Bidur : Nepal Red Cross Society (NRCS) Nuwakot district branch has signed an agreement with the save the children to launch programmes to reduce the maternity and child mortality rate with the participation of district health office.
The first phase of the programme will be conducted soon, according to NRCS branch president Ram Prasad Joshi.
The programme will be extended all over the district in the second phase, it is learnt.
Meanwhile, the first foundation day-cum-parents day of the lower secondary school at Salame VDC Ward no. 8 has concluded.
There are 8 teachers and 422 students in the school.
Headmaster of the school Dilman Tamang presented an annual report of 1999-2000 and a budget of Rs 270,000 for the fiscal year 2000-2001.
Chairman of he school management body Dhan Bahadur Tamang presided over the function.
Kapilbastu, Apr. 5: An all-party meeting was convened at the district administration office in Taulihawa, the district headquarters recently.
The all-party meeting decided that all political parties should cooperate with the police and the administration in maintaining the law and order situation in the district and ensure public security.
Similarly, the meeting decided that all-party consensus would be reached in the collection and updating of the names of voters at all the VDCs and municipalities before sending the voters’ list to the district headquarters. Representatives of the Nepali Congress, CPN-UML, CPN-ML, Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP), Nepal Sadbhavana Party (NSP) and National People’s Front took part in the meeting chaired by chief district officer Sitaram Khanal.
Likewise in Rasuwa, an all-party meeting was organised here recently under the chairmanship of the chief district officer to maintain alertness on the maintenance of the law and order situation in the district. The all-party meeting was convened in view of the armed general strike on April 5 and 6 called by the Nepal Communist Party (Maoist) and the possible damage the organisers were likely to inflict on government, non-governmental and private offices and installations. It is learnt that the meeting decided to enforce 24-hours stringent security measures at all the offices in the district to pre-empt any untoward incidents.
The meeting held discussions on a range of issues concerning beefing up the security at the offices including frisking people while entering the office complex, checking their identity cards and parking of government and private vehicles at a designated safe place and handing over of suspects to the security personnel.
Chiefs of the district law enforcement bodies, VDC chairmen, representatives of political parties, chiefs of offices, representatives of social institutions and organisations and businessmen were present at the meeting.
Kathmandu, Apr. 5: A solo art exhibition by young artist of Chitwan Tam Bahadur Pun began at Nepal Art Council recently.
The three-day exhibition organized by the society upliftment and Human Inspiration Centre (SUHIC) Chitwan displays 28 works of art made of roots of trees.
Vice Chairman of the National Assembly Chiranjivi Prasad Rijal, while inaugurating the exhibition, appreciated the efforts of the SUHIC to bring to light talents hidden in the nooks and corners of the country.
The SUHIC youth award instituted by the centre was presented to Reporters Club president Rhishi Dhamala. The award carries a purse of Rs 15,000.
Artist pun said he presented the roots of trees lying useless in artistic forms.
Different had spoken at the programme organized by the SUHIC chairman Binaya Aryal.
Meanwhile in Pokhara, artist Gopal Shrestha is to be presented with this year’s “Lalit Kala award” established by famous artist Durga Baral and conducted by the Pokhareli Youth and Cultural Family.
The award which is presented every two years consists of a purse of Rs 5,000 and a letter of commendation. The award is to be presented to Shrestha at a programme to be organised here on the Nepali new year’s day on April 13.
Pokhara, Apr. 5: About sixty-seven percent of homes have toilets in Kaski district while the rest have no such sanitary facilities.
This was revealed in a survey report presented at a seminar on ” The Need of Sanitation Drive” organised here jointly by Nepal Environmental Journalists’ Group, Kathmandu, and the Kaski District Development Committee. Since contaminated water and lack of sanitation are the main factors responsible for the spread of communicable diseases, the seminar participants have called for a drive to make the district people aware of the need to built toilets at their homes.
Member of the Environmental Journalists’ Group Bhairav Risal revealed that similar seminars would be held in 13 other districts in the next ten months.
People’s representatives, social workers, journalists, those involved in public health and drinking water sectors and UNESCO representative attended the seminar.
Meanwhile in Bhaktapur, the anti-tobacco flame under the campaign organised against consumption of tobacco with the slogan “stop consumption of tobacco products and be healthy” was handed over to Minister of State for Labour Surendra Hamal here recently. The anti-tobacco flame campaign was organised at the call of world health organisation (WHO) under joint auspices of Health Ministry, Nepal Jaycees and National Sports Council last Saturday. Speaking on the occasion, Minister of State Hamal called on non-government organisations to join hands with the government in increasing public awareness against tobacco products.
