Casinos owe a whopping Rs 300m to govt
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, AUG 31 -
Casinos operating in the Kathmandu Valley and outside have over Rs. 300 million in dues to be paid to the government as royalty.
There are 10 casinos (eight in Kathmandu) operating in the country, of which, only Casino Venus operating under Hotel Malla has cleared its bills, an official at the Inland Revenue Deparment (IRD) said.
The IRD, after failing to collect royalty from these casinos, has handed over the task to the Department of Revenue Investigation (DRI) recently.
When the DRI called the casino operators to discuss the matter, they asked the department to grant an installment facility to pay the dues, the source said. The DRI had collected Rs. 250 million as a royalty last year.
Rajan Khanal, director general at the IRD said they were feeling uncomfortable in taking legal action against the casino operators as the Tourism Ministry looks after it. “As legal action there are no alternatives but to shut down the casinos reluctant to pay their dues,” said Khanal.
Casino Nepal under the Soaltee Hotel hasn’t paid royalty worth Rs 109 million of the past four years.
Likewise, Casino Fulbari has Rs 60 million as royalty dues. The Casinos have to pay Rs 20 million every year as royalty.
As per the Fiscal Act, casinos should pay the royalty by mid-September every year. “None of the casinos have made a wholesome payment,” said Sishir Dhungana, chief of the IRO -3.
Of the total casinos, seven are operated by the Nepal Recreation Centre, while Valley Link is running Casino Venus and Casino Grand. Casino Royal is under the Gild International.
Casino staffs say that the downfall in casinos is due to the government move of restricting Nepalis’ entry. The restriction has downed customers by about 70 percent. There are over 8,300 employees’ in 10 casinos.
Meanwhile, the MoTCA is planning to introduce a regulation for casinos to
boost tourism earnings. A official at MoTCA said there was no clear regulation to monitor the increasing malpractices in casinos. MoTCA issues the operating licences of casinos but does not supervise and monitor them.
Currently, Nepal Police under the Ministry of Home Affairs has the responsibility to curb gambling-related crimes under the Public Offence Act.
“The police is only responsible for controlling gambling-related crimes inside the casinos,” said Laxman Prasad Bhattarai, spokesman of the MoTCA.
Casinos Unpaid royalties
Casino Nepal Rs 109 million
Casino Anna Rs 68 million
Casino Fulbari Rs 60 million
Casino Shangri La Rs 26 million
Casino Rad Rs 17 million
Casino Grand Rs 10 million
Casino Royal Rs 13 million
Casino Everest Rs 5 million
Casino Tara Rs 6 million
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
House full
Hotel bookings for the upcoming autumn season reach a record high
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, AUG 31 -
The hotel industry is looking buoyant with encouraging bookings at major five-star hotels for the upcoming season. Thanks to increased air links, bookings at five-star hotels have soared to over 90 percent for the autumn season (October-November).
Hoteliers said that some five-star hotels had been overbooked while bookings at others had crossed 90 percent. Higher booking rates for autumn make a huge difference to the domestic hospitality industry as it is the main tourist season. Around 30 percent of the total tourist arrivals occur during this time.
Hoteliers said that hotel occupancy this season was likely to rise significantly compared to 2008 and 2009. However, they are worried that if the overwhelming rate of bookings continues, it would be hard to manage them. The hotels have a bed capacity of only 25,357. However, a recent Nepal Tourism Board survey at 15 tourist sites shows that 66,603 beds can be generated.
With the significant rise in bookings, travel trade entrepreneurs and hoteliers are hoping that the business outlook will be much better than in previous years.
From Hotel Everest, Hyatt Regency to Shangri-La, almost all have their bookings going up to 100 percent. In the case of Hotel Yak & Yeti and Radisson, bookings have reached over 95 percent.
Room bookings for the upcoming season at the Soaltee Crowne Plaza, the country's leading five-star hotel, have surged by 20 percent. "Compared to the last season, bookings have gone up by 20 percent," said Sony Chaudhary, assistant manager, marketing and public relations.
Despite overwhelming bookings, hoteliers are still not sure whether they will materialize into business. Amir Pradhananga, sales and marketing director of the Everest Hotel, is one of them. "Despite the rate of booking (ROB) for autumn crossing 100 percent, we're not sure if these bookings will be occupied until we get the final reservation order from the customers," said Pradhananga. As per hotel rules, customers should confirm or cancel their bookings before 15-20 days.
Last year, about 30 percent of the clients had cancelled their bookings. "This season, there are no signs of cancellation; however, there are still some weeks left to get the final confirmation of the reservations," said Pradhananga.
The Everest Hotel has overbooked rooms for a few days in October.
The Shangri-La's ROB has also crossed 100 percent for the season. The hotel had 95 percent occupancy in the same period last year. Mohan Khanal, sales and marketing manager, said that ROB had been more than expected. He said that the hotel would not have problems even in the case of overbooking since they can divert the customers to other hotels. "And, this was done before also," said Khanal. American, Japanese and Europeans are in majority to book rooms at the Shangri-La that has 100 rooms.
