Kathmandu, September 25, 2007

The Nepali Congress (NC) and the NC (D) merged today with NC President Girija Prasad Koirala and NC (D) President Sher Bahadur Deuba signing a document in the presence of former prime minister and NC stalwart Krishna Prasad Bhattarai.

Koirala and Deuba signed the document at the NC party office at Sanepa amid a joint mahasamiti meeting of both the parties. Speaking after signing the document, Deuba said unification of the parties was the beginning of a new era. “It’s the beginning of a new era. We have respected the mood of the voters and friendly international forces.”

He also said future responsibility of the party would be to bring other parties to the “democratic track”. Bhattarai, the lone founding leader of the party, said he was very happy after witnessing the event. “I am very happy today. My happiness knows no bounds.” The unification of the parties is based on a formula that gives almost equal weightage to both the parties.

Koirala and Deuba will suggest names of three office-bearers each. Forty district unit chiefs who were earlier with the NC will retain their posts. The district committee of the party will be empowered to look into any orgnisational row “over who gets what.” Thirty-five district unit chiefs who were with NC (D) will retain their position.

Those owing allegiance to the NC have bagged four sister orgnaisations — Nepal Students Union, Nepal Women Association, Nepal Peasants Association and Nepal Ex Servicemen Association.

Tarun Dal, Nepal Dalit Association and Nepal Indigenous Nationalities Association will be headed by those who were with the NC (D).

Piped water for landless in Tanahu village

Tanahu, September 25, 2007

First time in the country, over 400 families without proper land-ownership will have drinking water pipelines in a hilly village of Khairenitar in Tanahu district, around 30 km southeast of Pokhara.

The consumers of the locality have identified the families, which do not own legal land, as “extremely poor” and have provided them with pipelines through special requests of the local consumer group, though according to the government rules, one requires to produce land-ownership certificate to subscribe to piped drinking water.

The 20.4-million-rupeeproject of Khairenitar Small Town Water Supply and Sanitation Project (KSTWSSP) — a joint effort of the government, the consumers as well as the Asian Development Bank — is now in the final stage.

The project is going to benefit 4,634 people in 808 households. The project has earmarked Rs 19.8 million for water and Rs 0.5 million for sanitation. For this the government will provide a loan of Rs 6.5 million through Town Development Fund to the consumer groups. In general, each of the subscribers has to pay Rs 16,000 but the extremely poor can get the same for Rs 7,800 in 24 installments.