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Background Despite political promise to reduce out-of-pocket (OOP) expenditure on healthcare through the National Health Insurance Program (NHIP) of Nepal, its implementation is challenging with low enrolment and high drop-out rates. Program performance can often be linked with political economy considerations and interests of stakeholders. This study aimed to develop an in-depth understanding of organizational and systemic challenges in implementing NHIP. Methods We conducted a structured narrative review of available literature on the NHIP in Nepal. We analysed data using a political economy analysis for health financing reform framework. The findings were explained under six broad categories: interest groups, bureaucracy, budgets, leadership, beneficiary and external actors. In addition, we triangulated and further presented the literature review findings using expert opinions (views expressed in public forums). Results Nepal has formulated acts, rules, regulations, and policies to implement NHIP. Under this program, the Health Insurance Board (HIB) is the purchaser of health services, and health facilities under the Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP) are the providers. The NHIP has been rolled out in all 77 districts. Several challenges have hindered the performance of NHIP at the policy and implementation levels. Challenges under interest groups included inadequate or delayed reimbursement and drop-out of hospitals in implementing the programme. Bureaucracy-related challenges were hegemony of provider over the purchaser, and inadequate staff (delay in the approval of organogram of HIB). There was inadequate monitoring of premium collection, and claim reimbursement was higher than collected premium. Challenges under leadership included high political commitments but weak translation into action, consideration of health insurance as poor return on investment, and intention of leaders to privatize the NHIP. Beneficiaries experienced compromised quality of care or lack of services when needed, high drop-out rates and low interest in renewal of premiums. External actors provided technical assistance in policy design but limited support in implementation. Conclusions Despite enabling a policy environment, the NHIP faced many challenges in implementation. There is an urgent need for institutional arrangements (e.g. digitalization of claims and reimbursement, endorsement of organogram of HIB and recruitment of staff), increased coverage of financial protection and service (increased benefit package and introduction of cost-sharing/co-payment model), legislative reforms (e.g. legal provision for cost-sharing mechanism, integration of fragmented schemes, tripartite agreement to reimburse claims and accreditation of health facilities to ensure quality healthcare), and leveraging technical support from the external actors. High levels of commitment and accountability among political leaders and bureaucrats are required to strengthen financial sustainability and implementation.

Background: Coronavirus Disease, 2019 (COVID-19) is a highly infectious respiratory disease with high transmissibility. Dentists are at inherent risk because of aerosol generating procedures exposing dentists to the respiratory and oral secretions of the patients. Objective: To assess the knowledge, awareness, and practice (KAP) of the Dentists to combat the pandemic which could help shape future guidelines and policies to be implemented in dental settings. Method: This cross-sectional descriptive study included series of multiple-choice questions distributed online, assessing dentists’ KAP towards COVID-19, its impact on dentistry and their psychological well-being. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences) version 20 for mac Operating System (OS). Descriptive statistics was performed, and frequencies of responses were reported in proportion. Non-parametric tests of independence and Chi-square test were performed to see the association between the categorical variables. Result: Around 84% of the respondents accurately answered mode of transmission, 68% inquired about the travel history while only 49% measured the body temperature. Also, only 42% were receiving salary. A statistically significant difference concerning impact and practice during the COVID-19 was observed between general practitioner and specialist working at different work places. Conclusion: Majority of Dentists have good knowledge and awareness but there were certain pitfalls in attitude and practice level calling out for more efficient training programs, precise guidelines, and treatment protocols to put into practice. Also, the mental distress and the financial impact subjected upon dentist require to be further explored determining the association between their mental health during and post COVID-19 outbreak.

Family forest owners represent the largest forest ownership group in the United States, but only about a quarter of their land has a forest management plan and only one in five receives professional forest management advice. Identifying communication avenues which provide technical forestry information to these owners is a long-standing problem in American forestry. Programs and activities that increase forest owner engagement have been shown to influence active forest management on these forests, and forest owners’ associations (FOAs) are a key source which supports this type of engagement. We report on a study of the similarities and differences among FOA members and nonmembers in terms of characteristics and forest management behaviors, which will be useful in planning outreach strategies and extension programs. Results indicate that about 16% of the southern forest landowners belong to FOAs, and have multi-objective reasons for owning forest land in the southern United States. FOA members and nonmembers statistically differed in terms of land holdings, reasons for owning forest land, having a management plan, and forest management activities. Members were more likely to be male and have higher incomes. Landowners’ preferred mediums for receiving forestry information varied with their membership status, with members strongly preferring information sharing which involved landowner/forester networking opportunities such as workshop and classes; while nonmembers preferred distance or non-personal means of communications. Findings clearly suggest preference differences in forestry information sources and communication formats to influence forestry behaviors of members and nonmembers in the southern United States.

