NRB to push ahead micro-credit schemes effectively: Dhakal

BY A STAFF REPORTER

Kathmandu, Sep 1: Nepal Rastra Bank's newly appointed Governor Dipendra Purush Dhakal today assured the rural-credit providers that the centrtal bank would play a promotional role to push ahead the micro-credit schemes effectively.

"The central bank has a vision to grant autonomy to micro-finance providers while it will play a role of a moniteroing authority," Dhakal told the closing ceremony of a five-day sub-regional executive development programme for cooperatives and rural financing institutions here this afternooon.

Organised jointly by the Centre for International Co-operation and Training in Agriculture Banking (CICTAB) and its Nepalese members NRB, Agriculture Development Bank, Rastriya Banijya Bank, Nepal Bank Limited and National Co-operative Development Board, the programme was participated in by over 30 professionals form Nepal, India and Sri Lanka.

"Nepalese co-operative and rural-credit scheme is still in the growing stage," Dhakal said. "Nepal can avail a lot from India and Sri Lanka."

Credit can play a crucial role in fighting poverty but means little to the poor people if it is beyond their reach and is unaffordable, Dhakal said. He appealed to the participants to use their skills to widen the scope of rural-credit.

CICTAB Chairman Bhagat Singh stressed on the need to speed up efforts to innovate simpler, swifter and more transparent credit schemes.

CICTAB Director Dr. B. B. Barik said that the main aim of the Centre was the integrated management of rural financing schemes.

Established in 1983, India's Pune based CICTAB has 25 member institutions - 12 from India, five each from Sri Lanka and Nepal and three from Bangladesh. The Centre has organised 70 training programmes and workshops during the last 17 years in agriculture banking, co-operative and rural development in which more than 1,600 officers from its member countries.

NRB's Development Finance Chief Ganesh Kumar Shrestha presented the evaluation report of the programme.

The participants said that the programme proved fruitful for them and stressed on integrated scheme to beat widespread poverty in the sub-region.

On the occasion, Governor Dhakal also gave away certificates to the participants.

NC condemns attempt to assassinate Sushil Koirala

BY A STAFF REPORTER

Kathmandu, Sept. 1: The Nepali Congress has strongly condemned what it calls as an attempt to assassinate Sushil Koirala, General Secretary of the party. A powerful bomb was found at Koirala's house at Buddhanagar on Thursday afternoon. But the police experts defused it before it could go off thereby averting a possible mayhem.

According to a party source, the bomb was wrapped inside a plastic bag. A family member had found the bag inside the compound of the house and a security guard being suspicious called the police. "Had the bomb gone off it would have caused a serious damage to the house and its vicinity," he said.

A press release of the party has called it a serious peril to the law and order situation at a time when extreme violence is being perpetrated through killings of people. "This is also an indication that the terrorists are trying to carry out their activities in the capital city," the press release says.

Without naming, the party has pointed fingers at the Maoists, who are waging a violent insurgency campaign since the last five years, for the murderous attempt.

Calling the government to find the culprits and to take stern action against them, the party has demanded the government to strictly control such activities and to give a sense of security to all.

Similarly, 13 Nepali Congressmen that includes MPs and others, in a press statement today have censured the attempt on the life of Koirala. Saying this incidence has called the Nepali Congress workers and all democratic forces to unite against terrorism, they said that political or personal assassinations have never fulfilled the nefarious intentions of the criminal and the terrorist elements. They have also called on the government to strengthen the law and order situation of the country.

Spokesman of the Nepali Congress party, Narahari Acharya, also said the government must make a serious and thorough investigation in the recent blasts at a few places in the capital city and see that such incidents are not repeated again.

On Wednesday, two blasts in the Patan Industrial Area had damaged a printing press and on Thursday a blast had damaged a wall of a school in Baneswore.

He said these blasts and the finding of a bomb at the house of the General Secretary of the party indicate that the Maoists are backing off from talks and that they are resorting to violent activities to divert the attention of the people away from the talks.

Talking to The Rising Nepal, Acharya said the government and the high-level Deuba Committee are fully prepared to start talks with the Maoists but the Maoists are not presenting themselves seriously and with honesty. "It is they who are not clear about the talks," he said.

Only yesterday, Deuba, Coordinator of the high level recommendation committee for the resolution of the ongoing Maoist problem, in a statement had called the Maoist leadership to reach out towards a dialogue for peace based on mutual confidence for a peaceful resolution of the insurgency problem.

The spokesman, Narahari Acharya, pointed out that it is wrong to say that there is no co-ordination between the government and the Deuba committee. Acharya further clarified that the government and the committee are moving ahead in tandem for the peaceful resolution of the ongoing Maoist problem besetting the country.

Religion, culture identity of Nepal, says Koirala

Kathmandu, Sept. 1 (RSS): Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala has said that it is the responsibility of every Nepalese to preserve our folk tradition, religion and culture.

Prime Minister Koirala was inaugurating the "Women's Awareness Music Conference-2000" organised on the occasion of "Haritalika Teej", the festival of women, at Radio Nepal here today.

