GOOD MOrning for Health : People taking morning walk around Bankali.

India ‘unbothered’ by dashed Tendulkar bid

Melbourne, Dec 27 Sachin Tendulkar will have to wait a little longer for his 100th international century after he was dismissed in the last over of the day, having given India a strong start to its first innings on Tuesday’s second day of the first test against Australia. Tendulkar, who has been stuck on 99 centuries since March, was bowled by Peter Siddle for 73 to leave India on 214-3 at stumps in reply to Australia’s first-innings 333. The wicket ended a 117-run partnership between Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid that put India in command. "That really set us in a strong position going into day three, but that one wicket at the end means we’ll have rebuild all over again before the second new ball," Indian offspinner Ravichandran Ashwin said. "We’ll have to stick our heads out and bat really well." The Melbourne Cricket Ground crowd of over 50,000 rose to their feet as Tendulkar walked from the ground. "It’s unfortunate he didn’t get his 100, but his batting performance today really put us out of pressure," Ashwin said. "We’re very happy." The 38-year-old Tendulkar rarely looked troubled by the Australian bowling attack as he reached his 50 off 55 balls with six boundaries and a six, yet was finally beaten by a fine ball from Siddle which swung back between bat and pad. Dravid scored a cautious, but nonetheless impressive, half century off 137 balls and will resume the third day on 68 with night watchman Ishant Sharma yet to score. "Its important that tomorrow morning we shut that scoreboard down a bit," Australia wicketkeeper Brad Haddin said. "If we can do that we’ll create chances and give ourselves the best opportunity to get into that middle order." Dravid received a reprieve while on 67 when he was bowled by Siddle (1-53), only for umpire Marias Erasmus rule him not out due to a no ball. Haddin said he noticed a lift in Siddle’s intensity after the decision. "It actually felt like he did come through five (kph)) quicker after that. And he showed a bit of character to come back after what happened and get Tendulkar late in the day." Dravid and Virender Sehwag had set up a strong platform for India’s innings with a 75-run partnership after opener Gautam Gambhir (3) went early, playing an ill-judged shot outside off stump and being caught by Brad Haddin off the bowling of Ben Hilfenhaus (1-50). Sehwag played aggressively against a tight Australian bowling attack. He was dropped by Mike Hussey in the gully while on 11, hit a lofted shot which mid-on David Warner just failed to reach as he brought up his half century, and was given another life on 58 when he edged a James Pattinson ball that Haddin couldn’t glove. He finally went when he dragged a Pattinson (1-35) ball onto his stumps. Australia resumed on day two at 277-6 and the tailenders managed to eke out another 55 runs despite overnight batsmen Haddin and Siddle falling early. Haddin (27) added just six runs to his overnight score before edging a Zaheer Khan ball to Sehwag in the gully. His wicket ended a dangerous 72-run, seventh-wicket stand with Siddle that saw off the new ball late Monday and steadied the Australian innings after a middle-order collapse. Siddle went soon after, caught behind off the bowling of Khan for an important 41. Hilfenhaus made 19 with three boundaries before lofting an Ashwin delivery to the waiting hands of Virat Kohli at long-on. Nathan Lyon was bowled around the legs by fellow-spinner Ashwin for 6 to end Australia’s innings. Australia opener and top-scorer Ed Cowan was replaced by substitute fielder Dan Christian for most of the day while he received treatment for a sore back. He is expected to be fit Wednesday. Despite overnight showers, the MCG was bathed in sunshine Tuesday, which combined with a strong breeze to offer a firmer, batting-friendly wicket. "Probably we got the better conditions in this game," Ashwin said. "Yesterday the clouds never really opened up and the wicket was a bit two-paced and it was topping and seaming."

Historical monuments in dire strought

Kathmandu, Dec. 27 Dozens of historical monuments and sites across the nation have been facing serious risk owing to a lack of proper maintenance and timely repair, a report of the Department of Archeology (DoA) revealed. Shortage of funds has made the task to give facelift to the historical and archeologically important monuments across the nation, the report added. There are different bodies such as the Ministry of Culture and Department of Archeology responsible for preservation, renovation, reconstruction of historical, archeologically significant palaces and temples. However, lack of required funds posed a constraint to carry out all works each year. The government had allocated only Rs. 30 million for DoA for the renovation of three main temples- Muktinath, Manakamana and Ram Mandir. The amount was not sufficient for managing the beauty of historical sites for round the year, said Manju Singh Bhandari (Thapa), officer of DoA. "Renovation or reconstruction process of temples can not complete within stipulated time due to the lack of budget," she said. It takes more time to finish the temple renovation works because of failure of receiving budget in time. Likewise, the reconstruction works of temples has become expensive as the works related to construction of old historical temples and sites requires the used of carved wooden stone and block items. The skilled labourers too have become a rarity, which further delay the completion of renovation works. The report showed that the historical and archeological monuments of Dadheldura have fallen in more grave risk. Dailekh and Achhan district’s historical inns and other things are reached in dilapidated condition, informed. Ram Bahadur Kuwor, Chief of DoA, said that there are more than 50 monuments but the budget- about Rs.30, 000 per monument is not sufficient. It takes long time to renovate the temple due to lack of sufficient budget, he said. DoA has been hardily able to preserve all monuments. DoA had categorised all monuments into three parts. Highly historical sites dating back to the Lichhavi and Mall eras are grouped in first category. Similarly, sited that dated back to 1903 B.S. are categorised in second group and other monuments are placed in third category.

Japanese assistance for maternal, child health

Kathmandu, Dec. 27 The Government of Japan has decided to extend financial assistance of 470,807 US Dollars; equivalent to approximately 40,381,116 Nepalese Rupees to AMDA Multisectoral and Integrated Development Services (AMDA-MINDS) under the Grant Assistance for Japanese NGO Projects Scheme of the Government of Japan in Japan’s FY 2011. AMDA-MINDS will implement the Project for Improving Maternal and Child Health through Promoting Capacity Development at four Village Development Committees (VDCs) in Rupandehi District. The Grant Contract relating this project was signed and exchanged Tuesday between Kunio Takahashi, ambassador of Japan to Nepal, and Maiko Kobayashi, Country Director, AMDA- MINDS Nepal Office. To enhance the outcomes from the former project and expand their activities to other communities, AMDA-MINDS will utilize the grant exclusively to promote capacity development at four VDCs in Rupandehi District, namely, Mainahiya, Hatti Bangaai, Kamahariya, and Dhamauli. Under the new project, all 36 communities in the four VDCs will be covered and provided with maternal and child care services such as various health workshops, capacity building assistance and access to community funds for emergency purposes. In addition, AMDA-MINDS will support to develop solidarity between local people and health administration bodies in Rupandehi District, read a statement by the Japanese embassy. Speaking at the function, the Japanese ambassador expressed his belief that this project, as one of Japan’s contributions to Nepal, would benefit rural communities in Rupandehi and contribute to improve women and children’s health condition, could further strengthen the friendly and cordial relationship between Japan and Nepal.

