ALL-PARTY MEET TUESDAY Kathmandu, 2 Oct.: An all-party meet has been convened by Tuesday by the Big Three and ruling Madeshbadi Morcha to find an outlet to a constitutional and political crisis elusive in nearly for months after 27 May. The Big Three and the Front decided at a meeting Monday to prepare an agenda for an outlet following Sunday’s meeting with President Dr.Ram Baran Yadav. The top parties were asked by parties to find an outlet for the second time as demands swell asking him to intervene, against government wishes, to end the deadlock. Nnnn FAIR PRICE SHOPS OPEN FROM TUESDAY Kathmandu, 2 Oct.: Government is opening fair price shops Tuesday in the Valley and outside to provide essentials are cheap prices during the festive season. The outlets are at Salt Trading, Nepal Food Corporation, National Trading andDiry Development Corporation. nnnn EMPOWERED THREE SSPs ON TOUR TO ACT AND IMPROVE IMAGE OF NEPAL POLICE Kathmandu, 2 Oct.: Three SSPs of Nepal Police are on a nation-wide tour since Sunday to nation-improve the image of the security agency. New IGP Kuber Singh Rana took the initiative.. The SSPs have been empowered to take immediate action. SSP Ramesh Kharel Sarbendra Khanal and Gyanod Raj Baidhaya are on tour Nnnn MEDIA GOOGLE “But regarding the CA resurrection,,it is not the right step. It is rather the time for a fresh house polls.” (Sujata Koirala, The Himalayan Times. 2 Oct.) Nnnn CHINA TO ASSIST IN FIVE KEY SECTORS Kathmandu, 2 Oct.: China has agreed to support Nepal in five major sectors of agriculture, including fisheries, crops and livestock, to speed up farm commercialization in the country, Reublica reports. The northern neighbor pledged the support during the secretary-level Nepal-China Agriculture Assistance Meeting on Monday. The Chinese side has also agreed to enhance capacity of Nepal in seed production, horticulture and hill livestock such as sheep farming. Ganesh Raj Joshi, secretary at the Ministry of Agriculture Development (MoAD) and Niu Dun, Chinese Vice Minister for Agriculture had led their respective delegations at the biennial meeting. “China has agreed to support us in five sectors that are crucial for our country´s agriculture development,” Dr Prabhakar Pathak, spokesperson of the MoAD, told Republica. Pathak said the northern neighbor agreed to help Nepal in the development of hybrid rice and maize seeds, commercialization of fisheries and sheep farming as well as pasture development under the proposed crop and livestock development program. China has also agreed to assist joint programs aimed at conducting research for germplasm required for the production of hybrid seeds of paddy and maize, horticulture development, pig farming and poultry. The Chinese delegation has also expressed commitment to support consolidation and expansion of livestock and food quarantine programs to promote production and trade facilitation of plants, livestock and other agriculture products produced in Nepal. China has also pledged to support Nepal for the prevention and control of trans-boundary diseases and pests that have been inflicting livestock and crops in both the countries. It has also agreed to help Nepal in development of human resources by increasing training quota for Nepali farm technicians, agriculture officials and farmers. In an effort to ensure timely initiation of implementation of agreed programs, the two sides have agreed to form a five-member taskforce to be led by a joint secretary at the MoAD. “The team will finalize detail work plan before June 2013 to execute the programs to be implemented under Chinese assistance .We are hopeful the proposed support from will make significant contribution to enhance Nepal´s capacity in farm production,” Pathak told Republica. He also said that both the sides have also agreed to support frequent exchange of exposure visits and interaction among entrepreneurs of both countries so as to encourage them to invest in agriculture sector. The 4th bi-lateral meeting is scheduled to be held in Beijing in 2014. Nnnn GOVT. MAY LOCAL CURRENCY MOBILIZATION ALLOW BY INTERNATIONAL FOREIGN INSTITTIONS TO FINANCE PROJECTS Kathmandu, 2 Oct.: The government has agreed in principle to allow international financial institutions (IFIs) having a strong credit rating to issue bonds in Nepal in local currency in a bid to mobilize locally available resources for financing big industrial and development projects through the private sector, Milan Mani Sharma writes in Republica. The positive response from the government to open local currency bond came when International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector lending arm of the World Bank Group, held meeting with the senior Ministry of Finance (MoF) officials last week. “IFC´s proposal was to allow credible IFIs, including IFC, to issue local currency bond targeting the banks and financial institutions, among others. The IFIs will then lend the fund mobilized