The Yak & Yeti's ROB has reached 95 percent for October. The hotel's ROB for October and November is 95 and 85 percent respectively. The same is the case with Hotel Radisson whose booking till now has crossed 90 percent. "A majority of the bookings are from Australian, British, Japanese and Indians, said Ranju Man Pradhan, marketing and sales director of the Radisson. The hotel is planning to launch 160 new rooms for 2011.
The Annapurna Hotel with an 85 percent ROB has received a majority of the bookings from visitors from the UK and Germany. Last year, the hotel had 90 percent booking for this season. "Still there is one month left to start the tourist season, and the bookings made until the end of August are very encouraging," said Raj Bahadur Shah of the hotel.
Despite the weak performance of the national flag carrier, hoteliers are hoping more tourists will arrive in the season with more international airlines coming to the country.
India's Spice Jet and Oman's Omar Air will be starting their service to Nepal very shortly.
Nepal saw record tourist arrivals of 526,507 in 2007 which subsequently decreased. In 2009, arrivals had gone up by 1.89 percent to 509,752.
Hotel bookings for the upcoming autumn season reach a record high
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, AUG 31 -
The hotel industry is looking buoyant with encouraging bookings at major five-star hotels for the upcoming season. Thanks to increased air links, bookings at five-star hotels have soared to over 90 percent for the autumn season (October-November).
Hoteliers said that some five-star hotels had been overbooked while bookings at others had crossed 90 percent. Higher booking rates for autumn make a huge difference to the domestic hospitality industry as it is the main tourist season. Around 30 percent of the total tourist arrivals occur during this time.
Hoteliers said that hotel occupancy this season was likely to rise significantly compared to 2008 and 2009. However, they are worried that if the overwhelming rate of bookings continues, it would be hard to manage them. The hotels have a bed capacity of only 25,357. However, a recent Nepal Tourism Board survey at 15 tourist sites shows that 66,603 beds can be generated.
With the significant rise in bookings, travel trade entrepreneurs and hoteliers are hoping that the business outlook will be much better than in previous years.
From Hotel Everest, Hyatt Regency to Shangri-La, almost all have their bookings going up to 100 percent. In the case of Hotel Yak & Yeti and Radisson, bookings have reached over 95 percent.
Room bookings for the upcoming season at the Soaltee Crowne Plaza, the country's leading five-star hotel, have surged by 20 percent. "Compared to the last season, bookings have gone up by 20 percent," said Sony Chaudhary, assistant manager, marketing and public relations.
Despite overwhelming bookings, hoteliers are still not sure whether they will materialize into business. Amir Pradhananga, sales and marketing director of the Everest Hotel, is one of them. "Despite the rate of booking (ROB) for autumn crossing 100 percent, we're not sure if these bookings will be occupied until we get the final reservation order from the customers," said Pradhananga. As per hotel rules, customers should confirm or cancel their bookings before 15-20 days.
Last year, about 30 percent of the clients had cancelled their bookings. "This season, there are no signs of cancellation; however, there are still some weeks left to get the final confirmation of the reservations," said Pradhananga.
The Everest Hotel has overbooked rooms for a few days in October.
The Shangri-La's ROB has also crossed 100 percent for the season. The hotel had 95 percent occupancy in the same period last year. Mohan Khanal, sales and marketing manager, said that ROB had been more than expected. He said that the hotel would not have problems even in the case of overbooking since they can divert the customers to other hotels. "And, this was done before also," said Khanal. American, Japanese and Europeans are in majority to book rooms at the Shangri-La that has 100 rooms.
The Yak & Yeti's ROB has reached 95 percent for October. The hotel's ROB for October and November is 95 and 85 percent respectively. The same is the case with Hotel Radisson whose booking till now has crossed 90 percent. "A majority of the bookings are from Australian, British, Japanese and Indians, said Ranju Man Pradhan, marketing and sales director of the Radisson. The hotel is planning to launch 160 new rooms for 2011.
The Annapurna Hotel with an 85 percent ROB has received a majority of the bookings from visitors from the UK and Germany. Last year, the hotel had 90 percent booking for this season. "Still there is one month left to start the tourist season, and the bookings made until the end of August are very encouraging," said Raj Bahadur Shah of the hotel.
Despite the weak performance of the national flag carrier, hoteliers are hoping more tourists will arrive in the season with more international airlines coming to the country.
India's Spice Jet and Oman's Omar Air will be starting their service to Nepal very shortly.
Nepal saw record tourist arrivals of 526,507 in 2007 which subsequently decreased. In 2009, arrivals had gone up by 1.89 percent to 509,752.
Monday, August 30, 2010
MoCS alive to LPG risks
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, AUG 30 -
In a move that could ensure quality products, the Ministry of Commerce and Supplies (MoCS) on Sunday endorsed a decision to allow the two state-owned enterprises to prepare the specification, import and sales of regulators and pipes used in Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) cylinders.
