RAIN WASHES OUT FIRST SEMI-FINAL OF AHA GOLD CUP

FIRST AHA GOLD CUP SEMI-FINAL WASHED OUT BY RAIN
Kathmandu, 8 Feb.: The first semi-final of the Aha Gold Cup in Pokhara was
washed out by rain Wednesday.
The match will be played Thursday.
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COMPANION OF DIG KOIRALA SENT TO JUDICIAL CUSTODY

Kathmandu, 8 Feb.: Tara Regmi, a woman companion of DIG Ranjan Koirala suspected for murdering his wife Gita Dkahal, was sent to judicial custody by Kathmandu
district court on Tuesday or five days,
Regmi is being charged by government attorneys for attempted murder
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GOVT. REVIEWING FREQENCY POLICY
Kathmandu, 8 Feb.: The government has initiated work to revise the Radio Frequency Distribution Policy and working procedure of the Radio Frequency Policy Determination Committee, The Kathmandu Post reports.
A taskforce formed by the Ministry of Information and Communications (MoIC) has been assigned the job of proposing a new policy on frequency allocation, suggesting the government whether spectrum can be auctioned, presenting ideas for better frequency management after the country goes to the federal system, and preparing a working procedure for the frequency committee. The team has been asked to accomplish the tasks within three months.
A ministry official said the taskforce was formed based on the recommendation of the Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC). “The four-member taskforce started the work from Sunday,” the official said.
In its report on the telecom sector, PAC had recommended that the government formulate a separate policy for radio frequency allocation, under which the scare recourse could be auctioned.
The parliamentary committee had also suggested that the government scrap the existing Telecommunications Frequency Distribution and Pricing Policy. The report had said the policy was implemented in order to correct past mistakes in frequency allocation.
PAC had also directed the government agencies concerned to submit monthly progress reports on implementation of its suggestions for the improvement of the telecom sector.
The taskforce is headed by Surya Bahadur Raut, chief technical officer at the ministry. Other three members are Anandra Raj Khanal, director at Nepal Telecommuni-cations Authority; Gaurav Giri, senior technical officer at the ministry; and Namakar Neupane; an official at Nepal Telecom. “We have started the work, giving top priority to the improvement in frequency distribution provision,” said Raut.
However, experts said the formation of the taskforce was just a formality to show that the government was doing something based on the PAC suggestions. They said as the policy was also related to the law, the government had to include some legal officers in the team.
Given telecom operators are spending money separately for same types of infrastructure for their service expansion, the team will also study and prepare a policy suggestion for infrastructure sharing and multipurpose use of infrastructure. “A huge amount of money is going out of the country for the setting up of separate infrastructures,” said Raut, adding that such infrastructure can be shared to avoid dual investment and bringing down service tariff.
Infrastructure and technology can be used jointly for broadcasting and telecom services, according to the ministry. The taskforce will also make suggestions on the joint use of optical fibre network and telecom towers.
Apart from the telecom sector, the taskforce will study the frequency allocated to FM radio stations and formulate a work plan for transforming terrestrial television broadcasting into digital system. As per the existing provision, once the government assigns frequency to any radio station, it is the owner’s asset forever.
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PARTY POLICY TO SNATCH MONEY OF FORMER FIGHTERS
Kathmandu, Feb.8: The confiscation of cheques by Maoist commanders at the Nawalparasi and Surkhet cantonment of the Maoist combatants appears to be part of the party's official decision to pocket a certain percentage of the money given to the combatants opting for voluntary retirement, Kamal Dev Bhattarai writes in The Kathmandu Post..
Dozens of combatants had on Sunday complained that their commanders snatched away the pay cheques and identity cards.
The PLA headquarters has a standing policy of collecting money from combatants to provide relief packages to the disqualified and minors who were discharged two years ago, a leader close to party Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal said. A meeting of top Maoist leaders had taken such a decision a few months ago, the leader said.
Demanding a relief package, the disqualified and the minors are up in arms.
During the regrouping process, the Maoist party had called hundreds of combatants who had already left the cantonments for a variety of reasons. The combatants had assured the party that they would provide 50 percent of the money they get as the party gave them an opportunity to join the regrouping process, a soruce said.
"Some combatants reneged on the agreement and created a scene," the source said.
In an interview with the Post a few months ago, Dahal had admitted that some top PLA commanders have joined the Young Communist League (YCL) and that the party had to address their fate too. Leaders say Dahal had directed PLA Chief Nanda Kishro Pun to collect a certain portion of the money from among the combatants.
However, the Baidya faction has urged the combatants to not accept the condition, as it said the decision was taken by the Dahal camp without taking it into confidence. The Maoist party is pocketing Rs 1,000 every month from each combatant from their salary since the UNMIN verification in 2007.
Speaking at the Reporter's Club on Monday, PLA Chief Pun said the issue was entirely an internal matter of the party. Arguing that every party has its own rules and regulations of economic discipline, he urged other parties to not create a fuss. He said combatants have to abide by the party's fiscal policy and discipline.
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NEW SOFTWARE TO PUT VDCs IN COMUTER ERA
Kathmandu, Feb. 8.: As a part of e-governance promotion and to carry out customer service related administrative works electronically at the Village Development Committees and District Development Committees and Wards of the Municipalities, EICT-Nepal has introduced a software in Nepali market, Mahananda Timalsina writesin The Himalayan Times.
According to EICT-Nepal, the Software called ‘Saral Software’ was developed after two years’ research and is already being successfully implemented at the four VDCs of the Kathmandu district with the assistance of lawmaker Gagan Thapa.