to the private sector for executing economically viable projects in various sectors,” said a senior MoF official. Under the concept, which has not yet been practiced in the country, the bonds will be backed by the issuer IFIs, ensuring that the investments made by the BFIs among others remained safe. As the issue will be made in local currency, the issuer too will find itself free from the possible risks of foreign currency volatility. “Apart from the IFC, the Asian Development Bank - one of the leading multilateral donor - too has shown interest to issue local currency bond,” the source told Republica. The source disclosed that the MoF had received ADB´s expression of interest on local currency bond years ago -- long before the IFC approached it. Though the ADB´s initiatives then did not gather any momentum, Juan Miranda, director-general of ADB´s South Asia Department, said a vice president of ADB was visiting Nepal soon to hold discussion with the government on the matter. If things moved ahead smoothly, ADB officials said they would also issue local currency bonds in a bid to finance projects here. Finance Secretary Krishna Hari Baskota said the government was positive about issuing local currency bond. “Though we are still discussing on its technical aspects, the talks are going on with the IFC in a positive manner,” said Baskota. In the last week´s meeting, IFC officials had announced that IFC would jump into the business promptly, mobilize the resources locally offering a sound return to the investors, and invest the collections in turn to the private sector to execute highly feasible projects. “The degree of feasibility of the project in such cases will be scrutinized and decided by the bond issuer,” said the source. The IFC officials had also made a presentation on similar issue and investments that it has carried out in a number of countries in Africa and other developing countries. Nepali officials believe that the local currency bond can be one good window to help Nepali private parties that have competence, but lack finances to implement hydropower and other infrastructure projects. Most importantly, this scheme can help us implement built-own-operate-and-transfer (BOOT) model, which we promoted since long but are yet to see it materialize, said the source. However, officials are skeptic over immediate implementation of such plan. “That is because we will need to effect numerous changes in the existing law and may even need to formulate new one to implement it,” said the source. The changes in the laws are needed mainly because Nepali law still does not allow investors to repatriate income made through locally mobilized resources. “Overseas investors that put their money in the country can repatriate their income, dividend and everything. But in this case we are talking about locally mobilized money. We need a clear policy decision to allow IFIs repatriate income they made from locally mobilized and invested fund,” said the source. Apart from that, law will also be needed to enable local investors to dispose their bond holding through the secondary market. “This is a crucial cushion,” said the source, adding that a clear law will be needed also to guide the IFIs as some of them might not prefer secondary market transactions for their bonds. Given such situation, the MoF has suggested IFC to come up with yet another proposal on how it plans to operate its bond in Nepal, and also how IFIs in general can be facilitated to issue local currency bond. Nnnn ________________________________________ NEPAL’S FIRST GLOBAL STAR OUT OF LIMELIGHT Kathmandu, 2 Oct.: Oscar-nominated Himalaya opened up the remote, pristine villages of the world’s tallest mountain range to the West, AFP reports from Upper Dolpa.. But while the director Eric Valli and co-stars have gone on to land lucrative work in film and television, the movie’s ageing star is penniless and struggling to survive in one of the poorest and harshest landscapes on earth. “It’s like the way I lived before the film and now is the same. Nothing has changed,” 71-year-old Thinle Lundup Lama told AFP at a religious festival in the mystical, culturally-Tibetan land of Upper Dolpa in northwest Nepal. “Now my face is so familiar, I’m so famous in Dolpa, that a lot of the tourists who come to visit take pictures of me. They are the ones who benefit out of my face but I am just the same.” Himalaya is the story of villagers who take a caravan of yaks across the mountains, carrying rock salt from the high plateau down to the lowlands to trade for grain. The movie, the first from Nepal to be nominated in the Best Foreign Film category at the 72nd Academy Awards in 2000, used a cast made up almost entirely of real farmers, local lamas and village chiefs. Lundup plays Thinle, an irascible elderly chieftain of a yak-herding and farming village in a power struggle with Karma, a hot-headed upstart who would like to take his place, against the