Message of Chaitra 26th
Uphold Development Spirit

By Gandhi Raj Kafle

IS THERE any direct link between democracy and economic development? Certainly, yes, say academicians. What do politicians say? As far as economic development is concerned, they too are not hesitant to admit that democracy is the best system of governance for meeting economic target in favour of the people. Thus, can be concluded that democracy is a development-oriented system. Everyone agrees that democracy gains maximum output to benefit people if a country makes sincere efforts to prepare and implement plans of economic development.

In this conceptual backdrop, we can try to assess Nepal’s democracy. Though it’s a sort of chequered experiment, Nepal gained democracy in 1951. And, if we count these days, the period we get is not short. The nation has already celebrated 51st National Democracy Day, which means our experiment with democracy has crossed half a century mark. Politically, this long time provides enough reason to satisfy.

But, what’s the economic situation today? Can the country boast for fast economic development? What kind of democratic norms have we developed to prioritise our needs? Have we really been serious to choose and implement economic planning, which the country has promised to succeed? Have the democratic leaders, who carry the trust of people for economic development, been successful to keep themselves aloof from corruption cases? These are some of the questions, which need to be answered objectively.

Democracy is not merely a theory. If it had been so, this would have been limited to the books of political science only. But, it holds practical values to make it one of the best systems of governance. That’s why most of the countries across the world are pursuing democratic system to guarantee the need of the people, which ultimately aims to uplift the country economically and socially. Nepal’s will and aspirations from this system too are the same.

Certainly, Nepal looks quite different from that of its social and economic status before 1951. The people have learned the value of their rights and duties to be empowered socially and economically. They are aware of their local planning too. Access to transport and communications has dramatically increased during this period. Being an open system, there is a glut of foreign goods in the Nepalese market. Yet, the country’s policy focus is on indigenous products. For it, both government and private sectors are striving for better performance. In all these changes, democracy must be commended.

But, is it enough? Corruption in the country, according to the Auditor General’s annual report too, is rising. Leaders are driven by the attitude for comfort at the cost of the state. Mechanism, which have been envisaged to control corruption, are weakened. The efforts to make local bodies economically independent is very slow and if this pace is not changed, they may face dependence syndrome acutely in the days to come. The country suffers political aberration adversely affecting economy frequently.

Factories and industries, which were opened in the past, are showing poor performance. They are inefficient to compete. The government is eager to change its economic policy in the environment of liberal global condition, but the response to it is not so encouraging. It is also seen that the government’s intervention at public factories, industries and corporations is not based on the standard norms. In fact, if we closely monitor the situation there, it seems, they are run by bureaucrats instead of competent managers. This is apparently an anomalous situation, which can harm the benefit of these public factories, industries and corporations.

The government has failed to generate employment opportunities for youths, who are becoming more educated, more informed and more competent. Efforts are being made to downsise public administration, which may distract youths in this sector. The concept of small administration with a few, but functioning staff is good, but attention must be there to inject new blood which can be fulfilled by an entry of competent, fresh and brainy youths in civil services.

In these gains and losses, the challenges for Nepal’s democracy to deliver a good governance too have become herculean task. Everyone knows the pace of economic development of the country is very slow. Our democracy has not been able to satisfy the people yet. The pressure for rapid progress in all sectors of the national economy is enormous. The leaders, who have championed the cause of democracy in this nation, themselves are worried of the stagnant situation. They know, what are the real problems. Yet, they clash, fail to forge consensus and weaken the spirit for rapid economic development in the country.

In this situation, one has to evaluate to know what has gone wrong in the past. On the occasion of Chaitra 26, when Nepalese people restore Nepalese should be encouraged to adopt corrective measures. Democracy can’t be blamed for failure because it’s a system, which guarantees every possibility to develop leadership for the country. But, this is a process, which demand sincerity not only for economic development but also for social reforms. So, if slow economic growth is the heart touching problem in Nepal, the leaders have to pledge honestly for the nation while marking the day when Nepalese regained the lost democracy after 30 years’ of constant struggle.

Restoration of Maya Devi Temple

By Shaphalya Amatya

AN INTERNATIONAL technical meeting is being held at Lumbini to discuss the conservation, restoration and presentation of Maya Devi’s temple.

This international scientific meeting will be participated in by the Japan Buddhist Federation, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, UNESCO Kathmandu office, Ministry of Culture, Civil Aviation and Tourism, Department of Archaeology, Lumbini Development Trust and twelve other national and five other international experts.

According to the schedule of the Lumbini Development Trust (LDT) immediately after this meeting the conservation activities at the Maya Devi temple will begin from May 7th, on the auspicious occasion of the Birth Day of Lord Buddha.

In May 1990 Lumbini Development Trust (LDT) and the Japan Buddhist Federation (JBF) signed an agreement for the restoration of the Maya Devi Temple.

The Department of Archaeology (DOA) was not consulted by LDT before signing this agreement. Once the DOA came to know about this agreement they raised their voice against it. Due to the objection of the DOA this agreement could not move forward. Then with the request of JBF in June 1991 a memorandum was signed between JBF, LDT and DOA. The main objective of this memorandum was to keep detail archaeological record of the Maya Devi Temple from the very beginning of its dismantling and to make research on each findings and with the help of these findings to decide the future course of action. But the restoration of the Maya Devi Temple did not begin till September 1992 when the original 1990 agreement was amended and resigned by the then LDT authorities.

