Fight against terrorism to top agenda
Prime Minister's India visit begins today

By A Staff Reporter

Kathmandu, Mar. 19:Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba confirmed today that during his visit to India he would solicit cooperation from the southern neighbour to cut off all kinds of support the Maoist terrorists could be getting from across the border.

Prime Minister Deuba is leaving tomorrow on a week-long goodwill visit to India at the invitation of his Indian counterpart Atal Behari Vajpayee. This is Premier Deuba's first visit to India after he joined office last year.

Apart from seeking Indian support in Nepal’s fight against terrorism, which has taken advantage of the open border between the two friendly countries, Prime Minister's forthcoming visit to India would also focus on matters of bilateral interest.

At a meeting called at his office this morning, the Prime Minister informed the leaders of all political parties, former Nepalese ambassadors to India, foreign affairs experts and diplomats that his upcoming visit was meant at strengthening and solidifying the age-old friendly relations between the two neighboring countries and seeking support to solve the country’s internal problems ranging from terrorism to that of the Bhutanese refugees.

Prime Minister Deuba, while presenting the agenda of his visit, also sought advice from the attending dignitaries to make it more fruitful.

Prime Minister Deuba said that he would hold serious dialogue with his Indian counterpart for effectively controlling any kind of support that the Maoist terrorists might be receiving from the Indian soil.

The Prime Minister said that he would ask India to take necessary steps regarding the management of dams and reserves so that the life of Nepalese residing in Banke and Rupandehi districts was not affected.

He said that he would also discuss the agreement on extending the railway service, the agreement on customs and the effective implementation of the recently renewed trade treaty between the two countries.

Prime Minister Deuba also informed the meeting that dialogue would be held towards making the 1950-Nepal-India treaty timely and more relevant. He said that completion of works on the Indo-Nepal border, including the controversial Kalapani area, would also be taken up during his tour.

"The positive role of India for resolving the Bhutanese refugees would also be sought during the visit," the Prime Minister said.

Premier Deuba also informed the meeting that as chairman of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), he would discuss with the Indian leaders about giving momentum to the SAARC programmes.

Leader of the main opposition CPN-UML Bharat Mohan Adhikari said that the forthcoming visit of the Prime Minister should secure maximum benefits for Nepal.

"We want the controversial issues of Laxmanpur barrage in Banke and Khurdalotan dam in Rupandehi to be addressed," he said.

Adhikari, informed that his party would not be included in the Prime Minister’s entourage to India.

Nepalese diplomatic circle here see the Prime Minister’s visit to India as a stepping stone to finding added support in its internal fight against terrorism, among many other outstanding bilateral issues.

Former director at the Institute of Foreign Affairs Prof. Mohan Prasad Lohani said that since the Maoist terrorists were taking undue advantage from the open border, the leaders of both the countries were expected to work out how the border security forces of both Nepal and India could work to check the terrorist activities.

Meanwhile, RSS add,s Prime Minister Deuba is leaving here for India tomorrow afternoon on a six-day official goodwill visit at the invitation of Indian Prime Minister Atal Vihari Vajpayee.

It has been expected that in the context of the security actions being taken by the state against the Maoist terrorists effectively, the cooperation in all forms to be received from India will be instrumental in controlling them.

The Prime Minister's entourage includes his spouse Dr Arzu Deuba, Minister for Water Resources Bijaya Kumar Gachchhadar, Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supplies Poorna Bahadur Khadka, Royal Nepalese Ambassador to India Dr Bhesh Bahadur Thapa and his spouse Rita Thapa, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Arjun Jung Bahadur Singh, Minister of State for Science and Technology Bhakta Bahadur Balayar, MPs Smriti Narayan Chaudhary, Surya Prasad Pradhan, Homnath Dahal, Narayan Singh Pun, Ram Hari Dhungel, Netralal Shrestha and Mrigendra Kumar Singh Yadav, NC central members Bimalendra Nidhi, Prakash Man Singh and Pradip Giri, chief secretary Tirtha Man Shakya, Prime Minister's advisors, secretaries, chairman of Nepal Press Council Harihar Birahi, president of the Federation of Nepalese Journalists Suresh Acharya, Shreeram Singh Basnet of RSS, representatives of private and government media organisations, FNCCI president Ravi Bhakta Shrestha, industrialists and businessmen.

