Bio-diversity plan to be launched in west Nepal

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MAHENDRANAGAR, Oct 12 - Nepal Bio-diversity Landscape Project is to be implemented soon with a view to preserving bio-diversity of the Chure mountain range from Bardiya to Kanchanpur in cooperation with Global Environment Fund (GEF). The Royal Shukla Phanta Reserve will also be included in the project as a major component of the five years of environment preservation plan.

GEF coordinator for the Asia Pacific Region, Dr. Tito Santos, said that the landscape project will start from January, 2002. Tito arrived here to give a final touch to the feasibility study of the project. GEF, which came into being during the 1992 Earth Summit in Brazil in order to protect bio-diversity all over the world, has already launched various programmes on environment in Chitwan and Mustang districts.

Tito, after inspecting the Shukla Phanta Reserve, said that one of the major problems of the reserve is the widespread encroachment of the extended forest area. Other objective of the Nepal Bio-diversity landscape Project is to link up the Chure mountain range of Nepal with that of the Jim Karbit National Park of India and develop it as a major corridor for the wildlife movement.

Talking to The Kathmandu Post, he said that all living creatures, including the wildlife should have the right to live and added that this programme will help reduce poverty in the region as well. Tito also held discussions with the local representatives and government officials regarding effectiveness of the programme.

The Shukla Phanta Reserve is the densely populated habitat of the endanger Royal Bengal tiger in terms of the size of the reserve, which was extended from 155 to 305 square km about seven years ago.

Chief warden of the reserve, Surya Bahadur Pande, said that they have not been able to evacuate the people from the extended area of the reserve which is the major corridor for wildlife movement from Nepal to India. A similar programme has been proposed for Makalu-Barun and Kanchanjangha regions, according to the reserve officials.

Maoists abduct Congress cadre

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FUNGLING (Taplejung), Oct 12 - Whereabouts of Tek Bahadur Sanba, a resident of Sanba VDC and the vice-chairman of Constituency-2 of the governing Nepali Congress party, who was abducted by suspected armed Maoists cadres three days ago, is still unknown.

Sanba was abducted by the Maoists while he was asleep in his neighbour’s house. Issuing a press statement today, the Nepali Congress district working committee, asked the Maoists to make public his condition. Maoists have not claimed the responsibility of Sanba’s abduction.

NC district working committee secretary Keshav Dahal flaked the government for not being sensitive toward his release from the abduction.

Chief district officer Krishna Prasad Poudel said that a police team had been sent in his search but had not returned yet.

More than 600 new lepers detected

KATHMANDU, Oct 12 (PR) - More than 600 new lepers have been detected recently in Parsa and Siraha districts, according to the reports made public today by the respective District Public Health Offices (DPHO).

New compilation of data on leprosy was started on the selected 16 districts in Terai from October 1 to 5. Dr. Murali Singh at DPHO in Siraha said that a total of 331 new lepers were detected during the survey conducted in all the VDCs and municipalities of the district. There are already 265 old lepers who are receiving medicine free of charge. Enumerators had directly approached all people in the district while updating data on the disease.

The fresh finding indicated that 5.74 per cent in every 10,000 population in the district is suffering from leprosy.

Likewise, another report made public in Parsa stated that 300 new lepers have been found out in the district. DPHO chief Mohammed Daud said 448 teams were mobilised to all the 82 VDCs and one municipality to find out the fresh cases of leprosy. Of the new patients, 28 people were found to be disabled and were unable to lead normal life. There are already 141 old lepers in the district.

Chandrika Thakurain, one of the enumerators, said that locals were reluctant to cooperate with them because of possible social discrimination.

Dalits to have different  approach for their upliftment

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KATHMANDU, Oct 12 – Dalit intellectuals have now a realised lots. They seem to have had enough with launching bitter attacks on the government’s apathy towards their demand of equal status in the society. For them, recipe for success is not the accusations but the development-oriented programmes.

Recently established National Academy of Dalit Intellectuals (NADI) is likely to give the fresh look to the campaign against the Dalit discrimination. They are thinking of adopting different approaches, which will give a fresh impetus to the campaign to uplift the socio-economic status of Dalits, the downtrodden community.

"For the last decade, country has seen myriad Dalit programmes, which have hardly addressed their problems," says Chet Bahadur Pariyar, General Secretary of NADI. "I admit that government is showing indifference towards our demands but this does not mean we have to accuse them all the time, we are in fact wasting our energy. If we could have utilised our energy in some creative activities, such problems would not have emerged."

The problems related to Dalit discrimination will be resolved with the launching of development-oriented programmes, he said. "We want to create a casteless society but through different approaches."

