'Furnish details on kids, cops killed by Maoists in Panchkatiya'

Kathmandu, June 13 (RSS): Narayan Man Bijukchhe of Nepal Workers and Peasants Party taking part during special hour at the meeting of the House of Representatives today drew the attention of His Majesty's Government to the irregularities at a Vihar in Kirtipur and to the cracks that have developed at small shrines because of vibrations caused by airplane flights taking off over Bhaktapur.

Prem Bahadur Singh of CPN-UML lamented that the government which is responsible for maintaining law and order in the country cannot provide security to the general public when the Maoists were killing the innocent people, and demanded that facts about the Maoists' victims who are resorting to a fast at Bhadrakali be furnished at the House.

Govinda Bikram Shaha of RPP demanded that the government furnishes details about the children and police personnel who lost their lives during a clash with Maoists at Panchkatiya in Jajarkot and compensate those affected. He also asked what was the extent of the loss caused by incessant rain of about 72 hours which fell in Jajarkot district.

Dilli Raj Sharma of Nepali Congress said that a number of VDCs in Parvat district and Shaligram rocks are under threat of inundation because of the Kaligandaki 'A' dam and demanded that the government compensate the victims of inundation by declaring Parvat an affected district.

Gorakha Bahadur Bogati of CPN-UML demanded relief for 8 families affected by the recent incessant rains in Humla and drew the attention of the government to the plight of 130 families displaced last year.

Janak Raj Giri of Nepali Congress spoke of the effect of the recent incessant rains at Bajura district headquarters and demanded relief for the victims of Maoist activity currently staging a fast at Bhadrakali.

Referring to the manhandling and arrest by police of Sher Bahadur K.C., Rukum district secretary of the CPN-UML, in connection with a plastics explosion carried out by children on June 2, Tirtha Gautam of CPN-UML said that the government should furnish clarifications over the mistreatment of an innocent person.

Uma Kant Chaudhari of Nepali Congress said that robbery, murders and terrorist activities have been on the rise in Bara constituency No 1 since the last few days because of political protection and demanded re-opening of the police post at Sukhi Patara VDC where 8-9 incidents of robbery have taken place following removal of the police post.

Sherdhan Rai of CPN-UML demanded stern action against those involved in tearing up answer sheets and obstructing the masters level first part and bbs examinations at ten examination centres yesterday.

Sarvadhan Rai of Nepali Congress said that the government should devote attention to the preservation of Halesi cave of Khotang district which is important both from the archaeological and tourist viewpoints.

Hem Narayan Yadav of CPN-UML demanded a probe into the involvement of Saptari road division chief Ramnath Misra in irregularities over the budget of 8-9 million that was spent on road construction, change of wire on bridges and tender calls.

Mrigendra Kumar Singh Yadav of Nepal Sadbhawana Party said a decision on setting up a health post in Saptari constituency No 5 was not appropriate since Lahan could be reached from its northern belt in just ten minutes by foot.

Ananda Prasad Pokharel of CPN-UML demanded that the government make all arrangements for the treatment of young mountaineer Temba Chhiri who lost five fingers.

Om Prasad Ojha of the same party criticised the government for scrapping a project for a road in Taplejung that lead to Dobhan via Basantpur and demanded that restrictions imposed on different VDCs including Olanchungola be rolled back since the Khamba problem no longer existed.

Another MP of the same party Gokarnaraj Bista said that the government should be serious over the deteriorating law and order situation in the country and about the victims of Maoist activity currently taking shelter at Bhadrakali.

Arjun Jung Bahadur Singh of Nepali Congress drew the attention of the government to four flood hit districts under the far-western region and demanded relief and rehabilitation for victims of the floods that displaced some 500 families in those districts and affected four bridges and two high schools.

Nepal-India ties cordial: Rajan

BY A STAFF REPORTER

Kathmandu, June 13:Nepal-India relations at the official level is more than cordial but the challenge before both the countries is how the treaties and agreements signed could be implemented to benefit the common people, outgoing Indian Ambassador K.V. Rajan said.

"The economic interdependence between the two countries and the clarity among the politicians in Nepal to further boost bilateral ties will go a long way in improving the standard of living of the people on both sides," Rajan told a press conference at his office today.

