Accident
Baitadi - bound bus crashes, killing six

BY OUR CORRESPONDENT

Baitadi, Oct. 11: Six persons died on the spot and 23 other were injured, 15 of them seriously, when a bus heading towards Baitadi from Mahendranagar fell about 60 feet below the road at about 7:30 in the morning at a place called Simghar Patal.

Those who have died are Barmananda Joshi of Dodhara (Kanchanpur district), Mrs. Deva Bista of Sothigatta (Kanchanapur), Dani Karki of Nuwali (Baitadi), Bir Bahadur Karki (bus conductor) of Nuwali, Jagadish Mool of Sirikot (Baitadi) and Narendra Bohara of Siddheshwor (Baitadi).

The night bus with registration No. Ma 1 Kha 333, was carrying 50 passengers and the bus had fallen about 32 kilometres from the district headquarters of Baitadi. Three of injured ones have been returned home after treatment at the local health post and the remaining 20 are taken to the Team Hospital of Dadeldhura.

According to eyewitnesses, the bus had stopped only half an hour ago at the local bazaar for tea and snacks, but the conductor had driven the bus onwards. "The cause of the accident was the bus conductor was behind the wheels," they say.

After the bus fell down it had hit the stones and was overturned.

After the accident students of the local Patan Multiple Campus had rescued the injured passengers.

Meanwhile, the bodies of the dead ones have been sent to the Dadeldhura hospital for post mortem as there is no doctor for post mortem at the Baitadi hospital. The hospital has posts for four doctors.

Regular bus services to Baitadi started from Mahendranagar and Dhangadhi started from 2046 and this is the first such major accident on that highway.

House of Representatives
Maoist problem symbol of existing anomalies: Nepal

Kathmandu, Oct. 11 (RSS): Leader of Main Opposition Party Madhav Kumar Nepal has claimed that the present government has been unsuccessful to resolve the existing problems of the country.

Speaking at the meeting of the House of Representatives today, Nepal accused the government of not being able to fulfill the changes demanded by the country and said the present nc government has not followed the agreement reached with the CPN-UML.

The government is not working in the interest of the people nor to bring changes to society but is still following status quoism. This will give rise to disenchantment among the people and will lead the country towards a serious state.

Alleging that the Nepali Congress has fooled the people in the name of Women’s Bill and introduced the bill on ceiling of land hastily without any discussion, Nepal said despite the possibility of putting together the NC concept and Badal Commission’s concept in the bill the later was completely ignored.

In the past 12 years corruption has increased very much but action has not been taken against anybody for social crime. The Nepali Congress government should take responsibility for this, he said adding that the government has not introduced any concrete program for the Dalits, terai people, the landless and landless settlers.

Nepal said the Maoist problem is the symbol of the existing anomalies and aberrations in the country and warned of a civil war in case the talks with the Maoists fail.

CPN-UML is of the view that the Maoist problem should be resolved through talks and on a political basis, he added.

Meanwhile, majority of the MPs speaking during special time at today’s meeting of the House of Representatives protested the land bill passed by the Nepali Congress by majority and without holding any discussions on it.

Expressing his view, NC’s Taranidutta Chataut demanded that the government make arrangements for medical treatment of the chairman of Rampur Bilaspur VDC in Kanchanpur who was severely beaten up by Maoists for his chairmanship of the Maoists counter action committee and urged the Maoist side to not repeat such acts.

Hari Acharya of Rastriya Janamorcha said there will be no land to spare through the land bill presented by the government and accused the natural means and resources committee of finalising the bill in haste.

Narayanman Bijuckhe of Nepal Workers and Peasants Party said the US administration has been killing innocent Afghan citizens by bombing the country indiscriminately and called upon justice loving people to protest the attack on Afghanistan.

Lilamani Pokharel of Samyukta Janamorcha said depriving daughters of their right to property after marriage is unpleasant and expressed concern over the unwillingness of the government to discuss the Land Bill.

Khemraj Bhatta Mayalu of Nepali Congress said wild animals from Royal Bardia National Park have been giving trouble to people of adjoining 15 VDCs and the park has also been a place for entertainment and corruption.

He demanded compensation for the affected and stopping of irregular activities carried out inside the park.

Dr Gangadhar Lamsal also of the Nepali Congress wished for success of the government-Maoist talks and complained that the government has not been able to take action against those involved in beating up and looting cash from Mansingh Tamang of Betani VDC in Nuwakot district recently.

Nepal Sadvawana Party and Rastriya Prajatantra Party boycotted today’s meeting of the House of Representatives in protest against presentation of the committee report on the Land Act (fifth amendment) Bill-2001.

Taking time from Speaker Taranath Ranabhat as soon as the meeting began, Hridayesh Tripathi of Nepal Sadvawana Party said ceiling on land should be coupled with ceiling on wealth as well in order to genuinely wipe out poverty from the country and declared a boycott of the meeting by his party.