NADI aspires to create the casteless society with its unique objectives. The objectives include rapport building with ‘non-Dalit’ intellectuals, suggesting government and non-government based Dalit agencies on their modus operandi and involving in the planning of different mainstream development programmes.

Dalits are the most oppressed section of the Nepalese society. Largely Hindus, they have been discriminated by the upper caste Hindus from the time immemorial. They have been accusing the government for ignoring their demand of equal status in the society.

"Most of the Dalit organisations operating here are politically motivated," says Dr. Madan Pariyar, president of NADI. "They are affiliated to either of the big national parties. I don’t say that they lack zeal to raise the living standard of the Dalits but they are working with the political motive."

He also contends that these organisations can play a significant role in uplifting the status of the Dalits if they operate without any political motive. "NADI will suggest different Dalit agencies to work without political motive."

Pariyar also said that though there have been lots of programmes on uplifting Dalits, no single organisation has managed to address the real problems. "If they had worked with genuine hearts, money and time, they would have made some impact."

Despite the government’s pledge to end the practice of untouchability, incidents of social injustice against Dalits continue to swell. Dalits are still being socially boycotted in different parts of the country.

Nepali woman towards Geneva to collect award

By Seema A Adhikari

KATHMANDU, Oct 12 - Woman rights advocate Mohinee Maharjan left for Geneva today to receive the coveted award for Women’s Creativity in Rural Life.

Maharjan is being awarded by Women’s World Summit Foundation, a Geneva-based women’s organisation. She is among 31 laureates selected from across the globe for the award for her contribution in making women aware about their legal rights.

Besides Maharjan, 30 other women will be honoured from Africa, Asia and the Pacific, the Americas, Europe and countries in transition. Only five women, however, from each of the regions will be present to receive the award. There are two women from Europe and countries in transition.

The award will be given to Mohinee on the occasion of World Rural Women’s Day coming Monday. She is the only woman selected from the Asia Pacific Region for her devotion in making women aware of their legal rights.

"I have written two books, Our Constitution and Women, Society and Law which I will present in Geneva on October 15. I also recorded an audio cassettes about the behaviour of the court and administration towards women in Nepal," said Maharjan.

Maharjan has been working and fighting for the right of the bonded labour in the Tharu community on the western and eastern parts of Bardia and Rautahat districts. At present, she is the president of Women Guidance Association.

"Being a woman, it is a great honour representing Nepal because Nepali women have always been the victims of subjugation, subordination and suppression," Maharjan said. "I hope I can contribute to reduce this state of women," she further said.

World Rural Women’s Day aims to bring rural women out of obscurity at least once a year "to remind society how much they owe to rural women and to give value and credit to their work". The award of US $ 500 is presented to creative and courageous women, and women’s groups around the world for their contributions in improving the quality of life in rural communities.

Established in 1994, with a theme, "By honouring a woman, we honour a whole nation", Women’s World Summit Foundation has been awarding women for their creativity in rural life.

According to the United Nations, rural women comprise more than one quarter of the total world population. Of this, 3.5 billion live below the poverty line in the rural areas. The UN statistics also show that rural women produce 60 to 80 per cent of basic foodstuffs in sub-Sahara Africa and the Caribbean islands.

Women accomplish over 50 per cent of the labour force involved in intensive rice cultivation in Asia. In Nepal literacy rate of women, 81 per cent of whom are engaged in agricultural sector, is only 25 per cent.

Rotarians to exhibit, auction art today

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KATHMANDU, Oct 12 – A painting exhibition-cum-auction is being inaugurated at the Dwarika’s Hotel on Saturday, and the proceeds will be used to set up a fund to encourage skill development among women artists.

The Kathmandu Mid-town Rotarians, who are working on this unique project, said today in a statement that they are already working with 19 women artists who are participating in the project. The goal of the project is women’s empowerment.

As part of the project, the 19 women artists have already participated in a two-day spot-painting event organised at Bungmati, Lalitpur on September 29-30. The artists painted in different media in their individual style concentrating on the subject of their own choice, creating a marvelous collection of paintings.

This exhibition-cum-auction is being inaugurated by the Egyptian Ambassador Alsayad Aly Mahmoud Hussain at 3 p.m. Saturday, October 13, at Dwarika’s Hotel in Battisputali. The proceeds of the sale from the auction will go towards building up a fund for the project to set up a training course for women in craft-skill development, the Rotarians said.

According to the Rotarians, the response has been very encouraging. The artists include not only some of the well known personalities and some very experienced veterans, but also several budding artists eager to show their talent and rise in the art world.