Deuba’s unilateral moves lead to polarisation in Congress as party gears up for general conventionDespite Poudel faction’s protest, party president says he will continue to form the committees exercising his authority.

ANIL GIRIKATHMANDU, JULY 30

Factional feud in the primary opposi-tion Nepali Congress is rearing its ugly head once again.

The two factions led by party President Sher Bahadur Debua and senior leader Ram Chandra Poudel

are now at odds after the former start-ed to make some unilateral moves, filling in candidates of his choice in the party departments.

In a surprise move, Deuba on Wednesday announced the formation of a 479-member “senior political assembly” under him, much to the Poudel faction’s chagrin.

The Poudel faction protested, but Deuba refused to relent. Instead, he decided to appoint members in 20 party departments. The party has a total of 42 departments, but they are yet to get full shape due to factional feuds.

“Internal democracy in the party has been on the wane, largely due to Deuba, and his unilateral moves are completely against democratic val-ues,” said Poudel at a press conference on Thursday evening. “Deuba’s high-handedness has been increasing and we are not going to tolerate it.”

Party leaders say that confrontation is likely to escalate as Deuba is refus-ing to listen to anyone.

The Nepali Congress, which saw a spectacular defeat in the 2017 elec-tions, has yet to get back on its feet. It has not been able to play an effective role in Parliament as the prima-ry opposition.

Despite a humiliating loss in the 2017 elections under his lead-ership, Deuba has refused even to own up the defeat, let alone step down. As the party gears up for its general convention in February next year, Deuba instead is eyeing yet another term.

A section in the party has accused Deuba of employing ille-gal tools to influence leaders.

Poudel said on Thursday that

his faction has decided to oppose the decisions taken by the party president unilaterally. “We will keep on raising Deuba’s shenanigans until the general convention,” said Poudel.

On Thursday morning, Poudel, General Secretary Shashank Koirala, Treasurer Sita Devi Yadav and leaders Prakashman Singh, Ram Sharan Mahat and Arjun Narsingh KC, among others, lodged a protest at the party headquarters against Deuba.

They also submitted a copy of their protest letter to Deuba.

They have objected to Deuba’s move of forming various party departments even after the announcement of the date for the general convention and uneven distribution of party member-ship, among other issues.

>> Continued on page 5

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Post Photo: KABIN ADhIKARI

A waiter at a restaurant on Durbarmarg in Kathmandu after services resumed on Thursday.

Post Photo: ANIsh RegmI

Farmers return with loads of grass through a paddy field in Khokana, Lalitpur, on Thursday.

W I T H O U T F E A R O R F A V O U RNepal’s largest selling English dailyPrinted simultaneously in Kathmandu, Biratnagar, Bharatpur and Nepalgunj

Vol XXVIII No. 157 | 8 pages | Rs.5Friday, July 31, 2020 | 16-04-2077

32.4 C 13.5 CNepalgunj Jomsom

O O

Preparations begin for autumn tourism amid pandemic but challenges remainA dedicated PCR testing centre at the airport issuing reports within hours is a must to avoid mandatory quarantine obligations, industry insiders say.SANGAM PRASAINKATHMANDU, JULY 30

Mingma Sherpa, one of the biggest mountaineering expedition operators in the country, has at least 100 book-ings from climbers to attempt just the 8,163-metre Mt Manaslu in the upcom-ing mountaineering season that begins in late September. The autumn season ends in November.

But he is still waiting for clarity from the government on the paper-work tourists require so that he can inform his clients.

“The government needs to tell us what documents foreign nationals have to present for visa applications and to enter the country,” said Sherpa, who employs 800 mountain guides and other workers who are now either furloughed or are living in their mountain villages without any income.

The Covid-19 pandemic forced the world, including Nepal, to an unprece-dented halt, with tourism being one of the sectors worst affected. Travellers have seen their dream holidays post-poned, if not cancelled, hotels were forced to shut their doors for months, and employees in the industry have been furloughed or have even lost their jobs entirely.

Entrepreneurs, however, say they are seeing a silver lining.

With trekking, mountaineering, hotels and restaurants formally resuming operations on Thursday, fol-lowing the government’s decision of

July 20, they are optimistic that the tourism business will pick up and workers will get their jobs back.

“The industry has started bookings and it’s a good sign. For destinations like us, it’s all about building trust among those who are ready to travel again,” said Sherpa.

Nepal’s tourism sector generated Rs240.7 billion in revenue, which is almost 8 percent of the GDP, and sup-ported, directly or indirectly, more than 1.05 million jobs in 2018, accord-ing to the annual World Travel and Tourism Council report.

Although the sector has been offi-cially opened, the government still needs to decide what tourists need to do before they are allowed inside the country and let them know the safety measures in place before they have the confidence to visit Nepal.

Scheduled international and domes-tic flights will begin from August 17, and with hotels, trekking and moun-taineering permitted to resume opera-tions from Thursday, in order to help prepare themselves for a “new normal tourism” focused on safety more than anything else.

“Now, the industry is keenly watch-ing the government’s upcoming deci-sion on how to allow foreign tourists travelling to Nepal–whether just a negative test certificate will be enough or there will be a period of mandatory quarantine on arrival,” said Binayak Shah, senior vice president of the Hotel Association of Nepal.

>> Continued on page 5

Post Photo: PRAKAsh ChANDRA tImILseNA

Sher Bahadur Deuba has riled his opponents by forming committees without consultations.

C M Y K

YesterdaY’s solution

Crossword

HorosCoPe

sudoku

CAPRICORN (December 22-January 19)

***If you start this day feeling a little down, try to get outside for a walk as soon as you can. No matter what the weather is like, a big dose of fresh air will get you back on track. A blue mood is nothing to worry about. It could just be your mind telling you to slow down a bit and ponder some new emotions that your heart is feeling.

AQUARIUS (January 20-February 18)

***Experiencing a different culture is the best way to learn more about what your own culture has taught you, and which parts of that lesson you might want to improve upon. Don’t be afraid of different types of music, food, dance, or theater. It might be confusing at first, but in the end it will enrich your life.

PISCES (February 19-March 20)

****Making a new beginning in an old situation isn’t always easy. If all you’re trying to do is get back to the “good old days,” that’s your first mistake. Don’t let respecting someone’s resistance be your second mistake. Open up a dialogue and ask the people you’re trying to connect with what they’re feeling about the situation.

ARIES (March 21-April 19)

***Without realising how or when it happened, you may find yourself in the middle of a conflict today. But all you need to do is call upon your mediation skills and you’ll navigate these poten-tially stormy waters without any difficulty. Your smile can make peace. What you should always remember is that people want to be liked.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20)

***Everyday items and common conversations could take on a heavier meaning today. You’re entering a phase in which you have a great deal of discernment, so you’ll be able to see the hid-den meaning behind what people are saying. The challenge today is to stay neutral about events, because you know things others don’t.

GEMINI (May 21-June 21)

***A blast from the past could be coming back on the scene, and they have some big plans in store for you. They just might offer the missing piece between you and several opportunities, includ-ing greater wealth and a hotter romance. Keep an eye out for unfamiliar phone numbers or e-mail addresses.

CANCER (June 22-July 22)

***While your focus has been on other people in your life lately, thinking completely about your current relationships isn’t going to be possible. But that is a good thing. It’s time to get yourself refocused on who you are as an individual. You may be running the risk of losing yourself in the crowd.

LEO (July 23-August 22)

***Although you could be cast in the role of stu-dent, you could feel very empowered by the end of the day. Learning is something that takes time, but it offers more long-term rewards than you could ever imagine. It’s time to think about the big picture in your life and put off thinking about immediate gains.

VIRGO (August 23-September 22)

***Watch out for conflict in the afternoon, when someone’s demands could cause you to lose your peaceful demeanor. Before you make a scene, remember that you haven’t got the time to deal with people switching things up at the last minute. Be up front when people propose things that just won’t work.

LIBRA (September 23-October 22)

****If you’re starting a new job, don’t put pressure on yourself to be a superstar right off the bat. Give yourself all the time you need to get a han-dle on your new routine, new environment, or the new group of folks around you. The empa-thy shown to you now will encourage you to relax and just be yourself.

SCORPIO (October 23-November 21)

****There is a direct relationship between how easy something is and how worthwhile it is to pursue. If someone is batting their eyelashes at you, dying for attention, they’re not the person you should be checking out right now. Seek out the person who doesn’t work so hard for the approval of others.

SAGITTARIUS (November 22-December 21)

***Struggling to pedal your bike to the top of a big hill isn’t that much fun, but coasting down the other side is thrilling. It’s all about putting in the effort. If you feel you’re struggling or put-ting in more than your fair share of work, just keep in mind the wonderful reward that is waiting for you on the other side of that hill.

FridaY, JulY 31, 2020 | 02

MedleY

inside the Post

Most read online

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Quote of the day

on this day in history

NationalAfter 44 staffers at the Nepal Police Headquarters in Naxal, Kathmandu, tested positive for Covid-19, infection fears have heightened among those police person-nel working on the field with limited safety gear.

OpinionThe idea of economic interdependence reducing the likelihood of conflict is high-ly contested and should not be taken as a given. Economic interdependence only reduces the likelihood and does not eliminate war as possibility.

MoneyA government audit of India’s flagship payments processor last year found more than 40 security vulnerabilities including several it called “critical” and “high” risk, according to an internal government document seen by Reuters.

WorldSpikes in novel coronavirus infections in Asia have dispelled any notion that the region may be over the worst, with Australia, and Hong Kong reporting record daily cases, Vietnam testing thousands and North Korea urging vigilance.

Culture & ArtsKwati is prepared from a mixture of nine types of legumes; some say the nine legumes signify the ninth month of Nepal Sambat calendar in which the festival is celebrated.

Porous border, poor interception and changing forms continue to enable human trafficking to flourishTwo years ago, when her husband landed in Qatar for a job, she thought that they were in for better days. But misfortune struck quickly. Within three months of reaching the Gulf state, her husband was suddenly jobless. The company he was contracted to work for shut down. He had no option than to return.

As ruling party standoff continues, over 150 members demand Central Committee meetingAs Nepal Communist Party chairmen KP Sharma Oli and Pushpa Kamal Dahal cross swords over the party system and government functioning, as many as 152 central members have demanded a meeting of the Central Working Committee “as soon as possible”, in an indication that the ruling party is in for more trou-ble.

Failure to ensure effective contact tracing could spell a disaster as Covid-19 cases rise, experts sayOn Wednesday, a woman approached the Epidemiology and Disease Control Division to inquire why the division had not sent anyone to her home for con-tact tracing. The woman, in her early 30s, said her mother had tested positive for Covid-19 on Friday, according to Uttam Kumar Koirala, a senior public health officer at the division.

Nepal in comfortable position to double its tiger population by 2022, but challenges remainDespite Nepal’s remarkable achievement in conserving its tiger population, the road ahead is still fraught with challenges, said experts. Nepal, which pledged to double the population of tigers between 2009-2022 along with 12 other countries, has recorded a landmark achievement in being ahead of the pack.

Taiwan, China reopen crucial talks

TAIPEI - Taiwan and China reopened a crucial fifth round of talks here Saturday as tensions eased across the strait over the murder of 24 Taiwan tourists on the mainland four months ago.

