Democracy For Nepal

Tuesday, August 02, 2005

Melamchi

Either you shift the national capital to some place like Chitwan and have endless supplies of drinking water from the Narayani River - my first choice option - or you do something drastic like the Melamchi scheme to meet the fundamental need of water in the Kathmandu valley. "At present, the Nepal Water Supply Corporation (NWSC) is able to provide only 90 million liters a day (MLD) of water whereas the demand is soaring above 230 MLD. As such, the need for Melamchi project, which in its first phase will pump in extra 170 MLD, is undeniable." (Dahal, Spotlight)

Only a democratic government that answers directly to the people could envision shifting the capital. And even a democratic government has a hard time getting together an international coalition of donors to make such an expensive project as the Melamchi possible. The proof is in the poodle. Melamchi has been talked about for over 20 years now. The fact that finally Melamchi seemed to have been coming along has been a lot of work done by several governments.

So what is going on?

The terror card did not work. So the junta went all out for the corruption card. It was going to be made clear once and for all as to why Deuba needed to be sacked, and corruption was going to do it.

Instead the Melamchi debacle is going to become the most visible reason of as to why this junta needs to go. The ways of this regime are such that it goes against the interestes of the people in such a direct, visible, obvious way.

A country or a person or an institution is not great and trustworthy just because it is foreign. But when the Asian Development Bank and the government of Norway express displeasure with this regime's attacks on the Melamchi project, it is obvious they are in the right.

The RCCC is an illegitimate body whose basic functionings are an offense to all the basic premises of the modern day exercises of state power. It is solid proof of the medieval nature of the institution of monarchy. The illegitimate ways of the RCCC has made it deny the fundamental logic of the need for water in the valley through seeking global help. The "verdict" is so very anti-people. The state media actually has had the temerity to suggest "eco friendly" houses to the Kathmanduites as a solution to the water shortage problem.

The RCCC defies logic and many other things. If it were not so blatantly offensive, it would be quite a curiosity.