Nobody will disagree that anomalies have crept in along with modernization in almost all the countries in the world, Prime Minister Koirala said adding that though it is difficult to get rid of such anomalies completely our responsibility is to minimize them.

Taking this truth into consideration His Majesty's Government has been making efforts through its policy and programmes to save Nepalese society from such anomalies and the organising of this music conference is also one step towards that end, he added.

Stating that the Teej festival is of great religious importance and can be taken as a festival where women express their meloncholy through the medium of songs, Mr Koirala said the songs of Teej also articulate women's freedom in simple language based on folk rhythms.

Religion, culture and art are the identity of Nepal which is renowned worldwide for them, Mr Koirala said adding that we are ahead of other countries in terms of the rights, welbeing and freedom of women.

As song and music can be an effective medium for women's awareness, utilising these for the empowerment of women can be fruitful, he added.

Prime Minister Koirala also extended heartfelt best wishes to all women on the occasion of Teej, an important festival of Hindu women.

Minister of State for Women, Children and Social Welfare Mrs Kamala Pant said that His Majesty's Government is sensitive to the socio-economic and political empowerment of women and that all Nepalese women should become united to face the challenges of the 21st century.

Secretary at the Ministry of Information and Communications and chairman of the radio transmission service development committee Sriram Poudel expressed hope that the conference would make a big contribution in the enhancement of awareness of women's rights, welbeing and empowerment and also play an important role in the development of national culture.

From the chair, secretary at the Ministry of Women, Children and Social Welfare Mrs Urmila Shrestha said good culture means a cultured life style and the cultural objective in this sense is equal behaviour from men towards women as much as women have faith in men. Hence the significance of this festival being jointly celebrated by men and women.

Executive director of the Radio Transmission Service Development Committee Sailendraraj Sharma said Radio Nepal has since the past 50 years been promoting the cultures and traditions of the country and has also concentrated on the development of all the indigenous languages and cultures.

Disclosing that Radio Nepal will begin its transmissions at 6:00 am from September 5, Sharma said the Surkhet transmission and eastern regional transmission will be connected to a second channel in the current and next fiscal years respectively.

Altogether 18 songs highlighting the feelings of all Hindu women in the country have been selected for the Teej song conference.

Ministers, Members of Parliament and high ranking officials of His Majesty's Government were also present at the conference organised jointly by the Ministry of Women, Children and Social Welfare and Radio Nepal.

Speaker stresses active role of parliaments

Kathmandu, Sept. 1 (RSS): Speaker of the of House Representative Taranath Ranabhat has said parliamentarians in Nepal are making every effort in upholding human dignity and rule of law and in meeting the basic needs of the people.

Mr. Ranabhat was addressing the conference of presiding officers of national parliaments held at the United Nations in New York from August 30 to September l.

He said parliament is the vehicle to ensure people's rights and liberties and secure peace and stability and also a harmonious and balanced development, adding, as a representative institution of the people, parliament has been working as a catalyst to address issues related to the general masses, the nation and its international relations.

Pointing out that our conviction in the parliamentary dimension of international cooperation must be further enhanced, he said in view of the call made by the IPU to provide a parliamentary dimension to international cooperation, parliaments should play an active role in regional and global issues for the betterment of human kind.

He said as the world enters the new millenium, the gap between the haves and have nots is on the increase. We therefore wish to see the United Nations play a more effective and meaningful role in alleviating poverty, human sufferings, different forms of discrimination, and in ending ethnic conflicts.

The United Nations has to be further strengthened and revitalized to play the new role and meet different challenges, and the ongoing reforms process has to be streamlined to meet the reality of geo-political parameters in international relations, he further said.

Pointing out that we still have people dying of hunger, malnutrition, lack of proper medical care, etc., He said the majority of the population is still deprived of the basic amenities. How can the adherents of democratic system and practices tolerate such a situation, he asked and said while individual countries may have their own agendas and priorities their acts should benefit humankind as a whole.

Nepal has her own priorities and the foremost has been poverty alleviation, he said. To attain the desired goals, we have focussed on the development of hydro power and tourism, and by adhering to free market economy we are also seeking to build an environment to attract foreign investment, he observed.

Meanwhile, Chairman of the National Assembly Dr Mohamad Mohashin has said that the promotion of human rights, bringing marginalised society to the mainstream of globalisation, sustainable development, and protecting the globalised world from terrorism, drug trafficking and onslaught on refugees are the major challenges confronting the world today.

Dr Mohasin, who was addressing the conference of presiding officers of national parliaments held in New York from August 30 to September l, said Nepal looks for stronger mechanism and effective ways and means to deal with these issues that affect international peace and security.

Calling upon all members of the Inter Parliamentary Union to work together with other world agencies employing parliamentary diplomacy to negate forces that threaten to destabilize and jeopardize our social fabric, he said in order to face the growing challenges, the reform of the United Nations Security Council should reflect the contemporary reality of inter state relations.