Chief negotiators from Taiwan’s Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) and China’s Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait (ARATS) said that basic understanding had been reached on key issues, including fishery disputes and the repatriation of Chinese hijackers and stowaways, in the previous four rounds of talks.

They said they would now try to find consensus for putting the agreements into words during the four-day working-level meeting.

There were no opposition demonstrations, as authorities here had feared, out-side the venue at the posh international convention center in east Taipei.

The Kathmandu PostJuly 31, 1994

1. Hundreds of families have been displaced as floodwaters entered settlements in eastern parts of which district?

a. Kailali b. Kanchanpur c. Kalikot d. Kapilvastu

2. Hotels and resorts in Nepal’s popular jungle safari destina-tion in which district reopened from Thursday amid strict safe-ty protocols?

a. Sunsari b. Bardiya c. Chitwan d. Parsa

3. Nepal has pledged to double the population of which endangered

animal between 2009-2022? a. Rhino b. Red panda c. Elephant d. Tiger

4. How many people were killed in separate landslides that occurred in Kalikot district on Tuesday?

a. 10 b. 9 c. 15 d. 5

5. Student and professor unions affiliated to which political party have padlocked the main administrative office of Tribhuvan University over the appointment of key officials?

a. Nepali Congress b. NCP c. Sajha Party d. Janata Samajbadi Party

6. Ronnie O’Sullivan is a player associated with which sports?

a. Tennis b. Golf c. Snooker d. Cycling

Our reporters and editors do their best to make sure our reporting is free from errors. But when we make mistakes that warrant correction, we will be transparent and clarify at the bottom of the specific article.

If you believe we have got something wrong and it requires correction, please email us at kpost@kmg.com.np with “correction” in the subject line.

For the most recent corrections, visit kathmandupost.com/corrections. Answers to News Quiz: 1(a), 2(c), 3(d), 4(b), 5(a), 6(c)

Post Photo

Post Photo: ElitE Joshi

A woman uses her shopping bag to shield herself from the rain in Lagankhel, Lalitpur.

“We are not in a position to do anything, as the state-run hospital has already been

overwhelmed. Neither the federal government, nor the provincial

government have helped us.” Vijaya Kumar Sarawagi, mayor of Birgunj city in Parsa district, on

the lack of space to treat Covid-19 patients.

Ministry permits private hospitals to admit Covid patients as state-run hospitals are overwhelmed, Page 3

C M Y K

03 | FRIDAY, JULY 31, 2020

NAtIoNAL

Post Photo: KEshAV thAPA

Workers rebuild the Balgopaleshwar temple, which lies in the middle of the historic Ranipokhari, in Kathmandu on Thursday.

Ministry permits private hospitals to admit Covid patients as state-run hospitals are overwhelmedARJUN POUDELKATHMANDU, JULY 30

At the Narayani Hospital in Birgunj, all 63 isolation and seven intensive care unit beds and three ventilators are being used to treat Covid-19 patients.

Due to the lack of beds at the hospital, over 100 people who tested positive for the disease, are isolating themselves at home, said Vijaya Kumar Sarawagi, mayor of Birgunj Metropolitan City.

But the number of coronavirus cases in the city and the whole of Parsa district continues to rise. Fifty-three new cases were reported in the district on Thursday alone.

“We are not in a position to do anything, as the state-run hospital has already been over-whelmed,” Sarawagi told the Post. “Neither the federal government, nor the provincial government have helped us [arrange more beds].”

As state-run hospitals around the country such as Narayani get overwhelmed with Covid-19 patients, the Ministry of Health and Population has decided to allow private hospi-tals to treat patients infected with Covid-19 and charge them for their services.

But experts have criticised the decision say-ing that it is against the spirit of the constitu-tion, which guarantees the right to health for all citizens, regardless their economic status.

“We have decided to allow those who can afford private care and are willing to pay to opt for private hospitals,” Dr Jageshwor Gautam, spokesperson for the ministry, told the Post. “The government won’t even reimburse pri-vate hospitals that treat Covid-19 patients, who can’t afford to pay.”

Gautam said that private hospitals can charge asymptomatic patients up to Rs 3,500 per day; patients with mild symptoms Rs7,000, and serious patients Rs15,000. The hospitals can also perform polymerase chain reaction tests on their own and charge an additional 10 percent to the Rs5,500 test charge fixed by the ministry.

Public health experts also allege that the government ended the lockdown throughout the country in haste. The number of positive cases, along with those with severe symptoms, started to surge after the government ended the lockdown.

Madan Upadhyay, medical superintendent at Narayani Hospital, said, “The number of symptomatic cases is rising these days.”

“Of the total patients admitted to the hospi-tal, over 80 percent are symptomatic and some are in serious condition.”

According to Upadhyay, a 36-year-old man who returned from Bangalore on July 8 saw his health condition deteriorate after staying in quarantine for five days. He was admitted to the ICU of Narayani Hospital on July 13 after complaining of breathing difficulties, fever and cough and cold.

The man was placed in ventilator support the next morning, but he succumbed to the disease in the afternoon.

Experts say that the government should not shun its responsibility to protect the people. “We should not forget that most of the Covid-19 patients are migrant workers who have returned from abroad, and their family mem-bers, who can’t afford to pay,” said Dr Baburam Marasini, former director at the Epidemiology and Disease Control Division, said.

“Authorities should focus on building new facilities to isolate infected people. It will be too risky to allow them to go home.”

Experts also said that all citizens, regardless of their economic status, should be provided treatment. “The government should provide treatment to all those who show Covid-19

symptoms, except for those who prefer private care on their own,” said Dr Bhagwan Koirala, chairman of Nepal Medical Council, the national regulatory body of medical doctors. “I believe that the government won’t refrain from its prime responsibility.”

When asked about Birgunj’s situation and if the poor people who can’t afford to pay for pri-vate care will be left to die, Gautam said that the government is capable of arranging isola-tion beds, intensive care units and ventilators. “There is no problem in Birgunj,” said Gautam.

“We are setting up isolation beds there. If the number of cases rises, authorities will take them [the sick] to other places. We have 10,000 isolation beds throughout the country.”

However, such claims are neither supported by the ministry’s own data nor by mayor Sarawagi’s account. The ministry’s data shows that there are only 6,671 isolation beds across the country.

“Cases are exploding in our metropolis, but we are not in a position to bring the infected people to isolation centres,” said Sarawagi.

“The chief minister of our province came yesterday and asked us to find a place to con-struct isolation centres. This is akin to digging a well after a fire.”

Preparations on to allow schools to enrol students from August 18Public health experts say schools shouldn’t be reopened at least for the next two months.POST REPORTKATHMANDU, JULY 30

The government has decided to stop using school buildings as quarantine and isolation centres, with a plan to start the annual admis-sion process from next month.

The Cabinet on Wednesday decided that schools that were turned into isolation and quarantine centres would be sanitised by the respective local governments to ensure they are safe and start admitting students from August 18.

Over 5,000 schools, mainly the public, were used as quarantine and isolation centres, target-ing people arriving from abroad. Only around 2,000 school premises are being used currently to quarantine people suspected to have been infected with the coronavirus, according to the Centre for Education and Human Resource Development.

Making public the Cabinet’s decision on Thursday, Minister for Finance Yubraj Khatiwada, who is also the government’s spokesperson, said the process has started to reopen schools from August 18. “The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology will come out with a detailed work plan for school resumption,” he told journalists.

Khatiwada says the respective schools will be publishing the results and distributing text-books while admitting students from next month. Over 200,000 public school teachers will have to reach their schools before the admission process begins, according to the Cabinet deci-sion. The government provides free textbooks for the millions of students studying at public schools.

The Education Ministry is preparing to announce the work plan. Tulashi Thapaliya, director general at the centre that has the authority to manage school education, said the work plan will be made public within a couple of days.

Even as the admission process starts from August 18, the government is still undecided about the date to resume teaching-learning activities on the school premises.

“I don’t think schools across the country can resume from the same day. We are for respective local governments to fix the date after assessing the threat of Covid-19,” he told the Post. Currently, students are being engaged in virtual learning through online, radio and television media.

As the intensity of the threat is different from place to place, the school resumption date would vary accordingly. There are 753 local federal units across the country, having 36,000 schools—29,000 of them run by the government. Health Ministry records show that six districts do not have active Covid-19 cases at present.

Public health experts, however, call the gov-ernment’s decision immature saying that it would be risky to reopen schools as the threat of the pandemic is not over yet.

Dr GD Thakur, former director general at the department of health, asks the government to revoke its decision. “I would suggest giving up the plan of resuming schools for at least two more months,” he told the Post. “Resuming schools soon means risking the health of our children.”

The academic year normally begins in mid-April. Schools and colleges have been closed ever since the government on March 22 enforced a lockdown in an attempt to contain the spread of the coronavirus. Records at the centre show over 7 million students were enrolled at the school level last academic year.

‘Jaat ko Prashna’, a talk show about caste discrimination, to air on Kantipur TVELISHA SHRESTHAKATHMANDU, JULY 30

Rajesh Hamal is returning to the small screen to host a weekly talk show, “Jaat ko Prashna”, which will debut on August 1 on Kantipur Television. The 12-episode talk show series, produced in coopeartion with Samata Foundation, an NGO that works for the rights of marginalised communities, aims to unpack the top-ics related to centuries-long discrimi-nation against Dalits and other ethnic minorities in the country.

The 25 minute-long show will be aired every Saturday at 6:30 pm and will be re-telecast at 10 pm where Hamal will be interacting and discuss-ing with a line-up of all kinds of guests, from lawmakers and police authorities to the people who have personally faced caste-based discrimi-nation, Dinesh DC, station head of Kantipur TV, told a press meet on Thursday.

For decades, Nepal has struggled to abolish caste-based discrimination and untouchability. When the Civil Act 1963 was introduced, its biggest focus was to make caste-based dis-crimination a punishable offence. The Untouchability and Discrimination Act, promulgated in 2011, and the Constitution of Nepal both provide clear protections for Dalits, who make up 13.12 percent of the country’s popu-lation. Despite the legal provisions that criminalise caste-based discrimi-nation, acts of violence against Dalits

have continued across the country. “We as members of the society

should be vocal about the injustice that have been committed towards the Dalit community,” said Hamal.

Pradeep Pariyar, chair of Samata Foundation, also stated that the need for the TV programme that deals with the caste-based discrimination was felt after the two cases of violence against Dalits during the lockdown sparked a conversation around caste-based atrocities in the country.

“The killings of six men in Rukum and Angira Pasi in Rupandehi are gruesome testaments that intolerance towards the Dalit community’s exist-ence can even lead to loss of lives. It is high time that such violence acts should be stopped and for this there should be wholesome discussion regarding Dalit’s rights that should be able to reach out to mass audience,” said Pariyar. “Jaat ko Prashna” is directed by Santa Nepali and is pro-duced by Bibek Regmi.

Covid-19 fears grip police after 44 officers contract coronavirus at the headquartersSHUVAM DHUNGANAKATHMANDU, JULY 30

After 44 staffers at the Nepal Police Headquarters in Naxal, Kathmandu, tested positive for Covid-19, infection fears have heightened among those police personnel working on the field with limited safety gear.