RPP’s Pashupati Shumsher JB Rana said the land bill introduced in parliament was passed by a meeting of the natural means and resources committee which was held in an undemocratic manner and this was the reason behind the boycott. He led his party MPs out of the meeting.

Wagle opens women’s labour meet

Lalitpur, Oct. 11 (RSS): Minister for Works and Physical Planning Chiranjibi Wagle inaugurated the two-day first national women’s labour conference organised by the DECONT central department of women here today.

Some 90 persons including representatives from 17 national and 37 district associations affiliated to the democratic confederation of Nepalese Trade Unions (DECONT) are taking part in the conference organised by DECONT with the cooperation of the International Labour Organisation (ILO).

Speaking on the occasion, Mr Wagle said Nepali women have a proud history and are the messengers of social change and urged the women to organise against ill traditions and culture and help the country and society move ahead.

Taking into consideration the advice and suggestions of the judiciary and the existing social and cultural structure the present government made a revolutionary decision to entitle daughters to parental property on par with sons, he added.

NC central member Bimalendra Narayan Nidhi pointed out the need for the provision of compulsory education for women in order to increase their income-generating capacity and efficiency and make them self-reliant.

Another NC central member Prakash Man Singh, president of DECONT Rajendra Bahadur Raut, convenor of the DECONT department of women Rama Poudel and representatives from the ILO, DANIDA and other speakers also expressed their views.

Maoists still use violence as means

BY A STAFF REPORTER

Kathmandu, Oct. 11: Despite the stoppage of all kinds of violent activities announced by the CPN-Maoists and the government, the Maoists have been continuing their violent activities like kidnapping, blasting of police posts and destroying public property.

The Maoists kidnapped Tika Ram Upadhyaya of Kurgha VDC of Parbat district on Wednesday morning. According to Chief District Officer Balkrishna Panthi, four Maoists had come to Upadhyaya’s house at mid-night and stayed for about four hours. At about 4 A.M. in the morning they took him with them.

But his wife followed her husband and the wife has also not returned home. Panthi quoted Updhyaya’s daughter as saying that the Maoists said they would return her father after two days. The whereabouts of Upadhyaya’s wife is, however, not known.

Similarly, the Maoists had kidnapped three teachers of Kalika Secondary School of Khotang district on Tuesday.

According to Chief District Officer Krishna Prasad Lamsal, about a dozen Maoists had come to the school at about 1 P.M. that day and kidnapped headmaster Devi Prasad Rijal and teachers Narayan Rai and Dhruba Raj Rai. However, they were left afterwards and the teachers attended the school the next day at 10 A.M.

Lamsal said the CDO office has called the teachers to find out what had happened, but they did not come to the office today. The school lies about six kilometres from the district headquarters.

But, he said, it is learnt that the teachers were taken to the Maoists’ district leader Dil Kaji Shrestha at Bajhe Chyang Danda, which is about 6 hours walk from the school.

Meanwhile, the Maoists destroyed an abandoned police post at Dhungegadhi VDC of Pyuthan district today. Deputy Superintendent of Police Tej Jung Thapa of the district police office said that about 15 armed Maoists destroyed the post, which was vacated by the police about two months ago due to security reasons.

Similarly, the Maoists also destroyed another vacant police post at Rudrapur VDC of Nawalparasi district. According to Bishnu Raj Kusum, CDO of district, the Maoists had blasted the building a few days back. The post lies in the hilly part of the district. About two weeks ago, the Maoists had also destroyed another empty police post at Bulingtar of the district.

Elders approve proposal

Kathmandu, Oct.11 (RSS): The National Assembly at its meeting today approved a proposal presented by Minister for Agriculture and Cooperatives Mahesh Acharya on behalf of Prime Minister and Minister for Local Development Sher Bahadur Deuba seeking consideration of the "Kamaiya Labour (prohibitory) Bill, 2058".

Responding to questions raised by MPs on the Bill earlier, Minister Acharya said that under the short-term and long-term programmes for rehabilitation of the Kamaiyas or bonded labourers, the government is building huts and providing foodgrain, 75 cubic ft of timber and up to Rs. 10,000 for building houses.

CPN-UML’s Ram Chandra Bhattarai, Urbadutta Pant and Ranganath Joshi had taken part in the discussions.

Similarly, the meeting also approved a proposal presented by Finance Minister Dr. Ram Sharan Mahat seeking consideration on the Finance Bill, 2058 and the National Loan Floating Bill, 2058, and also a proposal seeking to return the Excise Bill, 2058 and the Nepal Rastra Bank Bill, 2058 to the House of Representatives.