backdrop of the annual caravan. Himalaya won worldwide plaudits for its intoxicating depiction of the lonely grandeur of the landscape. Lundup, who had lived a simple life in a stone house overlooking the remote village of Saldang, found himself catapulted into the limelight. “During the time when I was acting my salary was only 300 rupees a day. The movie went on for nine months, so my salary for the entire project was only 90,000 rupees,” said Lundup. “But everyone said ‘Oh, Thinle’s getting big money’ because no one knew the value of money at that time.” Lundup’s co-star Lhakpa Tsamchoe, 40, an Indian actress of Tibetan descent, had already had her big break before Himalaya, starring alongside Brad Pitt in the 1997 Hollywood blockbuster Seven Years in Tibet. Gurgon Kyap, another member of the cast, moved to Paris where he has landed TV and film work. Lundup talks proudly of how Valli has spent tens of thousands of dollars helping him with medical bills for tuberculosis and cancer. “Now I’m retired and I am old, and I don’t have any great expectations about life. I just want good food, but because of my health I can't have oily food,” he said. “And if I want to have a drink I can’t have any alcohol. I really want to try continental food but I can’t get it here. Most of the time I roam here and roam there, walking around and meeting people.” Nnnn BAN ON MOVEMENT OF INDIAN VEHICLES TAKES ITS TOLL Kathmandu, 2 Oct.: CPN-Maoist’s ban on the movement of vehicles with Indian number plates is taking its toll on the economic activities in the eastern region of the country, The Himalayan Times reports from .Damak, Bhairahawa. The ban has obstructed the import and export of raw materials, petroleum, products and daily essentials via eastern border point. Industrialists and entrepreneurs say that markets are witnessing the paucity of goods owing to the ban. Vehicles bearing Indian number plates have stopped entering Nepal via Kakadvitta border point which is bound to have adverse impact upon the financial activity, Jhapa-based traders said. Jhapa chapter of the Federation of Nepalese Chamber of Commerce and Industry chairman Bijay Dalmiya urged the CPN-Maoist to lift the ban saying that it would have negative impact on the economic activity in the country. He complained that the stoppage in the import of oil, daily essentials, and raw materials of the industries had hit the general public and industries hard. Dalmiya requested the concerned party not to involve in the activity that could strain the friendly bilateral relations with India. Former chairman of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Mechi, Kesav Pandey warned that agitation could throw the national economy into a chaos. Ban on the vehicular movement has hit the tourists coming to Nepal via India as well. The number of Indian tourists and tourists from the third country arriving to Nepal via Gaddachauki and Gaurifanta border points in far-west has declined sharply. Ran Bahadur Bista, chief at Gaddachauki Immigration Office, said that the ban on the vehicular movement had unleashed terror among the tourists. Bista said only a few number of tourists had come to Nepal ever since the ban was imposed. Tourism entrepreneur Krishna Bahadur Mahara said, “Vehicular ban has reduced the arrival of the tourist in the country.” He said that ban had created fear among the tourists. However, ban had little effect in Nepalgunj and its adjoining areas. Officer Shiva Dhungana at Nepalgunj Custom Office said that his office was collecting revenue as usual. CPN-Maoist Tharuwan State Committee member IP Kharel said that they had softened their ban and were keeping eye at those vehicles entering the country illegally. After the Indian citizens banned on the movement of Nepal vehicles in Sunauli in protest of the CPN-Maoist’s decision to ban Indian vehicles in Nepal, Maoist cadres softened their hard stance of Indian vehicles via Belhiya border point in Bhairahawa. Custom officer Gyanendra Dhakal at Bhairahawa Custom Office said that around 100 heavy trucks entered Nepal on Sunday and Monday via Belhiya border point. However, another Custom Officer Dikar Dev Bhatta said that his office had incurred loss of Rs 50 million due to ban. District Police Office Parsa SP Pitambar Adhikary said that though the arrival of the Indian vehicles had considerably reduced on Friday and Saturday, their entry was improved on Monday via Birgunj border point. Every day more than 100 Indian vehicles enter Nepal via Birgunj border point. He said that police would escort the vehicles to their destinations. Traffic Inspector Bigyan Basnet said that a Temporary Police Post has been set up near Birgunj Custom Office and that would provide temporary number plates for driver’s convenience. Traffic police said that they would provide temporary number plates for 30 days to the foreign vehicles. (With inputs from Nepalgunj, Birgunj and Dhangadi) Protests against CPN-M’s