CPN-MAOIST GENERAL CONVENTION IN CAPITAL 9 TO 13 JANUARY Kathmandu, 17 Aug.: CPN-Maoist chaired by Mohan Baidhaya will decide Friday the final date for its genera; convention as UCPN Maoist from which it split decided earlier to hold its convention in mid-February.. CPN Maoist is mulling a convention in the capital 9 to January 9-13 in Kathmandu for which a general convention organizing committee under the leadership of party secretary Netra Bikram Chand has been formed. Nnnn NEPALI S IN BANGALORE PANIC FEARING REPRISAL ATTACKS Kathmandu, 17 Aug.:- Nepalis studying and working in Bangalore--the capital city of Karnataka state in southwestern Indian, are in a panic, as the rumours of attacks targeting the people from northeast India has spread, Mahesh Acharya writes in The Kathmandu Post from New Delhi. They are deeply worried with the rumors believed to be linked with the recent ethnic riots in Assam that Nepalis will be mistaken for northeast Indians due to the similar kind of appearance. The centre and Karnataka government have, however, denied the reports of violence targeting the northeast people while iterating a strong security arrangement at the same time. Such an assurance from the state goverment has failed to allay the fears, triggering the exodus of hundreds of people. Indian televisions have shown the footages of hundreds of people flocking to the railway stations. According to the latest figures as of Thursday, over 7,000 northeast people have already left Bangalore for Guwahiti--the capital city of Assam. Nepalis are said to be safe and there are no confirmed reports of violence against them, says the Nepalese Embassy in New Delhi. "The rumors of attacks on Nepalis are false. Though there is an atmosphere of fear among Nepalis, they need not worry," Acting Ambassador Khaganath Adhikari told the Post after his meeting with Nepal desk chief at the Indian Ministry of External Affairs, Akhilesh Mishra, on Thursday. He also handed over a letter to Mishra, expressing deep concerns about the rumors of attacks on Nepalis and requested him to make necessary arrangements for their safety. "The Indian government has assured us that there will be no harm to Nepalis," said Adhikari. However, talking to the Post over telephone from Bangalore, Nepali students expressed grave concerns for their safety. "Nobody knows the truth. But as the rumors of attacks spread, Nepali students like us are very much panicking," said Sheela Panthi, a BSc Nursing student at SGR College, Bangalore. The rumors have also have taken a toll on Nepali students' preparation for the upcoming exams. "The exams start from next week. Preparing for exams amid the atmosphere of fear has been really tough," said Lisa Khadka--also a student of BSc Nursing at Rajiv Gandhi University. However the students said that they have been assured by the university administration about their safety. "Even the college chairman and teachers met us and told us not to believe the rumors," said Kesari Maharjan, a Nursing student at Jupiter College. Unconfirmed reports of some Nepali students leaving Bangalore due to fear have also emerged. "Some students have gone back home after the rumors but there is no such worrisome situation. There are no reports of attacks on Nepali students and workers so far," said Vice-president of Migrants' Nepali Association Ramchandra Bhandari who is in Bangalore to monitor the situation. Meanwhile, many people from northeast India have also started leaving cities like Mumbai, Hyderabad and Pune after the rumours of attacks. nnnn UML, JANAJATI LEADERS MOVING TOWARDS DIVORCE Kathmandu, 17 Aug.: Disgruntled Janajati leaders from the CPN-UML are preparing to quit the party en masse for the formation of a new political force, expressing their dissatisfaction over the party's position on multiple-identity based Federalism, The Kathmandu Post reports. Janajati leaders involved in the new party formation process said their formal call for resignation will come by the end of August. "We are in the process of changing the course of a river and the effects will be seen within a couple of weeks," said UML Central Committee member Ajambar Rai Kangmang. According to Kangmang, the dissidents are planning to formally announce their quitting the party by organising a national gathering of around three dozen Janajati leaders from across the country. However, UML Janajati leaders are divided on whether to quit right and form a new party or continue an intra-party struggle for the sake of single-identity