Source : Sharan Adhikari’s Facebook

food festival 2012

Finally, three day festival of Elephant race competition is here. It is going to be held on December 26, 27 and 28 of year 2011. This marks a celebration of the year 2011 and bids goodbye to year 2011 and, at the same time, welcomes new year 2012. We have had a great tourism year 2011, a significant increase in tourist flow than previous year. Events like Elephant Beauty Contest, Elephant Race, Ox-cart race, Elephant football- (can you imagine !), Canoe race and of course singing and dancing programs. personal favorite is elephant football since its fun to watch humungous animal play football. Also, it is quite unique to have elephants play football. Imagine the number of footballs that go brust!!! Surprisingly, it is also interesting to listen the commentating in the radio.

words taken from : http://www.rhinolodge.com.np/8th-elephant-race-competition-2011/

Sankar Sainju, president of Regional Hotel Association, Sauraha said 30 out of around 80 resorts have agreed to offer special packages to guests visiting Sauraha during the three-day festival. “Most of the big resorts are offering the package,” added Sainju.

Meanwhile, preparations for the 8th Elephant Festival to be organized in Sauraha – often referred to as the gateway to Chitwan National Park – have completed. According to organizers, a total of 10 teams from UK, China, Germany and Brazil as well as 10 domestic teams are participating in the elephant race.

Narayan Bhattarai, coordinator of elephant festival organizing committee, said four teams of elephants will contest in elephant football competition. Similarly, five elephants are competing in the elephant beauty contest.

Bullock cart race, horse drawn carriage race, food festival featuring local cuisines and cultural shows are the other attractions of the event. The festival will be organized at Baghmara Ground.

Basu Bidari, member of publicity committee of the festival, expects tourist arrivals during the festival to increase sharply as the festival is organized during the holiday season of Christmas and New Year.

Source : http://www.myrepublica.com/portal/index.php?action=news_details&news_id=40009

Organizer Chitwan Regional Hotel Association of Nepal organized a press conference in Kathmandu on Tuesday and informed that the event is organized to promote internal and external tourism of Sauraha. Nepal Tourism Board promotes the competition.

The tournament features Elephant Race, Boat Race, Bullock Cart Race, Elephant Football, Elephant Beauty Contest and Cart Race. The organizers have trained 20 elephants for the race and as many calves for the football competition.

Bachhauli Village Development Committee, Mrigakunja Consumers Committee, Baghmara Buffer Zone Community Forest, Chitrasen Buffer Zone Community Forest, United Elephant Management Cooperative Limited, Sauraha Tourism Entrepreneurs Group as well as Restaurant and Bar Association of Sauraha are the co-sponsors of the event.

Source : http://www.myrepublica.com/portal/index.php?action=news_details&news_id=39801

Specially about 8th edition of the Elephant race . Hope you will enjoy us.  Thank you !

- Admin .

KATHMANDU: The difficult worker-management relations has hit yet another company.

The Explore Nepal Group office has remained closed since a week as the workers of Gaida Wildlife Camp — a closed subsidiary of the group — padlocked it asking for their payment of salary.

Workers associated with Nepal Independent Hotel Workers Union had padlocked Explore Nepal Group office after the management failed to pay their salary and benefits last Wednesday, according to secretary of the union Deepak Sapkota. “We are planning to intensify the protest from Wednesday, if the company failed to reach agreement within two days,” he said, adding that they are planning intense protest from Thursday.

They are compelled to go on strike after the management refused to pay salary and benefits – service fee, gratuity and allowances – to workers of Gaida Wildlife Camp that was closed in July 2009 following the dispute with Chitwan National Park administration.

“The management failed to pay salary and benefits to workers according to February 2, 2011 agreement,” he added. In the agreement, Explore Nepal had agreed to pay salary of the year 2010 and 2011 along with 10 per cent service tax, allowances, grades and compensation equivalent to four months’ salary to the workers affected by the closure of Gaida Wildlife Camp.

The Explore Nepal is a leading tourism house in the country which is operating Bhojan Griha, Kantipur Temple House, Koshi Tappu Wildlife and Gau Ghar hotel.

Gaida Wildlife Camp was closed two years ago following expiry of 16 year lease contract with Chitwan National Park.

According to the workers, they asked the management to pay the money repeatedly but management did not respond them. “Even the management did not come in meeting called by Department of labour in April,” said Sapkota.

The management of Explore Nepal accepted that they have to pay salary and benefits. “I have paid salary and benefits of workers till July 2009,” managing director of Explore Nepal Bharat Bahadur Basnet said, adding that the company cannot pay salary and benefits of 2010 and 2011 because the hotel had been already closed.

