble propping herself up and is more introverted. She also has problems with her sight. Before the operation Ganga was the more lively of the two.

As soon as the Singapore Airlines jet bringing the twins home landed at the Tribhuvan International Airport, an ambulance waiting for them whisked the twins to a hospital.

Shrestha said the girls would be living in Kathmandu for at least two months before they decide on when or whether they would move them to Salyan district in the midwestern hills, where hospitals and doctors are a rare sight and the area severely hit by Maoists insurgency.

"We don’t have medical facilities back there so we will have to keep them in Kathmandu for a while," Shrestha said.

Back in Khalanga, relatives and friends waited by the one phone at the public communication booth to get news of the arrival of Ganga and Jamuna.

"We have not been able to talk to the parents or see the girls but we have been waiting by the phone for news of the arrival since Saturday. We could never have imagined that such a miracle was possible but this is like a dream ... a dream come true," said Bharat K.C., the uncle of the twins.

He said that most of the family members had doubts that the surgery would be successful or that the twins would survive but now all of them are anxiously waiting for the homecoming, which is not likely to happen any time soon.

"I have not seen the girls .. I want to see them but I am in no state to travel to Kathmandu," said Netra Bahadur Khatri, Bhusan’s father. "We had support from everyone, especially the Nepalis," said the father Bhusan.

However, his wife did not seem to share the same sentiments. She stormed out of the ambulance and yelled at journalists who were talking to the doctor and the grandfather.

"I will return back to Singapore," she threatened as the reporters covering the event looked stunned at the remark. In the initial days, it was the local media who advocated the case and helped the trip to Singapore materialise.

According to the Associated Press (AP), the two girls had captured the hearts of Singaporeans, who donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to pay their medical expenses. Doctors performed the surgery for free and the country’s national carrier, Singapore Airlines, paid for the family’s trip from Nepal.

Around 660,000 Singapore dollars (US$ 359,500) was collected from donations from the Singapore public during the time the twins were here, said a Singapore General Hospital spokeswoman, who asked to remain anonymous.

"The bulk of it (the money) will have gone to pay the hospital fees already," she said, adding that she did not know how much was left over.

The money that’s remaining will be put into a trust administered by the hospital and M.N. Swami, who is Nepal’s Consul in Singapore, the spokeswoman said. Some funds from the trust "may be sent over to Nepal ... to help pay for their (the twins’) expenses," the spokeswoman said.

The doctors who worked with the twins did so for free, waiving their professional fees, the spokeswoman said. The hospital gave the twins’ family "concession rates" on some hospital fees but couldn’t waive all the fees "because we’re a public hospital," the spokeswoman said.

An ordeal ends

KATHMANDU, Nov 18 (PR) - Ganga and Jamuna survived the 97-hour surgery and are back home and according to doctors they are in the best of health with no indications of any further complications.

"The operations was successful and we are confident that the children will show a normal growth in the years to come. There is no need to keep them in hospital under medical supervision," said Dr. Basant Pant, who had accompanied the twins back to Kathmandu.

The twins had lived for the past three months mostly under the care of their parents with close medical inspection. During that time, there were no problems.

"I don’t think there will be any major neurological problems with the girls ... except for common illnesses that children get there should be no other problems," Dr. Pant said. "The Singaporean doctors completed their responsibility and handed them over to us. Now it is our responsibility to keep them alive."

However, doctors at Singapore General Hospital said the girls will not be like any other children when they grow up and they could not really tell for sure what type of disability they will end up with, but there will be some kind of disability.

Dr. Keith Goh, who coordinated the landmark surgery to separate the girls in April, said the operation had left them with heads shaped differently from those of other children, and that they could face social challenges as a result.

Goh said that doctors have not given up hope that the girls will be able to do most things other children do, such as playing or going to school.

Both of the children are delayed in their development because they spent the first 11 months of their lives lying down, said Ho.

Both girls have battled a number of serious infections as their skulls healed after the surgery. Doctors separated hundreds of intertwined blood vessels and strands of connecting tissue which joined the girls’ brains.

The surgery was one of very few of its kind to succeed. The separated girls had to have their heads rebuilt with synthetic materials and covered with skin grafted from other parts of their bodies.

Before the operation the skin on their head was stretched to help cover their new skulls.

Bangla divers to head for Rara Lake today

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KATHMANDU, Nov 18 – A week after the chopper crash, three of the persons who have been missing since are yet to be traced despite efforts to search them.