Chief of Bhaktapur cancer hospital Dr. Madan Kumar Piya, international convenor of Nepal Jaycees Roshan Navin Tamrakar and other speakers also expressed their views at the function chaired by National President of Nepal Jaycees Phool Kumar Lalwani.
Gorakha, Apr. 5: The “B. P. with the poor” programme, district co-ordination and monitoring committee Gorakha hosted a familiarisation seminar here recently.
Inaugurating the seminar, central committee member of the programme Pradeep Koirala said, “the main aim and action plan of the programme is to enhance the social and economic status of the impoverished and backward classes and communities.”
Committee chairman Thakur Prasad Lamichhane said that there was a programme to identify the backward classes and communities in the district and impart training and disburse loan to them.
DDC Vice-Chairman Hari Ghale and a host of other speakers also spoke on the occasion.
The preceding meeting of the committee selected Fujale of area No. 1, Khotlang of area No. 2 and Mandu of area No. 3 of the district for the first phase of the of the programme for the current fiscal year.
Nepalgunj, Apr. 5: Chief district officer Shyam Prasad Mainali, speaking at an interaction programme between the administration and police, representatives of the political parties and journalists organised by the Federation of Nepalese Journalists, Banke branch here recently, said the administration is committed to strengthen the law and order situation, and control smuggling. On the occasion, Deputy Inspector General of Police Rajendra Bahadur Singh said police is alert in view of the Nepal Bandh called on April 6. The police will not to allow any untoward incident to take place in the Mid Western Development Region, he added. In reply to the question about the shifting of the banks due to lack of law and security, Singh said it was necessary to examine the law and order situation while opening banks which was not done. The police had not been asked about the law and order situation while shifting the banks, he added. Superintendent of Police Dhan Bahadur Thapa said the law and order situation in Banke district was satisfactory.
At the programme, the representatives of the political parties alleged the law and order situation had deteriorated and the smuggling increased. Devraj Bhar of the CPN-UML said his party does not support the Nepal bandh of Apr. 6 whereas Surya Parajuli of CPN-ML said as the path chosen by the Maoists was wrong, his party didn’t support the Nepal bandh called on April 6.
Devendra Mishra of Nepal Sadbhawana party said his party supports the political programmes of other political parties but will not support terrorism.
Krishna Kharel of the Rastriya Prajatantra party said every one should contribute to strengthen the law and order situation.
Badsaha Kurmi of the Nepali Congress stressed the need to free the people from fear by strengthening the law and order situation in the villages.
The interaction programme was presided over by the FNJ Banke district president Pannalal Gupta.
Kathmandu, Apr. 5: Despite the immense potentials for hydro electricity in the country only 15 percent of the total population and five percent rural population have access to electricity.
Given this backdrop low-cost and viable system of rural electrification was long overdue and efforts in this direction have been initiated. In this connection, the Energy Study Centre of the Institute of Engineering has developed what is called the “White Light Emitting Diode (WLED) system of electricity generation in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme Rural Energy Development Programme.
Developed as an alternative to the use of kerosene lamps and other indigenous methods of lighting in the rural areas which is not only harmful to the health and environment but also expensive for the people, the WLED system is said to be 662 times more efficient and effective than these traditional rural lighting methods.
It is learnt the bulb used in the WLED system has an age limit of 100,000 hours which can last for 54 years when lighted at the rate of five hours daily. Likewise, the dry cell and the battery used in the system lasts for at least one and a half month even if used continuously for five hours.
The white light emitting diode system consists of a set of three lead filament bulbs, two table lamps, eight ceiling lamps, a solar module, a battery charger and electric cables. This new domestic solar power lighting system costs about Rs 4,550 for installation and His Majesty’s Government has been providing subsidies in rural electrification.
As per the present arrangement, the government has been providing a grant of Rs 15,000 of the total installation cost of the solar power system. It is felt that this new system of rural electrification would benefit a sizable section of the rural poor if the government provided upto 75 percent grant in installing the system.
According to data available, of the total national population of about 22.5 million, 19.1 million people or 3.4 million households in the country are currently deprived of electricity. The average Nepalese household size is 5.6 persons.
Out of these households deprived of electricity facilities, some 200,000 households are found to use temporary sources of lighting while the remaining 3.2 million households do not even have the remote chance of getting electricity in the near future.
Therefore, it is felt that this new system of rural electrification should be expanded to make electricity accessible to this large section of the rural population.