based federalism. UML Vice-chairman Ashok Rai and politburo members Rajendra Shrestha, Bijay Subba and Rakam Chemjong are in favour of forming a new political force while a faction of leaders including Prithivi Subba Gurung, Ram Chandra Jha and Dal Bahadur Rana still believe that an intra-party struggle is the way to ensure identity and inclusion. "Even if the party addresses the issues of identity and inclusion, I will not come back to UML. Some friends may return to the party but we are for the formation of a new political force," said Rai, speaking at a programme in the Capital. He claimed that the idea of ensuring single-identity based federalism was outdated in the present context. Janajati leaders and the UML leadership are odds over forms of identity. The Janajatis are against the party line of multiple-identity based federalism. Along with Janajati intellectuals, Rai and other Janajati leaders had vowed to form a new political force to advocate for single-identity based federalism in the third week of July. nnnn TREKKING FEES FOR SAARC VISITORS REDUCED Kathmandu, 17 Aug.: Trekkers from South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) countries can now trek at a revised trekking charge that is about 72 per cent lower than current trekking charge, The Himalayan Times reports. Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) along with Trekking Agencies’ Association of Nepal (TAAN) has included a new point in its agreement to reduce its Trekking Information Management System (TIMS) card rate by 71.43 per cent for trekkers from SAARC nations. Currently, trekkers from SAARC countries have to pay Rs 700, while the new trekking charge will be Rs 200 per trekker. Whereas, the TIMS card rate for trekkers from countries other than SAARC region is still the same –– $ 10 for an individual TIMS card and $ 20 for group trekking. “NTB agreed to our suggestion to revise the trekking charge for SAARC trekkers during the revision of our Trekking Information Management System agreement,” said chief executive officer at TAAN Gangaram Pant. NTB and TAAN are preparing to review the TIMS agreement that was signed in 2010. However, NTB has disagreed to reduce the tourism service charge in the new agreement. According to NTB, the service charge can be increased but there is no provision to reduce it. “The board has also agreed to most of our suggestions and we are looking forward to signing the revised memorandum of understanding with NTB at the earliest,” said Pant. According to TAAN, there are a number of issues relating to TIMS which need to be changed. TIMS is a system developed by TAAN, and NTB is the authorised organisation for collecting tax through it. However, the involvement of other players in distributing TIMS card and collecting tax has created unnecessary problems. “We are also working on to avoid the problems facing TIMS,” he said. According to NTB, it has, till date, collected about Rs 90 million through TIMS card. TAAN has also developed a software to ensure the security of tourists and check illegal operations, but the NTB management has to first study the system and it needs to be confirmed by the board before it can come into operation. The software will make sure that tourists at different trekking routes are safe. Under the software, a trekker has to fill up a form with all the personal details and programmes throughout the stay, and the information will be recorded in the TIMS software. If any trekker goes missing, the software will help in tracing the whereabouts of missing trekker. Effective from September 1, the government has also made a porter or a guide compulsory for individual trekkers. “It is now mandatory for an individual trekker to take a licensed trekking guide,” said Pant. According to TAAN, a licensed individual trekking guide or porter can charge $ 15 per day at maximum. More than 90 per cent trekkers who go missing during treks are individual trekkers and there is no information about the whereabouts of those trekkers due to the lack of a monitoring mechanism, stated TAAN. Among the total tourist arrivals, about 35 per cent arrive for trekking. During 2011–2012, the trekking business earned a total foreign currency of $ 50 million, stated TAAN. Nnnn MEDIA GOOGLE “The alliance formed by the Nepali Congress and CPN-UML is against federalism. So Baidhya has no option but to join our federalists’ alliance.The FDRA will be the guiding force now to break the political stalemate.” (Chairman Prachanda, The Himalayan Times, 17 Aug.) Nnnn