Govt short shrift to culture cash cow

Bishnu Prasad Aryal
Kathmandu, Dec 31

The government is giving a short shrift to culture, inarguably, the bedrock of the nation's identity. Though the world recognises and fetes Nepal for its fascinating and intriguing social mores, the powers-that-be back home seems to have no time for such 'trivial pursuits'.

It may be recalled that culture was incorporated with the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation in 2000. Earlier, it was a part of Ministry of Education although the Culture Division was established in the country 50 years ago. The ministry got a new nomenclature--the Ministry of Culture and State Restructuring-- on August 31, 2008. When the UML-led government assumed office on May 23, several new ministries like Federal, Constituent Assembly and Parliamentary Affairs and Culture were all clubbed together. Consequently, culture took a backseat, lost in the maze of sundry unrelated ministries looking into novel areas of governance.

What did the department do through the year? "Precious little except making a few appointments," admitted Jala Krishna Shrestha, joint-secretary, the Ministry of Federal Affairs, Constituent Assembly, Parliamentary Affairs and Culture (MoFACAPAC). Shrestha has been candid enough to point out the lacunae. "The spirit of work has been diluted since the Ministry of Culture has been accommodated with other portfolios. Preservation of our rich heritage hasn't been the focus through the last couple of years," he reasoned.

Ironically, little work was done in the allied sections of the ministry as in Federal, Constituent Assembly and Parliamentary Affairs. The ministry has become virtually defunct if the senior civil servant's assertions are anything to go by. Consider the unity in diversity in Nepal. The nation is home to around 100 ethnic and indigenous groups with their own unique culture. The constitution, however, recognises only 70 indigenous and ethnic communities. Besides, there are 10 World Heritage Sites, including seven in the Kathmandu Valley, as per the UNESCO list. Of these, eight are cultural sites and the rest showcase nature and wildlife.

There is also clearly an overlap of governance when it comes to culture. For instance, the Ministry of Local Development has been handling monastery management. The Ministry of Home Affairs looks into organising various festivals and Hajj Committee for Muslims. The Ministry of Land Reforms has an assigned role to play in running the Guthi (Trust). While, the Ministry of Physical Planning and Works is engaged in construction of the shrines. The ministry of Finance is entrusted with Kaushi Tosha Khana, which loosely translates to funds collected from cultural bodies. "However, the achievements are less than satisfactory," said Shrestha.

To make matter worse, the tourism sector is holding sway over cultural affairs for long. Jaya Ram Shrestha, archeological officer, the MoFACAPAC, laid bare the conflict of interest. "There has been an increased arrival in foreign tourists in the past few years. But little effort is being made to preserve and promote our culture, which showcase our national identity," he explained.

Social mores are a complex concept with diversity of cultural practices across  the Himalayan nation. For instance, strange shamanistic practices in various communities are worth to be studied while polygamy is still rampant in the mid and Terai region whereas polyandry is practised in the Himalayan region. "Foreign tourists certainly want to lap up these intricate customs, which are often alien to their sensibilities. They have no interest in whatsoever in internal power politics," said Jaya Ram Shrestha.

The government's step-motherly treatment is all too evident in the allocation of sum for culture and archeology. It adds up to an abysmal 0.001 per cent of the entire budget. Shrestha is livid at the callousness. "We bring out the rear among Asia-Pacific nations. While, other South Asian nations allocate at least 0.01 per cent of their budget for this sector," he added.

Despite the lackadaisical approach,  the government is keen to retain control over bodies looking into cultural, religious and archeological affairs. And the fate of these bodies' heads is inextricably linked with the government's shelf life. Fine Arts Academy, Music and Performance Arts Academy, Pashupati Area Development Trust (PADT), Bhakta Bhakta Janma Development Committee, Lumbini Development Trust (LDT) and Nepal Academy are some of the high-profile institutions that have been at the receiving end of political intrusion.

The erstwhile Maoist-led government drew a lot of flak for making controversial appointments in LDT and PADT. The Supreme Court annulled the appointments of priests in PADT. The UML-led coalition, too, got into the act. It tried to sack the Maoist appointee in LDT, but was thwarted by the apex court's timely intervention.

Joint-secretary Shrestha claimed that several organisations did not have a functional body since May 8, 2006. This is what and how the national heritages are neglected in the country.

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Local governance consigned to oblivion

Bishnu Prasad Aryal
Kathmandu, Dec 30

Two successive governments' rhetoric did precious little for both local and social development in the year gone by.