Six terrorists killed, 11 others arrested

By A Staff Reporter

Kathmandu, Mar. 19: Six terrorists were killed and 11 others arrested during security operations carried out in different parts of the country on Monday and Tuesday.

The Defence Ministry said that four terrorists were shot dead in encounters with the security forces at Satmuri along the Palpa-Gulmi border today.

Likewise, one terrorist each from Ranimata of Dailekh and Tokha of Kathmandu were gunned down in army operations yesterday.

The security personnel also recovered nine .303 rifles, pistols, pressure cooker and tiffin carrier bombs, large amounts of explosives, combat dresses and terrorists’ documents from the Ratamuri area.

Meanwhile, the security personnel have arrested four terrorists each from Bishrampur of Rauthat and Sidhhapokhari of Sankhuwasabha, two from Tandi of Morang and one from Siwa area of Taplejung. The security forces seized six guns, pistols, a large quantity of explosives and combat dresses from Samphudin of Taplejung and Jaljala area of Sankhuwasabha, according to the Ministry.

Chitwan students not yet informed of SLC centres

By Our Correspondent

Bharatpur, Mar. 19:Even though the School Leaving Certificate examinations are starting in two weeks that is from April 2, students of Chitwan district have not been informed about the exam centres.

Especially those students, who live outside the district headquarters, are facing a lot of problems as the examination centres for the SLC students have yet to be fixed.

"Announcement of the examination centres has been delayed due to security reasons," says District Education Officer Hareesh Chandra Yadav. As decided by the security committee, the exam centres will be fixed, he said. Examination centres will be announced by March 23, he said.

The number of students appearing for the SLC examinations this year is more than double that of last year, when 2,487 students of the district had appeared for the exams. This year 5,022 students are preparing for the exams in both the regular and the exempted ones.

With increase in the number of students this year, more examination centres could be in the offing. According to the District Education Office, the examination centre in the remote area of Madi has been cancelled for this time. Students of Madi will sit for the exams at the district headquarters, Bharatpur. Students of 98 government and private schools of the district are likely to appear for this year’s SLC examinations at 22 exam centres, according to the District Education Office.

Constitutional amendment key to solving problems: leaders

By A Staff Reporter

Kathmandu, Mar. 19:Leaders of various political parties today reiterated that constitutional amendment would pave the way for resolving the problems facing the nation and discourage the violent activities of the Maoists.

Nepali Congress has forwarded a 22-point proposal for constitutional amendment to mitigate the challenges before the nation, Nepali Congress central member Narahari Acharya told a face to face programme here this afternoon. "This is only a provisional proposal; further discussions can be held to address other issues."

Acharya said all articles except Article 116 of the Constitution could be amended without tampering with the spirit of the preamble. "Even the words in the preamble can be changed without violating its spirit."

He rejected the view that the Constitution should not be amended during the state of emergency. "There is nothing wrong in amending the Constitution during an emergency if the government and the Opposition shoulder the burden of holding open discussions across the country."

He said that the Constitution had to be amended soon. "The NC, however, does not intend to amend it in a haste without holding adequate debate on the matter."

He said the NC and the UML had proposed to strengthen the powers of the Prime Minister and stressed on the need to categorically specify ways to empower the executive head.

"Personally, I am in favour of a system in which the Prime Minister is directly elected. Besides, the people in the legislature should be barred from going to the executive and vice versa," he said.

He denied any possibility of talks between the government and the Maoists unless the Maoists clarified their political agenda and specified the conditions for laying down their arms. "The Maoists have lost their credibility by unilaterally walking away from the talks, and both the government and the public should remain cautious of their indications to come back to the table."

He said it was the responsibility of the Maoists to create an environment for talks.