Immediate interaction needs to be held in order to address the border issue. A comprehensive study of the nearly seventeen hundred kilometres of open border between the two countries must be made to address the border problem, Rajan said.

He said provided that both sides discussed the border problems in a comprehensive manner a way out to resolve the border problem could be found.

On the report carried by ‘India Today’ in its web page, which has accused Nepalese politicians, journalists and businessmen of indulging in anti-Indian design, Rajan said the Security Advisor and Principal Secretary to the Indian Prime Minister had already disowned the report.

"I have not seen the entire report and as the Indian government has already disowned the report, it would not be wise for me to make further comments," Rajan said of the controversial report.

He said that the recent meeting of the High Level Task Force held between the two countries had discussed about furthering co-operation in the areas of infrastructure building, harnessing of water resources and health services.

Rajan said the meeting had also decided to upgrade the infrastructure at the bordering areas of Nepal. Apart from this, talks were also held in the line of launching integrated rural development project in Nepal, he said.

On the hassles being faced by Nepalese businessmen while exporting food products to India, Rajan said the hassles could be sorted out through consultations at the industrial level. The Indian regulations require that the foodstuff coming into the country be tested. Consultations to do so at the micro level will be able to resolve the problem, he said.

Nepal’s exports have increased manifold following the signing of the trade treaty. As far as the minor problems experienced by the Nepalese business community are concerned, they can be sorted out by holding consultations at the micro level, Rajan said.

"All open societies run the risk of being penetrated by hostile elements and Nepal and India are no exception, it is a reality that we must accept," Rajan said in response to a query whether India believed that Nepalese soil was being used by ISI for anti-Indian activities.

He said that the commitment made by both the countries not to allow their respective soil to be used against each other and the efficient management of the border would be instrumental in checking undesirable elements.

Asked whether Nepal could use the good offices of India to resolve the Bhutanese refugee problem, Rajan said India like the rest of the world wants Nepal to resolve the issue by holding talks with Bhutan.

"India wishes to stay neutral on the issue, the involvement of India on a bilateral issue could complicate the problem," Rajan said.

On the query whether the leaders from both the sides had discussed about sealing the open border, Rajan said India and Nepal enjoyed cordial relations from time immemorial. Moreover at a time when nations were opening their frontiers to boost bilateral trade it would not be practical to seal the open border, he said.

"The leaders from both the sides have not so far talked about sealing the border since doing so would invite many complications," Rajan said.

He said that the media interactions between the two countries needed to be intensified in order to avoid all misunderstandings and pave the way to boost bilateral co-operation.

Right-to-information bill to come this session

Kathmandu, June 13 (RSS): A delegation of Federation of Nepalese Journalists (FNJ) central committee met Minister for Information and Communications Jayaprakash Prasad Gupta today to draw the minister's attention to various problems of the journalism sector.

After discussions on the 17-point demand submitted to the government by the federation, it has been agreed that a bill concerning right to information will be introduced during the ongoing parliamentary session and unlike the existing provision local newspapers will be allowed to publish advertisements worth more than Rs. 1 million provided by various bodied of His Majesty's Government.

Likewise, as agreed upon at the meeting an extensive task force will be formed to formulate a long-term policy for equipping the media village with most modern technology according to changing times, and the government will provide assistance for construction of an FNJ building in the media village.

It has also been agreed that the government will provide financial assistance in a lump sum for the journalists welfare fund set up by FNJ with the Prime Minister as its patron, all the press passes distributed so far by the government will be examined and a fresh decision taken, government subsidy on newsprint will be reviewed to make it more practical, all necessary committees including a remuneration committee will be formed soon and the process of implementing the recommendations relating to working journalists will be initiated without any delay.

The meeting between the minister and FNJ representatives also agreed to review all communications acts and rules by involving the FNJ also with a view to effect timely amendment to these acts and rules, give continuity to the provision of providing telephone lines to journalists on the recommendation of FNJ and to the discount on installation charge, and nominate one journalist each to the central board and district committees formed to censor films on the recommendation of FNJ.

The delegation led by FNJ president Suresh Acharya included vice president Kaushal Chemjong, general secretary Taranath Dahal, secretary Bishnu Nisthuri, treasurer Shiva Kumar Khadka and central members Om Sharma, Bhushan Ghimire, Mahendra Bista, Dharmendra Jha, Kshitij Arun Shrestha and Pradip Bhattarai.