The poor report card of the Ministry of local Development (MoLD) is a microcosm of a complete breakdown in governance. Consider this: Of the 3,915 VDC's, around 1,100 is bereft of secretaries for about a year when the local bodies have been running without elected representatives for eight years . "The lack of service delivery mechanism in these areas doesn't augur well for the government," said Dinesh Kumar Thapaliya, spokesperson for the MoLD.

The UML-led ruling coalition's lofty promises such as apponting elected representatives in all the local bodies within 100 days and declaring 41 new civic bodies came a cropper. Nothing came of forming the National Muslim Commission and a Committee on Ostracised and Marginalised People, either. The cabinet is yet to take a call on the fourth amendment to the Local Self-Governance Regulation, 2009. The Waste Management Act, too, is yet to be amended. However, monthly allowance for the Rautes has been doubled from Rs 500.

The budget of MoLD has been increased by another 10 billion. There is less achievement and lack of proper utilisation of development funds allocated in the local bodies, said Thapaliya.

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3 cultural academies sans academicians for 4 years

Bishnu Prasad Aryal
Kathmandu, December 18

There is no member in the Academic Assembly and Council of major three academies of the country for about last four years. However, the government has gone ignoring such a serious issue of appointing officials of both categories in those academies.

Nepal Academy, Fine Arts Academy, and Music and Performance Art Academy are running without assembly and council members since May 8, 2006, according to the Ministry of Federal Affairs, Constituent Assembly, Parliamentary Affairs and Culture.

"The government has failed to manage these academic bodies by fulfilling the vacant posts," said Jala Krishna Shrestha, joint-secretary and the spokesperson for culture in the ministry. "This is one of the evidences of the government apathy regarding the culture, which is a very important heritage of the country," he said.

The NA is constituted of 39-member Academic Assembly and 11 members in the Council while the FAA and the MPAA are respectively constituted of 28 members in the Assembly and 9 members in the Council each. Both of the bodies are headed by the Chairman and the General Manager each respectively.

Harihar Sharma, administrator at the NA, said that there was no work in the academy except receiving the monthly salaries and running daily administration. "No academic activities have been performed in the academy due to the absence of the responsible body members," he said. "It has been very painful to come to the office and go to home daily without any performance because of the lack of works in the office," he added.

Prakash Darnal, chief archeology officer at the MoFACAPAC, said that the Maoist led government attempted to appoint officials in those posts about a year ago but without regular procedure. The case files were lodged in the Supreme Court against the Maoist move and then the SC ordered to cancel the appointments.

The SC has already cleared the road for the government to appoint officials in the NA but the cases of FAA and MPAA are still on process. "The Ministry forwarded a proposal of the committee formation for the NA to the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers a few months ago," said Darnal. "However, it is still unnoticed," he added.

Darnal was worried of the performance of the ministry about the culture for last two years. "It is out of road of the conservation and development," he said. "The Cultural Corporation has been padlocked owing to the appointment row recently," he added.

Politics is more dominant in the ministry than the concern of culture. "The combination of different affairs in the ministry has cornered the cultural issues," said Shrestha. "The culture related activities are being performed by other ministries and we are detached from the mainstream," he added.

Minister Dr Minendra Rijal is on foreign visits presently and frequently at a time when all of the works are on hold in the ministry, according to the ministry officials.

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Govt plan to manage garbage falls in a predicament

Bishnu Prasad Aryal
Lalitpur, December 12

Despite Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal's direction to manage solid waste of the Kathmandu Valley in scientific way after his succession seven months ago, the achievement is nothing significant yet.

According to the Ministry of Local Development, the government included it in its current fiscal programmes to form a high level empowered commission, which would deal an agreement with the private sector to set up garbage-fuelled plant on the basis of public private partnership concept to finalise the deal by mid-November.

The High Level Committee on Solid Waste Management (HLCSWM), headed by Dr Dinesh Chandra Devkota, member of the National Planning Commission, was formed on August 30 with the authority to sign the agreement with the private sector by mid-December. There are only three-days remaining to end the first tenure of the committee. However, it is yet to call Expression of Interest from the private sector.

The seven-member committee comprises of secretaries from the Ministries of Local Development, Physical Planning and Works, Land Reforms and Environment, executive chief of the Kathmandu Metropolitan City, and general manager of the Solid Waste Management and Resource Mobilisation Centre. It has also recruited three experts on waste management.

