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The federal government’s plan for an industrial estate in Karnali province has not moved beyond location-scouting and feasibility study in the past five years.

Search for a suitable place for the project development began not long after the federal government announced the plan to build industrial estates in each of the seven provinces. But five years down the line, the location for the proposed industrial estate is yet to be decided.

Two locations were initially proposed—first at Satakhani and the second at Lekbesi, both in Surkhet. But the subsequent feasibility studies rejected both the sites. Two years elapsed in the process.

Two other sites—Chhinchu in Surkhet and Chupra in Dailekh—were next considered. This time, Chhinchu was proposed as an ideal site for the industrial estate, as it had a good highway and electricity access. But the proposal was never followed through.

There have been several inspections and studies for a potential project site, but none has been approved, says Jiva Narayan Banjade of Industrial District Management Limited, Birendranagar.

“The plan for the industrial estate has been limited to pow-wows and proposals,” he says. “Without confirming the project site, we can’t tell if or when the project will start.”

Industrialists in Surkhet say lack of coordination between the federal and provincial governments has also caused the delay in project development.

They say their repeated requests to the authorities at both federal and provincial levels to expedite the project have gone unheard. They even drew the attention of the President, Vice President, prime minister and chief minister to the problem, but to no avail.

The concerned industrialists say that the federal government announced the plan, but it didn’t deem it necessary to coordinate with the provincial government for its execution. The provincial government also didn’t take the initiative to see the project through.

The Karnali provincial government has instead proposed its own plan for an industrial area.

“We were working on our own plan for an industrial estate in Karnali province last year, so we could not coordinate on the federal government’s project,” says Sher Bahadur Shahi, information officer at the provincial Ministry of Industry, Tourism, Forest and Environment.

In a major decision, 38 accused have been sentenced to death by hanging in the Ahmedabad serial blast case. This is the first time in India in which so many accused have been sentenced to death in a single case.

Eleven of the accused have been sentenced to life in prison. The case will now go up to the Gujarat High Court, where the death sentences will be confirmed.

All the accused were digitally present from different jails in the country while the court was announcing the sentence.

The special court had last week convicted 49 people and acquitted 28 others, more than 13 years after a series of bomb blasts killed 56 people and left over 200 injured in Ahmedabad, within 70 minutes, on July 26, 2008.

The accused were convicted under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, UAPA, Explosive Substances Act and Damage to Public Property Act. One accused was also convicted under the Arms Act.

They were convicted under sections 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder), 121 (a) (conspiracy to wage war or attempt to wage war against the nation) and 124 (a) (sedition) among others of the IPC, and 16(1)(a)(b) of the UAPA related to punishment for a terrorist act.

The court had concluded a trial against 77 accused in September last year. Of the 78 accused put on trial, one had turned an approver.

The police had claimed that people associated with the terror outfit Indian Mujahideen (IM), a faction of radicals of the banned Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), were involved in the blasts.

It was alleged that the IM terrorists had planned these blasts to avenge the 2002 post-Godhra riots.

Days after the serial blasts in Ahmedabad, the police had recovered bombs from different parts of Surat, following which 20 FIRs were registered in Ahmedabad and 15 in Surat. The trial was conducted after the court merged all 35 FIRs.

A man died after a school bus hit him in Urlabari Municipality-1, Morang on Thursday evening.

The deceased has been identified as Bhata Bahadur Shrestha (56) of Miklajung Rural Municipality-3.

Police said that the bus (Ba 1 Ka 5609) was heading towards north from south when the incident occurred along the Urlabari-Madhumalla road section.

Critically injured in the incident, Shrestha breathed his last during the course of treatment at the B and C hospital in Birtamod, Jhapa, traffic police Inspector Chandra Bahadur Khadka.

Police said that they have impounded the bus and arrested its driver Hariraj Bhattarai (60) for investigation.

The government has decided to add three more Additional Inspector Generals in the Nepal Police.

A Cabinet meeting held on Thursday made the decision to this effect, a minister said.

Home Minister Bal Krishna Khand had proposed to increase the number of Additional Inspector Generals in the Nepal Police.

With the addition, the number of Additional Inspector Generals in Nepal Police reached eight.

Similarly, the government has decided to appoint Ramesh Hamal as the Chairman of the Nepal Securities Board.