FIRST$ 200,000 TRANSFER OF MONEY LINKED WITH TERRORIST ACTIVITY TRACED IN NEPAL

PM FORMALLY LAUNCHING VISIT LUMBINI YEAR 2012 FROM LUMBINI FRIDAY

Kathmandu, 1 Dec. Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai is
formally launching 2012 as The Visit Lumbini Year Thursday
from Lumbini, the birthplace of The Buddha.
He pays a flying visit historic pilgrimage site Thursday
afternoon.
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DRAFT SCHEDULE TO PREPARE CONSTITUTION
BEING COMPLETED FRIDAY

Kathmandu, 1 Dec.: The meeting of sub-committee chaired
by Chairman Prachanda to resolve differences on themes to be
incorporated in a proposed constitution met Thursday and
decided to draw up a schedule by Friday to proclaim a
constitution in the next six months.
The sub-committee under the main constitution drafting
committee chaired by Nilambar Acharya met Thursday after
the constituent assembly (CA) tenure was extended for the
fourth time—this time by six months after 30 November.
The assembly faces dissolution if a constitution isn’t
promulgated by May 2012.
The Prachanda committee has representatives of major parties.
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FIRST POSSIBLE TRANSFER ON MONEY LINKED WITH TERRORIST ACTIVITY DISCOVERED IN NEPAL

Kathmandu, 1 Dec.: Authorities have become cautious after
tracing $200,000 in a Everest Bank account number of a person with Nepali/ Indian citizenship, Sachen Gautam reports in Naya Patrika reports.
The person’s surname is Hajai.
Nepali authorities said for the first time themney is linked to terrorist activities.
Indian embassy forwarded the name of the person who transferred the money, his background ad his bank account number to the concerned Nepali agency.
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PM, SUSHIL KOIRALA MEET

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PM, SUSHIL KOIRALA MEET

Kathmandu, 1 Dec.: Prime
Minister Baburam Bhattarai and Nepali Congress President Sushil
Koirala reviewed the political situation Thursday morning.
The meeting follows a fresh 6-point agreement between major parties to form a national government by 15 December and publish a schedule by 6 December to implement a 7-point agreement whose provisions haven’ t been implemented.
The agreement was inked between ruling parties and the opposition.’ so far.
The talks at the Koirala residence were held as the main opposition pushes government change with NA at the helm.
Ruling coalition is pushing for a national government under its leaderships.
Bhattarai briefed Koirala on his visit Wednesday of two cantonments with Chairman Prachanda to win the hearts of the party’s former fighters as a dissident faction opposes their integration in the state army.
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CIAA DIRECTS GOVT. TO GET MoGA’s CONSENT FOR TRANSFERS


Kathmandu, 1 Dec.: The Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) Wednesday instructed the ministries and concerned departments not to transfer employees without approval of the Ministry of General Administration.
In a response to a complaint that the civil servants were being transferred under different pretexts without completing their service period, the CIAA said that it was not considered desirable to transfer the employees without observing the Civil Service Act and regulations.
"There is tendency of seeking the consent of the Ministry of General Administration after deputing a large number of employees to other places and making posting in those vacant places," it said and instructed the concerned bodies not to repeat this practice hereafter.
The anti-graft body also directed to correct
the transfers and postings made earlier by violating the Civil Service Act and regulations.
It also said that the Ministry of General Administration was found giving approval for the transfer and posting of employees without clear basis and reason.
"It is not appropriate to conduct transfer and postings of employees when the development works need to be sped up," he said.
The CIAA has instructed the ministry to furnish replies to it within five days with details in regard with the transfer and posting of the employees since more than four months.
It asked the ministry to clarify as to how many employees it approved for the transfer and how many approvals were given on the basis of cabinet and secretary level decisions.
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DOCTORS NOT KEEPING PROMISE TO SERVE IN RURAL AREAS

Kathmandu, 1 Dec..: A number of doctors who studied under the government scholarships are getting away without following the compulsory provision of serving in the rural areas at least for two
Years, The Rising Nepal reports.
No doctor has been punished for failing to abide by the provision.
It is mandatory for individuals studying medicine under the government scholarship to serve in the government hospitals and health centers located in the rural areas at least for two years.
The Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP) said the Ministry of Education should recover Rs. 3.5 million because doctors did not go to serve in the rural areas.
A month ago, the Ministry of Education published a detailed lists of the doctors who had not been to the villages for the compulsory service and started recovering Rs.250,000.
After the Education Ministry’s decision to get back Rs. 250,000 from each service evader, the Supreme Court (SC) issued a stay order according to which those doctors who obtained their education under the government scholarship now needed to serve in the rural areas for five years.
Janardhan Sharma, spokesperson at the Ministry of Education, said after the SC order the publicising of the names was halted.
Although the Ministry collected the names of hundreds of service evaders, most doctors did not come into contact, he said.
The dispute arose when the then Education Minister Gangalal Tuladhar decided to implement a very old Act to recoup Rs.250,000 from those doctors who did not want to serve as per the provision.
However, an official at the MoHP, said the cost of MBBS course was Rs.250,000 while the Act was active. Now the total cost is around Rs. 3.5 million. The Education Ministry should recoup the total cost from those who violated the government’s provision, he said.
Two months after the SC stay order, the government has not made any concrete decision in this regard.
For years, hundreds of doctors who won scholarships under the government quota did not meet the provision of two years’ compulsory service. Some doctors have flown overseas and others are serving in private hospitals and nursing homes.
Every year, more than 250 receive MBBS scholarships. But only 350 doctors are in the compulsory service.
Doctors who study medicine under the government scholarship scheme are generally sent to primary health centers during the compulsory service period. But the Department of Health Services has been unable to send the doctors to many centers in the far-flung villages due to shortage of doctors.
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NON-RESIDENT NEPALIS INVESTMENT FOURM IN OFFING
Kathmandu, 1 Dec.:The mutual funds have been recognised as the best medium to channelise Non Resident Nepali (NRNs) investment in the capital market by the committee formed to prepare guidelines to facilitate NRN investment, The
Himalayan Times reports.

“The committee has advised to prepare necessary framework to allow NRN investment in the mutual funds,” informed deputy director at the Securities Board of Nepal (Sebon) Nabaraj Adhikary. The committee consisting of representatives from Securities Board of Nepal (Sebon), Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB), Company Registrar Office (CRO) and Insurance Board was formed in July to frame guidelines regarding NRN investment in Nepali capital market.

The NRNs can investment in Nepali mutual funds through the recently formed NRN’s investment company. Global Capital Investment — the investment company formed by Non Resident Nepalis (NRN) to invest in Nepal — already has collective fund worth Rs 500 million. “To allow NRN Investment Company’s bulk investment in the market the Mutual Fund Regulation 2067 has to be amended,” pointed out Adhikary.

However, he added, that the amendment of regulation will not take longer.

The regulator has already provided licence to Siddhartha Mutual Fund, a subsidiary of Siddhartha Bank to operate mutual fund. There are three more commercial banks that are waiting for Sebon’s green signal to start mutual funds. NMB Bank, Nabil Bank and Laxmi Bank’s merchant banking subsidiaries have applied for the license to operate mutual fund. The government had opened capital market investment for NRNs in last fiscal year’s budget. However, due to practical complications regarding the entry and exit of foreign retail capital, the matter has remained in theory only. The current fiscal year’s budget has directed Sebon to prepare necessary guidelines regarding NRN investment in securities market within mid-October but it has not been finalised yet.

NRN investment is supposed to aid the capital market in balancing its demand supply mechanism. At present, the stock market is heaving under the supply pressure pushing the overall performance of the market down. The committee was formed to work out the procedure to eliminate the probable obstacles in attracting NRN investment in the capital market.

The guidelines thus prepared as supposed to eliminate any possible cases of clash of regulations imposed by different regulatory bodies. Though, the capital market regulator has permitted NRN investment in securities market through portfolio investors back in December 2010, it also could not be materialised.

According to Portfolio Management regulations, NRNs can appoint licensed portfolio managers to undertake investment on their behalf. However, there are difficulties regarding the exit mechanism for the returns and fund that NRNs have invested. As a preventive measure to capital flight, there are some complications posed by Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) regarding the exit mechanism.

“The repatriation of returns will be simpler if the investment is being undertaken by a company instead of numerous individuals that is why the committee has recommended investment through the company,” pointed out Adhikary.

However, the policy measures alone will not help attracting the foreign investors in the stock trading the infrastructure also need to support the policies. It is not possible in the existing technology; thus, Nepal Stock Exchange is trying to get its trading software upgraded to incorporate online trading as well.
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MUSLIM THREAT
Kathmandu, 1 Dec.: The Islami Sangh Nepal has threatened to launch the third phase of agitation within this week if the government does not keep the pledges it made to the Muslim organisation, which includes punishment for the killers of its general secretary Faizan Ahmed, declaration of Ahmed as a martyr and inclusion of the Muslim representatives in the State Restructuring Commission, The Himalayan Times reports.

In a press statement issued today, the Islamic organisation informed that it had organised two rounds of protest - the second round concluded on November 27 - against the September 26 murder of Ahmed.

The organisation described the protest as successful.

“The government has compelled us to launch the third round of agitation against the murder with authorities concerned not heeding to our demands,” the organisation said in its press statement.