The new provision authorises the Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) to prepare the specifications for LPG regulators and pipes and the National Trading Limited (NTL) to import and sell them once the NOC certifies the products.
Private companies are also allowed to import these products. “The government’s move to endorse the decision is to discourage the private companies selling substandard products and up competition in business that will ensure quality products to the customers,” said Ganesh Dhakal, spokesman at MoCS.
Traders had recently admitted that sub-standard valves and worn-out regulators were rampant in the market due to high profit motives, which were causing accidents.
Due to substandard products, the chances of cylinder leakage are high. When there is a leak, the gas inside tends to get concentrated in an enclosed area and thus creates a risk of a severe explosion and fire.
After mounting pressure and alarm over risk of leakage, among other problems due to use of sub-standard products, a six-member task force was formed a month ago to study the issue under the coordination of director general of Nepal Bureau of Standards and Metrology (NEBSM).
Mukunda Dhungel, spokesperson for the NOC, said that officially they haven’t received the MoCS decision. But, NOC had been earlier informed that the government would use a one-door policy for the import of these items, Dhungel said. “There are regular casualties happening due to the sale of substandard products but the sellers were reluctant to take the responsibility. This initiative will go a long in reducing the risk of such incidents,” he added.
Suresh Prajapati, general secretary of the Association of LP Gas Industry, said that the move would control the import of sub-standard products and rampant smuggling.
“This will bring down casualties due to LPG related risks,” he said. The prices of products will also be monitored as the product sellers have been cheating the customers, he said. Recently, gas dealers, consumer rights activists and other stakeholders said that more than 30 percent of LPG cylinders in circulation are at high risk of explosion due to the use of sub-standard regulators and pipes.
Around four million gas cylinders are in circulation in the country currently. Several deaths have occurred due to cylinder explosions with seven people lost their lives last year due to cylinder explosions in Kathmandu Valley alone.
NEBSM, that was monitoring the quality and standard of gas and gas related products, stopped its monitoring from 2003. However, with gas cylinder explosion accidents increasing, the Ministry of Industry again called NEBSM in June 2010 to carry out its monitoring.
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, AUG 30 -
In a move that could ensure quality products, the Ministry of Commerce and Supplies (MoCS) on Sunday endorsed a decision to allow the two state-owned enterprises to prepare the specification, import and sales of regulators and pipes used in Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) cylinders.
The new provision authorises the Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) to prepare the specifications for LPG regulators and pipes and the National Trading Limited (NTL) to import and sell them once the NOC certifies the products.
Private companies are also allowed to import these products. “The government’s move to endorse the decision is to discourage the private companies selling substandard products and up competition in business that will ensure quality products to the customers,” said Ganesh Dhakal, spokesman at MoCS.
Traders had recently admitted that sub-standard valves and worn-out regulators were rampant in the market due to high profit motives, which were causing accidents.
Due to substandard products, the chances of cylinder leakage are high. When there is a leak, the gas inside tends to get concentrated in an enclosed area and thus creates a risk of a severe explosion and fire.
After mounting pressure and alarm over risk of leakage, among other problems due to use of sub-standard products, a six-member task force was formed a month ago to study the issue under the coordination of director general of Nepal Bureau of Standards and Metrology (NEBSM).
Mukunda Dhungel, spokesperson for the NOC, said that officially they haven’t received the MoCS decision. But, NOC had been earlier informed that the government would use a one-door policy for the import of these items, Dhungel said. “There are regular casualties happening due to the sale of substandard products but the sellers were reluctant to take the responsibility. This initiative will go a long in reducing the risk of such incidents,” he added.
Suresh Prajapati, general secretary of the Association of LP Gas Industry, said that the move would control the import of sub-standard products and rampant smuggling.
“This will bring down casualties due to LPG related risks,” he said. The prices of products will also be monitored as the product sellers have been cheating the customers, he said. Recently, gas dealers, consumer rights activists and other stakeholders said that more than 30 percent of LPG cylinders in circulation are at high risk of explosion due to the use of sub-standard regulators and pipes.
Around four million gas cylinders are in circulation in the country currently. Several deaths have occurred due to cylinder explosions with seven people lost their lives last year due to cylinder explosions in Kathmandu Valley alone.
NEBSM, that was monitoring the quality and standard of gas and gas related products, stopped its monitoring from 2003. However, with gas cylinder explosion accidents increasing, the Ministry of Industry again called NEBSM in June 2010 to carry out its monitoring.
Sunday, August 29, 2010
NTY moves for international promotion
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, AUG 29 -
The Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) has begun to promote Nepal Tourism Year 2011 aggressively in the international arena in the face of uncertainties in budget allocation and time constraints.
The NTB will be holding promos at the JATA World Travel Fair, Japan in September, in the US in October and in London and China in November.
“We will move to other destinations gradually,” said NTB chief executive officer Prachanda Man Shrestha.
The government has allocated Rs. 230 million to carry out promotional activities at both domestic and international levels. The NTB plans to spend Rs. 150 million on international promotion and Rs. 50 million in the domestic sector. The NTB’s publicity campaign, however, is running behind schedule.
