NEPAL BHUTAN TALKS BEGIN

BHUTANESE PM THINLEY AND JHALANATH KHANAL BEGIN TALKS FRIDAY

Kathmandu, 15 April: Bhutanese Prime Minister Jigme Y Thinley begins
discussions with Prime Minister Jhalanath Khanal on regional South Asian
issues and bilateral matters with his Nepali counterpart on the second day
of his three-day official Nepal visit Friday.
He’s the first foreign government chief to visit the neighbouring Himalayan state Nepal after the installation of Khanal 3 February.
Bhutan is the current chairman of the eight-nation SAARC—the South Asian regional body.
Thinley is visiting member states as the chairman of the organizing briefing member states on regional issues before the next annual summit slated being held
in Maldives in six months.
Nepal said it will raise the issue of the repatriation of remaining nearly 60,000
Bhutanese refugees of Nepali ethnicity still in camps in east Nepal as
40,000 plus displaced persons have resettled in western states, mainly USA.
Coinciding with the visit, Bhutanese People’s Party Chairman Balaram
Paudel in a statement demanded the internationalization of the
refugee issue and called for India’s ‘meaningful involvement’ in such an effort.
Education Minister Gangalal Tuladhar welcomed the visitor on arrival at the airport Thursday.
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NC CENTRAL COMMITTEE MEETS FRIDAY

Kathmandu, 15 April: NC central committee meets Friday to discuss dissolution of the Nepal Students’ Union—the party student wing—to discuss dissolution of
the present union and appointment of an ad hoc body to conduct fresh
elections through a general convention suggested by the establishment
faction led by President Sushil Koirala.
The party has issued a whip asking all members to be present after a
Faction led by three-time Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba walked
out of the last meeting protesting the proposal.
Committee President Pradip Paudel has resigned.
President Koirala said his move for election in related organizations is to end groupism,
“I am against groupism,” he told reporters Thursday,
The tenure of student, women and youth wings of the party have ended or
are ending; the bodies are ineffective with internal groupism between supporters of Koirala Deuba.
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MAOIST STANDING COMMITTEE MEETS AGAIN FRIDAY

Kathmandu, 15 April: Maoist standing committee meets for the
second time in two days Friday to nominate remaining members of its government team, Spokesman Dinanath Sharma said.
Prime Minister Jhalanath Khanal continues to hold on to the home
Ministry portfolio demanded by Maoists.
Three factions in the UCPN (Maoist) standing committee are pushing names of their supporters delaying the selection of a government team as well.
Khanal’s attempt to award the home ministry to Maoists has been
constrained by internal party pressure not to deliver the ‘security related ministry’ to Maoists until the completion of the peace process.
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TWO BOYS SWEPT AWAY BY BAGMATI IN RAUTAHAT

Kathmandu, 15 April: Two boys were swept by Bagmati river in Rautahat
Thursday while swimming.
They were identified as Manish Shrestha and Bijaya Shrestha.
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