Meanwhile, police are still clueless about the killers of Ahmed and the motive behind the murder.
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THAW IN KOIRALA, DEUBA RELATIONS
Kathmandu, 1 Dec.: The frozen relations between Nepali Congress (NC) President Sushil Koirala and senior leader Sher Bahadur Deuba seems to be thawing with the establishment faction showing signs of willingness to address the latter’s grievances, The Kathmandu Post reports.
Interlocutors engaged in efforts to bring the two sides to a meeting point have said there are “positive signs” from both the sides.
“Some of us have held a few rounds of discussions with both the sides. The party president seems to be serious this time around. He has called a crucial meeting of office bearers and senior leaders at his residence early on Thursday, an indication that things are improving,” said an NC leader who wished not to be named. “The meeting is expected to come up with a solution.”
On Tuesday, NC General Secretary Krishna Prasad Situala met Deuba to discuss a way out of the factional differences, including the row over dissolution of the party’s sister wings. Leaders close to Koirala said he is ready to take Deuba into confidence before taking any decision on the formation of interim committees of the dissolved sister wings and appointments in vacant departments and other internal bodies.
“Things will be resolved if the party president can appoint a proportional number of our leaders in over two dozen vacant departments, the Parliamentary Board and the Central Work Execution Committee,” said a Deuba confidante. “We won’t object if the party president appoints a majority of the members from his camp. What we need is a proportional representation as agreed in the past.”
Both Koirala and Deuba had met and talked for the first time in the last one-and-a-half months during a meeting with Indian Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Sunday.
Deuba supporters, however, wanted to remain skeptical over the ongoing negotiations. “Though efforts are on, we have not reached an agreement yet. We have not received any concrete proposal from the party president,” said NC leader Prakash Sharan Mahat. “The party president has been saying all along that he is serious, but we are yet to see that in reality.”
The widening rift has been a matter of serious concern for most of the NC leaders as the party has not been able to hold regular meetings and hold open discussions on several pending issues since the party’s general conventions in September 2010. Deuba, who resigned following differences over the ‘unilateral’ dissolution of the sister wings, and his backers have been boycotting the party’s central working committee meetings for the past couple of weeks.
“I’m worried because the differences are serious and bringing both the sides to a meeting point is a challenging task,” said Minendra Rijal, another leader who has been trying hard to bring both the sides to an agreement
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ONE PLOT, TWO BUYERS; THREE LAND REVENUE OFFICILS IN
POLICE NET
Kathamandu, 1 Dec.:Three officials at the Land Revenue Office, Chabahil, have been arrested for their involvement in the sale of a piece of land twice. Bikash Maharjan of Lalitpur, who had sold his land in Jhapa, Surunga, four years ago, “sold”
the same again four months ago from Kathmandu, this time to a different buyer and in collusion with government officials, The Kathmandu Post reports.
Navaraj Dhakal, section officer at the Land Revenue Office, Chabahil, and two non-gazetted officers, Drona Poudel and Khagendra Pokharel, were arrested by the Metropolitan Police Range, Kathmandu, on Wednesday for their part in the fraudulent deal.
The two bigha (26 ropani) land, which Maharjan owned in Surunga, was sold to Chitrakumari Shrestha on January 27, 2008 from the Land Revenue Office, Jhapa.
However, Maharjan sold the property again jointly to Dipa Mukhiya and Dambar Kumari Shahi on July 24, 2011. He had lied to the buyers that the land was in his name and taken Rs 2.6 million from them.
“The land revenue officials had helped Maharjan in the crime. They had not even tried to ascertain the real status of the land. They had forwarded papers under the influence of bribe,” said DSP Dhiraj Pratap Singh, spokesperson for the Range.
“Papers permitting the sale were not signed at the office. The paperwork was done at a restaurant in Maharajgunj,” said Singh.
Maharjan was arrested on November 23. Based on his testimony, the trio was arrested on Wednesday. Police say the officials had turned a blind eye to concerns such as who the real owner was and receipts of land revenue payment by Maharjan. Moreover, they allowed Maharjan to “sell” the land even without appearing at the office.
The Kathmandu District Court on Wednesday evening authorised the trio’s stay at the Range for more than a day.
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NEPALHAS A COMFORTABLE BoP SITUATION

COMFORTABLE BoP SITUATION

Kathmandu, 1 Dec.: The country’s balance of payment (BoP) surplus in the first three months of the current fiscal year 2011/12 was
Rs 33.89 billion—a 28 percent increase compared to the corresponding period the previous fiscal year, Nepal Rashtra Bank (NRB) said in its latest macro economic report.
Remittances in the first quarter totaled Rs75.88 billion--up from Rs 59.12 billion in the corresponding period the
previous year.
Foreign direct investment was Rs 2.20 billion.
Export increased to Rs 18.04 billion; goods exported to India jumped 12.1 percent, the central bank said.
Imports from India totaled Rs 63.90 billion.
Total trade deficit stood at Rs 82.23 billion.
Consumer price inflation increased to 8.9 percent in
mid-October from 8.5 percent in mid-September largely of rise in
prices of non-food and services.

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ELDERLY MAN BURIED IN MOUND COLLAPSE
Kathmandu, 1 Dec.: An elderly died when he was buried in a mound in Dhangadhi VDC-8, Musahaniya of Siraha district on Wednesday, RSS reports from Lahan.

The deceased was identified as Sarkiman Ghising, 70, according to the information provided by Prakash Yonjan, a local.

Ghising died when a mound buried him while installing electric water pump in a 13-feet-deep pit behind his own home, informed Area Police Office, Dhangadhi.

The dead body was recovered from the pit with the use of excavator.
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KUWAIT TO HOST ACC WOMEN U-19

Kathmandu, 1 Dec.: Kuwait will host the third
25-over 1 to10 February 2012.ACC U-19 women’s
Championship.
Team list hasn’t been finalized.
Nepal lifted the first two editions of the tournament.
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Kathmandu, 1 Dec.:
Lacchuman Tamang, a pugilist, has tested positive in a doping test conducted by South
Asia RADO (Regional Anti-Doping Organization).

According to a responsible sports authority, Director General of South Asia RADO has informed Nepali sports authority about an ‘Adverse Analytical Finding’ in Tamang’s urine sample. Tamang had provided a urine sample for an out of competition test on October 23 in Kathmandu, Nepal.


According to the source, the ‘Adverse Analytical Finding’ was received from the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA)-accredited laboratory, the National Doping Control Center at Mahidol University in Bangkok, Thailand.

According to the source, a prohibited substance called Furosemide was present in Tamang’s urine sample.

As per the World Anti-Doping Code, Tamang could face a two-year long ban from sporting activities. However, Tamang can appeal for B-sample test before the ban is imposed.

According to wikipedia, along with some other diuretics, Furosemide is included on the World Anti-Doping Agency’s banned drug list (S5) due to its use as a masking agent for other drugs.

“We have also heard the news but we are yet to receive any official intimation. If we receive any such reports, we’ll certainly make it public,” said Rajiv Shrestha, the general secretary of Nepal Boxing Association.

However, the source claimed that Tamang was not included in an 11-member team that left for Islamabad, Pakistan on Wednesday for a month-long training. The Nepali team will compete in the Second Benezir Bhutto International Boxing Tournament from December 20-29.

This is the third case of Adverse Analytical Finding of Nepali athletes in doping test.

Athlete Rajendra Bhandari was found positive in doping test in 2006 during the 10th South Asian Games, Colombo, where he had won two gold medals. However, Bhandari has already made a successful comeback in the sports arena after a two-year ban. Bhandari won gold in road race during the 11th South Asian Games, Dhaka in 2010. The other Nepali athlete to test positive for banned drugs is bodybuilder Sanu Gurung.
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PREFERENCES OF FORMER FIGHTERS BEING STARTED AT LAST CAMP IN KAILALI THURSDAY

RECORDING OF PREFERENCES OF FORMER MAOIST FIGHTERS TO BEGIN AT LAST CAMP IN KAILALI

Kathmandu, 1 Dec.: Preferences of former Maoist PLA fighters
are being taken at the last cantonment at Kailali in the far-West Thursday to
to record preferences of what was thought to be 19,000 plus rebel fighters at seven cantonments.
The process should have been completed by Monday but was delayed for procedural reasons and the process should now be completed by Saturday.
The former fighters are being whether they desire integration in Nepal Army which they fought for 10 resettlement or voluntary retirement to disband the former guerilla force ad complete the delayed peace process.
Preferences of 16,572 have been recorded until Wednesday—among them 13,092 male and 3,478 women.
Ninety-seven work has been completed, Coordinator Balananda Sharma of a secretariat under special committee headed by the prime minister said.
Sixty percent have chosen integration.
Second phase will now start to put the former fighters in separate camps for integration and voluntary retirement.
Altogether 2,764 former fghters verified by UNMIN in 2007have gone missing casting doubts on the process undertaken by the UN agency.
Intentions of Maoists have also been questioned.
UNMIN was charged for a pro-Maoist bias.
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MAOISTS ASKING OTHER PARTIES TO INCREASE FIGHTER QUOTA

Kathmandu, 1 Dec.: As an unexpected number of the PLA opted for integration in the ongoing categorization process, the UCPN (Maoist) is going to ask other political parties to increase the integration quota of 6,500, Dil Bahadur Chhatyal writes from Talband in Kailali.
Maoist Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal said on Wednesday that he would hold meetings with leaders of other parties to increase the number of the Maoist combatants to be integrated into the national army.
“The combatants have demanded to increase the number. This issue will be resolved through discussions among political parties,” said Dahal, who arrived here along with the prime minister and other political leaders, to inspect the categorization of the Maoist combatants in Talband.
In a historic deal on November 1, the UCPN (Maoist) had agreed with other major political parties that up to 6,500 combatants will be considered for integration. Political leaders had not expected such a large number of combatants to opt for integration. Though the exact number of the PLA combatants opting for integration is yet to come, around 60 percent of the combatants have intended to join the national army.
“We are concluding a historic task. So increasing the allocated quota by one or two more thousands will not be a big deal,” Dahal told media persons.
General Secretary of the CPN-UML and Special Committee member Ishwar Pokharel, who was also in the monitoring team, also said that the issue of increasing the integration quota would be discussed at the political level once the completion of the categorization.

Prime Minsiter Baburam Bhattarai, Ishwar Pokharel, Minister for Information and Communications Jaya Prakash Gupta, Maoist leader Krishna Bahadur Mahara and PLA chief Nanda Kishor Pun had visited the seventh division, Talband on Wednesday morning to witness the progress in the categorization of the combatants.
In the meantime, disgruntled combatants demanded with visiting leaders a special package for injured and handicapped combatants. In response, Dahal assured them of preparing a special rehabilitation package.
According to our correspondent in Rolpa, Kamal Thapa, combatants at the Dahaban cantonments submitted their demands, including special package for injured and handicapped combatants, to the visiting prime minister and Maoist chairman, warning them of struggle if their demands are not addressed within a week.
Responding to their demands, the prime minister assured that the government would develop a special package for injured and handicapped combatants.
PM assures to return land within 15 days
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai on Wednesday claimed that the seized lands will be returned to the rightful owners by the end of Mangsir (December 15).
Bhattarai, who arrived here to monitor the PLA categorization in Kailali, said the government will address the problems of squatters and landless people and return the seized land as per the seven-point agreement.
“A committee will be formed to resolve the problems of landless squatters,” he said, adding, “The comprehensive peace agreement states that the seized land will be returned to the rightful owners and the problems of squatters and landless people will be addressed simultaneously.” He reiterated that the aforementioned tasks will be completed within 15 days.

