Karnali province exported goats worth Rs 3.24 billion, generating substantial income for the people in the fa-flung…
Karnali province exported goats worth Rs 3.24 billion, generating substantial income for the people in the fa-flung…
January 25: The government is preparing to hand over the responsibility of the sovereign credit rating of Nepal to American credit company Fitch Ratings.…
January 25: The number of trademark registrants in the first six months of the current fiscal year has reached 2,538. In the last one month alone, around 400 trademarks were registered with the Department of…
January 25: Central bankers who orchestrated the wave of interest rate hikes over the past two years, hoping to avoid a painful inflationary spiral, are now facing an uncomfortable question: Were their moves…
January 25: The government has formed a three-member committee to study the need for a new stock exchange body in the country.…
January 25: Hundreds of people have been losing their lives due to untimely deaths caused by road accidents in the Kathmandu Valley every year.…
January 25: The election to pick the National Assembly members for the seats that will be vacant from March 4 is taking place today…
January 25: The Fusemachines Inc, a company set up by an entrepreneur of Nepali origin, Dr Sameer Maskey, is set to be listed in the US Stock Exchange-NASDAQ.…
The British College (TBC) has officially launched its new BSc (Hons) Computer Science (Artificial Intelligence) program in collaboration with the University of the West of England (UWE),…
January 24: The state-owned Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) has started the process of seeking additional loans for various…
Coca-Cola Beverages Nepal, the Centre for Integrated Urban Development (CIUD), and WaterAid Nepal (WAN) officially handed over a state-of-the-art groundwater recharge system at Balaju Park in ward number 16 of the Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC). The Deputy Mayor of KMC, Sunita Dangol, received the system on January 19,…
January 24: The National Examinations Board this year has decided to conduct the Secondary Education Examination (SEE) and publish its results in accordance with the Letter Grading Directive 2078…
January 24: The government has adopted strict measures for those who want to travel abroad on a visit visa.…
January 24: Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal has instructed the Ministry of Finance to completely stop adding unnecessary plans in the annual…
January 24: Delegations from over 25 countries of the Asia-Pacific region have gathered in Kathmandu to collectively tackle the issue of illicit arms…
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(RSS) </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19805', 'image' => '20240125034648_collage (29).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 15:45:15', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20077', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Fitch Ratings to undertake Sovereign Credit Rating of Nepal', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The government is preparing to hand over the responsibility of the sovereign credit rating of Nepal to American credit company Fitch Ratings. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">January 25: The government is preparing to hand over the responsibility of the sovereign credit rating of Nepal to American credit company Fitch Ratings. This company has been involved in the sovereign credit rating of the USA.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">This year, the company has lowered the USA’s credit rating from 'AAA' to 'AA'. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">A triple-A rating is the highest rating given by the agency to a country or an institution based on their ability to repay the loan. This rating indirectly shows the company or the country's economic situation. Fitch Ratings had shown interest for rating Nepal since a long time.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Sources at the Ministry of Finance say that the government is preparing to hand over the responsibility of rating the country to Fitch Ratings as it will take a long time to begin a new process of selection of rating agency. The government had mentioned in the budget announcement five years ago that it will opt for the country’s sovereign credit rating. It took almost a year to find the donor for the rating. The government handed over the responsibility of rating to Fitch Ratings after DFIF pledged to financially support the credit rating of Nepal. However, the credit rating was halted due to the onset of the coronavirus pandemic the same year as the government was apprehensive that the credit rating outcome would not be as expected due to the impact of the pandemic.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The government once again included the topic of credit rating in the budget this year. As per the budget announcement, the government has decided to give the responsibility to Fitch Ratings.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19804', 'image' => '20240125023341_fitch-ratings-1671551049.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 14:32:59', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20076', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => '2,538 Trademarks Registered In Six Months of Current FY', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The number of trademark registrants in the first six months of the current fiscal year has reached 2,538. In the last one month alone, around 400 trademarks were registered with the Department of Industry.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">January 25: The number of trademark registrants in the first six months of the current fiscal year has reached <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2</span>,<span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">538</span>. In the last one month alone, around <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">400</span> trademarks were registered with the Department of Industry.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Acquiring trademark from the department means getting legal rights for any business.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Dik Bahadur Karki, director of Industrial Property Branch under the Department, said that the number of trademark registrations has increased of late. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"It indicates that the industries and businessmen are seeking protection of their products and services from the government,” said Karki.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Among the trademarks registered in the department, most of the industries are related to business. Such a trademark can also be owned by companies and businessmen as well as non-profit oranisations. However, most of the trademarks registered during the review period were related to businessmen, says Karki.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">He said that the number of trademarks issued has increased because of the department’s decision to approve the applications of around six to seven thousand that was halted in the past.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Stating that it used to take a year and a half to register a trademark in the past but now the registration process can be completed within six months.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Likewise, the department has received investment proposals worth Rs 136 billion including FDI proposals worth Rs 22 billion.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Altogether 211 industries including industries with domestic and foreign investments have been registered within the six months of current fiscal year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Among them, <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">167 </span>are small industries,<span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif""> 16</span> are middle-scale industries and <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif""> 28 </span>are large scale industries.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19803', 'image' => '20240125021039_20180313095356_Clipboard45.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 14:09:53', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20075', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Did Central Banks Break Inflation?', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: Central bankers who orchestrated the wave of interest rate hikes over the past two years, hoping to avoid a painful inflationary spiral, are now facing an uncomfortable question: Were their moves helpful?', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">January 25: Central bankers who orchestrated the wave of interest rate hikes over the past two years, hoping to avoid a painful inflationary spiral, are now facing an uncomfortable question: Were their moves helpful?</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The debate is heating up as European Central Bank policymakers meet this week, with many observers now expecting its benchmark lending rates to start coming down by this summer.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Governors at the US Federal Reserve are also weighing cuts for later this year, fanning hopes that the price surges seen in the wake of Covid-19 lockdowns and Russia's war on Ukraine have been brought under control.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">But some economists argue that the spikes were only temporary -- and that inflation would have eased anyway, whether or not central banks tried to contain it with tighter monetary policy.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"It was not because of Fed action that the prices of cars, oil, food, or the host of other goods affected by supply-side interruptions came down, but because the underlying shortages were at least partially resolved," said Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Higher rates, however, are often the tool of choice by central bankers to increase borrowing costs for business, which can often spark an increase in jobless rates.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Households, meanwhile, are suddenly confronted with higher mortgage and housing costs, leading them to curb spending and drive down inflation through a fall of demand.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">For Stiglitz and other critics, inflation was not being driven by increased demand -- which can be influenced more directly by the cost of credit -- but by supply constraints due to Covid and the Ukraine war.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"In many ways the Fed made things worse. It was more difficult to make the investments required to alleviate shortages," Stiglitz wrote in an essay for The American Prospect this month.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""> 'Irony' </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Alan Blinder, an economist at Princeton and a former Fed vice chairman, agreed that global economic shocks -- by nature temporary -- stoked the inflation they have now eased even as economic growth on both sides of the Atlantic remains relatively robust.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"What the central banks did went in the right direction for sure, but it was of secondary importance," Blinder told AFP.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"The irony is that they got more blame than they deserved for letting inflation get out of control, and now they are getting more credit than they deserve for bringing it down," he said.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Other economists counter that it was massive Covid stimulus spending, from direct payouts to unemployment and business support, that flooded economies with money likely to drive prices higher.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">That view was countered in June 2022 by Fed chairman Jerome Powell, who discounted the impact of government pandemic aid but insisted nonetheless that sharply higher interest rates were necessary -- even if it meant a recession.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">For Stiglitz, Powell and his supporters were effectively prescribing economic pain for millions: "By killing the economy, there would be no excess demand, and by definition (in their minds) no inflation," he wrote.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Higher wages? </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Some proponents of the rate hikes argue that regardless of the source of inflation, unless central bankers showed they were serious about tackling it, expectations of persistent and widespread price increases would only grow.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"Without a tightening, economic agents could have anticipated inflation would have stayed high," Benoit Mojon, head of economic analysis at the Bank of International Settlements, wrote in a December report.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Those price hikes could have rippled throughout the economy "and resulted in higher wages", he wrote.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Wage pressure has indeed been restrained in recent months, bolstering hopes of a "soft landing" for the US and European economies in which inflation eases while growth stays solid.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Weighing how much of that success is due to central bank policy is likely to fuel debates for months as economists study the unprecedented impacts of Covid and two years of intense war on Europe's doorstep.