Security personnel, Maoists on the run to win over public

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ROLPA, Feb 8  : The tight security earlier maintained by the security personnel in Rolpa, the district where the Maoist insurgency originated, has been relaxed following the declaration of a truce by the government and the Maoists, with armed Maoist cadres moving freely in the villages and the security personnel not hindering them. Presently, both sides are busy trying to gain the confidence of a badly shaken public.

Several check-posts set up around Liwang, the district headquarters have been reduced and the patrolling by the security personnel has also been limited to Liwang.

Residents of the district are somewhat pleased to note the sudden change in the attitude of the security personnel. "The security personnel have changed. They are less harsh and now speak very politely," said a local resident.

Prakash Adhikari, the Deputy Superintendent of Police, attributed the new mood among the security personnel on recent training methods, saying, "The police now have been trained in human rights and law".

On the other hand even the Maoists are wooing the public. They are conducting open discussions with the locals to be acquainted with public sentiments. They have been seen to lay their arms aside as they enjoy themselves playing volleyball and interacting with the people.

Meanwhile, various organisations in Rolpa have underlined the need for the dialogue between the government and the rebels to reach a decisive point so as to prevent further devastation of the impoverished nation.

Caste bias muddles bureaucracy

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CHAUTARA, Feb 8 : As an example of caste discrimination prevalent in the bureaucracy, a youth from the deprived section of the society was granted citizenship certificate two and half months after applying for the same. Normally a citizenship certificate is provided within three to four days.

Jeet Bahadur Majhi, 24, of Bansbari VDC of Sindhupalchok had applied for the citizenship certificate at the District Administration Office (DAO) on December 5, last year. However, he obtained the certificate only yesterday, after two and a half months and after spending more than Rs 3,000 in the process, that too following an order from Rudra Nath Basyal, the Chief District Officer (CDO).

Batsyal's order came, following queries by journalists as to why Majhi was denied citizenship certificate for such a long time.

"I had heard that obtaining citizenship does not cost money, but I had to spend Rs 3,300," said Majhi.

Majhi first presented the reports from his ward as per the demand by the concerned officials at DAO. He also produced required documents and recommendation letter from his VDC. Besides these, he also furnished the death certificates of his parents and land registration certificate, in the name of his mother. The officials asked him to come with a police report. The police however to visit his village instead asked him to bring seven villagers to sign in the police report.

Majhi was able to gather only four villagers who accompanied him to Chautara, the district headquarters. The police refused to make a report for Majhi with only four villagers. Fortunately, within two days he met another member of his village who also agreed to vouch for him. The police finally agreed to hand over the report with the five villagers signing it.

Majhi had to bear the fooding, lodging and transportation costs of his fellow villagers. "I had to borrow a lot of money just to get the citizenship certificate. I wonder why the administration is so harsh to the poor," said a sad Majhi.

Bird lovers gather at Koshi Tappu festival

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SUNSARI, Feb 8 : The week long Bird Festival organised at the Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve, that started on Sunday was visited by hundreds of bird lovers. A team comprising of bird experts, conservation officers and the representatives from the consumers committee had conducted the counting of different types of birds found there on Friday.

The team had been further split into four groups which took the census of the birds the whole day on Friday . The census was conducted in and around the region of Madhuban-Prakashpur, Kushaha-Haripur, Madhuban-Kushaha including the barrage area from Saptari to Kamalpur. The census data of these birds and the report of the existing state of these birds is expected to be revealed to the general populace through a Nepalese organisation working with bird protection. According to the information given by the conservation office there this festival kicked off on Sunday and it was visited by around 5,000 people till the closing day. On Friday alone around 1,000 enthusiastic bird lovers including many school children had come to observe and admire the birds at this festival, reiterated officer of the reserve for the buffer-area, Kulprasad Adhikari.

Every year this festival has been organised under the banner of Aqua World Unlimited Camp (AWUC), a private enterprise. However, an agreement has been reached whereby this festival will be conducted from the coming year with the efforts of consumers groups proposed for the Buffer zones. According to the assistant officer for the Buffer zone, Kulprasad Adhikari, due to help from the Non-Government Organisations and Hotel entrepreneurs and that of Tourist Board and reserve office, the agreement to give continuity to staging of bird festivals every year was reached between the representatives from consumers committees. It is learnt that consumers committees formed in 16 VDCs of Sunsari, Saptari, and Udayapur will be taking part in this participatory protection programmes in the coming years.

Around 469 species of birds have been recorded from the Wet-Land region of the Koshi Tappu. At the Ramsar Convention of 1988, Koshi Tappu had been indexed into the World Heritage list.

‘PM, DyPM blemish for slow peace process’

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NARAYANGARH, Feb 8 : The government has not been able to form a dialogue team for peace talks with the Maoists since the Prime Minister and his deputy were under fire from their own parties, Minister for Women, Children and Social Welfare Gore Bahadur Khapangi said today.