Rastriya Prajatantra Party general secretary Pashupati Sumsher JB Rana said the political parties should rise above their party interests and get united on issues of national interest to address the Maoist problem. "The future of other parties won't be secure if we fail to resolve the Maoist problem."

He stressed on reservations for the backward and the downtrodden to ensure their access to education and employment and called for restructuring the National Assembly as an institution that represents the backward communities.

He said talks between the government and the Maoists would be welcome. "Seeking a political solution even though the army is mobilised would be a laudable step."

Nepal Sadhbhavana Party’s senior leader Hridayesh Tripathy said the Constitution should not be amended for the gain of certain political parties. "The amendment should keep the citizens at the centre and ensure their representation and participation in the government."

He said the Maoists were unlikely to join the mainstream even after the amendment of the Constitution. "This will, however, be instrumental in solving the problem of the people and discourage violence and isolate the Maoists."

Tripathy said that the existing system failed to represent the diverse communities in the country and called for a 'federal system of government' to ensure their representation. "We can shift to the federal system in the existing situation."

Leftist leader Devi Ojha said the amendment of the Constitution would assist in resolving the socio-economic problems of the nation. "But talks would be the best option to solve the Maoist problem," he said.

The interaction was organised by the Reporter’s Club.

Alpinists to try fulfill 1952 Everest dream

By A Staff Reporter

Kathmandu, Mar. 19: It cannot be called mere coincidence that Tashi Tenzing gradson of Tenzing Norgay Sherpa, who together with Edmund Hillary successfully scaled Mount Everest for the first time on May 29, 1953, and Yves Lambert, son of famous mountaineer Raymond Lambert, are setting out tomorrow (Wednesday) to scale the highest peak in the world.

Tenzing Norgay Sherpa and Raymond Lambert were members of the Swiss expedition team to Everest in 1952. Though they could not reach the summit, it was a historic attempt and is still remembered today with reverence.

It is exactly 50 years since that event took place. To commemorate the event, the Geneve Everest Expedition is here in Kathmandu. According to Tashi Tenzing and Yves Lambert, the present expedition is aimed at fulfilling the dream of 1952.

Zeal and great desire are what can describe their plan to conquer Everest this spring season. To capture the images, a film team is also accompanying the expedition. It is a remarkable and worthy way to pay tribute to the great heroes.

Another remarkable feature of the Swiss expedition team to Everest is that the famous and world-renowned mountaineer Appa Sherpa, who has already scaled the world's highest peak for a record 11 times, is also a member. This will be his 12th attempt at the tallest peak.

Elders raise national issues

Kathmandu, Mar. 19 (RSS): CPN-UML whip Surendra Prasad Pandey, taking time from National Assembly Vice Chairman Rampreet Paswan at the meeting of the National Assembly today, alleged that the government had misused the state of emergency by arresting the editor of "Mulyankan" Shyam Shrestha and demanded the immediate release of the editor.

Ganga Datta Joshi of the NC demanded that the government immediately present the anti-corruption bill.

Sukra Raj Samyok of the same party said that the subject of talks has been raised at a time when the security forces was moving towards success by bravely fighting the terrorists in Rolpa district. The Maoist terrorists should surrender their arms to the government if they are ready to hold talks with the government, he added.

Referring to the news reports of Prachanda's conditions for political talks and the NC president's contact with the Maoists appearing in two national daily newspapers on Chaitra 3, Akal Bahadur Bista of the NC said that this is a scheme being made to create factions within the government and make the government unsuccessful.

Stating that Baburam and Prachanda should openly come forward for talks and the government should be serious about the matter, Bista said that during the Prime Minister's visit to India, efforts should be made to move ahead the process of commitments being made by the SAARC Summit conference held in Kathmandu recently.

Bir Bahadur Singh of the CPN-UML demanded that the house be provided information about the incidents which took place between the security forces and the Maoist terrorists in Rolpa and Kalikot districts.

Stating that the students have not been able to find rooms for shelter and the government has not been able to fix examination centers for the S.L.C. examination scheduled to be held on April 2, Goma Devi Devkota of the CPN-UML said that the Government should the students a feeling of security and make necessary arrangements for their examination.

