LETTERS: Monkeys are not violent

Apropos of your editorial “Primate study” (THT, April 11, Page 8), we, the Nepalese, have the habit of shifting blame on God, monkeys, dogs, kings, neighbours and well-wishers for all our woes and problems.

In my mother’s 91st year as a pilgrim to Pashupatinath, Guheswori and Swoyambhunath, she has asserted that she has never once been harassed by these beautiful creatures.

She is willing to talk to the media refuting the charges of violence, looting and extortion against the monkeys. It is the other ‘monkeys’ that she is fearful of. The real monkeys have been around for millions of years in the capital’s religious sites and the new pilgrims do not have the right to complain of harassment by them.

If they are scared of monkeys, snakes, elephants, leopards, dogs, they should stop monkeying around with mute, helpless and powerless apolitical creatures. Rather than conducting primate studies, the government should conduct studies on people who have turned this beautiful Valley of ours into a tourist hell “Control the dust” (THT, April 12, Page 8).

The latter has become very urgent as our dust might have the same impact on our lives that the poison had on the lives of 80 people in an ancient land recently.

Manohar Shrestha, Kathmandu

New Year

We are now near the Nepali New Year, 2074. Of course, time has its own value at a time when it passes from one year to another.

Similarly, it is not misleading to say that some years may give us many memories with many reasons. Isn’t it so? However, some years may not be as good as per our wishes.

Not surprisingly, the days spent will never come back. That’s the reason why we call it ‘past is past’. To the best of my knowledge, it is a tough job to predict the future of an individual who has to deal with many unforeseeable challenges.

On top of that, hard work, dedication, perseverance, self-commitment, continuity towards desirable work will lead us to success. This is the fact. Those days are gone when people were living with so-called ‘near and dear one formula’.

In today’s globalized world we require talented and hard working people everywhere who can made their fortune in any corner of the world, be it at home or abroad.

For all of us, 2074 B.S. will be a special year as the nation has to hold three tiers of elections to implement the new constitution which is considered to be the most inclusive and participatory in the modern history of Nepal.

If we fail to hold these elections within this year, we will be heading towards yet another cycle of confrontation.

So, it is high time that the major political parties came together to hold the elections in a free, fair and impartial manner so that a new Nepal can be built through economic progress.

Let us hope that the New Year will bring us happiness and peace and harmony in all section of society.

Saroj Wagle, Bara