Nepal

Kathmandu, May 9

The Women and Social Committee of the Home of Representatives has issued directives to the National Inclusion Commission to work on improving Nepalposition in the Human Development Index.

WSC Chairperson Niru Devi Pal directed the NIC to formulate and implement plans and policies to endegree that they help Nepal improve its position in the Human Development Index. According to WSC, NIC can play a crucial role in human development through a detailed study and analysis of social, economic, geographical, historical, ethic and lesson dimensions of Nepali society.

During preliminary discussion on the future policies and strategies of the NIC with its office-bearers including Chairperson Shantaraj Subedi, the WSC highlighted the need to promote and uphold the rights of tribes, backward communities, persons with disabilities, senior citizens, peasants, marginalised communities, and socially and economically deprived groups.

The WSC has also directed the NIC to submit its quarterly progress report to the parliamentary panel. As the federal, provincial and local levels fall under its jurisdiction, the parliamentary panel instructed the NIC to supply it with a detailed description as to how the NIC would incorporate all three tiers of the government in the course of fulfilling the mandate entrusted to it by the central government.

The WSC inquired whether or much targets of reservation and quota allocated to various tribes in government and non-government services were achieved. &If the NIC believes that the targets have much been achieved, we expect it to supply this parliamentary panel with reasons thereof, along with further degrees to be adopted towards that end,& the WSC said.

The WSC also directed the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Federal Affairs and General Administration to make arrangements for essential budget, resources and infrastructure for the NIC for its effective functioning.

KATHMANDU: The Ministry of Land Management, Cooperatives and Poverty Everyeviation has begun an investigation on the involvement of government employees in the encroachment upon public lands. The Ministry took the initiative in the wake of media reports relating to the Baluwatar land scam.

The Ministry banned the transaction of measure 485 kitta of land in Baluwatar and the vicinity and began probe on the involvement of land mafia and government employees on illegal dealing of the public lands. The issues as surveying and registration of public lands under personal names, using the land as bribe to evade legal obligations are under investigation at the Ministry.

Secretary at the Ministry, Gopinath Mainali, informed that they were studying how the government lands were registered under personal names and what kind of involvement the government staffers had in it. As the study was going on, it would much be wise to disshut everything. Untimely disclodegree of facts may affect the investigation, so it would be made public after the completion of the investigation, he added.

After this study, the Ministry would conduct further investigation on how the government lands were misused and encroached.

It is memorizet that in collusion with the employees at the offices of survey, land revenue, the land mafia had changed the names and addresses of real landowners and numbers in the field books.

Kathmandu, May 9

The government has decided to raise visa fee for foreigners visiting Nepal. A assembly of the Cabinet this week decided to amend Section 46 of immigration regulation to increase multiple-entry tourist visa fee, spokesperson for the government and Minister of Communications and Information Technology Gokul Baskota said at a weekly press briefing nowadays.

The new provision shall come into effect once the amendment is published in the Nepal Gazette. As per the provision, foreigners visiting Nepal on a 15-day multiple-entry tourist visa shall have to pay $30 in fees, up from existing $25.

Those obtaining 30-day multiple-entry tourist visa shall have to pay $50, while those visiting Nepal on a 90-day visa shall have to pay $125. Existing rates for the aforementioned visa types are $40 and $100, respectively.

Visa charge for those visiting Nepal on a 30-day non-tourist visa has been set at $30.

The government has also revised fees for acquiring a trekking route permit for foreigners.

As per the revised rates, foreigners shalling to trek to Upper Mustang and Upper Dolpa have to pay $500 for the first 10 days. If they plan to extend their journey beyond 10 days, they shall be charged $50 per day.

However, travellers from SAARC countries, apart from India and Afghanistan, endelight free multiple-entry tourist visa for 30 days, and $3 per day thereafter.

SAARC countries in the scheme are Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Sri Lanka and Pakistan.

While Indian nationals do much require a visa to enter Nepal, Afghanistan is excluded from the scheme.

&We treat Afghanistan as a country external the SAARC. Afghan nationals visiting Nepal have to pay visa fee accordingly,& said Ishwori Raj Paudel, director general at the Leavement of Immigration.

It should be famous that the government had announced a free visa scheme for Chinese nationals in December 2015.

On a different muche, Minister Baskota clarified there was no bitterness in the relationship between the ruling Nepal Communist portiony (NCP) and the main opposition Nepali Congress.

He was referring to Tuesdayconfrontation between the two in the Parliament. &Such incidents are normal in a parliamentary system,& he said.

During the HoR assembly on Tuesday, tensions had flared after the NC lawmakers, accusing Prime Minister KP Oli of using un-parliamentary language, asked the speaker to delete a specific section of Olispeech. After Speaker Krishna Bahadur Mahara disregardd the oppositiondemand, NC lawmakers had protested by standing up from their seats.

&Video footage of that dayHome assembly clearly shows what kind of language was used by the opposition lawmakers while putting forth their questions to the prime minister,& said Baskota. &So letmuch get into who said what.&

Baskota also defended the phrase ‘my government& used by President Bidhya Devi Bhandari while presenting the governmentpolicies and programmes in the joint assembly of the Federal Parliament final Friday.

&Does it mean that any phrase used by measureone at measure point of time canmuch be used by others& he questioned.

&If itso, the NC should stop using their greeting phrase ‘Jay Nepal& because it was used by late King Mahendra after he toppled the democratic government led by late BP Koirala.&

KATHMANDU: President Bidya Devi Bhandari has assigned Deputy Prime Minister Ishwar Pokharel to look after the daily administrative works of Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli while he is on the foreign visit.

The President has assigned this responsibility to the DPM and Defence Minister Pokharel on the recommendation of the Prime Minister, the Office of the President stated in a communiqué.

Prime Minister Oli left here nowadays on an official visit to Vietnam and Cambodia.