PM Nepal holds discussions with US, UK, Japanese ambassadors

Kathmandu, 3 Sept.: Caretaker Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal
Friday held separate discussions with ambassadors of USA, UK and Japan on the future of UNMIN whose extended tenure ends 16 September.
USA and UK are permanent members while Japan in a semi-permanent member of the security council.
Amid Maoist opposition, ruling parties have been calling for limiting the mandate of UNMIN, the political arm of the UN, to take Nepal Army off the UN watch after the peace process hasn’t been completed even in three years.
The process was expected to take six months only.
The state army has been a hostage of the delayed process.
The prime minister also lobbied for Kul Chandra Gautam who is a candidate for president of the general assembly session beginning in the third week of September.
PM Nepal is attending the assembly session.
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President couldn’t land in Pokhara
Kathmandu, 3 Sept.: Continued heave rain Friday forced President Dr Ram Baran Yadav to return to the capital when his army chopper couldn’t land in Pokhara in heavy rainfall.
He was scheduled to attend the golden jubilee function of Prithvi Nayaran Campus in the resort town.
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Three drown in Siraha
Kathmandu, 3 Sept.: Three persons aged between 12 and 13 years drowned at a pond in Siraha Thursday.
They were participating in the immersion of a Lord Krishna idol after janmaasthami celebrations.
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Three shot dead in Sarlahi
Kathmandu, 3 Sept.: Two unarmed persons were shot dead at Bhaktipur in Sarlahi Thursday.
Others in a group fled.
They fired on a police patrol.
Businessman Sahbhu Das was also shot dead in Bharathadawa.
Sarlahi is one of the most lawless terai districts.
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258 killed in more than two months
Kathmandu, 3 Sept.: Natural disasters and an air crash killed 258 persons nation-wide in two-and-a-half months from mid-July, the home ministry said Thursday.
Floods claimed 83 lives.
Landslides, lightning, fires, epidemics and an air crash killed 36, 14, 28 and 14 persons respectively while assets worth Rs 30 million was damaged.
Prime Minister Relief Fund and Central Natural Disaster Aid Fund extended Rs 30 million and Rs7.8 million aid in 38 affected districts.
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Apa Sherpa mentioned in Guinness Book of World Records

Kathmandu, 3 Sept. Apa Sherpa’s 20th ascent of Mount Everest this spring has been mentioned in the Guinness Book of World Records.
Apa, now a resident in USA, climbed the 8848 meter’s world’s tallest peak to promote Nepal Tourism Year 2011.
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Former Crown Prince Paras in Dhangadi

Kathmandu, 3 Sept.: Former Crown Prince Paras offered prayers and puja at Laxminarayan temple in Dhangadi airport after arriving by a commercial flight Thursday from the capital.
He was greeted by hundreds of supporters shouting pro-monarchy slogans at the airport.
He walked from Ratopool to the temple.
Maoists this week disrupted his wife’s foray in social service by distributing drinking water pipes and a tank in Dolakha.
The former prince hosted a dinner for journalists in the evening.
Paras, who is scheduled to return to the capital Friday, is meeting media representatives in the far-West town.
The former crown prince said in a recent radio interview he returned from Singapore where he is a permanent resident to help restore monarchy toppled two years ago.
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TRADE, COMMERCE, ECONOMY
Gold import banned
Kathmandu, 3 Sept.: Gold import has been banned until further notice by the ministry of commerce and supplies.
The import was banned after declining foreign exchange reserve.
Import of the yellow metal was banned because of falling foreign exchange reserve, the ministry said.
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MEDIA GOOGLE
“Maoists came up with an offer of Rs 50m for our nine votes to elect UCPN(Maoist) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dalal in the prime ministerial election.”

(CPN-ML Chairman CP Mainali, The Kathmandu Post, 3 Sept.)
“The Nepali Congress and Maoists and other parties are also to blame for the situation as they are unwilling to review their positions.”

(UML leader Pradip Geywali apportioning blame for political impasse on other parties, The Himalayan Times, 3 Sept.)

“’The political parties are involved in the politics of power rather than focusing on the peace and constitution drafting processes, so the people are frustrated.”

(Former Speaker Taranath Ranabhatt, The Himalayan Times, 3 Sept.)


International help for army monitoring
Kathmandu, Sept.3:- Defence Minister Bidhya Bhandari on Thursday held separate meetings with Indian Ambassador Rakesh Sood and British Ambassador John Tucknott in a bid to garner international support in removing monitoring of the United Nations Mission (UNMIN) over the Nepal Army, The Kathmandu Post reports.

The British Embassy in Kathmandu sought an appointment for Tucknott, while Bhandari herself invited the Indian ambassador.

“The Defence Minister explained the changed political context and stressed that the international community should not draw a parallel between the national army and the Maoist army,” Press Advisor to the Defence Minister Subas Devkota said.

Political and Press Officer of the British Embassy, Ajay Das, said it was “a private and introductory meeting where matters of mutual interests were discussed.”

According to Devkota, Bhandari asked the Indian ambassador to urge the permanent members of the United Nations Security Council for the revision of UNMIN’s present mandate.

Indian Embassy spokesperson Apoorva Srivastava refused to comment on the matter.

As the Sept. 15 deadline nears for the government to take a call on UNMIN’s future, the defence minister is planning to hold discussions with ambassadors of the US, China, Russia and France, who including the UK, form the five permanent members of the Security Council.

Last week, the ambassadors of those countries had suggested Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal to forge an understanding with the UCPN (Maoist) before taking any decision on UNMIN.