Businessman killed in Sarlahi

Sarlahi, Dec. 27 A businessman has been shot by unidentified men in a group at Barahathawa of Sarlahi district on Monday night. Two men in a motor cycle fired in Antosh Das, who left home after having dinner at a hotel at around 8.15 last night. Das, 32, of Hajariya VDC, sustained bullet injuries in his right arm, police said. He is undergoing treatment in Birgunj. Police is investigating into the murder attempt on the businessman. The businessmen called a bandha in Barahathawa bazaar on Tuesday, protesting against the incident.

MC8 fails to give way out for Doha pact, LDCs’ hope dashed

Geneva, Dec 27, With the failure to draw any conclusion on Doha Development Round in the Eighth Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organisation held in Geneva this month, many doubts have been raised as to whether the concept of multilateral trading system would be materialized. As long as the Doha Development Agenda remains inconclusive, the hope of LDCs to meet the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) would be in limbo. Even Pascal Lamy Director General of World Trade Organisation (WTO) admitted that "the multilateral trading system is at a crossroads." He hinted that if the MC8 fails to derive any ‘way out’ for the Doha Development Round, further progress in multilateral trading system would be in trouble. Many LDCs during the Ministerial Conference (MC8) echoed their voice for robust international support measures to address their complex development challenges. But at the end of the three day conference, no concrete result was derived. WTO Director General Lamy while talking to journalists said ‘plurilateralism’ among the member nations could jeopardize the future of multilateral mechanism which in the can dampen the sprit of the WTO. However, he said that the 8th Ministerial Conference (MC8) has radiated some hopes to promote multilateralism. Talking about the future of the DDA, he said "we must hammer out solutions to address the issues". The success of DDA depends much on how members show their interests to push forward the issues relating to multi-lateral agreement. Differences in opinion among the LDCs would trigger isolationism. He urged WTO members to strike a common consensus for the success of the agenda. If we put the issues aside, that will affect the economy of every single nation. Chairman of the WTO Olusegun Olutoyin Aganga, termed the MC8 a success, but there is a need of common efforts. However, experts, government representatives gathered in Geneva termed the conference not as a ‘failure’, but ‘inconclusive’. If the DDA continues to linger, the target of least Developed Countries (LDCs) to meet Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015 would be a far cry. What happens if the multilateral trading system withers away? Experts say the gap between rich and poor would further widen. But the concern raised by some of the LDCs in the WTO Ministerial Conference cannot be ignored. They put forth their views that ‘even within the multilateral trading system, there should be a mechanism of promoting LDCs product in the developed countries’ market. No LDCs can compete with the product of developed nations. Besides, the issues raised by LDCs should be given due importance, they emphasised. It is to be noted that the least developed countries (LDCs) have declared that they are unlikely to meet ‘many’ Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015 because of growing resource gaps. The LDCs announced this at the Fifth High-Level Dialogue on the theme ‘the Monterrey Consensus and Doha Declaration on Financing for Development: Status of implementation and tasks Ahead" that was held in New York early this month. The LDCs pinned much hope on MC8 saying that it would reach a first step Doha Round Outcome. LDCs had stated that if the Doha Round remains inconclusive, it is imperative that the provisions of the WTO Hong Kong Ministerial Declaration concerning Duty Free and Quota Free (DFQF) provisions, particularly through necessary waver to accelerating LDC services exports, preferential and more favorable treatment to services and service-suppliers and the elimination of trade distorting support measure for cotton must be implemented as early harvest. The World Economic Outlook recently published by the IMF characterised the world economy in terms of ‘sluggish growth and rising risks’ Failure of the round could lead to fragmentation of the global trading system and a weakening of the WTO and multilateralism. The continuation of such an impasse is, therefore not at the interests of the international community as a whole and the LDCs in particular. As one of the members of the LDCs, Minister for Commerce and Supplies Lekh Raj Bhatta had also highlighted Nepal’s concern about the much ‘prolonged impasse in the Doha Development Round. He had asserted that the leading nations should work through a multilateral process for a balanced, ambitious and specific outcome with clarity and precision on its development contents. The concern showed by other LDCs also prove that Russia’s entry into the WTO would spur the multilateral trading system. Economists here say that the failure to draw any conclusion on DDA would pose a dire effect on the LDCs, including Nepal.

Govt to provide Rs 1.5B to NOC

Kathmandu, Dec. 27, The government Tuesday decided to provide Rs 1.5 billion to the Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) to ease the supply of the petroleum products in the nation. Similarly, the government also decided to provide Rs 25,000 each to the families of those died in the cold-wave in the Terai. The meeting of the Council of Ministers held at Singha Durbar decided that the amount would be provided to the families of the cold-wave victims through District Natural Disaster Rescue committees. The government directed the local administrations for making necessary arrangement to control the damages caused by cold-wave. The meeting also decided to provide Rs 1 million to the family of Manbir Sunar, who was killed on the charge of intruding the kitchen of so-called upper caste in Kalikot district. Talking to media persons, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs Narayankaji Shrestha said that the government also decided to carry out a special campaign to create awareness against the untouchability by forming a special mechanism at the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), The government also decided to provide Rs 10 million to construct the building of Federation of Nepali Journalists (FNJ). The cabinet meeting decided to appoint Umeshchandra Jha and Prachandaraj Pradhan as the chairman and Vice-chairman of Nepal Law Commission, respectively. Similarly, the government has relieved chairman of Nepal Railway Suresh Yadav, Administrator of the Employees’ Provident Fund Ramesh Kumar Bhattarai and Director of Institute of Foreign Affairs Tika Jung Thapa of their posts. The government also decided to form a three-member taskforce under the coordination of lawmaker Devi Khadka for Prison Reforms Committee. Director of Department of Prison Management was appointed the member-secretary of the taskforce. Ramesh Kumar Shrestha, Sunil Ranjan Singh and Bhagawati Chaudhary are the other members of the taskforce. The taskforce has been given a two-month time to submit report. It will prepare a report by studying the infrastructure of prison houses, open-jail and study the recommendations given by the committees. The government appointed Vice-Chancellor of Tribhuvan University Prof Dr Hira Bahadur Maharjan, Vice-Chancellor of Purbanchal University Maheshwor Man Shrestha and others as the members of the University Grant Commission. The government has decided to promote Acting Secretary of the Ministry of Law, Bheshraj Sharma. The meeting also approved the resignation tendered by Dr. Sudha Sharma, Secretary at the Ministry of Health and Population.

Legislature Parliament meet postponed

Kathmandu, Dec. 27, The Tuesday’s meeting of the Legislature-Parliament was put off until Thursday by issuing a notice. The members from Dalit Lawmaker Caucus warned of disrupting the meeting until their demands were met. Dalit lawmakers demanded that the government should furnish satisfactory replies in regard with the murder of Manbir Sunar of Kalikot. The meeting was postponed after their demands of declaring Sunar a martyr and making arrangements for the support to his family could not be addressed. Dalit lawmakers were dissatisfied over the government’s decision of granting one million rupees to late Sunar’s family, citing that the government made the decision without consulting them. They also demanded strong action against those involved in the killing of Sunar. In today’s meeting, lawmaker Dr. Prakash Chandra Lohani was scheduled to table a proposal instructing the government to adopt short-term and long-term measures to solve the power outage.

