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From the Kathmandu Press: Monday, April 2, 2018

Major Nepali and English broadsheet dailies published from Kathmandu on Monday have covered a host of issues and events on their front page on Monday. Most of them are about contemporary political issues including Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli’s India trip, delay in the unification between CPN-UML and CPN-Maoist Centre. As the month of April has begun, newspapers have begun highlighting stories about post-earthquake reconstruction as Nepal will mark the third anniversary of devastating quake on April 25.

Other contemporary social, cultural and economic issues have also got some space in the Kathmandu press today.

Important

‘No new agreement during PM’s India trip’

File: Pradeep Gyawali

Nagarik and Nepal Samacharpatra quote Foreign Affairs Minister Pradeep Gyawali to inform that Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli will not sign any new agreement during his upcoming three-day state visit to India.

According to Nagarik lead story, Nepal is adamant on its stances and demands about border disputes in Lipulekh and Susta and implementation of long-outstanding projects including Pancheshor. Therefore, the government is not in favour of signing ant new agreement.

On the other hand, Gorkhapatra quotes Gyawali to inform that economic agendas will be the top priority during the visit. Similarly, Gyawali told reporters that the visit would be aimed at redefining and resettling Nepal-India relationships that took a dip after the 2015-16 border blockade, according to The Kathmandu Post.

Meanwhile, Naya Patrika claims PM Oli and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi will jointly announce the beginning of construction of Arun III Hydropower Project from New Delhi on Saturday.

Gyawali was speaking with a group of select diplomatic correspondents in Kathmandu yesterday, according to Nepal Samacharpatra.

The Himalayan Times lead story informs that PM Oli will address Parliament before flying to Delhi in order to inform lawmakers about agendas of the trip.

Many districts reeling under drug crunch

After the government failed to release needful budget to district health offices on time, people from various districts are suffering from a severe shortage of medicines and vaccines in past few weeks, report Annapurna Post and Nagarik.

The reports claim that the problem surfaced after the Department of Health Services is functioning without its chief for last few months and the official’s absence has halted the cash transfer.

The government procures medicines worth Rs 2 billion every year to distribute for free, and 70 per cent of the total procurement is handled by the Department, according to reports.

Uncertainty in UML-Maoist merger after Maoists’ demand 50:50

Chairmen of CPN-UML and CPN-Maoist Centre, KP Sharma Oli and Pushpa Kamal Dahal respectively, sign an agreement to unify their parties, in Kathmandu, on Monday, February 19, 2018.

Republica says the plan to unify the CPN-UML and CPN-Maoist Centre has been thrown into disarray as the Maoist Centre demanded that 50:50 participation should be a basis of unity. Though the parties had signed an agreement to unify the parties around one and half months ago, Maoist Centre Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal’s new demand for “equal and dignified status” has created a serious confusion between the parties, explains the report.

Nagarik also has published a similar report.

Ignored

Deuba govt lied to people about additional reconstruction grant

File: Sher Bahadur Deuba

Naya Patrika lead story for the day says the previous government led by Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba lied to people about providing 2015 earthquake survivors with additional Rs 100,000 grant for individual house reconstruction. The fact was revealed after it was found that the decision was not recorded in the meeting minute though then government spokesperson Mohan Bahadur Basnet had made the announcement via press immediately after the meeting.

Likewise, Deuba’s decision to decrease the minimum age bar for elderly allowance from 70 to 65 is also unlikely to be implemented as his government failed to issue a guideline for it. On the other hand, the incumbent left government has not owned the decision, according to the report.

Prime Minister’s party yet to submit election expense details

File image: CPN-UML Central Office in Dhumbarahi

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli-led CPN-UML is yet to submit details of expenses that party made for proportional representation elections for the House of Representatives, according to the anchor story in Rajdhani. The deadline to submit the expense details was around two weeks ago, but the party is yet to reach the Commission.

Meanwhile, UML leader Subash Chandra Nembang told the newspaper that he did not know about the issue.

Lack of laws mars federalism implementation

By the end of last year, the country completed the first round of all levels of elections after the promulgation of 2015 constitution. However, the governments at central, provincial and local levels are yet to formulate and implement laws that are essential for implementation of the new federal structure, a report in Nepal Samacharpatra says, adding some Provincial Assembly members have even complained that they have been deprived of their salary.

Interesting

Nepali vultures fly as far as upto Pakistan for mating

Nepali vultures fly as far as upto Pakistan for in search of their mates and food, a new study has found. Kantipur anchor story for the day says the study was conducted around three months ago by installing satellite telemetry tag on the birds’ backs and one of the birs was found to have travelled 1,100 kilometres upto India-Pakistan border.

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