Nepal Forum of Environmental Journalists (NEFEJ) expresses serious concern on the government initiation to allow privately-owned elephants inside the Chitwan National Park for business purposes.

Nepal’s first national park - Chitwan National Park - is famous for biodiversity conservation and has been listed as the World Heritage Site. The park is known world over as home to Asian Rhinoceros and Royal Bengal Tiger.

The 26th Annual General Meeting of Nepal Forum of Environmental Journalists (NEFEJ), held on 14 October, has unanimously elected a 13-member executive committee with Laxman Upreti as its president. Upreti was elected for the second term.

The newly-elected office-bearers include Kedar Sharma as vice president, Rajesh Ghimire as general secretary, Rajendra Basnet as secretary and Abdullah Miya as treasurer.

Narayan Sapkota, Purna Hari Amatya, Suresh Sharma, Rajendra Manandhar, Sangita Lama and Pragati Shahi were elected from the members while Shailendra Pokhrel and Bhumi Raman Nepal were elected as members from the organization’s associate members.

Pramod Tandon, a young and upcoming environmental journalist, received the Environmental Journalism Award 2010, established by NEFEJ, for his continuous effort in sensitizing the issues of environmental conservation and sustainable development in Rajdhani daily.

Government of Nepal, Ministry of Environment (MoEnv) and Nepal Forum of Environmental Journalists (NEFEJ) have signed the Memorandum of Understading (MoU) on August 1, 2011 to work in collaboration for environment conservation and promotion, sustainable development, and climate change management. MoU was signed in the office of Ministry of Environment.