Water supply schemes should be technically and socially sustainable for smooth running, smooth operation and maintenances. Failure in either one of these leads to the whole system failure. Once the system is technically feasible, we can manage its social aspects. In this paper, we deal with technical sustainability of corrosive water, its impacts and the remedial measures. Corrosive water can severely damage intakes, metal pipes, cemented chambers, concrete reservoir and household plumbing systems. Hence, it is necessary to identify the corrosiveness of the water and should be neutralized. There are several solutions to this problem, however, they are not sustainable and economical for semi urban and rural communities. In this paper, we propose a sustainable, natural and economical solution to determine the corrosiveness of water and to effective technology to neutralize it. The proposed solution uses naturally available resources, hence makes it sustainable and affordable. Once the proposed method is deployed, it doesn’t require additional resources such as continuous monitoring, skilled manpower and electrical power cost etc. In this method, initially, the corrosiveness of the water is identified using parameters such as: total dissolved solid (TDS), pH, temperature, calcium and alkalinity. The corrosive water is then analyzed in laboratory. With carbon dioxide kinetic study, we verify the design of stabilization tank volume calculation. The research outcome is applied in the field to upgrade intake, pipe and fitting designs. The experiment in this research is conducted with the data obtained from several water supply schemes including Padampokhari water supply scheme in Nepal and tested in the same water supply scheme.

Background Coronavirus Disease, 2019 (COVID-19) is a highly infectious respiratory disease with high transmissibility. Dentists are at inherent risk because of aerosol generating procedures exposing dentists to the respiratory and oral secretions of the patients. Objective To assess the knowledge, awareness, and practice (KAP) of the Dentists to combat the pandemic which could help shape future guidelines and policies to be implemented in dental settings. Method This cross-sectional descriptive study included series of multiple-choice questions distributed online, assessing dentists' KAP towards COVID-19, its impact on dentistry and their psychological well-being. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences) version 20 for mac Operating System (OS). Descriptive statistics was performed, and frequencies of responses were reported in proportion. Non-parametric tests of independence and Chi-square test were performed to see the association between the categorical variables. Result Around 84% of the respondents accurately answered mode of transmission, 68% inquired about the travel history while only 49% measured the body temperature. Also, only 42% were receiving salary. A statistically significant difference concerning impact and practice during the COVID-19 was observed between general practitioner and specialist working at different work places. Conclusion Majority of Dentists have good knowledge and awareness but there were certain pitfalls in attitude and practice level calling out for more efficient training programs, precise guidelines, and treatment protocols to put into practice. Also, the mental distress and the financial impact subjected upon dentist require to be further explored determining the association between their mental health during and post COVID-19 outbreak.

The study of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in low-latitude tropical and subtropical urban cities is necessary to assess their local and global impacts on ecosystems and human health. Despite studies on levels of POPs in water, soils, and sediments, analysis of the distribution patterns, seasonality, and sources of POPs in urban regions of Nepal remain limited. Polyurethane foam (PUF)-based passive air samplers were deployed in three major cities in Nepal: Kathmandu (the capital city), Pokhara, and Hetauda (agricultural cities). Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) and hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH) were the dominant organochlorine pesticides in the atmosphere at all sites. The average concentrations of POPs were ∑ DDTs, 8.7–1.0 × 103 pg m−3; ∑ HCHs, 5.3–3.3 × 103 pg m−3; HCB, 5.8–3.4 × 102 pg m−3; ∑ endosulfan, BDL–51 pg m−3; and ∑ 6PCBs, 1.4–47 pg m−3. Isomer and metabolite ratio analyses suggested that the concentrations present were from both new and historical applications of the POPs. Vegetable production sites and their market places appeared to be the major DDT and HCH source areas. Higher atmospheric concentrations of DDT and HCH occurred during the pre-monsoon and monsoon seasons, and winter, respectively, closely associated with their local application for soil preparation and vegetable spraying. The estimated travel distances of the POPs (HCB, α-HCH, γ-HCH, and p, p′-DDT) under the Nepalese tropical climate were all above 1000 km, suggesting that high precipitation levels in the tropical climate were not enough to scavenge the POPs and that Nepal could be an important source region for POPs. Due to their close proximity and cold trapping (driven by low temperatures), the high Himalayas and the Tibetan Plateau are likely the key receptors of POPs emitted in Nepal. These results add to the information available on POPs from tropical developing countries.

