Pravesh Saria in Chicago may have little knowledge of happenings in a country run by unqualified people (Letters #155). Nepal is among few developing countries which passed (back in 1997) a progressive and private sector-focused law to reform the telecom sector. Apart from two licenses issued to basic as well as mobile telephone service operators, there are presently more than a dozen Internet Service Providers, half a dozen VSAT operators and few Radio Paging companies in the private sector. As to his contention that only incapable engineers serve their motherland by working in government organisations like NTC, we have 300-plus graduate engineers in NTC, a majority of whom are within the top 50 category of SLC/ISc exam results. It is a matter of individual choice, where one wants to live: amidst the himals or in high rises, to eat dal bhat tarkari or junk food, whether one is comfortable serving foreign masters or staying with parents. Immigration of people from Nepal to foreign countries is not due to existence of politically connected people, millions under the table, dumped professionals, or due to a slow privatisation process. Migration is a worldwide phenomenon, and not unique to Nepal.

Sugat Ratna Kansakar
Deputy General Manager, NTC