Dinesh Kumar Thapaliya, spokesperson for the MoLD, said that the committee was not empowered as the spirit of the government budget to work without any hassle. “The problems and confusion related to the policies dampened the speed of dealing with the private sector,” he said.

Though the HLCSWM can carry out all the process, it is not eligible to sign on final deals with the private sector. The MoLD is legally entitled to decide on the issues finally and the HLCSWM need to forward the process through the ministry.

The HLCSWM tabled a proposal in the cabinet on November 3 to extend its tenure by mid-April and empower it so that it could carry out its jobs smoothly. “But the cabinet extended the tenure of the committee, which was sent back on December 3, directing the MoLD to deal with the case,” said Dr Sumitra Amatya, GM of the SWMRMC and member secretary of the HLCSWM. “Because of the dilemma, the process was halted amidst the confusion,” she added.

The committee was formed but only the MoLD could deal with the process as per the BOT (Build Operate and Transfer) Act, said Amatya.  “We have prepared the final draft of the EoI and submitted to the MoLD for publishing it,” she said. “It will be published soon.”

Thapaliya said that it would be better to empower the committee rather than to assign the Ministry to deal with the issue. “The government could not approve the amendment of waste management act owing to the obstruction in parliamentary session. Formation of powerless committee was another lapse of the government,” he said. “This has made us worried about the waste management, which is likely to fall in more complicated situation if the process could not achieve the target,” he added.

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"To be or not to be"--It is a question?

 Bishnu Prasad Aryal
Kathmandu, December 7

? Is it a crime to be a poet?
                                            


                                    Or to be a creative person?
                                                                                           



                                                                         Or to be a philosopher?



I am punished for being logical, reasoning, rational and pholosophical but without harming and hurting others. Is it justice?



So, it is a question of 'to be or not to be'. Death is better and greater than the slavery.

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Public recreational parks in a sorry state

Bishnu Prasad Aryal
Kathmandu, November 30

The public famous places-Balaju Bais (22) Dhara Park, Ratna Park and Ranipokhari are in a sorry state owing to the inefficient management of the Kathmandu Metropolitan City.

According to the KMC, the government transferred Balaju 22 Dhara Park, Ratna Park, Ranipokhari and National Assembly Hall to the civic body in 2002. However, all of them except the National Assembly Hall at Bhrikutimandap are wretched lots due to the lack of proper management, said the KMC officials. "They were in a better condition before the transfer of the authority," they said.

Balaju 22 Dhara Park spread in 159 ropanies of land, the only biggest recreation centre in the Kathmandu valley, and Ratna Park are in a shameful and pathetic condition, said Nama Raj Dhakal, senior finance officer at the KMC. "Balaju Park is dilapidated, worn Ratna Park has turned into centre of indecent activities while Rani Pokhari is no more than the dirty pond," said Dhakal.

Balaju Park houses with a swimming pool, 22 water tapes, a Hindu temple, greenery park and open spaces. The condition of park got worsened as the walls of upper parts were broken by the cadres of Constituent Assembly member Hisila Yami during the CA election campaign. The compound walls of Balaju Park are damaged, water pond is filthy, pool is not modernized, water is irregular in taps and trees are dying out, said Dhakal.

There is dire negligence of the metropolitan city towards the recreational spots, said Deepak KC, an officer at the Public Private Partnership for Urban Environment section in the civic body. "The KMC tried to adopt PPP modality but to no avail," he added.

Dhakal said that the KMC called a bid to involve the private sector in the management of the Balaju Park in 2005. "However, it is still paralysed. Neither KMC could sign agreement with the bidder nor it could renovate the park by allocating sufficient budget," he said.

The Side Walker Pvt Ltd, which was coincidentally given the bid to manage Bhmsen Tower, was selected in the procurement of bid on Rs 52,000 per month for 20 years. "The agreement could not be signed due to the locals protest and inefficiency of administration despite permission from the Ministry of Local Development," said Dhakal.

About Rs 4 million is spent annually as operating cost of the park. Entry fee is only Rs 5.00 per person. However, it is hardly able to maintain even its regular expenses. "We can earn at least Rs 100 million every year if the existing amenities are renovated," said Dhakal. "If we invest more on its development, the earning can multiply," he said. "We need to go ahead with a master plan."

Admitting lapses for the management, Deepak Koirala, assistant executive chief at the KMC, said that there was a vested game in tender process and that failed. "There are many causes of this problem. But the void of elected representatives in the body has badly marred on the decisive management," he added.

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