With microfilming facilities, old libraries may improve

By Ranjan Rijal

KATHMANDU, Jan 26: Old libraries in Nepal are in a serious crisis. Not only are they losing books to frauds, the books are also gradually turning into the cloud of dust due to the lack of proper care.

According to the chief of Nepal National Library (NNL), Dasharath Thapa, the library’s location at Harihar Bhawan is not an appropriate place for a library. "NNL is a depository library of national importance which contains all literatures published about Nepal and has the responsibility of preserving them for the future generation," Thapa said. "But, we are unable to protect these valuable books and data because of paper-eating insects."

"Government should provide us insect-free building for the library, otherwise, we cannot save these valuable books from the insects," says Thapa.

But the situation is improving soon. The library installed micro-graphic filming equipment to save the data in June 2001 with the financial assistance of the Government of Japan, according to Thapa. But, says Thapa, "Those filming equipment can only save the data and excerpts from the books but cannot save the moral weight of the book."

The library has a rich collection of masterpieces that are 100 years old. Thapa thinks that the new technology would only save the data from the book but old books have their own weight and value. "We are frequently using medicines to kill insects, but, it is still not working," says Thapa.

In the duration of seven months of its installment of filming equipment, the NNL has preserved more than 80,000 pages into the microfilms and hundreds of thousands of pages are yet to be preserved.

The Central Library of Tribhuvan University, the largest library in Nepal with the volume of 250,000 books, is also in the process to install micro-graphic filming equipment with the assistance of Japan.

According to librarian Krishna Mani Bhandari, insects can be avoided if the books are used frequently and will be affected if they are not used for a long time. "We are using medicines to get rid of the insects and we clean all the books to protect from the insects during long holidays," says Bhandari.

Bhandari further said that microfilming not only helps to save the books from insects but would also makes readers easy to get information from stored data. Bhandari said, "Microfilming helps to preserve valuable archives for the 21st century and beyond."

According to librarian of the British Council library, Beena Manandhar, the Council need not worry about insects, as they do not keep old books. "We sale the old books in discount rates," she said.

Australian ‘Embassy Roadshow’ opens

Post Report

KATHMANDU, Jan 26: Hundreds of people witnessed the opening of ‘Embassy Roadshow’, the Australian Film Festival that started today at the Russian Culture Center.

As a part of the festival, The Sum of Us, starring Russell Crowe and veteran actor Jack Thompson was screened to a house-full of audience.

The Sum of Us is a poignant story of acceptance and love between a father Harry (played by Jack Thompson) and a son Jeff (played by Rusell Crowe). The film largely tells the story of the search for love: the father for Mrs Right and the son for Mr Right. Jeff is influenced towards homosex-uality by his grandmother who was a lesbian.

Harry, a widower, lives with his son Jeff. The love and understanding between the father and the son has been depicted for a good length of the movie in an endearing manner.

The father seeks love of his life from a computer-dealing agency called "desiree" while son Jeff searches for his love at gay pubs and bars at the town. The father’s acceptance of his son’s homosexuality is treated with good humour and emotion.

The film moulds beautifully with hilarious scenes between the father and the son as Jeff brings home his partner and Harry disturbs them time and again. It is made clear throughout the film that Harry accepts his son’s sexuality and loves him unconditionally.

However, the twist in the tale comes when the woman Harry wanted to marry is taken aback after knowing about Jeff’s sexuality and she leaves Harry stranded. Harry stays behind his son, saying that he is not ashamed of Jeff. And has a stroke.

The small turn in the plot brings Jeff closer to his father and the bond is strengthened which turns almost selfless. The film largely portrays with great sensitivity Sydney’s gay culture and basic love and acceptance.

Apart from this moving father-son relationship, the delicate treatment of parent’s reaction to homosexuality in their children, the film features romantic love and its need.It also displays people’s insecurity and love’s pleasure and pain. Above all, the film depicts the triumph of humanity.

Despite it being one of the Russel Crowe’s earlier movies, Crowe shows the depth of talent that has taken him to international success with Academy awards for best actor and recently a golden globe award for his role in A Beautiful Mind.

Fight against environment pollution stressed

Post Report

KATHMANDU, Jan 26 - Member Secretary of Social Welfare Council, Dr. Tika Pokhrel inaugurated the First General Assembly of Community Environment and Economic Development Society (CEEDS) amidst a programme here today.

Speaking at the programme, chief guest Pokhrel called on the young generation to fight against environment pollution in the country. Pokhrel said, "Students who can change the society from politics to economy should now fight against environment pollution."

