Kathmandu, Mar. 16 : A delegation from Gorkha district led by District Development Committee (Ddc) chairman Chet Man Shrestha met with Prime Minister Krishna Prasad Bhattarai and requested resolution of various problems of the district.
On the occasion, the delegation called for an increment in the budget allocated for the Satdobate-Barpak motorable road since the budget outlay of Rs 400,000 for the road last year as well as this year was insufficient.
The delegation likewise demanded provision of a special relief package for the flood-affected people of local Laprak village and construction of roads, bridges and irrigation canals and implementation of the food for work programme and the resettlement plan.
The delegation called for immediate security measures, a budgetary outlay of Rs 10 million each for rural electrification and district roads and an increase in the budget for sectors like drinking water, irrigation, watershed management and agriculture development in the district.
The delegation comprised ddc member Bharat Bhatta, Tulasi Devkota, Indra Kumar Gurung, Prem Kumar Shrestha, Mohan Pokharel and chairmen of Simjung, Chhekambar, Ashrang and Arupokhari Vdcs Bishnu Dawadi, Teema Lama, Ishwar Pandey and Ishwar Adhikari respectively.
Mahendranagar, Mar. 16: A 16-year-old girl, Mina Kumari Dhami, who is physically handicapped has been saved from trafficking by her own uncle.
The girl who had been living with her uncle Jasbahadur Dhami at Bhawanpur Rajiya in Masuriya area of Kailali is now under the protection of Hira Rana of Bangoan in Mahendranagar Municipality, Ward No. 6.
She was brought to Kashar in Jogbudha vdc in Dadeldhura by her uncle Bhim Bahadur Dhami, an elder brother of Jasbahadur, with the motive of trafficking. Her marriage with a 60-year-old person in that locality was also arranged.
Jasbahadur had been looking after her after her mother died when she was just 8 and her father set off for India leaving her alone.
The accused Bhim Bahadur, proceeded with her to Kashar on the pretext that her father wanted to meet with her, she said. “On reaching there, he left me at the residence of an elderly person saying that from now onward she had to live there and it was her house.”
The accused later come to take her pretending that he would take her to the previous house. But he abandoned her in a forest from where two women took her to social worker Hira Rana.
According to Rana, even there, she is threatened by telephone at night.
The culprit is being searched for with promptness, police sub-inspector at the district police office, Kailali Chhetra Pradhan said.
Chautara Mar. 16 : The Mahadevkhola irrigation canal in Bhotenamlang vdc of sindhupalchowk district has not been functioning since the past two years due to a landslide which took place within one month of its completion.
The 4 km canal was completed in fiscal year 2053/54 with loan asistance
from the Asain Development Bank under the sector irrigation programme.
The canal completed at a cost of Rs. 3,102,800 irrigated some 85 hectares.
Incessant rain and landslide had swept away about 76 per cent of the canal and this had left some 300 rapani of land dry.
With irrigation from the canal, Bhotenamlang vdc which is well known for paddy production in the district saw a good quantity of hybrid paddy yield even on high terrain.
Around Rs. 1,040,000 has been laid out by the district irrigation office for maintenance of the canal.
Agricultural output has been dropping due to the lackadaisical response from the irrigation office despite repeated correspondence by the water users’ committee and the vdc, chairman Lama said.
Pokhara, Mar. 16: A six-day “Basic Journalism Training” organised by the Federation of Nepalese Journalists (Fnj) Kaski District Chapter in Association with the Nepal Press Institute concluded here recently.
At the training participated in by 27 persons including three women, the participants were imparted knowledge on news reporting techniques, news sources, the area and scope of journalism, technology, mass communications theory, legal aspects, news writing, language and style and journalists’ code of ethics.
People associated with various communications media and media institutions including Ram Krishna Regmi, Chiranjibi Khanal, Bhupanidhi Panta, Keshab Raj Parajuli, Ram Kumar Koirala, Pashupati Timilsina, Krishna Banstola and Gangadhar Parajuli imparted the training.
Rector of Pokhara University Prakash Man Gubhaju gave away certificates to the participants at the concluding function.
At the programme presided over by fnj kaski district unit president Krishna Banstola, Nepal Press Union general secretary Tarun Poudel, Nepal Press Council member Keshab Raj Parajuli, Nawaraj Subedi and training participants Bijaya Lamichhane and Basanta Raj Baral also expressed their views about the importance of the training.
Kathmandu, Mar. 16 :Prime Minister and Defence Minister Krishna Prasad Bhattarai has said that as Nepal has always been extending support and cooperation to the united nations endeavours in maintaining world peace, there has been continuos participation of the Royal Nepalese Army in maintaining world peace in various parts of the world.
