NEPAL:Nepal's government will withdraw hundreds of King Gyanendra's aides, including cooks, waiters, clerks and the queen's beauticians from the palace.
The decision is a further blow to the king, who has largely been confined to his palace since 2006, when he bowed to weeks of pro-democracy protests and gave power back to political parties a year after he sacked the government.
Nearly 800 staff have been removed, including servants employed to pluck flowers for prayers conducted by the king and his family members, Queen Komal's hairdressers and palace photographers.
After the king relinquished power, Nepal's new multi-party government moved swiftly to strip him of most of his powers, including control over the army.
The government also plans to nationalise property accumulated by King Gyanendra since he ascended the throne in 2001 and has told him to pay taxes.
This week, prime minister Girija Prasad Koirala, who had been supporting a ceremonial role for the king, asked him to abdicate, saying the monarch and crown prince Paras had lost their reputation.
