Nepal recording its first human casualty from bird flu has been reported in all major newspapers along with news of cyclone Fani bringing bad weather in parts of eastern Nepal. The government presenting its policies and programmes for fiscal 2019-20 at the federal Parliament on Friday has also been given importance in Friday’s newspapers.
Here is a summary of important, ignored and interesting stories from the front pages of national broadsheets:
Important
President to present new govt policies on Friday
Nepal Samacharpatra and The Himalayan Times report that the government is set to present its policies and programmes for fiscal 2019-20 at the federal Parliament on Friday.
President Bidhya Devi Bhandari is scheduled to present the policies and programmes of the government in the joint session of the House of Representatives and National Assembly at 4:00 pm on Friday, according to the Parliament Secretariat.
According to the Parliament Secretariat, the policies and programmes will be discussed in the Parliament on May 6 and 7. On May 8, Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli will answer questions raised by lawmakers on the government’s policies and programmes before it is endorsed by the Parliament.
Following the endorsement of the policies and programmes, pre-budget discussion will begin in both houses. As per a constitutional provision, the pre-budget discussion should be completed 15 days before the budget is presented on May 29.
Ex-members seeking reappointment in TJ bodies
Nagarik and Republica report that 57 applications have been filed seeking appointment as members or chiefs of the two Transitional Justice (TJ) bodies.
Among the applicants, three are said to be former members of the TJ bodies—Truth and Reconciliation Commission and Commission of Investigation on Enforced Disappeared Persons. They are seeking a second stint. A knowledgeable source confirmed that former TRC member Madhavi Bhatta and CIEDP members Bishnu Pathak and Bijul Kumar Bishwokarma have applied, seeking reappointment.
Cyclone Fani to affect eastern Nepal
Nepal Samacharpatra and Kantipur report that cyclone Fani emerging from the Indian Ocean will have some “general effects” in the eastern parts of Nepal, according to the Meteorological Forecasting Division (MFD). Tourists and trekkers in the eastern mountainous region including Mt Everest should be very aware of the impacts of the cyclone through the cyclone will not directly affect Nepal, according to the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology (DoHM).
Barun Paudel, senior meteorologist at the MFD says that the cyclone will not affect other parts of Nepal as badly, however, he did mention that weather is expected to be bad till Sunday.
Ignored
ADB says it will complete Melamchi project
The Kathmandu Post reports that Asian Development Bank has committed to completing the Melamchi Drinking Water Project which has been a long time in the making.
Hun Kim, director general (South Asia) of the Manila-based multilateral lending agency, said the bank wanted to complete the project as early as possible, and that the Nepal government alone was not responsible for the delay.
This is the first response from the major donor after a row between the Italian contractor and the Nepal government threw the project into uncertainty in December last year.
Fuel prices hiked
The Himalayan Times reports that Nepal Oil Corporation has raised prices of petrol, diesel, and kerosene with effect from Friday.
While petrol price has been raised by Rs 1.5 per litre, that of diesel and kerosene has been hiked by one rupee per litre each. With this adjustment, the price of petrol has reached Rs 111.5 per litre, while the price of diesel and kerosene has reached Rs 98 a litre.
Birendra Goit, a spokesperson for NOC, said prices had been hiked on the basis of fuel rate of Indian Oil Corporation for the first half of May. NOC, however, has not revised prices of cooking gas and aviation turbine fuel.
Interesting
Dhobi khola land registered under private individual’s name
Nagarik and Republica report that around 4 ropani [0.5 acre] of land originally belonging to Dhobi Khola (Nilo Pul) in Kathmandu was illegally registered in the names of individuals under the pretext of updating the land survey map.
An investigation into the encroached land in the area has found that at least 2 ropani of public land at Nilo Pul (near Gopi Krishna Cinema) was included as a plot belonging to private individuals under the pretext of updating the survey map. The 2 ropani was illegally registered in the names of Bijaya Sambahamphe and Nanda Maya Limbu.
PM Oli to visit Vietnam and Cambodia
Nepal Samacharpatra reports that Prime Minister KP Oli is visiting Vietnam and Cambodia from May 9 to 15. According to Foreign Minister Pradeep Gyawali, Prime Minister Oli is visiting Vietnam at the official invitation of his counterpart Nguyen Xuan Phuc. During his stay in Vietnam, PM Oli will sign a deal with Vietnam which will make it easier for flights from Vietnam to directly land at the Gautam Buddha International Airport in Bhairawa.
Prime Minister Oli is scheduled to participate in a function organized to celebrate Vesak Day and address functions organized by various think tanks. “Vesak”, the Day of the Full Moon in the month of May, is considered the most sacred day to millions of Buddhists around the world. This day marks the birth anniversary of Lord Buddha.
Prime Minister Oli is scheduled to pay an official visit to Cambodia at the invitation of his Cambodian counterpart Hun Sen on May 13. During his recent visit to Nepal to attend the Asia Pacific Summit in Kathmandu, Hun Sen had extended an invitation to Prime Minister Oli to visit Cambodia at a convenient time.
Govt to seize Bishnu Paudel’s land
Naya Patrika reports that the government has decided that it will seize the Balwatar land bought by NCP General Secretary Bishnu Paudel without compensating him. Communication Minister Gokul Baskota said that government had decided to seize all 113 ropani land in Balwatar and that no one will be compensated.
