Keep them off city roads

I was surprised to read that the government is thinking about bringing back diesel-run Bikram tempos into the Kathmandu Valley. How can the government contemplate undoing the decision of four years ago? Have we forgotten the pollution caused by these tempos when they were allowed to ply on the city’s streets? A recent THT report on the issue said that the government was reconsidering its decision at the request of some “lobbyists”. I wonder who they are. THT would do a big service to the society if they were exposed before the public.

I also wonder why the environmentalists are quiet. Giving interviews to media outlets is not enough. They should come out on the streets to stop the polluting vehicles from returning.

Julia Edwards, Thamel

Mishaps

This letter is about the rising number of road accidents. Only a few days ago, eight people were killed in an accident at Nuwakot. Several other road mishaps soon followed. The authorities concerned should work towards reducing the number of road accidents.

Shiva Neupane, via e-mail

MPs’ pay

At a time when most Nepalis are struggling to make their ends meet, the huge salaries Members of Parliament are drawing cannot be justified. It is astounding that even when the House was disrupted for two months, the MPs continued to enjoy their pay and perks (that amounts to almost Rs 45,000 per month). Nepal reportedly lost Rs 29.37 million during the two-month period. How can the lawmakers, who claim to be true representatives of the people, do this without a feeling of guilt?

Shiv Shankar Shah, via e-mail

Weak claim

This concerns the news report “Multi-storey temples highly vulnerable to quakes: Study (THT, June 6). The two temples mentioned in the report (Nyatapola and Yecheswor) have survived some of the biggest earthquakes. Hence the study’s claim that these structures are highly

vulnerable is questionable. The country stands to gain much more if the researchers focus their attention to the unsupervised structures mushrooming all over Kathmandu. These buildings have become eyesores to locals and tourists alike.

Besides, the goal should be to protect the whole country, not just our historical monuments.

Captain Suresh K Bista, Air Deccan, Bangalore

Ignorant

Consumers around the world are getting more and more aware of their rights, even as Nepalis continue to be duped by unscrupulous shopkeepers. Whose shortcoming is it? The

consumers, who do not care about their rights or the government, which has not been able to safeguard their rights? I would like to urge all Nepalis to speak up for their consumer rights. The consumers should know that the shopkeepers are there to serve them, not to exploit them. If customers boycott shopkeepers who charge unnecessarily high prices there is no way they can keep functioning. In the present context, this may be the only way to

ensure the uniformity of price in the market.

Satyaman Pradhan, via e-mail