Almost all broadsheet dailies (both in Nepali and English) published in Kathmandu on Thursday, April 14, 2016, have given considerable space to the laying of the foundation stone of the Pokhara International Regional Airport. The expiry of the deadline set by the Madhesi Morcha to the government to meet its demands has also received attention on the front pages.

Important

PM Oli lays foundation stone for Pokhara Airport

Naya Patrika, Annapurna Post, Gorkhapatra, Rajdhani, Karobar and Nagarik have given prominent space to the story on their respective front pages.  Annapurna Post in its four-column lead story has a screaming headline that says the new airport will be ready in four years. It also has a photo in which leaders of major political parties are waving to the crowd as they stand on the podium at the programme organised to commemorate the event. Almost all papers have described the development as a step towards realising a 40-year-old dream of the people of Pokhara.

Madheshi Morcha’s ultimatum 

The Himalayan Times and Naya Patrika have made this their main story for the day. Naya Patrika’s lead story is package of a several smaller stories. The box-package has a toned down headline that says Madheshi Morcha is neither in talks nor on the agitation mode. The daily lists five issues that have literally stalled government-Madheshi Morcha talks. The Madheshi Morcha has been demanding that there be two provinces in Madhesh, constitutional guarantee that the spouse of a Nepali citizen can acquire naturalised citizenship, the judiciary and all state organs adopt an inclusive system, and Nepal be declared a multi-nation state.

The Himalayan Times, meanwhile, in its lead story (“PM lacks sincerity for talks: UDMF”)  quotes a morcha leader as saying  that the PM’s offer for talks was aimed at giving a false impression to the international community that the government was trying to find a negotiated settlement to the Tarai problems. Spokesperson for the Tarai Madhes Democratic Party, Sarvendranath Shukla, told the newspaper, that Oli made “a similar offer right after becoming the PM but he formed the government’s talks team only after a month, which reflected lack of sincerity on his part.”

Nepal’s first female Chief Justice assumes office 

Gorkhapatra has a single-column report on Sushila Karki’s assumption of office as Nepal’s first female Chief Justice. Karki, however, has been given the title of ‘Acting Chief Justice’ because Parliament is yet to conduct a hearing on her appointment.

Ignored

Row over ‘D’-graders

Rajdhani, in its anchor story, has a report on the row between the Ministry of Education and the Higher Secondary Education Board on the status of students who get a ‘D’ grade in their SLC exams. This is the first time that the government has introduced a letter grading system for the SLC exams. According to the report, a student will get a ‘D’ if s/he gets 30-40 per cent in aggregate. While the Ministry wants HSEB to allow such students to enroll in plus twos, the board has been reluctant to do so, saying it will have a negative impact on the quality of education.

Eight killed in Doti jeep accident

A day after 22 people lost their lives in a bus accident in Khotang, another accident has left eight people dead in Doti district. According to Naya Patrika, the accident on Tuesday night claimed five people of the same family.

Interesting 

US lobby against big reservoir-type hydels      

Karobar in its lead story for the day says the US has adopted a tough stance against big reservoir-type hydro projects bowing to pressure from different INGOs. In its three-column report, the paper says that US finance secretary has directed chiefs of different multilateral agencies not to provide funding for big reservoir projects. The report says that the US passed a legislation to this effect back in 2014.

Home Minister gets Rs 5 million as ‘spy expenses’

Naya Patrika‘s anchor for the day is a report on how the Home Minister of Nepal drew Rs 5 million to spend as ‘spy expenses’. Citing the Auditor General’s recently-released annual report, the paper says during UML leader Bam Dev Gautam’s tenure in office as the Home Minister, he spent over Rs 5 million to “pay his spies.”