Kathmandu, Feb 5 (IANS) As around 8,000 chickens have died of bird flu , or H5N1 virus in the Nepal’s Sunsari district in last few days, more traces of the virus have been found in the region, Xinhua reported.
Though it’s been confirmed that the virus led to the chickens’ deaths, the samples have been sent to Britain for further investigation.
A team of experts has been mobilised and the district put on high alert, said sources.
Kathmandu, Jan 14 (IANS) Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, on a brief visit to Nepal Saturday, met Nepalese President Ram Baran Yadav and Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai and discussed bilateral relations.
“I am coming here with the Chinese people’s friendship toward the Nepalese people and their aspiration to promote the mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries,” Wen was quoted as saying by Xinhua.
He said China and Nepal were good neighbours, friends and partners, and that Beijing supported Kathmandu’s constitutional process and its efforts to safeguard independence, sovereignty, territorial integration and national unification.
Beijing was ready to provide, within its capacity, assistance for economic and social development. Though his visit was a short one, it was fruitful and of great significance, he said.
During the meeting with Yadav, Wen said that with a 1,000-year history of exchanges between the two peoples, China and Nepal have helped each other since they established diplomatic relations in 1955.
Yadav told Wen the Nepalese government and people appreciate China’s adherence to the principle of non-interference in other countries’ internal affairs.
Nepalese political leaders hailed Wen’s visit — which lasted barely five hours — as a landmark one. They stressed that maintaining friendship with China was a consensus shared by everyone in Nepal.
Puspa Kamal Dahal Prachanda, chairman of the Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), Sushil Koirala, president of the Nepali Congress party, and Jhalanath Khanal, chairman of the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist) said in a joint statement that the parties were committed to pushing forward the peace and constitutional process and were dedicated to national reconciliation and social development.
After his departure from Nepal, Wen would pay official visits to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Qatar. During his UAE visit, the Chinese premier will also attend the Fifth World Future Energy Summit in Abu Dhabi.
Kathmandu, Jan 14 (IANS) Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao arrived here Saturday on an official visit to Nepal.
Wen’s entourage included Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi, Minister of the National Development and Reform Commission Zhang Ping and Commerce Minister Chen Deming, the China Daily reported.
After his stay in Nepal, Wen will pay official visits to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Qatar.
Kathmandu, Jan 3 (IANS) The Asian Development Bank (ADB) will provide a loan for six drinking water projects in Nepal.
The projects are in Rupandehi, Dhangadhi, Morang, Jhapa, Arghakhanchi and Baglung, Xinhua reported Tuesday.
The loan agreement was signed Dec 29.
About one billion Nepali rupees ($13 million) will be spent, said Sushil Gyawali, the executive director of the City Development Fund (CDF).
Kathmandu, Dec 21 (IANS) Nepal has endorsed a pact that will enable it connect the railway lines it is planning to develop with Asian and European networks to facilitate the uninterrupted movement of people and goods.
The Republica daily said Wednesday a cabinet meeting held last week approved the crucial Inter-governmental Agreement on Trans-Asia Railway Network.
‘Approval of the agreement is a demonstration of the government’s commitment to enter into the Trans-Asia Railway Network. This will greatly facilitate movement of people and goods via Nepal to other Asian and European countries,’ railway department director general Ram Kumar Lamsal told Republica.
‘We will immediately send the ratification paper to UN once the parliament ratifies it.’
If ratified, the agreement will not only pave the way for increasing trade with partner countries in the region, but also facilitate the development of internal network of railway, reported Xinhua.
The agreement was signed in Busan, South Korea under the UN Economic and Social Commission Asia and the Pacific. Along with Nepal, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Laos, Mongolia, South Korea, Russia, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Thailand, Turkey, Uzbekistan and Vietnam are signatories to the agreement.
So far, China, India, Thailand, Cambodia, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Russia and South Korea have ratified the agreement.
Kathmandu, Dec 15 (IANS) Power-starved Nepal, facing long outages, plans to import electricity from India at commercial rates, said a minister.
Minister of State for Energy Suryaman Dong said the Nepali government was planning to import energy from India to reduce power outage in the country which were expected to peak during the winter months, reported Xinhua.
Speaking at a programme in the capital Kathmandu Wednesday, Dong said the government had started doing the necessary homework regarding the import of power from India. An agreement has been signed for importing 130 MW of electricity immediately, he said.
He said it was necessary to import energy form India to address the long power outages which could likely reach 18 to 20 hours daily if electricity was not imported from India.
As per existing provisions, Nepal can import up to 50 MW from India. Nepal has sought the import of 100 MW from India immediately and additional import of 145 MW power in one year on the basis of market-determined price mode (commercial mode).