Baidhya presents separate documents at CC meet

Kathamndu, Dec 27, UCPN-Maoist senior vice-chairman Mohan Baidhya ‘Kiran’ Tuesday presented a separate document in the Central Committee (CC) meeting of the party fuelling the already existing internal strife in the main ruling party. Party chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ had tabled his document in the CC meet that resumed on Saturday, after months of deferral. Initially the meet was called for Sept 18. Following Kiran’s dissent document, the CC meet has been put off till Wednesday as the CC members asked for time to study the report before engaging in the discussions. Sources said that the document of the dissent faction had insisted on carrying out the mandate given by the party plenum held in Palungtar of Gorkha last year. The Maoists had decided to opt for people’s revolt if the peace and constitution process did not move ahead for ensuring the rights of and the peace for the oppressed, marginalized and backward people. In his document Prachanda advocated for continuing with the peace and constitution writing process as it was the people’s mandate given to this party through the CA elections. Kiran had, however, argued that the recent decisions taken by the party establishment on peace and constitution were not in line with the decisions made in the precedent party CC meet. Maoist cadres captures land UCPN-Maoist cadres have captured the land provided by the state to the six families of the landless squatters and distributed it to other landless squatters. After losing the land they were provided by the a Landless Squatters’ Commission in 1998, the squatters were in great pain. The victims said that their land was captured in the leadership of local Maoist cadres Karna Bahadur Thapa and Chandrabir BK. The Maoists were breeding more landless squatters by distributing the land received by one squatter to another," Dilu, Bhurtel, one of the victims, said. The victims have issued a joint statement asking the major three political parties to create an environment to return their captured land. The Maoists have captured the land of squatters Chandralal Neupane, Dilu Bhurtel, Tek Bahadur Khatri, Name Bahadur Khatri, Jhanker Bd Khatri and Basundhara Bhurtel.

No review of ruling on CA term, SC tells govt

Kathmandu, Dec 27, The Supreme Court (SC) Tuesday refused to register the petition of the government and legislature-parliament, seeking a review of its ruling on the deadline of Constituent Assembly (CA). The SC rejected the writ petition, citing that it lacked legal grounds and evidences. SC joint-registrar Nahakul Subedi put a postscript on the writ. Attorney General Mukti Pradhan, on behalf of Prime Minister Dr. Baburam Bhattarai and CA chairman Subash Nembang, filed the writ, demanding the review of SC verdict that the CA’s term could be extended only for six months for the last time and it would automatically cease to exist after six months. In the writ, they had claimed that the verdict had infringed upon the jurisdiction of the parliament Before refusing the writ, the SC administration held a discussion whether to register it or not. The writ was rejected based on the SC’s previous precedents. The SC’s assistant spokesman Hemant Rawal said that the final ruling, made by the special bench, could not be reviewed as per the Judicial Administration Act. "The writ was rejected by putting it on postscript as it lacks legal evidence," Rawal said. He, however, said that the petitioner could appeal against the postscript if one was not satisfied with the decision. The SC also refused the writ petition filed by advocate Bijayraj Shakya, seeking the review of its ruling made in November last year The SC said that it set a precedent while rejecting Shakya’s writ. It listed the past precedents that include legal case against Ram Krishna Nirala by CIAA and the writ filed by Prakash Mani Sharma against Guthi Santhan. In its November 25 verdict, the Apex Court said that the CA’s term could be extended for up to six months one last time. The verdict created uproar in the legal and political spectrum. Oli stands against SC verdict criticism CPN-UML leader K. P. Sharma Oli Tuesday said that criticism of the Supreme Court verdict to promulgate the constitution within six months has no meaning. "The SC gave the verdict in a compulsive circumstance," he said while speaking at a press meet organized by Jhapa branch of Press Chautari here. Claiming that the SC verdict was in accordance with the spirit of the interim constitution, Oli said it was shameful and ridiculous to claim that the SC interfered the jurisdiction of the Constituent Assembly. "The task of the CA is to draft the constitution, not only to extend its own term," he added. He said that there was no alternative to engaging in constitution drafting and concluding the task within the extended period. Expressing his confidence that the constitution could be drafted within the stipulated timeframe, he accused the UCPN-Maoist of delaying to conclude the peace process. He also criticized the government and said that the country would continue to face difficulty until this government remains in power and stressed the need of a national consensus government. Meanwhile, vice chairperson of the party Bidhya Devi Bhandari said that she was still sticking her stand that the Maoist combatants should not be integrated in the Nepal Army. Talking to journalists in Damak, she said the integration of the Maoist combatants into NA would result in the disintegration of the army.

Meeting

Prime Minister Dr Baburam Bhattarai (left), NC President Sushil Koirala (centre) and CPN-UML chairman Jhalanath Khanal exiting from the three-party meeting held at Peace Ministry, Monday

Bollywood rediscovered heroes in 2011

Bollywood struck gold in 2011, revving up lacklustre box offices in India with help from its leading men who wooed audiences back to cinemas after a dismal 2010. Domestic revenues hit 19.25 billion rupees ($363.2 million) this year, up from 14.5 billion rupees in 2010, and an unprecedented four films crossed the billion rupee milestone. Two of those blockbusters starred actor Salman Khan. The solid performance contrasted sharply to the previous year when there were hardly any hits. "Audiences and filmmakers have gone back and discovered stories that are close to our Indian roots," said Sanjeev Lamba, Chief executive of Reliance Entertainment, which produced two of the year’s biggest blockbusters -- "Bodyguard" and "Singham". "Bodyguard", in which Khan plays a personal security guard to a rich man’s daughter and ends up falling in love with her, was the most successful Bollywood film, raking in more than 1.5 billion rupees ($28 million) at domestic box offices. "Singham" told the story of a right-minded police officer who stands up to a corrupt politician and was accompanied by romance, drama and high-octane action. Both "Bodyguard" and "Singham" were panned by critics but loved by audiences. And both featured strong central characters, harkening back to the 1980s and early ‘90s in Bollywood when films were centred on the hero and his defeat of a villain in a battle of good versus evil. "Audiences have always loved the dilemmas of the hero, a little bit of action, some drama and some romance," Lamba said. "We had a lot of that this year." Other themes were successful, too. Offbeat films like "The Dirty Picture", based on the life of a soft-core porn star, proved to be sleeper hits and took industry analysts by surprise. Together with the likes of "Singham" and "Bodyguard", these smaller films proved audiences have an appetite for both mass market and niche-oriented work. "HARRY POTTER" HOT; "RA.ONE" NOT But widely-hyped movies like superhero film "Ra.One" were a let-down. In spite of a publicity blitzkrieg, actor Shah Rukh Khan’s film did not live up to expectations with around 1.2 billion rupees ($22 million) in net box office. That was just a bit more than its official budget of a billion rupees. Industry estimates put the film’s cost at over 1.5 billion rupees. Aside from that, for the most part, Bollywood managed to keep its purse strings in check, with production houses learning that budgeting a film right is half the battle. "Balaji Motion Pictures made ‘The Dirty Picture’ at a budget of less than 300 million rupees but have chosen themes and subjects which are interesting, and (they) publicised their films so well that audiences have felt compelled to watch them," said industry analyst Vajir Singh. Big studios like Reliance and UTV also have changed their business models, preferring to co-produce films rather than acquire them after completion. Last year, Reliance suffered losses after two big-ticket acquisitions, Mani Ratnam’s "Raavan" and Hrithik Roshan-starrer "Kites" flopped at box offices. "This year, all our films have been co-productions or our own productions and we have seen the successes," Lamba said. "We prefer to be creatively involved from the beginning of the project rather than coming in at the end in an acquisition scenario." Indian audiences also warmed up to Hollywood blockbusters including "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2" and "The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn" -- something that wasn’t seen until just a few years ago due mainly to Bollywood’s dominance of the box office. "These days, the box office collections of good Hollywood films can rival those of a Bollywood film," said Sunil Punjabi, chief executive of the Cinemax chain of multiplexes. "The Adventures of Tintin," which was released along with Ranbir Kapoor’s "Rockstar" in November, made more than 70 million rupees its opening weekend.

