The six-member committee includes Nepali Congress (NC) leader Minendra Rijal, UML leader Mangalsiddhi Manandhar, and Forest Minister Mohammad Wakil Musalman, among others. [break]
The committee has been mandated with preparing a master-plan to turn the birthplace of Buddha into a peace zone and tourist hotspot, and garner international assistance for its development.
Interestingly, half-baked initiatives taken by Dahal to bring in an investment of USD 3 billion from Asia Pacific Exchange and Cooperation Foundation (APEC), a little-known Chinese NGO, for the development of greater Lumbini had stirred a controversy in the country.
Dahal was the leader of the opposition at that time while the Nepal government was officially unaware of any such plans. Dahal himself is the vice-chairman of APEC. The Greater Lumbini comprises Rupandehi, Kapilvastu and Nawalparasi districts.
The government has also declared 2011 as Visit Lumbini Year.
The Cabinet meeting on Monday also appointed Ram Prasad Lamsal as the chief of the Timber Corporation of Nepal (TCN) and Harihar Sigdel as the chief of the Medicinal Herbs Processing Center.
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