Ilam, Jan. 19: Various parts of Ilam district is said to be faced with short supply of textbooks even six months have elapsed since the start of the new academic session.

Generally, Sajha Pustak Bhandar used to supply textbooks upon the coupon issued by the district education office and recommendation of the resources centre concerned. However, teachers who had secured coupons seem to be embarrassed for being unable to locate the resource person.

The matters turns worse still as some people come with porters and mules to carry back textbooks but are compelled to go back empty-handed.

Kathmandu, Jan.19: President of the Afro-Asian People’s Solidarity Organisation and former foreign minister of Egypt Dr. Morad Ghaleb has said that regional cooperation and collective endeavour is necessary to meet the challenges of economic development.

Speaking on “Egypt’s experience on multinational cooperation in the use of nile river water resource” at a talk programme organised by the Nepal Council of World Affairs here today, Dr. Ghaleb said that the movement of the Afro-Asian People’s Solidarity Organisation against imperialism and colonialism started in 1959 and accordingly non-aligned movement was established for the sovereignty and equality of the African and the Asian countries.

Stating that global economic revolution has begun from the economic liberalisation, he referred to the need of political stability, peace, freedom and mutual cooperation in every nation.

At the programme, president of the Nepal Council of World Affairs Prof. Panna Kaji Amatya said that Dr. Ghaleb had played an important role in the establishment of diplomatic ties between Nepal and Egypt.

Janakpurdham, Jan. 19: A team of the National Assembly social justice committee paid an inspection visit to the old people’s home here Tuesday.

The team was formed with a view to giving policy recommendations to the government on the human rights and educational situation, uplift of poor women, the down-trodden and various communities, protection of children’s’ right, uplift of the disabled and helpless people in the country.

The team has already completed its visit to western and far western regions and is currently visiting eastern region.

On the occasion, chairman of the committee Jivan Prem Shrestha said the team would apprise the government of the problem facing the old-age home.

It would also hold a programme of interaction with women, the down-trodden, associations and institutions to identify their problems, he said.

Secretary of the old-age home Damodar Prasad Upadhyaya urged a fund of six hundred thousand rupees allocated for the old-age home this year be made available.

There are thirty-two old people aged between 60 and 85 being taken care of at the old-age home at present.

The team includes Mrs Ambika Panta, Rishi Babu Pariyar, Kaiya Chaudhary, Bijuli Kumar Biswakarma, Mrs Vishweswara Dahal, Mahendra Mishra, Shanta Manavi, Surendra Pandey and the committee secretary Birendra Bahadur Karki.

Bardiya, Jan. 19: Some 16 district level Maoist leaders and activists associated with the Maoist Group surrendered here recently.

In the presence of chief district officer Khemraj Nepal, they expressed their commitment to henceforth abstaining from terrorist activities which they had taken up at the instigation of the Maoists.

The CDO Nepal assured them of security.

Those surrendering include Daya Ram Chaudhari, Bahadur Tharu, Thage Damai, Jagannath Yogi, Kummakarna Chaudahri, Ramnath Tharu, Pashu Tharu, Shantaram Tharu, Jhaggu Prasad Tharu and Dyang Tharu of Surya Paduwa.

Two pro-Maoist leaders absconded when being taken for photographing and they are being searched for, the police said.

Meanwhile in Kapilvastu, former chairman of Kapilvastu district Budhadi VDC Gopal Chaudhari, who was arrested for involvement in Maoist activity, has surrendered at the district administration office.

At an all party meeting held at the district administration office yesterday, Chaudhari said that henceforth he would not engage in terrorist activity and would live like an ordinary individual in accordance with the constitution and the law.

Police raided Chaudhari’s house after a Maoist group attacked NC general committee member Tek Raj Ghimire last year, and found Maoist posters, pamphlets and other documents. Chaudhari was elected VDC chairman on a SJM ticket during the local elections of 2049 Bikram Year.

Bharatpur, Jan. 19: Declaring open a three day meeting District Council of Chitwan district development committee here Tuesday, Minister of State for Land Reform and Management Dr Gangadhar Lamsal said the government was determined to resolve the problems confronting the Nepalese society.

It would be better for the opposition parties to press themselves ahead in keeping with the popular sentiments than showing the resorting to rhetoric exuberance, Minister of State Lamsal said.