First-year seedling survival impacts all subsequent management planning in plantation forestry. Descriptive statistics of first-year seedling survival data from the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry (LDAF) indicated that survival success reaches a plateau at between 79% - 85% under normal weather conditions. We provide an explanation for this plateau based on an analysis of seedling and microsite qualities involved in operational pine plantations by: 1) using a conceptual model demonstrating how variation in seedling quality and microsite quality interact to determine plantation survival, 2) presenting an example to characterize quality distributions of seedling and microsite qualities, and 3) comparing model outcomes based on measured distributions to realistic values of first-year survival. Simulation results indicated that consistent survival could result from random pairings of initial seedling and site quality distributions. LDAF data analysis indicated that 72% of seedlings were associated with the most frequent quality class that comprised seedlings with stem caliper between 3.2 to 4.7 mm and average stem height and volume of 25.75 cm and 3.43 cm3, respectively. Similarly, assessment of microsites at planting sites in Southeast Louisiana indicated that 48% of planted seedlings were associated with the most frequent microsite quality class which supported first-year height increment between 9 to 29 cm. Modelling of current operational practice indicated that using seedlings with larger caliper size would increase first year survival, but would result in higher establishment costs. The conceptual model could be modified to for use in other regions regardless of species types involved.

Forest carbon sequestration is considered one of the most efficient strategies for climate change mitigation, and forests provide significant carbon storage in the United States. Non-industrial private forest (NIPF) ownership is the dominant ownership group in the southern US, but little is understood about landowners' willingness to manage forests for carbon sequestration. This study examines NIPF landowner willingness to delay final timber harvest for additional carbon sequestration despite unknowns about positive or negative impacts to profitability that result from carbon price fluctuations. Survey data from 735 landowners in the southern United States were used to estimate a probit model analyzing their participation behavior. Landowner willingness to participate in carbon sequestration practices was 55%, 25%, and 16% when such practices were more profitable, revenue neutral or less profitable than timber management only, respectively. Although many landowners would require a significant monetary incentive to participate in carbon sequestration, others would participate with little or no incentive. Those having recreational goals for their property were the most likely group to participate in carbon sequestration. Management changes (i.e., management plan and verification requirements) and carbon revenue were the two most important determinants of their probability of participation. In summary, this study provides a better understanding of the relationship between landowner participation and socioeconomic details, sequestration program attributes, attitudes, and behaviors. Designing education, incentive, and assistance programs that align with landowners' recreational goals would result in a low-cost carbon sequestration policy.

To implement effective climate change mitigation and carbon sequestration activities in the southern US, nonindustrial private forest landowner (NIPF) participation is necessary because of the significant area of forest land under their ownership. For policy implementation to involve this major ownership group in climate change mitigation activities in this region, it is important to understand their forest management motivations and understanding toward carbon sequestration. This study develops a regional typology of NIPF landowners based on reasons for owning forest land in the southern US. The specific goals were to: (1) segment NIPF landowners into smaller homogeneous groups based on reasons for owning forest land; (2) identify landownership characteristics and forest management behavior by ownership groups; and (3) assess their climate change beliefs and understanding of forest carbon sequestration by ownership groups. A principal component-cluster analysis of 735 responses to a mail questionnaire distributed to NIPF landowners in the southern US revealed three groups, which were named amenity, multi-objective, and timber-oriented landowners. The amenity group included 21% of the landowners, while the timber and multi-objective groups included 40% and 39% of the landowners, respectively. These landowner groups varied in terms of owner characteristics, forest species type and management behavior, climate change beliefs and understanding of carbon sequestration. The amenity and multi-objective owners tend to have more positive belief toward climate change than the timber group, but more landowners in each group indicated having poor understanding of forest carbon sequestration. The study fills a knowledge gap in research efforts by developing a regional typology of NIPF landowners and linking it with their forestry resources and management strategies along with their climate change beliefs and understanding of forest carbon sequestration.

