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Emergency in Nepal, Govt sacked

     Kathmandu: Nepali King Gyanendra has declared a state of emergency across the country after sacking the government of Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba and taking control of the affairs of state for the next three years. All communication lines, including landline and mobile phones have been disconnected and several politicians have been put under house arrest. "We will oppose this step," said Deuba, whose house was surrounded by the armymen. Military vehicles armed with machine guns patrolled the capital city Kathmandu. "I hereby dismiss Deuba government and assume all executive powers, in line with the Constitution,"said the King in an address to the nation. The monarch accused the Deuba government of failing to hold talks with Maoist rebels and conduct parliamentary elections by April.

     The King had only reappointed Prime Minister Deuba last June, two years after dismissing him for failing to tackle a long-standing Maoist revolt against the monarchy and call an election. Nepal is locked in a bitter three-way struggle between the king, political parties and Maoist rebels. The king is often accused of overstepping his powers and this is the second time he has assumed power in three years. This is the fourth time the king has sacked a prime minister in less than three years. Nepal has had no parliament since 2002. The rebels have been fighting since 1996 to replace the monarchy with a communist republic, in an insurgency which has cost around 11,000 lives.

Indian Govt voices concern over Nepal situation (Go To Top)

     New Delhi: Voicing grave concern over the political developments in Nepal, the Indian Government on Tuesday said that it has brought the monarchy and mainstream political parties in direct confrontation with each other. "We will continue to support the restoration of political stability and economic prosperity in Nepal, a process which requires reliance on the forces of democracy and the support of the people of Nepal," the External Affairs Ministry said in a statement. In an hour-long meeting, External Affairs Minister K Natwar Singh briefed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the political crisis in Nepal. Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran spoke to India's Ambassador in Kathmandu S S Mukherjee to get an update on the developments. "The King of Nepal has dissolved the multi-party government led by Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba and has decided to constitute a council of ministers under his own chairmanship. An emergency has been declared and fundamental rights have been suspended. "These developments constitute a serious setback to the cause of democracy in Nepal and cannot but be a cause of grave concern to India," the MEA statement said. India also reacted to reports, which said that several political leaders in Nepal have been placed under house arrest. It called on the Nepal king and his advisers to ensure the safety of these leaders.

HAL's Chetan flies its first flight (Go To Top)

     Bangalore: Chetan, the new helicopter of the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), made its first flight successfully on Tuesday and is all set to take part in Aero-India 2005 to be held from February 9 to 13. Project test pilot Wg Cdr P S Rao and test engineer Sqn Ldr S Jain flew the helicopter over the Bangalore sky. Union Defence Secretary (Defence production) Shekar Dutt and senior HAL officials including Chairman A K Baweja witnessed the event. The helicopter is said to be a re-engined and upgraded version of HAL's workhorse Chetak and the only thing it retains from the original is the frame. Everything else, including the control systems and rotor blades, is new . Chetan has been fitted with a powerful Snecma TM 333 2B2 engine that powers Dhruv, the Advanced Light Helicopter. Hindustan Aeronautics Limited began the Chetan project six months ago. Chetan has been designed to evacuate casualties from high altitude areas in the Himalayas and the North East. The Chetans will sport a glass cockpit giving the pilot a versatility in monitoring onboard systems.