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">In a recent study, Allianz Trade estimated that Federal Reserve action accounted for 45 percent of slowing inflation, with the rest the result of supply chains returning to normal across the planet.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"You could analyse that by saying everyone was right to an extent," said Maxime Darmet, an economist who authored the study.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"On the other hand you could say that those who think the inflation was only temporary completely ignore the impacts of central banks," he told AFP. – AFP/RSS</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19802', 'image' => '20240125013517_20230820111244_Rising-Inflation.min_.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 13:31:57', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20074', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Govt Forms Committee to Study the Requirement of New Stock Exchange', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The government has formed a three-member committee to study the need for a new stock exchange body in the country. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">January 25: The government has formed a three-member committee to study the need for a new stock exchange body in the country. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">A meeting of the Council of Ministers on Tuesday decided to form the committee headed by former Deputy Governor of Nepal Rastra Bank Chintamani Shiwakoti to study the issue that has courted controversy.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">Other members of the committee include Chartered Accountant Sujan Kumar Acharya and Advocate Sijan Guragain.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">According to the Ministry of Finance, the committee has been mandated to submit within 45 days a report on whether the country requires a new stock exchange or not. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">The Securities Board of Nepal (SEBON) had initiated the process of setting up a new stock exchange entity in September 2023. Currently, the country has only one body to oversee the securities market trading which is done by the state-owned Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE). After the regulatory body SEBON had completed all the due process to establish a new stock exchange entity to diversify the secondary market transaction, the government halted the process.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">A cabinet meeting in during last May instructed SEBON to halt the process of licensing the new security exchange. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">Subsequently, the Finance Committee of the House of Representatives had also instructed the SEBON to put on hold the process of issuing license for a new stock exchange. However, after studying all the documents related to the process of licensing a new stock exchange, the house panel after five months gave the go ahead with the licensing process arguing that the Supreme Court has already issued a verdict in favour of SEBON. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">Himalayan Stock Exchange, National Stock Exchange of Nepal and Annapurna Stock Exchange Limited have so far submitted applications to the SEBON seeking license to operate the new stock exchange entity.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19801', 'image' => '20240125121528_20220907055411_share.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 12:14:39', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20073', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Road Accidents in Kathmandu Valley Claim 88 Lives in Six Months ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: Hundreds of people have been losing their lives due to untimely deaths caused by road accidents in the Kathmandu Valley every year. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Cambria"><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">January 25: Hundreds of people have been losing their lives due to untimely deaths caused by road accidents in the Kathmandu Valley every year. </span></span><br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">According to the Kathmandu Valley Traffic Police Office, as many as 88 people lost their lives in 5,865 road accidents in the first six months of the current fiscal year. Likewise, 148 people were critically injured and 4,438 persons sustained minor injuries. </span></span><br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Most of the deceased in the accidents were motorcyclists and pedestrians. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Cambria"><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Senior vice-president of the National Federation of Nepal Transport Entrepreneurs Punya Prasad Sitaula said that two-wheelers in the Kathmandu Valley are more prone to accidents. "High speed of motorcycles and scooters and pedestrians rampantly crossing the road have caused the highest number of fatalities in Kathmandu," he said. </span></span><br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Spokesperson for the Kathmandu Valley Traffic Police Office, Senior Superintendent of Police Rajendra Prasad Bhatta, said that the traffic police have been conducting various awareness programs to reduce the number of vehicle accidents in the Valley. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Cambria"><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">"We have been tightening the checking of alcohol consumption to reduce accidents. We also ensure that the rules prohibiting vehicles from plying at a speed of more than 50 kilometers per hour to control speeding is followed. Other measures include checking the status of vehicles and whether there are two drivers in long-distance vehicles," he said.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Cambria"><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">During the last fiscal year, 178 people were killed in a total of 9,683 road accidents in the Kathmandu Valley (Kathmandu, Lalitpur and Bhaktapur districts) as of June 15, 2023, according to the Kathmandu Valley Traffic Police Office. </span></span><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">-- RSS </span></span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19800', 'image' => '20240125114306_20200903113103_1599056781.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 11:36:10', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20072', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'National Assembly Election Held', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The election to pick the National Assembly members for the seats that will be vacant from March 4 is taking place today (Thursday).', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Cambria"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">January 25: The election to pick the National Assembly members for the seats that will be vacant from March 4 is taking place today (Thursday). A total of 19 seats of the National Assebly will be vacant after the terms of the upper house menbers including National Assembly Chairman Ganesh Prasad Timilsina end on March 4. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">As per the law, the election has to be held 35 days before the end of the tenure of the upper house members. The election which started at 9.00 am will conclude at 3.00 pm in the designated polling stations of the provinces. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">The province assembly members, rural municipality chairs and vice chairs, municipality mayors and deputy mayors will cast their votes in the election. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">The electoral collage comprises of members of the Province Assembly and chairperson and vice-chairperson of the rural municipality and mayor and deputy mayor of the municipality. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">The weightage of a vote of a Province Assembly member is 53 while it is 19 for a vote from chairpersons and vice-chairpersons of the rural municipalities and mayors and deputy mayors of municipalities. With this, the total vote weightage will be 57,559. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">A total of 1,958 voters, including 549 provincial assembly members and chiefs and deputy chiefs of local levels, will cast their votes in the election. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">The Election Commission has said that it has already completed all necessary preparation for the election. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-29', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19799', 'image' => '20240125103536_20240108022303_Election_Commission.2e16d0ba.fill-650x500.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 10:33:22', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20071', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Company Owned by Entrepreneur of Nepali Origin to be Listed in US Stock Exchange NASDAQ ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The Fusemachines Inc, a company set up by an entrepreneur of Nepali origin, Dr Sameer Maskey, is set to be listed in the US Stock Exchange-NASDAQ. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Cambria"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">January 25: The Fusemachines Inc, a company set up by an entrepreneur of Nepali origin, Dr Sameer Maskey, is set to be listed in the US Stock Exchange-NASDAQ. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">The company recently entered into a definitive agreement for merger with CSLM Acquisition Corp, paving the path for the AI solutions provider enterprise to debut in the prestigious stock exchange NASDAQ. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Following the merger, the company's equity valuation is estimated to be worth USD 200 million, according to Dr Maskey, CEO of the company. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">It will be publicly traded company on the NASDAQ under the name 'Fuse', said Dr Maskey, adding that deal for business combination with the CSLM Acquisition Corp is expected to be carried out at the end of second quarter of fiscal year 2024. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">The board members of the both companies have already approved the deal and it will be listed on NASDAQ following approval of stakeholders and fulfilling legal process. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Dr Maskey, who is also an Associate Professor at the Columbia University, established Fusemachines in 2013. Headquartered in New York of the USA, his company is currently operating across Nepal, Canada and USA. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Of the total 450 employees working in the Fusemachines, 350 were Nepali and they were mostly outsourcing from Nepal, he said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Talking to RSS, he said, "It is a significant milestone for the company to be listed in the NASDAQ and become a publicly traded company. I am confident that the company after partnership with the CSLM would make a leap in the sector of Artificial Intelligence in future." -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19798', 'image' => '20240125102217_20240124094336_nasdaq-stocks-trends-up-down.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 10:20:57', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20068', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'The British College Launches BSc (Hons) Computer Science (Artificial Intelligence) Programme ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The British College (TBC) has officially launched its new BSc (Hons) Computer Science (Artificial Intelligence) program in collaboration with the University of the West of England (UWE), UK.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">January 24: The British College (TBC) has officially launched its new BSc (Hons) Computer Science (Artificial Intelligence) program in collaboration with the University of the West of England (UWE), UK. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The launch event, held at the Yak and Yeti Hotel in partnership with FinTech Alliance Nepal, marked the commencement of admissions for the accredited program, recognized by the Engineering Council and the British Computer Society in the UK.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The event saw the participation of industry professionals and distinguished guests, including the British Ambassador to Nepal.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Gunakar Bhatta, the Executive Director of Nepal Rastra Bank, delivered the opening address, setting the stage for a panel discussion on digital wallets. The panel, featuring experts from Esewa, Khalti, and Imepay, explored the world of digital wallets.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Sanjib Subba, the President of FinTech Alliance, highlighted the significance of Artificial Intelligence for the future of digital wallets and expressed gratitude to TBC for offering internationally recognized UK programs that contribute to transforming the IT landscape in Nepal.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The Chief Guest, British Ambassador to Nepal H.E. Rob Fenn, delivered the Keynote Speech, expressing delight in witnessing the launch of the pioneering program.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">He emphasized the program's role in strengthening ties between the UK and Nepal, reflecting a commitment to fostering education and innovation through collaboration between TBC and UWE.