Background Workers in the brick manufacturing industries require to carry heavy loads, do repetitive work and remain in awkward postures for extended periods of time. These activities may cause them to develop work-related musculoskeletal symptoms and disorders. Objective To investigate the epidemiology of musculoskeletal symptoms and disorders among brick manufacturing workers as well as similar exposure groups among brick kiln workers. Method An analytical cross-sectional study was conducted during February - March 2015 in the Kathmandu Valley. From 16 brick kilns, 400 interviewees involving green brick molding, green brick stacking/carrying, red brick loading/carrying, coal crushing/ carrying and firing were recruited. An unmatched equal size of reference group of grocery workers was maintained for comparison. Prevalence of all musculoskeletal symptoms and disorders were computed and compared among brick workers and grocery workers as well as similar exposure groups among brick kiln workers. Result The musculoskeletal symptoms and disorders were prevalent in 90.5% of the exposed and 82.2% of the reference group. Brick kiln workers were about two times more likely to experience musculoskeletal symptoms and disorders compared to the reference group. When the associations among similar exposure groups were evaluated, there were significantly high prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms and disorders among green brick molders, red brick loaders/carriers and coal crushers/ carriers in comparison to firemen. Conclusion This study showed a high prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms and disorders among brick kilns workers. Among all similar exposure groups, coal crushing/carrying task significantly elevated with all types of musculoskeletal symptoms and disorders.

Urban wood-waste is an inexpensive but underutilized feedstock for wood-based bioenergy. It includes wooden pallets and shipping containers, wood volumes in construction and demolition debris, railroad ties, given away or disposed volumes of logging residues and wood products from primary and secondary mill processing facilities. So far, little is known about the generation of urban wood-waste and current methods of disposal in Mississippi. A survey was conducted in spring 2013 to estimate the recoverable volumes of urban wood-waste for potential use in bioenergy. Results suggested that more than 321,000 tons of urban wood-waste were recoverable in Mississippi. More than 75 percent recoverable volumes were obtained from rubbish sites. Econometric analysis suggested that waste collection facilities collecting higher volumes of wood-waste and under private ownership were more likely to recover. The wood-waste recoveries in a collection facility with seasonal variation in input were 41 percent higher than others. The available urban waste feedstock was not sufficient to operate a large sized bioenergy industry independently. However, since per unit costs are relatively smaller in urban wood-waste, it can become an important supplemental feedstock to using logging residues or small-diameter trees for bioenergy generation in Mississippi. This study provided quantifiable estimates of urban wood-waste and their potential use for bioenergy production in Mississippi and other neighboring states.

We investigated the effect of fermenting milk with 2 strains (DGCC7785 and St-143) of Streptococcus thermophilus , which are known to produce different types of exopolysaccharide (EPS) structures. The yields and physical properties of these ropy EPS were monitored during the fermentation of milk at different temperatures. We wanted to understand how these types of EPS properties affected yogurt gelation. Reconstituted skim milk was fermented at 33, 39, or 45°C until pH values reached 5.2, 4.9, 4.7, and 4.5. Molar mass of ropy EPS samples was determined using size exclusion chromatography coupled with multiangle laser light scattering. Rheological properties of fermented milk gels were analyzed using small-strain dynamic oscillatory measurements. In both strains, concentrations of ropy EPS increased during fermentation and at all temperatures. Fermentation times, by both strains, were shortest at 45°C and longest at 33°C. For both strains, molar mass of ropy EPS ranged from 2 to 4 × 10 6 g/mol during fermentation. A major proteinaceous contaminant that was co-isolated with the ropy EPS fraction by our isolation method was identified as a milk-derived phosphoglycoprotein PP3. Increase in fermentation temperature from 33 to 45°C significantly decreased the storage modulus values (from 170 to 41 Pa) for milk gelled by strain DGCC7785, whereas the gels made with St-143 had very low storage modulus values (11–17 Pa) regardless of fermentation temperatures. For both strains, the values of maximum loss tangent in the milk gels increased with fermentation temperature; the maximum loss tangent occurred at higher pH values when milk was fermented by strain DGCC7785. The specific type of EPS produced appeared to be responsible for the differences in yogurt texture rather than the concentration or molar mass of the EPS.