“With nine new cases confirmed on Thursday, the number of coronavirus infections among the officers in the police headquarters has reached 44. The infected officers are undergoing treatment at the Armed Police Force Hospital in Balambu,” said SSP Kuber Kadayat, spokesperson for the Nepal Police. “We have also limited the num-ber of visitors to the police headquar-ters following the infection outbreak. We are only admitting those people with urgent services.”

After the government decided to lift the four-month-long lockdown on July 21, there were concerns that the deci-sion might have been taken in haste. Public health experts had warned that Kathmandu Valley could become a new coronavirus hotspot due to over-population, non regulated people’s movement and a lack of safety meas-ures. According to Inspector Hemanta Bikram Thapa of Nagdhunga Police Beat, public mobility has increased in Nagdhunga, one of the entry points to Kathmandu Valley, after the lockdown was lifted.

“Everyday people from different districts enter the Valley and we have to keep their information record,

for which physical distancing is difficult to maintain. We have to get close to the people to ask for their information, which is very risky at this time,” said Thapa. “Although we use face masks, gloves and hand sanitisers, it’s still not safe for us, as we are surrounded by people most of the time.”

According to data provided by the Metropolitan Police Circle in Thankot, a total of 3,710 people entered the Valley in the last 24 hours.

“We have to go to the field everyday to control crime, so maintaining social distancing is almost impossible,” said an officer on condition of anonymity.

He added polymerase chain reac-tion tests have been made mandatory for all crime suspects before they are presented before court, but when the suspects are held in police custody,

there is no provision of testing, which has raised the risk of coronavirus infection among law enforcement officers. According to the data provid-ed by Nepal Police, 222 personnel across the country have contracted Covid-19 so far; 101 have made success-ful recovery.

“Most police personnel after finish-ing their day’s duty return to their respective barracks and stations. So if one officer contracted the virus, there is a high risk of the infection spread-ing among other officers,” said Hemanta Malla, the former deputy inspector general. “The regular polic-ing work could be affected if a large number of police officers caught the infection at once.”

Kadayat, the spokesperson for Nepal Police, said although the rise in coronavirus infections among police personnel has increased the workload and stress for other on-duty officers, the regular law enforcement work will not be affected.

“The coronavirus won’t affect regu-lar policing work, as we have made plans and policies for such situations and we will work accordingly,” said Kadayat. He added that the Nepal Police is currently working to manage the police barracks and disinfect police barracks and stations.

“Meanwhile, we have instructed the officers working in the field to exer-cise caution and follow all safety measures while approaching people during their regular duty,” said Kadayat.

Health experts say the government should not shun its prime responsibility of protecting the people regardless of their economic status.

Actor Rajesh Hamal is returning to the small screen to host the 12-episode series. Law enforcement officers have been deployed without adequate protective gear.

Post Photo

The 25-minute show will be aired every Saturday at 6:30 pm.

Post Photo: hEmAntA shrEsthA

According to Nepal Police, 222 personnel across the country have contracted Covid-19 so far, and 101 have made successful recoveries.

C M Y K

FRIDAY, JULY 31, 2020 | 04

OpInIOn

In recent years, the idea of Nepal as a land-linked country has figured promi-nently in academia and policymaking circles. Numerous commentators have written about the benefits of utilising Nepal’s position to emerge as a land-linked country between India and China, a solution to Nepal’s current restrictive situation as a landlocked country sandwiched between two giant neighbours. These theories talk about trilateral cooperation between India, China and Nepal as it is mutually bene-ficial for them, and points towards the emergence of Nepal as a transit economy.

Such analysis relies on the funda-mental premise of the economic inter-dependence theory, which states that two countries dependent on each other for trade will not likely go to war. Thus, China and India shall not engage in a fight as both countries are highly reli-ant on each other for trade. However, recent events in the Galwan Valley have shown the pitfalls of this strand of argumentation. Moreover, those propagating the idea of a land-linked Nepal connecting India and China have not given adequate thought to whether Nepal can dictate the terms of the part-nership, taking into account its eco-

nomic reliance on both countries and lack of political stability. Neither have they provided a contingency plan for such a transit economy if Nepal finds itself in a tight spot in case of an even-tual India-China war or a bloody stand-off like Galwan.

Possibility of warThe idea of economic interdependence reducing the likelihood of conflict is highly contested and should not be taken as a given. Economic interde-pendence only reduces the likelihood and does not eliminate war as a possi-bility. Realists always point out that when the very fundamental strategic interests are under threat, countries will choose to ignore their economic interests. China and India do not have a demarcated border and are naturally poised as a threat to each other’s prima-ry strategic concerns. As Indian for-eign policy analyst C Raja Mohan puts it, China and India are divided by their respective territorial nationalisms and irreconcilable conflicts of interest. It has proved right in Doklam and Galwan. Unfortunately, Galwan also saw blood spilled after decades at the Sino-Indian border.

The Galwan incident is a massive setback for India-China relations. However, at the same time, it is a set-back for the idea of an Asian century. Today, it appears fanciful to think that India and China can cooperate signifi-cantly in other areas without demar-cating their borders. There is always going to be stress and strain in rela-tions without a demarcated border, and with each side claiming vast territo-ries. That stress and strain will always hamper any substantial cooperation between these two giants, especially when it comes to the strategic region of South Asia.

Any move by China to gain influence in the South Asian region will always be viewed with suspicion in India, and

this suspicion is not irrational. South Asia is strategically valuable to India and has remained its sphere of influ-ence. It will not allow China a free ride in the region by cooperating with it. Even China recognises this and pro-posed the framework of ‘China-India plus X’ to work closely with India in South Asia and other regions. However, there are very few takers for this frame-work in India. Moreover, China’s recent actions in Doklam and Galwan has put the last nail in the coffin in this regard.

In such a situation, it is not only futile but dangerous for Nepal to work towards the idea of a land-linked coun-try. First, India would never come on board on this idea, and any such possi-bility is distant after the Galwan inci-dent. Second, it is dangerous because Nepal is not economically strong and politically stable to work as a bridge between India and China. Nepal is not in a situation to dictate the terms of engagement with both these countries. The recent incidents in Nepal’s domes-tic politics, including the meeting of the Chinese envoy with the leaders of various factions within the Nepal Communist Party at a time of crisis for Prime Minister Oli’s government, and the Chinese Embassy’s threatening the editor of a prominent Nepali newspa-per for an unfavourable editorial, are proof that even China is interfering in Nepal’s domestic politics now.

Indian interference was always a major irritant for Nepal. It shows that until Nepal is economically stable and marks a certain degree of political sta-bility, any outside power that is invest-ing significant funds and providing aid will try to interfere in its internal polit-ical matters. Sadly, Nepal has been mired in decades of instability, and there are no signs of an end to the con-stant power struggle. The fist-fighting among various factions of the Nepal Communist Party is a sign of worry for anyone who looked at the government

led by Prime Minister Oli as the first stable government in years. Economically also, Nepal has failed to take advantage of its status of a least developed country to develop competi-tiveness in any economic sector.

The way forwardWith a weak economy and political instability, Nepal should carefully plan its foreign policy as it can prove disas-trous to make reactionary choices. It is not difficult to imagine a situation in which India and China are fighting for influence within Nepal by supporting rival factions and political actors. Nepal can also become a part of vari-ous conflicts with both India and China inside its territory if the relations take a sudden downward turn between India and China, like in Galwan.

At this point, Nepal’s foreign policy should not be reactionary. It should manoeuvre for a long-term effective balancing strategy that keeps both India and China’s undue interference at bay while engaging with them sepa-rately. Nepal should be wary of being seen as aligning with India or China at the expense of the other. Second, it should try to build its economy after the end of Covid-19 by identifying key sectors and bringing in expertise and funds from multiple sources. Third, Nepal’s politics need to transcend par-tisan interests when it comes to nation-al interests. The anti-India rhetoric used by Prime Minister Oli for his own partisan interests has proved disas-trous for India-Nepal relations. Foreign policy should not be conducted with such public rhetoric; it only harms Nepal’s interests. Nepal has time and again shown its resurgence, and has all the capabilities to emerge strongly in the post-Covid-19 world.

Maheshwari is pursuing a Master’s in international relations from South Asian University, New Delhi.

EDITORIAL

‘The beautiful thing about learning’, the great blues guitarist BB King once wrote, ‘is that no one can take it away from you’. Born and raised in poverty, King understood the value of educa-tion as a force for change. If only polit-ical leaders responding to the Covid-19 pandemic had an ounce of his insight.

Covid-19 is now mutating into a global education emergency. Millions of children, especially the poorest and young girls, stand to lose the learning opportunities that could transform their lives. Because education is so closely tied to future prosperity, job creation, and improved health, a set-back on this scale would undermine countries’ progress, reinforcing already extreme inequalities. Yet this emergency has yet to register on the pandemic response agenda.

Lockdowns have shut more than one billion children out of school. For an estimated 500 million, that means receiving no education at all. A Save the Children survey in India found that two-thirds of children stopped all educational activity during lockdown. The danger now is that a perfect storm of lost schooling, increased child pov-erty, and deep budget cuts will lead to unprecedented reversals in education.

This is an emergency layered on a

pre-existing crisis. Even before the pandemic, 258 million children were out of school, and progress toward universal education had stalled. Now, increased child poverty alone could result in 10 million children not returning to school. Many of these children risk being forced into child labour or early marriage (in the case of adolescent girls). Meanwhile, already abysmal pre-pandemic learn-ing levels, which left half of all chil-dren in developing countries unable to read a simple sentence by the end of primary school, are set to worsen.

Pathbreaking research on the impact of the 2005 earthquake in Kashmir, Pakistan captures the risk to learning. Schools were closed for three months. When they reopened, attendance quickly recovered. But four years later, children aged between three and 15 who lived closest to the fault line had lost the equivalent of 1.5 years of learning.

Imagining that outcome on a global scale gives a sense of what is at stake. Education empowers people, reduces poverty, and improves health, and the human capital that it generates shapes the destiny of countries. Lost educa-tion will erode that capital, effectively placing the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals beyond reach.

Governments should now be invest-ing to prevent that outcome. Unfortunately, education budgets are being hollowed out by recession and the diversion of public spending—and international aid—to health care and economic recovery. As a result, gov-ernments in low- and middle-income countries could end up spending $77 billion less than planned on education over the next 18 months.

So, what can be done to avert disas-ter? In its new global Save our Education campaign, Save the Children has set out a three-part agen-da for recovery.

The first priority is to keep learning alive during lockdowns. Governments

should do all they can to reach chil-dren through radio, TV, and remote-learning initiatives. Countries such as Ethiopia, Uganda, and Burkina Faso have developed ambi-tious national distance-learning pro-grammes. They and others need more donor support to implement them at scale.

Second, the pandemic creates an opportunity to address the wider learning crisis. Too many children are being taught at the wrong level, owing to schools’ rigid application of poorly designed curricula. Every child returning to school should undergo a learning assessment aimed at identi-fying those in need of support. Remedial teaching programmes such

as those pioneered by organisations like BRAC and Pratham can then pre-vent these children from falling fur-ther behind, thereby reducing the risk of future dropout.