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Deputy Principal Dr. Patrick McCrudden of the TBC underscored the college's focus on shaping new talents for a better future. He highlighted the program's role in addressing the global demand for skilled AI professionals and preparing students to lead the charge in the fourth industrial revolution.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19795', 'image' => '20240124043946_collage (25).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 16:37:54', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20067', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Nepal Airlines Corporation Seeks Concessional Loan to Clear its Existing Debt', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 24: The state-owned Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) has started the process of seeking additional loans for various purposes', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">January 24: The state-owned Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) has started the process of seeking additional loans for various purposes. The NAC is looking for lenders to pay the debt of the existing aircraft, buy more aircraft and build a hangar. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">The debt-ridden Nepal Airlines Corporation issued an Expression of Interest (EOI) on Tuesday after making a financial statement of Rs 135 billion for the specific purpose. Accordingly, national and international companies can submit proposals for the loan.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">According to NAC Spokesperson Ramesh Paudel, the debt of the company is now more than Rs 48 billion. The NAC’s debt liability for the purchase of four aircraft in 2015 and the interest on the loans alone stand almost Rs 50 billion.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">The NAC plans to pay the outstanding debt and buy new aircraft with the new loan.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">According to the NAC, the new loan will mostly be utilized to buy new aircraft. The NAC requires an estimated loan of Rs 75 billion to buy new aircraft, Rs 55 billion to pay off the existing debt and Rs 5 billion to build the hangar. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">The NAC, which is under severe pressure due to lack of capital, increasing debt burden and lack of aircraft, has started the process of taking loans at subsidized interest rates. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">According to Spokesperson Paudel, the interest rate of the loans taken from the current lenders, including the Employee Provident Fund and the Citizens' Investment Trust, is expensive. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">"As the interest rate of the loan is high, we are forced to pay an annual installment of Rs 3.5 billion for the interest alone," said Paudel, “Since the interest is expensive, we are seeking concessional loans to 'swap' the existing loan." </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">Paudel said that it is possible to get loan at an interest rate of less than 5 percent at the international level. If the NAC gets the loan, it plans to clear the debt to the EPF and CIT.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">"The first priority is to pay the loan of EPF and CIT." </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">Committees and working groups formed by the government at various times for the reform of the corporation had also suggested increasing business or taking concessional loans to repay the debt. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">The NAC is less likely to clear its debts with the existing aircraft it has.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">Therefore, the NAC is opting to for a new alternative. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">However, experts in this field doubt that the NAC will be able to clear such a large debt with the current management and conditions.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">Shankar Prasad Adhikari, the former secretary of Nepal Government, says that it would be good to get a loan at a cheap interest rate, but it is not possible to get a loan in the current situation. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">"I don't see the ideal condition for getting a loan at the moment," said the official, "Some external organizations and agents have shown interest to provide loan at a subsidized rate. If the government gives the guarantee, there is a possibility of getting a loan, but looking at all the financial conditions of the organization (NAC), who will give the loan?”</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19794', 'image' => '20240124034545_20231121015002_1700527556.1692446817.चब.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 15:44:43', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20066', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Groundbreaking Groundwater Recharge System in Balaju Park Handed Over to KMC', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'Coca-Cola Beverages Nepal, the Centre for Integrated Urban Development (CIUD), and WaterAid Nepal (WAN) officially handed over a state-of-the-art groundwater recharge system at Balaju Park in ward number 16 of the Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC). The Deputy Mayor of KMC, Sunita Dangol, received the system on January 19, 2024.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">January 24: Coca-Cola Beverages Nepal, the Centre for Integrated Urban Development (CIUD), and WaterAid Nepal (WAN) officially handed over a state-of-the-art groundwater recharge system at Balaju Park in ward number 16 of the Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC). </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The Deputy Mayor of KMC, Sunita Dangol, received the system on January 19, 2024.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The project, initiated in October 2023 and concluded on January 19, 2024, features a comprehensive groundwater recharge system comprising 21 filter chambers, 21 recharge wells, two distilling chambers, recharge trenches spanning 75 feet, and seven bamboo check dams. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Funded by Bottlers Nepal Terai Limited (BNTL) and supported by WAN, the project is expected to recharge an estimated 30,000 kiloliters of water annually, contributing to the enhancement of the area's shallow groundwater table.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The primary goal of the initiative is to sustain the water table in the park area, rejuvenating stone spouts, including the renowned Baish Dhara, and supporting community wells and spring sources.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> The project aims not only to preserve the groundwater table in the project's peripheral areas but also to raise awareness among communities and local authorities, fostering accountability for similar initiatives. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">KMC Deputy Mayor Dangol lauded the initiative, expressing her commitment to supporting and coordinating with KMC for future public-private partnerships.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> She emphasized the importance of artificial groundwater recharge in Kathmandu, where groundwater extraction is high, but natural replenishment is hindered by the sealing of buildings and road construction in recharge zones.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Groundwater has been a historic source of drinking water in the Kathmandu valley, with stone spouts, wells, and kuwas serving as major water outlets. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">However, excessive groundwater extraction, unregulated construction, and altered rainfall patterns over the past two decades have led to a significant decline in groundwater levels, making initiatives like this vital for sustainable water management in the region.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19793', 'image' => '20240124031834_collage (28).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 15:17:07', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20064', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'This Year's SEE Exams to be Based on Letter Grading Directive 2078 ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 24: The National Examinations Board this year has decided to conduct the Secondary Education Examination (SEE) and publish its results in accordance with the Letter Grading Directive 2078 BS. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 24: The National Examinations Board this year has decided to conduct the Secondary Education Examination (SEE) and publish its results in accordance with the Letter Grading Directive 2078 BS. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The Board has scheduled the SEE for the year 2080 BS from upcoming March 28 to April 9. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Board Chair Dr Mahashram Sharma said that grade ten students this year will be sitting for the SEE as per the new curriculum and the results will be published based on the Letter Grading Directives 2078 BS. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">As per the new system, each SEE student is required to obtain 35 in theory subjects of 100 full marks to be qualified for pursuing higher studies. Any student failing to secure 35 in theory will not be eligible for getting enrolled in class 11 and will find the result under the Non-Graded category. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">In such situation, the chance exams for two subjects will be allowed for three times. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">A total of 489,000 students, both regular and towards grade improvement, will be appearing for the SEE, according Nandalal Paudel, SEE examinations controller. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Grading system has been already implemented in the exams of grade 11 and 12. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The Board has intensified the preparations for the SEE. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The printing of question papers, preparations of other logistics and fixing of examination centers are the parts of the preparations. -- RSS</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19791', 'image' => '20240124012950_20230706011345_20230703044048_exam-media1619757704.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 13:29:12', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20063', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Government Adopts Strict Measures for Nepalis Traveling Abroad on Visit Visas', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 24: The government has adopted strict measures for those who want to travel abroad on a visit visa. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">January 24: The government has adopted strict measures for those who want to travel abroad on a visit visa. The government has issued a new <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">6-</span>point procedure in place of the previous <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">17-</span>point procedure related to visit visas.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The Ministry of Home Affairs issued the new procedure after it was found that the previous procedure helped the activities of the groups that prepared fake documents for visit visas.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">As per the new provision, a person visiting foreign country on a visit visa needs to present passport, visa, ticket, hotel booking or a document sponsored by a relative along with <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">$500</span> and a self-declaration document to return back. The new provision has come into effect from Wednesday, January 24. Home Secretary Dinesh Bhattarai issued the new <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">6-</span>point procedure after receiving widespread criticism that the previous <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">17-</span>point procedure was impractical.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Head of the Immigration Office at the Tribhuvan International Airport, Gogan Bahadur Hamal, claimed that the new procedures will make it easier for Nepalis traveling abroad on visit visas. According to Hamal, the <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">17-</span>point procedure was issued through a secretary-level decision to stop the trend of people traveling abroad on a visit visa but not returning back. Hamal says that the previous procedure instead helped the illicit activities of the middlemen raising serious questions about the airport’s system.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Rudra Singh Tamang, director general of the Department of Immigration, urged the travelers visiting family abroad not to travel by paying money to any middleman and not to work abroad on visit and tourist visas.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">He has also requested to study the travel advisory issued by Government of Nepal before traveling on visit and tourist visa. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"In the last <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">24 </span>hours, Tribhuvan Airport Immigration Office has returned <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">48 </span>people who were going abroad on visit and tourist visas," said Tamang.