FIRST CASE OF VOLCANO SIGHTING IN NEPAL Kathmandu, 20 Dec. The rumors of a volcano eruption in the Langtang National Park Area, that made breaking news today, were found to be baseless, RSS reports fro Rasuwa. After seeing a huge cloud of smoke emitting at around 10 this morning, most of the local people in National Park Area thought that it could be a volcano eruption, and the incident stole limelight of one and all round the day. After the news spread like wildfire, the District Administration Office (DAO), Rasuwa, requested the Nepal Army to make an aerial inspection of the site to confirm whether it was actually a wildfire or volcano eruption. Assistant Chief District Officer Gautam Rimal confirmed that it was indeed a forest fire, and not volcano eruption. The locals and officials here were already panicking since the news spread about volcano eruption in their sorrounding. Chief of district police office Sudip Giri said that the reasons behind the fire in the forest are awaited. Police personnel have been deployed to find the truth, he said. According to Giri, the police personnel are expected to reach the site, which is at a remote area of Bidrim VDC, after a three-day trek from the district headquarters Dhunche. Rimal said that the rumours of volcano eruption were baseless and urged the people not to believe in such. (Note: The sighting of a volcano is the first such sighting in Nepal in living memory.) nnnn 10 NEW PARTIES REGISTERED BY EC Kathmandu, 20 Dec.: : Ten new political parties have been registered at the Election Commission (EC), RSS reports. .The new parties thus registered are the Madhes Tarai Forum, the Madhes Samata Party, the Nepal Samajbadi Party Lohiyabadi, the Rastriya Ekata Manch and the Nepal Communist Party Rashtrabadi, the Nepal Nagarik Party, the Nepal Loktantrik Nagarik Party,the Tharuhat Tarai Party, the Rastriya Ekata Party and the Nepal Naulo Janabadi Party. These parties had applied for registration as political parties as per the Interim Constitution of Nepal, 2007, the Election Commission stated. EC stated that a decision has been taken to certify the executive committee, the statute and the flag of the new parties, have them documented in the Political Parties Registration Book, publish a notice about the registration of these parties in the Nepal Gazette and to inform the new parties about this. The EC took the decision to this effect last Tuesday. Nnnn