Batten down the hatches

Apropos of the edit page article “Power crisis” (THT, Jan. 1), I agree with the writer that declaring power emergency is not the solution to the shortage that we have been dealing with for several years now. The power crisis has posed a serious threat to our already foundering economy, as many industrial and commercial activities in the country have come almost to a standstill.

Is it not therefore high time for the government to batten down the hatches and deal with the problem in a rather sensible way instead of deciding to install multi-billion diesel power plants? Granted that the power crisis is not the making of the present government. But if power crisis is not dealt with soon, our country might be heading towards an economic doom.

Bibek Sharma,Mandikatar, Kathmandu

No strikes

Prime Minister Prachanda has urged political and other groups to make transport and industries a strike-free zone. I would like to suggest that Nepal should be declared a “strike-free” country. Now that many foreign countries, especially where a majority of Nepali labourers have been working, started sending migrant workers back home in order to cushion the effects of global financial crisis, Nepal should be prepared to create employment opportunities for them at home. I would also like to suggest that the country be declared a

“tax-free republic” for the expansion of economic opportunities.

VP Sayami, Kathmandu

Learn

The revenue collected by the government is supposed to be spent on development activities but it is apparently being used to provide high salaries, perks and other facilities to the

Constitutional Assembly (CA) members, including those who freely absent themselves from the House on one pretext or other.

This is blatant misuse of the state treasury. The leaders in the Maoist-led coalition government need to learn from the incumbent Iranian president who does not draw his salary and the former President of India Dr S Radhakrishnan who only used his salary to meet his basic needs and returned the rest of it to government.

Ramesh Shrestha, Lalitpur

Right

Maoist leader Mohan Vaidya “Kiran” has stated that feudal lords’ lands would not be returned. I would like to opine that feudal lords were engaged in converting state-owned land into

private property during the last 240 years. I fully agree with “Kiran” that none of such land should be returned to them. I am of the opinion that all confiscated land should be brought back under state ownership. Such state-owned land should then be developed as commune-farms where squatters should be allowed to work and earn their living.

However, squatters should not be allowed to own them privately. All the state-owned land that was distributed to the landles squatters by the past governments should also be brought back under state ownership. It has been learnt that squatters are occupying state-owned land in the capital without paying anything to the government. The government must remove such squatters and develop the land into state-owned amusement parks for children.

Manit Deokota, Sukkhedhara, Kathmandu