“We cannot wait for the government budget,” said Yogendra Sakya, coordinator of the NTY 2011 implementation committee. He added that the private sector would “leave no stone unturned” to make the campaign a success.
The government had announced the NTY 2011 campaign on Oct. 25, 2008 in a bid to broaden the tourism base as a national priority and mainstream tourism into the national development process.
Apart from budget uncertainties, NTY 2011 has been bedevilled by issues like purchase of aircraft by Nepal Airlines Corporation, eroding competitiveness of travel packages, deteriorating garbage management and improvement of Tribhuvan International Airport.
The campaign had been announced as a public-private-partnership, however, the government’s interest and ownership is absent, said Shrestha. “We are requesting government line agencies and development partners to own NTY 2011 and bring out their programmes to support the campaign,” he added.
Bhola Bikram Thapa, member of the NTY 2011 implementation committee who is coordinating the aviation sector, said that there had been a slight improvement in services at TIA. However, the international airport needs to do more to provide full functional services, he added.
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, AUG 29 -
The Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) has begun to promote Nepal Tourism Year 2011 aggressively in the international arena in the face of uncertainties in budget allocation and time constraints.
The NTB will be holding promos at the JATA World Travel Fair, Japan in September, in the US in October and in London and China in November.
“We will move to other destinations gradually,” said NTB chief executive officer Prachanda Man Shrestha.
The government has allocated Rs. 230 million to carry out promotional activities at both domestic and international levels. The NTB plans to spend Rs. 150 million on international promotion and Rs. 50 million in the domestic sector. The NTB’s publicity campaign, however, is running behind schedule.
“We cannot wait for the government budget,” said Yogendra Sakya, coordinator of the NTY 2011 implementation committee. He added that the private sector would “leave no stone unturned” to make the campaign a success.
The government had announced the NTY 2011 campaign on Oct. 25, 2008 in a bid to broaden the tourism base as a national priority and mainstream tourism into the national development process.
Apart from budget uncertainties, NTY 2011 has been bedevilled by issues like purchase of aircraft by Nepal Airlines Corporation, eroding competitiveness of travel packages, deteriorating garbage management and improvement of Tribhuvan International Airport.
The campaign had been announced as a public-private-partnership, however, the government’s interest and ownership is absent, said Shrestha. “We are requesting government line agencies and development partners to own NTY 2011 and bring out their programmes to support the campaign,” he added.
Bhola Bikram Thapa, member of the NTY 2011 implementation committee who is coordinating the aviation sector, said that there had been a slight improvement in services at TIA. However, the international airport needs to do more to provide full functional services, he added.
Are Nepali skies safe?
SANGAM PRASAIN
AUG 27 -
On Tuesday, the day the ill-fated Agni Air Flight 9N AHE crashed in Makwanpur, a little known aviation news went unnoticed. The regulatory body of aviation in Nepal, Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), grounded five aircraft belonging to Makalu Air and Air Kasthamandap. The reason: the doors of two aircraft opened mid-air. Not an extremely-dangerous scenario by itself, but coming on the back of the Agni Air crash, it points towards a malaise evident in Nepali aviation: a haphazard regulatory body that has overlooked airline operators cutting corners to compromise on safety.
Since 1949, the year the first aircraft landed in Nepal, there have been 63 different crashes involving both airplanes and helicopters, in which 628 people have died. Of these crashes, 95 percent have been said to occur due to what is known in aviation terminology as CFIT, or Controlled Flight Into Terrain—a state of flight when the pilots have full control of the flight and yet the plane hits terrain. Given our topography and climate, especially during the monsoon, it is natural that pilots have to be extra careful while flying, and the ground support staff has to be equally competent to ensure the aircraft is in perfect flying condition.
Unfortunately, it is here that problems lie. Captain Vijay Lama, who has been flying for 23 years, says everyone blames the pilot, but the reality is that “safety begins on the ground and ends on the ground.” He questions CAAN’s policy of giving operating licenses to nearly anyone who applies for it. The regulatory body itself does not enforce the safety regulations it has recommended to the airline operators.
Indeed, among aviation experts and enthusiasts, there are hushed rumours of how airline operators use unscrupulous means to ensure their flights land at certain airports when other airlines have been barred from landing due to poor flying conditions. A CAAN official who did not want to be named says, “If the Agni Air flight had a technical problem, or there was bad weather, who gave the clearance for it to take off?”
Reports suggest that continuous bad weather at Lukla airport for eight consecutive days forced all flights to and from the Everest hub to be cancelled, until the day Captain Laxman Prakash Shah ‘Lucky’ took off in the morning. Lama, who has been a pilot for 23 years, says pilots in Nepal have to operate under tremendous pressure. “There are pilots flying eight hours a day six days a week. They might deny it, but accumulated fatigue does occur. On top of that, there is pressure from everywhere—political leaders getting late for a meeting, airline operators who will lose out on revenue—for pilots to fly no matter what the weather conditions are like.”