The dismantling of the Maya Devi Temple was started in December 1992 in which the archaeologists from JBF, LDT and DOA were engaged. The excavation at the Maya Devi Temple site continued for nearly four years. At the excavated site structures from the third century B.C. to 20th century A.D. were found. The most notable discovery was the marker stone. This marker stone was found in the lowest structure of a chamber which was constructed by Emperor Ashoka when he came for pilgrimage to Lumbini. This discovery was highlighted by Nepalese press and on 4th February 1996 the exact sacred spot of the birthplace of Sakyamuni Buddha in Lumbini was discovered. In December 1996 a national convention on the issue of the restoration of the Maya Devi national convention unanimously decided that the archaeological ruins of the temple site should neither be disturbed nor mutilated.

In mid-1997 the JBF requested the DOA and LDT for the permission of restoring the Maya Devi Temple. On December 1997 JBF presented a report titled "Archaeological Survey Record of Maya Devi Temple And Recommendation for Preservation of the Remains Through Restoration of Maya Devi Temple".

Similarly, the Nepalese counterpart archaeologists were also requested repeatedly by DOA and LDT to submit their reports but to no avail. The report of JBF was also not up to the archaeological report. When the DOA expressed their dissatisfaction on the report, the JBF archaeologist Uesaka promised to submit a detail scientific archaeological report once the Nepalese counterparts have presented their versions. But it was never materialised.

Babu Krishna Rijal, Kosh Raj Acharya and Basant Bidari, the three Nepalese archaeologists have different stories to tell about it. The report presented by JBF has been found contradictory in many aspects. It says on the one hand that the Maya Devi Temple’s archaeological survey (excavation) has achieved many grand results on the other hand it also says that all those achievements are not at all helpful for the restoration of the Temple. It says the inner sanctuary of the temple was narrow. The report further says,"It may be against the wishes of the Buddhist from not only Nepal, but also from all over the world, to restore image of birth place of Lord Buddha in the Maya Devi Temple. Needless to say, it is a place of worship for Buddhists from all over the world to pay homage in reminiscent of Lord Buddha’s Nativity Image, while at the same time, it will be a structure which will be restored in the present Kingdom of Nepal, and it is important it be something the people of Nepal will not feel uncomfortable with."

After going through this report it has been found that the JBF was to reconstruct the Maya Devi Temple in the name of restoration which the DOA can never permit and which is also totally against the World Heritage criteria.

When the JBF found that their ultimate wish of reconstructing the Maya Devi Temple would not be fulfilled they kept quite for some time.

In December 1998 the World Buddhist Summit was organised at Lumbini. On 1st December Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala laid the foundation stone for the restoration of the Maya Devi shrine complex amidst a grand function in the presence of international delegates. A model of the future Maya Devi Temple prepared by Nepal Engineering College with the cooperation of LDT and DOA was also displayed on the spot. But since Lumbini has already been inscribed in the World Heritage List in 1997 before any decision being taken on the restoration project, the Heritage Centre should be consulted. The Nepalese model was sent to UNESCO for approval but for many months they did not respond. Ultimately UNESCO rejected the Nepalese model citing various reasons. Then the JBF submitted a design prepared by Kumagai, a Japanese architect to the LDT. It was also sent to UNESCO but UNESCO asked the LDT to submit it after fulfilling all the requirements necessary according to their recommendations in the International Scientific Meeting currently being held.

In the meeting, two models for the restoration of the Maya Devi Temple are going to be presented. One is from the JBF prepared by Mr. Kumagai and the other from LDT prepared by Mr. Bhibhuti Man Singh and friends. It is expected that this time a definite decision will be taken for the implementation of the restoration works of the Maya Devi Temple.

At this meeting, the experts will examine those two models or any other model presented with the guidelines given to them by UNESCO (Coningham & Milous 2000). They will also have to take into consideration the Intergovernmental Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention. The task is not easy yet the decision must be made.

Vitamin A Programme 

OVER the years, there has been a significant improvement in the status of Vitamin A among children in the country. Thanks largely to the implementation of the National Vitamin A programme that began in 1992 aimed at supplementing high dose Vitamin A twice a year, Vitamin A deficiency is no longer a problem of public health significance among pre-school children. With Vitamin A supplements reaching out to nearly 90 per cent of the children, Nepal can pat itself on the back for having achieved the goal of virtually eliminating Vitamin A deficiency. Vitamin A deficiency used to be a serious public health problem in the Eighties. The programme has been underway for nine years now to cut down on infant mortality, controlling diseases caused by Vitamin A deficiency and building up the habit among people to consume green vegetables, fruits and a balanced diet. Various surveys carried out in recent years show that there has been a significant decrease in night blindness, for instance. Once again, on April 19 and 20, Vitamin A capsules will be administered to children six months to five years in 72 districts of the country. The capsules will be administered to some 3.1 million children in the districts with the help of 40,000 plus local women health volunteers to be mobilised at the ward level. In cutting down Vitamin A deficiency, the immense contribution of the Female Community Health Workers (FCHV) should not be forgotten. Thanks to them, coverage is higher in the rural areas than in the urban centers, as a survey carried out in 2000 showed. Despite the gender biases seen in other areas, coverage of both boys and girls is nearly equal. In rural Nepal, the FCHVs have been the catalyst behind the increase in primary health care services. They have been in the forefront teaching rural women the importance of child immunization, childcare and nutrition as well as contraceptive and antenatal care.

While the National Vitamin A programme is one of the few national health programmes that the country can pride in, a lot needs to be done. Nearly a third of pre-school children are still low on Vitamin A. And Vitamin A deficiency is frequent in school-going children, which goes to suggest that while pre-school children benefit from the programme, Vitamin A deficiency is a public health problem in older children.