Two-day debate begins on populist budget

By Bhola B Rana

Kathmandu, 14 July: A two-day debate began Tuesday on what has been described as a populist Rs 285.9 billion deficit budget selling dreams and emphasizing social security.
Rs 19.1 billion has been set aside for debt repayment.
Foreign grant and loan totaling Rs 78.5 billion will finance the budget.
Vote on appropriation is expected to be passed Thursday or the day the new fiscal year begins 1 Shrawan.
Maoists are not participating in the debate.
Allocations were increased for Nepal Army and police.
Rs 15.59 billion has been set aside for Nepal Army against Rs 12.5 billion set aside the previous year; government allocated Rs 14.74 billion for Nepal Police and Armed Police Force.
Annual inflation is expected to surge to 13 percent in the fiscal year 2009/10.
The Madhav Kumar Nepal government expects to collect Rs 16.1 billion in revenue—2.04 percent more that the previous Maoist-led government.
The ousted Prachanda government collected Rs 142 billion achieving its ambitious target while failing to achieve other economic and fiscal goals.
Government has prioritized the construction of 130MW Upper Seti and 456MW Upper Tamakosi hydro projects setting aside Rs 14.6 billion to produce 25,000MW electricity in two decades to meet an energy crunch.
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Special committee on integration on Maoists reconstituted under PM Nepal

Kathmandu, 14 July: Government has reconstituted a special committee on integration of Maoist combatants headed by then Prime Minister Prachanda, Rajdhani reports.
Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal heads the reconstituted committee; the cabinet took a decision Monday.
General Secretary Ishwor Pokhrel represents CPN-UML in the committee while Nepali Congress is represented by Dr Ram Sharan Mahat and Dr Minendra Rijal.
Cabinet has proposed the names of Ram Bahadur Thapa Badal and Barsha Man Pun from Maoists.
MJF is represented by Sharat Singh Bhandari and TMLP by Mahendra Yadav.
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PM Nepal leaves for Egypt

Kathmandu, 14 July: Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal is addressing the 15th session of non-aligned countries in Egypt Wednesday.
He left on his first foreign outing Tuesday morning.
Nepal is scheduled to hold discussions with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the sidelines of the summit held once every three years.
The prime minister returns home Saturday.
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DP Tripathi elected

Kathmandu, 14 July: DP Tripathi, general secretary of Sharad Pawar Nationalist Congress Party, has been chosen chairman of Nepal Democracy Solidarity Committee, reports from the Indian capital said.
A committee meeting chaired by CPI General Secretary AB Bardha, shoes Tripathi who succeeds communist leader Harkishan Singh who died.
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2,000 Nepali students return from Darjeeling

Kathmandu, 14 July: Nearly 2,000 Nepali students from Darjeeling have returned home after activists demanding an independent state for Darjeeling forced them to evict hostels.
Activists of Gorkha National Liberation Front asked students to vacate hostels in hill resort by Monday.
The Front has launched an indefinite movement.
Darjeeling schools and colleges attract a lost of Nepalis.
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BA Kumar Sharma promoted in Nepal Army

Kathmandu, 14 July: BA Kumar Sharma has been promoted to Maj Gen in Nepal Army (NA) Monday by the cabinet appreciating his service.
Sharma pleaded on behalf of the NA in a tussle between Gen Rukmangud Katawal and Maoists in government that unsuccessfully attempted to oust the army chief.
Sharma heads the army’s legal department previously headed by a brigadier general.
The cabinet didn’t take a decision on a NA request to promote Maj Gen Toran Jung Bahadur Singh to Lt Gen.
Although countries like Norway and some other EU member states openly supported terrorist activities of Maoists during the people’s war and welcomed Maoist leaders in their capitals, they haven’t convincingly demanded persecution of Maoists for their crimes and human rights abuses.
Maoists in government pardoned all their activists charged by previous governments for their crimes.
Norway and human rights groups opposed the promotion of Singh saying he commanded the Bhairabnath battalion deputed at Maharajgunj where 49 Maoists went missing.
Singh hasn’t been convicted though.
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