HELLO NEPAL

The Himalayan Times 30 November 2017 Lung cancer problem As the world is celebrating lung cancer awareness month, the number of patients suffering from this killer disease is alarmingly increasing in Nepal. This awareness program is observed throughout the world in the month of November of every year. In Nepal, various programmes are being observed to raise awareness about this dreadful non-communicable disease for long. However, it does not seem that the government and its concerned authorities have been able to reach out to all of its citizens. May be, the awareness programme that they are running do not seem to be adequate looking at the increasing number of patients in Nepal. According to data provided by Bhaktapur Cancer Hospital, more than 30 patients are found to be visiting it each month for treatment of this disease. Last year, 417 people were diagnosed with lung cancer as reported in “Quit smoking, avoid dust, say doctors” (THT, November 28, Page 2). Cancer is

The Kathmandu Post 26 November 2017 ELECTION CODE VIOLATION In this time of elections, all the parties especially the left alliance and democratic bloc are making every effort to reach out to all voters through massive election campaigns. It seems as though they have not left a stone unturned in terms of finding ways to garner the support of constituents. Election codes of conduct have been undermined and violated in most constituencies. The misuse of money and muscle by the major parties can be easily seen. Children too have been massively used in the elections. Yet the Election Commission (EC) and its district based authorities have not taken any steps to control and punish election codes violators. It was interesting to read the news about the EC being serious about taking action against external poll observers (“CEC hardens position on int’l poll observers” November 23, Page 1). According to CEC Yadav, there is no need for international observers to certify Nepal’s

The Kathmandu Post 19 November 2017 FAIR POLITICS The nation will enter into the federal structure soon after the completion of the upcoming provincial and federal elections scheduled for November 26 and December 7. All the political parties including the democratic alliance led by Nepali Congress (NC) and left alliance of CPN-UML and CPN-Maoist Centre, are in the midst of campaigning. Senior leaders of the major parties have started visiting different constituencies to garner support for their provincial and federal candidates. The blame game that major political parties espouse during the election is back, and it is not unusual at all to see parties attack each other with allegations. However, the blaming of the NC led government by the left alliance for scrapping the agreement with China Construction Group to build the 1,200 MW hydroelectric project seems to be serious in terms of its national importance (“Oli, Dahal accuse govt of working ‘ on a whim’, November 16, Pa

The Himalayan Times 16 November 2017 Change lifestyle It is said that health is wealth and is applicable to all the age groups of people. For this, people need to be cautious about their health. However, more people, especially in the urban areas, are found suffering from non-communicable diseases such as heart, hypertension, diabetic and cancer related diseases due to change in their lifestyle. Among them, diabetes has been more worrisome these days in Nepal. The number of diabetic patients has increased significantly in these days as reported in “Healthy lifestyle, balanced diet a must to prevent diabetes, say doctors” (THT, November 14, Page2). Diabetes is a chronic disease that occurs either when the pancreas does not produce enough insulin or when the body cannot effectively use the insulin it produces. Insulin is a hormone that regulates blood sugar. Diabetes is a major cause of blindness, kidney failure, heart attacks, strokes and lower limb amputation. Surprisin

The Kathmandu Post 10 November 2017 CONFUSED VOTERS The country will enter into the federal structure soon after the completion of upcoming federal and provincial elections scheduled for November 26 and December 7. Successful elections will ensure also the implementation of our new constitution. According to the Election Commission (EC), all the necessary preparations are over for holding the polls. All the candidates vying for the elections are busy with their election campaigns to lure voters with their ambitious political manifestos. However, people seem confused about some issues related to powers, functions and duties of the central government and provincial governments (“Voters ‘unaware’ of duties of centre and state govts” November 9, Page 1). The political parties have added more to the confusions with their political agendas being almost the same for both the federal and provincial polls. In fact, the Constitution has categorised powers and responsibilitie

The Himalayan Times 9 November 2017 Food programme The government has been spending billion of rupees for the education reform programme for the last one decade. These funds come from different donor organizations who are whole heartedly supporting the government’s School Sector Reform Programme (SSRP). However, the quality of education, especially in the public schools, is still questionable. There are a number of reasons for this shortcoming including the late arrival of text books in the rural areas of remote districts, politicization of teaching professions, lack of proper supervision and monitoring of teaching-learning environment from the concerned authorities.  Among them is the “Food Programme for Education” launched in the rural area’s schools. The main purpose of this programme is to increase the access of education, boost the enrolment rate and minimise the drop-out rate. Normally, the food, which is simply nutritional supplement, needs to be cooked which

The Kathmandu Post 3 November 2017 WOMEN REPRESENTATION The patriarchal mentality of senior leaders of major parties seems to be problematic for women leaders who are looking to get party tickets for the upcoming provincial and federal elections scheduled for November 5 and December 7. The Nepal Congress (NC) leadership has been heavily criticised for nepotism and favouritism and low representations of women leaders in the upcoming elections (“Women candidates few and far between in NC” November 2, Page 1). The first phase of the upcoming federal and provincial elections will be held in 32 districts. Accordingly, political parties have filed their nomination for 37 and 74 seats respectively. According to the Election Commission, there are a total of 282 candidates contesting for the 37 seats for federal parliament and 420 candidates for 74 seats for provincial parliament. Only 16 and 20 women have filed their nomination respectively for federal and provincial parliament