Pointing to the programmes such as the Visheshwar with the Poor and the Ganeshman Singh Peace Campaign and women’s awakening the government launched for the people’s welfare, he said, “Terrorist activity and use of brute force can never finish off democracy, and bearing this in mind, those indulging in such acts should come forward for dialogue if they wanted public well-being.

MP Kashinath Adhikari spoke on the Local Governance Act, while MP Sabitri Bogati stressed need to formulate projects for the backward people.

MP Bhim Bahadur Shrestha said Nepali Congress won’t govern at gunpoint, urging those who were trying to thwart democracy at gun point to take initiative for public welfare.

Nepali Congress district president Tek Prasad Gurung, CPN-UML secretary Hari Prasad Sapkota, RPP district chairman Nana Prasad Bhattarai and chief district officer Tikaram Aryal said co-operation of all was necessary to maintain law and order in the country.

Kathmandu, Jan. 19: Motorcyclists have been thronging the Transport Management Office at Ekanta Kuna, Lalitpur to meet a 45 day deadline that the government has set for changing number plates, paying revenue arrears and bringing data on vehicles up to date.

The office handles functions such as receipt of vehicle tax and local vehicle tax and issuing of blue books, and it takes a whole day to see through any one of these functions.

Lecturer at Patan Multiple Campus Kishor Lamsal, who came to change his number plate, says the government should have decentralised the functions of the office and adopted a division of labour.

Bijaya Aryal, who queued up since 7 am to renew his blue book said he has not been able to accomplish that task although he has taken two days’ leave from his ngo office. The 45 day deadline is too tight, he said.

Nirmal Nakarmi of Himalayan Magic Adventure Pvt Ltd says it would be so much better for the general public if revenue collection is assigned to each ward.

Office chief Srikant Regmi, who is busy along with his l5 co-workers from 9 am to 7 pm complains that he is understaffed and there is no supervision from above.

About l,000 vehicle blue books are renewed every day, it is claimed. Of the 80,000 motorcycles and scooters in Bagmati zone, the blue books of only l3,000 had been renewed by Monday.

It would have been better if the system had been alphabetized with vehicles coming under each letter assigned a separate time slot, it is stated.

The situation is further complicated by the need to carry out work pending since the past four or five years and the misplacement of documents including blue books.

Meanwhile, some individuals have been profiting from the number change.

Bhai Raja Maharjan, who charges Rs 25 per motorbike, says some 70 bikes come to him every day and he makes up to Rs 600 daily.

Those who have no time to queue up have been paying the office employees themselves Rs 300 to expedite revenue payment, it is stated.

Attempts to contact director general of the Department of Transport Krishna Murari Sharma in this connection were unsuccessful.

The department has said that an alphabetical system for assigning vehicle numbers is not possible, but a new system is to be adopted to prevent repetition of any number. This system can accommodate millions of vehicles.

Kathmandu, Jan. 19: Women who went through a 3-month skill development training have not been able to use their new skills on a commercial basis.

They are of the opinion that such a short training is unable to impart adequate knowledge and competancy to launch their products in the market for sale and run a small industry.

Ram Devi Shrestha, a residence of Sarlahi VDC ward No 50 can sew dresses required for his own family after completing a 3-month sewing and cutting training. She however, has not been endowed with skills sufficient for running a tailoring establishment independently.

Trainee Rita Shaha thought that the 3-month course is only suitable for imparting general knowledge and it can no longer established one on a vocatinal footing.

What almost all trainees think is that the duration of training needs to be extended, the trainees familiarised with modern equipment and better trainers provided.

But the women trainers who set out for different villages of the Terai region have their own grievances. The village development committe should protect them and refrain from creating any obstructions in their work or play other political games, they said.

In Sarlahi district alone, a cottage and small industry office has trained some 120 persons in different subjects through 29 training programmes since 2051 BS.

Of them, 84 are female and the rest male. Statistics show that women are in the forefront of such activities.

They need extensive training for building up compentence in any given particular field, chief of the Malangawa district office Krishna Bahadur Karki said.

Loans are made available at the recommendation of the office for cottage and small industries.

Statistics reveal that 30 per cent of the trained persons have been working elsewhere while 14 per cent are involved in self-employement. Another 16 per cent works on wage basis.

The Ninth Plan has targetted bringing 100 thousand people under a wide range of skill development training programmes. With the study of markets, employment is expected to be generate for an additional 200 thousand people.

