Political praties forward appeal to His Majesty

By A Staff Reporter

KATHMANDU, Oct.8: Senior leaders of the six mainstream political parties represented in the dissolved parliament this evening forwarded a signed appeal to His Majesty the King to form the next government with the consensus of all the political parties.

An all-party meeting held in the residence of the Nepali Congress president Girija Prasad Koirala earlier today had decided to send an appeal, requesting His Majesty to form a government only after holding discussions with these political parties and based on consensus.

Following the announcement by His Majesty the King, the six major political parties, excluding the Nepali Congress (Democratic), led by the erstwhile Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, met today for the second day to make a common decision on the present situation.

According to spokesman of the Nepali Congress Arjun Narsingh KC, the meeting had agreed to send a letter bearing the signatures of the leaders, requesting His Majesty to form the government according to Article 128 of the Constitution. KC said that the meeting approved the decisions taken by the meeting on Monday. The meeting on Monday had decided to request His Majesty the King to resolve the present political crisis within the framework of the Constitution and through consultations with and involvement of the political parties - indicating a desire for an all-party government.

His Majesty the King had relieved Deuba and his council of ministers on Friday for failing to hold the elections as scheduled on November 13. In the same address His Majesty the King had solicited names of untainted personalities from the political parties to be represented in the next government.

Loans, grants should figure in national budget: KC

By A Staff Reporter

KATHMANDU, Oct. 8: In order to maintain accountability and transparency of foreign assistance to Nepal, all such aid coming either in the form of grants or loans 'without any exception' should be brought under the framework of the national budget, said auditor general Bishnu Bahadur K.C. today.
"The only way out to maintain transparency of grant assistance is by figuring it in the budget," he stressed at a programme on "Use and Misuse of Foreign Loans and Grants" organised by the Nepal Council of World Affairs in the capital today.

"Non-inclusion of grant assistance in the annual budget is the crux of the problem, and bringing it into the budgetary framework will give a fair view of the government's financial affair," he added.

He said that the reports of the Auditor General had made these recommendations to the government. It is essential that the donors be assured about the proper utilisation of the money they give to Nepal.
He even criticised some donors, but without naming them, for not sharing information with the Supreme Audit Institution of Nepal.

Foreign aid constitutes 70 per cent of country's annual budget, and it plays a significant role in Nepal's development effort.

According to the 2000/01 budget, the ratio of grant to loan was 34: 66, but only 50 per cent of the foreign grants is figured in the national budget. "Therefore, no authentic information is available as to the amount of grant assistance received till date," K.C. remarked.

Only 35 per cent of the grant money, as reflected in the budget, is in the form of cash. The remaining amount is through commodity grant, direct grant and reimbursable grant.

"Thus, the situation is such that we do not know who is spending the money, how the accounts are maintained and where it is reported," he stated.

"The impact of inadequate accounting of grant has various repercussions. It has made the country's economic indicators unreliable and government's financial activities opaque," he said.

He added that the government agencies do not have any mechanism to keep account of the grant money provided through budgetary and non-budgetary channels.

He also said that the donors were responsible to some extent for this situation. "Some donors are too liberal and make no demand and set no condition."

KC said that while there is no dearth of policies, rules and regulations their implementation is weak.
He also pointed out that the new Foreign Aid policy had some weaknesses, but did not elaborate. But he said it will be too early to comment on it as he is in a responsible position.

He also stressed on political commitment to make the expenditures transparent and accountable. The new aid policy could be taken as a reflection of the government's commitment to make foreign aid more transparent and accountable, he said.

He, however, expressed concerns over the country's increasing debt. "The best way to reduce loans is by increasing internal revenue," he said.

Any recipient nation receiving all types of assistance should reflect in its budgetary process.

Nepal, UK officials to review progress

By A Staff Reporter

KATHMANDU, Oct. 8: High level officials from Nepal and the United Kingdom are meeting on October 11 in the capital to review the progress made after the donors' informal meet in London on July 19 and 20.

The review meeting, the first after the London meet, will assess how Nepal has fulfilled its commitments it made at the meeting, said an official at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Mike O'Brien, Parliamentary Undersecretary with the Responsibility of Foreign and South Asian Region, will be chairing the follow-up meet.

