This is with reference to the news story “Khotang locals resort to stir” (THT, December 6, Page 5). For a long time, the people of Khotang district have been enjoying the facilities of transportation, electricity and communication.

However, it is sad to say that the locals have disrupted vehicular movement and have warned of disconnecting the 33KVA Gaigha-Diktel Transmission line in order to get their demands fulfilled over setting up of Village Council.

A bad culture and practice has developed in Nepali society and the new generation has been accustomed to such culture. Are not there other alternatives to resolve this problem instead? What are the stakeholders of Khotang district doing for the people’s rights?

Moreover, several rounds of talks between the agitating locals and the Local Bodies Restructuring Technical Support Committee have become inconclusive.

If this practice is followed by other districts what will happen to the future of local bodies’ restructuring in Nepal? Will we be able to implement the new constitution?

Magar Bharat Khotange, Kathmandu

Traffic lights

Apropos of the news story “Stricter traffic rules in the offing” (THT, December 6, Page 1), Nepal needs proper and long-term rules for effective traffic management.

Once we have the best fundamental traffic rules in place, we should adhere to them irrespective of the change in the government or the traffic organogram.

However, traffic rules cannot be effective without traffic lights. So the first step to better traffic rules should be installation of traffic lights. The government and its agencies will always come up with Nepal’s number one excuse: lack of funds for traffic lights.

This problem can be overcome easily. Since all the roads in the country are gifts from this or that government, we should tell the Samaritans that we won’t let them dig an inch without their prior commitment to install traffic lights around all intersections and bends, and at zebras.

Traffic lights have served the highly developed countries well and it will definitely serve this third-world country well too. It will also take the pressure off traffic hapless personnel who have to brave dust, smoke, noise and natural elements.

They will just need to stand in a corner and look out for traffic light violators rather than standing in an island and using hands nonstop for hours. If we can come up with a list of strict do’s and don’ts and hammer these into the drivers’ heads at the time of license tests, chances are they will abide by the rules.

No license should be given to people who fail to grasp the contents in the traffic rules book.

Sitting behind the wheel and moving trucks or buses forward and backward without knowledge of or respect for traffic signs and rules should make people unfit for licenses.

Manohar Shrestha, Kathmandu