According to Basnet, the agreement of February 2, 2011 was done forcefully against his will. “I am ready to give provident and gratuity of workers,” he said, adding that he needs some times to settle the dues.

He urged the government to mediate in the dispute. “Ministry of Labour and Transport Management or Department of Labour should come in front to mediate,” Basnet said, adding that he had to pay provident and gratuity of some workers out of 35, who had worked in Gaida Wildlife Camp.

Source :  http://www.thehimalayantimes.com/fullNews.php?headline=Closure+of+Explore+Nepal+office+continues&NewsID=301017

CHITWAN: Journalists were manhandled in Sauraha of Chitwan on Thursday night.

Chitwan-based correspondent for Kantipur national daily, Deependra Baduwal and Chairperson of Sanchar Sanjal Chitwan, Ekal Silwal sustained injuries in the incident.

They are undergoing treatment in Bharatpur medical college.

Local hotel entrepreneurs misbehaved with 11 journalists including former central member of the Federation of Nepali Journalists (FNJ) Bishnu Chhimeki, complained victim journalists.

According to Assistant Sub Inspector (ASI) at Bachhauli Police Post, Min Bahadur Khati, police arrested two persons involved in thrashing journalists and sent them to Ratnanagar Police Office for further action.

Among the arrested are operator of local Jungle Pub, Jiwa Chaudhary and his brother Bishnu Chaudhary.

The hotel operators forced journalists sitting on the chairs of Jungle Pub along the Rapti River bank to go away from there with indecent manner when the latter responded hotel waiter that they were there just to pass few moments, said journalist Binod Babu Rijal.

The dispute took a nasty turn when hoteliers misbehaved journalists saying they are not allowed to sit there without taking orders for any food varieties.

Journalists had reached Sauraha in course of news coverage on the training imparted to child elephants through new techniques.

Source : http://www.thehimalayantimes.com/fullNews.php?headline=Journalist+manhandled+in+Saurahal%26sbquo%3B+2+injured&NewsID=299836

CHANDNI HAMAL

CHITWAN, Aug 6: Hotel staff in Chitwan have gone on strike bringing the hospitality sector to its knees. Their demand is the same old one: Raise the minimum salary to Rs 6,200 per month. Popular hotels like Royal Century and Hotel Global were forcibly closed down by labors Friday morning.

“Hotels have to pay Rs 6,200 per month as fixed by the government otherwise we will not resume our work,” said Prem Cahudhary, the chef of Hotel Global.

“Salary of civil servants have been increased for them to fight inflation. But salary of we poor workers, who anyway get a pittance, has not been increased. Employers are not ready to pay us even when the government has fixed a minimum salary,” said Rajan Acharya, a worker at Royal Century.

He explained that workers are trapped between two strong forces — trade unions and hotel owners. “We are scared of losing our jobs if we strike work like this. But we have no option but to fight for due wages and the trade unions make us protest,” said a worker.

Labor unrest does not seem to ebb ever since the minimum wages pact was signed between three leading trade unions and the umbrella organisation of the private sector Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI). Only, it has picked momentum and is fast moving from manufacturing sector to other sectors. Now, the labors are demanding security, adequate facility and proper working environment at their workplaces. In short, they are asking for industrial peace, which the private sector has been demanding for years.

“Employers start behaving badly once they have to increase their salary under duress. So, we are also demanding security, proper facilities and proper working environment,” he said.

About a dozen hotels have agreed to pay the minimum salary of Rs 6,200 a month as fixed by the government. Trade unions of Chitwan are putting pressure on about two dozen hotels, which collect service charges from customers, to pay the minimum salary.

However, labor unions have not started similar protest in hotels of Sauraha. About 40 out of 80 hotels of Sauraha collect service charges from customers.

“We are working hard to solve the problems of the workers,” said Surya Baral, district coordinator of All Nepal Trade Union Federation (ANTUF).

Until Thursday, unions closed 18 hotels in the area, scaring about a dozen other hotels to pay the minimum salary fixed by the government. Riverside Springs Resort, Hotel Gangotri Highway and Kitchen Café have agreed to raise the wages. Other hotels like Dalima Resort and Red Carpet are holding meetings on the issue, according to ANTUF.

Hotel entrepreneurs are worried as it is Tourism Year and hotels will have to face huge losses if they have to close operations even for a day. Therefore, they are requesting trade unions to resolve problems through discussions at the earliest.

Source : http://www.myrepublica.com/portal/index.php?action=news_details&news_id=34355