The yield and chemical structures of exopolysaccharides (EPS) produced by many strains of Streptococcus thermophilus have been characterized. However, the kinetics (or production profile) for EPS during milk fermentation is not clear. In this study, we investigated whether any differences existed in the yield and molar mass of EPS when milk was fermented at the same acidification rate by 2 strains of S. thermophilus (St-143 and ST-10255y). The type of EPS produced by these 2 strains is different. Milk samples were analyzed for EPS concentration every 30 min during a fermentation period of 270 min (final pH 4.5) by using a modified quantification method, which was faster and validated for its recovery of added EPS. Rheological properties of milks during fermentation were also analyzed using small-strain dynamic oscillatory rheology. For the determination of molar mass, EPS extracts were isolated by ultrafiltration of whey obtained during fermentation of milk to pH values 5.2, 4.9, 4.7, and 4.5, and molar mass was analyzed using size-exclusion chromatography–multi-angle laser light scattering. During fermentation, both strains appeared to start producing significant amounts of EPS after about ∼150 min, which corresponded to pH ∼5.3, which was close to the point of gelation. During the remainder of the fermentation process (150–270 min), the EPS concentration from strains St-143 and ST-10255y significantly increased from 30 to 72 mg/L and from 26 to 56 mg/L, respectively. The quantity of EPS recovered by our modified method was estimated to represent ∼60% of the total EPS added to milk. The molar mass of EPS produced by both strains appeared to slightly decrease during fermentation. At pH 5.2, EPS from St-143 and ST-10255y had molar masses of 2.9 × 10 6 and 1.4 × 10 6 g/mol, respectively, which decreased to 1.6 × 10 6 and 0.8 × 10 6 g/mol, respectively, when the pH of milk was 4.5. Distinct differences were apparent in the rheological properties of gels fermented by the 2 strains. At the end of fermentation, St-143 fermented milk had weaker gels with storage modulus (G′) value at pH 4.6 of 26 Pa, whereas gels made with ST-10255y were stiffer with a G′ value at pH 4.6 of 82 Pa. For St-143 gels, maximum loss tangent (LT max ) values were higher (0.50) and occurred earlier (at a higher pH value) than the LT max values (0.46) for gels from ST-10255y strain. Because the fermentation conditions were identical for both strains, the observed changes in rheological properties could be due to the differences in chemical structures and molar mass of the EPS produced by these 2 S. thermophilus strains.

INTRODUCTION: Urinary tract infection (UTI) is one of the major complications of immobility or bedridden condition. Between 46-59% of spinal cord injury patients develop urinary tract infection during the first year of trauma. UTI is a second most common type of infection, accounting for nearly 25% of all infections and a serious health problem affecting millions of people each year. The findings of the study might be helpful to the long term care health institution for the development the strategies to involve the caretakers to prevent urinary tract infection in bedridden patients. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of the study was to find out the level of knowledge and current practice of caretakers of bedridden patients on prevention of urinary tract infection. METHODS: The descriptive and cross-sectional study design was adopted in this study. A self-prepared structured interview questionnaire and observation checklist was used to collect data from 30 caretakers of hospitalized bedridden patients of Nepal Orthopedic Hospital and Spinal Injury Rehabilitation Center Jorpati implying purposive & convenient sampling technique. RESULTS: Out of30 caretakers, no one had adequate (>80%) knowledge and 46.6% had moderate (50-80%) knowledge and 53.3% had low (

Understanding forestry practices cost is important for predicting the financial outcome of forest management activities. Assessing costs of practices that will be used in the future can be difficult and may result in over or underestimations of financial returns depending on the values used. We used historic real average rates of cost change for the southern United States to assess changes in the values of several loblolly pine plantation management scenarios over time through the use of discounted cash flow (DCF) analysis. Additionally, we analyzed the impact of certain practices cost changes on the financially optimal number of thinnings and rotation age. Findings indicated that declining costs for herbicide site preparation could all but offset the increasing costs of other practices and that a relatively slight increase in timber prices would more than compensate for increasing costs. Also, increasing thinning costs could exacerbate the effects of low sawtimber prices, further decreasing the viability of regimes with multiple thinnings. In the face of stagnant timber prices, the use of operator-select thinnings, and herbicide site preparation could stabilize the long-term financial value of plantation management.