stance Madhesi Janaadhikar Forum Nepal and Rastriya Madhesh Samajbadi Party today warned of imposing a blockade between Nepal and India if the ban on the movement of vehicles with Indian number plates and screening of Hindi movies was not lifted in the country, report from Nawalparasi said, . The two parties organised a chakkajam at the headquarters Parasi’s Buddhachowk from 12 pm to 1 pm in protest of the ban by CPN-Maoist on the Indian vehicles and screening of Hindi films. At the corner meeting organised after the transport strike, Samajbadi Party district chairman Radheshyam Yadav and Janaadhikar Forum Nepal Nawalparasi district chairman Dharendra Yadav condemned the CPN-Maoist’s decision. They said that the decision was anti-Madhes. They warned of stern protest if ban was not lifted at the earliest. Nnnn UNIONS CLOSE TO RIVAL MAOIST GROUPS TRADE CHARGES Kathmandu, 2 Oct.: ent union cadres affiliated to UCPN-Maoist and CPN-Maoist today blamed each other of collecting donations from various organisations misusing the other’s name, The Himalayan Times reports. Speaking at a programme here today, Sarad Rasaili, coordinator, All Nepal National Independent Students Union-Revolutionary (ANNISU-R) aligned to CPN-M alleged that cadres affiliated to UCPN-M aligned ANNISU-R were collecting donations in high amount from different organisations by misusing their name. He said, “UCPN-M aligned students intended to spoil our image by collecting donations in our name.” He said both organisations had the same name, letterhead and stamp as well. “Now we are going to change the shape of our stamp,” he added. “We are currently studying who were involved in such activities,” he said. Of late, various organisations in different districts including Kathmandu have been threatened by student unions affiliated to various political parties, namely ANNISU-R, of late. Rasaili also said they were going to conduct their four-day 19th national convention in Tribhuvan University from tomorrow. He said that there would be around 1,300 representatives from different parts of the country participating in the convention. Meanwhile, Himal Sharma, President, UCPN-Maoist aligned ANNISU-R dismissed the charge as illogical and baseless. “It is a cheap statement from the CPN-M aligned student union that has no recognition,” he added. He further alleged that CPN-M aligned students were trying to hide their own mistakes by accusing other student unions. Nnnn CPN MAOIST SET TO REVIVIE WAR-ERA MILITARY STRUCTURE Kathmandu, 2 Oct. In a move reminiscent of the "People's War" days, the CPN-Maoist is all set to form a military structure , though its leaders have been saying resorting to armed struggle is not the party's immediate plan, Phanindra Dahal writes in The Kathmandu Post.. The party has not formally announced the formation of such a structure, but sources said the wing is already 'informally active' on the ground. Party Secretary Netra Bikram Chand, who also heads the People's Volunteer Bureau, the youth wing of the new Maoist party, has been asked to head the military structure . The wing is assembling former PLA combatants who opted for voluntary retirement after last year's peace deal and unverified fighters who were discharged from cantonments in 2010, sources said, adding that the party is trying to cash in on the former fighters' deep resentment of the government and the UCPN (Maoist). Government sources claimed the group has acquired at least 120 pieces of weapons registered in the name of the UCPN (Maoist). Around two dozen small arms earlier used in the security of U CPN-Maoist leaders, which has not been returned to the PM-led Special Committee, is also expected to land with the group. The military wing is functioning in coordination with the Chand-led volunteer's bureau. Four former deputy commanders of the Maoist PLA, loyal to the new party, are in commanding positions at the regional and central levels, the sources said. The 'Eastern Division' is headed by Udaya Bahadur Chalaune "Deepak" who was the deputy commander of the Shaktikhor-based Third Division PLA camp. The 'division' aims to reorganise ex-combatants from the Ilam-based First Division, Sindhuli-based Second Division and Chitwan-based third division camps and works under Commissar Khadga Bahadur Bishwakarma "Prakanda." The 'Central Division' is commanded by Ram Lal Rokka "Madan," the former Division vice-commander of the Fifth Division based in Rolpa. Hitman Shakya "Suman" is the Commissar of the region and the division is tasked with bringing ex-combatants from the Fourth Division based in Nawlparasi and the Fifth Division. Former Division vice-commander of the Sixth Division Nep Bahadur Bista "Bibek" is the commander of the 'Western Division' and works under Commissar Kul Prasad KC "Sonam." The 'division' will look after the Surkhet-based Sixth Division and the Kailali-based Seventh Division. Another vice-commander of the sixth division, Durga