Pokhrel said prevention of environment pollution means to eradicate different means of pollution including plastic and asked the youths to fight against plastic pollution. Pokhrel said," Economic development is possible only when we try to avoid different means of pollution recreating new opportunities to the people in different economic sources like tourism, agricultural, and so on."

The programme was chaired by President of CEEDS, Pawan Kaji Shrestha.

Plea to scrap ‘fake cases’ against Nepalis 

Post Report

KATHMANDU, Jan 26: All India Nepali Unity Society (AINUS) on Saturday said that the Indian government has again started arresting people connected to "May 12 case".

On May 12, 1986, the Indian government had arrested 95 Nepalese people for holding a rally denouncing the then Rastriya Panchayat elections taking place on the same day in Nepal. The people were later on released on bail.

"Despite our repeated pleas to the Nepalese government and foreign ministers since the restoration of democracy in the country to take initiatives to scrap the "fake cases" against the 95 Nepalese, the government has been turning deaf ears," said Girdhari Lal Neupane, Chairman of the AINUS.

Neupane was speaking at a press conference here today to announce the AINUS’ Fifth Convention, which will be held from February 10-13 in Heyderabad, India. Nearly 1,500 delegates will take part in the Convention.

The AINUS has also blamed India for not treating the Nepalese working and living in India equal to their counterpart, which the AINUS officials said is against the 1950 Nepal-India Treaty.

They said that Nepalese people in India have to show so-called "domicile and eligibility certificate" for jobs. There are about 6.5 million non-resident Nepalese and about 4 million residents of Nepali origin in India.

RNAC blues in changed Delhi

Tashi Dolma Thinley

Delhi is one of the cities where you experience a sense of belonging. And, the prime reason why I love Delhi is that the city has room for everyone. You wake up to new surprises every morning and learn to adjust yourself with the norms set by the ever-changing city. It is really a competitive world,  everyone running for something but nobody knows what.

The city initially appears to you as a daunting cruel – the cruel world that will gradually be the place you want to be in. But this time when I had chance to visit the much-populated Indian capital three weeks ago, it looked a lot better than ever before; thanks largely to the government for enforcing the law of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) vehicles and automobiles. All the buses nowrun with CNG and it never has been so efficient before, helping to reduce the pollution levels of the Indian capital. The inevitable Delhi auto-rickshaws which have been an indispensable part of the city commuters’ schedule are now a comforting sight with the FM music in full blast and carpet beneath the feet.

Reaching places in Delhi has never been so easy. The recent opening of a fly over that will reach you to Gurgaon from Ashram in six minutes where it usually took one and half-hour is city dwellers’ pride now. They hardly can wait for the arrival of Metro railways, construction for which has already started.

The markets in Delhi always have something new to offer unlike our one and only Supermarket in our capital’s New Road, which since decades stopped being "super". Delhi offers you choices to buy the best of clothes for as less as Rs 100 in Sarojini Market and Janpath to designer clothes in Greater Kailash (more popular as GK among the city youths) and the South Extension for more than a few grand. And the best thing is that each store offers you unique brands and products in limited number so that you don’t catch your twin sisters on the road.

The mushrooming of ritzy-glitzy cine-plexes have only made Delhites more ardent film watchers (Another reason for the Bollywoodwalas to feel happy). And the entrepreneurs do not just stop to make profit – they seek more options to make more offers to attract the people.

It was as usual a pain to leave Delhi as one never gets enough of it. However, before I bid adieu to my friends there, another surprise was there – just waiting for me. It was none other than our "beloved" RNAC flight delayed for two hours. The information board at the airport, all the while, showed the status of the flight as "On Time". More pathetic was the plight of RNAC officials, who were requesting the security guards, not the airport officials, to let the passengers go through the second terminal. And, did we talk of proper management here?

As we were in the line, the guards were filling up their pistols with bullets as if to say...."You can never trust these Nepalese". It was such a height of embarrassment that I just laughed it off.

I could only reach Kathmandu by midnight, amidst all the security here. No prizes for guessing what I must have gone through!

Writ filed against minor’s detention

Post Report

MORANG, Jan 26: Center for Legal Investigation and Resource Development (CELIRD) has registered a writ in Appellate Court for Habeus corpus. "The chief judge of Appellate Court suggested us to register a writ when he saw the child during his visit to the jail," said a lawyer at CELIRD.

A 13 years old child has been imprisoned in Morang Jail since last month although law prohibits to imprison the children below 16 years.