Third, increased international financing is critical. Most of the world’s poorest countries, especially in Africa, entered the economic down-turn with limited fiscal space. That room for manoeuvre is now shrinking further as recession bites and exter-nal-debt problems intensify.

Rich-country governments have responded to the Covid-19 crisis by tearing up their fiscal and monetary policy rulebooks and underwriting ambitious national recovery plans. They should be equally bold in

supporting education in developing countries.

More effective leveraging of multi-lateral development bank balance sheets is an obvious starting place. The Education Commission has advo-cated establishing an International Finance Facility for Education to pro-vide loan guarantees, thus enabling the World Bank and other institutions to borrow cheaply on international markets and lend the funds to develop-ing countries. Every $1 of guarantees under this scheme could unlock $4 of financing for education. This approach, which would include rigor-ous debt-sustainability evaluations of recipient countries, could mobilise resources on a scale commensurate

with the crisis. Aid donors and the World Bank should support it.

To its credit, the Bank is front-load-ing resources already allocated to the Inter national Development Association, its concessional lending arm. But an unprecedented crisis surely demands more than that. The Bank should establish a supplementa-ry IDA budget of at least $35 billion and step up its support for education.

Debt relief is another potential source of financing. The G20’s Debt Service Suspension Initiative for IDA members (the world’s 73 poorest coun-tries) is a small step in the right direc-tion. Unfortunately, private and Chinese creditors, which account for over half of these countries’ debt-ser-vice payments (about $25 billion this year) have shown scant interest in participating. As a result, countries like Cameroon, Ethiopia, and Ghana are currently spending two or three times more on debt service than they do on primary education.

In effect, countries are meeting short-term debt payments by eroding long-term human capital. Allowing the claims of private creditors to rob chil-dren of their right to an education is morally indefensible and economically ruinous. That is why Save the Children has proposed a mechanism through which debt obligations can be convert-ed into investments in children.

We can measure the health impact of Covid-19 on adults by tracking infection rates and deaths, and we can gauge its economic effects in terms of lost GDP, higher unemployment, and rising public debt. The education emergency is less visible to policy-makers. But it will leave millions of the world’s poorest children carrying the scars of diminished opportunity for the rest of their lives. We can—and must—protect their future.

Watkins is the CEO of Save the Children UK.

—Project Syndicate

In mid-April, as the country reeled under a stay-at-home order amid the Covid-19 pandemic, there was news from the far western region which would start a new chapter in Nepal’s tiger conservation efforts. A tiger was spotted at an elevation of 2,500 metres in the Mahabharat range forest area of Dadeldhura district, making it the first ever sighting of the predator at such a high altitude in Nepal.

Tiger species is usually found in Nepal’s five protected parks and adjoining forest areas in the low-lying Tarai belt where, in 2018, the Nationwide Tiger and Prey Survey recorded an impressive 19 percent increase in tiger numbers from the 2013 estimate of 198 individuals, taking the national tiger population to two hundred and thirty-five.

While the latest sighting would require an in-depth study of tiger movement, the 2018 census of the tiger population, which also looked into the prey density in tiger habitats, has shown that there is a direct relation between prey density and tiger population.

Since the beginning of the 20th century, conservationists have bemoaned the decline in both population and range of wild tigers, due to rampant poaching and habitat destruction, which directly resulted in a poor prey base.

Ten years ago, the global tiger population had reached an all-time low of around 3,200, prompting governments in 13 tiger-range coun-tries to commit to TX2 at the St Petersburg ‘Tiger Summit’—the global goal to double the number of wild tigers by 2022—the next Chinese Year of the Tiger.

In the last decade, Nepal has shown the world how strong site management, anti-poaching measures, and a stabilised prey base can contribute to an increase in the tiger population. In 2018, Nepal even made international headlines as the first country on track to meet the TX2 goal; but poaching, habitat loss and prey depletion remain daunting challenges to reach the target in the next two years.

While the five protected parks have seen a remarkable recovery in tiger populations, conservationists say the tiger population has hit a saturation point and there is a challenge of maintaining the prey base for the big cats that need large territories, food and water.

According to a 2018 study conducted by 49 conservation experts from 10 tiger-range countries, tiger sites are unique and would require intensive efforts for population recovery and tiger conserva-tion. The study, which looked into 18 recovery sites across Asia, also said that under ‘optimal circumstances’, the tiger population could more than triple.

Nepal is one of the 10 tiger-range countries identified under the World Wildlife Fund’s global tiger conservation programme which could contribute up to a 15 percent increase in the global tiger popu-lation within a human generation. Shuklaphanta, Banke and Parsa are the three tiger sites identified in Nepal which currently sustain fewer tigers than their carrying capacity, and are areas where con-servationists say correct interventions could enable a tiger popula-tion recovery.

Nepal has tackled many challenges in the past decade to recover the tiger population. It was clear from the start that the decline in their population was a direct result of poaching and destruction of habitat. For the record, the 2009 tiger population survey had only estimated 121 big cats. While poaching remains the leading challenge in protecting the predators, political will to fulfil international com-mitments will be Nepal’s ultimate test to meet its conservation goals.

There should be no two thoughts about preventing the tigers’ nat-ural habitat from getting fragmented and maintaining prey density for the increasing tiger population, the results of which will only benefit Nepal and indicate that our ecology is healthy and thriving with biodiversity.

Return of the tigersPolitical will to fulfil international commitments will be

Nepal’s ultimate test to meet conservation goals.

Preventing a global education disasterMillions of the world’s poorest children may carry the scars of diminished opportunity for the rest of their lives.

Nepal is not economically strong and politically stable to be a bridge between India and China.

Kevin WatKins

neeLesH MaHesHWaRi

The elusive dream of a land-linked Nepal

ShutterStock

ShutterStock

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05 | FRIDAY, JULY 31, 2020

NAtIoNAL

>> Continued from page 1

In many countries that have reo-pened their tourism, travellers have to undertake a polymerase chain reac-tion (PCR) test at the airport on arriv-al, unless the traveller has a PCR test certificate issued within the last seven days of arrival, stating they are free of the coronavirus.

“If we can set up a dedicated PCR test centre at the airport and produce reports within a couple of hours, quarantine obligations can be avoid-ed,” said Ashok Pokharel, president of the Nepal Association of Tour Operators.

“We have been hearing that the gov-ernment is going to make it mandato-ry for tourists to stay for six days in quarantine at a hotel,” said Pokharel. “Nobody will come to Nepal to sleep, wake up, and eat in a hotel room for six days.”

Pokharel and others suggest having a PCR test centre at the airport as the best option to reduce hassles, costs and time.

“Either the Nepal Tourism Board or the private sector should take the lead,” he said. “We have the option of charging or not charging visitors for the PCR tests.”

In most countries, passengers are responsible for the cost of the test.

Buddhi Sagar Lamichhane, joint-secretary at the Tourism Ministry, said that discussions are ongoing regarding the test and quar-antine modality.

“The government will soon decide on the requirement,” Lamichhane told the Post.

He said that as of now, the govern-ment has recommended a mandatory seven-day quarantine for the tourists.

He, however, was quick to add that “it’s not final yet.”

“Though it’s not official, we have heard that the government will pro-vide PCR reports for the tourists six days after swab collection, and until

the report arrives, tourists are required to stay in quarantine. Why couldn’t reports be issued within a few hours?” said Shah of the Hotel Association of Nepal. “It’s just a has-sle that would discourage them from coming.”

The government’s decision, which is still not official, comes as a big worry for an industry that was hope-ful for the autumn season following the wiped out spring season since the government stopped international flights from March 20 and put the country under a lockdown from March 24. The lockdown was lifted on July 21, with some of the restrictions still in place.

The Nepal Tourism Board has already introduced some health safety protocols to be followed by all tourism organisations concerning hospitality, trekking and mountaineering.

“I think, if every company strictly follows health protocols, travelers will feel safe,” said Shah.

Of the 1.2 million tourists that visit Nepal annually, the autumn season accounts for a third, with most coming for trekking. In autumn, mountain-eers prefer climbing Manaslu and the 8,167-metre Dhaulagiri and smaller peaks as Mt Everest is considered too risky to climb.

As lockdowns are gradually lifted across the world and countries are reopening their borders to interna-tional travel, the travel and tourism sector globally, including Nepal, is finally ready to kick-start recovery.

“Decisions have to be made early. The six to seven day mandatory quar-antine is harsh. It can be brought down to two days,” said Sherpa. “We see enthusiasm in tourists. It’s a beginning.”

He even sees the chances of people coming to climb Mt Everest in the autumn if things go well.

“Let’s hope the autumn opens the doors for spring 2021,” said Sherpa.

Province 2 witnesses resurgence of coronavirus infections and deaths

AJIT TIWARI & SANTOSH SINGHJANAKPUR, JULY 30

Ten Covid-19 related deaths and around 650 new infections have been reported in several districts in Province 2 in the past few weeks.

According to the Ministry of Social Development in the province, as many as 643 new cases were confirmed in the last two weeks. The ministry said the majority of cases confirmed in the past few weeks were symptomatic.

The data available at the ministry shows that a total of 5,106 positive cases were reported in all eight dis-tricts of the province as of July 30; among them, around 3,000 patients have returned home after treatment.

With the sudden spike in the num-ber of infections, authorities suspect undetected outbreaks of community transmissions in various places of the province.

The local administration of Dhanusha district on Tuesday sealed Rama Hotel, Machhapuchchhre Bank and a pharmacy in Janakpur after coronavirus infections were detected among the hotel and bank employees.

Covid-19 was also confirmed among three staff members of the Social

Development Ministry in Janakpur on Wednesday.

Another person in Janakpur, who had participated in a recent immuni-sation programme, has also tested pos-itive for coronavirus infection. Health workers have collected swab samples of all 33 immunisation officers who were part of the immunisation drive.

There has been an explosion of coronavirus infection in Birgunj of Parsa and Rajbiraj of Saptari in recent days. The local administration of Parsa has issued a prohibitory order in Birgunj city from Saturday, suspect-ing community transmission of the disease.

Only on Wednesday, 13 people at Birgunj prison, including some inmates, employees and police person-nel, had tested positive for Covid-19.

Jailor Shrawan Kumar Pokharel said the test results of eight prisoners, two employees and three police per-sonnel have come positive.

“There is a high risk of infection in the prison,” said Pokharel.

Among the two infected employees of the prison, one is a driver and another an office assistant. The driver had ferried patients from the jail to various hospitals for treatment and

the office assistant was deployed at the main gate of the prison facility.

Health experts suggest covering more ground with contact tracing and increasing the range of polymerase chain reaction tests in Province 2, as security personnel, health workers, prisoners and the people without trav-el history have been found infected with the deadly virus.

“The government should increase PCR tests in Birgunj, Rajbiraj, Janakpur and other places immediate-ly to control the disease,” said Dr Ram Kewal Sah, a member of Covid-19 Control and Advice Committee of Province 2.

“Imposing a prohibitory order is not enough. Complete lockdown should be enforced in Province 2 as it shares a border with India which puts the province at higher risk of Covid-19 outbreak.”

