SECOND DAY OF BISKET JATRA CELEBRATIONS, ONE KILLED, TWO INJURED ON FIRST DAY

BISKET JATRA BEING CELEBRATED FOR 2ND DAY AS ONE REVELLER DIES AND TWO ARE INJURED ON FIRST DAY

Kathmandu, 10 April: One person did and two revelers were injured Monday on the first day of Bisket jatra in Bhaktapur.
Tuesday is the second day of the nine-day festival.
The festival began after the idol of Bhairab was installed on the three-
tiered chariot and pulled through the streets of the town famed for the Nyatapola
and Duttatreaya temples.
The idol was placed on the chariot after a 19-day puja.
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HEAVY STORM AND RAIN LASHES CAPITAL

Kathmandu, 10 April; Heavy storm and rain lashed the capital since early Tuesday.
The rain continued until six in the morning.
The city was hit by storm at 2 AM in the dark.
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MAOIST VOLUNTARY RETIREMENT FAILS TO GET UNDERWAY
Kathmandu, 10 April: Voluntary retirement of Maoist combatants, which was due to start across the country from Monday, failed to materilize expect in one camp in Rolpa mainly due to internal differences within the UCPN (Maoist) as well as dispute over the number of combatants to be intigrated into the Nepal Army (NA), Chandani Hamal reports IN Republica from Chitwan..

The Special Committee (SC) meeting had decided to vacate cantonments by April 12 by sending home those opting for voluntary retirement and handing over those who are opting for integration to Nepal Army.

However, the voluntary retirement process was stalled as there was a fresh decision to reduce the number of the Maoist combatants to be integrated in the army to 6,000 against the previous agreement of 6,500.

Special Committee Coordinator Bala Nanda Sharma said 94 Maoist combatants including four woman received checks for voluntary retirements on Monday in Rolpa but in other places, the process had been completely stalled.

A Special Committee team that arrived here on Sunday to expedite voluntary retirements of the Maoist combatants had nothing to do on Monday as combatants did not show up. "We would have started the retirement process but no one turned up," said Sharma. The team had planned to expedite voluntary retirement process by handing over bank checks.

While Division Commander Dhan Bahadur Maskey Magar came to Kathmandu to settle issues of integration, Vice Commander Janak Bista stayed away, apparently to show his frustration over internal problems in the party. Maskey went to Kathmandu to hold discussions with central level leaders on contentious issues related to army integration shortly after the SC team erected a camp.

Talking to Republica, Maskey said internal discussions were underway on how many combatants to integrate and how they should be integrated. “I am currently in Kathmandu. I will return to Chitwan after submitting a list of those going for integration and their rank to the party leaderships.”

Earlier, 1,137 Maoist combatants had chosen for voluntary retirements and 2,213 combatants had chosen integration from the Maoist Third Division Cantonment in Shaktikhor. Of the total 3,971 combatants said to be in the Third Division Cantonment, 417 combatants are out of contact.

On Sunday, tensions ran high in PLA cantonments in Ilam and Sindhuli after combatants protested against "nepotism and favoritism" in the selection of commanders for senior NA
positions.
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RECIPIENTS OF OC FREEBIES

Kathmandu, 10 April: Nepal Oil Corporation has distributed a total of 37,824 litres of petrol and 29,484 litres of diesel free since fiscal year 2008-09, according to a list NOC provided to Freedom Forum in the wake of a directive from National Information Commission.

Going by the latest prices, NOC has spent Rs 4.53 million on free petrol and Rs 2.62 million on free diesel.

The corporation has given a 75-page long list to NIC and the forum, mentioning only coupon numbers and vehicle numbers of those who got free fuel. NOC data shows that it distributed free fuel until August 24.

But the list is full of anomalies. NOC has failed to provide all vehicle numbers. “Distributing fuel without keeping record points to corruption,” Freedom Forum Chairperson Taranath Dahal said. Even the numbers that it has provided seem bogus as they don't mention zones or the alphabets.

Coupon numbers mentioned in the list are also not in order. According to the list, NOC provided free fuel on Coupon No 31,930 on August 24 but it had already issued Coupon No 91,681 on August 11. "Coupon numbers should be in chronological order and the corporation should justify such negligence and be ready for investigation,” Joint Secretary at the Ministry of Commerce and Supplies Deepak Subedi told The Himalayan Times. NOC will now have to show the transaction of all 91,681 coupons, added Dahal.

In a letter to the National Information Commission, the corporation claimed that distributing fuel for free is a ‘discretionary’ power of its managing director. However, sources at Ministry of Commerce and Supplies claim NOC managing director has no such discretionary power. No one has the right to distribute facilities using public purse, added Subedi.

NIC had also directed NOC to provide the details of fuel purchase and supply list over the last five years but NOC failed to do so, claiming it was short of staff. Apparently they don't maintain any database, adds Dahal. He wondered whether MoCS and authorities concerned will investigate into the anomalies.

Free distribution

2011-12 Petrol – 535 litres Diesel – 590 litres

2010-11 Petrol – 8,936 litres Diesel – 8,740 litres

2009-10 Petrol – 15,812 litres Diesel – 11,014 litres

2008-09 Petrol – 12,541 litre Diesel – 9,140 litres

Ministry of Commerce and Supplies has directed Nepal Oil Corporation to cut facilities that it has been providing its staff for years, including free fuel and clothing, spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce and Supplies Deepak Subedi told The Himalayan Times. But employees on Monday warned the corporation management not to implement the directive, said an NOC official.
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FORM PANELS TO SELECT ELIGIELE PLS FORMER FIGHTERS NC UML SUGGEST
Kathmandu, 10 April: Immediately after the all-party meeting held at the PMO in Singha Durbar, the Nepali Congress and CPN-UML held an informal meeting at the latter’s parliamentary party office, where leaders of both the sides stressed that the Special Committee must constitute the Selection Committee before the parties started consultations on the constitutional issues, Arjun Bhadari writes in The Himalayan Times..

Top leaders of the major political parties – UCPN-Maoist, Nepali Congress and CPN-UML – and Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Bijaya Kumar Gachhadar, representing the United Democratic Madhesi Front, are expected to hold closed-door consultations on the key constitutional issues, including the forms of governance, federalism, election system, judiciary and citizenship issues on the outskirts of the capital for two days beginning tomorrow.

But NC and UML leaders, who took part in the informal parleys, said it would be meaningless to hold such consultations unless the Selection Committee was formed by the Special Committee at the earliest.

“The integration process will not move forward without forming the Selection Committee, which needs to come into force before the top leaders of the major parties sit for closed-door discussions on the constitutional issues,” said NC leader Dr Ram Sharan Mahat.

Mahat said he and UML leader Bhim Rawal telephoned the PM during the informal meeting and urged him to call the Special Committee meeting immediately so that the Selection Committee could be formed to manage the combatants joining the Nepali Army.

Sources in the PMO said the Special Committee meeting would be held tomorrow. Mahat said it would be meaningless to hold the closed-door consultation on constitutional issues without the formation of the Selection Committee.

UML leader Rawal also said the Selection Committee should be formed immediately to ensure logistics support to the combatants who will go to the army barracks after April 12. He said once the Selection Committee was formed, it would be able to take decision on ration, uniform, allowances and chain of command and control of the combatants.

“Information collected from the camps suggests that the Selection Committee needs to be formed immediately,” Rawal said.

He said the Selection Committee needs to be formed on priority basis to effectively manage the combatants in the army barracks even if it might take some time to reach an understanding on the formation of general directorate, standard norms of integration and training period.
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