NC fighting for power, posts: Deuba

Bhaktapur, June 13 (RSS): Former prime minister and central member of the Nepali Congress (NC) Sher Bahadur Deuba has said that as the NC is fighting for power and posts and not following its ideals and policy, instability and corruption has started to increase in the country.

Addressing a talk programme on "Political stability and the Nepali Congress" organised by NC Bhaktapur district constituency No. 1 committee here today, Mr Deuba said that leaders should serve the activists who in turn should serve the people but what was happening in the NC was just the opposite.

If truth cannot be spoken and mistakes cannot be pointed out, where is democracy in the party, he wondered.

As the NC was a party which fought for the sake of democracy and against injustice, a campaign had been launched to eliminate distortions and consistencies and make the party democratic, he added.

Former prime minister Deuba, who is also the convenor of the high level committee constituted to resolve the Maoists problem, said that a letter had been received from the Maoists for dialogue and he was prepared to take initiative in this regard.

He expressed the confidence that the government would consider the matter with sensitivity.

Former minister and chairman of the dissolved NC Kathmandu district committee Prakash Man Singh said that the party which had majority should not misuse its power in undemocratic manner and expressed the view that unless the undemocratic and apolitical forces within the NC were defeated, political stability was impossible in the country.

Former Minister of State Govinda Bahadur Shaha called upon all the party rank and file to eliminate the existing instability and said that as the younger generation was also capable of running the government, the reins of the party should be handed over to them in the forthcoming tenth general convention.

MP Narayan Prasad Saud pointed out the need for all concerned to be active to retain the glorious history of the party.

MP Mahendra Kumar Mishra noted that the whole country was panicking due to the Maoists and the NC party rank and file had been affected by the wrong decisions of its leaders.

President of dissolved NC Bhaktapur district committee Radheshyam Jonchhe alleged that he had worked sincerely in accordance with the party constitution without committing any crime but the NC central working committee had dissolved the district committee.

DDC Vice-Chairman Ramesh Shrestha, NC leader Janaki Prasad Kuikel, NC constituency No. 2 committee vice-president Nishan Dhungel, Deputy Mayor of Madhyapur Thimi Municipality Murari Prasad Acharya and a host of other speakers expressed their views at the programme.

On the occasion, Katunje VDC chairman Rameshwar Dhungel felicitated former prime minister Deuba on behalf of the people of Katunje VDC and the water users committee for extending cooperation for the water supply project in the VDC.

Mahottari meet digs up civic issues

FROM OUR CORRESPONDENT

Jaleswar (Mahottari), June 13:The difference among terms like "people", "public", "individual" and "citizen", and their use in public life, as a subject has enticed many Mahottari opinionmakers-like politicians and teachers.

This was found out in a discussion programme organized by Nepal Foundation for Advanced Studies (NEFAS) today to collect the experiences of Mahottari's public sector workers and incorporate them in a book on civic education being developed.

The heated discussion with these popular jargons, but profound in their depth when looked into from the social science perspective, was provoked by Dr. Krishna Bahadur Bhattachan in his lecture on "How to Transform People into Public".

Participants unearthed even other terms like "subjects" and janta janardan to give colour to the discussion. But the basic theme here was to teach students to shed their veil of ignorance and stand up to voice their concerns in public life and exercise their public rights and duties.

"This is very difficult as most people live in remote places who are not even aware of their constitutional rights," said Prof. Ram Kumar Dahal in a later presentation. "We need to take civic education to those parts".

The cavalcade of concepts appeared to be bringing up interesting puzzles at times. A participant asked, "Have people with citizenship certificates turned into citizens? In spite of it, they do not appear to be getting the privileges of the state even though provisioned in the Constitution."

Another said, "We have turned into people from subjects. Now we are talking about being the public. If we start dividing the people into various divisions, will it not provoke conflicts?"

Another one said, "the biggest problem today appears to be moral degradation in our public life." He wanted civic education to include moral science and taught to lower secondary classes also.

According to a district party worker, the framers of the Constituion were mostly from the field of law, hence "power has been concentrated on the judiciary while the legislators are stripped bare of it, limited by party whip".