Sah also pointed out the shortage of ventilators in various Covid-19 hospi-tals in the province and urged the concerned authorities to make arrangements for the treatment of Covid-19 patients in hospitals with ventilators.

According to the data at the Provincial Health Directorate in

Janakpur, only nine ventilators are in use in the state run hospitals in Province 2.

A Cabinet meeting of the Province 2 government in April had decided to release Rs 680 million to purchase medical equipment including 50 ven-tilators.

But the concerned government agencies have yet to procure the ventilators.

Court acquits eight police officers charged in connection with Nirmala Pant rape-murder case

BHAWANI BHATTAKANCHANPUR, JULY 30

The Kanchanpur District Court has acquitted eight police officers, includ-ing then Superintendent of Police Dilliraj Bista, for their alleged involve-ment in torturing suspects and destroying evidence related to July 2018 rape and murder of Nirmala Pant.

The single bench of Judge Gopal Prasad Bastola on Thursday acquitted Bista, DSP duo Angur GC and Gyan Bahadur Sethi and Inspector Ekendra Khadka.

Khadak Bista, the brother of Dilip Bista who was presented by police as the prime suspect in the rape and mur-der of the 13-year-old, had filed a case against the four officers charging them of torturing Dilip to extract false confession.

The court also absolved eight police officers who were allegedly involved in destroying the evidence in connec-tion to the crime.

Yaduraj Sharma, the court’s regis-trar, said Bista, GC, Sethi, Khadka, Inspector Jagadish Bhatta, Sub-inspector duo Ram Singh Dhami and Hari Singh Dhami and Constable Chandani Saud have been cleared of the charges pressed by Nirmala’s mother Durga Devi Pant.

Durga Devi had filed the case against them on the charge of destroy-ing evidence in the aftermath of the incident. “The defendants were acquitted as the court found that there was no basis to prove the charges filed against them,” said Sharma.

The court had released the accused officers on bail in March 2019.

Nirmala had been raped and mur-

dered on July 26, 2018 in Bhimdutta Municipality, Kanchanpur. Her body was found in a sugarcane field the next day. The case remains unsolved even after two years.

Police had detained Dilip, a mental-ly ill person, a few weeks after the incident and paraded him as the main suspect. However, his arrest was inter-preted by the public as the police try-ing to cover-up the incident and had led to protests nationwide.

Fourteen-year-old protester Sunny Khuna had died when police fired at a protest rally in Mahendranagar, Kanchanpur, on August 24.

Dilip was eventually freed after his DNA did not match during a forensic analysis of the victim’s vaginal swab.

“I don’t have anything to say,” Nirmala’s mother Durga Devi said when asked for her comment after the court’s ruling on Thursday.

Dilip’s brother Khadak, meanwhile, expressed dissatisfaction with the court’s decision.

“How can we hope for justice when the court gives clean chit to the people involved in torture and evidence destruction? The only reason the per-son involved in the crime has not been identified is because the evidence was destroyed, which the court has refused to accept,” said Khadak.

Barekot landslide survivors demand to be relocated permanentlyLocals from areas at risk of landslides are currently taking shelter in nearby schools and playgrounds in makeshift tents.

CHADANI KATHAYATBIRENDRANAGAR, JULY 30

On the night of July 10, a landslide buried two houses at Sarkigaun in Barekot Rural Municipality-4, killing all 12 members of the two households while asleep. Since then, Barekot residents haven’t had a peaceful night for them-selves, said Lale Sarki, a neighbour of the two families killed in the landslide.

Sarki’s house is located between the two houses that were buried. “When I learned of the landslide, I moved my family to a safe location overnight,” Sarki said. “We survived but since then, we haven’t had a peaceful night.”

Residents of Barekot ward numbers 4, 5 and 6 who are at risk of landslides are currently taking shelter in nearby schools and playgrounds in makeshift tents. According to Sarki, the locals make their way home at the break of dawn and return to the shelter once the dusk falls.

According to Ganesh Prasad Singh, a provincial assembly member who recently visited the disaster site, over 1,200 households have been displaced by landslides in Barekot so far this year.

Of the 12 people that were buried by the July 10 land-slides, the body of one is still missing. That same day, a landslide buried two people at Dhuma in Barekot Ward No.

6 and injured four others. One of the two persons buried in the debris is yet to be found.

Over two weeks since the landslides, the survivors hav-en’t received enough relief material and are faced with an uncertain future, they say. They have also demanded that they be relocated to a safer place.

Mahendra Bahadur Shah, chair of Barekot Rural Municipality, said that his office is currently collecting relief material from various donors. He added that the rural municipality has also corresponded with the provincial and federal governments to relocate the survivors.

Provincial assembly member Singh said that the local units should collaborate with provincial and federal govern-ments to manage sustainable housing for the survivors and mitigate the risk of disasters in the area.

The provincial government has announced that each fam-ily of the deceased would get Rs200,000 in relief.

According to the office of Barekot Rural Municipality, at least 197 houses in the local unit are in immediate danger of landslides. This year, landslides have destroyed 55 houses and damaged 477 in the rural municipality. The financial loss caused by the disaster in the local unit is estimated to be Rs640 million.

Preparations begin for autumn tourism ...

Ten deaths and as many as 643 new cases have been confirmed in the past two weeks.

Post file Photo

With rise in infection numbers in Province 2, public health experts have suggested increasing the test range and contact tracing.

RUPA GAHATRAJNEPALGUNJ, JULY 30

The District Administration Office in Banke has decided to impose a three-day prohibitory order from Sunday after an increase in coronavirus cases across the district.

A meeting of the District Crisis Management Centre on Thursday made the decision.

“After a brief lull, the number of coronavirus cases has begun increas-ing in the district,” said Chief District Officer Ram Bahadur Kurumwang. “We have decided to impose a prohibi-tory order for three days from Sunday to prevent and control the spread of the virus. We are also looking at more effective ways to manage the crisis.”

For three days starting Sunday, no one will be allowed to come out of their houses, except those in need of medical attention and those involved in providing essential services.

“Strict action will be taken against anyone breaking this rule,” said Kurumwang.

All services, except for highly essen-tial ones dealing with health, drinking water, dairy, electricity, waste manage-ment, fuel, and medicines, will remain closed.

On Thursday, 27 individuals in the district, including 17 from Nepalgunj Sub Metropolitan City Ward No. 11, Tribhuvan Chowk, nine employees of Inland Revenue Office, Nepalgunj, and one working in Banke District Court, tested positive for the virus, said Naresh Shrestha, the focal person of the District Health Office, Banke.

Earlier, coronavirus infections were detected in two employees of the Inland Revenue Office.

The swab samples of 36 people came back positive for coronavirus in Bheri Hospital, Nepalgunj, on Thursday. Beside 27 from Banke, seven were from Bardiya and two from Dang.

Banke authorities announce three days of prohibitory order from Sunday

The officers were charged with torturing innocent suspect to extract false confession and destroying evidence.

The accused officers had already been released on bail in March 2019.

illustration: DaisY Dee

Nirmala Pant, 13, was found raped and murdered in Kanchanpur in July 2018.

>> Continued from page 1

In the 20 departments formed, Deuba has appointed leaders close to him as coordinators. His opponents have accused him of not holding any consultations while appointing them.

The Poudel faction says appoint-ments should be made on a 60:40 ratio, with the establishment (Deuba) fac-tion taking 60 percent share in appointments and the other group get-ting 40 percent.

Deuba claims that he has made the appointments so far from his share and that the rival faction should pro-vide the names.

On Thursday morning also, after receiving the protest letter, Deuba was unapologetic.

According to a leader, Deuba told the rival faction that he as the party president reserves the right to form the departments.

“I had sought your support, but you refused, so I went ahead,” the leader quoted Deuba as saying.

Central member Gagan Thapa, who has sided neither with Deuba nor Poudel, said the ongoing confronta-tion could take an ugly turn.

“During general conventions in the past, disputes were seen at the district level but they rarely reached the cen-tral level,” said Thapa. “This time around, it’s the opposite. Dispute has begun at the top and this is not a good sign. I see an increasing polarisation in the party.”

Apart from the factions led by Deuba and Poudel, there is yet anoth-er group in the party led by Krishna Prasad Sitaula. Thapa is currently with Sitaula. The Sitaula group has always been against the Deuba fac-tion, but it has not said whether it is going to side with the Poudel camp.

Thapa’s apprehension that the party could see further polarisation stems from the Deuba camp’s plan to form at least seven more departments “as early as possible”.

“We will wait for a week or so to receive the names from the Poudel faction. If they provide us with the names, that will be fine, or else we will move ahead as per the party charter,” said Prakash Sharan Mahat, a central member from the Deuba camp.

Deuba’s unilateral moves lead to ...

C M Y K

FRIDAY, JULY 31, 2020 | 06

MoneY

gAsoLIne wAtch

FoReX

US Dollar 120.05

Euro 141.16

Pound Sterling 156.27

Japanese Yen 11.42

Chinese Yuan 17.14

Qatari Riyal 32.97

Australian Dollar 85.85

Malaysian Ringit 28.32

Saudi Arab Riyal 32.01

Exchange rates fixed by Nepal Rastra Bank

bULLIonPRIce PeR toLA

SoURCE: FENEGoSIDA

Fine Gold Rs 99,000

Silver Rs 1,225

nepse1439.06pts

0.53%

AKJCL JOSHI UNHPL GHL HPPL UFL9.61% 9.09% 9.09% 8.62% 7.29% 7.22%

KKHC ACLBSL PMHPL NHPC RRHP HURJA10% 9.95% 9.85% 9.8% 9.67% 9.67%

hIghest gAIneRs

MSMBS PPCL RBCLPO PICL LGILPO GFCL-1.5% -1.68% -1.72% -1.91% -1.91% -1.94%

SMB IGI MPFL PROFL GLBSL GGBSL-2.87% -2.92% -3.44% -3.7% -5.34% -9.84%

hIghest LoseRs

MoDeRAte LoseRs

MoDeRAte gAIneRs

shares

‘IFC is looking to scale up investment in Nepal’Wendy Werner is the country manager of International Finance Corporation (IFC) for Bangladesh, Bhutan and Nepal, based in Dhaka. She implements IFC’s strategy to expand financial inclusion, sustainable infrastructure, and support competitiveness through investment and advisory services. Werner manages IFC’s committed investment portfolio of over $1.3 billion in Nepal, Bangladesh and Bhutan, alongside a $59 million advisory programme. Prior to her current role, Werner was IFC’s Manager for Trade and Competitiveness Advisory Services for the East Asia Pacific region. She has worked in Tajikistan and the Western Balkans. In an email interview with the Post’s Sangam Prasain, Werner describes IFC’s short-, medium- and long-term plans in Nepal’s financial and economic sector and response to the Covid-19 pandemic situation to help the country with more financing.

As a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, it’s the private sector that got hit far more quickly and harder. As an inter-national financial institution that offers investment, advisory and asset management services to encourage private-sector develop-ment in less developed countries, how do you assess the overall situa-tion? Do you have any rescue plan?