Though the political parties reached an agreement to return the seized land by November 23, the Mohan Baidya faction has been consistently protesting it.
Around two thousand bighas of land that belongs to 240 families is still under Maoist control.
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SAUDIS MAY LIFT BAN ON HANDWRITTEN PASSPORTS

Kathmandu, 1 Dec.: Saudi Arabia has assured Nepal that it would allow Nepali migrant workers carrying handwritten passports to enter the kingdom for sometime to come, Om Astha Rai writes in Republica.
At a meeting with representatives of foreign employment agencies on Wednesday, Foreign Affairs Minister Narayankaji Shrestha assured them that Saudi Arabia will restart issuing visas to Nepali workers with handwritten passports in a few days.
Som Lal Bataju, president of Nepal Association of Foreign Employment Agencies (NAFEA), quoted foreign minister Shrestha as saying, “We are expecting a positive decision from Saudi Arabia probably by Saturday.”
According to Uday Raj Pandey, Nepal´s ambassador to Saudi Arabia, who met senior officials at the Saudi Arabian ministry of foreign affairs over the issue on Wednesday, the kingdom has made it clear that it would allow the use of handwritten passports only for a certain period.
“The undertone of what Saudi Arabian officials have told us is almost clear. They will issue visas to Nepali workers who have already deposited visa fees,” says Pandey. “The kingdom may not issue visas to workers with new handwritten passports. Those workers who have not deposited visa fees will have to obtain Machine Readable Passports (MRPs) to work here.”
More than 7,000 handwritten passports of Nepali workers have already piled up in the Saudi Arabian embassy in Bangladesh for visa stampings ever since the kingdom banned manual passports. “An additional 3,000 handwritten passports have piled up in Nepal waiting for the lifting of the ban,” says Bataju, adding, “Some 50 manpower entrepreneurs are in Bangladesh for the last few weeks expecting a positive decision from Saudi Arabia to this effect.”
Saudi Arabia, one of the major overseas job destinations for Nepali laborers, had stopped accepting handwritten passports a month ago without prior notice following a series of disclosures about tampered manual passports. A majority of Nepali workers still carry conventional handwritten passports on the pretext of difficulties in obtaining MRPs.
Nepali foreign employment agencies have been asking the government to lobby for the lifting of the ban by Saudi Arabia on handwritten passports on the ground that the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has allowed Nepal to use manual passports till 2015. Nepal has got an excuse for using manual passports for a few more years as it failed to meet the deadline for introducing MRP.
“It will be a great relief for us if those workers who have already deposited visa fees, $ 36 each, will get to go to Saudi Arabia,” says Bataju.
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PM ,CHAIRMAN PRACHANDA, UML LEADER ISHWOR POKHREL AND MADESH LEADER INSPECT CANTONMENTS AS MAOISTS ATTEMPT TO PACIFY FORMER FIGHTERS

MAOIST ESTABLISHMENT SIDE VISITS CAMPS ACCOMPANIED BY UML AND MJFN REPUBLICAN LEADER TO PACIFY FORMER FIGHTERS UPDATE
Kathmandu, 30 Nov.: Prime Minister Dr. Baburam Bhattarai has said the Maoist combatants have played a crucial role in taking the peace process and the constitution writing process to conclusion, RSS reports from Dang.
Addressing a programme organised at the PLA Fifth Division in Dahaban of Rolpa district on Wednesday, PM Dr. Bhattarai said the government would do its utmost to resolve the problems seen in the categorisation of the combatants as regards their age, rank and education qualification.
He also expressed the commitment that the state would highly evaluate the combatants in view of the important role they played in peace and constitution writing by keeping the history of the nation in mind.
Stating that the integration of the Maoist combatants could not be carried out as per the aspirations of the Maoist party, the prime minister urged the combatants to take that as their contribution to the nation and move forward.
The high-level team comprising UCPN-Maoist chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal and Prime Minister Dr. Bhattarai reached the PLA Fifth Division camp in Dahaban, Rolpa for making an observation.
Minister for Information and Communications Jaya Prakash Prasad Gupta, CPN-UML general secretary Ishwar Pokharel and Commander of the Maoist combatants Nanda Kishor Pun ‘Pasang’ are also on the high-level team.
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MUSLIMS DEMAND REPRESENTATION IN STATE RESTRUCTURING COMMISSION
Kathmandu, 30 Nov. Taking time at the meeting
of the Legislature-Parliament, Muslim CA members called for representation of the Muslim community in the State Restructuring Commission (SRC), RSS reports.

They also stressed on the need of making the Commission inclusive and incorporate the religions and cultures of all ethnic groups of the state in the constitution.

Stating that the Muslims have been ignored by the State since a long time, they called for representation of the Dalit as well as the Muslims in the Commission.

They also pointed out the dilly dallying by the Government in arresting the murderers of Faijan Ahmed and accused the political parties of discriminating against the Muslim community.

Expressing their views on the occasion were CPN-UML's Najir Miyan, NC's Mohammad Siddique, independent parliamentarian Sadrul Miyan and Karima Begun of Madhesi Janadhikar Forum, Democratic.
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GOLD TRADED FOR RECORD PRICE WEDNESDAY
Kathmandu, 30 Nov.: Gold was traded Wednesday for a record
Rs.55,500 per tola as demand for the precious metal rose in the international market.
The previous high was Rs. 55,404 per tola in
the second week of November.
Price increased in the midst of the wedding season.
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NATIONAL FOOTBALL SQUAD LEAVES FOR NEW DELHI
Kathmandu, 30 Nov.: The Nepali national football team left for India on Wednesday to take part in the 7th South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) championship to be held in New Delhi., RSS reports
The 27-member team is under the captaincy of Sagar Thapa.
Nepal is scheduled to play the first game against Maldives on December 2 to be followed by the match against Bangladesh on December 4. It will face Pakistan in the last of the league match on December 6.

Earlier, the team was bid farewell at a program organised by the All Nepal Football Association (ANFA) by Minister for Sports, Kamala Rokka, Member-Secretary of National Sports Council, Yubaraj Lama and ANFA President Ganesh Thapa among others.
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TERAI LAWMAKER SUSPENDED FROM CONSTITUENT ASSEMBLY

TERAI LAWMAKER SUSPENDED FROM PARLIAMENT

Kathmandu, 30 Nov.: Lawmaker Shiva Pujan Raya Yadav of MJFN was suspended Wednesday from constituent assembly (CA) one day after cIAA Authority (CIAA) charged him at a special court of misuse of his personal diplomatic passport.
The anti-grant body has claimed Rs.2.2 million from him.
The suspension was announced by the legislative secretariat
through a general public notice pasted on its board.
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TWO PERSONS WHO ATTEMPTED TO BRIBE POPULAR SP RAMESH JAILED AND FIRNED RS. 25,000 EACH

Kathmandu, 30 Nov.: A Special Court Wednesday convicted two prtsons for attempting to bribe a popular Superintendent of Police (SP) Ramesh Kharel last year when he was posted as the capital’s top policeman to stop crime.
Sunil Kumar Shrestha and Krishna Prasad Jati were jailed for seven days and fined Rs 25,000 each.
They were arrested with the amount while trying to secure a job in Nepal using the good offices of SP Kharal who is now posted in Birgunj.
The matter was immediately referred to concerned agencies.
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RELIEF DISTRIBUTED TO VICTIMS OF ARMED CONFLICT IN KAVRE

Kathmandu, 30 Nov.: District Administration Office (DAO), Kavrepalanchok, has started providing relief to victims of a decade-long armed conflict in the district, RSS reports from Banepa.

The office has distributed Rs. 36 million to the kin of 166 deceased and 14 disappeared during the insurgency, Rs. 200,000 each in the first four months of the fiscal year 2068/2069 BS, said Ramchandra Thapa, an Account Officer of the DAO.
He said the office demanded with the Ministry of Peace and Reconstruction for relief to 20 more persons, who have applied claiming for relief in the local administration.

The number could even be more as the government has given time to claim for relief until December 22, informed DAO.

The office distributed relief to the families of 250 deceased and 16 vanished with 100,000 each in the Fiscal year 2066/2067 BS.
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CAMPAIGN BEING LAUNCHED TO CURB ELEPHANTIASIS; NO DEATHS DURING MEDICINE DISTRIBUTION LAST YEAR
Kathmandu, 30 Nov.: No one has died so far after taking medicines for elephantiasis, which were distributed to prevent the disease, proves a study of the experts, RSS reports.

Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP) has been distributing medicines against the elephantiasis disease since 2003 AD.

It was proved in the study conducted by a-three-member expert team including Prof. Dr Kumud Kumar Kafle, Prof. Dr Ramesh Chandra Adhikari and Prof. Dr Suman Thapa.

Department of Health Services, Epidemiology and Disease Control Division had undertaken independent study through the experts after news was reported of the deaths of four people in Banke district alone by taking medicines of the filariasis distributed under the Lymphatic Filariasis Elimination Programme launched by the MoHP.

The experts, who have been involved in teaching in medical field and conducting research of use of medicines for the past three decades, proved that the research conducted in the districts where medicines against elephantiasis disease programme was launched, no one died after taking medicines of the same.

In the report, it is stated that four persons of Banke district who died last year had died due to other causes.

While making public the report, Chief of the Division Dr. GD Thakur said no one has died due to the use of medicine against elephantiasis in the country so far.

The report also suggested the Department to distribute the medicines through heath workers as some effects have been seen in the medicines.

Dr. Thakur informed that the Department has made programmes to distribute the medicines through health workers this year as per the suggestion of the experts' team.

There is a programme to feed medicines of the disease to around 20 million people of 46 districts, this year.
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THREE KILLED, ONE HURT IN TRUCK HIT

THREE KILLED, ONE INJURED IN HIT BY TRUCK

Kathmandu, 30 Nov.: Three persons were killed and one was injured Wednesday when a truck ran over them at Paswalpur-3, Dhanusha, on the Mahendra Highway.
A man and a woman on a cycle were killed instantly and a injured woman died while undergoing treatment at hospital.
A wounded man is being treated for serious injuries.
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UN CHIEF SAYS HE’S ENCOURAGED WITH CONSENSUS AND ASKED ALL TO IMPLMENT COMMITMENTS

Kathmandu, 30 Nov.: UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said
Tuesday he’s encouraged by consensus among political parties
and asked all to fulfill their commitments.
“The Secretary General is encouraged by the growing consensus amongst the political parties in Nepal to take the peace process forward..
“He notes the decision taken today [Tuesday] to extend the Constituent Assembly by six more months and calls on all concerned to fulfil their commitments,” a
statement issued by his spokesman in New York said.

