Cabinet meeting: Govt decides to declare Mukesh Kayastha national martyr

Kathmandu, May 16 : The government has decided to declare the late Mukesh Kayastha a national martyr.

Kayastha had passed away last Wednesday at the age of 32.     

The meeting of the Council of Ministers convened in Singha Durbar on Tuesday decided to this effect, informed Minister for Communications and Information and Technology, Rekha Sharma.     

Kayastha had been known as living martyr after he got injured in a security firing during the second People's Movement on April 9 in 2006. He was bed-ridden since then.     

The government had been providing Rs 15,000 per month for his medication and Rs 6,200 for caretaker. The government had also provided a nurse to attend to him regularly.     

Similarly, the meeting decided to acquire 15 bighhas of land at Bandganga Municipality in Kapilvastu district to build a sub-station for the new Butwal-Lamahi 400 KV transmission line.     

Minister Sharma, also Spokesperson of the government, shared that the government decided to approve the Nepali delegation led by National Planning Commission member Dr Jaykant Raut to participate in the 79th session of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) in Thailand from May 15 to 19.     

Furthermore, approval was given to the Minister for Health and Population to participate in the World Health Assembly to be held in Switzerland from May 21 to 30.     

The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) will be granted permission to acquire around 183.80 ropanis of land in Jumla district to build a terminal building as well as to expand runway of Jumla Airport.     

Responding to the queries of journalists on citizenship bill, Minister Sharma replied that the issues relating to citizenship was a matter of citizens and general public than the matter of haste for the government. She however acknowledged the problems facing those people in absence of the citizenship identity card.     

The Minister shared that the incumbent government was in favor of resolving the issues concerning the lives of people at the earliest. She also urged one and all not to link the Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal's possible official visit to India with the bill related to the citizenship. (RSS)