THREE CHILDREN SWEPT AWAY BY SWOLLEN RIVER IN MAKWANPUR Kathmandu, 16 Aug.: A swollen river swept away three children aged between four to eight years while crossing a swollen river in Makwanpur. The father who was accompanying them was rescued.. Search for missing children continues. nnnn. LIGHTNING KILLS ONE PERSON, INJURES THREE IN NUWAKOT Kathmandu, 16 Aug.: One person was killed and three others were injured by lightning overnight at Bidur in Nuwakot. Injured are being locally treated. nnnn SUPREME COURT DIRECTS GOVT. TO PROVIDE SPECIAL ALLOWANCE TO DISABLED Kathmandu, 16 Aug.:: The Supreme Court has directed the government to immediately provide special allowances to persons with disabilities. The special allowance for the persons with disabilities is up to Rs 5,000. A division bench of Justices Tahir Ali Ansari and Kamal Narayan Das issued the order to the government in response to a Public Interest Litigation filed by advocate Sudarshal Subedi and differently abled Dipendra Shakya. The bench told authorities — the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers, the Ministry of Women, Children and Social Welfare, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Local Administration — to release allowances for the persons with disabilities in three months and inform SC about the implementation of allowance distribution in seven months. The bench directed the government to identify seriously disabled people, who cannot even move, and provide each of them Rs 3,000-Rs 5,000 monthly and Rs 500-Rs 3,000 each to those who are physically or mentally challenged due to age. There are around six lakh people who are either physically or mentally challenged and equal number of people with serious disabilities, according to estimates. The petitioners had accused the government of not implementing Article 12 of the Interim Constitution that ensures every person’s right to live with dignity and sought apex court order to protect citizens rights as per Section 4 and 5 of the Disability (Protection and Welfare) Act 1982 and Rule 8 of Rules 1991. nnnn SMUGGLING INTO COUNTRY OF ILLEGAL LIQUOR INCREASING SAYS IRD Kathmandu, 16 Aug.: Inland Revenue Department has said that the illegal import of liquor has increased in recent months, The Himalayan Times reports. Inland Revenue Department (IRD) has initiated an investigation in collaboration with the Department of Revenue Investigation (DRI) after receiving tip-offs of illegal imports, said director general at IRD Tanka Mani Sharma, adding that the department will try to identify the warehouses that store illegal liquor. DRI has also received some tip-offs of illegal import of liquor, especially from Tatopani customs, said deputy director general of DRI Rajendra Sharma Laudari, adding illegally imported liquor not only hurts revenue collection but also poses a threat to public health. Currently, the Inland Revenue Department is investigating the issue and DRI will be involved if needed, he said. The only way out to control illegal import of alcoholic products is to tighten the border areas, according to him. Controlling illegal imports of alcohol is a challenging job, said an official at IRD. “It is tough to crack down on the nexus of illicit traders since they supply liquor to remote places once it is imported.” IRD will restart its campaign against illegal liquor from mid-August, said deputy director general at IRD Madhu Marasini. The IRD had, last year, planned to introduce an abridged form to record liquor sales from retail shops. It had also started a two-week long nationwide monitoring of liquor shops to enforce existing liquor laws that envisage regulating production, sales and distribution of liquor products in the market. However, it could not complete its plan effectively. DRI to tighten border areas Department of Revenue Investigation (DRI) said that it will focus its attention on border areas to control revenue leakage. “The department had carried out raids and other inspections on domestic transportation of cargo last year,” said deputy director general of DRI Rajendra Sharma Laudari, adding that the department has forwarded its yearly programme to the Finance Ministry, in which it has focused on controlling customs points. “Revenue fraud cannot be controlled unless the government is able to monitor border areas effectively,” he said. nnnn