According to Dr. Shankar Sharma, member of the National Planning Commission (NPC) the meeting will discuss the progress made after the London meet. "We have also reviewed the progress from our side by making a local committee," he told The Rising Nepal.

The meeting of the international donor countries was hosted by the UK to ensure cooperation in combating the activities of the Maoists terrorists and on what kind of cooperation could be made available to Nepal in this regard.

The donor agencies and countries taking part in the meeting were India, China, the United States, Canada, the European Union, the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank.

Dr. Sharma had led the Nepalese team. Other members of the Nepalese delegation were Gyan Chandra Acharya, Joint Secretary at the MoFA, Madhav Ghimire Joint Secretary at the Ministry of Finance, Rukman Katuwal of the National Security Council and Dr. Arjoo Deuba.

The UK had provided a comprehensive package of development and military assistance totaling more than 30 million pound sterling.

According to a press release issued by the British Embassy here, O'Brien will be visiting Nepal from October 8-11.

Commenting on the trip, Mike o' Brian said, "The political situation in Nepal remains unsure, but it is vitally important that any action taken to put in place a new government is consistent with Nepal's constitution, in defense of its democratic system and will deliver reforms in the interests of the people of Nepal. I will use my visit to deliver this message personally.

"While in Kathmandu I look forward to chairing the first follow-up meeting to the international conference on Nepal which the UK hosted in June. The UK has a long-term commitment to leading international support for democracy and development in Nepal and to assist the government of Nepal in its struggle against the Maoists insurgency,"

"I look forward to my first trip to South Asia as a Foreign Office Minister. South Asia is an area of increasing importance to the international community. It is important to see at first hand the progress that has been made in Afghanistan and to look at the difficulties that we still need to work to solve."

Intermittent showers isolated, temporary

By A Staff Reporter

KATHMANDU, Oct. 8: The irregular afternoon showers presently being experienced is the result of locally generated moisture and low pressure, a usual post-monsoon phenomenon.

According to the Tribhuvan International Airport-based Meteorological Forecasting Division, it is a temporary and isolated weather activity now being witnessed in the middle and western regions of the country, from Janakpur to Pokhara.

"These showers are short-term in nature that occur mostly in the afternoon along with thunder and storm," said Rajendra Shrestha, a weather forecaster at the Division Tuesday. Since high thunder clouds are responsible for these showers, hailstorms at certain pockets are likely, he added.

The sky is clear, and the sun is shining. After a while, there is the formation of heavy clouds followed by sudden burst of rainfall. Thunder and a violent gush of temporary winds are also common. "When the sky is clear in the afternoon, the intense heat of the sun generates moisture which forms high clouds. After a brief shower, the clouds disperse and clear," said Shrestha.

Due to exposure to the sun's heat coming intensely through the rain-bathed atmosphere, the local humidity is generated from land water, rivers and lakes. The rains caused by this local formation cannot sustain for more than a few minutes as the moisture store is limited. Pokhara with a few lakes may form substantial amount of moisture causing more post-monsoon showers in and around it.

"The post-monsoon activities take place in the hilly regions and are usually unpredictable," said Shrestha

World Postal Day today

RSS

KATHMANDU, Oct. 9: The World Postal Day is being celebrated the world over with various programmes.

As the universal post union was founded on 9 October 1874, the day is being observed as the world post day.

Founded at the initiative of 22 countries at bern of Switzerland 128 years ago, Universal Postal Union is a common institution of 189 countries and a specialised agency of the united nations.

In his message on this occasion, Director General of the Department of Postal Services
Sridhar Gautam has said that as the postal network has been extended to almost each and every VDC, the task now is to raise the standard of services in line with the aspiration of the people.

It would be relevant to develop the services as a friend of the friend extending co-operation to the daily chores of the people through diversification of the services, he added.

Stating that after acquiring the membership of the union in 1956, Nepal has been internationalising its services and receiving significant co-operation for the development and extension of the postal services, he has said that the co-operation received specially in the physical, technical, economic and consultation field has greatly supported the postal services of the country.

Director General of the Universal Postal Union Thomas E. Leavey has said that though postal services has been facing many challenges, its value as basic provides of information and communications in the society today was increasing.