A statement issued today by the Research Co-ordination Centre of the Tribhuvan International Airport said that the Bangladeshi scuba divers would co-ordinate with the local authorities to intensify the search mission. The diving team is leaving for Rara tomorrow.

Last Monday, the 9N-AFP Fishtail Air helicopter crashed into the Rara Lake in the Rara National Park in Mugu last Monday. Princess Prekshya died in the crash. Three others – Ishwor Basnet, an acquaintance, Dan Bahadur Shahi, managing director of the company owned by the Princess near Nepalgunj and the pilot, Rabin Kadaria – are still missing and presumed dead.

However, two passengers, Lt Col Dr Rishi Khatri and Sharada Singh Suwal, the personal physician and the personal attendant of the Princess respectively were rescued when they were found swimming.

Yesterday, the rescue equipment that arrived from Bangladesh have been given to the team leader, Captain Mustafizur Rahman. The scuba divers from Bangladesh arrived in the capital on Wednesday. Seven of them are in Nepalgunj since then.

The Bangladeshi team is not likely to dive deep into the lake, according to Bikash Rana, the executive chairman and owner of Fishtail Air. A number of things have been found since the search for the three persons was jointly launched by the army, the police and the officials of the Mugu district administration. They include purse of late Princess Prekshya containing more than Rs 17,000, seats of the chopper and gas cylinder, among other things.

Meanwhile, both Dr Khatri and Singh have made significant progress in their recovery. Doctors at the Bir Hospital said that Singh has been making satisfactory progress. Dr Khatri is undergoing treatment at Birendra Military Hospital, Chhauni.

Peacetalks have just begun, says Dhungana

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BIRATNAGAR, Nov 18 – Former speaker and facilitator of the government-Maoist talks Daman Nath Dhungana today said the real dialogue between the government and the Maoist rebels to resolve the nearly six-year old Maoist insurgency has just begun.

"Both the sides started discussion on the political agenda in the third round of the government-Maoist dialogue," said Dhungana while speaking at a function organised on the occasion of 87th Memorial Day of Father of Democracy Ganesh Man Singh.

"The latest round of peace talks was the most productive since both the government and the Maoists started dialogue on the political agenda put forth by the Maoists," said Dhungana, who is also a ruling Nepali Congress (NC) Party leader.

After holding two rounds of talks – on August 30 and other on September 13-14 – the government and the Maoists had sat for the third round of peace talks on November 12, to resolve the Maoist insurgency that has already claimed almost 2,000 lives.

The government recently has shown its commitment towards the talks by releasing 68 Maoist workers and by scrapping the much controversial Public Security Regulations, he added.

Speaking on the same programme, former Prime Minister and NC President Girija Prasad Koirala once again urged the government to conclude the talks with the Maoists soon. "To enhance the government bargaining capacity, the talks should be concluded soon," said Koirala.

Earlier speaking at another function in Dharan, Dhungana said the Maoists’ demand of constituent assembly should be taken to the civil society for broad discussion and mulling on it. "The people should be given sole responsibility to decide on the next election to be for the constituent assembly or the parliamentary system," said Dhungana. "Not a single political party can make the final decision on the elections."

Meanwhile, member of government negotiating team and Minister for Agriculture and Co-operatives, Mahesh Acharya, in Bhadrapur (Jhapa) said the Maoists’ demand of constituent assembly in the third round of talks was their other way of reviving the Maoists’ earlier demand of a republican state. Prior to the much-delayed third round of peace talks, the Maoists had withdrawn the demand of a republican state, one among three tough political demands. Minister Acharya was speaking while addressing a function organised by Nepal Tarun Dal, a sister organisation of the ruling Nepali Congress Party.

Mother of 17, Sansari looks forward to her 18th baby

By Kulchandra Neupane

DAMAULI, Tanahun, Nov 18 :Sansari Bhujel is just in her late 30s, but she already has 17 children holding a record for the highest number of births in Bhujel Gaon. And now she is set to shatter her own record and is pregnant with number 18.

Married at an age of 11, Sansari started giving birth at her age of 13. Nine of her children have already succumbed to malnutrition and one of her girl child was married off at an early age of 14. The remaining seven are living together amid hunger and ailment.

It is not only Sansari, but other girls in the village like her are married at their early age and live a doleful life in Bhujel Gaon that lies between Aanbu and Bandipur, both places known to be well developed and having access to modernities.