Rohit Sharma of Dharan Municipality-15 was arrested for fighting five weeks ago. He couldn’t deposit 28,000 rupees as bail thus local administration ordered him remain in prison for the state case, according to his family.

Children’s Act 2048 prohibits the imprisonment of children below 16 years although they commit the crime, says Hemraj Pant, a lawyer. Pant says if the children commit crime, they should be sent to rehabilitation center.

The victim’s family accused the officers of local administrative office for hiding the actual birth certificate of the child and creating a fake one which is 4 years earlier than his real date of birth.

The Chief District Officer Ram Prasad Khatiwada agreed that he is a child but said that he was imprisoned as he claimed he was 17 years. "Appellate Court can order to release him," said Katiwada.

‘Primary school teachers involved in corruption’

Post Report

JANAKPUR, Jan 26: The chairman of Dubarkot VDC of Dhanusa district has accused the District Education Office of not taking immediate stern action against the primary school teachers involved in the corruption over the nutritious food supply to the school children.

Ram Narayan Goit, the headmaster at the local primary school and Gangaram Yadav, another teacher of the same school had brought the nutritious food worth Rs. 71,000 to be fed to the school children. But the students were not provided with the food, according to Ram Prasad Yadav, the VDC chairman.

A written application over the case was presented to the District Education Office and the accused were fined Rs. 70,000, added the chairman. " The guilty should not be simply released, they must face a strong penalty," demanded the chairman.

While contacted to the District Education Officer, Mohan Prasad Upadhaya, said that the culprits will face departmental action.

A programme, sponsored by World Food Organisation (WFO) has been providing nutritious food to 20 thousand primary school children in the district.

‘Improve hotel, restaurant service’

RSS

BUTWAL, Jan 26: The third annual general meeting and second convention of the Hotel and Restaurant Operators Association began here on Friday.

Inaugurating the general meeting and the convention, chief district officer Thaneshwar Devkota spoke of the need of specialisation in the restaurant and hotel business as well as improving the quality of their services.

Deputy mayor of Butwal municipality Bimal Bahadur Shakya stressed the need for management training for maintaining the quality of services.

President of the Federation of Nepalese Journalists (FNJ) Rupandehi chapter Binod
Pahadi said that the hotel and restaurant entrepreneurs should familiarize the tourists about the local food.

President of Forum for Protection of Consumer Rights Norbu Lama expressed concern at the growing tendency among the entrepreneurs to market adulterated food items by taking undue advantage of the state of emergency.

Advocate Shaligram Banjade underlined the need for professional morality.

President of the Butwal Chamber of Commerce and Industry Arjun Man Sainju alleged the government of centralising industries in the name of decentralisation and creating what he called tax terror among the businessmen.

President of the Siddharthanagar Hotel Operators Association Dipak Chhetri Neupane said that the hotel entrepreneurs should give special emphasis to tourist services.

At the programme presided over by association president Dhruba Kumar Tulachan, president of Rupandehi Chamber of Commerce and Industry Paramananda Kharel, president of local business association Moti Gyawali and secretary Madhav Prasad Nepal also expresed their views.

Leprosy victims not accepted in family

By Sudarshan Risal

DANG, Jan 26: Despite the regular effort of mass media and social organisations in creating public awareness to be sympathetic to the leprosy victims, the victims are not accepted by their own family.About a dozen of the leprosy victims in Dang district are have the bitter experience of being rejected by their own family members.

The victims here complain that their families rather than the society neglect them. Khim Kumari Thakuri-54, presently staying at Tribhuvan municipaity-9, with her married daughter laments over giving birth to three sons who turned her away from her house and she was taken in by her daughter and son-in-law. Sadhu Shahi-63, from Salyan Valchaur of the district has been staying at Tuberculosis (TB), Leprosy Cure Centre Project, at the district.

" This centre shall be my house till my death since I am not welcomed in my house," says he. Many victims of leprosy in the centres have their own tales and the sorrowful events to narrate of how they have to remain in isolation from their family members.

Dhirendra Rai, the chief at the rehabilitation centre states that the canter has been providing shelter and other basic needs to the leprosy victims who were driven away from their homes. "Over a thousand of the leprosy victims have been benefited from this center since its inception in 1974," added Rai.

INF (International Fellowship Nepal) is sponsoring the rehabilitation programme for the leprosy victims at the centre. Though leprosy is a communicable disease, its infection rate is very low and it can be cured after taking prescribed medicine in a routine basis, says Dr. Vikas Devkota, the INF chief in Nepal and a doctor at Mahendra Hospital, Dang.