PM STOPS REGULAR MONTHLY VISITS OF HOME DISTRICT Kathmandu, 11 June: Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai has discontinued his regular monthly visits of home district Gorkha after his election to the constituent assembly (CA). “His visits to Gorkha have come to an end from this month,” Private Secretary Phanindra Debkota said in Tanahu. “Visit of the district has ended with the dissolution of the constituent assembly.” nnnn HUGE INCREASE IN GOLD PRICE Kathmandu, 11 June: Gold price surged by Rs. 1,200 per told tp settle at Rs. 56,300 per tola Sunday. Price increased in the local bullion market following an increase in the international price of the yellow metal. nnnn EC SUGGESTS CUTTING SIZE OF CA Kathmandu, 11 June: Acting Chief Election Commissioner Neelkantha Uprety today suggested to cut the strength of the 601-member Constituent Assembly as prescribed by the Interim Constitution ‘to respect the popular will, Ananta Raj Luitel/ Santosh P. Pokhrel writes in The Himalayan Times.. “I think it would be better to reduce the strength and the tenure of the constitution making body because of several factors. Although constitution cannot be related to the cost, we should be aware of the expenditure incurred by the state treasury,” Uprety told The Himalayan Times in an interview. According to him, since the CA was meant for two years originally and its tenure was extended for additional two years through amendments to the Interim Constitution, it may not be acceptable for the public to reelect the same body for the same period. “Since the political parties have already reached a consensus to have 311-member legislature in the new Constitution, it may be suitable to elect new CA with a similar strength,” he said. He hastened to add that it was up to the political parties to come up with a suitable decision. CEC estimates the election will cost the state exchequer Rs 7 to 8 billion more than the last CA poll. Uprety, however, ruled out holding CA election in late November due to adverse weather and the country’s geography. “Considering geographical and climatic situation, holding election is practical only during September-October and March-April. Some parts of the country witness heavy snowfall even in early November,” he said. He added that apart from geo-climatic concerns and uneducated voters, parties have to address new challenges — ethnic and federal issues — before long to set the stage for free, fair and fearless elections. In addition, he claimed that there was no certainty to hold elections without suitable amendments to the Interim Constitution and election laws. “We need at least 120 days after all legal hurdles are cleared through amendments to conduct polls on due date.” According to Uprety, Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai has considered EC’s demands positively and the latter was awaiting government’s response. “We hope that the government will find a way out to carry out necessary amendments,” he added. Acting CEC said the voters did not seem enthusiastic even after the announcement of the polls. “As many as 11.5 millions voters should cast the ballot but we are yet to collect voters’ lists of more than a million persons for the coming election.” Nnnn NCELL CLEARS ROYALTY DUES Kathmandu, 11 June: Ncell today [Sunday] cleared its committed royalty dues responding to the verdict of the Supreme Court, The Himalayan Times reports. The telecom service provider paid Rs 353 million royalty dues, said spokesperson at Nepal Telecommunications Authority Kailash Prasad Neupane, adding that the regulator had asked the company to clear its dues after the final verdict from the Supreme Court. Ncell had approached the Supreme Court seeking a level playing field. It had claimed that the notion of a level playing field was breached since other operators have been paying only four per cent of their total income as royalty. As per licence conditions, Ncell is liable to pay either the committed royalty amount or four per cent of their total annual income, whichever is higher. However, the SC had recently issued a verdict making it mandatory for Ncell to pay the committed royalty. Of the total committed royalty of Rs 1.44 billion for fiscal years from 2005-06 to 2010-11, Ncell has already paid Rs 1.08 billion based on the provision of four per cent of the total annual income, Neupane informed. Earlier, the government had asked the Nepal Telecommunications Authority to accelerate the collection of unpaid radio spectrum fees from local mobile network operators. Following the court case that upheld that the telecom service providers should make full payment on the fees due, the NTA had been instructed to seek Rs 710 million ($8.4 million) and Rs 350 million from Nepal Telecom and Ncell, respectively. The Nepal Telecom had only paid Rs 100 million of the Rs 810 million, it owed, and argues that it should not have to pay the fees as its licence was awarded under an earlier Radio Act. However, the telecom authority had countered that under the Telecommunications Act, all the companies are obliged to pay for spectrum allocations they hold. Nnnn MEDIA GOOGLE “Compared to the mass meeting organized by 22 parties on Friday. I couldn’t help but notice how there was much greater public presence in RPP-N’s mass meeting, indicting the dwindling support base of the so-called mainstream parties like NC and UML.” (Aseem Sharma, Republica, 11 June) nnnn