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Meanwhile, Hamal, the head of the airport immigration office, informed that those who did not bring the necessary documents and could not explain the purpose of their visit were returned back from the airport. Most of them were going to the Gulf countries.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19790', 'image' => '20240124123854_7.visit-visa.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 12:38:09', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20062', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'PM Dahal Tells Finance Ministry not to Include New Plans in Budget', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 24: Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal has instructed the Ministry of Finance to completely stop adding unnecessary plans in the annual budget.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">January 24: Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal has instructed the Ministry of Finance to completely stop adding unnecessary plans in the annual budget. The prime minister made such remarks a few days after the government amended the Fiscal Procedures and Financial Accountability Act 2076 through an ordinance to change the budget schedule.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Speaking at a meeting held at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers on Tuesday afternoon to discuss the preparation of the next fiscal year's policies and programmes and the budget, Prime Minister Dahal said that problem arises when the Ministry of Finance adds new projects and programmes by itself, and instructed the ministry to stop such work completely. According to Prime Minister Dahal, the concerned ministries should be given full access to the budget system and they should be allowed to finalize their own programmes and projects. He lamented that the old plans are being shelved but new plans are being added. According to the prime minister, this will not only stall the work but also waste resources.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">“Development should be planned. Ironically, development projects are initiated without any feasibility study and ensuring resources for such projects. It often leads to freezing of the allocated budget,” said the PM.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">He stressed the need to complete the plans that were selected in the past and are still incomplete.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">PM Dahal claimed that there has been an improvement economy but many problems in the development sector still persists. “The signs of the economy are positive. However, our economy is not free from pressure. There are many problems in development work. This time, let's rise above the traditional thinking and patterns. We should choose a plan that will not make everyone happy, but will fulfill the task of prosperity of the country.”</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The PM’s directed the National Planning Commission (NPC) and the Ministry of Finance to hold discussions with all the ministries by February 3 before finalizing the ceiling of the budget. Prime Minister Dahal has instructed them to hold a group discussion with all the ministries/agencies within February 8 after the completion of the ministry/agency discussions and make a schedule to discuss the national priorities and the state of national resources.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The PM’s instructions include allocation of the budget for new programs and plans only after ensuring that the ongoing projects are completed. He emphasized allocating the budget according to the approved procurement master plan for national pride projects.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">PM Dahal also directed government officials to allocate budget only for projects and programs that have received multi-year resource assurance, completed preparations, entered the project bank, and yielded returns. He also issued instructions to end the practice of ministries sending conditional grants to provincial and local levels in the middle of the fiscal year.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The prime minister also instructed to keep the budget ceilings of the ministries/organizations in the schedule when presenting the principles and priorities of the budget in the parliament and to prepare the budget by incorporating the topics raised in the parliament and the suggestions given by the general public on the principles and priorities of the budget.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">PM Dahal’s directive also emphasized restructuring the revenue system, focusing on building a system to increase production and productivity, expanding the scope of revenue, maintaining customs revenue of raw materials lower than that of finished goods, and making changes to the tax structure.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">PM Dahal instructed the Ministry of Finance to adopt austerity measures in recurrent expenses, increase development expenses, use external and internal loans only for development expenses. He highlighted the importance of allocating the budget for the productive sector. </span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19789', 'image' => '20240124114937_budgetttttt.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 11:48:53', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20061', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Asia-Pacific Countries Gather in KTM to Address Threat of Illicit Small Arms Trade ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 24: Delegations from over 25 countries of the Asia-Pacific region have gathered in Kathmandu to collectively tackle the issue of illicit arms trade. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 24: Delegations from over 25 countries of the Asia-Pacific region have gathered in Kathmandu to collectively tackle the issue of illicit arms trade. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The three-day regional preparatory meeting for the fourth review conference of the United Nations Programme for Action (UN PoA) to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All its Aspects and International Tracing Instrument kicked off on Tuesday. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The meeting is being chaired by president designate of the fourth review conference Maritza Chan Valverde of Costa Rica as well as Izumi Nakamitsu, UN Under-Secretary-General and High Representatives for Disarmament Affairs. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">UN PoA, established in 2001 at the UN General Assembly, is a critically and politically binding framework. It provides framework for activities to counter illicit trade in small arms and light weapons. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">It also encompasses commitments by UN member states to enhance control measures over small arms, including through improved national regulations, stockpile management, import/export controls and international cooperation. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The adoption of the International Tracing Instrument in 2005 further strengthened the mechanism and facilitated tracing, emphasizing the need for effective marking and record keeping of weapons. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">These measures are an integral part of global efforts to address the challenges posed by the illicit arms trade and are in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">UN member states will periodically review the progress of their commitments at the fourth review conference to be held in New York from June 16 -27, 2024. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The preparatory committee meeting is being held to set the agenda for the meeting in New York. United Nations Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Asia and the Pacific region in collaboration with the Government of Nepal is organizing this regional meeting in Kathmandu. The regional meeting will hold discussions with the participating countries and other stakeholders, including civil society organizations, to identify the challenges related to small arms and light weapons specified in the region and to discuss the priorities of the review conference. The meeting will make thematic presentations and group-wise discussions on formulating an effective national policy, increasing the tracing of small and light arms through the International Tracing Instrument format and identify and formulate strategies to control the demand for small arms. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19788', 'image' => '20240124111122_420669903_7516194481779058_311723704658705252_n1706053273_1024.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 11:10:41', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ) ) $current_user = null $logged_in = falseinclude - APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 60 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::_renderElement() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 1224 View::element() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 418 include - APP/View/Articles/index.ctp, line 157 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 473 Controller::render() - CORE/Cake/Controller/Controller.php, line 968 Dispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 200 Dispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 167 [main] - APP/webroot/index.php, line 117
Warning (2): simplexml_load_file() [<a href='http://php.net/function.simplexml-load-file'>function.simplexml-load-file</a>]: I/O warning : failed to load external entity "" [APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 60]file not found!Code Context// $file = 'http://aabhiyan:QUVLg8Wzs2F7G9N7@nepalstock.com.np/api/indexdata.xml';if(!$xml = simplexml_load_file($file)){$viewFile = '/var/www/html/newbusinessage.com/app/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp' $dataForView = array( 'articles' => array( (int) 0 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ) ), 'current_user' => null, 'logged_in' => false ) $articles = array( (int) 0 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20078', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Karnali Province Exports Goats Worth Rs 3.24 Billion', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'Karnali province exported goats worth Rs 3.24 billion, generating substantial income for the people in the fa-flung province.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Segoe UI",sans-serif">January 25: Karnali province exported goats worth Rs 3.24 billion, generating substantial income for the people in the far-flung province. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Segoe UI",sans-serif">Organizing a press meet at Birendranagar Surkhet on Wednesday, Karnali Province Ministry of Land Management, Agriculture and Cooperative Development informed about the export of the goats.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Segoe UI",sans-serif"> Unveiling achievements of first year of his tenure, Minister Bhim Prakash Sharma said Karnali exported vegetables, kiwi, ginger and milk worth Rs 240 million from different districts. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Segoe UI",sans-serif">Similarly, agriculture and livestock products worth Rs 222.28 8 million were exported from Kapurkot of Salyan and</span><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif"> Babai temporary data collection centre of Surkhet since November 15 of the current fiscal year. (RSS) </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19805', 'image' => '20240125034648_collage (29).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 15:45:15', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20077', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Fitch Ratings to undertake Sovereign Credit Rating of Nepal', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The government is preparing to hand over the responsibility of the sovereign credit rating of Nepal to American credit company Fitch Ratings. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">January 25: The government is preparing to hand over the responsibility of the sovereign credit rating of Nepal to American credit company Fitch Ratings. This company has been involved in the sovereign credit rating of the USA.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">This year, the company has lowered the USA’s credit rating from 'AAA' to 'AA'. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">A triple-A rating is the highest rating given by the agency to a country or an institution based on their ability to repay the loan. This rating indirectly shows the company or the country's economic situation. Fitch Ratings had shown interest for rating Nepal since a long time.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Sources at the Ministry of Finance say that the government is preparing to hand over the responsibility of rating the country to Fitch Ratings as it will take a long time to begin a new process of selection of rating agency. The government had mentioned in the budget announcement five years ago that it will opt for the country’s sovereign credit rating. It took almost a year to find the donor for the rating. The government handed over the responsibility of rating to Fitch Ratings after DFIF pledged to financially support the credit rating of Nepal. However, the credit rating was halted due to the onset of the coronavirus pandemic the same year as the government was apprehensive that the credit rating outcome would not be as expected due to the impact of the pandemic.