Nepal

Kathmandu, June 27

The government has registered an amendment to Nepal Engineering Council Act-1999, at the National Assembly to regulate engineering profession and registration process of engineers.

As per the proposed amendment, the office of Nepal Engineering Council established under the act shall be located in Kathmandu valley. There shall be an 18-member council chaired by an engineer who is nominated by the Government of Nepal. Functions, duties and powers of the council include preparation and implementation of policies, plans and programmes in engineering profession, providing accreditation to engineering institutions and degrees awarded by them, determining qualification for those aspiring to pursue a career in engineering and issuing registration certificates to persons who pass engineering exams. The committee will conduct exams at least twice a year for registration of engineering professionals as per its curriculum.

The proposed bill stipulates a provision of prohibiting any persons from practicing engineering without getting his/her name registered with the council. It has also made a provision of a three-member Examination Committee for the registration of engineering professionals in the council.

The bill requires an educational institution to obtain accreditation from the council to run engineering programmes. After necessary inquiry into an application submitted by an educational institution, the council may grant it permanent or temporary accreditation. &If an educational institution accredited by the council fails to comply with the prescribed standard, the council may recommend the Government of Nepal for cancellation of the accreditation,& it stated.

As per the bill, the government shall appoint a registrar from among persons having attained masterdegree in engineering, with at least ten years of experience in the concerned field. The term of the registrar shall be four years. If a person practicesengineering without getting his/her name registered in the council, he/she shall beliable to punishment with a fine of up to Rs 10,000 or an imprisonment of three months, or both. &The council may initiate action against any educational institutions running engineering programmes without obtaining accreditation,& it stated.

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Kathmandu, June 27

Police have arrested five persons with body parts of endangered wild animals from different places of Kathmandu.

Officials said three persons were held from Dhalku, Kathmandu Metropolitan City-14, for possessing a rhino horn, yesterday.

Those allegedly involved in wildlife crime have been identified as Lal Bahadur Gurung, 53, of Gorkha, Asta Bahadur Thing 33, of Makwanpur and Govinda Prasad Moktan, 34, of Dhading.

Acting on a tip-off, police raided the rented room of Gurung and arrested the trio with the rhino horn.

They were preparing to sell the rhino horn at Rs 5.5 million to a person. They have been handed over to the District Forest Office, Kathmandu, for legal action.

Police have launched further investigation into the case to ascertain whether the trio had poached a rhino for the horn or had purchased it from someone.

In a separate operation, police arrested two persons with a leopard skin and skull from Navadurga Guest House at Mitranagar of Kathmandu Metropolitan City-26.

The suspects have been identified as Mishrung Chemjong, 24, and Prashant Das Chemjong, 24, of Panchthar.

A joint team of Metropolitan Police Circle, Balaju and Metropolitan Police Sector, Gongabu raided a room of the guest house, leading to their arrest and seizure of the wildlife parts.

Police said racketeers were found to be using Kathmandu as a transit for smuggling wildlife body parts to foreign countries, mainly China, through their agents.

Wild animals most sought-after by poachers and smugglers include rhino, tiger, red panda, leopard, and pangolin. According to police, poachers from many districts of the country visit Kathmandu with wildlife body parts in search of prospective clients who eventually smuggled the contraband abroad.

A person arrested with body parts of endangered wild animals is handed over to the concerned district forest office, for legal action.

District forest office is the only authorised agency to prosecute wildlife poachers and smugglers, under the National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act. Anyone involved in the trade of protected species can be slapped with a fine up to Rs 100,000 and a jail term of five to 15 years, as per the act.

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KATHMANDU: The National Vigilance Centre has procured non-destructive testing equipment to test construction quality of public projects.

Ultrasonic testing device, concrete reinforcement scanner and rebound hammer are among nine different types of equipment that were procured for quality testing at Singha Durbar.

Speaking at NTD equipment induction training organised for technical auditors on Thursday, NVC Secretary Madhav Belbase expressed satisfaction over the procurement of equipment and stressed its need for the investigative work NVC carries out.

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KATHMANDU: One of the perpetrators involved in the recent incidents of attack on women with sharp objects, in the capital city, has landed in the police net.

Santosh Karki (30) was arrested from Maharajgunj yesterday around 10:30 pm, confirmed Chief at the Metropolitan Police Range, Teku, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Uttam Subedi. Karki is currently kept under police custody at the Police Range in Teku.

Central Police Spokesperson, Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIGP) Bishwaraj Pokharel, informed that Karki has confessed to the crime stating that the attacks were carried out with nails and not with syringe needles. He added that investigation will be carried out to verify this.

Meanwhile, police are carrying out a press meet this afternoon to make further details regarding the arrest public.

The recent attacks have created much panic among Kathmandu denizens, especially women. Motorcycle-borne gangs have been targeting women, mainly pedestrians, indiscriminately in the evening, fleeing the scene after pricking the victims with a pointed metal.

The first incident of such an attack was reported in Swayambhu in mid-April. At least eight women have been allegedly attacked since. Most of the victims were targeted in Swayambhu and Thamel areas. According to Sukraraj Tropical and Infectious Disease Hospital, as many as eight women visited the health facility for counselling and treatment of prick wounds. It said their health was normal but tests have been carried out to ensure this.

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