Lalit Bahadur Basnet of the same party said that the government should provide employment guarantee to the unemployed workers of salt trading corporation and Butwal thread factory.

Ramchandra Bhattarai of the CPN-UML demanded that the programme of parliamentary activities be broadcast at an appropriate time so that everyone can hear it.

Alleging that the state of emergency had been misued by arresting three journalists including editor of "Mulyankan" Shyam Shrestha, he demanded the immediate release of the three journalists.

Similarly, Kashinath Adhikari of CPN-UML said at today's meeting of the National Assembly that the economy of the country is in an abnormal state, statistics show that poverty has increased even though two five-year plans have been brought in since restoration of the multiparty system, unemployment has seen an alarming increase and the economic growth rate has been the lowest in the past one and half decades. This situation is not only due to the emergency but also because of the past.

He said general expenditure has been increasing in comparison to development expenditure and the government target of raising 60 billion rupees is not possible, adding that short term and long term programmes should be brought in to rid the country of crisis.

MP Chanda Shaha said parliament was not taken into confidence on the rationale of the Prime Minister's India visit during a time of emergency, and asked what preparation has been made to finalise the Pancheswor DPR, address the Kalapani issue and undertake the 1950 treaty review.

Bisweswora Dahal of CPN-UML said though a women's commission has been constituted, the process is not yet complete and there is confusion over its rights and duties as it was formed without bringing in a bill. He demanded a bill to empower the commission.

Lok Bahadur Thapa of RPP said we hear there is a struggle for power instead of resolving the crisis in the country by finding out the reasons for the terror and asked what was the mystery behind the rumour that the ruling party leader had secret talks with the Maoists.

Deepak Bahadur Gurung of NC said some arrangements have to be thought of at a time of rumours of constitutional amendment to enable the participation of the nationalities in the government and non-government sectors and called for opening a nationalities student hostel and for reservations for them.

MP Dr. Rup Jyoti said the tax administration has unleashed tax terror by demanding particulars about income and personal matters without proof of financial irregularities and called for a halt to harrassment of the people.

Gaura Koirala of CPN-UML said the installation of telephones has taken months although it could have been done in three days and asked if this was because of lack of coordination or sharing of embezzled money. He demanded an end to the unnecessary trouble being given to people.

India looking forward to Deuba visit

New Delhi, Mar. 19 (RSS): The Indian side is looking forward eagerly to the six-day official goodwill visit to India that Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba is paying from tomorrow at the friendly invitation of Prime Minister of India Atal Behari Vajpayee.

All necessary formalities for Prime Minister Deuba's visit to India have been completed by both sides, according to the Royal Nepalese Embassy in New Delhi.

Prime Minister Deuba has been on an official visit to India once before, in l996.

Both sides have attached special importance to Deuba's visit, which is taking place at a time when both Nepal and India are undergoing special situations.

Some crucial issues including the problem of Maoist terrorists, implementation of the recently renewed Nepal-India treaty of trade, the unresolved problem of inundation on the Nepalese side of the border, procrastination in resolving the Bhutanese refugee problem, border management and the like are expected to be discussed at the top level between the two countries during this visit.

Implementation of the decisions of the 11th SAARC Summit, which concluded successfully in Kathmandu some two and half months ago, and bilateral cooperation in the utilisation of Nepal's water resources will also figure in discussions between the two sides.

Thursday will be the most hectic day for Prime Minister Deuba. He will be officially received at Rastrapati Bhavan in the morning. He will then visit the Samadhisthal of Mahatma Gandhi at Rajghat to pay tributes. He will pay courtesy calls on the President of India, K.R. Narayanan, and Vice President Krishna Kant the same day.

Also that day, high level bilateral talks will be held between the Prime Ministers of Nepal and India. Indian Prime Minister Vajpayee is scheduled to host a dinner in honour of Prime Minister Deuba Thursday evening.

There has been a long tradition of exchange of high level visits between the statesmen of Nepal and India, and this tradition has been further promoted since the restoration of democracy in Nepal. The state visit by His late Majesty King Birendra Bir Bikram Shah to India and Indian President K.R. Narayanan's visit to Nepal had further cemented this tradition.