Prime Minister Bhattarai made this remark in a message sent to the Sri Kewal Jung Company assigned for peacekeeping operations in East Timor at the call of the United Nations.
Mr Bhattarai expressed the conviction that every possible effort would be made by the Royal Nepalese Army personnel to maintain peace in keeping with the spirit of sacrifice, service and professional efficiency, and by upholding the dignity of the country.
The Prime Minister’s message was read out by Lt. General Durganath Aryal at a function held at peace keeping force training centre, Panchkhal today.
Likewise, in his message, Chief of the Army Staff General Prajwal Shamsher J. B. Rana expressed the conviction that the success of an important peace keeping mission of the first batch of Sri Kewal Jung Company (peacekeepers) will create an additional foundation for Nepal and the Nepalese to make another contributions in the task of peacekeeping.
The Sri Kewal Jung Company was established on 19 Baisakh, 18863 (1806 ad) during the reign of His Majesty King Girbarna Yuddha Bikram Shah.
Major Sridhiren Gurung is the commander of the Sri Kewal Jung Company.
Kathmandu, Mar. 16 : Prime Minister Krishna Prasad Bhattarai has said that he would extend full cooperation to the next government.
Mr Bhattarai was speaking with journalists after announcing in the House of Representatives that he would be resigning.
It is better to unanimously elect the leader of the nc parliamentary party, he said, adding that election should be held only if there was no unanimity.
When asked who would be the next Prime Minister, he said that he could not say anything in this regard but his cooperation would be for a youth leader.
Responding to the question whether he would extend cooperation if party president Girija Prasad Koirala would be a candidate for the leader of the nc Parliamentary Party, he said that there may be a different view in such situation.
Kathmandu, March 16: A unique Nepalese building in the form of a 23-metre high Stupa together with 11-metre high temple is being constructed in Germany by a team of 29 specialised Nepalese craftsmen and engineers. Referred by German press as the masterpiece of Nepalese traditional architectural grandeur, the Nepalese building is being erected for the EXPO 2000 Hannover as Nepal’s national Pavilion. The Nepalese technical team has been erecting the Nepal’s Himalayan Pavilion for the last one month and the construction is scheduled to be completed by the end of April. The stupa-temple building will be the only Nepalese architecture of this kind in the world, according to the Implementing Experts Group’s press release.
Traditional Nepali style Stupa – Temple building is being built in the German city of Hannover for EXPO 2000 by Nepalese technical team of artisans and engineers with all the construction materials from Nepal including intricately hand carved wood, stone an metal.
Appointed by His Majesty’s Government to plan, erected, operate and manage the country’s participation at the EXPO 2000 Hannover, the Implementing Experts Group (comprised of professionals having experience and expertise of previous World Expositions) is undertaking entire erection with its own finances and with materials carved in Nepal. Earlier about 450 MT of construction materials including exquisitely carved wood, stone and metal were brought to Hanover by sea containers.
Nepal’s Himalaya Pavilion in the form of Stupa and Temple will sit in the centre of 2500 sq. metres mandala shaped garden with 150 sq. m. L-shaped pond in front. 62 – metre long and 4 metre width traditional Sattal walkway will surround the pond. There will be a traditional platform in the east for presenting traditional Nepalese dance performances whereas platform in the north will serve as place for presenting live demonstration of pottery making, wood carving, metal casting, thanka painting and carpet weaving. Thached roof farmhouse of Kathmandu valley and Tharu mud house with colourful wall paintings will be erected in the west and south side of garden.
Nepal is presenting its rich skill in wood and stone carvings and metal engraving in the Pavilion. The Pavilion will also have regular live performances from Nepalese dancers and musicians and live demonstration by artisans who will show art of pottery making, wood and stone carving, metal casting, thanka painting and carpet weaving.
“Mankind Nature Technology” is the main theme and several sub-themes specified by Expo 2000 for each participating country to make their national presentation. Nepal is concentrating its presentation in the main theme and sub themes such as “Education & Culture”, “Leisure & Mobility”, “Environment & Development”. 173 countries and 20 international organisations will have their pavilions at EXPO 2000 Hannover, which is expected to be attended by 40 to 50 million visitors from Germany and rest the world. Nepalese participation at the said Expo is expected to help promote besides national image and prestige, country’s foreign trade, investment tourism and commercial utilisaiton of human and natural resources. Promotion of art and architecture, cultural will also get substantial boost at the EXPO 2000.