Transparency and fairness are not only necessary in national policy formulation but also highly desirable in international cooperation and negotiations, he observed.

Pointing out that the process of disarmament should be encouraged and accelerated so that people benefit from the dividend of peace, he said we have been exteding our support to the cause of world peace and contributing our people and resources to UN peace keeping missions anywhere.

Calling upon all member states of the United Nations to support the efforts of the United Nations in order to enable it to discharge its mandated responsibility, he urged all the delegates to adopt measures to increase the flow of resources to the least developed and highly indebted countries by enhancing official development assistance as well as by facilitating imports from these countries on more preferential basis.

House panel seeks extensive information from MWR, NEA

Kathmandu, Sept. 1 (RSS): The meeting of the Finance Committee of the House of Representatives held today under the chairmanship of Committee chairman Smriti Narayan Chaudhari sought extensive information from the secretary of the Ministry of Water Resources and executive director of the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) on the power purchase agreement signed with the private sector by the Nepal Electricity Authority.

According to the committee, great financial loss has been incurred not only to Nepal Electricity Authority but its customers as well and if we look into the terms and conditions of the agreements signed with the Khimti, Bhotekoshi, Indrawati and Upper Modi Hydel Projects we can see that a great amount of money will go out of the country.

Even taking into consideration the need for providing facilities to foreign investors for encouraging them to invest in hydro sector, complexities arise like adjusting to the dollar rate even in projects which have a share of indigenous investment, the compulsion to buy all the power generated even when it cannot be consumed, creation of surplus energy due to lack of proper analysis of future demand and supply.

Therefore, the meeting directed the Minister of Water Resources to review the agreements so far concluded and establish a comprehensive basis for talks on re-working the conditions and provisions of agreements so that no loss will be incurred to Nepal Electricity Authority. It also decided to demand comprehensive information on the actual costs of projects.

Similarly, the Committee has alerted the concerned sector not to conclude new agreements and not implement such agreements on power purchase without making a proper analysis of demand and supply in the energy sector.

The Committee has also drawn the attention of those concerned to think over taking loans at interest at market rate from foreign private sources taking into consideration the liquidity situation in the banks in the country and the foreign currency reserves.

The committee also decided to invite the governor of Nepal Rastra Bank, the general manager of Nepal Bank Ltd. and the executive chairman of Rastriya Banijya Bank to its meeting on September 4 for furnishing information on the report of the K.P.M.G. On Nepal Bank Ltd. and Rastriya Banijya Bank.

The meeting held under the convenorship of the convenor of the report draft sub committee constituted to prepare an annual report under the National Assembly remote areas committee decided to seek the progress report and programmes launched so far for the development of the area since the launching of development works in remote districts in 2022 B.S. By HMG.

Similarly, the meeting decided to seek details about the chiefs and experts of programmes at the ministries concerned as well as the policies, concepts, plans, acts, rules, circulars and information pertaining to the remote area development.

Pvt sector vital for farms

Itahari, Sept. 1 (RSS): A day-long workshop seminar was organized at the Tarahara Agriculture Research Centre, Sunsari, Thursday with the objective of drawing a conclusion regarding transfer of technology to the farmers for increasing agriculture production with coordination and partnership with the private sector as per the 20-year long- term policy of His Majesty's Government.

The workshop seminar on "partnership with the private sector" organized under the aegis of the Agriculture Research Centre, Tarahara brought together the agricultural scientists from east Nepal, the chiefs of non-governmental institutions and organizations and people contributing to technology development in the agriculture sector.

The seminar concluded that agriculture productivity could be increased only with the direct involvement of the private sector.

On the occasion, discussions were held on various working papers on the successful implementation of the government's agriculture policy and at the end of extensive deliberations it was concurred that agriculture productivity can be enhanced only with the spirit of cooperatives and partnership.

Speaking from the chair, director of accounts at Nepal Agricultural Research Council (NARC) Govinda Koirala stressed extensive extension of technology and direct involvement of the private sector and cooperative spirit for bringing about qualitative change in the national economy heavily reliant on agriculture.

Representative of the World Bank Dr Stefen B. pointed out the need to bring about changes in the traditional concepts of agriculture and extension of modern agriculture technology.

Chief of the Regional Agriculture Directorate Ghanshyam Singh underlined the need for raising the awareness of the farmers on the use of modern technology. He said research and extension were intrinsically related to each other.

Chief of the Regional Livestock Services Directorate Dr Arun Shankar Ranjit spoke of the need to maintain regular coordination between offices of His Majesty's Government and the international non-governmental institutions and organisations for improving the agriculture sector.

Chief of the Regional Agriculture Research Centre Chitta Ranjan Yadav underscored the need of identifying the problems and challenges of the agriculture sector and choosing the right kind of technology to surmounting such problems.

Kamal Gautam of the South Asia Partnership-Nepal, Rudra Nath Dahal of the Plan International, Purna Bajra Bajracharya of the Regional Agriculture Directorate and Krishna Adhikari of the Kamadhenu Dairy Cooperatives Ltd had presented working papers on the occasion.