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ONCEALED HASH RECOVERED FROM TRUCK

CONCEALED HASH HIDDEN SACKS RECOVEREDFROM TRUCK GOING TO KAKARVITTA FROM CAPITAL

Kathmandu, 30 Nov.: Policemen Wednesday intercepted a truck going to Kakarvitta, Jhapa, from the capital and recovered a huge haul of marijuana in 21 sacks at Hariwon, Sarlahi along the Mahendra Highway.
The marijuana was hidden inside the truck (Na 2 Kha 9528) carrying textile materials from Kathmandu to Kankadvitta, said police.
The driver and helper have been arrested.
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NOBODY INJURED IN FIRING DURING FIRING BETWEEN TWO GANGS IN KAVRE
Kathmandu, 30 A pistol cartridge and four motor cycles were recovered by police Tuesday following a gang fight between two rival gangs at Methinkot-2, Jorsalla, Kavre.
There were no injuries.
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UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE SCHEME BEING LAUNCHED
Kathmandu, 30 Nov.: The government plans to introduce an unemployment insurance scheme (UIS) in the next fiscal year. Under the UIS, workers in the formal sector will receive unemployment benefits in cash for the period they are without work, The Kathmandu Post reports..
To participate in the scheme, employees will be required to make periodic payments to which the employer will add its contribution in the ratio of 1:2.5, as per a draft of the Unemployment Insurance Act (UIA). The Ministry of Labour and Transport Management (MoLTM) has been working on the act with technical assistance from the International Labour Organization (ILO).
“The amount to be contributed by the worker and the employer is yet to be finalised,” said Nabin Pokharel, under secretary at the MoLTM.
He added that following discussions with the private sector including the employers and trade unions, the ministry will finalise the amount of the contribution and the allowance.
He also said that unemployment benefits would be paid for a minimum of three months and a maximum of nine months. “The minimum amount of the monthly unemployment benefit will be 60 percent of the minimum wage or the average monthly insurable earnings of the worker during
the last six months preceding the termination of employment,” he added.
“The programme is being introduced so that workers who have been laid off won’t have to face financial problems until they find another job,” said an MoLTM official. According to him, all the formal workers in the private sector can benefit from the scheme.
Mahesh Baral, director of the social security fund management committee, said the ministry was discussing if the UIS should be introduced as a separate scheme or as part of a social security package. “If the UIS is developed as a social security scheme, the contribution of 1 percent of a worker’s monthly salary won’t be sufficient to implement the programme.”
He said that the contribution of the workers and the employers should amount to at least 21 percent of the basic salary. “After the modality is set and the scheme is implemented, it will work as a temporary relief package to the workers,” added Baral.
Other ministry officials said that the scheme would be extended to workers in the informal sector in the future.
Meanwhile, stakeholders including trade union officials have criticised the government for the delay in bringing the scheme. Ramesh Badal, secretary of the General Federation of Nepalese Trade Unions (GEFONT), said that the proposed UIS was not a new idea and that the major
trade unions had been demanding it for a long time.
“As the government has already taken some three years to implement it, there is no point in implementing the programme by itself. The government should implement the scheme as a complete social security package.”
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TOURISTS STRANDED IN CHITWAN AS TRANSPORT SERVICE DISRUPTED

Kathmandu, 30 Nov.: Vehicles operating from the remote area of Parsa, Thori, to Chitwan’s headquarters Bharatpur have been disrupted since past three days, RSS reports from Parsa.

Passengers and tourists have been stranded when vehicular movement was completely halted by locals of Thori demanding vehicles also be operated in front of their houses, informed Ram Prasad Kunwar, a local.
Now some foreign tourists are entering Nepal via the old Thori costumes office. Tourists traveling to different sites of Chitwan such as Madi, Meghauli and Bharatpur via the route of Thori have been facing tough time.

To the contrary, transport entrepreneurs have denied the demand of locals saying it was not possible to bring vehicles to the doorsteps of locals.
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LEOPARD KILLS GIRL CHILD IN KHALANGA

Kathmandu, 30 Nov.:An eight-year-old girl child, Sunita Saud, of Pancheswor-5, was killed in a tiger [read leopard] attack on Tuesday afternoon, RSS reports RSS from Khalanga.

The wild beast attacked her to death while she was collecting fodder in the forest.

Saud, a second grader at local Bhumiraj Lower Secondary School, was killed in a tiger attack, informed Shiva Singh Saud, a local.
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said that Lumbini, which is the birth place of Lord Gautam Buddha,
can play an important role in the exchange of friendly ties between
the two countries.
"He can be and should be the focal point of friendly exchange between
the two countries," said Prime Minister Bhattarai.

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ADDITIONAL SSB DEPLOYED ALONG INDO-NEPAL BORDER

Kathmandu, 30 Nov.: India had deployed additional Seema Surakshya Bal (SSB) force along the Indo-Nepal border.
This was stated in a written reply presented Tuesday in Lok Shava, lower house of parliament, by State Minister for Home M. Ramchandra.
One platoon has been deployed at 450 check posts along the border.
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H1N1 BIRD FLU VIRUS STRAIN DETECTED IN VALLEY

Kathmandu, 30 Nov.: H1N1 virus has been detected in birds that died of bird flu at a settlement along Manahara Khola in Thimi on the Kathmandu, Bhaktapur border last week.
The bird flu outbreak was the first in the Valley only months after the country was free of the disease by government.
The first came was reported in Jhapa adjoining the Indian state of West Bengal several years The outbreak of the contagious disease was confirmed Friday after tests in Great Britain three days after birds started dying in Thimi.
But government reacted only Monday by declaring the outbreak; birds in the area began to be culled Tuesday morning.
The Rising Nepal adds: A rapid response team Tuesday destroyed 308 chickens and ducks at Manahara landless squatters’ village of Bhaktapur after the detection of bird flu in the locality.
The team from Veterinary Health Directorate, Bhaktapur, and Animal Rapid Response team destroyed 232 ducks, 76 chickens, 14 kilograms of eggs and two sacks of poultry feed, Dr. Hari Dahal, spokesperson of the Ministry of Agriculture, said.
The veterinary health directorate had sent 29 samples from the fowls in OIE reference lab, London, on suspicion of bird flu on 14 November.
The lab detected bird flu (H5N1) viruses in all samples on 27 November.
After the lab detection, a committee led by the Minister for Agriculture had declared Manahara a disaster-hit area and decided to destroy the chickens and ducks.
Five chickens had died on November 10;30 on November 11 and 8 on November 12 at the farm of Chandra Bahadur Tamang, a local.
The bird flu was suspected after the dead chickens of Tamang’s poultry farm were tested at the central Veterinary Lab, Tripureshwor, which detected H5. Samples of 29 chickens had been sent to London for further tests for the presence of N1, Dr. Dahal said.
According to Dr. Dahal, the government distributed Rs. 39,832 as compensation in the area.
Five months ago, the government declared Nepal as a ‘bird flu free’ country.
In 2009, bird flu was detected for the first time in Nepal.
After the bird flu detection in Kathmandu for the first time, the government has directed authorities to stop poultry import in the border areas.
The Ministry of Agriculture has asked the people not to panic as the flu has not spread in other areas.
Bird flu has spread in the neighbouring country, so Nepal is not totally free the risks, Dr. Dahal said.
Meanwhile, price of chicken has gone down heavily in Saptari district for the past few days.
According to Mohamad Nijam of Apan Kishan Fresh House, price of chickens was sold at Rs. 140 per kg, down from Rs. 240. Mohamad Abul of Kisan Fresh House said they were compelled to slash the price after chicken as supply was more than the demand.
Abul added that there is no alternative to decreasing the price of chicken. More than 2,000 kgs of flesh is being consumed per day at the district headquarters, Rajbiraj. Poultry farmers have been hit hard due to lowering of the price of chickens.
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DR. BHOLA RIJAL UNDERGOES HEART PROCEDURE AT NORVIC HOSPITAL

DR. BHOLA RIJAL UNDERGOES HEART PROCEDURE

Kathmandu, 30 Nov. Dr Bhola Rijal, a senior and leading gynecologist at Om Hospital, underwent a heart procedure at Norvic Hospital Tuesday, Annapurna Post reports.
Dr. Rijal is recovering at the ICU and he’s out of danger, the newspaper quoted Dr. Bharat, Rawat, who conducted the procedure, said.
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MEDIA GOOGLE

"There are different types of people and organisations with different ideas and thinking. However, Nepal strongly abides by One-China policy and does not let anyone to use the Nepalese land against our neighbours,"

(President Dr. Ram Baran Yadav tells visiting Chinese journalists, The Rising Nepal, 30 Nov.)

“A Nepali woman cannot be a refugee in her own country. The job of UNHCR is to resettle Bhutanese refugees but not other nationals. The host countries will not accept such individuals.”

(Stephen Jaquemet, UNHCR country Representative, The Kathmandu Post, 30 Nov.)
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PM BHATTARAI,CHAIRMAN PRACHANDA FLYING TO CANTONMENTS TO PACIFY DISSATISFIED PLA FORMER FIGHTERS

PM, CHAIRMAN PRACHAND VISITING CAMP IN ROLPA

Kathmandu, 30 Nov.: Prime Minister Baburam Bhattatarai and Chairman Prachand are visiting camps in Rolpa to satisfy dissatisfied former combatants in the district, J Pandey and an Kashi Ram Gangi report in Kantipur from the district.
They are also proceeding to Kailali Talband and Shaktikhor from Rolpa.
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MEDIA GOOGLE

“The prim minister has taken clarification after many genuine complaints were lodged against the irrigation minister [ Yadav]. The prime minister has become serious after dozens of engineers came from irrigation with statistics.”

(PM’s Secretary Lilamani Pokhrel, Nagarik, 30 Nov.)
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INDIA BEGINS PROCESS TO WITHDRAW CHARGES AGAINST MAOISTS LODGED IN BIHAR JAILS
Kathmandu, 30 Nov.; Responding to a request from the Nepal government, the government of India has formally started the process of withdrawing criminal cases against 11 Maoist leaders pending in a district court in Bihar state since 2004, The Kathmandu Post reports from New Delhi.
India's Home Ministry has recently dispatched a letter to the Bihar government requesting it to go ahead with the withdrawal of those cases by taking into consideration the changed political scenario in Nepal and the friendly relations between the two countries.
High-level officials at the Home Ministry and security agencies of Bihar, privy to these developments, confirmed such a request from New Delhi. However, Indian officials in Delhi are tightlipped on the issue.
"In view of the friendly relations with Nepal, it is requested that the state (Bihar) government may initiate necessary steps under Section 321 of the CrPc [India's Criminal Procedure Code] to withdraw from prosecution the criminal cases registered against 11 accused (Maoist leaders)," read the letter sent by Union Home Secretary RK Singh to the Chief Secretary of Bihar, Navin Kumar, on the first week of October.
Article 321 of the CrPc states that a public prosecutor in charge of a case may, with the consent of the court, at any time before the judgment is pronounced, withdraw from the prosecution of any person either generally or in respect of any one or more of the offences for which he/she is tried.
Sources said the letter also takes into consideration the facts that "the accused 11 Maoist leaders are currently members of parliament or ministers or occupying important positions in the ruling dispensation in Nepal" and "the concerns are communicated by Kathmandu at the warrants of arrest issued against them."
State government officials also confirmed the receipt of the letter, but refused to elaborate.
"Yes, we have received a formal request from New Delhi regarding the cases against the Nepali Maoist leaders," said Director General of Police (DGP) Abhayananda.
Bihar's Home Secretary Amir Subhani said, "What I can say at this stage is that the matter of withdrawal of cases is under consideration."
On September 2011, the Patna Sessions Court had re-issued non-bailable warrants against the Maoist leaders--Chitra Bahadur Shrestha, Lokendra Bista, Kul Bahadur KC, Kumar Dahal, Hit Bahadur Tamang, Anil Sharma, Dilip Maharjan, Ranju Thapa, Suman Tamang, Shyam Kishor Prasad Yadav and Min Prasad--who were arrested from different hotels of Patna in May 2004.
The leaders, who were arrested for their alleged "involvement in anti-India activities" and "conspiracy against the erstwhile regime" in Nepal, were first issued non-bailable warrants in December 2006 for failing to appear before the court after released on bail in June the same year.
The court has scheduled the next hearing on this case for December 22.
"The Bihar government can withdraw the case even before this hearing with consent of the court by rolling back the charges labelled against the Maoist leaders," a criminal defence lawyer from Patna said on condition of anonymity.
Another lawyer in New Delhi, Naresh Yadav, said, "As the case is sub-judice, the state government should comply with all legal procedures. It could drop the charges against the leaders during the upcoming hearing."
"With the respondent (Bihar government) withdrawing the charges, the court can then annul the cases against the defendants (Maoist leaders)," he added.
A few months ago, Nepal's political spectrum witnessed a hue and cry with whimsical claims of these Maoist leaders being convicted and even slapped fines by the Patna court. Ground reporting by the Post had made it clear that no such convictions were pronounced by the court, though criminal cases against them were pending.
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CHINESE JOURNALIST GROUP METS PM, PRESIDENT

