Crown Prince sends message to World Youth Meet

Kathmandu , Oct. 23 (RSS): His Royal Highness Crown Prince Dipendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev has said the youth of the world should inculcate proper leadership qualities and value system in them so as to ensure a secure tomorrow.

In a message sent to the International Youth Parliament 2000 being held in Sydney, Australia, HRH the Crown Prince said the mantle of leadership will, in few years’ time pass onto the young generation of today.

HRH the Crown Prince also expressed the hope that the meeting would give an excellent opportunity for young people from all over the world to share ideas and exchange views on issues confronting the world today.

Nearly 300 outstanding young people from 161 countries are taking part in the International Youth Parliament (IYP) 2000 to discuss issues confronting them.

They will discuss such topics as breaking the poverty cycle, youth in conflict and cultural activism, and facilitate positive change in their local and international community, according to global youth meet secretariat, which is responsible for disseminating information about the IYP activities in Nepal.

The IYP is taking place in the Australian capital from October 19-28. It is being organised by community aid Abroad-Oxfam Australia.

Three Nepali youth are now in Sydney participating in the IYP.

Rajendra Mulmi- delegate from Nepal, read out the message from HRH the Crown Prince at the opening session of IYP on Oct. 19.

Nepal’s foreign policy enhances UN ideals: PM

Kathmandu , Oct. 24 (RSS): Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala has said that committed as it is to the principles and objectives enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations ever since it obtained U.N. membership, Nepal has been earnestly fulfilling the duties and responsibilities entrusted to it by the world body.

In a message given on the occasion of the 55th United Nations Day today, Prime Minister Koirala said Nepal has regarded the objectives of the U.N., which include maintenance of peace and security in the world, mobilisation of international assistance for socio-economic development of the needy ones, and preservation and promotion of democracy, human rights and the rule of law, as the basic objectives of its foreign policy.

At the call of the U.N., Nepal has been sending its police, army and civilians as peace keepers in different parts of the world for peace and security, he said, noting this role played by the country in maintaining world peace has been highly appreciated by the international community.

Recalling Nepal’s active participation in the U.N. Millennium Summit that concluded in New York recently, he said the international community showed keen interest in Nepal’s proposal at the summit that goods produced in least developed and land locked countries should get unrestricted access to the markets in developed countries in order to help them alleviate poverty, relieve them of debt, bridge the gap between the rich and poor countries and minimize the adverse effect of globalisation.

Stating that the cooperation received from the United Nations in the development endeavours of Nepal has been fruitful and laudable, Prime Minister Koirala expressed gratitude to the United Nations for the cooperation and gave assurance for continous support and cooperation of Nepal in the programmes carried out by the world body.

On the occasion, senior politician Dr Dilliraman Regmi has called for a change in the working style of the United Nations.

Stating that the necessity of the United Nations has been increasing day by day, Dr Regmi pointed out the need to further consolidate the organisation.

Likewise, on the occasion of United Nations Day, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan has pointed out the need for world leaders to remember the priorities they set in the millenium declaration while pledging themselves to free their peoples from the scourge of war, from abject and dehumanising poverty, and from the threat of living on a polluted planet with few natural resources left.

Nothing will change if the pledges are not followed by action, Mr Annan said, adding that renewed bloodshed in the Middle East has reminded us all how dangerous it is to leave political and social grievances unresolved.

154,785 vehicles in Kathmandu Valley

Kathmandu , Oct. 23 (RSS): The total length of motorable road within Kathmandu Valley is 740 kilomeres while the number of transport vehicles registered has reached 154,785. If all the vehicles run at the same time then the entire road will be covered.

The task force constituted by His Majesty’s Government on May 26 in connection with the operation of vehicles as per the holding capacity of roads within Kathmandu Valley has said that there is a requirement of vehicles outside ring road but registration of small vehicles within the ring road should be checked immediately.

In the present situation the holding capacity of roads within Kathmandu Valley has been found to be not more than 28,000 vehicles.

Speaking at a press conference organised here today in connection with the controlling of increasing pressure of vehicles within Kathmandu Valley, Minister of State for Labour and Transport Management Surendra Hamal disclosed that the government has taken up a policy to gradually wiping out old and polluting vehicles from the valley.

The report presented by the vehicles management task force will be implemented on a short-term as well as long-term basis and every sector concerned is being consulted for reducing the pressure of transport vehicles in the valley.

Secretary at the Ministry of Labour and Management Damaru Ballav Bhattarai said the Ministry is working to make arrangements to run vehicles outside the ring road also.