Prolonged intermittent renal replacement therapy (PIRRT) is a recently defined acute modality for critically ill patients, and in theory combines the superior detoxification and haemodynamic stability of continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) with the operational convenience and low cost of intermittent haemodialysis (iHD). We performed a retrospective cohort study for all critically ill adults treated with renal replacement therapy at our centre in Auckland, New Zealand from 1 January 2002 to 31 December 2008. The exposure of interest was modality (PIRRT, CRRT, iHD). Primary and secondary outcomes were patient mortality determined at hospital discharge and 90 days post renal replacement therapy inception, respectively. Co-variates included co-morbidity and baseline illness severity measured by Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation IV and Sepsis-Related Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) and time-varying illness severity measured by daily SOFA scores. We used Marginal Structural Modelling to estimate mortality risk adjusting for both time-varying illness severity and modality exposure. A total of 146 patients with 633 treatment-days had sufficient data for modelling. With PIRRT as the reference, the adjusted hazard ratios for patient hospital mortality were 1.31 (0.60 to 2.90) for CRRT and 1.22 (0.21 to 2.29) for iHD. Corresponding estimates for mortality at 90 days were 0.96 (0.39 to 2.36) and 2.22 (0.49 to 10.11), respectively, reflecting the poorer longer-term prognosis of patients still on iHD at hospital discharge with delayed or non-recovery of acute kidney injury. Our study supports the recent increased use of PIRRT, which within limits can be regarded as safe and effective.

The year 1997 began in very confusing and uncertain political conditions. The uncertainty, writ large in the composition of the second Parliament in which no party commanded an absolute majority, was aggravated by internal divisions within the parties and by unprincipled and highly opportunistic alliance maneuvers. The year witnessed a succession of three unstable coalition governments. In these circumstances, no new concrete policy or firm direction was possible or expected. At the end of the year, the coalition government of the Rastriya Prajantantra Party (RPP) and the Nepali Congress (NC), headed by RPP leader Surya Bahadur Thapa, remains in power. When the year rang in, Sher Bahadur Deuba's NC-led coalition government was in office. It was an uneasy compromise among factions within the NC (76 seats in Parliament), the rightist RPP (19 seats), and the regional Sadbhavana Party (NSP, 4 seats). This opportunistic grouping emphasized the sharing of ministerial portfolios rather than policies. The RPP was widely distrusted within NC and United Marxist-Leninist Party (UML, 89 seats) circles because its leaders had long been associated with the overthrown Panchayat system. It improved its credibility by winning 19 seats in the current Parliament as compared to four in the first, and its general secretary, Pashupati Shumsher Rana, said that his party was now in a strong position to manipulate the two major parties. This coalition government was formed following the reinstatement of the Pratinidhi Sabha (House of Representatives) by a ruling of the Supreme Court. The king had dissolved the prior Parliament, headed by the UML, on the advice of Prime Minister Man Mohan Adhikari. Reading in the UML government's moves a strategy to hold and win both local and national elections while it was in power, the NC opened negotiations with the RPP. It had

Drinking water distribution systems are vulnerable to a variety of terrorist threats including physical attack, cyber disruption and bio-chemical contamination. Hypothetical chemical intrusions were made to perform the vulnerability assessment of a water distribution network to find out the vulnerable zone in the network for different chemical intrusion scenarios. Efficacy of the attack logistics: injection location, injection duration, and injection timing were examined in the full model of the Cherry Hills – Brushy Plain water distribution network. The effect of tank mixing on nodal mass loading and population exposure is studied. Simulation results were used to define network in three zones of influence based upon percentage population exposed. The results generated are of statistical significance and are easily understandable by utilities and designers.