With the traditional and conservative desire of having male children, the women and even girls are forced to give birth again and again. And most of the women go through unwanted pregnancies mainly due to lack of knowledge of family planning.

Early marriages and child marriages are blamed for the population explosion that is seriously spoiling the health of both parents and children. Despite the fact that child marriage is illegal in the country, more than 90 per cent of the people in the Bhujel Gaon have been married before they reach their legal age. However, neither the law nor the locals has been able to shown concern on this practice in this area that is hardly 30 minutes walk from the Prithvi Highway.

"Once women reach puberty, she is regarded as a matured one and that’s the reason most of the girls get married before menstruation," says 72-year-old Dil Maya Bhujel, a local.

Every woman suffers from weakness if she is married in early age and can suffer from anaemia if she give birth to more children, say doctors. "If there is short birth gap, the children could be malnourished, handicapped and even under-weight," says Dr. Shilu Aryal.

According to Dr Aryal, it is perceived as "high risk" if a woman gets pregnant before 19 years of age. "Early marriage and short birth gap lead to weakness, malnutrition of both mother and child and other consequences," says Dr Aryal. Doctors say there should be at least two years of birth gap between two children.

Most of the men do not opt for family planning fearing physical weakness.

"After giving birth to two sons I went for family planing but the physicians turned me back saying that I was running short of blood," said Sansari, adding, "That’s why I am pregnant again."

Only recently, people have started sending children to school and are becoming aware of the existing issues like child marriage, family planning and population boom. "We suffered many hardships because of early marriage and we have started giving lessons to our children," said Kamali Maya Bhujel. "But when they (children) reach age of 10-12 years, they run away from home and marry of their own."

Due to the increasing awareness, couples in almost eight out of 46 households here have recently undergone family planning. One among them is Jureli Maya Bhujel.

Married at an age of 12, Jureli Maya started giving birth at an age of 14 and became mother of eight children – four sons and three daughters – at 20.

UML lambasts Maoists, warns govt

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KATHMANDU, Nov 18 – The main opposition CPN-UML has once again lashed out at the Maoists for constantly attacking its members and has warned the government that "it too" would one day face the wrath of the people if it failed to provide security to its people.

In a press statement issued by the party central office today it is stated that the Maoists have been continuously attacking UML members despite Prachanda’s orders to refrain from violence. "This proves that the Maoist leadership has lost control over its men and that anarchist group within the party has more say than its top brass," the statement undersigned by secretary at the UML central office Yubraj Karki states.

The party has accused the Maoists of targeting its members throughout the festive season of Tihar. The statement mentions that the Maoists looted paddy spread for drying from the homes of Chattra Bahadur Bohara and Bir Bahadur Bohara, brothers of Amrit Bohara, a standing committee member of UML, on November 6th and 13th respectively.

"On protesting the Maoists threatened them that they would take their lives," the statement states.

The statement adds that members of UML Sindhupalchowk district committee members Megh Nath Poudel, Sambhu Sapkota and VDC chairman Suresh Nepal who had gone to Piscar on party’s assignments were verbally abused by the Maoists cadres.

Similarly on Nov 14 in Dhading the Maoist abducted VDC secretary Kaancha Moktan and Maila Syangtan both members of the UML.

According to Surendra Pande, an Upper House MP and a central committee member of the UML another member Gole Ghalan also abducted along with the two members was later released after he paid Rs 900 to them. The three members were abducted after dispute arose between the villagers and the Maoist cadres over giving donations to the Maoists.

Likewise, in Humla the rebels abducted Hasta Bahadur Shahi, District Committee Chairman and UML party secretary from Sarkideu VDC and District Development Committee member Shiva Raj Sharma from his residence.

The statement also adds that the Maoist have disappeared Bakra Bahadur Fadera, member of the national council who was abducted some time ago.

The party has demanded immediate release of all the abducted party members and in the same note as before warned the Maoists of dire results. UML has also appealed to the government to protect its citizens, maintain law and order and to press for the release of all the abducted UML cadres.

Ever since the Siliguri meeting between the UML general secretary Madhav Kumar Nepal and Maoist supreme leader Prachanda turned sour the Maoists have been continuously attacking UML members. UML has been raising voice against the violent activities of the Maoists and has even launched country wide anti Maoist campaign. Reports of attacks over UML cadres have increased in recent days after UML publicly announced that it would be launching "awareness programme" against the Maoist.