Cruise takes quiet Christmas with $26.5M ‘Mission’

Tom Cruise’s latest mission has won a holiday weekend that’s shaping up with some silent nights at movie theaters as business continues to lag. Studio estimates Sunday placed Cruise’s "Mission: Impossible — Ghost Protocol" a solid No. 1 with $26.5 million domestically over its first weekend in full release. The movie raised its total to $59 million since it started a week earlier in huge-screen cinemas and expanded nationwide last Wednesday, and distributor Paramount estimated that revenues will reach $72.7 million by Monday. Cruise’s fourth "Mission" flick was a bright spot over a Christmas weekend filled with so-so tidings for Hollywood, whose usually busy holiday stretch since Thanksgiving has been a bust. Generally well-reviewed movies from Steven Spielberg ("The Adventures of Tintin"), David Fincher ("The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo") and Cameron Crowe ("We Bought a Zoo") — with casts that include Matt Damon, Scarlett Johansson and Daniel Craig — opened with modest to weak results. Despite predictions from studio executives that 2011 could be a record-setter that would finish with a bang, domestic revenues remained stuck at a sluggish pace that has lingered all year. Hollywood should finish the year with $10.1 billion domestically, down 4.5 percent from 2010, according to box-office tracker Hollywood.com. The picture gets worse taking into account higher ticket prices, which mean Hollywood brings in fewer fans for each dollar spent. Actual domestic attendance for 2011 will close out at about 1.27 billion, down 5.3 percent from the previous year’s and the lowest head count since 1995, when admissions totaled 1.26 billion. "Thank God 2011 is almost over, because we’ve had a real rough run here at the end of the year," said Hollywood.com analyst Paul Dergarabedian. "We always count on the holiday season to give us a big boost at the end of the year, and it just didn’t happen. "These admission numbers this year just tell me that we maybe have to set our sights a little lower in terms of attendance every year." Since peaking at a modern high of 1.6 billion in 2002, domestic movie admissions have been on a general decline since. Studio executives always insist that slow times result from weak films, but on paper, the strong lineup Hollywood presented this year should have had fans lining up in huge numbers. Pretty good films are out there this holiday season, yet blockbuster expectations fizzled, a sign that people might be skipping a trip to the theater in favor of home-viewing, video games or the countless other entertainment options their gadgets now offer. Rising ticket prices, particularly the extra few dollars it costs to see 3-D films, also could be causing a backlash among fans. With "Ghost Protocol" climbing toward the $100 million mark, it’s a return to box-office form for Cruise, who had been Hollywood’s most-dependable earner for two decades until he turned off fans with odd antics in his personal life six years ago. "Ghost Protocol" will be Cruise’s first top-billed $100 million hit since 2006’s "Mission: Impossible III." He had a supporting role in 2008’s $100 million comedy hit "Tropic Thunder," which was headlined by Ben Stiller, Robert Downey Jr. and Jack Black. Even with a No. 1 debut, "Ghost Protocol" still was a shadow of its predecessors. The first three "Mission: Impossible" movies ranged from $45 million to $58 million over opening weekend, but those installments opened at the start of the busy summer season. As of Friday, "Ghost Protocol" also had brought in a healthy $118 million overseas. Downey’s "Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows" fell from No., 1 to No. 2 in its second weekend with $17.8 million. The family sequel "Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked" dropped from second to third with $13.3 million. Both sequels trail well behind the business their predecessors did. "A Game of Shadows," from Warner Bros., lifted its domestic haul to $76.6 million, while 20th Century Fox’s "Chipwrecked" pushed its receipts to $50.3 million. The weekend’s newcomers failed to light up the box office, too. Fincher and Craig’s "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" from Sony was No. 4 with $13 million, Spielberg’s "The Adventures of Tintin" from Paramount was No. 5 with $9.1 million and Crowe, Damon and Johansson’s "We Bought a Zoo" from 20th Century Fox was No. 6 with $7.8 million. "Dragon Tattoo" raised its total to $21.4 million since opening Tuesday night, while "Tintin" lifted its take to $17.1 million since debuting Wednesday. European literary exports "Dragon Tattoo," adapted from Stieg Larsson’s Swedish best-seller, and "Tintin," based on Belgian artist Herge’s storybook classics, are finding a lukewarm reception among U.S. crowds. "Dragon Tattoo" has been a sensation among U.S. readers yet failed to challenge "Mission: Impossible" and the other established franchises at the top of the box office. Beloved by generations of readers overseas, "Tintin" launched internationally two months ahead of its U.S. release. But the blockbuster global attention, with nearly $250 million already in the bank from foreign markets, did not translate to crowds in the United States. The calendar made it a tough weekend for Hollywood, with Christmas Eve — always a slow night for movie-going — falling on Saturday, usually the best day of the week at theaters. Christmas Day typically is a strong one for movies, as fans squeeze in a film between unwrapping presents and sitting down to family dinners.

