Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal and CPN (UML) general secretary Jhala Nath Khanal met today, discussing the contentious issue of army integration and other matters related to smooth functioning of the coalition government.

Emerging from the meeting at the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) in Singha Durbar, Khanal said that he asked the Prime Minister to adopt a liberal approach regarding the composition of the army integration special committee by ‘considering’ the demand of the Nepali Congress.

Dispute over the number of representatives in the special committee should be resolved right away so as not to further complicate the integration issue, Khanal added, referring to the NC’s demand that it should have two representatives should it join the panel.

Khanal informed that he also asked the Prime Minister to start homework to set up committees and commissions on state restructuring and involuntary disappearances.

The meeting between the Prime Minister and UML general secretary comes at a time when some UML leaders including K.P Sharma Oli are expressing dissatisfaction over the functioning of the coalition cabinet. Few days earlier, Oli went on to say that the UML should now rethink its participation in the Maoist-led government. nepalnews.com mk Dec 03 08

The visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi signed an agreement to provide Rs 1.2 billion aid to Nepal this year.

Foreign Minister Upendra Yadav and his Chinese counterpart Jiechi exchange signed document on economic and technical cooperation between Nepal and China after a discussion at the Ministry if Foreign Affairs on Wednesday. nepalnews.com/rh

Foreign Minister Upendra Yadav and his Chinese counterpart Jiechi …
Jiechi signed an understanding with Foreign Minister Upendra Yadav at Shital Niwas, Wednesday, agreeing to help Nepal in economic development efforts.

“The Chinese side has shown willingness to help in road development, bringing railway line up to Nepal border, increasing scholarship quota for Nepali students for education, encouraging Chinese tourists to visit Nepal and to provide necessary training and equipment to strengthen Nepal’s security,” Foreign Minister Yadav told reporters.

He said that Chinese government has agreed to provide Rs 1.2 billion aid to Nepal this year.

Yadav added that Chinese side also showed interest in the peace, prosperity and nation-building process in Nepal.

The Chinese Foreign Minister made brief statement before the press saying that Chinese government will continue to give as much aid as possible to Nepal. nepalnews.com sd Dec 03 08

A man was burnt to death alive when gunmen belonging to little-known Madhesh Rastra Janatantrik Party (MRJP) set a passenger bus to fire in Saptari Tuesday night, reports Kantipur Daily.

The gunmen burned the passenger bus (registration no 6455) heading to Eastern Nepal from Kathmandu near Birendra Bazaar section of the East-West Highway, saying that it had violated the strike imposed by them in the area.

Eyewitnesses told the paper that the gunmen immediately doused the bus in petrol and set fire to it without even giving the night bus passengers enough time to get off from the bus.

The report said that the passengers managed to come out from what could be their death trap by breaking open the bus door after the fire started to rapidly engulf the bus.

Police said that a male passenger at the back of the bus was burnt to death alive. His identity has not been known yet.

The gunmen had at first tried to stop the bus carrying about 40 passengers. But after it didn’t stop the armed group fired at it and flattened its tires.

Passengers said that the gunmen then robbed them off their mobile phones, cash and jewelleries at gun point, burnt the bus and fled from the scene.

One of many rag-tag armed groups involved in low-intensity terrorist activities in Terai, MRJP had called the strike in protest of the killing of one of its members in police operation few weeks back.

The outfit has already taken responsibility for the arson. nepalnews.com Dec 03 08

The ruling parties have finally announced the formation of political committee that acts as the advisory body of the coalition government.

The new committee has 12 members including two from each political party in the government as agreed earlier.

The meeting of the committee, in absence of UML leader Madhav Kumar Nepal, named Maoist leader Dev Gurung as its chief for the time being. Nepal was expected to lead the political committee.

According to the final decision, UML will be represented by Nepal and Surendra Pandey, CPN (Maoist) by Gurung and Barsha Man Pun, Madhesi Janadhikar Forum by Upendra Yadav and Sarat Singh Bhandari, Sadbhawana Party by Laxman Lal Karna and Ram Naresh Raya, Janamorcha by Lila Mani Pokhrel and Girijaraj Mani Pokhrel and CPN (United) by Chandra Dev Joshi. CPN (united) said it would send another name by Thursday.