This is a pandemic that has delivered multiple blows—which then has had a domino effect across economies. The effect is evident in key pillars of Nepal’s economy—the services sector, remittances and tourism are already hard hit. Though remittance figures for June are surprisingly high, we think this is an aberration. Economic growth is expected to fall in Nepal to a range between 1.5 and 2.8 percent in the fiscal year 2019-20. And the early results from a recent survey of over 500 businesses in Nepal, by IFC, clear-ly indicates that businesses have been severely impacted by the pandemic.

The hospitality industry employs about over a million people. Over half a million jobs were directly dependent on tourism arrivals last year. Initial estimates from tourism entrepreneurs suggest that the loss to the sector could be already over $1.6 billion. About 31.2 percent of Nepal’s population are estimated to live between $1.9 and $3.2 a day. They face significant risks of falling back into extreme poverty.

Globally, IFC has put in place a package of measures—worth a total of $8 billion—to help sustain econo-mies and protect jobs around the globe. Our short-term goal is to help cushion the blow of the economic cri-sis. Overall, IFC and its sister organi-sation, the World Bank, are deploying a $14 billion fast track financing pack-age to respond to immediate health and economic needs.

In Nepal, we have just invested $25 million in NMB Bank to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and green projects, and there are more under discussion with other clients. Despite the market uncertainties, the fiscal year 2020 has been a record year for us—as we were able to com-mit $563 million.

The tourism industry is the worst hit sector by the ongoing crisis, and investment worth billions is at risk. Is the industry on your priority list? If yes, what are the plans?

You are quite right. Tourism has been really hit hard. We are in close discus-sion with both our private sector cli-ents and government agencies on lev-eraging IFC support to help in the relief, repositioning and in the resil-ient recovery of the tourism sector. Tourism is indeed in our priority list. The first phase of IFC’s global response was focused on financial institutions to ensure an abundance of liquidity in the financial system for businesses and SMEs to pay their sup-pliers and workers. The second phase of our global response will be sectoral, and we are looking for ways to lever-age IFC’s global facility for our tour-ism and other sectors in Nepal.

On the advisory side, we are already planning support in the immediate response phase by bringing together key stakeholders to develop an inte-grated communication strategy, including a pilot assessment to under-stand key market recovery scenarios, flight connections, and insurance cov-

erage, among other things.Subsequently, IFC’s recovery efforts

will focus on improving standards for accommodation, including hygiene around food preparation while identi-fying business propositions which may support access to finance for upgrading facilities in lodges.

As a lead lender to the 216 megawatt Upper Trishuli-1 Hydroelectric Project, could you tell us about the status of the project? When will con-struction begin?

Upper Trishuli-1 is a flagship project for us. IFC and the World Bank have worked on the project development for years to ensure its viability. Infrastructure projects are complex even in normal circumstances. Our client Nepal Water Energy Development Company is in the pro-cess of finalising the Engineering Procurement and Construction con-tract. Like everything else, the pan-demic has affected the timeline for bringing a contractor on board. We expect construction to begin later this year. IFC remains committed to ensur-ing that the project is completed at the earliest possible time while delivering electricity to millions and providing tangible development benefits to the affected indigenous population.

Are you investing in solar projects?

IFC-backed SME Fund, B02, has invested in small scale solar projects. IFC is looking to scale up solar invest-ment in Nepal. IFC is exploring differ-ent investment options and pursuing market creation activities.

While hydropower is abundant in Nepal, the country needs some energy mix for energy security as hydropow-er projects only run at 40 percent capacity during dry seasons. Energy portfolio diversification is also

critical for reliable electricity supply, particularly during disasters such as earthquakes.

IFC’s overall strategy envisions an investment of $800 million to $1.2 billion in Nepal by 2023. Currently, half of that amount has been invest-ed. Based on the current situation, will it be realised? How would you plan to invest the amount in the next three years?

We have an ambitious strategy of investing between $800 million to $1.2 billion, and all hands are on deck to ensure that our goals are met. Our fiscal year 2020 ending in June was a record year for us. Our committed portfolio grew to $563 million. If you compare that with the previous year, our portfolio stood at $75 million. In fact, both 2019 and 2020 have been record years for us. We are actively looking into several sectors to invest and we expect to reach the target of $800 million by 2023, and clearly infra-structure will be a big part of our investment strategy.

IFC is also working with the govern-ment agencies to promote pub-lic-private-partnership projects to ease the burden on the public sector in infrastructural development. What achievements have been made?

Even before the pandemic, Nepal faced a significant funding gap in the public infrastructure space. IFC has been advocating for increased foreign direct investment involvement of pri-vate developers, particularly in the power sector, and public private part-nerships (PPP) as a viable alternative to narrowing the funding gap in this sector. PPPs involve risk and burden sharing between the public and private sectors. Without some assurance of profitability, the private

sector would not want to risk their investment.

IFC has been in discussion with the government of Nepal for the last 10 years to develop large and important infrastructure projects through the PPP model. IFC has also signed a memorandum of understanding with the Investment Board of Nepal and the Ministry of Energy to provide a framework for such collaborations.

We have engaged with the govern-ment side on several potential projects like the development of a Special Economic Zone at Simara, power transmission lines, hydropower pro-jects, affordable housing and airports operations. IFC has also supported the government in developing the viabili-ty for the private sector participation for some of these projects.

Recently, IFC announced a $25 mil-lion loan to NMB Bank to boost financing for green projects and SMEs. How much support are you planning to give to the financial insti-tutions, how many of them are seek-ing funding and for what purposes?

IFC’s investment in NMB Bank is part of our broader strategy to strengthen SME banking in Nepal—which involves supporting regulatory reforms and providing up to $170 mil-lion of loans, specifically focused on SME lending to several banks over the next two years. We can’t reveal the names of our potential clients just yet, but we are in discussion with several of them. SMEs are a priority sector for Nepal and represent more than 99 percent of registered businesses in the country. Pre-Covid-19, SMEs con-tributed about 83 percent of industrial jobs, and about 80 percent of the industrial sector’s contribution to Nepal’s GDP.

IFC is also working with Nepal Rastra Bank and the Ministry of Finance to help SMEs develop by strengthening the credit bureau in Nepal and improving the regulatory framework. In its current form, the credit information bureau in Nepal only covers 1.7 percent of the adult population.

Will IFC’s involvement in financing banks to meet their liquidity needs encourage other international lend-ers to eye the Nepali banking sector as a good market? Could Nepali banks get good deals from other international lenders?

IFC’s investment in Nepali banks has already paved the way for other inter-national lenders. As you mentioned above, our recent support to NMB Bank was our second investment. IFC has invested in NMB since 2015 through a Global Trade Finance Program facility; and in 2018, IFC extended a working capital solu-tion loan. Following the IFC invest-ment, CDC invested $15 million in NMB last year.

As you alluded in your question, given the inability of international institutions to lend in local currency, often the terms of investment for the local companies may not appear very attractive at first glance. But there is more value add to IFC’s investment than just liquidity. We invest in first mover projects and pro-jects that deliver tangible develop-ment impacts—summoning the tools and facilities of the World Bank Group and wider donor communities in sup-port of such projects.

We are certainly looking into options on leveraging good deals in support of the private sector in Nepal. As mentioned before, for our investments into the two microfinance institutions, we will undertake a process to provide those funds in local currency.

What is the specific development in issuing local currency bonds for Nepal?

Nepali Rupee (NPR) offshore bond is part of our investment plan into two micro-finance institutions in Nepal. We are in the process of finalising the terms of agreement with the micro-fi-nance institutions. Once we commit the investment, we will then begin the process of issuing offshore bonds. Clearly our timeline has been affected by the massive global economic dis-ruptions caused by the pandemic. We are assessing the market conditions and will roll out the process when the time is right. Since this will be NPR’s debut in the international market, we are conscious of the need to ensure a good benchmark so that it sets a posi-tive precedent for other issuers of NPR bonds in future.

How difficult will it be to raise funds for Nepal as the global economy is in the doldrums? If the response is poor, won’t it hit Nepal’s image as a good investment destination? As a private sector lender, what specific suggestions do you have to improve the overall investment climate in Nepal?

In times of crisis like the Covid, liquidity is a global issue as there has been a massive decline in revenue for both the public and private sectors. But given IFC’s triple A ratings, we don’t think raising funds will be a challenge, once we are convinced of the timing and project viability. Consider for instance how IFC brought together eight other lenders to invest in Upper Trishuli-1. You are quite right about the timing of issuing a NPR offshore bond. We want to ensure that market conditions are right and that it sets a good precedent for future issuers.

Nepal certainly has made progress in the last few years, but there is still room for more improvement. Private investors (domestic and for-eign) look for a stable and busi-ness-friendly environment that gives them confidence that there will be a meaningful return on their invest-ments, and that they will have no problem in repatriation. This notably means reducing the risks and cost of doing business, such as simplifying procedures, fairly enforcing the laws, efficiently issuing approvals, and having clarity around the repatriation of earnings.

IFC is significantly increasing investments in Nepal aimed at improv-ing the lives of people. By 2030, we will reallocate 40 percent of our annual programmes in countries like Nepal and Bangladesh, among others. This means there will be more resources available for the Nepali private sector to tap into.

This also coincides with Nepal’s target to become a middle-income country. IFC will be ramping up its efforts to support Nepal’s journey towards prosperity—by sup-porting the private sector to play a key role in delivering inclusive and sus-tainable growth.

REUTERSNEW DELHI, JULY 30

A government audit of India’s flag-ship payments processor last year found more than 40 security vulnera-bilities including several it called “critical” and “high” risk, according to an internal government document seen by Reuters.

The audit, which took place over four months to February 2019, high-lighted a lack of encryption of person-al data at the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) which forms the backbone of the country’s digital payments system and operates the RuPay card network championed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The March 2019 government docu-ment cited the storing of 16-digit card numbers and other personal informa-tion such as customer names, account numbers and national identity num-bers in “plain text” in some databases, leaving the data unprotected if the system was breached. The audit has not previously been reported.

The NPCI said in a statement to Reuters it is regularly audited in the

interests of security and senior man-agement reviews all findings, which are then “remediated to (the) satisfac-tion of the auditors”. This includes the findings cited by Reuters, it said.

India’s National Cyber Security Coordinator, Rajesh Pant, whose office coordinated the audit, also said in a statement to Reuters that “all observations raised in last year’s report have been confirmed as resolved by the NPCI”.

Pant added audits are best practice for the mitigation of cyberattacks and are conducted on a periodic basis by all enterprises. The audit was under-taken to provide Modi’s National Security Council with an overview of the NPCI’s defences against cyberat-tacks. Modi’s office and the finance ministry did not respond to a Reuters request for comment.

The audit’s findings underscore the data-security challenges faced by the NPCI which processes billions of dol-lars daily via services that include inter-bank fund transfers, ATM trans-actions and digital payments.

In India and beyond, financial insti-tutions are under immense pressure

to mount effective defences to protect their customers as the number of malicious cyberattacks grow and hackers become more sophisticated.

Set up in 2008, the NPCI is a not-for-profit company which as of March 2019 counted 56 banks as its sharehold-ers, including the State Bank of India, Citibank and HSBC.