The earthquake of 19 November 1980, which occurred in the Sikkim Himalaya was investigated by waveform modelling technique. The synthetic seismograms for both the P- and S-waves were generated using wave number integration method. The P- wave seismograms were generated using different velocity models for the source and receiver crusts. The S-wave seismograms were produced using only the half-space model for both the source and receiver crusts. Comparing the seismograms of these waves with the respective seismograms digitally recorded by the Global Digital Seismograph Network the source parameters have been estimated. The orientation parameters determined in this way are strike = 119 °, dip = 74° and dip direction = S29W for one modal plane and strike = 218 °, dip= 64° and dip direction = N52W for the other modal plane. The modal plane striking in NW direction has been preferred as representing the fault plane. The depth of the earthquake has been estimated to be 22 km. The total duration of the rupture process has been estimated to be 7 s.

George Orwell's world famous novel often was interpreted as a warning that the year 1984 would bring mankind to a fatal and irreversible transition from freedom to regimentation. No such radical departure took place, in Nepal or elsewhere, despite some uneasy signs gleaned from Amnesty International reports and dramatized by the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. On the contrary, 1984 on the whole was a very ordinary year in Nepal, one of routine complacence, which did not instill any marked sense of movement either poiitically or economically.

Nepal in 1985 was in many ways much the same as in previous years but very different in several important respects. The Lokendra Bahadur Chand government in its third year continued with the same political and economic policies and with the same indifferent level of performance without fulfilling the people's expectations which had been aroused by the historic referendum of 1980. Two or three minor cabinet changes that took place made no more difference than if Tweedledum and Tweedledee had changed places. On the other hand, the year was different in the sense that public feeling that the government had generally failed to provide purposeful leadership not only sharpened but also became more widespread. Elections due in the first half of 1986 cast some shadow on the activities of the government. As a result, while the government's performance itself aroused no enthusiasm, the opposition grew steadily in direct proportion to the discontent both within and outside the panchayat political system. Group politics within the partyless system continued unabated. Outside panchayat politics, political agitation in the form of satyagraha (civil disobedience) marked the year. Less important but more ominous, some sudden acts of violence and terrorism occurred in Kathmandu and other parts of the country in the middle of the year.

Engineering is one of the major fields of applied science without which no country can move forward in the present global context. The teaching/learning of engineering in Nepal is not possible without English at present. The present paper attempts to highlight the relevance of English language for teaching/learning engineering in Nepal, It also attempts to indicate the relevance of the language for engineers to work in their respective fields. The focus of the paper is to suggest planners and teachers to select the need-based English, for the specific engineering purposes in the present world of specialization. Key words: Applied Science; Teaching learning of engineering DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/jie.v8i1-2.5127 Journal of the Institute of Engineering Vol. 8, No. 1&2, 2010/2011 Page: 311-314 Uploaded Date : 20 July, 2011

ing Mahendra had dominated the Nepalese political scene for over a decade and a half and particularly since the Royal take-over of 1960. Acquiring that position through a pragmatic use of tradition, experimentation, and manipulation, he exuded both internally and externally an atmosphere of stability. He identified himself with the twin objectives of nationalism and development; but the nationalist and politician in him got the better of the reformist. The people in Nepal and those outside who were for vari-)us reasons interested in this country had come to view Nepal for some time more or less through him. So, when he died suddenly on January 31, 1972, Nepal was greatly stunned and the world somewhat uncertain as to the shape of things to come in this strategic Himalayan kingdom. The situation carried added poignancy because both India and China had been, for some months, engaging themselves in serious diplomatic and other initiatives designed to bring about a fundamental change in the scale and character of their respective roles in the world. In addition to the moves in the grand strategy involving the United States, the Soviet Union and China, the emergence of Bangladesh, the new stature of India as a power in the area and the evolving equations in Indo-Pakistan relations already reflected a change. King Birenda who succeeded him is a young man in his late twenties. He inherits a tradition which, speaking historically, was enlivened at times by some vital achievements of national unification. In this tradition Prithvinarayan Shah maintains perhaps a sharper image as a national hero than King Tribhuvan. On the other hand, King Birendra has had, unlike his father and indeed most of his ancestors, a solid background of formal education at home and abroad which is bound to color his appreciation of the problems and potentialities of the country. This as well as his youth was responsible for the national mood of expectation during the year. Thus the year 1972 had all the elements of transition for Nepal. Externally, relations with India had come to find their own natural level. The Indo-Nepalese treaty of trade and transit that had been concluded in the latter part of 1971 after a series of negotiations marked by alternations of break-down and progress left some feeling behind it. Accordingly, the treaty continued to invite a fair share of criticism in Nepal, in both political and