CHINESE JOURNALIST DELEGATION IN TOWN; MEETS PREMIER, PRESIDENT

Kathmandu, 30 Nov.: Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai Tuesday discussed bilateral ties with a six-member Chinese journalist team led by
Liu Beixian, President of the China News Service.
The team is in Nepal ahead of Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao’s visit in the last week of December.
The team held separate discussions with Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai, President Dr. Ran Baran Yadav
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INDIAN NATIONAL ARRESTED WITH LOADED ITALIAN PISTOL

Kathmandu, 30 Nov.: Indian national Shyam Bihari Agrawal was arrested with a loaded Italian pistol from a car with a Nepali number plate he was driving Tuesday from Maitidevi.
Agrawal, a Gorakhpur resident, was booked at Yan and Yeti Hotel, according to police.
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LOBBYING ON BEHALF OF OHCHR-NEPAL TO EXTEND TENURE AFTER 8 DECEMBER

LOBBYING ON BEHALF OF OHCHR-NEPAL TO EXTEND TENURE AFTER 8 DECEMBER

Kathmandu, 30 Nov.: A tenure of the Office of UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR-Nepal) ends 8 December.
The UN agency and the then government signed an agreement 10 April 2005 to monitor and investigate rights violations during the 10-year Maoist insurgency.
Operations have been scaled down after a constituent assembly election following a 12-pointNew Delhi peace accord, but the Geneva-based agency continues its presence in Nepal.
Western states particularly are lobbying for its continued presence even as some of its activities have been questioned.
Rights activists, including former Speaker Daman Nath Dhungana and Padma Ratna Tuladhar, in a joint appeal, have asked Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai , the council of ministers and major parties, to extend the tenure again.
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NARAHARI DHAKAL INSTALLED LRBB CHAIRMANS

Kathmandu, 30 Nov. Narhari Dhakal was formally installed chairman of
Rastriya Banijya Bank (RBB) Tuesday.
Other board members are: Shanta Raj Subedi, Bishnu Das Dangol, Bal Chandra Shrestha and Pitri Bhakta Pokharel.
RBB is the country’s largest commercial bank and wholly government owned.
Dhakal, a development economist, was appointed by Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai.
Government has intervened to revamp the state bank on recommendation of World Bank.
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ABORTION OF FEMALE FETUS RAMPANT

Kathmandu, 30 Nov.:: Even pre-natal sex determination is punishable under the Muluki Ain (Civil Code) but, in lack of effective monitoring, sex selective abortions are rampant in hospitals, nursing homes and clinics across the country, Anjali Subedi writes in Republica..
As per the data provided by the Department of Health Services, 51,415 abortions were carried out in 2007/08, 83,978 in 2008/09 and 88,938 fetus were aborted in 2009/10.
Under existing laws, going for ultrasound and other tests for sex determination draws three months of imprisonment for the parents and doctors involved in the process. Similarly, in case the fetus is aborted after sex determination, there is provision of up to 5 years of imprisonment depending on the age of the fetus.
Already aware that sex selective abortion is not uncommon in the capital, Republica visited three clinics located in Kalimati Chowk and one in Bhotebahal to find out how rampant the practice actually is.
Case no 1 - The ´signboard´ hung outside the Sukhi Pariwar Clinic in Kalimati offered orthopedic, neurological and family planning services. However, on entering the well furnished clinic it doesn´t take long to notice that the place was a safe haven for those needing abortion, both legal and illegal. The more complicated the case, the more the clinic could earn!
This scribe posed as a close relative of a woman who wanted to abort 7 month old fetus. Marketing officer Uttam Prasad Aryal straightaway asked whether it was a girl. He assured that clinic would provide best service as it was 25 years old (the government legalized abortion only in 2002).
“The doctor is very much experienced. He has already handled many such cases, you need not worry about the health of the mother,” he said. Aryal revealed that a majority of the married couple visit the clinic to abort female fetus.
“If they come at an early stage, we charge them only around Rs 4000. But in complicated cases, it costs up to Rs 35000,” said Aryal. Dr Tumla Lacoul Shah carries out abortion in this clinic.
Case no 2 - Care and Cure Polyclinic situated in a plush building in Kalimati boasts numbers of health services. The clinic´s main source of income, however, is from illegal abortion.
When we approached Dr Reeta for the abortion, she stressed that the case of abortion of 7 month old fetus was very complicated one and that could not be performed for below Rs 30,000.
When we broached the issue of people´s obsession for boys, the doctor gave a surprising answer! “Outsiders cannot understand pain the couples who have daughters alone go through. They want sons basically for continuing their lineage.”
Case no 3 - In Y and U medical, marketing officer Kapaleshwor Yadav said that the cost for abortion would be around Rs 20000 to 25000. When asked whether people also come for abortion of male fetus, he informed that in his 9 years of service in the clinic, he came across just two such cases. “Rarely, some couple expect the fetus to be a girl in the ultrasound report, but they would not go to the extent of aborting the fetus even if it is male,” he said.
Lastly, at Buddha Minimal Access Intervention Center in Bhotebahal, though sex selective abortion was practiced, the center did not take up cases of fetus above 3-month-old.
Commenting on the issue, Sapana Malla Pradhan, an advocate, social activist and a Constituent Assembly Member, said that the scenario reflects Nepali society´s obsession for a male child.
“Both identifying sex of fetus and going for abortion are serious crimes under the law,” said Malla. “However there is no effective body to control it. If the trend grows like this, no wonder, soon we would be confronted with the situation of gender disparity as prevalent in India,” she added.
She further informed that it is legal to go for abortion up to 12 weeks of pregnancy if a certified medial doctor finds it necessary to safeguard the child or the mother. Similarly, in cases of rape or incest, abortions are allowed till 18th week of pregnancy.
Similarly, Gyanu Chhetri, a PhD holder in gender studies and professor of sociology in Patan Campus, added that the lack of control mechanism is the reason behind the rampant illegal abortions.
“People simply do not know when an abortion is legal or illegal,” she said. “During my PhD research, I found that if it is a first baby, they want son, if second, they are okay with a daughter,” she said. She stated that woman who begets only daughters have to put up with social and psychological pressure, which makes her wish for a son.
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300 MORE CASES OF IC MISUSE BY BIRGUNJ FIRMS FOUND

Kathmandu, Nov.: The Department of Revenue Investigation (DRI) has unearthed more than 300 new cases of misuse of Indian Currency (IC) by eight Birgunj-based firms, Republica reports.
A team of the DRI and Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) is looking into suspicious withdrawal of IC from three leading commercial banks by those eight firms over the past four months.
The department had dispatched a team to Birgunj last week to further investigate into IC misappropriation racket. It suspects the involvement of customs officials and staff of the banks in IC misappropriation.
“We have found more than 300 new cases of IC misappropriation by the eight firms. They were found to have withdrawn a large amount of IC from Birgunj-based bank branch of NIC Bank, Siddhartha Bank and Laxmi Bank,” Mohan Bahadur Chand, director of the DRI, said
However, the exact amount misused by those firms is still to be ascertained as investigation officials are busy verifying documents.
“Most of the cases are related to Shyam Galla Bhandar that managed to withdraw IC by producing fake documents of dry fruits and groceries imports from India,” added Chand.
About a couple of weeks ago, DRI had said it was near to completing investigation into the IC misappropriation scam that has inflicted loss worth Rs 2 billion to the national exchequer.
Preliminary investigation has showed that IC worth Rs 900 million has been misappropriated by the Birgunj-based firms alone. A joint team from DRI and NRB has found the involvement of Laxmi Traders, Maha Laxmi Enterprises, Rehan Traders, Shyam Galla Store, GS Traders, Mata Di International, Maxwell Computers and Digital World in IC misuse.
The team has suspected involvement of customs staff, employees of around a dozen banks and the traders in IC misappropriation.
Before this latest revelation, DRI had found that Laxmi Trader, Mahalaxmi Enterprises and Rehan Traders withdrew Rs 20 million from Birgunj branch of Laxmi Bank by showing fake documents of potato imports through Chhatyauli small customs under Krishnanagar Customs Office.
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MAOIST INTENSION, UNMIN RELIABLITY UNDER SCANNER WITH MISSING MAOISTS
Kathmandu, 30 Nov.: Now that the regrouping of Maoist fighters has almost come to an end, a question — who is who — is baffling all and sundry, and with around 3,000 combatants ‘lost’ during last five years, then United Nations Mission in Nepal has once again run into controversy, Lekhnath Pandey writes in The Himalayan Times..

In the last 11 days, Maoist PLA combatants lined up to register their names for regrouping, but interestingly, the names and age they provided to survey teams deployed by the Special Committee (for supervision, integration and rehabilitation of Maoist fighters) were different from those they told UNMIN in 2007. Ram Sharan Mahat, a Nepali Congress leader and an SC member, said during the survey about one fourth of combatants were found to have lied to UNMIN about names and age. Why so? Maoist fighters outright played down the issue.