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The government once again included the topic of credit rating in the budget this year. As per the budget announcement, the government has decided to give the responsibility to Fitch Ratings.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19804', 'image' => '20240125023341_fitch-ratings-1671551049.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 14:32:59', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20076', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => '2,538 Trademarks Registered In Six Months of Current FY', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The number of trademark registrants in the first six months of the current fiscal year has reached 2,538. In the last one month alone, around 400 trademarks were registered with the Department of Industry.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">January 25: The number of trademark registrants in the first six months of the current fiscal year has reached <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2</span>,<span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">538</span>. In the last one month alone, around <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">400</span> trademarks were registered with the Department of Industry.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Acquiring trademark from the department means getting legal rights for any business.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Dik Bahadur Karki, director of Industrial Property Branch under the Department, said that the number of trademark registrations has increased of late. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"It indicates that the industries and businessmen are seeking protection of their products and services from the government,” said Karki.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Among the trademarks registered in the department, most of the industries are related to business. Such a trademark can also be owned by companies and businessmen as well as non-profit oranisations. However, most of the trademarks registered during the review period were related to businessmen, says Karki.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">He said that the number of trademarks issued has increased because of the department’s decision to approve the applications of around six to seven thousand that was halted in the past.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Stating that it used to take a year and a half to register a trademark in the past but now the registration process can be completed within six months.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Likewise, the department has received investment proposals worth Rs 136 billion including FDI proposals worth Rs 22 billion.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Altogether 211 industries including industries with domestic and foreign investments have been registered within the six months of current fiscal year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Among them, <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">167 </span>are small industries,<span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif""> 16</span> are middle-scale industries and <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif""> 28 </span>are large scale industries.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19803', 'image' => '20240125021039_20180313095356_Clipboard45.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 14:09:53', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20075', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Did Central Banks Break Inflation?', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: Central bankers who orchestrated the wave of interest rate hikes over the past two years, hoping to avoid a painful inflationary spiral, are now facing an uncomfortable question: Were their moves helpful?', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">January 25: Central bankers who orchestrated the wave of interest rate hikes over the past two years, hoping to avoid a painful inflationary spiral, are now facing an uncomfortable question: Were their moves helpful?</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The debate is heating up as European Central Bank policymakers meet this week, with many observers now expecting its benchmark lending rates to start coming down by this summer.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Governors at the US Federal Reserve are also weighing cuts for later this year, fanning hopes that the price surges seen in the wake of Covid-19 lockdowns and Russia's war on Ukraine have been brought under control.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">But some economists argue that the spikes were only temporary -- and that inflation would have eased anyway, whether or not central banks tried to contain it with tighter monetary policy.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"It was not because of Fed action that the prices of cars, oil, food, or the host of other goods affected by supply-side interruptions came down, but because the underlying shortages were at least partially resolved," said Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Higher rates, however, are often the tool of choice by central bankers to increase borrowing costs for business, which can often spark an increase in jobless rates.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Households, meanwhile, are suddenly confronted with higher mortgage and housing costs, leading them to curb spending and drive down inflation through a fall of demand.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">For Stiglitz and other critics, inflation was not being driven by increased demand -- which can be influenced more directly by the cost of credit -- but by supply constraints due to Covid and the Ukraine war.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"In many ways the Fed made things worse. It was more difficult to make the investments required to alleviate shortages," Stiglitz wrote in an essay for The American Prospect this month.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""> 'Irony' </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Alan Blinder, an economist at Princeton and a former Fed vice chairman, agreed that global economic shocks -- by nature temporary -- stoked the inflation they have now eased even as economic growth on both sides of the Atlantic remains relatively robust.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"What the central banks did went in the right direction for sure, but it was of secondary importance," Blinder told AFP.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"The irony is that they got more blame than they deserved for letting inflation get out of control, and now they are getting more credit than they deserve for bringing it down," he said.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Other economists counter that it was massive Covid stimulus spending, from direct payouts to unemployment and business support, that flooded economies with money likely to drive prices higher.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">That view was countered in June 2022 by Fed chairman Jerome Powell, who discounted the impact of government pandemic aid but insisted nonetheless that sharply higher interest rates were necessary -- even if it meant a recession.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">For Stiglitz, Powell and his supporters were effectively prescribing economic pain for millions: "By killing the economy, there would be no excess demand, and by definition (in their minds) no inflation," he wrote.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Higher wages? </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Some proponents of the rate hikes argue that regardless of the source of inflation, unless central bankers showed they were serious about tackling it, expectations of persistent and widespread price increases would only grow.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"Without a tightening, economic agents could have anticipated inflation would have stayed high," Benoit Mojon, head of economic analysis at the Bank of International Settlements, wrote in a December report.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Those price hikes could have rippled throughout the economy "and resulted in higher wages", he wrote.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Wage pressure has indeed been restrained in recent months, bolstering hopes of a "soft landing" for the US and European economies in which inflation eases while growth stays solid.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Weighing how much of that success is due to central bank policy is likely to fuel debates for months as economists study the unprecedented impacts of Covid and two years of intense war on Europe's doorstep.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">In a recent study, Allianz Trade estimated that Federal Reserve action accounted for 45 percent of slowing inflation, with the rest the result of supply chains returning to normal across the planet.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"You could analyse that by saying everyone was right to an extent," said Maxime Darmet, an economist who authored the study.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"On the other hand you could say that those who think the inflation was only temporary completely ignore the impacts of central banks," he told AFP. – AFP/RSS</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19802', 'image' => '20240125013517_20230820111244_Rising-Inflation.min_.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 13:31:57', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20074', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Govt Forms Committee to Study the Requirement of New Stock Exchange', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The government has formed a three-member committee to study the need for a new stock exchange body in the country. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">January 25: The government has formed a three-member committee to study the need for a new stock exchange body in the country. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">A meeting of the Council of Ministers on Tuesday decided to form the committee headed by former Deputy Governor of Nepal Rastra Bank Chintamani Shiwakoti to study the issue that has courted controversy.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">Other members of the committee include Chartered Accountant Sujan Kumar Acharya and Advocate Sijan Guragain.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">According to the Ministry of Finance, the committee has been mandated to submit within 45 days a report on whether the country requires a new stock exchange or not. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">The Securities Board of Nepal (SEBON) had initiated the process of setting up a new stock exchange entity in September 2023. Currently, the country has only one body to oversee the securities market trading which is done by the state-owned Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE). After the regulatory body SEBON had completed all the due process to establish a new stock exchange entity to diversify the secondary market transaction, the government halted the process.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">A cabinet meeting in during last May instructed SEBON to halt the process of licensing the new security exchange. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">Subsequently, the Finance Committee of the House of Representatives had also instructed the SEBON to put on hold the process of issuing license for a new stock exchange. However, after studying all the documents related to the process of licensing a new stock exchange, the house panel after five months gave the go ahead with the licensing process arguing that the Supreme Court has already issued a verdict in favour of SEBON. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">Himalayan Stock Exchange, National Stock Exchange of Nepal and Annapurna Stock Exchange Limited have so far submitted applications to the SEBON seeking license to operate the new stock exchange entity.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19801', 'image' => '20240125121528_20220907055411_share.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 12:14:39', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20073', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Road Accidents in Kathmandu Valley Claim 88 Lives in Six Months ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: Hundreds of people have been losing their lives due to untimely deaths caused by road accidents in the Kathmandu Valley every year. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Cambria"><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">January 25: Hundreds of people have been losing their lives due to untimely deaths caused by road accidents in the Kathmandu Valley every year. </span></span><br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">According to the Kathmandu Valley Traffic Police Office, as many as 88 people lost their lives in 5,865 road accidents in the first six months of the current fiscal year. Likewise, 148 people were critically injured and 4,438 persons sustained minor injuries. </span></span><br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Most of the deceased in the accidents were motorcyclists and pedestrians. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Cambria"><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Senior vice-president of the National Federation of Nepal Transport Entrepreneurs Punya Prasad Sitaula said that two-wheelers in the Kathmandu Valley are more prone to accidents. "High speed of motorcycles and scooters and pedestrians rampantly crossing the road have caused the highest number of fatalities in Kathmandu," he said. </span></span><br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Spokesperson for the Kathmandu Valley Traffic Police Office, Senior Superintendent of Police Rajendra Prasad Bhatta, said that the traffic police have been conducting various awareness programs to reduce the number of vehicle accidents in the Valley. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Cambria"><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">"We have been tightening the checking of alcohol consumption to reduce accidents. We also ensure that the rules prohibiting vehicles from plying at a speed of more than 50 kilometers per hour to control speeding is followed. Other measures include checking the status of vehicles and whether there are two drivers in long-distance vehicles," he said.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Cambria"><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">During the last fiscal year, 178 people were killed in a total of 9,683 road accidents in the Kathmandu Valley (Kathmandu, Lalitpur and Bhaktapur districts) as of June 15, 2023, according to the Kathmandu Valley Traffic Police Office. </span></span><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">-- RSS </span></span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19800', 'image' => '20240125114306_20200903113103_1599056781.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 11:36:10', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20072', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'National Assembly Election Held', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The election to pick the National Assembly members for the seats that will be vacant from March 4 is taking place today (Thursday).', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Cambria"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">January 25: The election to pick the National Assembly members for the seats that will be vacant from March 4 is taking place today (Thursday). A total of 19 seats of the National Assebly will be vacant after the terms of the upper house menbers including National Assembly Chairman Ganesh Prasad Timilsina end on March 4. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">As per the law, the election has to be held 35 days before the end of the tenure of the upper house members. The election which started at 9.00 am will conclude at 3.00 pm in the designated polling stations of the provinces. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">The province assembly members, rural municipality chairs and vice chairs, municipality mayors and deputy mayors will cast their votes in the election. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">The electoral collage comprises of members of the Province Assembly and chairperson and vice-chairperson of the rural municipality and mayor and deputy mayor of the municipality. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">The weightage of a vote of a Province Assembly member is 53 while it is 19 for a vote from chairpersons and vice-chairpersons of the rural municipalities and mayors and deputy mayors of municipalities. With this, the total vote weightage will be 57,559. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">A total of 1,958 voters, including 549 provincial assembly members and chiefs and deputy chiefs of local levels, will cast their votes in the election. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">The Election Commission has said that it has already completed all necessary preparation for the election. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-29', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19799', 'image' => '20240125103536_20240108022303_Election_Commission.2e16d0ba.fill-650x500.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 10:33:22', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20071', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Company Owned by Entrepreneur of Nepali Origin to be Listed in US Stock Exchange NASDAQ ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The Fusemachines Inc, a company set up by an entrepreneur of Nepali origin, Dr Sameer Maskey, is set to be listed in the US Stock Exchange-NASDAQ. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Cambria"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">January 25: The Fusemachines Inc, a company set up by an entrepreneur of Nepali origin, Dr Sameer Maskey, is set to be listed in the US Stock Exchange-NASDAQ. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">The company recently entered into a definitive agreement for merger with CSLM Acquisition Corp, paving the path for the AI solutions provider enterprise to debut in the prestigious stock exchange NASDAQ. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Following the merger, the company's equity valuation is estimated to be worth USD 200 million, according to Dr Maskey, CEO of the company. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">It will be publicly traded company on the NASDAQ under the name 'Fuse', said Dr Maskey, adding that deal for business combination with the CSLM Acquisition Corp is expected to be carried out at the end of second quarter of fiscal year 2024. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">The board members of the both companies have already approved the deal and it will be listed on NASDAQ following approval of stakeholders and fulfilling legal process. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Dr Maskey, who is also an Associate Professor at the Columbia University, established Fusemachines in 2013. Headquartered in New York of the USA, his company is currently operating across Nepal, Canada and USA. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Of the total 450 employees working in the Fusemachines, 350 were Nepali and they were mostly outsourcing from Nepal, he said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Talking to RSS, he said, "It is a significant milestone for the company to be listed in the NASDAQ and become a publicly traded company. I am confident that the company after partnership with the CSLM would make a leap in the sector of Artificial Intelligence in future." -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19798', 'image' => '20240125102217_20240124094336_nasdaq-stocks-trends-up-down.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 10:20:57', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20068', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'The British College Launches BSc (Hons) Computer Science (Artificial Intelligence) Programme ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The British College (TBC) has officially launched its new BSc (Hons) Computer Science (Artificial Intelligence) program in collaboration with the University of the West of England (UWE), UK.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">January 24: The British College (TBC) has officially launched its new BSc (Hons) Computer Science (Artificial Intelligence) program in collaboration with the University of the West of England (UWE), UK. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The launch event, held at the Yak and Yeti Hotel in partnership with FinTech Alliance Nepal, marked the commencement of admissions for the accredited program, recognized by the Engineering Council and the British Computer Society in the UK.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The event saw the participation of industry professionals and distinguished guests, including the British Ambassador to Nepal.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Gunakar Bhatta, the Executive Director of Nepal Rastra Bank, delivered the opening address, setting the stage for a panel discussion on digital wallets. The panel, featuring experts from Esewa, Khalti, and Imepay, explored the world of digital wallets.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Sanjib Subba, the President of FinTech Alliance, highlighted the significance of Artificial Intelligence for the future of digital wallets and expressed gratitude to TBC for offering internationally recognized UK programs that contribute to transforming the IT landscape in Nepal.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The Chief Guest, British Ambassador to Nepal H.E. Rob Fenn, delivered the Keynote Speech, expressing delight in witnessing the launch of the pioneering program.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">He emphasized the program's role in strengthening ties between the UK and Nepal, reflecting a commitment to fostering education and innovation through collaboration between TBC and UWE.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Deputy Principal Dr. Patrick McCrudden of the TBC underscored the college's focus on shaping new talents for a better future. He highlighted the program's role in addressing the global demand for skilled AI professionals and preparing students to lead the charge in the fourth industrial revolution.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19795', 'image' => '20240124043946_collage (25).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 16:37:54', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20067', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Nepal Airlines Corporation Seeks Concessional Loan to Clear its Existing Debt', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 24: The state-owned Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) has started the process of seeking additional loans for various purposes', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">January 24: The state-owned Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) has started the process of seeking additional loans for various purposes. The NAC is looking for lenders to pay the debt of the existing aircraft, buy more aircraft and build a hangar. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">The debt-ridden Nepal Airlines Corporation issued an Expression of Interest (EOI) on Tuesday after making a financial statement of Rs 135 billion for the specific purpose. Accordingly, national and international companies can submit proposals for the loan.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">According to NAC Spokesperson Ramesh Paudel, the debt of the company is now more than Rs 48 billion. The NAC’s debt liability for the purchase of four aircraft in 2015 and the interest on the loans alone stand almost Rs 50 billion.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">The NAC plans to pay the outstanding debt and buy new aircraft with the new loan.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">According to the NAC, the new loan will mostly be utilized to buy new aircraft. The NAC requires an estimated loan of Rs 75 billion to buy new aircraft, Rs 55 billion to pay off the existing debt and Rs 5 billion to build the hangar. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">The NAC, which is under severe pressure due to lack of capital, increasing debt burden and lack of aircraft, has started the process of taking loans at subsidized interest rates. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">According to Spokesperson Paudel, the interest rate of the loans taken from the current lenders, including the Employee Provident Fund and the Citizens' Investment Trust, is expensive. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">"As the interest rate of the loan is high, we are forced to pay an annual installment of Rs 3.5 billion for the interest alone," said Paudel, “Since the interest is expensive, we are seeking concessional loans to 'swap' the existing loan." </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">Paudel said that it is possible to get loan at an interest rate of less than 5 percent at the international level. If the NAC gets the loan, it plans to clear the debt to the EPF and CIT.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">"The first priority is to pay the loan of EPF and CIT." </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">Committees and working groups formed by the government at various times for the reform of the corporation had also suggested increasing business or taking concessional loans to repay the debt. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">The NAC is less likely to clear its debts with the existing aircraft it has.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">Therefore, the NAC is opting to for a new alternative. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">However, experts in this field doubt that the NAC will be able to clear such a large debt with the current management and conditions.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">Shankar Prasad Adhikari, the former secretary of Nepal Government, says that it would be good to get a loan at a cheap interest rate, but it is not possible to get a loan in the current situation. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">"I don't see the ideal condition for getting a loan at the moment," said the official, "Some external organizations and agents have shown interest to provide loan at a subsidized rate. If the government gives the guarantee, there is a possibility of getting a loan, but looking at all the financial conditions of the organization (NAC), who will give the loan?”