What are the pros and cons of the news? ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------. ADB warns of withdrawal from Melamchi The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has warned of pulling out of multi-million-dollar Melamchi drinking water project after Minister for Works and Physical Planning Hishila Yami wrote a letter to the Kathmandu Valley Drinking Water Limited expressing the government's inability to sign management contract for valley water distribution. According to Kantipur daily, Yami, who is a senior Maoist leader, wrote a letter stating that the government does not wish to go for management contract for the time being. The ADB, when it agreed to provide loan assistance of $140 million to the project, had laid down the precondition that valley's water distribution management should be handed over to foreign private sector company. The letter signed by acting Secretary at the Ministry Purna Prasad Kadariya states that the government will not provide 'letter of award' since the minister wants to take the proposal to the cabinet for reviewing the management contract. Earlier, the cabinet had approved awarding the contract to a British company Severn Trent. As per the approval, the Severn Trent should have been handed over the management job by May 15. On the other hand, the daily quotes sources as saying that Keichi Tamaki, an ADB official who looks after the project, has warned that failure to sign management contract would lead to revocation of the bank's assistance to the project. nepalnews.com sd May 09 07