Kathmandu, June 27 :

Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supplies, Hridayesh Tripathi, today said a fresh census will be held in the country before the election to a constituent assembly takes place.

“A census will be done because an election to a constituent assembly is impossible without this,” he said while addressing a programme at the Reporters’ Club. According to him, the

Census 2001 is not reliable because many parts of the country could not be covered due to the conflict. “The new census will bring the real picture of Nepal. This is a prerequisite to let all ethnic, regional communities, Madheshis and Dalits be represented according to their population,” he said.

He also said holding a census should not be a problem if the government is committed for this. “It is possible to hold a census within three weeks to update the previous one,” he said.

He said the problem of citizenship should be solved before going to the election for a constituent assembly.

He also criticised the decision of the seven-party alliance for giving the right of making decision on drafting interim constitution to the talks team.

UML leader Bharat Mohan Adhikari urged the SPA to do enough homework before sitting for talks with the Maoists. “This would help avoid inter-party and intra-party confusion and misunderstanding,” he said.

He said international support is necessary for monitoring management of arms because Nepal alone would not be able to do the job. “The government should be engaged in discussing about how to include indigenous people, women, Madhesi and Dalits in the election for a constituent assembly,” he said. Arjun Narsingh KC of Nepali Congress said the issue of management of arms should be settled before formation of an interim government including the Maoists.