Was it so costly?

There has been so much hype surrounding the postponement of the November 22 CA polls and how much it is likely to cost the country. But would the polls in itself have solved all the country’s problems? With many of the political outfits in the Tarai and the Hills boycotting it, would it even have been credible and guaranteed a lasting political solution? I, for one, do not believe that a society can change overnight. With or without the polls, it will take decades before the dream of a peaceful and prosperous Nepal can be realised. The CA election would have been a step in the right direction. But without necessary infrastructure for socio-economic uplift of the people , the polls could have achieved only that much.

Rupesh Rupakheti, via e-mail

Martyrs

The government’s decision to compensate the families of those killed in various forms of political violence across the country is questionable in the first place. Besides, the practice of labelling those who lost their lives, unfortunate though the deaths might be, martyrs is showing huge disrespect for the real martyrs. Every political outfit appears to want its killed workers declared martyrs even though they might have been furthering questionable interests of their organisations. The government should not confer the status of martyrs without assessing their eligibility.

Abijit Sharma, Dhapasi, Kathmandu

Foreign aid

This is in reference to the news report “Donors flayed for adding riders to aid” (THT, Oct 30). Although Nepal has been one of the largest recipients of foreign aid, the aid money granted for various development projects has invariably gone down the drain. Successive governments have failed to set priorities and frame proper foreign aid policies. There have also been very few efforts in combating corruption and checking mismanagement of foreign aid and funds given to Nepal. Without long-term strategic plans and policies with regard to the utilisation of foreign aid, there is unlikely to be any marked improvement.

C N Kanel, New Baneshwor, Kathmandu

Insecure

With the introduction of ATM and e-banking services, banking sector has taken great strides in making banking transactions quicker and easier. However, most of the ATMs in the

capital are unsafe for lack of security measures. Damage or theft while doing transactions in such places will lead to losses for both the banks and their customers. The banks clearly need to do more to make the ATMs more secure.

Manoj Thapa, via e-mail

Price hike

This is in reference to letter “Unfair’” (THT, Oct. 29). The writer is right to argue that the price hike would put a heavy burden on students, especially those from

outside the Valley. But NOC has no other option if it is to ensure a steady supply of

petroleum products.

However, I do agree that apart from checking leakages and irregularities in the NOC, the government should also encourage people to look for alternative sources of energy that might minimise the country’s heavy reliance on petroleum products.

Dwaipayan Regmi, Biratnagar