Indians assaulted in Nepal over kidnap fears

October 7th, 2009 KATHMANDU - Frustrated by the continuous turbulence in Nepal's Terai plains and threats by over 100 armed groups, Indian tobacco major ITC is seeking a backup for its tobacco factory where production can continue unhindered. Twenty-three years ago, ITC set up its India-Nepal-Britain venture in Nepal, Surya Nepal Private Ltd, with a state of the art tobacco factory in Simra town on the India-Nepal border.

October 7th, 2009 KATHMANDU - Nepal says they have no idea about the criminal life led by Abdul Majid Siddiqui - also known as Majid Maniyar - who, according to the Indian police headed a fake Indian currency and arms smuggling network in Nepal and was allegedly an operative of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence. "We have no official information about Maniyar," Nepal's home ministry spokesman Jaya Mukunda Khanal said Wednesday, 48 hours after Maniyar was found murdered in a hotel room in southern Nepal along the India-Nepal border.

September 15th, 2009 KATHMANDU - Indian Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao, who Tuesday wound up her two-day Nepal visit with a trip to the revered Pashupatinath temple here, said the Nepal government has reassured her protection for the two newly-appointed Indian priests there. "The government of Nepal has assured me that they have taken all necessary measures to ensure the security and well-being of Indian priests and continuation of regular prayers at the temple," Rao told mediapersons.

August 15th, 2009 KATHMANDU - In a joint operation by the police of India and Nepal, four Indians have been arrested for the abduction of a Nepali telecom official who went missing last month. Shekhar Pokhrel, a regional supervisor of the state-run Nepal Telecom, was kidnapped from Biratnagar town on the India-Nepal border July 17 while overseeing the repair of a mobile telephone tower, police said.

July 9th, 2009 KATHMANDU - The Nepal government said it would seek better ties with neighbours India and China, as it unveiled policies and programmes for the current financial year Thursday. A 27-page document, presented in parliament by President Ram Baran Yadav, said foreign policy would be conducted "on the principles of the UN Charter, Panchasheela, and Non-alignment keeping national interest on the top".

June 28th, 2009 KATHMANDU - Five Indian men narrowly escaped being lynched in Nepal Sunday on suspicion of being child lifters after growing public fears over an increase in the number of kidnappings. They instead ended up in police custody.

June 14th, 2009 KATHMANDU - Nepal's Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal has said the government would ensure security to journalists and would take action against those involved in attacks against journalists at Hotel Malla earlier this week. Speaking to journalists at his Baluwatar residence on Sunday morning, Nepal said his government would leave no stone unturned to provide a safe and sound working environment for journalists.

June 9th, 2009 KATHMANDU - At least 10 Indians were killed while attempting to undertake the pilgrimage to the Mount Kailash in Tibet and the nearby Mansarovar lake, venerated by Hindus, Buddhists and Jains alike. The deaths occurred due to high-altitude sickness as most of the pilgrims were above 60 years and came from cities in plains like Bangalore, Chennai and Lucknow, tourist agencies in Kathmandu said.

May 25th, 2009 KATHMANDU - Indian Ambassador to Nepal Rakesh Sood and United Nations Mission in Nepal (UNMIN) chief Karen Ladgren have separately met newly elected Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal at the latter's residence, Koteshwor. They congratulated Nepal on his election as the new Prime Minister and extended best wishes for his successful term.

April 21st, 2009 KATHMANDU - First, there was a steady stream of visits to Kathmandu by Mumbai's glitterati, including Shabana Azmi, Govinda, Sukhwinder Singh and Daler Mehndi. Now Nepal's tourism ministry has decided to cash in on the interest shown in Nepal by Mumbai-ites by announcing direct Kathmandu-Mumbai flights from May 1.

April 17th, 2009 KATHMANDU - They think nothing of hopping across the border to India to attend a wedding, obtain medical treatment or attend business conferences. But tens of thousands of Indians living in Nepal can't be bothered to make the journey home to cast their votes.

February 26th, 2009 NEW DELHI - India has helped Nepal and Bhutan to set up medical colleges, the Lok Sabha was informed Wednesday. Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare P.

February 21st, 2009 KATHMANDU - Despite scores of law enforcement agencies across the world battling to control drug smuggling, the menace has mushroomed last year with growing links between South Asian neighbours India and Nepal, enforcement officials said. 'Cannabis has become the most widely used illicit drug worldwide and in the last two decades, more potent forms have been developed,' said the annual report of the International Narcotics Control Board, released in Kathmandu Friday.

February 19th, 2009 KATHMANDU - Despite scores of law enforcement agencies across the world battling to control drug smuggling, the menace has mushroomed last year with growing links between South Asian neighbours India and Nepal, enforcement officials said. 'Cannabis has become the most widely used illicit drug worldwide and in the last two decades, more potent forms have been developed,' said the annual report of the International Narcotics Control Board, released in Kathmandu Friday.

January 6th, 2009 KATHMANDU - Though the growing dispute over the ouster of Indian priests at Nepal's revered Pashupatinath temple has saddened some Indians, it would however not hurt India-Nepal ties, India's top envoy in Nepal has said. Rakesh Sood, India's ambassador to Nepal, said that Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda has pledged that his government would obey the orders of the Supreme Court in this regard.