PLA Brigadier Commander Saral Sahayatri Paudel attributed the mismatch in names and age to fighters’ tendency to use their nome de guerre when UNMIN verified them. “Some opted to go by their nome de guerre, without realising future implications.” UNMIN had verified the fighters without tallying the forms with their citizenship cards. Paudel failed to explain why they lied about age.

Mahat, however, linked this with Maoists’ intention to exaggerate the strength of their combatants. “It has raised a question once again whether the number of combatants is genuine,” he added, hinting that the ‘revelation’ is an extension of Maoist Chairman Puspa Kamal Dahal’s leaked ‘Shaktikhor tape’, in which Dahal had boasted how he had ‘hoodwinked UNMIN’ and succeeded in showing the PLA strength to be 19,602 instead of actual 7,000. In addition, 3,000 ‘missing’ combatants have also left many questions. The Maoist party proved it was a step ahead; it religiously lapped up the allowances meant for the ‘deserters’ till two weeks ago. With Rs 8,000 per head, the Maoist party enriched itself by around Rs 25 million at the expense of state coffers. Former peace minister Janardan Sharma, a Maoist member in the Special Committee, however, ruled out foul play. Former peace minister Rakam Chemjong had even stopped allowances for three months, arguing that stipend should be provided to individual fighters.

Mahat added had UNMIN strictly monitored the camps and shared data, the Maoists would not have been able to misuse the government till.
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NEPAL TO ASK DONORS TO CHANNEL AID THROUGH NATIONAL BUDGET
Kathmandu, 30 Nov.: Nepal is asking the donors to channel aid through budget as government has increased accountability and transparency in expenditure, Kuvera Chilese writes in The Himalayan Times..

“We will request the donors to channelise their aid through government budget,” said finance secretary Krishnahari Baskota before flying to Busan, South Korea to take part in the Fourth High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness that started today. “The government has increased its accountability and transparency in expenditure,” he said, adding that the donors, who seek accountability of their aid, can now believe on the government machinery.

Nepal has also upgraded its budget format according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) standard to make the donors more comfortable and increase country ownership of the aid instead of off the budgetary aid, the finance secretary, who is taking part in the evaluation meeting — of earlier commitments and implementation of 2005 Paris Declaration — with finance minister Barsha Man Pun, added. “The people of the donor countries have right to know that their tax has been used effectively.”

Meanwhile, the key actors meeting in Busan today, the first day of the Fourth High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness, laid emphasis on inclusive ownership, mutual accountability and the platform of the groundbreaking Paris Declaration.

Speakers representing donor and recipient governments and civil society experts stressed the importance of going beyond technical targets to meet challenges in achieving inclusive indicators that are commonly based on concrete figures in poverty reduction.

Developing mechanisms to create diverse stakeholders, including citizen participation in decision-making and implementation of balanced partnerships to achieve transparency and poverty reduction have been defined as some of the landmarks of ownership and accountability.

The concepts are aimed at encouraging domestic accountability that will foster development efficiency through the participation of grassroots-level citizens. The test in Busan is to implement political commitments to strengthen the process and move away from shaping aid narrowly through donor disbursements.

Still, surveys post-Paris indicate that more than 60 per cent of donor and developing countries have not met their targets apart from mutual accountability that remains a sticking point for donor countries.

The donors also pointed to pressure from tax payers in their countries who expect concrete improvement in poverty eradication in shorter spaces of time.

Experts also pointed to the need to move ahead in achieving effectiveness in Busan to combat widening development issues – the emergence of new aid players against a backdrop of global disillusionment with the results of trillions of dollars already spent in overseas development.

Counter methods included the urgent need to monitor and disseminate success stories of mutual accountability like gaining the trust of grassroots communities that often feel ignored in the aid debate.

Some 2,000 delegates will, until December 1, review progress in improving the effectiveness of aid, before making commitments towards a new development paradigm.

Government to seek loan from S Korea

Nepal will also seek loan from ExIm Bank of South Korea during the meeting at Busan, according to finance secretary Krishnahari Baskota. “The government will also ask the South Korean government to increase number of Nepali employees under Employment Permit System (EPS) and strengthen relationships between Financial Information Units of both the countries to fight against the flow of dirty money,” he added.
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CASE REGISTERED AT SPECIAL COURT BY CIAA FOR RECOVERY OF RS.2.2 MILLION FROM LAWMAKER IN PASSPORT SCAM CASE

CIAA REGISTERS CASE AT SPECIAL COURT FOR RECOVERY OF RS.2.2 MILLION FROM LAWMAKER

Kathmandu, 29 Nov.: CIAA Tuesday filed a case at a special court for recovery of Rs. 2.2 million from lawmaker Shiva Pujan Raya Yadav for misuse by sale of a personal diplomatic passport.
Charges were also registered against eight government officials for recovery of Rs.2.2 million each as well.
Officials chaged are: Gopal Baniya, Manoj Kumar Karki, Devendra Paudel, Santosh Raj Uprety and Dil Bahadur Gharti.
Others charged are immigration officials Ramesh Lamsal, Devi Dutta Khatri and computer officer Indra Kumar Sunuwar.
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UML CONLUDES SUPREME COURT BREACHED ITS JURISDICTION
Kathmandu, 29 Nov.: Parliamentary party meeting of the CPN-UML on Tuesday concluded that the Supreme Court's recent verdict on term of the Constituent Assembly breached its jurisdiction, RSS reports.
The meeting held in Singha Durbar made such conclusion, said Chief Whip of the party, Bhim Acharya, adding that the SC verdict was not constitutional but a political one.
The court can't make decision on people's ground; it the legislature-Parliament to decide on the amendment of the constitution, Acharya added.
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RPP-NEPAL LEADER SAYS CONSTITUTION WON’T BE PROLUMLATED AGAIN IN COMING SIX MONTHS
Kathmandu, 29 Nov.: Parliamentary party leader of the RPP-Nepal, Chandra Bahadur Gurung said there was no basis of completion of the constitution writing within the extended six months, RSS reports.

Talking to media persons, he demanded to fully implement the Supreme Court verdict that gives the political parties six months to complete the constitution writing before the Constituent Assembly is dissolved.

The Constituent Assembly must concentrate on constitution writing, he stressed.
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CHRISTIANS DEMAND BURIAL SITE WITH PRESIDENT YADAV

TWO DRINKING WATER PLANTS SEALED
Kathmandu, 29 Nov.: The Department of Food Technology and Quality Control has sealed two drinking water companies based in Chalnakhel of Kirtipur, RSS reports from Kirtipur.

The sealed companies are Heena Drinks and Beverage Pvt. Ltd. and the Bibhuti Pure Drinking Water Industry.

The Department ordered these industries to close after it was found that the bottled drinking water these plants were supplying was unhygienic, according to the Metropolitan Police Sector, Pharping.

The companies were sealed off in the presence of security personnel and technical staff at the Department, it is learnt
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CHRISTIANS DEMAND BURIAL SITE IN DEMAND SUBMITTED TO PRESIDENT
Kathmandu, 29 Nov.: A delegation of the National Federation of Christians on Tuesday called on President Dr. Ram Baran Yadav and submitted a memorandum, calling for managing a burial site for the Christian community, RSS reports.

Recognising churches as religious guthis, investigation into the bomb blasts taking place in churches in different places in the country, their security and enforcement of three-point agreement reached between the Federation and government are among other demands put forth by the Federation.

The delegation comprised lawmakers Laxmi Pariyar and Govinda Praja also.

Receiving the memo, President Yadav said that the demands were positive and assured to drew the government's attention on the issue, said Federation General Secretary CB Gahatraj.
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NEW AGRO DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY IN OFFING

NEW AGRO DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY IN OFFING
Kathmandu, 29 Nov.: The ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives is preparing a new Agricultural Development Strategy, RSS reports.



The Ministry is developing the strategy with the financial and technical cooperation of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to contribute to the Agricultural Perspective Plan.



According to the Ministry, the goal of the strategy is to how the overall agricultural productivity could be increased.

This was informed at a discussion programme organised by the Ministry on Tuesday. At the programme, all aspects of the strategy were discussed with the experts concerned.



Officials and experts from the Ministry and the donor agencies working in the agriculture sector in the country are attending the two-day discussion programme.

Vice Chairman of the National Planning Commission (NPC), Dipendra Bahadur Chhetri declared open the programme. Speaking on the occasion, he said although the production of rainy season crops like paddy, maize, millet and buckwheat has increased, production of vegetables and fruits have not increased.

Secretary at the Ministry of Agriculture, Nathu Prasad Chaudhary, former Vice Chairman of NPC Dr. Prithvi Raj Ligal and NPC former members Dr. Dilli Raj Khanal and Dr. Pushpa Shrestha said the new strategy should identify the main problems in agriculture and address these and that it should also be geared towards contributing to the country’s economy.

ADB’s Nepal chief Barry Hitchcock said the strategy will pay attention to minimizing the adverse impact of climate change on agriculture sector in Nepal.
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PAC SUMMONS TOURISM MINISTER TO DISCUSS PERCEIVED IRREGULARITIES
Kathmandu, 29 Nov.: The meeting of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of the Parliament on Tuesday has decided to call the Minister for Tourism and Civil Aviation to take information about irregularities seen in the Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC), RSS reports.

Committee’s Chief Ram Krishna Yadav said that meeting decided to invite Minister Lokendra Bista to take information about the missing wheel of the plane, flyover kit and landing gear. The meeting also issued a directive to the Ministry to resolve the dispute over the post of executive chief at the NAC.

On the occasion, lawmakers urged the Secretary at the Ministry Dr. Ganesh Raj Joshi to resolve the dispute over the executive post, saying that the NAC was on the verge of collapse due to conflict between Executive Chairman Manrup Shahi and General Manager Kul Bahadur Limbu.

Lawmaker Lal Babu Pandit said both Shahi and Limbu should step down soon on moral ground. He demanded stern action against those involved in irregularities in the NAC. Similarly, lawmaker Narayan Dahal alleged that a group of people was active to make the NAC a shambles.

Lawmaker Keshav Nepal urged to book the criminals working inside the NAC. Also speaking at the meeting, lawmaker Kamala Panta suggested that all the ministers appointed after 1989 and stakeholders should be invited to hold an interaction to improve the condition of the NAC.
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EU, NORWAY, SWITZERLAND JOINTLY HURRIEDLY WELCOME CA SIX-MONTH TENURE EXTENSION

EU, NORWAY, SWITZERLAND HURRIEDLY WELCOME CA TENURE EXTENSION
Kathmandu, 29 Nov.: Only hours after a 6-month extension of the constituent assembly Tuesday by parliament, European Union Mission in Kathmandu along with Norway and Switzerland have welcomed the new term extension of the Constituent Assembly on Tuesday.
“The agreement to extend the term of the Constituent Assembly provides the political parties in Nepal with a renewed opportunity to promulgate a new democratic and inclusive Constitution within the next six months. The EU missions together with Norway and Switzerland trust that the extension will allow for a meaningful process of public consultation on the constitution.
. “The peace process is moving forward, thanks to dialogue and action by the political parties to address long-outstanding issues.
“The peace process is moving forward, thanks to dialogue and action by the political parties to address long-outstanding issues,” a joint statement said.
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STUDY PUTS ILLITERTE POPULATION AT 1.7 MILLION

Kathmandu, 29 Nov.: The Informal Education Center, Sanothimi, has made the population of illiterate people public over 15 years of age, RSS reports from Bhaktapur.

