BRIEFS (Spotlight Weekly)

Crown Prince Dipendra addressing an advocacy convention on HIV/AIDS on Tuesday.

THE UNIVERSITY GRANTS COMMISSION (UGC) has formed a two-member committee to look into the shortcomings of universities and to recommend ways of enhancing the quality of higher education. A UGC press release said the committee would study the policies and procedures adopted by different universities in the country while providing affiliation to various colleges. The committee will also scrutinize the shortcomings during affiliation procedures.

THE WORLD HERITAGE COMMITTEE (WHC), at its recent meeting in Australia, has decided not to put four heritage sites in Kathmandu Valley in the endangered list, reports said. The decision of the committee not to put the four sites — Kathmandu's Durbar Square, Pashupatinath, Swayambhu and Baudhanath — follows recommendations by a high-level WHC delegation headed by its president, Abdelaziz Touri, which visited Kathmandu in late September. Kathmandu has a total of seven world heritage sites. The other three are Bhaktapur Durbar Square, Patan Durbar Square and the temple area of Changu Narayan.

THE FEDERATION OF FOREIGN Exchange and Money Dealers' Associations of Nepal (FEDAN) has urged the central bank to intervene in the market. FEDAN executive member B.M. Singh said the depreciation of the Nepalese rupee against the US dollar is an outcome of increased demand for dollar in the markets after the devaluation of Indian currency against the greenback. The Nepalese rupee maintains a fixed exchange rate with the Indian rupee. FEDAN has already requested Nepal Rastra Bank to intervene and float dollars amounting to US$ 3 million to 6 million in the market. The central bank has yet to respond to the request of FEDAN, an umbrella organization of 14 commercial banks in the country. The latest request has come after the Nepalese currency dipped further by 25 paisa and traded at Rs 74.65 against the US dollar on November 29.

THE 30TH YEAR OF JAPAN OVERSEAS Cooperation Volunteers (JOCV) operations in Nepal was marked in the capital last week amidst a function. On the occasion, Finance and Defense Minister Mahesh Acharya said Japanese volunteers’ contributions to Nepal’s development are commendable. He said these volunteers are the young ambassadors promoting understanding and the friendly relations between the two countries. JOCV was established in Nepal in 1970 for the purpose of contributing to the social and economic development of Nepal. According to JOCV, 700 young Japanese volunteers have shared their skills, expertise and technical know-how in different fields in Nepal. A total of 40 JOCVs are working in Nepal now, most of them in remote areas.

NEPAL ASSOCIATION OF TRAVEL Agents (NATA) has criticized labor unions for threatening to go on a general strike from second week of December to press hoteliers to fulfill their demands. The association alleged that hotel trade unions were more inclined toward confrontation rather than finding a solution to the stalemate. The hotel unions have been demanding an extra 10 per cent service charge on all the services offered by the hotels. The unions have warned that they will observe the strike beginning December 11 if their demands are not met by then. The Hotel Association Nepal has, however, said it will not give in to the employee unions' demands under pressure.

THE CONSULATE OF THE CZECH Republic has been formally opened in Kathmandu. Minister for Foreign Affairs Chakra Prasad Bastola opened the consulate amidst a special function Wednesday. Earlier, the Czech Embassy in New Delhi looked after operations in Nepal. The Czech Republic and Slovakia were created in 1993 after the split of Czechoslovakia.

SUGARCANE FARMERS HAVE THREATENED to launch an agitation from this week if the government failed to fix the purchase price at the increased rate of Rs.168 per quintal. Farmers say the purchase price of Rs.125 per quintal will discourage farmers and hit cane production next year, affecting sugar production. This year’s purchase price is the same as last year’s. Altogether 15 million quintals of sugarcane has been produced this year in 15 districts, enough to make the country self-sufficient in sugar, Nawaraj Basnet, secretary of the Federation of Sugarcane Farmers, said. The farmers threatened to launch the agitation after their talks with sugar producers to hike cane price failed.

MEMBERS OF THE NATIONAL FEDERATION OF Disabled have accused the government of failing to formulate laws for the handicapped despite repeated commitments at international conferences. Talking to reporters Tuesday, Muneswor Pandey, chairman of the federation, said there are provisions for handicapped in almost all international conventions but Nepal has no laws to translate them into reality. The federation said it would highlight the issue while observing International Disabled Day on December 3. According to an estimate, disabled people constitute more than 10 percent of Nepal’s population.

THE GERMAN DEVELOPMENT BANK, KfW, acting on behalf of the German government, is to provide a grant assistance of DM 31 million (approximately Rs 1 billion) for three development projects in Nepal. According to the German Embassy in Kathmandu, out of the DM 31 million grant, DM 15 million will be provided as financial support for 635,000 bio-gas plants under the Biogas Support Program, a

cooperation project between the governments of Nepal, the Netherlands and Germany. Similarly, DM 14 million will be allocated for the second phase of the Town Development Program to finance loans and grants for investment in municipal infrastructure. DM 2 million will be spent on upgrading the road between Malekhu and Dhading Besi in central Nepal. An agreement was signed by Dr. Bimal Koirala, secretary at the Ministry of Finance, and Uwe Ows, first vice president, and Christian Thomsen, division chief, on behalf of KfW bank.

Nepal Arab Bank Limited (Nabil) organized a grand reception at the newly furbished Regal Hall at Hotel Yak and Yeti last week to mark its 16th anniversary. Senior government officials, diplomats and people from different walks of life attended the reception. The first joint venture bank in the country is known for its efficient and quality services to clients.