Walking in the alleys and suburbs of the capital I experienced Kathmandu life much as Charles Dickens put in his 1850s work Little Dorrit: “Miles of close wells and pits of houses, where the inhabitants gasped for air, stretched far away towards every point of the compass. Through the heart of the town a deadly sewer ebbed and flowed in the place of a fine fresh river”. More than an institutional debate it is about the individual initiation and around six out of 10 people I saw were unaware about the plight of their surroundings. Those looking for good places should also know to make places good. I ask what happens when you pick a plastic lying on the ground and place it in an “use me”? If those millions of people residing down there collected 1kg of wastes per day and disposed it in the right place in our lifetime we can see the capital city less polluted. On another front football lost one of its genuine prodigies and an architect of total football, Johan Cruyff, whose role is best described by one of the coaches “he was everything and he wasn’t anything there wasn’t a role for him”. Though positionally a central forward he would even be in the defense line during entire play length. When Nepalese footballers too undertake his playing style it would be best tribute to him as a memorable legacy and the beauty of football would be restored as he used to advice often.

Jay Bahadur Shah, Jajarkot  

Cruelty

Recently a 20-year old woman fell prey to an act of Violence Against Women (VAW) after she was gang-raped and

murdered by four men. The Metropolitan Police Circle has already arrested tree of the four criminals. The suspects nabbed by MPCD are Sunny Lama (28), Sajit Lama (24) of Bouddha, Kathmandu, and Rajan Rai (19) of Morang currently residing in Kathmandu. Police is going after another suspect who is at large but he should arrested soon if the task is done with utmost sincerity. According to MPCD, the girl belonged to Rajarani of Dhankuta who was residing in Saraswati Nagar, Kathmandu and was found dead in a bamboo grove in Manpokhari, Bhaktapur on February 26. SSP Sarbendra Khanal, MPCD in-charge said the suspects, including the man who’s out of reach, had drinks with the girl in a Thamel-based restaurant before taking her to an apartment building in Lazimpat on February 20. They allegedly threw her from the sixth floor for she denied having physical relationships with the gang. For the matter of fact, it’s really an act of violence done against the girl with cruelty. Now it’s time for the police to get hold of the last criminal and punish all the four without any mercy. What can be further said is anyone found guilty of such a crime should be punished to all the extent possible.

Pratik Shrestha, Kathmandu