Reports from Nepal say the royal government has lifted a ban on Indian news channels imposed after King Gyanendra's seizure of absolute power on February first. The reports say Kathmandu decided to resume offering Indian cable channels, such as Zee News and Star News, following a meeting last week. The government suspended civil liberties and put the media under military control immediately after the royal takeover. It also temporarily restricted access to Internet and cell phones. Although many restrictions have been eased and the state of emergency lifted on April 29th, the government continues to detain journalists and pro-democracy activists. There is a ban on criticism of the king, and also on any independent reporting on the country's Maoist insurgency that has claimed more than 11-thousand lives since 1996.