</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19794', 'image' => '20240124034545_20231121015002_1700527556.1692446817.चब.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 15:44:43', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20066', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Groundbreaking Groundwater Recharge System in Balaju Park Handed Over to KMC', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'Coca-Cola Beverages Nepal, the Centre for Integrated Urban Development (CIUD), and WaterAid Nepal (WAN) officially handed over a state-of-the-art groundwater recharge system at Balaju Park in ward number 16 of the Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC). The Deputy Mayor of KMC, Sunita Dangol, received the system on January 19, 2024.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">January 24: Coca-Cola Beverages Nepal, the Centre for Integrated Urban Development (CIUD), and WaterAid Nepal (WAN) officially handed over a state-of-the-art groundwater recharge system at Balaju Park in ward number 16 of the Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC). </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The Deputy Mayor of KMC, Sunita Dangol, received the system on January 19, 2024.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The project, initiated in October 2023 and concluded on January 19, 2024, features a comprehensive groundwater recharge system comprising 21 filter chambers, 21 recharge wells, two distilling chambers, recharge trenches spanning 75 feet, and seven bamboo check dams. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Funded by Bottlers Nepal Terai Limited (BNTL) and supported by WAN, the project is expected to recharge an estimated 30,000 kiloliters of water annually, contributing to the enhancement of the area's shallow groundwater table.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The primary goal of the initiative is to sustain the water table in the park area, rejuvenating stone spouts, including the renowned Baish Dhara, and supporting community wells and spring sources.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> The project aims not only to preserve the groundwater table in the project's peripheral areas but also to raise awareness among communities and local authorities, fostering accountability for similar initiatives. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">KMC Deputy Mayor Dangol lauded the initiative, expressing her commitment to supporting and coordinating with KMC for future public-private partnerships.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> She emphasized the importance of artificial groundwater recharge in Kathmandu, where groundwater extraction is high, but natural replenishment is hindered by the sealing of buildings and road construction in recharge zones.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Groundwater has been a historic source of drinking water in the Kathmandu valley, with stone spouts, wells, and kuwas serving as major water outlets. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">However, excessive groundwater extraction, unregulated construction, and altered rainfall patterns over the past two decades have led to a significant decline in groundwater levels, making initiatives like this vital for sustainable water management in the region.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19793', 'image' => '20240124031834_collage (28).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 15:17:07', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20064', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'This Year's SEE Exams to be Based on Letter Grading Directive 2078 ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 24: The National Examinations Board this year has decided to conduct the Secondary Education Examination (SEE) and publish its results in accordance with the Letter Grading Directive 2078 BS. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 24: The National Examinations Board this year has decided to conduct the Secondary Education Examination (SEE) and publish its results in accordance with the Letter Grading Directive 2078 BS. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The Board has scheduled the SEE for the year 2080 BS from upcoming March 28 to April 9. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Board Chair Dr Mahashram Sharma said that grade ten students this year will be sitting for the SEE as per the new curriculum and the results will be published based on the Letter Grading Directives 2078 BS. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">As per the new system, each SEE student is required to obtain 35 in theory subjects of 100 full marks to be qualified for pursuing higher studies. Any student failing to secure 35 in theory will not be eligible for getting enrolled in class 11 and will find the result under the Non-Graded category. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">In such situation, the chance exams for two subjects will be allowed for three times. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">A total of 489,000 students, both regular and towards grade improvement, will be appearing for the SEE, according Nandalal Paudel, SEE examinations controller. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Grading system has been already implemented in the exams of grade 11 and 12. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The Board has intensified the preparations for the SEE. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The printing of question papers, preparations of other logistics and fixing of examination centers are the parts of the preparations. -- RSS</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19791', 'image' => '20240124012950_20230706011345_20230703044048_exam-media1619757704.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 13:29:12', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20063', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Government Adopts Strict Measures for Nepalis Traveling Abroad on Visit Visas', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 24: The government has adopted strict measures for those who want to travel abroad on a visit visa. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">January 24: The government has adopted strict measures for those who want to travel abroad on a visit visa. The government has issued a new <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">6-</span>point procedure in place of the previous <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">17-</span>point procedure related to visit visas.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The Ministry of Home Affairs issued the new procedure after it was found that the previous procedure helped the activities of the groups that prepared fake documents for visit visas.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">As per the new provision, a person visiting foreign country on a visit visa needs to present passport, visa, ticket, hotel booking or a document sponsored by a relative along with <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">$500</span> and a self-declaration document to return back. The new provision has come into effect from Wednesday, January 24. Home Secretary Dinesh Bhattarai issued the new <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">6-</span>point procedure after receiving widespread criticism that the previous <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">17-</span>point procedure was impractical.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Head of the Immigration Office at the Tribhuvan International Airport, Gogan Bahadur Hamal, claimed that the new procedures will make it easier for Nepalis traveling abroad on visit visas. According to Hamal, the <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">17-</span>point procedure was issued through a secretary-level decision to stop the trend of people traveling abroad on a visit visa but not returning back. Hamal says that the previous procedure instead helped the illicit activities of the middlemen raising serious questions about the airport’s system.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Rudra Singh Tamang, director general of the Department of Immigration, urged the travelers visiting family abroad not to travel by paying money to any middleman and not to work abroad on visit and tourist visas.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">He has also requested to study the travel advisory issued by Government of Nepal before traveling on visit and tourist visa. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"In the last <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">24 </span>hours, Tribhuvan Airport Immigration Office has returned <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">48 </span>people who were going abroad on visit and tourist visas," said Tamang.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Meanwhile, Hamal, the head of the airport immigration office, informed that those who did not bring the necessary documents and could not explain the purpose of their visit were returned back from the airport. Most of them were going to the Gulf countries.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19790', 'image' => '20240124123854_7.visit-visa.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 12:38:09', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20062', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'PM Dahal Tells Finance Ministry not to Include New Plans in Budget', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 24: Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal has instructed the Ministry of Finance to completely stop adding unnecessary plans in the annual budget.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">January 24: Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal has instructed the Ministry of Finance to completely stop adding unnecessary plans in the annual budget. The prime minister made such remarks a few days after the government amended the Fiscal Procedures and Financial Accountability Act 2076 through an ordinance to change the budget schedule.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Speaking at a meeting held at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers on Tuesday afternoon to discuss the preparation of the next fiscal year's policies and programmes and the budget, Prime Minister Dahal said that problem arises when the Ministry of Finance adds new projects and programmes by itself, and instructed the ministry to stop such work completely. According to Prime Minister Dahal, the concerned ministries should be given full access to the budget system and they should be allowed to finalize their own programmes and projects. He lamented that the old plans are being shelved but new plans are being added. According to the prime minister, this will not only stall the work but also waste resources.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">“Development should be planned. Ironically, development projects are initiated without any feasibility study and ensuring resources for such projects. It often leads to freezing of the allocated budget,” said the PM.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">He stressed the need to complete the plans that were selected in the past and are still incomplete.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">PM Dahal claimed that there has been an improvement economy but many problems in the development sector still persists. “The signs of the economy are positive. However, our economy is not free from pressure. There are many problems in development work. This time, let's rise above the traditional thinking and patterns. We should choose a plan that will not make everyone happy, but will fulfill the task of prosperity of the country.”</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The PM’s directed the National Planning Commission (NPC) and the Ministry of Finance to hold discussions with all the ministries by February 3 before finalizing the ceiling of the budget. Prime Minister Dahal has instructed them to hold a group discussion with all the ministries/agencies within February 8 after the completion of the ministry/agency discussions and make a schedule to discuss the national priorities and the state of national resources.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The PM’s instructions include allocation of the budget for new programs and plans only after ensuring that the ongoing projects are completed. He emphasized allocating the budget according to the approved procurement master plan for national pride projects.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">PM Dahal also directed government officials to allocate budget only for projects and programs that have received multi-year resource assurance, completed preparations, entered the project bank, and yielded returns. He also issued instructions to end the practice of ministries sending conditional grants to provincial and local levels in the middle of the fiscal year.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The prime minister also instructed to keep the budget ceilings of the ministries/organizations in the schedule when presenting the principles and priorities of the budget in the parliament and to prepare the budget by incorporating the topics raised in the parliament and the suggestions given by the general public on the principles and priorities of the budget.