Bahadur Chaudhary "Santosh," has been made the deputy commander and the secretary of the headquarters. Almost all the commanders are office bearers of the Volunteer's Bureau which the Mohan Baidya-led party formed following a split with the mother party in April. While Chaluane is the head of the organisational department of the volunteer's bureau, Bista is the head of the disciplinary department and Rokka is the head of the production department. Chaudhary is the Bardiya district in-charge of the CPN-Maoist . Sources claimed Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai and UCPN (Maoist) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal are aware of the activities of the Baidhya-led party and its bid to revive the wartime military wing and are alarmed by it. The top brass of the Nepal Army and some members of the Special Committee are also aware of the reorganisation. Asked to comment on the military structure , former division commander Chalaune claimed it was 'just a rumour.' He said former division vice-commanders have been asked to unite former fighters opting for retirement, hear their problems and try to find a solution. "Each of the division vice-commanders were assigned to the eastern, central and western regions to help the fighters opting for retirement as there was no other mechanism after the party split," he said, adding that former unverified PLA members and members of the YCL were being reorganised under the volunteer's bureau. Meanwhile, the Chand-led bureau is all set to adopt a new name, "Rastirya Yuwa Swayamsewak Bureau," or National Youth Volunteers Bureau in its national conference scheduled to be held in Dhulikhel through October 10-12. Each of the district chapters have been asked to bring at least 500 youths for the conference, said a district-level leader. The conference will announce campaigns for "protection of national sovereignty" and securing education, health and employment as fundamental rights in the new constitution and unveil programmes to 'serve the people.' Nnnn DEUBA FACTON IN NC DEMANDS MAHASIMITI MEET Kathmandu, 2 Oct.: OCT 02 - Nepali Congress (NC) district presidents and leaders close to senior party leader Sher Bahadur Deuba have urged the party leadership to call the party's Mahasamiti meet at the earliest to chalk out its political course and amend the party's statute, The Kathmandu Post writes,. The leaders said that the meeting is essential to shape the party's new political, social and economic agenda. Besides changes in party leadership, the Mahasamiti is mandated to take party policy decisions. Earlier, the NC had decided to hold the meeting from October 10-13 in Janakpur but had deferred it without any substantial reasons. Leaders from the Deuba faction said that party President Sushil Koirala was intentionally postponing the meet while Koirala loyalists argued that the Mahasamiti meeting had been postponed due to technical reasons. Financial arrangements are also a factor for the postponement as the costs of holding the meeting are high, said the establishment faction leaders. They said that the party is preparing to hold the meeting possibly in the second week of December. The party held a western regional meeting of the Mahasamiti in the first week of September, which suggested that party leadership opt for fresh polls. The district presidents' conference of the NC, which took place in the last week of July, had also urged the party leadership to hold the Mahasamiti meeting immediately. NC leader Ram Nath Adhikari said that district presidents were placing increasing pressure to call the meeting. According to the party's statute, such high-level meetings should take place every year after the general convention. According to leaders, as the general convention takes place every five years, the Mahasamiti meeting should take place every year to review the party's policy and chart out a future course. “As the party is in critical phase, we need to come up with positions on many issues, such as our relationship with the UCPN (Maoist), the CPN-UML and other parties. We also need to build perspective on how to view the current international scenario,” said Adhikari. NC district presidents said that the Mahasamiti meet should discuss the party's position in the constitution writing process. The presidents want the meeting to make amendments to the party's statute. Currently, the statute provides few rights to district presidents and they want to amend such provisions to increase their power. Leaders said that the meet would play a role in keeping the party united. Although the party has decided to go for fresh Constituent Assembly polls, the factional feud inside the NC, between Deuba and Koirala, has not been resolved. The Mahasamiti meeting is expected to bridge differences between the two factions. The Deuba faction also plans to raise issues related to appointments to party departments and its sister organisations. nnnn