Ganesh Yadav of the Nepali Congress who was chairing the session remarked, "unless people are aware, they cannot enjoy their rights. The Constitution is great only if it is turned into practical actions."

Lal Babu Yadav of Tribhuvan University's presentation took up the second session at the end of which Bal Krishna Dhakal chairing the session said that the book does not talk about the production and distribution system. "The book has to be deterministic on issues like national unity and languages. We have to be able to say that elections have been rigged, only then can we clean up the system."

During the opening of the seminar Dev Raj Dahal of Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, the co-organizer of the seminar, said "The book was felt a necessity to fill the void in political educaiton in Nepal. Political parties have been teaching their workers to take every other political group as an enemy through their manifestos, speeches and discussions. Since the trend needed stopping to prevent radicalization of the society we conceived an idea about taking political education to the schools."

NEFAS executive director Ananda Shrestha had welcomed the participants in the beginning of the programme and provided the rationale of the seminar while deputy director Shiv Raj Dahal gave the vote of thanks at the end.

PAC challenges govt's decision endorsing purchase of RJ-100

BY A STAFF REPORTER

Kathmandu, June 13:A parliamentary committee has challenged the government’s decision last week endorsing the purchase of what it calls over-invoiced aircraft for the Royal Nepal Army.

The Public Accounts Committee of the House of Representatives today issued a directive to the Army not to open the Letter of Credit for the purchase of RJ-100 at a higher price of 2.31 billion rupees (US$ 33 million).

PAC’s directive today vetoes the May 22 Cabinet decision to purchase the aircraft.

The PAC meeting presided over by its Chairman Subas Nembang handed over the directive to Defence Secretary Keshav Raj Bhandari for submission of photocopies of all the official papers related to the Avro RJ-100 purchase to the PAC latest by end of the working day on coming Thursday.

"The PAC is investigating on the charges that the purchase could rob the country over Rs. 560 million (US$ 8 million)," Nembang said.

Defence Secretary Bhattarai informed that the Royal Nepal Army has already received a confirmation letter from the British Aerospace System, the manufacturer of aircraft in question.

He said the manufacturers had already been requested to deliver the aircraft and it is prepared to leave the country any time.

According to him, the British Aerospace System has already opened a bank guarantee of US$ 14.6 million. He also told the PAC that the Aerospace System has also offered an assistance of US$ 5 million for training for RNA pilots.

The Defence Secretary failed to give details on studies carried out to assess the need of the aircraft, selection process and process of call for international bidding for the supply, PAC said.

Bhattarai also said that the government decided stand surety for loans from the national institutions when the 11 Brigade of RNA claimed that an aircraft was needed for VVIP flights, military operations, rescue operations and transportation of construction materials.

The Defence Secretary also added that with the government surety a loan of Rs. 900 million from Rastriya Banijya Bank and 680 million from Employees’ Provident Fund that makes up 70 per cent of total amount required for the purchase.

The manufacturers will provide the additional 30 per cent of the amount on normal interest.

RNA’s plan to purchase the aircraft was firstly endorsed by caretaker coalition government of Nepali Congress and Communist Party of Nepal (United Marxist-Leninist) before the general elections in May last year.

Meet discusses ways to observe population day

Kathmandu, June 13 (RSS): The first meeting of World Population Day main organizing committee was held under the chairmanship of Minister of State for Population and Environment Shiva Raj Joshi at the ministry today.

The meeting was attended by parliamentary population and social committee chairman and members, National Planning Commission member Dr Jagdish Chandra Pokharel, the chief secretary of HMG and senior officials of various ministries.

The meeting discussed ways to observe the World Population Day at national and local level in a grand manner and organize effective programmes concerning population management on the occasion.

About 65 persons including the representatives of national and international non-governmental organizations, elected representatives and government sector representatives were present at the meeting.

Meanwhile, the World Population Day main celebration committee met today under the chairmanship of committee chairman and Minister of State for Population and Environment Shivaraj Joshi.

The meeting decided to direct six different ministries to observe World Population Day on July ll with various programmes at their regional and district level offices.

The ministry also proposes to direct the CDOs in all 75 districts and local representatives of the people to take the concept of two childen per family down to the local level.