People-centric approach

The recent price hike in the petroleum products has been condemned by all sectors. It is sad that the government which had pledged to resolve the political crisis and ensure

people’s rights has been subjecting people to problems of one kind or another. At a time when prices of daily consumer items have sky-rocketed, the petro price hike has added extra burden on the general public. Those living below the poverty line are the ones who have been worse hit by the hike. The government has also announced dearness allowance to service holders. Why is the government being discriminatory? Are the civil servants the only lot affected by the price hike? If the government sidelines the problems of the poor, what can the common people do? The government should be more people-oriented.

Ambika Pandey, Chitwan

Abductions

The incident involving the abduction of 175 students and 15 teachers by the Maoists is unfortunate. This shows that the rebels are behaving more like radicals outfits rather than a political force. There has been a frequent plea by the civil society to make schools a “zone of peace” but the Maoists seem to ignore this call. The rebels should immediately release the

abducted the hostages. I would request the human rights agencies and the people to continue their fight for children’s security.

Shriyam Dhakal, via e-mail

Be courteous

Security is the most essential thing during troubled times and more so for Nepal as it is

suffering from internal as well as possible external threat. I noticed at your international airport that the security personnel are extremely courteous especially while searching hand-luggage and during the last minute body check at the tarmac. However, I was appalled by the treatment I received when going through these procedures on January 6 when I was returning to the UK along with other group members.

The attitude of the airport staff was not good. They were being aggressive, rude and hostile towards the travellers. They lack proper training in their jobs. Visitors should not be treated in this manner. If you want to encourage tourism in Nepal, it is better if the concerned authorities train the staff at the airport to be polite.

Ann Armstrong, England

Doc shortage

It is really surprising to learn that there is a shortage of trained doctors in the country especially in the rural areas even though the country produces more than 500 new doctors and many more come from outside every year. The main reason for this is that many of the veteran doctors are established in the capital city and the new ones too prefer to work only in Kathmandu and other cities of Nepal.

The Nepal Medical Council (NMC) is also responsible for this situation because, while it looks for only those doctors who have studied from institutes recognised by the Tribhuvan University, its elaborate registration criteria deters many good doctors from acquiring registration without which they cannot practice. I know many doctors who are willing to work

anywhere but they cannot because they haven’t been registered with the NMC. In any case, this licensing examination started only a few years back. There are large number of doctors who acquired registration before the examination criterion was set up. It is sad that we are

facing a shortage of medicos despite having so many jobless doctors around. The authorities concerned need to think over this problem.

Dr Rupesh Shrestha, via e-mail