During the 8th plan, some 52 thousand people went through such training. During the period, around 43 thousand cottage and small industries have been registered as against a target of 25 thousand cottage and 1000 small industries.

The Ninth Plan aims at promoting small industries that can generate self employment, making licencing and registration procedures flexible and simple, conducting training in management and indroducing a programme package with techincal support for creating employment in the non agriculture sector in order to raise income levels and the purchasing capacity of rural people.

Such entrepreneurship is of high necessity in the context of Nepal, as they take one towards self reliance with the help of just limited capital and locally available resources.

The cottage and small industry sector has contributed 65 per cent to total export and 58 per cent to total value addition. Of the total industrial sector, this sub sector accounts for 95 per cent.

The Nepali textile and cottage enterprise extension office was esteblished in 1993 B.S as a result of the government’s endeavour to bring about industrial consciousness through the propagation of cottage industry. Due to this instutitional initiative in the course of time the persent day Cottage and Small Industry Development Department, cottage industry committee and industrial enterprises development academy are involved in this field throough their branches across the country.

The industrial policy 2049 and Industrial Enterprises Act 2049 have also laid emphasis on the development of cottage and agro-based industries based on local means and resources.

Statistics show that the number of such industries operated throughout the country was 376,332 in 2030 B.S., 103, 710 in 2044/45 and 46,419 in 2049 B.S. This sector has witnessed a declining trend due to deviation from the defination and lack of coordination between the line agencies.

The technology being applied in such industry to date is of subsistance nature and fails to maintain quality and costs at desire levels. Consequently, such industries are unable to keep abreast of products of foreign origin.

Experts are of the opinion that it is too late to bring in suitable and low cost technology and familiarise entrepreneurs with it. Shortfalls are also felt on the part of the affiliated bodies in the variety of training programmes.

Trainings in different subjects has been provided to some 22 thousand people and this year the aim is to cover 26 thousand individuals.

The subject matters of the training are also being expanded and modified as per the changed context. The number of subjects in 2054/55 was 27 and 71 in 2054/55. But the indespensible factor is that there should be availability of competent trainers to make the training result oriented.

Women development and other income generation schemes are also being carried out at local level under the heading of small entreprises.

It is believed that the training porgrammes can be conducted smoothly through accumulation of funds from the District Development Committees and other non-governmenal organisations. The DDC has sufficient budget allocated for this purpose.

It is also felt that training in marketing should be conducted for the staff of handicaft sales centre and retail outlets in different districts in order to make them competitive.

The producers should link up with such retail outlets so that they need not depend on intermediaries for selling their products and buyers need not wander in search of such products.

To encourage the trainees, they should be provided loans at minimum insterest through banks and other financial institutions in an easier way, chief of office Krishna Bahadur Karki says.

There is a need for mobilising the Cottage and Small Industry Department and Cottage Industry Committee as administrative units for training and the Industrial Enterprises Development Academy as a technology and business information centre, the experts say.

Kathmandu, Jan. 19: “We just dedicated our hundred and eleventh Nepali house in Pokhara today,” said Mr. Millard Fuller, Founder and President of Habitat for Humanity International (HFHI), on the third day of his first visit to Nepal.

Speaking at a press conference in Kathmandu, he said, “I am very happy with the progress we have made in Nepal.”

Nepal Habitat for Humanity (NHFH) is registered with the Social Welfare Council and has been building houses for the poor since its beginning in August 1997. Through the policy of providing interest free loans to poor people who own little land of their own, NHFH has built 53 houses in Tikapur of Kailali district, 30 in Nayagaon of Kaski and 28 in Dibyanagar of Chitwan district.

Fuller, a self-made American millionaire at 29 — but who completely switched to social work in 1968 and found HFHI in 1976 said, “We are now in 63 countries and have built 85000 houses in 2500 cities in the last 24 years. We have local affiliate groups for each area — and these groups have selection units for proper family selection.”

Fuller said, ” We will dedicate the 100,000th house this year in New York city this year. We have housed half a million people in 24 years — but it will only take 5 more years to house twice that number. We hope to have housed 1 million people by the year 2005 worldwide.”

Fuller, who has received awards at the highest levels for his work and whose family consists of his wife and four children spoke about his real reward, “I get a heavenly feeling when I witness the elevation of the human condition.”

He warned that it would be the Nepali community at large that would be primarilly responsible for the raising of local funds for the building of many more houses for the poor in Nepal.