"Since the Rastriya Prajatantra Party and the Nepal Sadbhavana Party have asked for the resignation of Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister respectively, the government has not ben able to announce the names," said Khapangi, speaking at a programme to mark the 20th anniversary of Nepal Magar Association, Chitwan district. The rebels have already announced the names of their five-member team for the talks. "It has been easy for the Maoists to announce the names since being a communist party they have a strong discipline," Khapangi added.

He further said that the current cease-fire should be turned into lasting peace.

Drunken ex-chairman kills labourer

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FUNGLING (Taplejung), Feb 8 : A heavily intoxicated former VDC vice-chairman is reported to have killed a labourer, after the two, who had earlier been seen enjoying themselves, started to quarrel.

Former Lingtep VDC vice-chairman Man Bahadur Langwa, stabbed 20 year-old Saila Sherpa of Nambu VDC, in the chest just below his right shoulder on Friday night at 8.30 outside a house at Jhimey Pokhari Danda, near the district headquarter Phungling.

The assailant Langwa, who had been displaced by the Maoists, had been living during the duration of the emergency at the district headquarter, Phungling. The murdered Saila Sherpa had also been living in the district headquarter in search of employment. The two were said to have been staying as tenants in the same house.

On Friday evening, witnesses say, both Langwa and Saila were at the house of Maden drinking Thongba and making merry and cracking jokes.

According to eyewitness Purna Subba, the drinking duo later started to quarrel and Langwa is believed to have said "I will stab you" as both Langwa and Sherpa started to jostle out of the house.

Once outside and after a short interval Sherpa was heard to scream "Aya-ni". When everyone came out of Maden’s house they found Saila Sherpa lying dead near the latrine, said chief eyewitness, Purna Subba.

The villagers present caught hold of Langwa, who was attempting to run away and handed him over to an army patrol, the Army unit later handed over Langwa to the police.

According to Dr Yuvaraj Acharya, of the district hospital Taplejung, who performed the post-mortem, Saila Sherpa had been stabbed to the extent that the knife had pierced 10 cms into the right lung.

Need to formulate a new constitution stressed

DHANGADI, Feb 8 (PR) - Claiming that the present Constitution includes many conflicting issues, Lila Mani Pokhrel, the vice-chairman of the central committee of People's Front Nepal stressed on the formulation of a new Constitution.

Pokhrel was addressing the regional mass meet here today. Terming the royal massacre last year, as a part of series of conspiracies, he also said that the dissolution of publicly elected government by the King as another part of the ongoing conspiracy.

"Since the present constitution could not safeguard the multi-party system, the only way for an amicable outlet to the present situation is the formulation of a fully democratic Constitution through constituent assembly," said Pokhrel.

Team surveys security situation

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DIPAYAL, Feb 8 : A five members team of senior officials led by Dharma Bahadur Thapa, the Minister for the Ministry of Home, toured five districts of the Seti zone in Western Nepal to obtain the latest information on peace and security situation in the nation after the declaration of the cease-fire.

According to a highly placed security source the team visited Doti, Bajhang, Achham, Bajura and Kailali districts and acquired information from the security officials from the respective districts regarding the security situations in these areas. The security officials informed the team that people are highly optimistic with the ushering in of the cease-fire and peace and security have prevailed in the districts, informed the concerned sources. Other members of the team are Tika Datta Niraula, the secretary at the Ministry of Home, Shyam Bhakta Thapa, the Inspector General of Police (IGP) of Nepal Police, IGP of Armed Police Force Sahabir Thapa and Devi Raya Sharma, the Chief of the Department of National Investigation. The team also attended the grand Koti Hom, a sacred ceremony that is being held in Doti district.

Govt for reforms in education: PM

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KATHMANDU, Feb 8 : Prime Minister Lokendra Bahadur Chand said that his government in the Tenth Plan is committed towards literacy, income-generation and adult literacy programme, especially for uplifting women, disabled and backward groups.

Addressing a large gathering of school principals, teachers and officials at the seventh national convention of Private and Boarding Schools' Organisation, Nepal (PABSON), which got underway here, Prime Minister Chand said that through necessary reforms in education sector, the government is committed towards the goal of literacy, especially for raising the life standards of women, backwards and disabled persons.

"We cannot even think of the country's overall development without the development of education," Prime Minister Chand told the gathering.

"Reforms in education sector have become a necessity today if we see the changes that came in the field of knowledge and science," he said. "On the basis of education for all, women and disabled will be provided with special educational opportunities. That is our goal in the Tenth Plan."

Since education plays key role in the overall development of nation, there is an urgent need to make it up to-date and useful for life, he said.

He also said that the government is committed towards fulfilling its declared international goal of providing 'education for all' by 2015. For this the government would implement primary education programme making it compulsory and accordingly reform institutional, managerial and physical aspects.