The humanitarian and social role of postal services should not be under estimated, he said and pointed out the need for the postal services to be simple and accessible for everyone.

CIAA interrogates Wagle, Gupta, Mainali

By A Staff Reporter

KATHMANDU, Oct. 8: Former ministers Chiranjibi Wagle, Jaya Prakash Prasad Gupta and Radhakrishna Mainali presented themselves at the Commission for Investigation of the Abuse of Authority (CIAA) to give clarifications on the charges levelled against them.

The Commission had asked them to present themselves a week back on allegations that they had amassed wealth by abusing power.

Chiranjibi Wagle presented himself at about 11 A.M. and gave clarifications for about one-and-a-half-hours. The Commission will also listen to him tomorrow. After making his statement to the CIAA, Wagle said that he clarified to the CIAA that persons unknown to him had filed complaints to the CIAA, and that he answered all questions put forth by the commission.

Gupta took about two hours in the afternoon to answer to alleged irregularities related to the distribution of licenses for mobile telephones and other cases. Gupta said that the concerned body was investigating into the cases, and that its decision would be acceptable to him.

Radhakrishna Mainali, Standing Committee member of the CPN-UML and former Minister for Information and Communications during the coalition government, was also called in by the CIAA to present his views regarding the distribution of 20,000 mobile telephones. The CIAA interrogated him for about two hours.

Deuba briefs party's apex committee

By A Staff Reporter

KATHMANDU, Oct. 8: President of the Nepali Congress (Democratic) and former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba briefed the party's central working committee today about the audience he had received from the King Monday afternoon. He said that he made a submission to His Majesty that his party would not participate in the interim government.

A statement issued by the party said that the central working committee focused its deliberations on the Royal address, the reactions of other political parties and on the existing political situation in the aftermath of the Royal address.

It said that the party condemned the seizure of the vehicle used by Krishna Prasad Bhattarai. The statement said a leader of the caliber of Bhattarai should have been honoured and given protection by the state. The party also decided that the sudden dismissal of the Prime Minister (Deuba) was unconstitutional as it tries to control and restrain the achievement of the popular movement of 1990.

The party also claimed that the organisations and the members of the Nepali Congress Party belonged to the Nepali Congress (Democratic) as the Election Commission has now provided the party with the symbol of 'Kalash' (water pitcher). The party said that the authority has also restricted the movement of some of its party workers.

Blast at FNCCI building, nobody hurt

By A Staff Reporter

KATHMANDU, Oct. 8: A bomb went off in the office building of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industries (FNCCI) this morning, causing minor damage to one of its toilets. No one was hurt in the blast.

The blast occurred on the ground floor toilet of the office around 10 a.m. "I was working at my desk when I heard the loud bang," said an office worker requesting anonymity.

The bomb shattered the toilet's cisterns and windowpanes. The bomb is suspected to have been planted by the Maoists.

A duty officer at the Kalimati Police Office, who had visited the site, said that about half a dozen people were arrested on suspicion. All of them were freed after interrogation. "The damage caused is very minimal," he added.

A kitchen worker at the basement of the office said she had noticed two strangers enter the toilet. According to her, they spent quite a few minutes in the toilet.

The FNCCI is the largest central body of business organisations across the country.

RSS adds: A joint meeting of the Standing Committee and advisory committee of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry presided over by FNCCI President Ravi Bhakta Shrestha today has stated that all the industrialists, traders and the private sector would firmly counter the anti-social and irresponsible elements who triggered an explosion at the FNCCI secretariat today and move ahead more effectively for the economic development of the country.

Likewise, confederation of Nepalese industries has also condemned and denounced the blast.

Nepal Chamber of Commerce has stated that the incidence of explosion at FNCCI and Bishal Bazaar was shocking.

The chamber has called for an immediate stop to the unpleasant and disruptive activities and effort to continue economic development of the country.

The CPN-UML has stated that its attention has been seriously drawn towards the bomb blast at the FNCCI central office at around ten this morning.

A press release of the party has stated that the bomb blast and disruptive activities is an assault on already sullying national economy.

The party has strongly condemned the subversive activities terrorising the nation.