On an average three small size kerosene lamps used in a medium size household consume about 255 litres of kerosene in five years and the cost of kerosene in the hilly areas is Rs 20 per litre. Thus, using kerosene becomes very expensive. Moreover, it is harmful to people’s health and the environment. A total of 292,000 kilolitres kerosene was imported by Nepal in the last fiscal year which after combustion deposited 715 tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
Ninety-one percent of the imported kerosene is used for domestic purposes and His Majesty’s Government has been providing a subsidy of Rs 3.50 per litre which comes to be about Rs 1,022,045,000 of the total kerosene imported in 1998/1999.
In this context also it is important to further develop and encourage the use of the new system of rural electrification in order to reduce the large amount of money spent in subsidizing kerosene.
Itahari, Apr. 5: The participants of the week-long character building (Yoga practice) organised by character building association of Nepal were given certificates amid a function here recently by Pranamurti Yogguru Kalyan Mitra.
At the concluding function of the training participated in by 50 men and women of Itahari municipal area, Pranamurti Yogguru Mitra said that Yogas help enhance the inner strength of a person to make the body healthy.
On the occasion, Dadhi Ram Acharya, Jagadish Bali, Radha Acharya, Padma Bahadur Shrestha and Keshav Sitaula narrated their experience of positive impact of practising yoga on the body. After the conclusion of the training event, a character building association of the Itahari branch was constituted with Narayan Bahadur Shrestha as the convenor.
Medini Sitaula, Dadhi Ram Acharya, Krishna Adhikari, Rajesh Shrestha, Dubu Sitaula, Keshav Sitaula, Vishnu Bahadur Basnet, Jagadish Bali, Arjun Basnet, Tanka Niraula, Saphala Pokharel, Radha Acharya, Pradeep Adhikari and Yuvaraj Pokharel are the members of the newly constituted district committee.
Meanwhile, the participants of the 6-month training on Dhaka weaving organised jointly by vocational training centre and Danchhi, Bhadrabas and Alapot VDCs were awarded certificates by instructor Ram Lal Shrestha. Seventeen girls trainees attended the training programme. The certificate distribution function was chaired by Danchhi VDC Cice-Chairman Shyam Prasad Pokharel.
Kathmandu, Apr. 5: Miss Jeena Lingden (Limbu), who has the honour of being the first woman pilot from the Limbu Community, wants to open a school at her native village where children from the economically poor families will avail of free education up to the secondary level.
The desire and the commitment to open a school for the children of her native village took shape in Jeena’s mind through her own experience.
She says although born to a British Gurkha father in Hong Kong, she could not give continuity to her education due to some “Ups and Downs” in her academic career and this personal experience made her think of opening a school.
A native of Amarpur village in Panchthar district, Miss Lingden was born in Hong Kong 24 years ago. She just completed her two-months pilot training course from Florida of the United States a month back and became the first woman pilot in her community.
She also came to the limelight in the Florida press sometimes back putting aside the traditional belief that Nepali women could not achieve any big in their career.
The “Kirant Yakthung Chumlung”, an association of the Limbus which conducts study and research into the history, religion, language, culture and the ancestry of all the 162 Limbu lineage, claims that Lingden is the first woman pilot from their community.
According to the Kirat Yakthung Chumlung, captain Kul Bahadur Limbu from Terhathum district is the first male pilot of the Limbu Community.
Captain K.B. Limbu who flies boeing aircraft became the first male pilot from the Limbu community 15 years ago.
Proud of her great achievement pilot Lingden says- whereas my parents had wanted me to complete upto the school level only and not become a spoilt child like the other children of “Lahures”, i studied a lot more than what my parents had wished.
Our family has proved wrong the notion that all the sons and daughters of “Lahures” (ex or serving British Gurkha Soldiers) are bad and a “spoilt” lot, she added.
Her elder brother Bijaya has recently completed his studies and become a medical doctor while her younger brother Bishal has done bachelors in commerce. There are five members in the Lingden family. Rakshya Rana is the first Nepali woman pilot. There are at present ten women career pilots in Nepal.
Syaphrubeshi, April. 5 : The 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Langtang National Park was observed amidst a function here today.
On the occasion, chief conservation officer Jhamak Bahadur Karki said that the National Park should be developed by forming core area management committee under it.
During the programme, Nuwakot DDC member Parlok Pathak And Nima Sherpa, Sindhupalchowk Ddc Member Gyalgen Sherpa and Rasuwa DDC member Bishnu Prasad Poudel demanded that revenue collected by the park management be used to the benefit of local ethnic communities.
CDO of Rasuwa Dig Bahadur Gurung gave away the group registration certificates to the chairmen of the 18 VDCs in Nuwakot, Rasuwa and Sidhupalchowk districts those fall into the core area under the Park at the function chaired by president of Rasuwa DDC.