News from Nepal

Kathmandu, March 29: Renowned folk singer, Manju Mahat, who sustained critical injuries in a road accident at Galkopakha, Thamel, on Thursday died while undergoing treatment at Grande Hospital on Saturday evening. Permanent resident of Pokhara, Kaski district and living at Samakhushi, she sang around 50 songs and acted in some 40 music videos, said folk singer Radhika Hamal. Mahat received many prizes and awards in the live folk duet song competition, she added. Mahat was the first Vice-chairperson of the Folk Duet Song Foundation Valley Coordination Committee. She is survived by her husband, a son and daughter.

NEW DELHI — Struggling to cope with a crush of climbers and garbage on Mount Everest, Nepal is also considering a proposal that would require every foreign climber to hire a local guide to ascend the country’s highest peaks. The intention is to increase local employment in an industry that is increasingly reliant on foreign guides, officials said Thursday. The policy could also help avoid the kind of on-mountain disputes that led to a confrontation last year when three professional climbers from abroad told a group of Sherpas that they wanted to climb on their own. Officials from Nepal plan to present the proposal at a meeting of Himalayan nations, including Pakistan, India and China, which is scheduled to be held in Katmandu, Nepal’s capital, next month. Nepal hopes to persuade its counterparts to adopt similar policies, which would require the employment of local guides by climbers ascending any mountain higher than 8,000 meters, or about 26,250 feet. “We

Kathmandu, March 29: Former Prime Minister and UCPN (Maoist) leader Dr Baburam Bhattarai wishes to spend his retired life after politics in his hometown Gorkha. Taking part in an interaction programme organised by the Gorkha Tourism Society here Saturday, leader Bhattarai said, "Many people can call me 'foolish', but I wish to spend my retired life in Gorkha."

Kathmandu, March 14: The Metropolitan Traffic Police Division is to carry out special checks during the Holi festival with a view to controlling possible accidents. Holi, the festival of colours celebrated by the Hindus, falls on March 16 this year. Many road accidents take place when the youths do not follow the traffic rules in the name of celebration of festivals, police said. The Metropolitan Traffic Police is to intensify the checks on roads and at corners with a view to bringing down accidents to zero during the festival and it is to strictly monitor for motorcycle riders not wearing helmets, vehicles carrying extra load, passengers traveling on the roof of vehicles, and for drunk driving.

Kathmandu, March 14: Prime Minister Sushil Koirala and CPN (UML) senior leader Madhav Kumar Nepal had a meeting at the Prime Minister's residence in Baluwatar this morning. In the meeting, also attended by UML leader Bharat Mohan Adhikari, PM Koirala and leader Nepal held discussions on holding the local bodies' elections within mid-June this year. Talking to the media persons following his meeting with the PM, senior leader Nepal said, "We the two parties discussed holding local elections within mid-June this year at any cost. We also held constructive talks on removing the delay seen in constitution writing."

Solukhumbu, March 14: Stray dogs are found pestering people at the local tourist town Lukla and surrounding areas. As per the statistics provided by the Chaurikharka-based Pasang Lhamu Nicole Nikki Hospital, 13 people were treated for dog bite in January and February alone. The hospital treated altogether 29 people for dog bite. It is found that the stray dogs that roam the town area mostly attack children and porters. The number of dog bite cases has gone up compared to the past, Pasang Lhamu Sherpa, the In-Charge of the Hospital, said.

Two Colour Photos : Present Baudhnath and kathmandu valley

Kathmandu, March 13: The government has decided to promote Dr Prabhakar Kumar Pathak, Anup Kumar Upadhyaya, Hari Kumar Shrestha, Narayan Prasad Regmi, Madhu Prasad Regmi and Bhola Prasad Shivakoti to secretaries. A meeting of the Council of Ministers today took this decision, according to Minister for Information and Communications and government spokesman, Dr Minendra Rijal. The Council of Ministers has decided to table in the Parliament bills replacing the Ordinance related to Extradition, the Ordinance on Elimination of Organised Crime, the Ordinance on Civil Service (Third Amendment) and the Ordinance on Nepal Health Service.

Kathmandu, March 13: The Constituent Assembly Regulations Drafting Committee Report, 2013 was tabled in the meeting of the Constituent Assembly today. President of the committee Laxman Lal Karna presented the report in the CA meeting. The report has proposed constituting five different committees under the Constituent Assembly (CA). The proposed committees are the Political Dialogue and Consensus Committee, the Constitution Writing and Determination Committee, the Constitution Drafting Committee, the Public Relation and Constitution Suggestion Committee and the Capacity Enhancement Resource Management Committee.