He said that the government has adopted a policy to extend the present school-level education up to higher secondary level to reform the present structure of school education.

However, he urged civil society and private sector to help the government in implementing the new policy it has adopted. He said that PABSON has a special role in this.

Minister of Education and Sports Devi Prasad Ojha reflected a bewildering situation of education in the country. Comparing and contrasting the quality of education in public and private schools, he named Rato Bangla, Shuva Tara, Little Angels and Malpi as flourishing private schools while reflecting a sad spectacle of a large number of public schools in rural areas.

"In Rolpa, Dolpa, Panchthar, Taplejung, there are schools without roofs, they have no chalks, duster and furniture. How can the students there compete with the students of these private schools?" he asked, requesting the private schools to play a partnership role with the government in reaching out to the disadvantaged and poor.

"We have been in partnership with the government in education sector since 2036," said the out-going PABSON president Rajesh Khadka.

"Around 1.5 million students obtain education from private schools and colleges. Private educational institutes currently employ over 100,000 teachers but our schools are closed due to conflict and hundreds of teachers have lost their jobs. We want compensation from the government and re-open them once the conflict is over," he said.

Suprabhat Bhandary, president of Guardians' Association, Nepal said a major chunk of the educated Nepalis end up doing extreme physical labour in Malaysia and Gulf countries. "It is self-explanatory what kind of manpower is produced by our education system."

The Maoists have shut down around 700 private schools and destroyed about 30 school buses during the conflict. The conflict, as claimed by PABSON has cost private individuals around Rs. 40 million.

FNJ demands immediate release of journalists

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KATHMANDU, Feb 8 : Stating that attacks on press freedom continue unabated, the Federation of Nepalese Journalists today demanded judicial inquiries into such acts.

Taranath Dahal, President of the FNJ, through a statement issued today, said that it was ‘ironical and unfortunate that journalists were being arrested, made to disappear and abducted when the country was moving towards peace’. "FNJ demands an immediate end to all such activities," the statement said.

Journalists like Shiva Tiwari (Kathmandu), Badri Sharma (Baglung), Komal Nath Baral (Kaski) and Khil Bahadur Bhandari (Kathmandu) are among a dozen journalists who are in jail without any charges levelled against them, said the FNJ, and demanded their immediate release.

Similarly, the Maoists have abducted Dhan Bahadur Rokka, Radio Nepal correspondent, Surkhet, whose whereabouts is not known.

Workshop on nation-building task ends

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KATHMANDU, Feb 8 : An eight-day training session for development activists, organised by USC Canada, ended yesterday with suggestions for measures to be taken to usher the country on the path of development.

Attended by representatives of nearly 38 Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs), selected from around the country and International Non-Governmental Organisations (INGOs), the training session discussed the reasons of the insurgency, the parties to it and its pattern.

The thrust was laid on how to strategise and involve the members of civic society in the task of rebuilding the nation once the insurgency comes to an end. The training session also saw participants suggesting models of development, which could be adopted in the future.

Addressing the closing session of the training workshop Canadian Embassy First Secretary Carla Hogan, among others, emphasised the need of raising awareness among the development activists at a time when the major agenda is how to ensure effective implementation of development projects at the grassroots level.

Child health situation in the country appalling

By Bikash Sangraula

KATHMANDU, Feb 8 : The need to address the education and health needs of children in Nepal was stressed by experts this week in the capital at a programme organised to present the yearly report of Child Development Society.

According to Nepal Demographic and Health Survey 2001, child mortality rate in Nepal is 64 per thousand below one-year age and 91 per thousand below 5-year age, which is nine to ten times more than that of developed countries. "This is an appalling scenario," says Dharma Sharma Manandhar, chief of Child Health Department, Kathmandu Medical College.

According to Manandhar, the same survey brings out that 48.35 percent of children below five years of age are under-weight. Similarly, 80.5 percent of children in the age bracket, six to eleven months are anaemic. This is 60.5 percent for children in the age bracket of four to five years.

Chapala Koirala, general secretary of Child Development Society, says that the society has been conducting various programmes since 1992 to meet the education and health needs of children in Nepal. The society is being assisted by various donor agencies such as Save the Children Norway, GTZ/ISCL, ILO/IPEC, USC Canada-Nepal and World Education Nepal.

This League of Samaritans has conducted various educational programmes, child-care camps, awareness programmes, child clubs, professional training programmes, labour-rights awareness programmes and other child-focussed programmes as well. However, these efforts have not succeeded in bringing any substantial improvement in Nepali children's lives.

According to Manandhar, around 50 percent of infant mortality in Nepal are caused by malnutrition. He admits that the child-health scenario in the country has improved in the last few decades.

