Major Nepali and English broadsheet dailies published from Kathmandu on Thursday have give priority to a host of issues from political, sociocultural and economic affairs. They have reported that a meeting between transport officials of Nepal and China on finalising the protocol to transport treaty is heading towards a conclusion. Likewise, a Supreme Court verdict on negligence of doctor in a years-old case has also been highlighted as the new criminal code has stricter provisions for doctors involved in such cases. Meanwhile, the time allowed by the Parliamentary Hearing Special Committee to file complaints against Chief Justice nominee Om Prakash Mishra has expired, and the newspapers have reported about the complaints received.
The nomination of Naveen Kumar Ghimire for the Chief of Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority has also been prioritised.
Few other issues from various sectors have been featured on the front pages of major newspapers today.
Important
China agrees to let Nepal use all ports
China is positive about letting Nepal use all of its ports so as to access other countries, report Gorkhapatra, Karobar, Abhiyan and The Himalayan Times.
During a two-day meeting held between officials of the two countries in Kathmandu, China expressed its readiness to meet Nepal’s demand, the newspapers report, adding the meeting, however, is yet to make any formal decision.
The bilateral meeting is scheduled to conclude today.
Four complaints against Mishra
In the allocated time of 10 days, the Parliamentary Hearing Special Committee received four complaints against Chief Justice nominee Om Prakash Mishra, according to Gorkhapatra, Rajdhani and Nepal Samacharpatra.
Three of the complaints are about verdicts he made earlier whereas one questions why he did not have the migration certificate of proficiency certificate level, Rajdhani reports in its lead story.
Meanwhile, Nepal Samacharpatra says the Committee will now begin an investigation into the complaints.
Supreme Court calls for caution in use of new law
Annapurna Post, Nagarik, Abhiyan and Republica have reported that the Supreme Court has called the government and stakeholders to adopt maximum caution in the use of criminal cases in the cases related to negligence of medical doctors.
Issuing the final verdict on a nine-year-old case, a division bench of justices Ananda Mohan Bhattarai and Sapana Pradhan Malla has stated that if medical negligence is accepted as a criminal liability, the remedy would be through restorative justice rather than promoting conflict between the two parties, according to the reports.
Ignored
Nepal map on the national emblem is erroneous
Annapurna Post claims in its top story for the day that the national emblem the government and its agencies contains an erroneous map of the country. The wrong map has a shorter width on the northwestern part.
The Department of Survey has been urging the government to correct the emblem, the it has not been heeded.
Significant decline in the number of students in TU
Naya Patrika reports in its lead story that the number of students in Tribhuvan University, the oldest and biggest university of the country, has decreased by around 250,000 in past four years.
Whereas 604,437 students were enrolled three years ago, the number of students this year is just 367,427, according to the report.
Govt closes school tiffin programme
A government programme to provide free tiffin to students of selected schools in a bid to encourage them to attend classes regularly has been closed, Kantipur reports.
The UN’s food security agency, World Food Programme, was sponsoring the project that came into existence in 2001.
Meanwhile, some experts have objected to the decision, claiming the government tried to ignore its responsibility towards the education sector. The government, however, has claimed the programme is not necessary now as other various programmes do the same thing.
Kathmandu to boast smart parking facilities
The Kathmandu Metropolitan City is preparing to construct smart parking facilities in three places of city in a bid to solve traffic congestion caused by haphazard parking, according to Nepal Samacharpatra lead story.
The local government has called for an expression of interest from the interested contractors to build the facility in Dharmapath, the report says, adding similar facilities will be constructed in Darbarmarga and New Road.
NOC raises fuel prices
According to a snippet in The Himalayan Times, Nepal Oil Corporation has increased prices of petrol, diesel, kerosene and liquefied petroleum gas. From Thursday, petrol, diesel and kerosene will cost Rs 112, Rs 98 and Rs 98 respectively.
Likewise, a cylinder of LP gas will cost Rs 1,400.
Interesting
Taxi is costlier than aeroplane
Kantipur reports in its lead story that per kilometre fare of taxi in Kathmandu Valley is more than the fare of an aeroplane.
Lawmaker Bharat Kumar Shah during a meeting of the House of Representatives raised his concern over the high taxi fare, claiming people are being cheated by the cabbies.
Shah also presented statistics to support his claim.