At the meeting, chairman of the special committee Komal Bahadur Ghale and another special committee chairman Radheshyam Adhikari presented the reports on the Bill on the National Foundation for the Uplift of Nationalities and the Control of Unauthorised Electricity Leakage Bill, 2058.

Likewise, the National Assembly secretary tabled along with a message the Civil Code (11th amendment) Bill, 2058 which originated and was passed by the Lower House.

The National Assembly will meet again at 11 am tomorrow.

‘Peace talks should succeed’

Kathmandu, Oct. 11 (RSS): Speaker Taranath Rana Bhat has said that the government-Maoist talks should end in success if the country is to be lifted out of violence and terror.

Speaker Rana Bhat, who was speaking at an interaction programme organised by the Reporters Club here today, lauded the government’s liberal efforts towards restoring peace and security through the resolution of the Maoist problem and stressed the need for the Maoists to reciprocate the government’s liberality.

If the underground Maoists call themselves a political force they should stop demanding the scrapping of the constitution and establishment of a republic, he said adding, the institution of the Crown has a very important and dignified role in the country’s development.

Describing the ongoing Parliamentary session as more productive than the previous one, he said the session concludes Oct. 18.

Calling on all political parties to foster healthy competition, national unity and reconciliation so as to ensure a bright future of the country, Speaker Rana Bhat described the conflict between the executive and legislature as momentary and said that the conflict should not be dragged out, rather it should be resolved amicably.

Govt to release Maoist leader
Gupta tells Maoists to reciprocate as well

BY A STAFF REPORTER

Kathmandu, Oct. 11: In a bid to facilitate the talks for the peaceful solution of the Maoist insurgency, the government has decided to release Matrika Yadav, one of the leading Maoist leaders who has been in prison since last year. Yadav is one of the Maoists’ top brass, whose release was being repeatedly demanded by the Maoists for maintaining the spirit of the talks. "Yadav will be released as soon as the government furnishes certain legal procedures," Minister for Information and Communications Jaya Prakash Prasad Gupta told the press here this afternoon. Yadav was arrested on the charge of setting fire to a police station last year.

In the weekly press meet held today, Minister Gupta, who is also the government Spokesman, asked the Maoists to become equally responsible for maintaining the atmosphere for the talks by ending all kinds of violent and forceful activities and also by releasing the people kidnapped and held hostage by them.

"The government has fulfilled almost all the preconditions set by the Maoists for maintaining the environment for the talks, but it is the Maoists who have not yet released or informed the whereabouts of those people and police personnel who they have kidnapped," Gupta said.

Minister Gupta said, "The Maoists have not yet released or informed the whereabouts of 124 kidnapped people and 24 police personnel taken hostage by them."

The Maoists had kidnapped 71 police in the month of July this year alone. But only 47 of them have been released while the 24 are still being held by them.

Minister Gupta also said that the government was fully open-minded while facilitating the atmosphere of talks and that it wanted to solve the insurgency through peaceful negotiations without any wastage of time.

"We are always ready for the third round of talks with the Maoists. And this time we are waiting for the Maoists’ response for the place and date of the talks," Gupta said.

As to when would the third round of talks would be held, Minister Gupta said that, it depended on the Maoists’ willingness for talks.

Meanwhile, Minister for Agriculture and Cooperatives Mahesh Acharya who is one of the members of the government-formed committee for the talks with Maoists, said that he is hopeful that the talks would be held before Dashain.

After the third round of the all-party meet, held the other day at Singhadurbar Secretariat, the government has once again got the mandate from all the parliamentary parties to hold talks without violating the norms and values of the present Constitution, Acharya said.

Minister Gupta also seconded this and said, "We hope that the Maoists will be more specific and clear in their political demands at a time when we have already accepted their other demands for social and economic reforms," he said.

In their 23-point demands under three headings, the Maoists have been demanding the abrogation of the present constitution, establishment and institutionalization of a republican system of government, and formation of an all-party government under political demands.

But the government has categorically rejected these demands and for other demands related to social and economic changes in the country, it has showed its consent.

‘Cabinet size could change’

BY A STAFF REPORTER

Kathmandu, Oct. 11: Minister for Inforamtion and Communications Jaya Prakash Prasad Gupta informed the press that the government was ‘not planning to increase the number of Ministries before the four-member study committee formed under the chairmanship of Chiranjibi Wagle submits its report’.

Minister Gupta, however, said that there could be some change in the size of the cabinet.

According to him, the government has realised that last year’s decision of the reduction of the Ministries caused a heavy workload to some of the Ministries while the others were having no work at all.

"That’s why, the government formed the review committee under Minister Wagle to review the pressure and nature of work of all the Ministries and suggest the best alternate, " he said.

The committee has been asked to present its report to the government within three months.

Likewise, during the meet, Minister Gupta also said that the ongoing 20th session of the parliament would conclude before Dashain by passing some other important bills.