The 2006 Ghunsa crash, off-the-record reports suggest, occurred due to the minister’s assistant’s insistence that the minister had to return to Kathmandu for a meeting that very day. This statement is confirmed in the report In Search of Safer Skies: A Report on Aviation Safety, written by journalist Toya Dahal in 2008. Sadly, as aviation enthusiast Hemant Arjyal says, one can only conjecture after the crash has occurred.
The biggest failure towards making Nepali skies safer seems to have been on part of the regulatory body. CAAN’s non-stringent regulation mechanism and willingness to bow under operator pressure remains a major problem, without which, aviation experts agree, the issue of aviation safety cannot be resolved.
For example, there are reports that private airlines, to cut down on costs, remove the back-up generator from one aircraft and use that as the primary generator for another aircraft (an aircraft usually has a backup generator if the primary fails, and even if the backup fails, it can fly on the battery to land safely, at least). Lama asks, “Has CAAN been honest enough to check whether operators are maintaining their aircrafts properly or not?” As Dahal’s report says, CAAN has given air-worthiness certificates, necessary for any commercial aircraft, to operators who do not even have a single aircraft. Repeated efforts to reach CAAN or its officials for comments remained unanswered.
Airline operators deny that they pressure their pilots to fly in bad weather. “Weather is something which is not in one’s hands. It remains the control tower’s jurisdiction whether or not to allow the aircraft to fly. After that, the captain can decide whether the conditions are okay for flying or not,” says Bikas J.B. Rana, chairman of Fishtail Air and ex-president of Airline Operators Association of Nepal. He also says airline operators have to remain within CAAN safety and maintenance guidelines, as there are “regular audits” every six months to a year. “Operators do not want to violate safety regulations.”
Instead, Rana says the most difficult part about flying in Nepal is the terrain, more specifically, the STOL (Short Takeoff and Landing) airfields located in mountainous areas like Lukla. “It is more challenging to land on STOLs than on any other airfield.”
Rana believes Nepal’s aviation standards are stringent, and that maintenance and pilots are “no less than international standards”.
Still, another aircraft has just crashed, and a probe commission has been formed to look into why 9N AHE crashed. The CAAN source, however, remains sceptic. He says that airline operators control the regulatory body to such an extent that some airlines do not even have their own maintenance engineers. “What can be expected from a crash report if the investigating members are all connected to airline operators?” the source says. Arjyal has a similar opinion. “Why should CAAN be any different than other government bodies which are as corrupt?”
Major air crashes in Nepal
Mar. 3, 1955 : A DC-3 belonging to Kalinga Air crashed in Simra, killing two. This was Nepal's first air crash.
July 12, 1969 : A DC-3 belonging to erstwhile-Royal Nepal Airlines crashed in Hetauda, killing 35.
July 31, 1992 : A Thai Airways Airbus A310 crashed into Ghyangphedi, killing 113 people.
Sept. 28, 1992 : In Nepal's most-fatal air crash so far, a Pakistan International Airlines Airbus A300 crashed into Bhattedanda in Lalitpur, killing 167 people.
Oct. 10, 1999 : An Avro HS-748 belonging to Necon Air crashed in Ramkot near Kathmandu, killing 15.
July 27, 2000 : A Twin-Otter belonging to Royal Nepal Airlines crashed in Dadeldhura, killing 25.
Sept. 22, 2002 : A Twin-Otter belonging to Shangrila Air crashed in Kaski, killing 18.
June 21, 2006 : A Yeti Airlines Twin-Otter crashed at Jumla Airport, killing 9.
Sept. 23, 2006 : A MI-17 helicopter belonging to Shree Air crashed in Ghunsa, Taplejung, killing 24. Among others, conservationists Chandra Gurung and Tirtha Man Maskey, and geographer Harka Gurung were killed.
Mar. 3, 2008 : A MI-8 helicopter belonging to UNMIN crashed in Ramechhap, killing 10.
Oct. 8, 2008 : A Twin-Otter belonging to Yeti Airlines crashed in Lukla, killing 18. Only the Captain survived.
Aug. 24, 2010 : A Dornier belonging to Agni Air crashed in Makwanpur, killing 14.
SANGAM PRASAIN
AUG 27 -
On Tuesday, the day the ill-fated Agni Air Flight 9N AHE crashed in Makwanpur, a little known aviation news went unnoticed. The regulatory body of aviation in Nepal, Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), grounded five aircraft belonging to Makalu Air and Air Kasthamandap. The reason: the doors of two aircraft opened mid-air. Not an extremely-dangerous scenario by itself, but coming on the back of the Agni Air crash, it points towards a malaise evident in Nepali aviation: a haphazard regulatory body that has overlooked airline operators cutting corners to compromise on safety.
