LETTERS: All don’t abide by rules

Apropos of the news stories “NRB issues circular on paid up capital rules”, “House panel tells govt to implement taxi meter billing within three months” (THT, August 22, Page 10), “Revoke TU affiliation to National Medical College, Dr KC tells govt” (THT August 21, Page 3), when it comes to adherence of rules, banks, taxis, TU and the government are all the same. Banks ignore NRB directives with impunity, taxis want to continue to use their tongue as meters, TU and the government treat Dr KC contemptuously as a proverbial crow cawing in vain for his noble demands. Rather than the doctor the state should have implemented the Mathema recommendations on medical education on its own initiative. It is strange that a Dr KC and not the government has to worry about affordable quality education. There is antidote to every stubborn illness. But can the government that wants to dilute the medical education by producing quacks and spin doctors have any interest in doing so? It is no wonder that some banks do not feel the need to fulfill the Rs. 8 billion capital requirement. Taxis do not feel the need for meters. And to put it bluntly, the government, TU and the medical mafias would be wishing a swift demise to Dr. KC. Clearly we need a dedicated leader to turn the country into a vibrant, law-abiding republic.

Manohar Shrestha, Kathmandu

Plagiarism

I am writing this piece to accentuate the fact that plagiarism is very common in the media and the educational institutes. In the western countries plagiarism is treated as a serious intellectual crime. If it is proved the degree awarded to a student is also revoked. The universities and the colleges here in Australia are very regimental when it comes to dealing with issues of plagiarism. I find many Nepalese students who come to Australian universities having difficulties to paraphrase their essays or assignments. This is just because we did not have educational courtesy or etiquette to amend our habit back in our colleges and student life in Nepal. The colleges and universities back home in Nepal do not teach the students how to paraphrase the essays written by other authors and how to cite a sentence or a paragraph from other authors, books or a research paper. Moreover, the teachers in Nepal’s universities were also not taught about research method, its importance in research, teaching and learning process. Nor are the students taught that plagiarism is a crime and such acts do not help a student enrich his/her knowledge and make him/her an expert in their related field even if they acquire university degrees. There are cases in Nepal where even renowned university professors have been caught copying and pasting others’ intellectual property without giving due recognition for their hard work. This is not the problem of one single student; it is rather the systemic problem that needs to be taken into account.

Shiva Neupane, Melbourne