NEFIN CHIEF SAYS ATTEMPT TO INSTALL CJ-LED GOVT. A CONSPIRACY Kathmandu, 18 Feb.: : Nepal Federation of Indigenous Nationalities (NEFIN) Chairman Raj Kumar Lekhi said attempt to install a chif-justice election government ‘was a conspiracy’ which will be opposed through street Protests. He said this in a statement .the move of the Big Three and Madeshbadi parties in government ‘was a shame’. Lekhi said the separation of powers between agencies should be maintained. nnnn. CHIEF JUSTICE-LED GOVT. UNCONSTITUTIONAL SAYS FOR FORMER SPEAKER NEMWANG Kathmandu, 18 Feb.: Chairman of dissolved Constituent Assembly (CA) Subash Chandra Nembang on Monday said that constituting an election government under the leadership of incumbent Chief Justice would be against the spirit of the Interim Constitution of Nepal, RSS reports from Mangalbare.. Speaking at an interaction organised on the occasion of the Democracy Day here today, he said forming such government would be in violation of democratic norms and values. The condition of the nation has further worsened after the dissolution of the CA, said Nembang, underlining the need of finding a way out to the nation from existing crisis as quickly as possible. The political parties' proposal to form an election government under the leadership of incumbent CJ Khila Raj Regmi should not be implemented at any circumstances, he added. Local Development Officer Suman Adhikari chaired the programme. Nnnn UPPER ARUN VALLEY PROJECT TO BE HANDED OVER TO NEA Kathmandu, 18 Feb.:The Cabinet has decided to hand over the Upper Arun Hydropower Project to the Nepal Electricity Authority ( NEA ) for construction. The decision was taken as per the recommendation made by the Ministry of Energy (MoE). Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai holds the energy portfolio as well, Ashok Thapa writes in The Kathmandu Post.. The Cabinet led by the then Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, however, had decided to develop the project through open competition. Energy Secretary Hari Ram Koirala said his ministry had asked the Cabinet to hand over the ‘attractive’ project to the NEA as per the latter’s demand. The state-owned power utility has also applied for the construction licence. The project, with installed capacity of 335MW, will add 2,050GWh energy annually to the national power grid. This is expected to play a crucial role in fulfilling the power demand of load centres of the Eastern Region, minimising transmission loss, according to the project’s feasibility study report. Koirala said an MoE committee had recommended handing over the project to the NEA and the ministry tabled the proposal in the Cabinet on February 10. “As the government has to build a 68 km link road to the project side even if the project is awarded to other contractors through open competition, we decided to have the project developed by the NEA .” He said the decision was also taken in order to minimise the project cost and delay in construction, which is likely if it is developed through open competition. MoE officials said the ministry will formally hand over the project to NEA , asking the latter to directly develop the project without forming a development company. The cost for the run-of-the-river project located some 10km away from the Nepal-China border in Sankhuwasabha district is estimated at around $500 million ($1,500 per KW). NEA had completed the feasibility study in 1991 with help from the World Bank and United Nations’ Development Programme. Even during the dry season, the project will generate not less than 250MW energy — 75 percent of the installed capacity. The project is expected to complete within four and half years after the beginning of construction. NEA applied for the survey licence for generation on July 20, 2008. However, the licence has not yet been issued, forcing the NEA to delay the environmental and detailed engineering studies. The government has requested the Chinese government to provide soft loans worth $633 million for the project. As per the MoE request, the Finance Ministry has written to the Chinese government asking for the help. The request for the soft loan was made as per the interest shown by the Chinese government for the same. nnnn ASA WITH UAE BEING REVISED Kathmandu, 18 Feb.: The government has approved the proposal of the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation to review the Air Service Agreement (ASA) with the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Sangam Prasai writes in The Kathmandu Post.. A Cabinet meeting on Friday gave its nod to the proposal which had been pending for the last five years. Now, the ministry plans to forward another proposal to review the ASA with China to the Cabinet. Officials said the Mid-Eastern and Chinese airlines, in particular, were facing air seat crunch due to rising movement of foreign tourists and Nepali migrant workers. A negotiation committee headed by Tourism Ministry Secretary Sushil Ghimire has been formed to discuss the ASA with the UAE. The ministry has invited UAE officials, who are scheduled to visit Nepal on March 11. “The ASA with the UAE will be signed in Nepal,” said Suresh Acharya, chief of ASA, Airlines and Airport Operation Division at the ministry. The current ASA with the UAE allows 28 weekly flights. With more UAE-based carriers connecting Nepal, demand has surpassed the seat limit. To address the seat crunch, the government has been allowing international carriers to make additional flights by introducing temporary operating permit (TOP). At present, airlines facing seat shortages are offered 14 additional flights per week under the TOP scheme. Acharya said the TOP provision will terminated after the ASA with the respective countries is revised. In 2011, the government had allowed international carriers to operate seven additional flights weekly and was extended to 10 flights in 2012. The UAE had been asking the ministry for an ASA revision with unlimited point-to-point frequency. “The committee will decide on what will be the appropriate strategy to their request.” According to Acharya, apart from flight frequency, the committee will also discuss and explore areas of mutual benefit on the aviation sector, including human resource development. The ministry also plans to invite Chinese officials on the country’s proposal to revise ASA after the government gives a go-ahead. The present ASA with China allows Chinese airlines to operate 14 flights a week and an additional 14 flights are permitted to Chinese carriers under the TOP scheme. Three Chinese carriers-Air China, China Southern and China Eastern-currently serve Kathmandu’s Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA). Nepal received 53,373 Chinese tourists in 2012, up 17.6 percent year-on-year. As another Chinese carrier has also expressed interest to connect Nepal, Tourism Ministry officials said the existing flight frequency could be more than doubled. Normally, ASA is revised depending on the country’s seat requirement. Proposals to revise and sign new ASA with different countries have been piling up at the ministry. Countries including Bhutan, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom, Australia, the US, Cambodia and Indonesia have made such proposals. Nepal has so far signed bilateral ASA with 36 countries since 1963. This provides 5.7 million seats per annum to and from Nepal. However, not even 40 percent of this capacity has been utilised. nnnn