Since 1949, the year the first aircraft landed in Nepal, there have been 63 different crashes involving both airplanes and helicopters, in which 628 people have died. Of these crashes, 95 percent have been said to occur due to what is known in aviation terminology as CFIT, or Controlled Flight Into Terrain—a state of flight when the pilots have full control of the flight and yet the plane hits terrain. Given our topography and climate, especially during the monsoon, it is natural that pilots have to be extra careful while flying, and the ground support staff has to be equally competent to ensure the aircraft is in perfect flying condition.
Unfortunately, it is here that problems lie. Captain Vijay Lama, who has been flying for 23 years, says everyone blames the pilot, but the reality is that “safety begins on the ground and ends on the ground.” He questions CAAN’s policy of giving operating licenses to nearly anyone who applies for it. The regulatory body itself does not enforce the safety regulations it has recommended to the airline operators.
Indeed, among aviation experts and enthusiasts, there are hushed rumours of how airline operators use unscrupulous means to ensure their flights land at certain airports when other airlines have been barred from landing due to poor flying conditions. A CAAN official who did not want to be named says, “If the Agni Air flight had a technical problem, or there was bad weather, who gave the clearance for it to take off?”
Reports suggest that continuous bad weather at Lukla airport for eight consecutive days forced all flights to and from the Everest hub to be cancelled, until the day Captain Laxman Prakash Shah ‘Lucky’ took off in the morning. Lama, who has been a pilot for 23 years, says pilots in Nepal have to operate under tremendous pressure. “There are pilots flying eight hours a day six days a week. They might deny it, but accumulated fatigue does occur. On top of that, there is pressure from everywhere—political leaders getting late for a meeting, airline operators who will lose out on revenue—for pilots to fly no matter what the weather conditions are like.”
The 2006 Ghunsa crash, off-the-record reports suggest, occurred due to the minister’s assistant’s insistence that the minister had to return to Kathmandu for a meeting that very day. This statement is confirmed in the report In Search of Safer Skies: A Report on Aviation Safety, written by journalist Toya Dahal in 2008. Sadly, as aviation enthusiast Hemant Arjyal says, one can only conjecture after the crash has occurred.
The biggest failure towards making Nepali skies safer seems to have been on part of the regulatory body. CAAN’s non-stringent regulation mechanism and willingness to bow under operator pressure remains a major problem, without which, aviation experts agree, the issue of aviation safety cannot be resolved.
For example, there are reports that private airlines, to cut down on costs, remove the back-up generator from one aircraft and use that as the primary generator for another aircraft (an aircraft usually has a backup generator if the primary fails, and even if the backup fails, it can fly on the battery to land safely, at least). Lama asks, “Has CAAN been honest enough to check whether operators are maintaining their aircrafts properly or not?” As Dahal’s report says, CAAN has given air-worthiness certificates, necessary for any commercial aircraft, to operators who do not even have a single aircraft. Repeated efforts to reach CAAN or its officials for comments remained unanswered.
Airline operators deny that they pressure their pilots to fly in bad weather. “Weather is something which is not in one’s hands. It remains the control tower’s jurisdiction whether or not to allow the aircraft to fly. After that, the captain can decide whether the conditions are okay for flying or not,” says Bikas J.B. Rana, chairman of Fishtail Air and ex-president of Airline Operators Association of Nepal. He also says airline operators have to remain within CAAN safety and maintenance guidelines, as there are “regular audits” every six months to a year. “Operators do not want to violate safety regulations.”
Instead, Rana says the most difficult part about flying in Nepal is the terrain, more specifically, the STOL (Short Takeoff and Landing) airfields located in mountainous areas like Lukla. “It is more challenging to land on STOLs than on any other airfield.”
Rana believes Nepal’s aviation standards are stringent, and that maintenance and pilots are “no less than international standards”.
Still, another aircraft has just crashed, and a probe commission has been formed to look into why 9N AHE crashed. The CAAN source, however, remains sceptic. He says that airline operators control the regulatory body to such an extent that some airlines do not even have their own maintenance engineers. “What can be expected from a crash report if the investigating members are all connected to airline operators?” the source says. Arjyal has a similar opinion. “Why should CAAN be any different than other government bodies which are as corrupt?”
Major air crashes in Nepal
Mar. 3, 1955 : A DC-3 belonging to Kalinga Air crashed in Simra, killing two. This was Nepal's first air crash.
July 12, 1969 : A DC-3 belonging to erstwhile-Royal Nepal Airlines crashed in Hetauda, killing 35.
July 31, 1992 : A Thai Airways Airbus A310 crashed into Ghyangphedi, killing 113 people.
Sept. 28, 1992 : In Nepal's most-fatal air crash so far, a Pakistan International Airlines Airbus A300 crashed into Bhattedanda in Lalitpur, killing 167 people.
Oct. 10, 1999 : An Avro HS-748 belonging to Necon Air crashed in Ramkot near Kathmandu, killing 15.
July 27, 2000 : A Twin-Otter belonging to Royal Nepal Airlines crashed in Dadeldhura, killing 25.
Sept. 22, 2002 : A Twin-Otter belonging to Shangrila Air crashed in Kaski, killing 18.