The next meeting of the committee has been rescheduled for Thursday to prepare its working strategy paper. nepalnews.com ia Dec 03 08

A week after President Dr Ram Baran Yadav received invitation for a India visit, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal received a similar invitation from northern neighbour China for an official visit.

Visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi meets Prime Minister Puspa Kamal Dahal at the latter’s residence in Baluwatar on Wednesday, Dec 03 08. nepalnews.com/rh

Visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi meets Prime Minister Puspa Kamal…
The invitation to Dahal was handed over by visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi during a meeting held at Baluwatar Wednesday morning.

During the meeting, the Chinese minister appreciated the initiatives taken by Nepal government to control the demonstrations against China during and after the Olympic games.

The two leaders stressed on the need to establish peace in Nepal that will also benefit China in the long run with China expressing commitment to extend all possible support for restoring political stability and peace here.

PM Dahal reiterated Nepal’s longstanding one China policy and to ban all activities in Nepal aimed against the northern communist neighbour.

Dahal further said Nepal expects further support from China that will help boost economic condition of the country. nepalnews.com ia Dec 03 08

The cabinet has endorsed the proposal forwarded by the Finance Ministry for the upward revision of allowance of government employees working in customs and taxes.

According to The Kathmandu Post, these staff members, as per the new policy, will be entitled to an extra payment of up to 200 percent of basic salary depending on their performance in collecting revenue.

The cabinet meet decided to implement the increment from November 16. The new policy will be implemented at all 22 custom offices under the Inland Revenue Department (IRD).

Nevertheless, it is learnt that employees working at the central level of the IRD and the Department of Customs (DoC) will not be enjoying this performance-based incentive as they are nor directly engaged in collecting revenue. nepalnews.com nd Dec 3 08

The high-level political coordination committee will have two members each from six ruling parties.

The three bigger parties – Maoists, UML and MJF – had earlier named two representatives each while allocating one representative each for three smaller parties in the coalition – Nepal Sadbhavana Party, CPN-United and Janamorcha.

But the junior partners put their feet down demanding equal representation forcing the bigger ones to relent.

The three bigger parties have already named their representatives – Dev Gurung and Barshaman Pun ‘Ananta’ of Maoists, Madhav Kumar Nepal and Bhim Rawal of UML and Upendra Yadav and Sharat Singh Bhandari of MJF.

The ruling parties are expected to formally announce the political committee on Wednesday. However, they are yet to decide on who will head the panel. Earlier, the name of former UML general secretary Madhav Kumar Nepal had been floated as the strong contender for the position of panel head.

The political committee will oversee and guide the functioning of the government. nepalnews.com sd Dec 03 08

A photo exhibition titled ‘Himalaya-Changing Landscapes’, was put on display from today at the historical Hanuman Dhoka temple complex on Kathmandu Durbar Square.

The outdoor exhibition by the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), in association with the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB), aims to draw attention to the impacts of climate change in the Himalayan region.

The Himalayan landscapes are changing. The repeat photographs show evidence fo fluctuations in the glaciers and glacial lakes in the wake of global climate change.

The Himalayan landscapes are changing. The repeat photographs show evidence fo fluctuations in the glaciers and glacial lakes in the wake of global climate change.
The exhibition showcases panoramic views of mountains and glaciers accompanied by images of the Himalayan people, as well as photographs of the scientists conducting glacier research in the 1950s.

According to ICIMOD, the black and white photographs taken almost 50 years ago by these scientists are of immense value in trying to understand the impacts of climate change on the world’s highest mountain range, the Himalayas. Mountain geographer Alton Byers revisited many of the sites of the original photographs in 2007 to take replicates so as to show the changing landscapes of the Himalayas.

Minister for Tourism and Civil Aviation Hisila Yami, who was the chief-guest at the event, inaugurated the photo exhibition.

Thanking ICIMOD for “bringing the whole of Himalayas into the ground and bringing the reality of the mountain to the people”, Minister Yami said that the government of Nepal will continue to work with ICIMOD to make the country’s tourism sustainable and eco-friendly.

