UML STANDING COMMITTEE DISCUSSES NATIONAL MEET Kathmandu, 10 June:: The standing committee (SC) meeting of the CPN (UML) held discussions on the party's national cadres' meet scheduled for June 19-20 in the capital and disputes seen in the party regarding state-restructuring. However, UML Vice-chairman Ashok Rai was not present in today's meeting also. According to UML leader Madhav Kumar Nepal, the meeting prepared the standards of the participants of the meeting. The meeting also concluded to organise party's zonal-level and district-level meetings as well. Leader Nepal said the UML would prepare a proposal to end the country's present political deadlock and it would be tabled in tomorrow's SC meeting. Leader Nepal alleged the UCPN (Maoist) of attempting to capture the state power and heading to political confrontation. Tomorrow's SC meeting will start at 11:00 am. Nnnn CALENDARS DISCUSSED Kathmandu, 10 June: Experts have opined that calendars (Sambat) would be vital for the implementation of ethnic identity-based federalism in the country, RSS reports. Speaking at a symposium on 'Cultural Importance of Social Traditions and Writing System of Prevalent Calendars being Practiced in Nepal' organised by the Social Science Department of the Nepal Academy and Yalambar Foundation, the speakers said that federal system would be important for the development of new structures. During the programme, Chancellor of Nepal Academy Bairagi Kainla said calendar was also a factor of ethnic identity adding that all calendars being practiced in Nepal should be stated in the schedule of the new constitution. Chancellor Kainla stressed on preparing Calendar of Kirant Yele Sambat by taking experiences of all Sambats being practiced in the country. Chairman of Nepal Panchanga Determination Committee Prof. Dr Madhav Bhattarai said Anno Domini (AD) could not be made national Sambat at any cost but hinted that other Sambats exercised in the country can be brought into practice after doing homework. Chairman of Yalambar Foundation Bikram Subba said that stakeholders should be serious as main foundation of Yele Sambat was calendar though the Yele Sambat was established longtime ago. nnnn