June 21, 2006 : A Yeti Airlines Twin-Otter crashed at Jumla Airport, killing 9.
Sept. 23, 2006 : A MI-17 helicopter belonging to Shree Air crashed in Ghunsa, Taplejung, killing 24. Among others, conservationists Chandra Gurung and Tirtha Man Maskey, and geographer Harka Gurung were killed.
Mar. 3, 2008 : A MI-8 helicopter belonging to UNMIN crashed in Ramechhap, killing 10.
Oct. 8, 2008 : A Twin-Otter belonging to Yeti Airlines crashed in Lukla, killing 18. Only the Captain survived.
Aug. 24, 2010 : A Dornier belonging to Agni Air crashed in Makwanpur, killing 14.
Budget blues may hit promo
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, AUG 25 -
With uncertainty lingering over the announcement of a full budget, the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation (MoTCA), has started lobbying with the Ministry of Finance (MoF) to release the budget allocated for the Nepal Tourism Year 2011 (NTY-2011) promotion. The government has allocated Rs. 230 million for the promotion.
Only four months are left for the promo to begin. The government has scheduled it from Jan. 14.
“The government has made a positive move just when the weak economy is hitting the pace of growth,” said Laxman Prasad Bhattarai, spokesperson at MoTCA.
NTY-2011 could be the driver to pace the growth forecast to step up from 2011 onwards, Bhattarai said.
Plans for a massive promotion of NTY-2011 abroad have been hit by the delay in budget. The concerned stakeholders and authorities are disheartened by the government’s apathy. The NTY-2011 working committee had scheduled the international promotion campaign from the first week of August. However, lack of a full budget has hampered that.
Yogendra Shakya, coordinator of the NTY-2011 implementation committee, said that by now the private sector investment for the campaign preparation at the domestic level has reached over Rs. 20 million.
According to him, the committee had three strategic programmes at the domestic level - Political commitment, capacity building of the private sector and product. Among these, the committee has succeeded in getting the political sector’s commitment. Similarly, capacity building of hotels and aviation is going on. Hotels have invested over Rs. 300 million while numbers of new tourist standard hotels have been established at the regional level.
In terms of product building, the private sector has discovered new trekking trails. “Recently, we discovered a 140 days Great Himalayan trekking trails as a new product,” Shakya said.
While the private sector has the major role in product and programme development, the government is a major facilitator for infrastructure development and policy making in the tourism sector.
“The NTY-2011 working committee is coordinating with the Ministry of Physical Planning and Works and the Ministry of Local Development for infrastructure development and removal of garbage,” Shakya said.
Bringing in one million tourists in the post-conflict period means creating more business and income-generating activities. Moreover, it can be a vital way to regain lost glory and re-establish the country’s image as a popular holiday destination.
However, bad politics and a weak bureaucracy unable to take independent decisions have put the campaign’s success in the shadow of doubt,” a government official said.
Although, Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) organizes regular tourism promotional events, NTY-2011 needs a separate and aggressive promotional campaign, Aditya Baral, the Board’s spokesman said.
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, AUG 25 -
With uncertainty lingering over the announcement of a full budget, the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation (MoTCA), has started lobbying with the Ministry of Finance (MoF) to release the budget allocated for the Nepal Tourism Year 2011 (NTY-2011) promotion. The government has allocated Rs. 230 million for the promotion.
Only four months are left for the promo to begin. The government has scheduled it from Jan. 14.
“The government has made a positive move just when the weak economy is hitting the pace of growth,” said Laxman Prasad Bhattarai, spokesperson at MoTCA.
NTY-2011 could be the driver to pace the growth forecast to step up from 2011 onwards, Bhattarai said.
Plans for a massive promotion of NTY-2011 abroad have been hit by the delay in budget. The concerned stakeholders and authorities are disheartened by the government’s apathy. The NTY-2011 working committee had scheduled the international promotion campaign from the first week of August. However, lack of a full budget has hampered that.
Yogendra Shakya, coordinator of the NTY-2011 implementation committee, said that by now the private sector investment for the campaign preparation at the domestic level has reached over Rs. 20 million.
According to him, the committee had three strategic programmes at the domestic level - Political commitment, capacity building of the private sector and product. Among these, the committee has succeeded in getting the political sector’s commitment. Similarly, capacity building of hotels and aviation is going on. Hotels have invested over Rs. 300 million while numbers of new tourist standard hotels have been established at the regional level.
In terms of product building, the private sector has discovered new trekking trails. “Recently, we discovered a 140 days Great Himalayan trekking trails as a new product,” Shakya said.
While the private sector has the major role in product and programme development, the government is a major facilitator for infrastructure development and policy making in the tourism sector.
“The NTY-2011 working committee is coordinating with the Ministry of Physical Planning and Works and the Ministry of Local Development for infrastructure development and removal of garbage,” Shakya said.
Bringing in one million tourists in the post-conflict period means creating more business and income-generating activities. Moreover, it can be a vital way to regain lost glory and re-establish the country’s image as a popular holiday destination.
