BIRAT WORKERS;PARTY MERGES WITH UML Kathmandu, 15 April : The Kirant Janabadi Workers´ Party, that had been waging an armed struggle in the east, has announced a merger with the CPN-UML. Speaking at a programme organized by the UML at Kakarvitta on Monday, Workers´ party General Secretary Himal Kiranti announced that his party had institutionally joined the UML, RSS reports from Kakarvitta. . Apologizing for the violation of the rights of others in course of the armed revolution, General Secretary Kiranti said Nepal and Nepali people are looking forward to peace, and only peace can bring development to the country. As part of its efforts to join the political mainstream, the workers´ party had also been involved in a dialogue with the government in the recent past. At the programme, UML central advisor Yubaraj Karki and Jhapa district Chair Rabin Koirala welcomed Kiranti to the UML. nnnn HOME MINISTRRY OFFICIAL NABBED FROM CASINO Kathmandu, 15 April: A senior home ministry official was among 12 Nepalis arreted by plainclothes police Sunday from casinosin Durbar Marg and Baudha. The arrest of the official comes as an embarrassment. Gambling are out of bounds for Nepalis. Nnnn MAOIST CHIEF FOR INVESTING CHINESE INVESTMENT Kathmandu, 15 April: Chairman of UCPN (Maoist) Pushpa Kamal Dahal ´Prachanda´ has said that Nepal was ready to take further steps for creating and promoting an investor-friendly business environment to encourage Chinese investments in Nepal, while welcoming investment especially in water resources, industrial development and transport networks, RSS reports.. Addressing a gathering of intellectuals and scholars at a programme held at the Sichuan University in Chengdu of Sichuan province of China on Monday, Chairman Dahal, currently on a visit of the People´s Republic of China, said foreign investors are to get full protection according to the Home Ministry´s comprehensive national security plan to strengthen order and security in the country. He also thanked China for the valuable economic and technical support it has been providing over the years as Nepal´s development partner, particularly for the recent duty free facility for 7787 export items. Describing bilateral relations with China as ´excellent´, the UCPN (Maoist) Chairman said Nepal has always been a staunch supporter of one China policy, and has thereby never allowed its territory to be used against the interest of China. " Sovereign equality, mutual respect, non-interference in each other´s internal affairs, friendship and mutual cooperation are the cornerstones of our bilateral relations with all countries", he said. Speaking about the current situation in Nepal, Chairman Prachanda said Nepal is now trying to draft a new constitution after electing a new Constituent Assembly and hope that the proposed CA elections would institutionalize and stabilize peace, democracy and justice in the country. "The dissolution of the previous CA was caused by the combined effects of the reluctance of the traditional parliamentary parties to grant rights to marginalized people through federalism and the limitation on the tenure fixed by the Supreme Court", he said. "We believe giving a greater say to the marginalized groups in the national processes can lead to a situation where the deep-seated differences vanish to promote fraternity, reconciliation and tolerance among all sections of the population to maintain national unity and harmony", he added. During his speech, the former Prime Minister said he believed that Nepal could play a very important role in enhancing friendship and mutual cooperation between India and China, and their mutual cooperation was the best safeguard of Nepal’s national interest. "China and India can provide relief to our ailing economy by allowing the entry of our products at zero or concessional tariff rates and encouraging their citizens to visit us for correcting the adverse balance of payment", Dahal noted. The concept of more prosperous countries extending cooperation to less developed countries has relevance to regional security, stability and development in Asia, he added. Likewise, Chairman Prachanda also called for more collaborative efforts to protect the environment and counteract the ill effects of global warming so that the perennial sources of rivers originating from snow clad mountains including the Mount Everest don´t become a thing of the past Nnnn GOVT. CHIEF DIRECTS ROAD EXPANSION DRIVE COMPLETION SOON Kathmandu, 15 April:: Chairman of the Council of Ministers Khil Raj Regmi has directed all related government agencies to work on a fast track mode to complete road expansion programs going on in different parts of the capital at the earliest, RSS reports. According to a press release issued on Monday, Regmi has asked officials concerned to take strong action against contractors who are delaying road expansion works on different pretexts. “The expansion on main roads in the capital should be in top priority,” the release quoted Regmi as saying in a meeting of high-level road monitoring committee held on Monday. “Road expansion works should move in the same pace as the demolition drive along the roads,” Regmi said, adding, “But, do take care of people´s property whenever possible.” Meanwhile, Regmi also directed the officials to take care of places of historical and archaeological importance when expanding roads. “Take this program as a campaign. But please think before destroying people´s houses and properties,” he told the meeting. Regmi also asked the officials to work on making the capital greener. According to the release, Krishna Hari Baskota, secretary at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers (OPMCM), told Regmi that 90 percent of the road expansion works will be completed by the end of current fiscal year 2012/13. Nnnn