Load shedding affects hospitals

Dang, Dec. 26 The daily work of government and private hospitals in Rapti Zone have been badly affected by the ongoing electricity load shedding. The hospitals sources said that they had been experiencing difficulties to treat patients due to increasing power outage problem. Rapti zonal hospital and Rapti sub-regional hospital informed that they were compelled to treat patients with the help of inverters, candles and emergency lights due to the absence of proper alternative to regular electricity. The maternity and operative wards of the hospitals have gravely been affected after the electricity authority increased load shedding schedule from 6 hours to 10 hours recently. Load shedding was limited to 14 hours a day in the district last year due to managed supply and import. According to Nepal Electricity Authority, Ghorahi branch, electricity supplied from Lahan has been distributed through out the district but random power cuts during normal hours have worsened the situation. There has been growing voices from the people towards stakeholders for their lack of concern to find alternate solution to cope with the persisting situation in health sector. The 25-KVA generator worth Rs. 2 million provided to the sub-regional hospital by UNICEF five years ago has been thrown at the backyard of the hospital premise and is yet to be repaired. The problem was more aggravated after another 10-KVA generator given by district election office, Dang also stopped working. The hospital administration said that they had written several times to the concerned offices regarding the problem with no response and had backed off from repairing the generator due to high maintenance cost. Bishow Raj Neupane, chairman of Rapti sub-regional hospital development committee, said that discussions to provide alternative solution with concerned stakeholders were being carried out. He said that the hospital would promptly connect feeder line as part of an alternative measure to cope with the situation for which Rs. 3.2 million has been already allocated. Meanwhile, the district administration office has also initiated the process to connect feeder lines at two hospitals.

Third gender for equal rights

Itahari, Dec. 26 People of third gender have complained that the State is discriminating them to use the rights with due respect despite the Supreme Court (SC) guaranteed equal rights to them. Speaking at an interaction organised in Itahari, they accused the state of violating the verdict of the SC by not providing rights and opportunities to the people of sexual minorities. On the occasion, they demanded implementation of the verdict of the SC to provide equal rights and opportunities. Speaking on the occasion, the people of third gender said they were abused and were facing hardships in the society as well. Meanwhile, stakeholders concerned have emphasised on immediate government initiative for giving justice to the family of Manbir Sunar, who was murdered on the charge of touching the kitchen of upper caste in Kalikot. At a press meet organised by the LANCOU Nepal, right activist Charan Prasain demanded with the prime minister immediate justice by investigating immediately. Another advocate Dinesh Tripathy said the persons involved have been in political protection and the family should be compensated and he be decred a martyr. Advocate Baburam Giri said the government should take stern action on the involved to lessen the violence in the name of untouchability. Organising body Executive Director Prabhakar Bagchand, Dalit NGO Federation Vice Chairman Sebalram, Dalit Women Association Chairman Durga Sob also called for state attention on violence on Dalits. In Itahari, people of third gender have complained that the State was discriminating them to use the rights with due respect despite the Supreme Court (SC) guaranteed equal rights to them. Speaking at an interaction organised in Itahari, they said the State was violating the verdict of the SC by not providing rights and opportunities to the people of sexual minorities. On the occasion, they demanded to implement the verdict of the SC to provide equal rights and opportunities. Speaking on the occasion, the people third gender said they were abused and were facing hardships in the society as well.

Two bombs defused in Gaighat DDC

Gaighat, Dec. 26 Two time bombs planted at the office of Udayapur District Development Committee (DDC) in Gaighat were defused by a bomb disposal squad of Nepal Army Monday afternoon. The bombs were timed to go off at 1:30 and 2:00 pm. Locals and DDC employees were panicked when an office assistant discovered a stray black bag inside the room of Planning Department of the DDC Office brought it out. When news about the finding of the stray bag weighing five kilograms spread, the local were in great fear. An outfit named Khambuwan Rastriya Mukti Morcha Samyukta has claimed responsibility of planting the explosives. An anonymous caller posing himself a representative of the armed outfit had called up to tell that bombs were planted in the government facility. But he did not tell intention behind planting the bombs. A bomb disposal team deployed from NA 18 Battalion from Jhilke defused the twin bombs. Deputy Superintend of Police Narendra Uprety said that it was the most powerful bomb disposed in the district. Meanwhile, a man was found dead at Tarkhagal road of Dadhikot-2 in Bhaktapur district, this morning. The deceased has been identified as Gopal Karki, 38, of Tarkhagal. Locals informed police after seeing Karki dead on the road. Police suspected that Karki might have died due to excessive cold. It is informed that investigation into the case is underway. The body of the deceased has been sent to Bhaktapur Hospital for post mortem, informed the police.

Beauty spoiling billboards await removal

Kathamndu, Dec 26, Haphazard hoarding boards and posters has degraded the beauty of many archeological and historical sites but the Kathmandu Metropolitan City has shown no interest to remove them. The hoarding boards not only give ugly looks to the historical sites and undermine the values of such sites but also send negative impression of UNESCO World Heritage Site (WHS) among the both national and foreign tourists, said officers of Department of Archeology (DoA) Kathamandu Metropolitan City (KMC) is the main responsible body in the country for the management the hoarding boards of the city area and for the maintenance of beauty of the important sites of the city, said Damodar Gautam, Chief of DoA. Gautam said that the ancient heritage preservation act- 2013 B.S. has prohibited to put on posters, hoarding boards, telephone and electric wires and to shoot movies along with carrying out other unsocial activities at the premises of WHS. But KMC has at many instance gone against the act giving permission to put on hoarding boards liberally, he said. There are seven WHS in the capital ands it was a shameful act to put on hording boards at such historic areas. But the hoarding boards could be seen around and at the Kathmandu Durbar Square, Lalitpur, Bhaktapur durbar square, Swoyambhunath , Boudha, Changu Narayan and Pashupati areas. He accepted that DoA has also responsible for maintaining the good looks of heritage sites and preserve it originality. He said that all sectors should take interest about the public issues. The role of media is very important to put focus on such issues, he added. Chief of Metropolitan City, Kedar Bahadur Adhikari accepted that the hoarding boards have reduced the charm of WHS. He informed that KMC will introduce new act in near future. There are 550 to 600 hoarding boards in the capital and KMC is collecting more than Rs. 20 million in revenue every year, informed Navaraj Dhakal, senior account officer at revenue division of KMC. He informed that permission to put on hoarding boards have been given as per the local government act-2055 B.S. KMC is also worried about the issue and there is a need that KMC should bring new policy, he said.

NC urges Maoist to be serious for peace, statute

Kathmandu, Dec 26, Nepali Congress Parliamentary Party meeting Monday called upon ruling UCPN-Maoist to be responsible and serious about completing the constitution writing processes. The meeting also demanded with the government to provide necessary relief to the people hit hard by the cold wave and the families of those who died in the cold spell. The meeting, held under PP deputy leader Prakashman Singh in Singha Durbar, demanded that UML-affiliates Youth Force and Akhil Force be restrained. "We arrived at a decision that the Maoists were reversing consensus on the contents of constitution, which were settled by the Dispute Resolution Sub-committee coordinated by Maoist chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda," NC PP spokesman Nabindra Raj Joshi said. He said that the NC was worried as the Maoist lawmakers overturned consensus on the disputed issues made in the Constitutional Committee. Joshi said that the formation of Youth Force and the decision to constitute the Akhil Force had promoted organized violence. "We are against all forms of violence. It is rather condemnable if any political party orients towards violence for the partisan interests," he added. On the death toll caused by the cold in Terai, the PP said that the people would not have succumbed to cold if the government had provided necessary assistance and relief package to them in time. It also condoled the death of the people in the Terai. The meeting also wished the speedy recovery of journalist Rajendra Dahal, who was admitted to Norvic Hospital after cardiac arrest.