However, bad politics and a weak bureaucracy unable to take independent decisions have put the campaign’s success in the shadow of doubt,” a government official said.
Although, Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) organizes regular tourism promotional events, NTY-2011 needs a separate and aggressive promotional campaign, Aditya Baral, the Board’s spokesman said.
Mustang folks out of bounds
SANGAM PRASAIN
POKHARA, AUG 27 -
Locals of Upper Mustang on Friday have threatened to bar tourists’ entry into the region from Oct. 1 as a protest against the government’s failure to distribute resources collected from the tourists.
According to locals, the Local Self Governance Act provisions that 30 percent of the revenue collected from a tourist area goes for development work of the concerned place, but Upper Mustang has not received its share for over 15 years.
As a result, the region still lacks electricity, roads, schools and hospitals. Food shortage is a perennial problem as the topography of Upper Mustang is unfavourable for crops.
The people of Upper Mustang say that the government is cheating them. “If the government had provided the fund as agreed there wouldn’t be all these problems that we’re having right now,” Raju Bista of Upper Mustang Youth Society said. “The government is simply taking from us and not giving back.” According to Annapurna Conservation Area Project, the government has collected more than Rs. 770 million in revenue through tourism from Upper Mustang, which started from 1993.
The government and the concerned ministries were informed of the people’s protest three months ago.
Rajendra Bajgain, general secretary of Trekking Agencies’ Association of Nepal (TAAN), said it was not TAAN’s responsibility to negotiate with the government.
The issue is one of resource allocation and the government is fully responsible for that. The matter has been hanging fire for a long time. “This shows that the Ministry of Home Affairs is reluctant to settle the issue,” said Bajgain. He added though that the locals do not have right to bar entry into the region as such acts will affect the tourism sector ultimately.
Spokesman at the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation Laxman Prasad Bhattarai said that the issue was not associated with his ministry. He added that the Home Ministry is looking after the issue.
Jay Mukunda Khanal, spokesperson at the Home Ministry said that the issue was of revenue distribution and the Ministry of Finance should take a call on it. “We will dispatch a letter in this regard to the Finance Ministry on Monday,” he said.
The picturesque, majestic windswept landscapes, flat-roofed stone houses and their inhabitants who follow Tibetan culture draw tourists from all over the world to this region. Upper Mustang, a four-day walk from district headquarters Jomsom, is a place where foreign visitors are required to pay US$ 500 per head as entry fee for 10 days.
Meanwhile, the decision taken by the Upper Mustang folk has miffed tourism entrepreneurs in Pokhara who said that shutting off a popular tourist destination just ahead of Nepal Tourism Year 2011 was a bad idea.
SANGAM PRASAIN
POKHARA, AUG 27 -
Locals of Upper Mustang on Friday have threatened to bar tourists’ entry into the region from Oct. 1 as a protest against the government’s failure to distribute resources collected from the tourists.
According to locals, the Local Self Governance Act provisions that 30 percent of the revenue collected from a tourist area goes for development work of the concerned place, but Upper Mustang has not received its share for over 15 years.
As a result, the region still lacks electricity, roads, schools and hospitals. Food shortage is a perennial problem as the topography of Upper Mustang is unfavourable for crops.
The people of Upper Mustang say that the government is cheating them. “If the government had provided the fund as agreed there wouldn’t be all these problems that we’re having right now,” Raju Bista of Upper Mustang Youth Society said. “The government is simply taking from us and not giving back.” According to Annapurna Conservation Area Project, the government has collected more than Rs. 770 million in revenue through tourism from Upper Mustang, which started from 1993.
The government and the concerned ministries were informed of the people’s protest three months ago.
Rajendra Bajgain, general secretary of Trekking Agencies’ Association of Nepal (TAAN), said it was not TAAN’s responsibility to negotiate with the government.
The issue is one of resource allocation and the government is fully responsible for that. The matter has been hanging fire for a long time. “This shows that the Ministry of Home Affairs is reluctant to settle the issue,” said Bajgain. He added though that the locals do not have right to bar entry into the region as such acts will affect the tourism sector ultimately.
Spokesman at the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation Laxman Prasad Bhattarai said that the issue was not associated with his ministry. He added that the Home Ministry is looking after the issue.
Jay Mukunda Khanal, spokesperson at the Home Ministry said that the issue was of revenue distribution and the Ministry of Finance should take a call on it. “We will dispatch a letter in this regard to the Finance Ministry on Monday,” he said.
The picturesque, majestic windswept landscapes, flat-roofed stone houses and their inhabitants who follow Tibetan culture draw tourists from all over the world to this region. Upper Mustang, a four-day walk from district headquarters Jomsom, is a place where foreign visitors are required to pay US$ 500 per head as entry fee for 10 days.
Meanwhile, the decision taken by the Upper Mustang folk has miffed tourism entrepreneurs in Pokhara who said that shutting off a popular tourist destination just ahead of Nepal Tourism Year 2011 was a bad idea.
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