RuPay, in particular, has been enthusiastically endorsed by Modi who has likened its use to a national duty. It has grown to account for almost two-thirds of nearly 900 mil-lion debit and credit cards issued in India as of October, according to NPCI and central bank data.

The audit followed a Reserve Bank of India (RBI) inspection report on the NPCI in July 2017 that found lapses in its internal auditing practices, opera-tional risks and improper whistle-blower policies.

There was “lack of awareness of risks and risk culture in the institu-tion,” according to a mostly redacted version of the 37-page report that was obtained by Reuters via the Right to Information Act (RTI) last year.

The 2019 government document

about the audit also noted: “There is a strong need for proper governance.”

The RBI conducted another inspec-tion between November and December 2019. A 33-page report on that audit included its assessment of NPCI’s governance and operational and credit risks. But most of the report, also obtained by Reuters via the RTI Act, was redacted by the cen-tral bank which cited the need to pro-tect India’s and the NPCI’s economic interests.

The March 2019 government document said a variety of card num-bers were unencrypted within the NPCI database for the country’s net-work of almost 250,000 ATMs, while unencrypted RuPay card numbers could also be seen in the organisa-tion’s server logs.

NPCI said in its statement to Reuters that it stores card data in line with standards set by the PCI Security Standards Council, and has been subject to audits authorised by the council. “No non-conformities have been observed and we are fully compliant to these standards,” the statement said.

India found cybersecurity lapses at National Payments Corp in 2019: Government document

REUTERSLONDON, JULY 30

Oil prices fell on Thursday, as surging coronavirus infections around the world threatened to jeopardise a recovery in fuel demand just as major oil producers are set to raise output.

The most-active Brent crude con-tract for October fell 51 cents, or 1.2 percent, to $43.58 a barrel at 0907 GMT. The September Brent contract, which is expiring on Friday, fell 56 cents to $43.19 a barrel.

US West Texas Intermediate crude futures were down 60 cents, or 1.5 per-cent, at $40.67 a barrel. Both bench-mark contracts rose on Wednesday after the US Energy Information Administration reported the largest one-week fall in crude stocks since December. The potential hit to the demand rebound comes just as the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies, together known as OPEC+, are set to step up output in August, adding about 1.5 million barrels per day to global supply.

Oil prices slide as virus surge weighs on demand outlook

REUtERS

A shopkeeper swipes a customer’s debit card with the logo of RuPay at an electronics goods store in Kolkata, India.

INTERVIEW

Photo CoURtESY: IFC

Wendy Werner, Country Manager of International Finance Corporation (IFC) for Bangladesh, Bhutan and Nepal.

C M Y K

07 | FRIDAY, JULY 31, 2020

woRLD

NASA launches Mars rover to look for signs of ancient lifeCAPE CANAVERAL: The biggest, most sophisticated Mars rover ever built—a car-size vehicle bristling with cameras, microphones, drills and lasers—blasted off on Thursday as part of an ambitious, long-range project to bring the first Martian rock samples back to Earth to be analysed for evidence of ancient life. NASA’s Perseverance rode a mighty Atlas V rocket into a clear morning sky in the world’s third and final Mars launch of the summer. China and the United Arab Emirates got a head start last week, but all three missions should reach the red planet in February after a journey of seven months and 480 million kilometres.

Hong Kong disqualifies 12 opposition nomineesHONG KONG: At least 12 Hong Kong pro-democracy nominees including prominent activist Joshua Wong were disqualified for September legislative elections, with authorities saying Thursday they failed to uphold the city’s mini-constitution and pledge allegiance to Hong Kong and Beijing. Others who were disqualified include democracy activist Tiffany Yuen from the disbanded political organisation Demosisto, as well as incumbent lawmaker Dennis Kwok and three others from the pro-democracy Civic Party. It marks a setback for the pro-democracy camp, which had aimed to win a majority of seats in the legislature this year. Earlier this month, they held an unofficial prima-ry, with candidates including Wong topping the polls.

Ex-president who brought direct elections to Taiwan diesTAIPEI: Former Taiwanese President Lee Teng-hui, who brought direct elections and other democratic chang-es to the self-governed island despite missile launches and other fierce saber-rattling by China, has died. He was 97. Taipei Veterans General Hospital said Lee died Thursday evening after suffering from infec-tions, cardiac problems and organ failure since being hospitalized in February. Lee strove to create a sepa-rate, non-Chinese identity for Taiwan, angering not only China, which considers the island part of its territory, but also members of his Nationalist Party who hoped to return victorious to the mainland. Lee later openly endorsed formal independence for the island but illness in his later years prompted him to largely withdraw from public life. (AGENCIEs)

BRIeFIng

States can restrict protests on public health grounds, within reason, UN saysReuteRsGeneva, July 30

Governments have the right to restrict protests on public health grounds, within reason, the UN Human Rights Committee said, as Black Lives Matter and other demonstrations clash with coronavirus outbreaks around the world.

The committee stepped in to formu-late its legal interpretation having seen a gap in the international norms being tested before the pandemic started, since when the matter has become more pressing.

The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, signed by

173 countries, including the United States and China, has always allowed for restrictions to be placed on the rights of peaceful assembly on grounds including public health and the new document, called a “general comment”, confirmed that.

“The protection of ‘public health’ ground may exceptionally permit restrictions to be imposed, for exam-ple where there is an outbreak of an infectious disease and gatherings are dangerous,” the report said.

However its author, Christof Heyns, was at pains to stress that this ground should not be used to unduly restrict demonstrations. “This ground for restrictions should not be abused as a

pretext to silence protest and opposi-tion,” he said, adding that a govern-ment could, for example, limit the number of demonstrators in a public square to allow for social distancing.

More broadly, a summary of the document said that states have duties “not to prohibit, restrict, block or dis-rupt assemblies without compelling justification”. Heyns said the legal interpretation was intended to set out the “rules of the game not just for protesters but for police”.

On the issue of whether protesters were allowed to wear masks to hide their identity as pro-democracy dem-onstrators in Hong Kong have, the report said they had that right.

Coronavirus spikes in Asia spur warnings against complacencyReuteRsSydney/new delhi, July 30

Spikes in novel coronavirus infections in Asia have dispelled any notion the region may be over the worst, with Australia, and Hong Kong reporting record daily cases, Vietnam testing thousands and North Korea urging vigilance.

Asian governments had largely prided themselves on rapidly contain-ing initial outbreaks after the virus emerged in central China late last year, but flare-ups this month have shown the danger of complacency.

“We’ve got to be careful not to slip into some idea that there’s some gold-en immunity that Australia has in relation to this virus,” Prime Minister Scott Morrison told reporters.

Australia recorded its deadliest day with at least 13 deaths and more than 700 new infections, mostly in the sec-ond-most populous state of Victoria, where the government ordered all res-idents to wear face-coverings outside.

The country has confirmed a total of 16,298 cases since the pandemic began, with 189 fatalities, more than half in Victoria and its capital Melbourne, which is under a new lockdown. Victoria’s new infections have seeded outbreaks in other areas, including Australia’s most populous state, New South Wales, which report-ed 18 new cases.

Further restrictions on movement would deal a blow to the economy, already in its first recession for 30 years, but failure to control the out-breaks would do more economic harm in the long run, Morrison said.

Vietnam, virus-free for months, has also had a harsh reminder of the dan-gers with a new surge spreading to six cities and provinces in six days, linked to an outbreak in the central city of Danang.

Authorities told tens of thousands of people who visited Danang to report to disease control centres, as nine new cases were confirmed, tak-ing total infections to 42 since the virus resurfaced at the weekend.

Cases have also appeared in the cap-ital, Hanoi, the southern commercial hub of Ho Chi Minh City and in the Central Highlands. Thanks to a cen-

tralised quarantine programme and aggressive contact-tracing, Vietnam has registered a total of only 459 cases, with no deaths.

But now more than 81,000 people are in quarantine and authorities in Hanoi said the more than 20,000 resi-dents who recently returned from Danang, a holiday getaway that has been a big draw since restrictions were eased, would be tested. Hanoi also banned big gatherings and ordered bars closed while its chair-man, Nguyen Duc Chung, declared the city must “act now and act fast”.

“We have to use full force to test all 21,063 returnees,” Chung said. “All must be done in three days.”

Hong Kong also reported a daily record with 149 new cases, including 145 that were locally transmitted, as authorities warned that the global financial hub faced a critical period.

The Chinese territory reported 118 new cases on Wednesday. More than 3,000 people have been infected in Hong Kong, 24 of whom have died.

China reported 105 new coronavi-

rus cases on the mainland, up from 101 the previous day, with 96 of them in the far western region of Xinjiang, five in the northeastern province of Liaoning, one was in Beijing and three imported cases.

As of Wednesday, China had 84,165 confirmed cases, with 4,634 deaths.

Isolated North Korea was on alert after a defector suspected of having the virus sneaked back in from South Korea. North Korea, which says it has had no domestic cases, imposed strict quarantine and screening in Kaesong, just north of the border with South Korea, where the suspected infection was reported in a 24-year-old man who defected to South Korea in 2017 and slipped back in to the North this month.

North Korea has not confirmed the man tested positive for the virus but said he was showing symptoms.

The Rodong Sinmun newspaper, a ruling Workers’ Party mouthpiece, warned against carelessness. “A moment of inattention could cause a fatal crisis,” it said.

Daily Covid-19 cases in India top 50,000 for first timeReuteRsnew delhi, July 30

India on Thursday reported more than 50,000 daily coronavirus cases for the first time, driven by a surge in infections in rural areas at a time when the government is further easing curbs on movement and commerce.

There were 52,123 new cases in the previous 24 hours, according to feder-al health data, taking the total number of infections to almost 1.6 million.

Some 775 people died of Covid-related conditions over the same peri-od, raising total deaths now just under 35,000 - low compared to the total num-ber of cases, but showing little sign of slowing.

While major cities like New Delhi and Mumbai have seen their cases ease, infections in rural areas are con-tinuing to rise sharply, alarming experts who fear weak healthcare sys-tems there will be unable to cope.

India has the third highest number of infections globally, behind the

United States and Brazil. It has nearly twenty times the number of cases as China, which has a similar-sized pop-ulation and where the virus was first recorded late last year.

Separately, New Delhi announced the third phase of easing restrictions that had been aimed at preventing the spread of the virus. An evening cur-few will be lifted from August 1, and gyms will be allowed to open, but schools, cinemas, and bars will remain closed.

The restrictions, which included an almost total shutdown of the country for nearly three months, have hurt small businesses in what is still pre-dominantly a low-income country.

Consumer demand is showing little sign of picking up ahead of India’s festival season, where it usually rises significantly.

“Every year we get orders for big idols, but this year due to COVID-19 restrictions we didn’t get any,” Alagar, an idol maker in the southern city of Madurai, told Reuters partner ANI on Thursday.

Chinese long-range bombers join aerial drills over South China SeaAssociAted PRessBeiJinG, July 30

China said on Thursday that long-range bombers were among the air-craft that took part in recent aerial drills over the South China Sea amid rising tensions between Washington and Beijing over the stra-tegic waterway.

