News Notes (Spotlight Weekly)

Five Killed In Ambush

At least five people including two security personnel were killed and dozens of others injured after a passenger bus was hit by a powerful landmine planted by Maoist rebels, at Karkare of the Kamalamai Municipality in Sindhuli district Sunday, police said. Seventeen of the seriously injured passengers, including 11 security personnel, were airlifted to Kathmandu for treatment. The night bus belonging to Siddhbaba Travels was on its way to Sindhuli from Kathmandu. When asked about the incident, Durga Prasad Bhandari, Chief District Officer of Sindhuli, refused to divulge any information citing a Home Ministry directive for the same. Compiled from reports Dec. 9.

Vanaspati Ghee Fail To Meet Quota

Entrepreneurs have asked for more time from the government to allow them to export Vanaspati ghee to India as per the quota requirement. According to the renewed Indo-Nepal trade treaty, Nepalese entrepreneurs have been given quota restrictions to export Vanaspati ghee. Nepal will have to export 100,000 metric tons of the ghee by March next year. The department of commerce had asked entrepreneurs to export at least 80 percent of the full quota by last week. But they have been unable to do so. While some allege that smugglers may be smuggling ghee, entrepreneurs say they are not involved in ay such nefarious activities. Leading dailies report Dec. 8.

RPP In For Triangular Contest Of Leadership

With both the senior-most leaders Prime Minister Lokendra Bahadur Chand and party president Surya Bahadur Thapa having made it clear that they would stay neutral during the election of new party president in the upcoming third national convention of Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP), its three leaders Pashupati SJB Rana, Dr. Prakash Chandra Lohani and Rabindra Nath Sharma will be battling it out in the triangular race for the post later this week in Pokhara. Thapa, the two time party president will not be allowed to contest for the third time by the party statute. Likewise, Chand has shown little inclination to run for the post or even support a candidate. While the three candidates in the race have claimed they will emerge victorious in the election, they have also not ruled out a consensus outcome. Leading dailies report Dec. 8.

Mixed Reactions Towards Maoist Statement

Major political parties have cautiously welcomed the Maoist leadership's announcement not to target cadres of different political parties and not to 'sabotage' infrastructure that directly benefit local people. "This is a positive development. We are looking if their words are translated into action," said Arjun Narsingh KC, spokesman of the Nepali Congress. A senior UML leader, K. P. Sharma Oli, also said the statement was positive but expressed doubts whether the present Chand-led administration would be able to hold a fruitful dialogue with the Maoists. Spokesperson of the Nepali Congress (Democratic) Homnath Dahal said that the state should not miss this opportunity. Spokesman of Rastriya Prajatantra Party, Kamal Thapa, said that the Maoists proposal was positive but it is yet to be seen if they are honest towards their own statement. Compiled from reports Dec. 5.

WB To Withdraw From Irrigation Sector

The World Bank has decided to withdraw from the on-going Nepal Irrigation Sector Project citing lack of security in the project areas. KANTIPUR daily quoted an official in the mid-western district of Surkhet, Amod Kumar Thapa, as saying that the Bank had decided to withdraw its assistance from nine different irrigation-related projects as works had been hampered due to lack of explosives. Projects in Pyuthan, Dailekh, Rukum, Rolpa, Humla, Kalikot and Jumla will be affected from the WB's decision. Upon completion, the projects would extend irrigation facilities to additional 2,330 hectares of land. Officials at the Regional Irrigation Office at Surkhet, however, said the government will continue the on-going projects. The news report, however, doesn't give version of the WB officials in Kathmandu.Compiled from reports Dec. 3.

AIGP Thapa Appointed Acting Police Chief

Additional Inspector General of Police, Shyam Bhakta Thapa, has been designated as acting chief of Nepal Police, reports said quoting Home Ministry sources. The post fell vacant as Inspector General of Police, Pradip Shumsher JB Rana, is to retire shortly. There had been a brief controversy after AIGP Govinda Bahadur Thapa, who is the first policeman to acquire a Ph. D., made his claims for the top slot saying that he was efficient and suitable for job. Shyam Bhakta Thapa's appointment has been made on the basis of seniority, sources said. Compiled from reports Dec. 3.

Two Choppers To Arrive From U. K.

The MI-17 helicopters provided by the British government to the Royal Nepalese Army (RNA) are to arrive here soon, reports said. The British embassy in Kathmandu said that an agreement has been reached between the British government and RNA not to use the helicopters for combat purposes. The choppers will be used for humanitarian use including transportation of medicine and other logistics. The helicopters are being supplied as part of the package assistance (worth 6.5 million Pounds) for Nepal under the British government's Global Conflict Prevention Fund, the embassy said. The embassy's clarification came after SPACE TIME daily reported Monday that the two choppers with nigh vision devices were scheduled to land at the Nepalese capital this week from U. K. to help the Nepalese government in its fight against terrorism. Compiled from reports Dec. 3.

Govt. To Verify Validity

Minister for Information and Communications, Ramesh Nath Pandey, has said that the government will seriously study and verify the validity and credibility of the Maoist insurgents' latest statement and act accordingly. The government's attention has been drawn towards it, he said. RSS news agency reports.

'Resolve Insurgency Through Dialogue:" Russian Envoy

The Russian envoy to Nepal, Valery V Nazarov, has said that the government and Nepal should not shun dialogue with the rebels and a national consensus towards peace building efforts. He, however, said that insurgency was Nepal's internal matter. The Russian envoy said that there were immense potentials of expanding business ties between the two countries. He said that at least 5,000 Nepalese have graduated from Russian university and that nearly 500 were still studying.
Compiled from reports Dec. 5.

Sharma

Tourism Minister Clarifies

Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Kuber Sharma, has clarified that he is still ready to handover management of the state-owned Royal Nepal Airlines Corporation (RNAC) at Rs 1.5 billion. He, however, denied of having proposed to sell the entire RNAC worth over Rs 10 billion at 1.5 billion rupees. Talking to reporters here Wednesday, Minister Sharma said that the government was ready to transfer the management of the national flag carrier to a private party or a consortium of parties who could run the national flag carrier in an efficient way. Compiled from reports Dec. 5.

Six Parties To Meet

In what is seen as their attempt to come up with unified agenda to press the King to withdraw his decision, which they deem as undemocratic and unconstitutional, the leader of the six major parties will be meeting early this week at Nepali Congress headquarters in Teku. The leaders of NC, Unified Marxist Leninist (CPN-UML), Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP), Nepal Sadbhavana Party (NSP), Nepal Workers and Peasants Party (NWPP) and Peopleís Front, Nepal (PF), will meet to discuss the present national situation and provide possible outlet. Among the six parties top leaders of RPP and NSP are already in the government. Lokendra Bahadur Chand of RPP heads the government while Badri Prasad Mandal of NSP is his deputy.
Compiled from reports Dec. 8.