Upadhyaya, Norwegian minister hold talks

Kathmandu, Oct. 23 (RSS): Minister for Education and Sports Amod Prasad Upadhyaya met Norwegian Minister for Education Trond Gisk at the Parliament building in Norway on Monday.

On the occasion, Minister Upadhyaya on behalf of His Majesty’s Government expressed gratitude for continued Norwegian cooperation in Nepal’s development endeavours.

He also drew the Norwegian government’s attention to the need for cooperation in education sector, especially in vocational and primary education which has been identified as important for poverty alleviation and employment generation.

Norwegian minister Trond Gisk hosted a dinner in honour of his Nepalese counterpart in the evening the same day.

At the dinner, the Norwegian Minister for Education gave assurance that Norwegian cooperation in Nepal’s development will be continued in the future also.

Minister Upadhyaya, on the occasion, described his visit to Norway as a milestone in further promoting the friendship and cooperation between the two countries.

He also appreciated the decision taken by the Norwegian Parliament in 1996 to further promote its relations with Nepal and include Nepal among the 12 priority countries for Norwegian assistance.

Norway is Nepal’s third biggest donor country.

Poor service facilities plague tourism

BY A STAFF REPORTER

Kathmandu, Oct. 23: The major problems plaguing the national tourism industry are the same as they were three years ago, a survey revealed here today.

Overall service facilities, airport facilities, local transport, and pollution of environment have been pointed out as the challenges the travel trade continues to face for the last three years, a survey based on departing visitors showed.

Interestingly, it was a similar survey that had pointed out the four problems disturbing the travel industry in 1997.

This time the survey was conducted by Nepal Tourism Board hiring Marg Nepal — the same organisation that had done the field work for the survey in 1997.

During the survey this time, a total of 1,108 tourists were interviewed at the Tirbhuvan International Airport last April for 30 days.

The survey recorded 22 per cent of Indian tourists and 10 per cent of American, British, German, Japanese and French tourists each.

Even if their arrival figures were comparatively smaller, Americans, Australians, and Japanese were found among the highest spenders in Nepal. "South Asians including Indians, Sri Lankans, and Bangladeshis have been found as the lowest spenders."

The survey found that the visitors from India, the United States, France, Australia, Switzerland, and South East Asia travel in larger groups. "Business visitors have the lowest duration of stay followed by the holidayers. The duration of stay is significantly higher among adventure tourists and among spiritual visitors."

Above 60 per cent of the visitors surveyed were found to have visited the country for the first time. "Repeat customers were high among Indians and to some extent among Japanese."

The main source of awareness and information on Nepal among the interviewed tourists was found to be the "word of mouth." "Other important sources of information were travel agencies and travel guides in Nepal."

Majority of Indians were found to be visiting Nepal for business, official work and sightseeing. Other nationals, most of them long staying ones, were found to be interested in adventure and sightseeing.

The survey indicated that over 60 per cent of the visitors made their own travel arrangements. "The percentage of visitors availing prepaid tours was particularly high among French, Australian and South East Asian tourists."

The most visited places by tourists while in Nepal, as found by the survey, were Pokhara, Nagarkot aside Kathmandu. "Incidence of visit to Lukla and Everest was relatively higher among Americans, Germans and Italians."

In an interesting finding, the survey revealed that Indians, Sri Lankans, Bangladeshis and South East Asians stayed in relatively more expensive accommodation as compared to visitors from the US, Europe, Australia, New Zealand and Japan.

Co-operation and hospitality by local people was the best tourism product Nepal has on offer, the interviewed tourists said. "Other key factors giving positive impression about Nepal were trekking, rafting, shopping, hotel and money exchange facilities.

Pradeep Raj Pandey, Chief Executive Officer of Nepal Tourism Board, said that the findings of the survey could help tourism professionals to operate their business. "The facts and figures can be helpful indicators for tourism entrepreneurs."

Tek Bahadur Dangi, Managing Director of NTB, said that the findings of the survey could help for accurate and result-oriented tourism business operation. "The survey was basically aimed at finding the perception of travellers and also to rate the level of service in tourism industry."

Tourism entrepreneurs present during the interaction commented that the survey was conducted for a very short time and that it does not reflect the overall picture of the tourists visiting Nepal at different times of the year. "Conducting survey on one moth does not help to understand the trend of the travel industry. It should be done at different times covering peak and lean seasons," said Tek Chandra Pokhrel, a veteran tourism entrepreneur.

Pandey of NTB said that the board would conduct surveys in the months to follow so as to give the complete picture of the travel trade.