Nepal’s communism unique: Prachanda

Kathmandu, Dec 26, Former prime minister and chairman of UCPN-Maoist party Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ Monday said that Nepal would follow its own model of communism that would be different from any other model of communism in the world. Reiterating that an imitation of communism was not applicable in Nepal as a communist revolution was known for its originality in a particular nation, he said that Nepal would follow its own type of communism of its time. "We cannot repeat the earlier revolution but we can enhance the earlier ones that alone may pay respect to Mao’s theory of communism," he said. According to him, imitation of communism of other countries would be against the Marxism theory. "Some leaders in Nepal are also trying to follow Marxist theories that are practiced in other nations, and that is not decent," he added. Addressing a prize distribution function in the capital, Dahal vowed to work for the settlement of the disputes that surrounded the peace and constitution making processes and those among or within the major political parties. "I must carry the burden of settling disputes regarding the peace process and constitution making process as I’ve been given historical obligation to settle them," chairman Dahal said. In the function, commenting on the book Urgen ko Ghoda, written by literary figure Yug Pathak, Minister for Culture, Constituent Assembly, Federal Affairs and Parliament Gopal Kirati said that the book portrayed the 10-year People’s War as the Anido Pahad Sangai written by Parijat and Naya Ghar written by Aahuti had portrayed the revolutions of 2036 and 2046 BS respectively. At the function, writer Khagendra Sangraula also commented on the book. Meanwhile, UCPN-Maoist general secretary Ram Bahadur Thapa said that the people were worried whether the Maoists would turn out to be a party like Nepali Congress and CPN-UML by giving up issues related to nationality and rights of the oppressed, marginalized and backward community, class and gender. "The Maoists were born out of the deviation of the NC and UML by upholding the nationalist and revolutionary political lines. Hence, the people do not want us to be like the old parties," Thapa observed addressing a cultural program organized by Maoist Newa State Committee on 119 Mao Anniversary here ate Basantapur Durbar Square. Saying that an intense discussion was going on in his party about peace, constitution and government, the general secretary of the main ruling party stated that the people had the desire to see the Maoists united giving continuity to its path of change and progress. "If the new constitution fails to provide complete autonomy to the oppressed people, nationalities for strengthening internal nationality, it would be unacceptable," he predicted. He said that there was a need of a consensus government in the leadership of patriotic and the nationalist forces. "The present government is not leading the tasks of peace and constitution properly." Maoist standing committee member Netra Bikram Chand warned that the people would raise guns again if the new constitution did not ensure the rights of the oppressed people. "Our thought group in our party is not against peace and constitution. But we want that the peace and the constitution should be for the vast majority of the people, not only for the handful of the elite," he said. Realising that the internal strife in the Maoists had mad the people worried and hopeless, the Maoist leader, who is close to the dissenting faction, said, "Revolutionaries never become hopeless, they try to find solution to every hopeless situation." He blamed the party leadership for cheating the party rank and file. "Our leadership has forgotten its pledges it made during the Chunwang meeting, that we were coming to Kathmandu to establish the state power of the people but now it is saying that such a state is impossible for now." Meanwhile, CPN-ML also marked the day and its own 34th anniversary by organizing a programme in Kathmandu. Addressing the function, ML general secretary CP Mainali stressed the need of unity among the communist parties to institutitonalise the republican setup.

Stop land encroachment: PM

Kathmandu, Dec 26, Prime Minister Dr. Baburam Bhattarai Monday directed the government agencies to control the encroachment of public land in the Kathmandu Valley. Speaking at an interaction with concerned bodies of government in Singha Durbar, Prime Minister Dr. Bhattarai asked them to take steps against those involved in the encroachment of public land and vacate the encroachers from there. He said that the government could not tolerate the tendency of land encroachment and instructed the authorities to manage the government’s land. "It is the duty of the government to protect the public land." During the meeting, Physical Planning and Construction Minister Hridayes Tripathi informed that his ministry had directed the concerned agencies for the management of the Kathmandu city in line with the international standards. He said, "The Ministry has directed to stop the encroachment of government’s lands and identify them to develop a clean and beautiful city." Tripathi said that the ministry was intensifying the works to manage the traffic system, telephone network, drinking water distribution and electricity system. Local Development Minister Top Bahadur Raymaji, chiefs of Kathmandu Municipality, Nepal Tele-come, Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) and other top government officials were present in the meeting. Deputy Inspector General of Nepal Police Ganesh Rai said that he had taken the Prime Minister’s instructions positively and started working for the smooth traffic system. He informed that his office started expanding road with the objective of easing the traffic system. Rai said that the roads were being expanded New Baneshwor, Ratopul, Kalimati, Teku, Tinkune, Babarmahal and other places of Kathmandu. He said that the road expansion works would be also carried out in Bhaktapur and Lalitpur districts. Kathmandu Municipality Administration Department chief Gyanendra Karki said that the municipality had started clearing of the encroachment in the public land of Kathmandu. He urged the PM to discourage street vendors and landless squatters from using the road and public places.

Top brass meeting soon on army integration disputes

Kathmandu, Dec 26, A meeting of the three major parties Monday decided that it needed additional discussions on army integration. After the meeting, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister and government spokesperson Narayan Kaji Shrestha told the reporters that a meeting of the top leaders would be held soon to sort out differences. "The meeting agreed to hold a meeting of the high level leaders for intensive discussion on army integration," Shrestha told the reporters. He said that even after the completion of the regrouping of the Maoist combatants, army integration process was not moving as desired and the high level meeting was expected to resolve some misunderstanding on integration. According to DPM Shrestha, the meeting also agreed to sit again to discuss the bill on truth and reconciliation commission. A bill to form the commission has already been tabled in the parliament. An informal committee of three parties formed to study the bill has also prepared its report. Nepali Congress leader Arjun Narasingh KC said that the meeting also evaluated the six and 7-point agreements which were not implemented. KC, who was present in the meeting, said that his party clearly put its view about its suspicion whether the peace process would be obstructed as the two deadlines fixed to conclude the peace processes elapsed without doing any expected homework. He also said that the meeting agreed to hold a meeting of the top leaders of the three parties to discuss about the bill tabled in the parliament for the formation of Truth and Reconciliation Commission. According to KC, NC leaders asked the Maoists how they were using the unregistered vehicles. "Past agreements have only been piling up without implementation, the Maoist leaders look positive in words but not in deeds," he said. UCPN-Maoist chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda left the meeting hall after an hour. Prime Minister Dr. Baburam Bhattarai, NC president Sushil Koirala, UML chairman Jhalanath Khanal, NC senior leader Sher Bahadur Deuba, Dr. Minendra Rijal, Bhim Rawal and others were present in the meeting.

