Sarlahi, November 16, 2005

Inmates of the Sarlahi district jail quarrel no more. They spend their free time reading books and newspapers. And there is a television set for those who cannot read. By saving every penny of their pocket money, the inmates of the Sarlahi district jail founded a library on the jail premises in 2001. They constructed the ‘Inmate Development Library’ in 2001. Thanks to book donations made by the ICRC and other social organisations, the library is now well stocked with books and newspapers. The library chief, Dron Prasad Subedi, said the library has a collection of books on different topics. It all became possible due to the initiation taken, among others, by Bhaktri Prasad Lamichhane, a former inmate and Thaneshwor Shapkota, the CDO to literate. The library has been playing a crucial role in shaping their behaviour. The illiterate inmates can, of course, can pass their time watching television, said Pawan Kumar Mishra, the jail watchman. The jail is home to 124 inmates, the jail administration said. Out of their allowance of Rs 900, the jailbirds donate Rs 10 to the library every month. Income generated by selling pigeons is used in running the library, said Roshan Lama, secretary of the Inmate Development Library. The library has played a crucial role in changing the lifestyle and behavioral pattern of the inmates, said the jailor and patron of the library, Anil Acharya.

Cosmic Air begins mountain flight

Cosmic Air’s inaugural mountain flight with its Fokker-100 jet today provided passengers a “spectacular” view of Everest and Annapurna mountain ranges. This is probably the first flight that covers the Annapurna and Everest mountain ranges. “We are the first airline in Nepal to use a Boeing for mountain flights covering both the Himalayan ranges,” said Simrik Shrestha, deputy director of sales and marketing division of Cosmic Air. The airline is expected to begin its scheduled mountain flights with its Fokker from November 20. There were 72 passengers, including journalists and crew members, on board the 108 seater aircraft which took off at around 8.30 am today. Ganesh Himal, Langtang, Gauri Shankar, Cho Oyu, Pumori, Everest, Kanchenjunga, Manaslu, Annapurna, Machhapuchhre are some of the peaks that can be seen during the mountain flight. The airline intends to sell only 84 out of 108 air seats per flight so as to provide a better view of the mountains to the passengers. The airline has however yet to fix its air fare. “We plan to begin a concept of companion fare which allows two passengers to share two seats for the price of one ticket,” said Shrestha. However, a passenger also has a choice of purchasing a single ticket at a regular price. The airline had so far been operating mountain flights in its thirty-three seater SAB aircraft.