“If we don’t cut down the adverse effects of climate change we won’t also be able to market our tourism products effectively,” she said.

Minister Yami also compared the Himalayan range seen from above while traveling by air to a “diamond necklace” and said that it is “really painful to see its shine go away”. She was referring to the receding snow-caps and glaciers in the Himalayan region due to global warming, something which the photo exhibition tried to throw a light on.

Slopes once white with ice are now barren rock, and small ponds have grown into huge lakes that threaten downstream communities in the event of an outburst.

Slopes once white with ice are now barren rock, and small ponds have grown into huge lakes that threaten downstream communities in the event of an outburst.
A fiery politician that she is, Minister Yami also took the opportunity to hit-back at the opposition parties for, what she said, “creating hurdles in the peace process”, and in the process caused some mirth.

“Just like the way monkeys here in Durbar square are destroying the pagodas of these ancient temples in Durbar square, the monkeys of the political parties are also trying to dismantle the peace process,” she said, and added that the government may take an inspiration from the photo exhibition to showcase how Nepalese politics has evolved in the past 50 years.

Dr Andreas Schild, Director General of ICIMOD, said that the changes taking place in the Himalayan region as shown in the photo exhibition “is just the tip of the iceberg.”

“The changes taking place are alarming, and the time to act is now,” he said, citing scientific evidence which shows that the effects of globalization and climate change are being felt in even the most remote Himalayan environments.

“While climate change is mostly caused by the highly industrialized parts of the world, the effects are taking their toll in the sensitive mountain areas. The signs are visible, but there is very little in depth knowledge and data available from the Himalayan region,” Schild said, adding that global measures of scientific co-operation and regional collaboration are needed to reduce this information gap.

It was also informed at the programme that the Nepal government, Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation and the Nepal Tourism Board have jointly created a special fund – the ‘Climate Neutral Planet Fund-Nepal’, to respond to the effects of the climate change.

The photo exhibition is on show 2-8 December at the Hanuman Dhoka temple complex. Entrance to the exhibition is free of charge. nepalnews.com ag Dec 02 08

Against the fear that the world economic crisis would affect Nepal’s tourist industry, the tourist arrival by air in November increased by 6.6 percent compared to the same month last year, Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) said.

Quoting figures released by the Immigration Office at the Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA), NTB said, in November, 36,851 visitors arrived in Nepal and the total number of visitors till November 2008 has reached 344,599, an increase of 4.3 percent in comparison to the same period last year.

The entire South Asian region has showed overall positive growth except for arrivals from India. Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Pakistan have registered growth by 81.3 percent, 59.1 percent and 29.5 percent respectively while India witnessed negative growth of 9.5 percent.

Thailand and Malaysia have maintained the upward trend with 45.7 percent and 34.5 percent of growth respectively. However, arrivals from Japan, South Korea, Singapore and China witnessed negative growth in the arrival figures by 2 percent, 15.5 percent, 14.3 percent, and 4.6 percent respectively.

UK, France, Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland and Sweden have also maintained the increasing trend in the arrival figures. Arrivals from the United States of America and Canada have also increased in November but Germany, Italy and Spain have registered negative growth. nepalnews.com ia Dec 02 08

The Labour Advisory Committee Monday approved the minimum wages which were already agreed upon by entrepreneurs and labour unions, reports The Himalayan Times.

“The committee approved the decision vis-a-vis minimum wages reached between the Federation of Nepalese Chambers and Industry (FNCCI), Nepal Chambers of Commerce (NCC), Hotel Association of Nepal and representatives of six different trade unions,” the daily quoted GEFONT vice-president Bishnu Rimal as saying.

The committee also decided to form a panel to study the problems in jute mills.

Trade unions have been demanding the implementation of the minimum wages stipulated by the Labour Ministry. However, a large chunk of industries have said that they are not in a position to provide such wages.

As per the agreement, if an industry or organization has lately hiked salary and wages, it will be arranged in line with the present agreement. Unskilled workers will be entitled to a total salary of Rs 4,600 whereas semi-skilled, skilled and highly skilled will receive a total of Rs 4,650, Rs 4,760 and Rs 4,950 respectively. nepalnews.com nd Dec 02 08