The exercises included nighttime takeoffs and landings and simulated long-range attacks, Defence Ministry spokesperson Ren Guoqiang said. Among the planes were H-6G and H-6K bombers, upgraded versions of planes long in use with the People’s Liberation Army Air Force and the People’s Liberation Army Navy Air Force, Ren said.

He said the exercises had been pre-viously scheduled and were aimed at boosting pilot abilities to operate under all natural conditions. It wasn’t clear whether live bombs were used.

Ren’s statement appeared to dis-

tance the drills from recent accusa-tions exchanged between the sides over China’s claim to virtually all of the South China Sea, which it has buttressed in recent years by building man-made islands equipped with runways.

The US this month for the first time rejected China’s claims outright, prompting Beijing to accuse it of seek-ing to create discord between China and its neighbours. Five other govern-ments also exercise claims in the South China Sea, through which around $5 trillion in trade is trans-

ported annually.Previously, US policy had been to

insist that maritime disputes between China and its smaller neighbours be resolved peacefully through UN-backed arbitration. But in a state-ment, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the US now regards virtually all Chinese maritime claims outside its internationally recognised waters to be illegitimate.

The shift does not involve disputes over land features that are above sea level, which are considered to be “ter-ritorial” in nature.

“The world will not allow Beijing to treat the South China Sea as its mari-time empire,” Pompeo said.

Although the US will officially continue to remain neutral in the territorial disputes, the announcement means the administra-tion is in effect siding with govern-ments which oppose Chinese asser-tions of sovereignty over maritime areas surrounding contested islands, reefs and shoals.

Student arrests in Hong Kong deepen ‘white terror’ fearsAgence FRAnce-PRessehonG KonG, July 30

Hong Kong has fallen into an era of “white terror” democracy campaign-ers said on Thursday after four stu-dents, one aged just 16, were arrested for social media posts deemed to be a threat to China’s national security.

Wednesday’s arrests were the first made by the new Hong Kong police national security unit, which was set up after Beijing imposed a controver-sial law last month aimed at quashing the city’s democracy movement.

The arrests added to a deepening sense of dread in Hong Kong that its cherished freedoms on speech—once thought to be guaranteed under a “One China, Two Systems” model—are on the way to being eviscerated.

The four arrested were former members of Student Localism, a pro-independence group that announced it was disbanding the day before the new national security law was enacted.

Police said the three males and one female, aged between 16 and 21, were arrested on suspicion of organising and inciting secession through com-ments made on social media posts after the law came in.

“They wanted to unite all the inde-pendent groups in Hong Kong for the view to promote the independence of

Hong Kong,” Li Kwai-wah, from the police’s new national security unit, told reporters.

Footage posted online showed plain-clothes police leading Tony Chung, the 19-year-old former leader of Student Localism, being detained with his hands tied behind his back.

Student and rights groups con-demned the arrests, saying they her-alded the kind of political suppression ubiquitous on the authoritarian Chinese mainland.

“Hong Kong has fallen into the era of white terror,” the Student Unions of Higher Institutions, which repre-

sents 13 student unions, said in a state-ment overnight.

“It is crystal clear that more and more Hongkongers (will) have to endure. Communist terror,” it added.

Nathan Law, a democracy cam-paigner who went into exile after the law was imposed, expressed similar sentiments on Twitter.

“White terror, politics of fear dis-persed in Hong Kong,” referencing a Chinese idiom to describe political persecution.

In an overnight statement, Hong Kong police warned people could com-mit crimes by what they write online.

“Police remind the public that the cyber world of the Internet is not a virtual space beyond the law,” the force said.

“Anyone who commits an unlawful act, whether in the real or in the cyber world, is liable to criminal prosecution.”

Sophie Richardson, a China expert with Human Rights Watch, said Beijing’s new legislation was being wielded against peaceful political speech. “The gross misuse of this dra-conian law makes clear that the aim is to silence dissent, not protect national security,” she said.

The security law gave China’s Community Party rulers far more direct control over Hong Kong, which was supposedly guaranteed 50 years

of freedoms as part of 1997 handover from Britain.

But last year the city was rocked by seven straight months of huge and often violent pro-democracy protests.

Beijing said the national security law was needed to end that unrest and restore stability, describing it as a “sword” hanging over the heads of lawbreakers.

It targets four types of crime: sub-version, secession, terrorism and col-luding with foreign forces—with up to life in prison.

Critics, including many western nations, say it has demolished the “One Country, Two Systems” model.

The law bypassed Hong Kong’s leg-islature and its details were kept secret until the moment it was enact-ed. It empowers China’s security agents to operate openly in the city for the first time.

Beijing has also said it will have jurisdiction for especially serious cases, toppling the legal firewall that has existed since the handover between Hong Kong’s independent judiciary and the Chinese mainland’s party-controlled courts.

China has also claimed it can prose-cute anyone anywhere in the world for national security crimes.

On the mainland Beijing routinely uses similar national security laws to crush dissent.

Australia records its deadliest day with at least 13 deaths and more than 700 new infections.

AP/rss

A health worker disinfects arriving Vietnamese Covid-19 patients at the national hospital of tropical diseases in Hanoi, Vietnam.

reuters

Reporters take pictures and video of a police vehicle driving inside a station where believed members of Hong Kong pro-independence group arrested by the national security unit are held in Hong Kong, on Wednesday.

The exercises included nighttime takeoffs, landings and simulated long-range attacks.

AP/rss

Two activists dressed up as US President Trump and Russian President Putin ride atomic bomb models during a protest for a world without nuclear weapons in front of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, on Thursday.

FRIDAY, JULY 31, 2020 | 08

FooD & tRAveL

Published and Printed by Kantipur Publications Pvt. Ltd., Central Business Park, Thapathali, Kathmandu, Nepal, P. B. No. 8559, Phone: 5135000, Fax: 977-1-5135057, e-mail: kpost@kmg.com.np, Regd. No. 32/049/050, Chairman & Managing Director: Kailash Sirohiya, Director: Swastika Sirohiya, Editor: Sanjeev Satgainya

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Pair kwati with some goat meat this Kwati PunhiIn Newa households, sometimes bone-in buffalo meat or even momos are added to kwati. Some of Kathmandu’s non-Newas cook the kwati with goat meat.

Prashanta Khanal

A

fter a couple of months of ardu-ous work on paddy fields, Kathmandu’s farmers nourish their body by consuming mixed sprouted legumes soup called ‘Kwati’ on the full moon festival

‘Kwati Punhi’ or ‘Gunhu Punhi’. Newas cele-brate the festival towards the end of monsoon. Also known as Janai Purnima, Hindus cele-brate the day by tying a sacred thread around their body and wrist.

Kwati is prepared from a mixture of nine types of legumes; some say the nine legumes signify the ninth month of Nepal Sambat cal-endar in which the festival is celebrated.

The legumes include fava bean, soybean, mung bean, gram, field pea, garden pea, black-eyed pea, etc. The legumes are soaked over-night, germinated, and cooked into soup. Locals believe that the soup makes the body immune to seasonal ailments and improves the digestive system.

During the germination, the legumes go through bio-chemical changes and become more nutritive with increase in amino acids, polyphenols, Vitamin C, minerals, and decline in starch and anti-nutrients.

Research suggests that the increase in helpful bacteria Lactobacillus bifidus during the germination, which inhibits the growth of harmful microbes, is good for your digestive tract.

This, along with the bio-chemical changes, is probably what gives kwati soup its distinctive, delicious flavour, something that you won’t get from just-soaked beans.

Kwati in Newa language translates to hot soup—‘kwa’ means ‘hot’ and ‘ti’ refers to ‘soup’. The word ‘kwa’ is also used in other Newa dishes such as ka-kwa, pancha-kwa, paun-kwa. ‘Kwa’ more likely refers to ‘various ingredients’.

In Newa households, sometimes bone-in buffalo meat, chhuchunmari (wheat flour dumplings or roti), or even momo are added in kwati. Some of Kathmandu’s non-Ne-was adopt the kwati recipe and cook it with goat meat (colloquially known as mutton in South Asia).

Kwati is in itself delicious but bone-in goat meat adds to the flavour. Goat meat has a good dense gamey flavour and aroma—good for making soup. The bone marrow, fats, and meat add rich flavour, and gelatinous skin thickens the soup and gives texture.

I am not sure if the recipe is common but I got this recipe from a Khas-family living in Kathmandu. The soup is delicious and I make it at least once a year during Kwati Punhi.

Here it is so you can try to make it too:

Ingredients:(Serves 3–4 people)n 200 gm kwati beansn 250–300 gm bone-in goat meat or goat legs,

cut in bite-size piecesn 1 onion, medium sized

n 3–4 clovesn 3–4 green cardamomsn 2–3 bay leaves (tejpatta)n 1 cinnamon stickn 1 tablespoon garlic and ginger pasten 1 teaspoon turmeric powdern 1 teaspoon cumin and coriander powdern 1 teaspoon red-chili powder

n 1 teaspoon garam masala, optionaln 2–3 tomatoes, medium-sizedn 2 tablespoons vegetable oiln Salt

For marinating meat:n 1 teaspoon ginger and garlic pasten 1 teaspoon cumin and coriander powder

n 1/3 teaspoon black pepper powdern ½ teaspoon turmeric powdern 1 tablespoon vegetable oiln 1 teaspoon salt

For spice tempering:n 1 tablespoon gheen ½ teaspoon ajwain seeds (jwano)

Directions:n The prep for kwati soup requires two

days. To sprout kwati beans, you have to first soak the beans overnight. Then drain the beans, put them on a clean, cotton cloth, and keep it in a dry, dark place. Let the legumes sprout for about 24 hours or more. Sprinkle water a couple of times to keep it moist.

n At least before 4–5 hours (overnight is better) before cooking the kwati, marinate the meat with garlic and ginger paste, cumin and coriander powder, black pepper powder, turmeric powder, salt, and vegeta-ble oil.

n For the kwati soup, heat about two table-spoons of vegetable oil in a pressure cooker over medium heat. Add cloves, cinnamon, green cardamoms, and bay leaves. Then add finely sliced onions, ginger and garlic paste, and turmeric powder. Fry until the onion turns light brown.

n Add meat and cook for around 6–8 minutes, stirring occasionally until the meat browns lightly. Add sprouted kwati beans, chopped tomatoes, cumin and coriander powder, garam masala (optional), red chilli powder and salt. Mix well and continue to cook for another 6–8 minutes. Pour in 2–3 cups of hot water, cover the pot and pressure cook for 15 minutes in low heat (or for around 3–4 whistles). Turn off the heat and let the pressure cooker cool down.

n Take the lid off of the pressure cooker, add 3–4 cups of hot water (or depending upon the quantity of soup you want to make), and cook it over low-medium heat for about 10–12 minutes. Take the pressure cooker off the heat.

n In a small pan, heat a tablespoon of ghee and fry the jwano. Turn off the heat and pour it in the soup. The kwati with goat meat is ready. You may garnish with some fresh coriander leaves. Then, relish the soup on its own or enjoy it with rice.

Khanal is a food writer, and is currently working on a book on Nepali recipes, food culture, and history. He writes on Nepali food culture and recipes on his food blog ‘Gundruk’.

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