For instance, infant mortality in 1973 was a whopping 140 per thousand. Similarly, the vaccination programmes that started in 1978, diarrhoea prevention programmes in 1983 and pneumonia treatment that started in 1987 have contributed in improving child-health in the country. Additionally, vitamin A capsules have been made continuously available to children in the last few years. This has strengthened their immune system and hence their ability to fight diseases.

Despite these, Manandhar expresses serious concerns over many areas of child health. "These programmes focus on children above six weeks in age. Owing to this, infant mortality rate for the below six weeks bracket has risen. While infants contributed to only 40 percent of child deaths in 1987, this shot up to 60 percent in 2001. This is alarming," says Manandhar.

The situation of childcare in Nepal is no less appalling. Only 13 percent of children born in Nepal get care from skilled midwives. "If we could arrange for help from skilled people, we could prevent infant deaths due to suffocation, which is one of the major causes of infant death," he says.

Manandhar opines that there is a pressing need to spread awareness of reproductive health in Nepal so that not only are parents well equipped in reproductive knowledge, but also are well versed in how to safeguard their children from various forms of illnesses and even death. "If this awareness can be spread among parents, we will certainly witness drastic improvements in child-health. This is definitely the most effective solution," he adds.

Child health situation in the country appalling

By Bikash Sangraula

KATHMANDU, Feb 8 : The need to address the education and health needs of children in Nepal was stressed by experts this week in the capital at a programme organised to present the yearly report of Child Development Society.

According to Nepal Demographic and Health Survey 2001, child mortality rate in Nepal is 64 per thousand below one-year age and 91 per thousand below 5-year age, which is nine to ten times more than that of developed countries. "This is an appalling scenario," says Dharma Sharma Manandhar, chief of Child Health Department, Kathmandu Medical College.

According to Manandhar, the same survey brings out that 48.35 percent of children below five years of age are under-weight. Similarly, 80.5 percent of children in the age bracket, six to eleven months are anaemic. This is 60.5 percent for children in the age bracket of four to five years.

Chapala Koirala, general secretary of Child Development Society, says that the society has been conducting various programmes since 1992 to meet the education and health needs of children in Nepal. The society is being assisted by various donor agencies such as Save the Children Norway, GTZ/ISCL, ILO/IPEC, USC Canada-Nepal and World Education Nepal.

This League of Samaritans has conducted various educational programmes, child-care camps, awareness programmes, child clubs, professional training programmes, labour-rights awareness programmes and other child-focussed programmes as well. However, these efforts have not succeeded in bringing any substantial improvement in Nepali children's lives.

According to Manandhar, around 50 percent of infant mortality in Nepal are caused by malnutrition. He admits that the child-health scenario in the country has improved in the last few decades.

For instance, infant mortality in 1973 was a whopping 140 per thousand. Similarly, the vaccination programmes that started in 1978, diarrhoea prevention programmes in 1983 and pneumonia treatment that started in 1987 have contributed in improving child-health in the country. Additionally, vitamin A capsules have been made continuously available to children in the last few years. This has strengthened their immune system and hence their ability to fight diseases.

Despite these, Manandhar expresses serious concerns over many areas of child health. "These programmes focus on children above six weeks in age. Owing to this, infant mortality rate for the below six weeks bracket has risen. While infants contributed to only 40 percent of child deaths in 1987, this shot up to 60 percent in 2001. This is alarming," says Manandhar.

The situation of childcare in Nepal is no less appalling. Only 13 percent of children born in Nepal get care from skilled midwives. "If we could arrange for help from skilled people, we could prevent infant deaths due to suffocation, which is one of the major causes of infant death," he says.

Manandhar opines that there is a pressing need to spread awareness of reproductive health in Nepal so that not only are parents well equipped in reproductive knowledge, but also are well versed in how to safeguard their children from various forms of illnesses and even death. "If this awareness can be spread among parents, we will certainly witness drastic improvements in child-health. This is definitely the most effective solution," he adds.

Vehicular mishaps in a week

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KATHMANDU, Feb 8 : In the past week, 3,588 vehicle drivers were charged with violating traffic rules and regulations in the Kathmandu Valley, according to a Central Police Office news bulletin, issued today.

According to the Valley Traffic Police Office, Ramshahpath, Rs 393,575 was collected as fines from the violators. The traffic police took action against drivers violating traffic rules between January 2 and 7.

Similarly, 7 drivers were charged with drunk driving while 1 person was caught using a mobile phone while driving.

During the one-week period, there were 46 vehicular accidents and 1 person died. Furthermore, the accidents caused 5 severe injuries and 28 people suffered minor injuries.

The detail of vehicles involved in the accidents in the past week were 2 trucks, 8 buses, 1 minibus, 1 van, 3 jeeps, 21 cars, 6 pick-ups, 8 tempos, 1 tractor, 29 motorcycles, 3 cycles and 3 micro-buses.