Nepalgunj, March 16 : The Sustainable Community Development Pogramme (SCDP) has signed separate agreements with the district development committees of Humla of the Mid-Western Region, Myagdi of the Central Region and Okhaldhunga of the Eastern Region for launching the programme in those districts.
The programme will be launched in the three districts from 2000 to 2002, according to national programme manager Hum Bahadur Gurung.
The programme launched by the National Planning Commission with the technical cooperation of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has so far been conducted in Surkhet and Dang districts of the Mid-Western Region and Kailali in the Far-Western Region.
Under the second phase of the programme, the on-going schemes will be consolidated to make them sustainable.
The three additional districts have been selected in view of the deterioration of the catchment area and considerations of human development and after realising the need to extend the Sustainable Community Development Programme to other development regions, it is learnt.
Also in the second phase, technical cooperation will be extended to build up community organisations in the additional districts and enhance efficiency for sustainable socio-economic development and environment management.
All activities will be carried out through the initiative and management of local communities.
The sustainable Community Development Programme will coordinate with governmental, non-governmental and community organisations and mobilise resources.
The concept and method of sustainable development have been presented in the ninth plan as examplary, it is learnt.
Earlier in Ilam, supply of electricity from the Puwakhola Hydel Project to the central grid began recently following completion of all necessary works of the project.
The project which began in the fiscal year 2051/52 b.s. is the first project to be completed under supervision of the Nepali technicians.
The total cost of the project implemented with 25 per cent investment of his Majesty’s government and 75 per cent of Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) is expected to reach one billion rupees.
Production of electricity has now begun from one of the two turbines of 3100 KW capacity installed in the power house of the project.
Electricity produced from the project will cost Rs. 2.80 per unit and the project will make a profit of Rs. 200 million annually thereby collecting the total cost of the project in five years, it is learnt.
Fifty per cent ( 3100 kw) of the total electricity produced by the project will be consumed in Ilam district while the remaining will be supplied to the national grid.
Meanwhile, Dhangadhi, the District Water Supply Office, Achham, has completed the construction of the Lunga Potable Water Project at Lunga VDC Ward No.l under the Rural Potable Water and Sanitation Project.
The project was completed at a total cost of Rs 1,067,000 including Rs 144,000 provided by HMG, a credit assistance of Rs 755,000 by the Asian Development bank, and voluntary labour equivalent to rs 168,000 by the local users, it is learnt from the District Water Supply Office.
About three hundred persons have been benefited from the project under which eight public taps were fitted to supply water from two tanks.
Director of the Regional Water Supply Directorate Ananda Mohanlal Das, handed over the project to the local users and sanitation committee at a programme recently held at Lunga.
Nepalgunj, Mar.16:The guthi Sansthan as to recover total dues of rs. 219,898,951/43 so far from His Majesty’s Government and different organisations and individuals.
Of the total, HMG owes the corporation Rs. 133,542,932/- and various organisations and individuals the rest, according to reports presented at a Mid Western and Far-Western regional seminar on the management of land.
Exact figures on the arrears were computed last fiscal year.
The District Land Revenue Office has been carrying out the administrative task of the Guthi Sansthan in 67 districts across the country.The Districts not covered are Kathmandu, Lalitpur, Bhaktapur, Kabhre, Bara, Parsa, Dhanusa and Mahottari.
The reports reveal that a total of rs. 333,042,411/61 has been deposited a Revolving Fund through the sale of properties including Rs. 230,154,565/72 received as valuation for 32,174 ropani and 1,304 bigas of land.
The corporation which saw a deficit in income and expenditures from fiscal year 2051/52 to 2054/55 was able to realise a surplus of Rs. 3.8 million to date during the current fiscal year.
A detailed statement on 1,300 guthi or trusts has been prepared including property aggregated since the inception of the corporation, incomes, expenditures and current positions and the task of incorporating land as per recent surveys
Dhangadhi, Mar. 16: The District Forest Office Kailali has removed 30 houses and sheds illegally constructed on encroached forest land at ward No. 4, Ghanteshwar, Malakheti Vdc in Kailali district.
The forest office is also protecting some 25 Bigaha of forest land reclaimed from various persons, district forest officer Akhileshwar Lal Karna said.
Meanwhile, legal action has been initiated against 84 persons who were arrested in January-February on the charge of forest encroachment and smuggling of forest products.
Some of them were arrested red-handed while smuggling out 412 cubic feet of timber.
In another related incident, forest officials have seized about 82 logs of high grade contraband timber from Rajesh saw mill in Dhangadhi.
Although it is not known who brought the timber to the saw mill, action has been initiated against the mill owner.