Fuller said, “We always hope that governments or others provide land for the poor people to build on — so we can provide the loan.”

In Nepal the government has decided to waive the tax for habitat built houses — that amounts to five thousand rupees per house.

Mr. Ram Nath Khatri, treasurer of Nepal HFH said that habitat built strong houses at low cost using cement and good roofing material . He said, “There are an estimated 3 million houses in Nepal but 2.7 million are weak mud structures lying at the mercy of natural forces.”

Chip and Mary, former American Peace Corps volunteers in Nepal, now married and working as NHFH staff in Kathmandu, told, “The average home owner contribution in terms of construction material or labour has been 22 thousand rupees per house and the loan from NHFH has been 75 thousand rupees.”

In addition to having their own land and a monthly income of between Rs. 2500 and 4500.

A habitat house is built by people in need with assistance of volunteers from the local community, the government, civic organisations and businessmen. The loan provided by habitat has to be paid back monthly over a ten year period.

The repayment of the loan in turn goes into a “Fund for Humanity” that is rural based. This revolving fund encourages villagers not to move into town but build up their own village homes.

The Nepal HFH executive committee made entirely of volunteers have caught on to Fuller’s vision of a world without shacks’ and have an ambitious plan of building 250 houses by the end of 2000 and an additional 1000 houses by 2005.

Nearing eighty years in age, Chairman of the Advisory Board of Nepal HFH, Jesuit Father E.L. Watrin, told, “Last year in March I went from Nepal to the Philippines to take part in a week long house building programme. Ten thousand volunteers from 43 different countries, including former US president Jimmy Carter, sweated to make 293 houses in 4 different locations for the poor.”

Kathmandu, Jan. 19: The delegates of various pro-democratic association and institutions have stressed that the Nepali Congress party and government should do notable work for the sake of democracy, the country and people.

The suggestion came at a seminar on “Consolidation of democracy and Nepali Congress, Intellectual and Professionals” organised by Nepali Congress Co-ordination Department in Lalitpur Tuesday.

At the seminar, working papers were presented by four groups of delegates representing Nepal Trade Union Congress, Nepal Teachers Association, Civil Servants’ Association, Private School Teachers’ Group, Nepal Press Union, Nepali Literary Group, advocates of human rights, NUTA, Polsan, Democratic Engineers’ Group, Democratic Legal Practitioners, doctors and Prajatantrik Bichar Samaj.

At its concluding function, spokesman of Nepali Congress Narahari Acharya said the well-wishers of the Nepali Congress party and government should alert them to what they should do.

Nepali Congress central member Kul Bahadur Gurung said the democracy had been weakened as the Nepali Congress party colleagues in responsible positions indulged in petty self-interest and failed to abide by discipline and good moral conduct.

The party co-ordination department chief and central member Krishna Prasad Sitaula said those in responsible positions should be honest and morally upright to strengthen democracy.

NC central member Laxman Ghimire said the party would always respect intellectuals and professional, women and the down-trodden people.

Prof. Mrs Suprabha Ghimire said one should not hesitate to take seriously the suggestion given by democrats, professionals, intelligentsia for the progress of democracy, the country and people and party.

Dr Lokraj Baral said both the party and democracy would be stronger if they listened to those who supported it for the restoration of democracy.

Dr Bhojraj Joshi alleged that those at the help of the state lacked honesty.

Dr Dhruba Chandra Gautam, noted literary figure, said the bahaviour of the government over the last ten years after the restoration of democracy showed that they ignored democrats.

Prof. Upendra Bahadur Pradhanang presided over the concluding programme.

Biratnagar, Jan. 19: Minister for Home, and Information and Communications Purna Bahadur Khadka has said since it is against the spirit of the constitution and human welfare for journalists to give credit to violent activities being carried out by the terrorists called “Maoists” with a view to subverting the parliamentary system, such journalism is not in the interest of the nation.

Minister Khadka made this remark while talking at a press meet organised by the Nepal Press Union, Morang here today.

The terrorists with no policy and principles cannot be Maoists, Mr Khadka said, adding that the terrorists have been challenging the parliamentary democratic system adopted by the Constitution of the Kingdom of Nepal.

