Kathmandu, January 25, 2006

Youth leaders of various political parties said today that the country was moving towards a “democratic republic” as the Maoists have also expressed their commitment to the competitive politics. They also said that the municipal elections would not give any legitimacy to the King’s February 1 takeover. Addressing a programme at the Reporters’ Club, central working committee member of the Nepali Congress (Democratic) Man Mohan Bhattarai said it was the best moment for all to move ahead towards a democratic republic as the Maoists had also accepted competitive politics. He said that the monarchy had ceased to exist as a “legitimate institution” as it had violated the 1990 constitution. Bhattarai also expressed his apprehension about new phase of conflict between the well-off urban centres and rural areas, where presence of the state is almost non-existent, if the state failed to address the problem of conflict. “A tendency of disintegration from the centre has developed with the state controlling only the urban centres and district headquarters,” he said. Youth leader of the Nepali Congress Chandra Bhandari accused the government of depriving the Nepali people of basic need of communication. He said that new government to be formed by the agitating parties would take action against those misusing the state machinery and funds to suppress the people’s movement.

Economy faces rough road ahead

Kathmandu, January 25, 2006

Economists have warned that with inflation rising to 8.5 per cent and deteriorating performance of all economic sectors in 2004-05, as per the latest data of Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), an ‘alarming economic situation’ seems inevitable. Dr Dandapani Poudel, former economic adviser to the Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB), while talking to The Himalayan Times on the economic situation said that indicators from various sectors of the economy are not encouraging and there are ‘gloomy economic prospects’. He was worried to see the increase in price index of all major economic sectors, including the agriculture and non-agriculture sectors in the fiscal year 2004-05. The central bank’s latest consumer price index (CPI) of 8.5 per cent is virtually a deflator which seems to rise further as well in view of dismal performance of various sectors and rise in price index of all sectors, said Dr Poudel. To arrest the alarming situation, the government has to work with the central bank in time, he suggested. Even the GDP growth in 2004-05 recently brought out by CBS seems discouraging which stands at 2.33 per cent compared to 3.54 per cent in the previous fiscal.