Maoist leader Barsha Man Pun said his party is confident that UNMIN will get a continuation with its current mandate.
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NOC ex-chief behind bars
Kathmandu, 20 Sept.: -
A Special Court on Thursday slapped a one-year jail sentence and a fine of Rs 20.2 million on former general manager of Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) Madan Raj Sharma after finding him guilty of corruption while in office, The Kathmandu Post reports.
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A three-member special bench of the court comprising judges Gauri Bahadur Karki, Om Prakash Mishra and Kedar Prasad Chalise found Sharma guilty of amassing property worth millions of rupees.

The verdict came seven years after the original indictment.

“Investigations found no credible income source for property worth Rs 20, 241000,” said a court official. There was clear evidence of wrongdoing against him. The total value of property registered in the name of Sharma, his wife Rupa Dhungel, and daughter Priti Dhungel (Bhandari) exceeded Rs 3.16 million.

By holding property disproportionate to his income source, the defendant has clearly abused his public office, the court said in its verdict.

His excess property will be confiscated.

The court also said there were no corruption cases remaining pending within its jurisdiction and that in the last three years, no new cases of similar nature have been registered.
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Tibetan Democracy Day a low key affair amid tight security


Kathmandu, 3 Sept.: Tibetan exiles living in Nepal observed September 2 as Democracy Day amid

a low-key celebration

in Kathmandu, The HImalayaan Times reports..

They did not take to the streets as hundreds of security forces had been mobilised in the capital city to prevent ‘anti-China demonstration’. Deputy Superintendent of Police Pradhumna Kumar Karki, Kathmandu Operation In-charge, informed that 600 police personnel were mobilised in areas with high concentration of Tibetan exiles to stop them from coming out of their respective places.

He said Tibetans’ Democracy Day passed of without any untoward incident. “Police did not have to use force anywhere as they observed the day in monasteries,” he said adding that no arrest was made till this evening.

Nepal follows a one-China policy.

Security was tightened in Bouddha, Swoyambhu, and Embassy of China area in Baluwatar, and other strategic locations. Meanwhile, Tibetan exiles performed special prayers in Bouddha stupa to celebrate the day and remember their fight for democracy in Tibet against Chinese rule.

Earlier, police had held two exiled Tibetan leaders on Monday evening in Bouddha for allegedly indulging in anti-China activities. They were identified as Kelsang Nodup (33) and Tashi Dawa (23) in possession of pro-Tibetan pamphlets and Tibetan flags. Nordup is the president

of New Age Network, a pro-Tibetan organisation,

while Dawa is its central committee member. Nepal is home to more that 20,000 Tibetan exiles.
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Nepali Congress dwells on political document

Kathmandu, 3 Sept.:: The Nepali Congress Central Working Committee today began deliberations on a political document to be presented in the 12th general convention slated for September 17-21, The Himalayan Times reports..

A 21-member team, led by former prime minister and the party’s senior leader Sher Bahadur Deuba, prepared draft of the political report, which has outlined the party’s policy in the wake of changed political scenario in the country, particularly after the country ushered in federal republic and secularism in first meeting of the Constituent Assembly in 2008.

NC spokesperson Arjun Narsingh KC said the political document had analysed contemporary politics and its future impact, party’s future strategy

and course and has a proposal on socio-economic transformation, ways to strengthen party organisation and foreign relations. Once the document is

endorsed by the CWC, it will be presented in the general convention for approval.

On the party’s relations with others, KC, who is also preparing ground for contesting general secretary post, said they ‘will have competitive relations

with the Unified CPN-Maoist’. “We will engage the Maoists

for their transformation into a civilian party. But we will object to their authoritarian and violent politics,” he said.

As far as its relations with the CPN-UML are concerned, KC said the UML was a democratic party but its inconsistent policies vis-a-vis the democratic and authoritarian parties give rise to uncertainty. When asked to highlight the significance of the 12th general convention in term of the party’s policy, KC said the convention would be a continuation of the 11th general convention, which had remained indifferent on the monarchy and opted for federal republic, inclusive politics and social justice to uplift socio-economic status of the marginalised, minorities and backward regions.

“But the upcoming convention will be able to forge unity and discipline within the party; it will establish a collective leadership on institutional basis and advocate for social justice,” said KC. NC will hold its first general convention after the country was declared federal republic.

KC said the party’s political document has proposed to continue with the parliamentary democracy in the new constitution as well.

An NC CA member will contribute Rs 15,000, a CA member-cum-parliamentary chairman Rs 20,000, a CA member who is also the parliamentary chairman and party central committee member will contribute Rs 25,000 and the chief whip, whip, minister and state minister will donate Rs 30,000 for the convention. The NC PP meet also asked the government to provide effective relief assistance to the flood-affected people across the country.
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Naxalites kill Indian police officer

Kathmandu, 3 Sept.: Suspected Maoist rebels said today [Thursday] that they have killed one of the four police officers they abducted four days ago during a fierce gunbattle in eastern India, according to a local television station, AP reports from Patna.
They threatened to kill the remaining three officers by Friday if the Bihar state government does not release eight of their fighters from police custody, according to Avinesh, who claims to be a rebel area commander.
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Wettest August since 2002

Kathmandu, 3 Sept.: Rainfall in August in Kathmandu Valley was the heaviest for the month since 2002. This August saw a total of486.3mm rainfall, Republica reports.
In the Valley, where Meteorological Forecasting Division (MFD) normally records an average of 315mm rainfall in August, this year’s monsoon brought 166.3 mm more rain than its average. This year’s August rain had surpassed its average in the first three weeks of the month.

According to meteorologist Sudip Kayastha this year’s total August rainfall is second highest since 1968.
According to Kayastha, almost all regions of the country received more than average rainfall this August.
According to MFD, Surkhet received less rainfall than its average.
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