Top brass meeting soon on army integration disputes

Kathmandu, Dec 26, A meeting of the three major parties Monday decided that it needed additional discussions on army integration. After the meeting, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister and government spokesperson Narayan Kaji Shrestha told the reporters that a meeting of the top leaders would be held soon to sort out differences. "The meeting agreed to hold a meeting of the high level leaders for intensive discussion on army integration," Shrestha told the reporters. He said that even after the completion of the regrouping of the Maoist combatants, army integration process was not moving as desired and the high level meeting was expected to resolve some misunderstanding on integration. According to DPM Shrestha, the meeting also agreed to sit again to discuss the bill on truth and reconciliation commission. A bill to form the commission has already been tabled in the parliament. An informal committee of three parties formed to study the bill has also prepared its report. Nepali Congress leader Arjun Narasingh KC said that the meeting also evaluated the six and 7-point agreements which were not implemented. KC, who was present in the meeting, said that his party clearly put its view about its suspicion whether the peace process would be obstructed as the two deadlines fixed to conclude the peace processes elapsed without doing any expected homework. He also said that the meeting agreed to hold a meeting of the top leaders of the three parties to discuss about the bill tabled in the parliament for the formation of Truth and Reconciliation Commission. According to KC, NC leaders asked the Maoists how they were using the unregistered vehicles. "Past agreements have only been piling up without implementation, the Maoist leaders look positive in words but not in deeds," he said. UCPN-Maoist chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda left the meeting hall after an hour. Prime Minister Dr. Baburam Bhattarai, NC president Sushil Koirala, UML chairman Jhalanath Khanal, NC senior leader Sher Bahadur Deuba, Dr. Minendra Rijal, Bhim Rawal and others were present in the meeting.

Top brass meeting soon on army integration disputes

Kathmandu, Dec 26, A meeting of the three major parties Monday decided that it needed additional discussions on army integration. After the meeting, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister and government spokesperson Narayan Kaji Shrestha told the reporters that a meeting of the top leaders would be held soon to sort out differences. "The meeting agreed to hold a meeting of the high level leaders for intensive discussion on army integration," Shrestha told the reporters. He said that even after the completion of the regrouping of the Maoist combatants, army integration process was not moving as desired and the high level meeting was expected to resolve some misunderstanding on integration. According to DPM Shrestha, the meeting also agreed to sit again to discuss the bill on truth and reconciliation commission. A bill to form the commission has already been tabled in the parliament. An informal committee of three parties formed to study the bill has also prepared its report. Nepali Congress leader Arjun Narasingh KC said that the meeting also evaluated the six and 7-point agreements which were not implemented. KC, who was present in the meeting, said that his party clearly put its view about its suspicion whether the peace process would be obstructed as the two deadlines fixed to conclude the peace processes elapsed without doing any expected homework. He also said that the meeting agreed to hold a meeting of the top leaders of the three parties to discuss about the bill tabled in the parliament for the formation of Truth and Reconciliation Commission. According to KC, NC leaders asked the Maoists how they were using the unregistered vehicles. "Past agreements have only been piling up without implementation, the Maoist leaders look positive in words but not in deeds," he said. UCPN-Maoist chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda left the meeting hall after an hour. Prime Minister Dr. Baburam Bhattarai, NC president Sushil Koirala, UML chairman Jhalanath Khanal, NC senior leader Sher Bahadur Deuba, Dr. Minendra Rijal, Bhim Rawal and others were present in the meeting.

Nepalis found with fake MRPs in Kuwait: Foreign Ministry

Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that two women in Kuwait were found carrying fake MRPs (Machine Readable Passport) that were apparently handed to them by a foreign employment agency. 

During an investigation, it was found that Mahima Devi Dewan of Bara and Anju Neupane of Kaski were handed fake MRPs where the agents had changed the name of the holders. 

Talking to eKantipur, Chief Joint Secretary of the Passport department Deepak Dhital said, “One would need a special visa and insurance to work in Kuwait. It has been found that the agents have duped some Nepalis in the process.”

It has been found that Mahima Devi Dewan’s passport (05467191) had already been made in the name of Mohammad Alias Dewan. Similarly, Anju Neupane’s passport was also made on the basis of Mohammad’s passport. 

“We believe that these thugs have to be brought to justice. When the fake MRPs are read by the machine, we can find them. So I think we would be able to catch the cheats,” said Dhital.

Forty-one copies of MRPs were sent to the Kuwait Mission, out of which passports of Anju and Mahima were found to be s

Prime Minister Dr. Baburam Baburam Bhattarai (first from left) taking part in the meeting of the Central Committee of UCPN-M. UCPN-M chairman Prachanda (second from right) along with other senior leaders also taking part in the meeting Saturday

Terai people hit hard by cold waves

Birgunj, Dec 24, As cold spell triggered by continuing blanket of fog sweeps across the Terai plains, life in the border town of Birgunj is getting more difficult. With no sun light visible for the past three weeks, elderly and children are most affected by cold wave. People are lately confined to their homes to avoid menace of killer cold except when they are compelled by urgent business to come out. Parsa District Education Office has announced the closure of public schools for a week due to excessive cold. The market activities in the town have slowed down due to thinning presence of customers. Government offices have also seen decreased activities. "Only a small number of service seekers are coming to the government offices," said Prakash Pokharel, administrative officer at Parsa District Administration Office. The number of patients with respiratory problems visiting the Naryani Sub-Regional Hospital has swelled. Most of the visitors include elderly women and children, said Shyam Sunddar Das, senior physician of the hospital. Two persons have died of cold in Parsa while dozens have lost lives so far across the Terai plains. Regular flights to and from the Simara Airport have been affected due to foggy weather. "No flights have been operated in the last ten days due to bad visibility," said air traffic controller at Simara Civil Aviation Office Santosh Basnet. According to Basnet, temperature of Simara has remained between 6 and 13 degrees Celsius this week. The temperature of Birgunj is a few degrees lower than that of Simara. Local resident Sita Khanal said that the government administration has done nothing to help public to cope with the cold wave. Prime Minister Dr Baburam Bhattarai who visited Birgunj on Friday had directed the local administration to mobilise resources to save people from the severity of cold. A report from Kailali district in far west Nepal said that the number of patients visiting Seti Zonal Hospital has gone up due to rising effects of cold. Most of the hospital visitors are suffering from pneumonia, influenza, asthma and bronchitis. Around 25 patients have been visiting the hospital daily, senior assistant health worker Radha Krishna Chaudhary said. Most of the patients are coming from the rural areas, he added. People have been advised to avoid cold and stay indoors. The hospital has treated 200 cold related patients this winter. Meanwhile, four persons have died of cold in Rupandehi district till date. Out of them, only Sher Bahadur Pandey of Kathmandu has been identified, according to the natural disaster rescue committee of the district. The district disaster relief body said that it is trying to step up relief efforts to enable people to cope with the cold as directed by the Home Ministry. Under the relief steps, warm clothes and fuel wood will be distributed, said chief district officer Hari Krishna Poudel who is coordinating the relief works. Meanwhile, people in Gaur of Rautahat district in eastern Terai have celebrated the first shine of the sun after ten days. They hope that the sunny days will help to cope with the severe cold wave that has taken lives of dozens across the plains. After hard life under the cold spell, jubilant people could be seen basking in the sun on Saturday. About a dozen people have died because of the cold in this district. In Mahottari, people were happy to have a glimpse of the sun in two weeks. However, an old man died after taking a bath before offering worship. Ganga Lal Dev, an Indian national, succumbed to the cold while he was wearing clothes after bath. Mahottari saw the largest number of deaths, 25, due to the cold in any district this season. In Sarlahi, the death toll reached four, with two women dying Saturday. Bhola Majhi, 55, of Pidari VDC and Balwali Moktan, 70, of Janaki Nagar died of cold, said the locals.