After the implementation of this software at the local bodies, service users of local bodies can benefit from the software as they can receive information from their home through the Saral Software.

However, the software can be implemented only in those local bodies where electricity and internet facility are available.

The wave based software is useful to keep records of citizens and other essential tasks of local bodies including management of accounts and revenue and other services, said Raju Kattel, director of EICT Nepal.

He added that additional services are also being added.

Kattel, who is also a developer, said that the software is developed in such a way that repeated entry of the data is not required.

“When there are widespread complaints about the government offices of not being transparent in their activities, the software will promote transparency and good governance in the local governmental organisations,” said Ajaya Babu Siwakoti, a member of EICT-Nepal and proprietor of hamrakura.com, a promoter of the software.

“It assists in responding to the concerns of the service seekers immediately and ensure hassle-free and uncomplicated administration of the local body,” he added.

According to EICT Nepal, it is promoting the software to various local bodies including DDCs, VDCs and wards of the Municipality across the country, since various local bodies have taken interest in it.
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JUNIOR MINISTER MENTALLY ILL
Kathmandu, 8 Feb.: State Minister for Forests and Soil Conservation Laxman Mahato was admitted to Norvic Hospital last evening after he started behaving weirdly, The Himalayan Times reports.

His driver was shocked when the minister said he would travel on the roof of his vehicle. When told there was no seat up there, Mahato asked the driver to put one. Since he was adamant, his security personnel and personal assistant took him to Norvic Hospital for treatment. “I was shocked after the minister started talking like that. He seemed mentally disturbed,” said one of his aides.

The minister had gone for a check-up at Teaching Hospital on Monday morning, before heading to the ministry. His behaviour became weird only in the evening.

His Personal Assistant Nagendra Ray said Mahato was a patient of blood pressure. “He suffered paralysis of right side two years ago and has been on medication for high blood pressure,” added Ray.

Norvic Hospital staff didn’t divulge much. “I can’t give details. Only thing I can say is he is recovering,” one of the duty staff at Norvic told The Himalayan Times.

Mahato represents Madhesi Janaadhikar Forum (Loktantrik) from Siraha. THT had reported a month back that he didn’t have good relations with Forest Minister Mohammad Wakil Musalman though both are from the same party. Mahato complained that Musalman had not given him any responsibility. Sources say he was also frustrated because he had no children.
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FJN TO PRESSURE MEDIA HOUSES
Kathmandu, Feb 07: Federation of Nepali Journalists (FNJ) is all set to give pressure to the media houses so as to implement the Working Journalists Regulations and basic salary scheme, greatwayonlne.com reports.
FNJ has decided to pressurise the media organisations to allocate the minimum salary of the journalists as directed by the Supreme Court (SC).
According to FNJ General Secretary Om Sharma, in the first phase of the task, the meeting of the central members, FNJ has decided to send a letter to all the media houses along with a copy of the directive issued by SC.
Issuing an order earlier this month, a division bench of Justices Girish Chandra Lal and Prakash Wosti argued that the minimum wage should be implemented in all the media houses in accordance with the recommendation of the Minimum Wage Determination Committee.
It was also stated in the directive that the minimum wage for working journalists in the papers classified as A should be Rs 10,008 and of those classified as B should be Rs 7,200.
Earlier this month, FNJ had also filed a writ at the SC citing that most of the media houses were not paying their employees according to the directives.
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