Deputy Director of the Center, Keshav Prasad Dahal, said illiterate male population over 15 years of age across the country is over 1.7 million while the female one is over 3.4 million.

Sarlahi district has the highest number of illiterate population while Manang has the lowest population of illiterate population across the country. Sarlahi has 132,798 female illiterate population and 88,897 male whereas Manang has only 907 female and 499 male illiterate population.

Under-Secretary at the Center, Madhav Prasad Dahal said, the center has been running literacy campaign since October 18 targeting to make literate to 1,035,000 uneducated people of 15-60 age groups in all the 75 districts.

As per the target the center will run classes effectively and plans to make literate to 350,000 uneducated people in the first three months, he said. Similarly, the rest of the illiterate population will be made literate in the second and third phase within the end of the current fiscal year, he added.

The center has been running the campaign by giving priority in the districts that have high illiteracy rate. Manang, Mustang, Solukhumbhu, Rasuwa, Mugu, Humla, Dolpa, Kanchanpur and Terhathum have the less than 15,000 illiterate population.

This year, the instructors have been prepared to teach in the Nepali, Newari, Maithali, Bhojpuri, Limbu, Dotel, Tharu, Magar, Gurung and Bantava, among other languages for making the campaign a success.

It is estimated that around Rs. 700 million will be spent during the campaign.
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TWO CREW MEMBERS, SICK TOURIST SURVIVE CHOPPER ACCIDENT IN EVEREST REGION

TWO CREW MEMBERS, SICK TOURIST SURVIVE CHOPPER ACCIDENT IN EVEREST REGION

Kathmandu, 29 Nov.: Two crew members and a sick tourist survived another air accident when a Eco Real AAS 350 of Fish Air met with an accident after takeoff from Labuche in the Mount Everest Tuesday afternoon.
Captain Dipal Rana and co-pilot Anush are safe, police said.
the District Police Office, Solukhumbu, said.
The accident met an accident immediately after takeoff.
The chopper was damaged.
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UPDATE 1,300 CHICKENS, DUCKS CULLED AFTER BIRD FLU OUTBREAK IN VALLEY
Kathmandu, 29 Nov.: Around 1,300 chickens and 200 ducks at Manohara Landless Squatters´ Settlement have been destroyed Tuesday on the suspicion of bird flu, RSS reports from Bhaktapur.
A team of doctors from the Department of Health, Directorate of Animal Health, Division of Avian Influenza and Animal Rapid Response destroyed ducks and chicken by burying after killing with the use of poisonous substances.

According to Senior Veterinary Doctor and In-charge of the Team Dr. Narayan Prasad Ghimire, the team destroyed the ducks and chicken after detection of bird flu in chicken of the area.

Five chicken of local Chandra Bahadur Tamang had died on November 10 and 30 chicken on November 11. The Bird Flu was suspected after the dead chickens were tested at the Central Veterinary Lab, Tripureswor.

Dr. Ghimire further said the bird flu was confirmed after the sample of the chicks was sent to London, the UK, for the lab test. The chicken and ducks were destroyed today as per the government´s decision after the government received this information on Monday.
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________________________________________

UPDATE CA TENURE EXTENDED FOR SIX MONTHS

UPDATE PARLIAMENT EXTENDS CA TERM ANOTHER SIX MONTHS

By Bhola B Rana

Kathmandu, 29 Nov.: Parliament Tuesday afternoon extended the constituent assembly (CA) tenure another six months by majority vote.
The term of the Constituent Assembly (CA) was extended for the fourth time on Tuesday. The legislature-parliament approved an 11th amendment to an interim constitution for the third extension; the assembly hasn’t succeeded in promulgating a declared republic declared in the two-year elected mandate.
The CA and parliament members are no longer elected; they have invited themselves to the bodies.
Three among the 508 lawmakers voted against the government sponsored amendment bill.
Before the endorsement of the amendment, the Big Three and a front of Madeshbadi parties signed a six-point agreement to resolve peace issues by mid-December after missing a 30 November deadline.
They also agreed to meet once a week henceforth to review agreement implementation, according to Communication Minister Jayaprakash Prasad Gupta.
Parties will announce a calendar by 6 December to promulgate a delayed constitution.
Parties can’t waste time this time politicking to pull down government and to gain power after the supreme court ruled Friday the CA extension will be the last.
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MS.LOIS QUAM ARRIVES

U.S. Government Global Health Initiative Executive Director, Ms. Lois Quam Visits Nepal
Kathmandu, 29 Nov.: The Executive Director of President Obama’s Global Health Initiative (GHI), Ms. Lois Quam, arrived in Kathmandu Tuesday for a three-day visit, US embassy said.
Designated as one of eight U.S. Government “GHI Plus” countries in 2010, Nepal has demonstrated award-winning results and the potential to significantly improve the health of the Nepalese people thanks to U.S. Government assistance in collaboration with other health sector donors under the leadership of the Ministry of Health and Population. GHI places a particular focus on improving the health of women, newborns and children through programs that address, maternal and child health, family planning, nutrition, vaccine preventable diseases, HIV/AIDS, infectious diseases, and hygiene and sanitation.
During the visit, Ms. Quam will meet with Government of Nepal senior officials, health donor colleagues, and health implementers to discuss USG and Nepal health development priorities. She will observe integrated GHI programs, visit program sites, and interact with beneficiaries focusing on maternal and child health, vaccine preventable diseases, HIV/AIDS, health research and infectious diseases, and disaster risk reduction.
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PM’S PRESS ADVISOR SAYS TERAI ARMED OUTFIT READY
FOR TALKS WITH GOVT.
Kathmandu, 29 Nov.: Prime Minister’s press advisor, Ram Rijan Yadav has said that the Terai-based agitating armed force Madhes Rastra Janatantrik Party -Revolutionary has expressed its eagerness and readiness to hold dialogue with the incumbent government to shun violence, RSS reports from
Rajbiraj.
Only on Monday, cabinet meeting has formed a three-member talks team to sit in dialogue with different armed outfits operating in Terai districts.

Talking to journalists in Rajbiraj, Yadav said the Janatantrik- Revolutionary was serious to resolve the problem and express their demands through holding dialogue with the government.

PM’s press advisor Yadav further informed that he has recently returned after holding dialogue with the Front composed of Janatantrik Terai Mukti Morcha (Agni Group), Janatantrik Terai Mukti Morcha (Abinash Group) and Madhes Rastra Janatantrik Krantikari functioning in the Indian territory.

He added that he had a meeting with Front’s vice-chairperson Bibash Bidrohi, Agni and Abinash in an unknown place of India and urged them to express their demands through peaceful means.
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TAPALEJUNG FIRE DETROYS PROPERTY WORTH RS. 300,000
Kathmandu, 29 Nov.:Property worth Rs 300,000 has been gutted in a fire that broke out in a house at Fawakhola of Taplejung district on Tuesday morning, RSS reports from Taplejung..

It has been reported that the inferno started from the house of Fiplal Ezam of Fawakhola-6.

The fire has destroyed all goods, including clothes and foodstuffs stored in the house.

According to a local Ashish Bhattarai, locals have brought the fire under control.
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sud.as . But I nev t collectedmoneyfrom an official fo
athmandu on November 23 for a week-long visit.

Besides interacting with members of the Constituent Assembly, the delegation had called on the president, the prime minister and senior leaders of political parties and taken stock of the ongoing regrouping process of combatants.

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15,732 preferences ecrded comleted in four coatonments paperwork isof two caps being completed.
Nearky 3,000 desered but party
Kathmandu, 29 Nov.: Preferences of 15,747 were recorded; choices of 1,094 fighters at the7th Division in Kailali in the far-West has to be recorded, according to Balananda Sharma, Coordinator of the secretariat of a special government committee .
Only two male fighters opted for resettlement while 60 percent
opted for integration.
All those who chose to join the Nepal Army (NA) against which the Maoist fighters fought in a 10-year insurgency may not qualify.
The deadline to complete recording preferences for integration, resettlement or voluntary retirement at seven cantonments ended Monday.
The assignment to 210 …was completed only in six of seven cantonments to record choices of 19,000 plus former PLA
combatants in 28 satellite camps and seven cantonments.
They were verified by UNMIN, a UN political agency which was
invited by government and parties but funded by donors, mainly European states.
Amid controversy, UNMIN quit Nepal 15 January 2011 without completing its assignment amid charges by pro-Maoist parties by parties that first invited the UN body to Nepal.

short by around 3,000.
Four placec completed completely paper work remains at two antonmnts
Maoist soldiers have showed up, according to Bala Nanda Sharma, coordinator of the secretariat under the Special Committee.

Now the categorization of only 1,094 is left, in the cantonment in Kailali, according to Gopal Singh Bohara, a member of the secretariat. The cantonment has been given three more days to complete the categorization.

Even if it is assumed that all the remaining 1,094 combatants turn up for the categorization, the number of Maoist army personnel would come to 16,841, or 2,764 fewer than the figure registered by the United Nations Mission in Nepal (UNMIN) in 2007.

This updated figure for the ex-combatants has raised a question about the Maoists over misuse of resources allocated for combatant allowances and rations. As of last month, the Office of Cantonment Management released allowances and rations to 19,525 combatants. That means the Maoists were drawing salary and rations even for combatants who were not there.

Calculations by Republica show that the Maoists were drawing around Rs 27.5 million every month from state coffers as allowance and rations in the name of absent combatants. The government gives Rs 6,500 in allowance and Rs 2,730 on average for rations to each combatant every month.

"This is an expected result. Many combatants who were not in the cantonments also came forward for categorization. Otherwise, the number would have been much less," said Dr Minendra Rijal, a Special Committee member, when asked to comment on the drop in the PLA numbers.

Not a single Maoist leader who could comment on the matter was available.

As a significant number of combatants did not participate in the categorization process, the Maoist party had sent out cadres to villages in Rolpa and Ilam to persuade deserters to come and participate in the categorization.

"We have found that the Maoists have been luring the deserters to participate in the categorization, saying they would get money for choosing voluntary retirement," said a government official involved in categorization at Dahaban cantonment in Rolpa, over the phone.