Nepal urges PM to pave way for national consensus govt

Kathmandu, Dec 24, Former prime minister and senior CPN-UML leader Madhav Kumar Nepal Saturday said that the prime minister should pave the way for the formation of the national consensus government. Speaking at a training programme organized by the party’s coordination committee at its central office in Balkhu, he said that the peace and constitution writing processes were under the shadow and the prime minister was reluctant to call the Army Integration Special Committee meeting to intensify the peace process. He accused the UCPN-Maoist of not being serious to conclude the tasks of peace and constitution and of hampering the calendar made for the purpose. He said, "The Maoists are trying to render the calendar for completing the tasks of peace and constitution meaningless." Nepal said that the leaders of major parties were unable to intensify the peace and constitution drafting processes. "They are involved in a blame game," he added. He said that his party had succeeded to intensify the ideological and practical movements to conclude the national tasks and stressed that the UML should work to end the bad political culture promoted by the Maoists. He said that the UML was ready to realize its mistakes and keep the party united for peace and constitution. UML politburo member Astha Laxmi Shakya said that the UML had no rift regarding the party’s ideological and theoretical grounds. Responsibilities would be provided to all leaders and cadres after analyzing their competencies, Shakya added. Party general secretary Ishwor Pokharel and secretary Yubaraj Gyawali are assigned to train the party cadres. Meanwhile, chief whip of CPN-UML Bhim Acharya said that time had arrived to seek an alternative to the present government. Talking to journalists in his hometown in Inaruwa, Sunsari, Acharya said that as the government failed to work in favour of the people and inked an ‘impure’ agreement with the Madhesis, time was rife to replace the government with a new one.

Prachanda pressing for organisational unity

Kathmandu, Dec.24, UCPN-Maoist chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda has presented a political proposal at the party’s central committee meeting to resolve the crisis that has surfaced in the party. He submitted a 9-point brief political proposal at the meeting held in party headquarters Perisdanda Saturday. After chairman Prachanda presented the political document aimed at maintaining organizational unity in the party, senior vice-chairman Mohan Baidhya Kiran demanded a day to study the proposal. According to party spokesperson Dinanath Sharma, vice-chairman Kiran informed that he would submit a written response to the proposal at another meeting. Kiran demanded time as Prachanda’s proposal differed from his own 13-point document, Sharma said. One of the participating leaders said that Prachanda, in his proposal, had included that imminent crisis could not be averted if a crisis-remedy was not brought. Prachanda has mentioned that the internal was getting unhealthy, unusual and explosive due to the weakness of the leaders, which was compounded with external interference of domestic and international regressive forces. His proposal said that unity in the party and victory over the regressive interference were possible by way of introspection from the leaders. In the document, Prachanda said that the policy of the party was still people’s revolt. But there is no dispute in the party to make people’s federal republic as the main working policy of the party while emphasizing on national independence and federal republic before going for the revolt, the proposal said. He said that the party should not undermine the people’s aspirations that the peace and constitution writing processes should be concluded under the Maoist leadership. Chairman Prachanda mentioned in his document that the party started giving special attention to take the leadership of the peace and constitution processes from April this year and it succeeded to initiate the process to form a Maoist government led by Dr. Baburam Bhattarai despite various ups and downs. The standing committee meeting immediately after the government’s formation decided to hand over combatants, and weapons containers to the Army Integration Special Committee, Prachanda mentioned in the document. He said that the 4-point deal was inked with the Madhesi Front as per the party’s decision and the agreement was approved by the party headquarters and parliamentary party. He also said that the 7-point agreement, BIPPA and the agreement to return the captured property were made as per the party’s decision. However, if any procedural errors had occurred, they could be reviewed and corrected from discussions and debates, he said. He said that integration and rehabilitation of the combatants to conclude the peace process and to take the constitution writing process to a logical end were not the end to the revolution or surrender or class adjustment. Instead, they were new initiatives to move ahead by institutionalizing the achievements of the revolution, he said. Prachanda has mentioned that the internal rifts which not only intensified but spilled all over the streets immediately following the formation of the Maoist government over the issue of weapons handover were worrying. The rifts weakened the party’s status to lead the peace and constitution writing processes while affecting the political struggle with other forces negatively, he said. In essence, the party was dead, Prachanda mentioned in the document. He said that groups were flourishing and sub-groups within groups and individuals within sub-groups were playing the role of a catalyst to intensify the row. He severely criticized that individual interest was becoming dominant in the party. He proposed a 10-point suggestion to resolve the dispute in the party and give a message of unity. He also proposed a 3-month action plan for organizational consolidation and mobilisation of the people.

President extends good wishes to Christian community

Kathmandu, Dec 24, President Dr. Ram Baran Yadav Saturday wished peace, prosperity and development of Nepalese people on the occasion of Christmas, a festival of Christian community. President Yadav said that the Christian communities were for welfare, happiness and humanitarian work to promote the human welfare and wished them peace and prosperity. He said that the Christian religion aimed to establish peace, reconciliation and world fraternity across the world and hoped that Christmas would help to promote unity among the people. He said, "I am hoping that the Christmas will help to establish peace and prosperity of all people." Meanwhile, Nepali Congress (NC) president Sushil Koirala also wished peace and prosperity of all Christian communities and all Nepalese people on the occasion of Christmas and New Year 2012. Koirala said that the Nepalese people should be careful not to squander the opportunity to establish and protect the democratic system in the nation in 2012. He said that the Christian communities were playing a big role to establish and promote a democratic system. He urged community to play a major role to secure a democratic constitution and that was a historic task of Nepalese people too. On the occasion, Vice President Parmananda Jha has expressed best wishes of great festival Christmas to all the Nepali Christians residing in and outside the country. Through a greetings message, he wished that the festival would encourage all Nepalis to move ahead on the path of cooperation and collaboration in the making of new constitution. Likewise, Prime Minister Dr. Baburam Bhattarai has expressed best wishes to all the Christian followers in and outside the country on the occasion of the birth anniversary of Jesus Christ, the source of faith and inspiration to the entire Christian community. The Prime minister expressed hope that the festival will promote brotherhood and good will and religious harmony in the country. Likewise, President of the Nepali Congress, Sushil Koirala also expressed wishes to all Christian community people in Nepal and in the world on the occasion of Christmas and New Year-2012. Currently, there are around 2 to 3 million Christian followers with 2,500 churches in Nepal. The Nepal government has given public holiday on the Christmas Day.