Solve Maoist problem politically: Nepal

Gaur, Oct. 23 (RSS): Leader of opposition party and CPN-UML Madhav Kumar Nepal says that since the Maoists problem is of political nature, its solution should be sought accordingly.

General secretary Nepal, who was speaking at a Meet-the-Press held Sunday by Nepal Press Union (NPU) Rautahat, accused the government of showing lackadaisical response to holding a dialogue with the Maoists who has shown their readiness to do so.

He also castigated the government’s step of mobilising army to resolve the Maoist problem prevalent in the country.

Responding to a query, he said, CPN-UML is in favour of holding a dialogue between the government and the Maoists for an amicable solution to this problem and thus putting an end to the violence plaguing the country.

He said he, as a leader of the opposition party, had exerted pressure on both parties to sit across a negotiating table.

In reply to another query he said Nepalese people had been hit hard by the government’s recent decision on the price hike.

Referring to the inability on the part of Nepalese people to meet their basic needs and grapple with the financial difficulties, he called on the government to withraw its decision in this regard.

"I will pay special attention to problems relating to lack of bridges, roads, flood control and embankment" said he, making a pledge to provide Rs. 500,000 through the constituency development fund for this purpose.

MP Dr. Banshidhar Mishra, Rautahat CDO Ananda Pokharel, DDC vice president Rajiuddin Alam spoke about the grave problems currently besetting the district.

Put Millennium Declaration into action, Annan appeals

BY A STAFF REPORTER

Kathmandu, Oct. 23: The UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, on the occasion of the United Nations Day, in a message to the peoples of the UN, observed "Seven weeks ago your leaders, heads of state and government from all over the world, gathered in New York for the Millennium Summit. They came together to consider the challenges we all face in the new century, and they set out their aims in a Millennium Declaration."

They pledged themselves to free their peoples — from the scourge of war, from abject and dehumanising poverty, and from the threat of living on a polluted planet with few natural resources left, the UN chief said. "They undertook to promote democracy and the rule of law, to protect children and other vulnerable people, and to meet the special needs of Africa. And they promised to make the United Nations itself more effective, as an instrument for pursuing all those aims," he pointed out.

These pledges give us cause for hope. But they will change nothing if they are not followed by action. Even since the Millennium Summit, renewed bloodshed in the Middle East has reminded us all how dangerous it is to leave political and social grievances unresolved, he stated.

That is why, while I and others have been struggling to pull the Middle East peace process back on track, my colleagues at the United Nations have been hard at work, developing detailed plans with which we can help the world’s leaders carry out their commitments, Kofi Annan said.

"But the biggest responsibility falls on the leaders themselves—and on you, the peoples," he observed.

National leaders have hard and sometimes unpopular decisions to take. They need to remember the priorities they set in the Millennium Declaration, when they come to allocate, among competing needs and demands, the resources that you, the peoples, have entrusted to them, he stated.

They need to remember the pledges they made to each other. They need to continue working together, and also to work with partners at home and abroad- parliaments, local authorities, think tanks and universities, voluntary groups and private corporations, the UN chief said.

"In short, they need to show leadership, and they need your support-the support of you, the peoples of the United Nations," he noted.

The Charter was written in your name, and your leaders spoke for you when they issued the Millennium Declaration. In the end, only you can ensure that the Declaration is more than fine words. It is up to you to see the pledges honoured, and so to make the new century better than the old, he pointed out.

"Working together, we can succeed. All we need is courage, imagination and perseverance. Let us pray that we will find them," Kofi Annan observed.

Anjali Devi to host collective Bhaitika at Hanumandhoka

Kathmandu, Oct. 23 (RSS):  A collective Bhaitika is to be organised on the premises of Hanumandhoka on the day of Bhaitika.

Didi Anjali Devi of Tahachal is going to host the programme so that the men who do not have sisters need not remain without vermilion Tika on their forehead.

Didi Anjali Devi has been organising the programme of this kind since 1998.

It may be noted that over two hundred brothers, both Nepalese and foreigners, attended the collective Bhaitika ceremony last year.

She has also created a revolving fund of Rs 400,000 with a view to giving continuity to this kind of collective Bhaitika and designated Prapanna Masket as the sister offering tika to brothers participating in such collective ceremony.

For this purpose, she has also arranged a registration counter at the "Dahi (yoghurt) Pasal" in the vicinity of the Kasthamandap and any one willing to take part in the ceremony can get their names registered.

She has also vowed not to take any gift in cash or kind from brothers at the ceremony with a view to avoiding extravagance and lavish spending on such festivities, it is learnt.