Our correspondent from Jhapa reported that many deserters have come to participate in the categorization process and the Maoist party made them sign an undertaking to give the party 50 percent of the money they will get for opting for voluntary retirement.

Road ahead

With the categorization to be completed in all the cantonments in the next three days, the next step in the management of combatants such as when those opting for voluntary retirement will be released from the cantonments and when the Nepal Army will start selecting the qualified combatants, remains unclear.

"We were given a mandate only to complete the categorization," said Special Committee Secretariat Coordinator Sharma when asked about the road ahead. "But I think those opting for voluntary retirement should be allowed to go to their respective communities as early as possible because we have sensed growing animosity between those opting for integration and those for voluntary retirement."

Spokesperson at the Special Committee Madhav Prasad Ghimire, who is also the chief secretary, said the Special Committee is required to take a decision on the future course of management of the Maoist combatants once the categorization is completed.

´The Special Committee will take a decision after it receives a report on the categorization from the secretariat," said Ghimire.

Maoists insisting late-comers be considered

Though the secretariat announced the expiry of the deadline for participation in categorization, the Maoists in Rolpa have been insisting that later-comers be considered as well.

"They have told us that they are bringing more combatants in the coming days and insisting they be considered for categorization also," said an official involved in the categorization in Rolpa.

But Sharma told Republica that the deadline was fixed in consultation with PLA divisional commanders and cannot be extended except in Kailali. As the statelite cantonments lie in far-flung areas and the categorization process began three days later in the cantonments in Kailali, the secretariat has given three more day

BIBAHA PANCHAMI BENG OBSERVED
Kathmandu, 29 Nov.: Bibaha Panchami
is being celebrated Tuesday.
Devotees from Nepal and India are taking holy dips at lakes in
Janakpur to offer prayers to Lord Ram and Consort Sita whose
marriage is being celebrated Tuesday.

Kathmandu, 29 Nov.: Government has accepted a Rs. 1,83 billion
British assistance for a project to stop the effect of climate change.
The cabinet has also accepted a s 30.84 million Finnish assistance for an environment transmission improvement project.

REGROUPNG OF FORMER MAOIST FIGHTERS
AT SIX OF SEVEN CANTONMENTS COMPLETED





Kathmandu, 29 Nov.: The task of regrouping former Maoist combatants finished in most cantonments and camps as per the schedule by Monday, Kiran Pandey reports in The Rising Nepal.
Some 15,534 combatants among the 19,503 cantoned in 7 main cantonment sites (MCS) and 21 satellite camps was on Monday while some work remained to be done in the seventh division of Talaband, Kailali district.
By the final day Monday, 1281 combatants of second division located at Dhudhauli of Sindhuli, 3,319 of third division camp of Shaktikhor of Chitwan, 2,614 combatants of fourth division of Yaltungdanda, Nawalparasi, 2,126 combatants of fifth division located at Dahaban of Rolpa, 2,693 combatants of sixth division located at Dashrathpur of Surkhet and 2,219 combatants of seventh division located at Talaband of Kailali had been regrouped.
The regrouping task at seventh division could not be completed as it was initiated behind schedule, said Balananda Sharma, Coordinator of the Army Integration Special Committee (AISC). Sharma said the final

reports, however, were yet to come.
"The deadline has been extended by three days to accomplish all regrouping tasks," Sharma added.
Regrouping at the first division of Chulachuli at Ilam has been concluded.
According to Dr. Shambhu Ram Simkhada, coordinator of the AISC secretariat for the first division, 1,501 combatants out of total 1,930 cantoned combatants have been regrouped. It has three satellite camps.
He said 787 combatants opted for integration and 714 combatants for voluntary retirement; however, 429 combatants were absent in the regrouping.
The regrouping task at the third division in Shaktikhor of Chitwan has been concluded leaving 651 verified combatants absent in the regrouping process.
According to the AISC secretariat of Shatikhor, out of total cantoned 3,970 combatants, only 3,319 were regrouped by the last deadline of the regrouping.
Though the AISC team deployed in third division has claimed that the regrouping has been concluded, the division commanders have insisted that there are still some remaining tasks to be completed.
Meanwhile the regrouping task in fourth division of Jyaltung Danda, Nawalparasi has been concluded.
Having four satellites camps, the fourth division regrouped altogether 2,614 combatants on Monday. Out of total regrouped combatants, 1,277 combatants opted for integration and 1,337 for voluntary retirement. However, no combatant here opted for rehabilitation.
"We are happy that we have finished all regrouping tasks within the stipulated timeframe of November 28," said Ramananda Kurmi, member of AISC secretariat.
Only two combatants of Second Division opted for the government’s rehabilitation package.
During the last phase of regrouping, around 60 per cent of the ex-Maoist combatants have chosen integration while around 40 percent have preferred voluntary retirement.
However, not all the combatants going for integration will be addressed in the 6,500-quota as agreed among the parties for the PLA under a proposed new directorate of the Nepal Army
The rest of them would be either provided with rehabilitation package worth Rs 6 lakh to 9 lakh or voluntary retirement with cash assistance ranging from Rs 5 to 8 lakh.
As per the action plan passed by the AISC the directorate would be formed to accommodate regrouped PLA and the national army will choose the reserved number of the PLA applying its own standards and norms.
During the regrouping, the combatants were asked to voluntarily choose one of the three options - integration, rehabilitation and voluntary retirement. They were given counseling on the packages available.
Nnnn
n Parliament Delegation for Relations with South Asia revealed that cash assistance for combatants would not provide a lasting solution.

Kathmandu, 29 Nov.: Dashing hopes of any EU financial assistance
to financé the return home of former Maoist from camps, a member of a EU parliamentary delegation visiting Nepal said Monday cash donation wasn;t a solution.
“We view that returning home with cash is not a suitable approach to address the problem,” Lluis Navarro, a member of the delegation,
said.
Government ministers and some members of leading parties hoped EU member states would help the return home of the former combatants.
But five European states had been contributing to a peace fund managed by government to finance the peace process, including the monthly upkeep of 19,000 plus former fighters at the camps.
It’s come to light Monday 3,000 fighters deserted the camps but the paty was collecting the monthly stipends from government.
In effect, the Maoists were being financed through the government agency.



He said the EU could support disabled fighters, women and their children as and when asked, but not in the form of cash.



The EP delegation, led by Jean Lambart, arrived in Kathmandu on November 23 for a week-long visit.

Besides interacting with members of the Constituent Assembly, the delegation had called on the president, the prime minister and senior leaders of political parties and taken stock of the ongoing regrouping process of combatants.

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For cohoe restlement
15,732 preferences ecrded comleted in four coatonments paperwork isof two caps being completed.
Nearky 3,000 desered but party
Kathmandu, 29 Nov.: Preferences of 15,747 were recorded; choices of 1,094 fighters at the7th Division in Kailali in the far-West has to be recorded, according to Balananda Sharma, Coordinator of the secretariat of a special government committee .
Only two male fighters opted for resettlement while 60 percent
opted for integration.
All those who chose to join the Nepal Army (NA) against which the Maoist fighters fought in a 10-year insurgency may not qualify.
The deadline to complete recording preferences for integration, resettlement or voluntary retirement at seven cantonments ended Monday.
The assignment to 210 …was completed only in six of seven cantonments to record choices of 19,000 plus former PLA
combatants in 28 satellite camps and seven cantonments.
They were verified by UNMIN, a UN political agency which was
invited by government and parties but funded by donors, mainly European states.
Amid controversy, UNMIN quit Nepal 15 January 2011 without completing its assignment amid charges by pro-Maoist parties by parties that first invited the UN body to Nepal.

short by around 3,000.
Four placec completed completely paper work remains at two antonmnts
Maoist soldiers have showed up, according to Bala Nanda Sharma, coordinator of the secretariat under the Special Committee.

Now the categorization of only 1,094 is left, in the cantonment in Kailali, according to Gopal Singh Bohara, a member of the secretariat. The cantonment has been given three more days to complete the categorization.

Even if it is assumed that all the remaining 1,094 combatants turn up for the categorization, the number of Maoist army personnel would come to 16,841, or 2,764 fewer than the figure registered by the United Nations Mission in Nepal (UNMIN) in 2007.

This updated figure for the ex-combatants has raised a question about the Maoists over misuse of resources allocated for combatant allowances and rations. As of last month, the Office of Cantonment Management released allowances and rations to 19,525 combatants. That means the Maoists were drawing salary and rations even for combatants who were not there.

Calculations by Republica show that the Maoists were drawing around Rs 27.5 million every month from state coffers as allowance and rations in the name of absent combatants. The government gives Rs 6,500 in allowance and Rs 2,730 on average for rations to each combatant every month.

"This is an expected result. Many combatants who were not in the cantonments also came forward for categorization. Otherwise, the number would have been much less," said Dr Minendra Rijal, a Special Committee member, when asked to comment on the drop in the PLA numbers.

Not a single Maoist leader who could comment on the matter was available.

As a significant number of combatants did not participate in the categorization process, the Maoist party had sent out cadres to villages in Rolpa and Ilam to persuade deserters to come and participate in the categorization.

"We have found that the Maoists have been luring the deserters to participate in the categorization, saying they would get money for choosing voluntary retirement," said a government official involved in categorization at Dahaban cantonment in Rolpa, over the phone.

Our correspondent from Jhapa reported that many deserters have come to participate in the categorization process and the Maoist party made them sign an undertaking to give the party 50 percent of the money they will get for opting for voluntary retirement.

Road ahead

With the categorization to be completed in all the cantonments in the next three days, the next step in the management of combatants such as when those opting for voluntary retirement will be released from the cantonments and when the Nepal Army will start selecting the qualified combatants, remains unclear.

"We were given a mandate only to complete the categorization," said Special Committee Secretariat Coordinator Sharma when asked about the road ahead. "But I think those opting for voluntary retirement should be allowed to go to their respective communities as early as possible because we have sensed growing animosity between those opting for integration and those for voluntary retirement."

Spokesperson at the Special Committee Madhav Prasad Ghimire, who is also the chief secretary, said the Special Committee is required to take a decision on the future course of management of the Maoist combatants once the categorization is completed.

´The Special Committee will take a decision after it receives a report on the categorization from the secretariat," said Ghimire.

Maoists insisting late-comers be considered

Though the secretariat announced the expiry of the deadline for participation in categorization, the Maoists in Rolpa have been insisting that later-comers be considered as well.

"They have told us that they are bringing more combatants in the coming days and insisting they be considered for categorization also," said an official involved in the categorization in Rolpa.

But Sharma told Republica that the deadline was fixed in consultation with PLA divisional commanders and cannot be extended except in Kailali. As the statelite cantonments lie in far-flung areas and the categorization process began three days later in the cantonments in Kailali, the secretariat has given three more day