INDIAN PM SINGH ARRIVING SOON

INDIAN PM MANMOHAN SINGH ARRIVING SOON
Kathmandu, 25 Feb.:: Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will be arriving in Nepal ‘very soon’, several sources confirmed today [Friday], Lekhnath Pandey writes in The Himalayan Times.

Although the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Indian Embassy in Kathmandu have kept mum, the visit — of two to three days — is most likely in late March or early April. Both the countries have even postponed a meeting of joint commission of their foreign ministers slated in Kathmandu for March first week so as to ensure and make Indian Prime Minister Singh’s visit a success at an early date, added sources. “We are in a rush for the preparation of the visit,” said a senior government official. Another source told THT that the only possible threat to the possible visit is whether the incumbent government will be in place or not till then.

In a brief conversation with this daily, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs Narayan Kaji Shrestha said the Indian prime minister’s visit was very much on cards as per an invitation extended during Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai’s visit to India and that he wished to make it happen at the earliest date. During Deputy PM and Home Minister Bijaya Kumar Gachhadar’s visit to New Delhi in January, Singh had reiterated his desire to visit Nepal ‘soon’.

Earlier Indian Ambassador to Nepal Jayant Prasad had told journalists that Indian Prime Minister Singh would visit Nepal at an early but convenient date and both the governments were doing the groundwork to make the visit successful.

If Singh arrives in Kathmandu anytime now, he will be the first Indian prime minister to pay an official visit to Nepal since IK Gujral came here in 1997. Atal Bihari Vajpayee though was in Nepal in January 2002, it was not an official visit as he was here to take part in the 11th SAARC summit.

Sources said DPM Shrestha, is likely to embark on a New Delhi trip soon to lay foundation for the visit of the Indian prime minister. However, his trip to Delhi will depend on his health, as he is currently recovering after a surgery.
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US JUDGE AWARDS $1.5m COMPENSATION FOR SHANTI GURUNG

Kathmandu, 25 Feb A US judge has recommended that an Indian diplomat award her Nepali-origin maid nearly $1.5 million in compensation for the ´barbaric treatment´ and ´emotional distresses´ perpetrated against the teenage girl for three years, Republica reports.
In a 28-page recommendation to Judge Victor Marrero of the US District Court Southern District of New York, US Magistrate Judge Frank Mass recommended Neena Malhotra, who at the time was serving as the counselor of Press, Culture, Information, Education and Community Affairs at the Consulate General of India in Manhattan, to pay $1,458,335 to Shanti Gurung for ´barbaric treatment´.
Gurung was employed as her domestic help and forced to work long hours without adequate compensation for three years, according to a PTI report filed from New York.
Mass recommendations, however, are subject to approval by Marrero, who is overseeing the case.
Gurung, who hails from Sukuna in Darjeeling district of West Bengal, was taken to New York City in March 2006 to work as domestic help.
According to Gurung´s account to officials at Adhikar, an organization of Nepali people in New York, she was made to work from 6 am to 11 pm every day but was not given enough food.
"She told us that she was not even allowed to go out of her apartment," said Namrata Pradhan, who is affiliated with Adhikar, from New York, "She told us that she was even deprived of salary promised to her."
One day in July 2009 Gurung managed flee the apartment with the help of a woman when the Malhotra couple was away and subsequently reached Adhikar, a New York based organization of immigrant Nepalese, for protection.
"As she came in our contact, she looked like she was never given food to eat," Pradhan said.
The Nepali organization then took initiatives for legal remedy for the maid.
In a case filed at New York Southern District Court on July 1, 2010, Gurung had accused her employer Neena and her husband Jogesh Malhotra of slavery and various other charges under the Fair Labor Standards Act, demanding maximum punishment for the offense.

Mass in his recommendation said Gurung, who is now in her early twenties, was a victim of ´outrageous and shocking conduct´. Her ´documents were seized, her travel restricted, and she was not permitted to telephone her family´, a PTI report quoted Mass´ recommendation.
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PMO ASKS MINISTRS TO LIMIT DISTRICT VISITS

Kathmandu, 25 Feb.: Concerned over soaring expenses of ministers on district level visits, the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers has issued circulars to all the ministers to limit their district trips in line with the government´s austerity measures, Republica reports.

The prime minister´s office took this step after finding the ministers to have spent Rs 7.8 million for district level visits over the past six months alone.

Talking to Republica separately, two government secretaries confirmed that they had received the circular from PMO asking the ministers to be economic. They said the circular have been forwarded to their respective secretariats.

The ministers have been asked not make district visits for petty issues and make their visit short if they have to, according to government secretaries. The ministers have also been asked to not stay in a hotel if government quarters are available.

In addition, the prime minister´s office has also directed the ministries to issue circulars to all the offices under them to send receipts of the expenses to PMO within three days.
"If concerned district offices do not send the bills within three days, the expenses will be marked as in arrears," said a government secretary.

The circulars also require ministers to claim reimbursement for their district visits within 15 days. Failure to do so would deprive them of reimbursement.

According to a recent report prepared by PMO, ministers have spent as much Rs 665,900 for district level visits. Minister for Industries and Supplies Anil Kumar Jha earns the distinction for drawing the highest amount of Rs 100,000 per month on an average.

"A minister has to make a lot of trips and he cannot cover all the expenses on his own," said Jha.

Asked if he was aware of the austerity measures introduced by the government, he said, "Reducing travels do not make the country any better. We adopted austerity measures and this has reduced unnecessary expenses."

Minister for Local Development Top Bahadur Rayamajhi is second in the list of the ministers drawing the highest amount of money for district trips. PMO has given Rs 481,025 to Rayamajhi for his travel expenses. Minister Lokendra Bista is third in the list drawing Rs 432,918 from the national treasury for district visits.

Similarly, State Minister Gopi Acchhami spent Rs 305,655 over the past six months for such trips. Similarly, Minister Dan Bahadur Chaudhary spent Rs 351,800.

Similarly, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs Bijay Kumar Gachchhadar, Minister for Finance Barshaman Pun, Minister for Education Dinanath Sharma, Minister for Irrigation Mahendra Yadav, Minister for Land Reforms Bhim Prasad Gautam, Minister for Agriculture and Cooperative Nandan Dutt, Minister for Youth and Sports Kamal Roka and Minister without portfolio Raj Lal Yadav are also among the ministers drawing the highest amount of money for district visits.

Sources said most of the ministers clam reimbursement for personal trips to district.

"I will be on a district visit since Sunday to attend a marriage ceremony on government expenses. I risk losing my cadres support if I do not attend the ceremony," said minister Jha. "I cannot afford to pay for visits like this one."
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