Minister Khadka called on the journalists to play a role in bringing the terrorists living in the jungles with guns and challenging the safety of the general public into the national mainstream

The Nepalese terrorist activities which are at par with the international terrorist activities have hindered the development activities in the country thereby bringing disrepute the principles of Maoism, he said, adding that such activities can be controlled through common efforts of all the political parties that accept the parliamentary system.

He also said hmg is preparing to constitute a task force by forging a working unity with the Federation of Nepalese Journalists (FNJ) for effective implementation of the working journalists act with a view to safeguarding the professional rights of the Nepalese working journalists.

Minister Khadka also said the Ministry of Information and Communications will make efforts along with the task force for balanced distribution of government advertisements to all the newspapers.

The government advertisement have not been distributed in a justified manner and that the newspapers in Kathmandu only have been able to receive and strengthen themselves whereas the newspapers outside Kathmandu Valley have been getting weaker, he said, adding that hmg is making a detailed study into it and the problem will be solved in consonance with the FNJ.

On the occasion president of the Morang district Nepal Press Union Hem Raj Regmi said the right to information should be put into practice by law, the working journalists regulations should be implemented immediately, the journalists outside Kathmandu valley be provided equal opportunities for foreign tour, scholarship provided for promoting efficiency of the journalists and a separate head be maintained when allocating national budget.

Mr Regmi also handed over a 11-point demand to Minister Khadka.

On the occasion, president of the Morang district FNJ Dipak Dahal said the journalism sector will be disabled if the rights of the newspapers and the journalists outside Kathmandu Valley are not safeguarded.

Check red tapism: Meanwhile, Minister for Home, and Information and Communications Purna Bahadur Khadka has said His Majesty’s Government is committed to checking corruption, commission mongering, mafiaism and red tapism effectively.

Addressing the concluding session of the three-day eastern regional conference of the chief district officers, police officers and officers of the National Investigation Department here today, Minister Khadka said that the civil servants involved in the Home administration should maintain a clean image and play the role of a leader.

Mr Khadka directed the civil servants of the Home administration to carry out the works of the people without any delay.

Stating that the Ganesh Man Singh Peace Campaign had been launched to provide financial and other assistance to the people affected by terrorist activities as well as to help people giving up terrorist activities and wishing to lead a normal life, Mr Khadka said that the local administration and the police units had to play an active role in making the campaign successful.

Stating that the Nepali Congress had launched a ‘Satyagraha’ (peaceful movement) and armed struggle for the sovereign rights of the Nepali people, the minister said that the Nepali Congress had never carried out activities to terrorize the society and the people.

Mr Khadka made it clear that democracy and the nation as a whole would suffer if the terrorist activities carried out in the name of Maoists were compared with that of a political movement.

The responsibility of controlling terrorist activities is being handed over to the Home administration particularly the police organisation, the Home Minister said, adding that the civil servants linked with the Home administration should work with a high morale to fullfil the responsibility given to them.

Home secretary Padma Prasad Pokharel expressed confidence that the views expressed at the conference would help the participants to execute their works more effectively.

Inspector general of police Achyut Krishna Kharel said that the police units should be active in controlling criminal activities and maintaining law and order as His Majesty’s Government had been providing necessary equipment to the police organisation.

Chief of the National Investigation Department Haribabu Chaudhary said that the views expressed by the participants would help to make the department more active and effective.

The three-day regional conference had discussed the law and order, social and political situation obtaining in the country.

Mandated: Mr Khadka, while speaking at a workers’ gathering organised by the Nepali Congress Morang district committee here today, remarked that as mandated by the people, the present NC government is bent on removing corruption, commission-mongering and moral decay.

Stating that the government is facing development challenges in the country, the Home Minister said the NC workers should not forget that the party had an oppoutunity in the past to form a majority government, but had gone to mid-term polls due to intra-party bickering after which distortions and anomalies in various forms entered politics.

A good relationship has been maintained between the party and the government and the government is functioning in keeping with the party’s policy, Mr Khadka said, stressing the need of discussions to provide new direction and dynamism to the government.

Noting that seeking to run the government without the consent of NC leaders Krishna Prasad Bhattarai and Girija Prasad Koirala sounds hollow and change in party leadership and government reshuffle are secondary issues, he observed that while changing the government numerically, the historic responsibility of the party should be taken into account seriously.

Various other speakers including NC Morang district member Ram Prasad Rijal and vice president of the Nepal Women’s Association Morang Shanta also expressed their views at the function chaired by NC Morang district acting president Dilip Sapkota.