Former Nepalese prime ministers Krishna Prasad Bhattarai, Girija Prasad Koirala and Man Mohan Adhikari had paid official visit to India immediately after they assumed office as Prime Minister. Former prime minister of India P.V. Narasimha Rao visited Nepal while in office, while incumbent Prime Minister Vajpayee visited Nepal during the 11th SAARC Summit some two and half months ago.

In continuation of this tradition, Prime Minister Deuba is arriving here tomorrow as the head of a high level delegation. The main public places in Delhi, including Tinmurti Marg, are decorated with Nepalese flags to welcome Prime Minister Deuba.

In view of the importance of Prime Minister Deuba's visit to India, various Indian television channels and journalists from different media have interriewed Royal Nepalese Ambassador to India Dr Bhesh Bahadur Thapa.

Nepal guarantees right to know, says Gupata

Kathmandu, Mar. 19 (RSS): Minister for Information and Communications Jaya Prakash Prasad Gupta has said that Nepal feels the need to make special efforts to develop rapidly so that the extensive application of ICT will engender economic consolidation, development of democratic norms and values, proportional distribution of economic resources and enhancement of public awareness, thereby raising living standards and eventually contributing significantly to poverty alleviation.

Minister Gupta said this in his address to the World Telecommunication Development Conference in Istanbul, Turkey today. The conference was inaugurated yesterday by Turkish President Ahmet Necde Sezer.

Gupta said to safeguard the Constitutional guarantee of the right to know, Nepal formulated and adopted the National Communications Policy in 1992, a policy recognising the need to make available all kinds of information to the people, emphasising the development and expansion of telecommunications services as a very essential service in order to foster it as an infrastructure of national development, and encouraging private sector investment.

A separate telecommunication policy was formulated and adopted in 1999 with the main objective of developing and expanding telecommunications services in a fair, competitive atomosphere with involvement of the private sector, he said.

An Information Technology Policy 2000, was formulated to make information technology accessible to the general public and increase employment through this means, to built a knowledge-based society and to establish knowledge-based industries, he said.

One of the strategies adopted was to rapidly develop and extend information technology in a fair and competitive manner through encouragement of domestic and foreign investment, he added.

In-spite of consistent and continued efforts both at policy and implementation level, the digital divide is widening, he observed and added that Nepal has Tele-density of 1.3 (i.e. main telephone lines per 100 inhabitants), cellular penetration of 0.02, PC penetration of about 50,000 computer sets and television penetration covering 44 per cent of the country's population and 35 per cent of land area.

There are all together 3,914 VDCs in Nepal, out of which only 1,761 are provided with telephones and only 268 have local telephone exchanges with capacity ranging from 150 to 500 lines each, he said adding that because of rugged mountainous topography, the choice of technology is based on solar powered radio (VHF/UHF/microwave), making it often very difficult to maintain, repair and provide continuity of service.

Under government and private initiatives, plans are under way to provide telecommunication services to the remaining VDCs through a mix of sattellite and terrestrial based wireless technologies, he said.

While facing the challenge of getting increased investment for developing and expanding information infrastructure in order to narrow the digital divide, we at the same time face a dilemma of realising due returns from already built-up telecommunication infrastructure due to the use of new and alternative technologies such as VOIPS which bypasses traditional bilateral commercial tariffs, he said.

Loss of revenue due to this coupled with declining investment from the private sector in spite of various policies and other incentives provided to them, has slowed down the pace of telecommunications development, further widening the digital divide, he said.

He hoped the conference would lay the groundwork for technology neutral next generation networks, that could facilitate migration from PSTN to IP-based next generation networks, through appropriate changes in regulations and licensing, and creation of international bilateral commercial charging arrangements.

He also hoped the conference would address various other digital divide issues such as infrastructure, education and language awareness prevailing between developed, developing and least developed countries and arrive at a strategic plan and an action plan to enable commensurate growth of telecommunication infrastructure for the growth of information technology.