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">PM Dahal’s directive also emphasized restructuring the revenue system, focusing on building a system to increase production and productivity, expanding the scope of revenue, maintaining customs revenue of raw materials lower than that of finished goods, and making changes to the tax structure.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">PM Dahal instructed the Ministry of Finance to adopt austerity measures in recurrent expenses, increase development expenses, use external and internal loans only for development expenses. He highlighted the importance of allocating the budget for the productive sector. </span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19789', 'image' => '20240124114937_budgetttttt.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 11:48:53', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20061', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Asia-Pacific Countries Gather in KTM to Address Threat of Illicit Small Arms Trade ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 24: Delegations from over 25 countries of the Asia-Pacific region have gathered in Kathmandu to collectively tackle the issue of illicit arms trade. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 24: Delegations from over 25 countries of the Asia-Pacific region have gathered in Kathmandu to collectively tackle the issue of illicit arms trade. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The three-day regional preparatory meeting for the fourth review conference of the United Nations Programme for Action (UN PoA) to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All its Aspects and International Tracing Instrument kicked off on Tuesday. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The meeting is being chaired by president designate of the fourth review conference Maritza Chan Valverde of Costa Rica as well as Izumi Nakamitsu, UN Under-Secretary-General and High Representatives for Disarmament Affairs. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">UN PoA, established in 2001 at the UN General Assembly, is a critically and politically binding framework. It provides framework for activities to counter illicit trade in small arms and light weapons. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">It also encompasses commitments by UN member states to enhance control measures over small arms, including through improved national regulations, stockpile management, import/export controls and international cooperation. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The adoption of the International Tracing Instrument in 2005 further strengthened the mechanism and facilitated tracing, emphasizing the need for effective marking and record keeping of weapons. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">These measures are an integral part of global efforts to address the challenges posed by the illicit arms trade and are in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">UN member states will periodically review the progress of their commitments at the fourth review conference to be held in New York from June 16 -27, 2024. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The preparatory committee meeting is being held to set the agenda for the meeting in New York. United Nations Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Asia and the Pacific region in collaboration with the Government of Nepal is organizing this regional meeting in Kathmandu. The regional meeting will hold discussions with the participating countries and other stakeholders, including civil society organizations, to identify the challenges related to small arms and light weapons specified in the region and to discuss the priorities of the review conference. The meeting will make thematic presentations and group-wise discussions on formulating an effective national policy, increasing the tracing of small and light arms through the International Tracing Instrument format and identify and formulate strategies to control the demand for small arms. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19788', 'image' => '20240124111122_420669903_7516194481779058_311723704658705252_n1706053273_1024.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 11:10:41', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ) ) $current_user = null $logged_in = falsesimplexml_load_file - [internal], line ?? include - APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 60 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::_renderElement() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 1224 View::element() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 418 include - APP/View/Articles/index.ctp, line 157 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 473 Controller::render() - CORE/Cake/Controller/Controller.php, line 968 Dispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 200 Dispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 167 [main] - APP/webroot/index.php, line 117
Notice (8): Undefined variable: file [APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 133]Code Context// $file = 'http://aabhiyan:QUVLg8Wzs2F7G9N7@nepalstock.com.np/api/subindexdata.xml';if(!$xml = simplexml_load_file($file)){$viewFile = '/var/www/html/newbusinessage.com/app/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp' $dataForView = array( 'articles' => array( (int) 0 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ) ), 'current_user' => null, 'logged_in' => false ) $articles = array( (int) 0 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20078', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Karnali Province Exports Goats Worth Rs 3.24 Billion', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'Karnali province exported goats worth Rs 3.24 billion, generating substantial income for the people in the fa-flung province.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Segoe UI",sans-serif">January 25: Karnali province exported goats worth Rs 3.24 billion, generating substantial income for the people in the far-flung province. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Segoe UI",sans-serif">Organizing a press meet at Birendranagar Surkhet on Wednesday, Karnali Province Ministry of Land Management, Agriculture and Cooperative Development informed about the export of the goats.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Segoe UI",sans-serif"> Unveiling achievements of first year of his tenure, Minister Bhim Prakash Sharma said Karnali exported vegetables, kiwi, ginger and milk worth Rs 240 million from different districts. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Segoe UI",sans-serif">Similarly, agriculture and livestock products worth Rs 222.28 8 million were exported from Kapurkot of Salyan and</span><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif"> Babai temporary data collection centre of Surkhet since November 15 of the current fiscal year. (RSS) </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19805', 'image' => '20240125034648_collage (29).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 15:45:15', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20077', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Fitch Ratings to undertake Sovereign Credit Rating of Nepal', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The government is preparing to hand over the responsibility of the sovereign credit rating of Nepal to American credit company Fitch Ratings. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">January 25: The government is preparing to hand over the responsibility of the sovereign credit rating of Nepal to American credit company Fitch Ratings. This company has been involved in the sovereign credit rating of the USA.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">This year, the company has lowered the USA’s credit rating from 'AAA' to 'AA'. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">A triple-A rating is the highest rating given by the agency to a country or an institution based on their ability to repay the loan. This rating indirectly shows the company or the country's economic situation. Fitch Ratings had shown interest for rating Nepal since a long time.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Sources at the Ministry of Finance say that the government is preparing to hand over the responsibility of rating the country to Fitch Ratings as it will take a long time to begin a new process of selection of rating agency. The government had mentioned in the budget announcement five years ago that it will opt for the country’s sovereign credit rating. It took almost a year to find the donor for the rating. The government handed over the responsibility of rating to Fitch Ratings after DFIF pledged to financially support the credit rating of Nepal. However, the credit rating was halted due to the onset of the coronavirus pandemic the same year as the government was apprehensive that the credit rating outcome would not be as expected due to the impact of the pandemic.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The government once again included the topic of credit rating in the budget this year. As per the budget announcement, the government has decided to give the responsibility to Fitch Ratings.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19804', 'image' => '20240125023341_fitch-ratings-1671551049.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 14:32:59', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20076', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => '2,538 Trademarks Registered In Six Months of Current FY', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The number of trademark registrants in the first six months of the current fiscal year has reached 2,538. In the last one month alone, around 400 trademarks were registered with the Department of Industry.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">January 25: The number of trademark registrants in the first six months of the current fiscal year has reached <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2</span>,<span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">538</span>. In the last one month alone, around <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">400</span> trademarks were registered with the Department of Industry.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Acquiring trademark from the department means getting legal rights for any business.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Dik Bahadur Karki, director of Industrial Property Branch under the Department, said that the number of trademark registrations has increased of late. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"It indicates that the industries and businessmen are seeking protection of their products and services from the government,” said Karki.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Among the trademarks registered in the department, most of the industries are related to business. Such a trademark can also be owned by companies and businessmen as well as non-profit oranisations. However, most of the trademarks registered during the review period were related to businessmen, says Karki.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">He said that the number of trademarks issued has increased because of the department’s decision to approve the applications of around six to seven thousand that was halted in the past.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Stating that it used to take a year and a half to register a trademark in the past but now the registration process can be completed within six months.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Likewise, the department has received investment proposals worth Rs 136 billion including FDI proposals worth Rs 22 billion.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Altogether 211 industries including industries with domestic and foreign investments have been registered within the six months of current fiscal year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Among them, <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">167 </span>are small industries,<span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif""> 16</span> are middle-scale industries and <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif""> 28 </span>are large scale industries.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19803', 'image' => '20240125021039_20180313095356_Clipboard45.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 14:09:53', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20075', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Did Central Banks Break Inflation?', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: Central bankers who orchestrated the wave of interest rate hikes over the past two years, hoping to avoid a painful inflationary spiral, are now facing an uncomfortable question: Were their moves helpful?', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">January 25: Central bankers who orchestrated the wave of interest rate hikes over the past two years, hoping to avoid a painful inflationary spiral, are now facing an uncomfortable question: Were their moves helpful?</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The debate is heating up as European Central Bank policymakers meet this week, with many observers now expecting its benchmark lending rates to start coming down by this summer.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Governors at the US Federal Reserve are also weighing cuts for later this year, fanning hopes that the price surges seen in the wake of Covid-19 lockdowns and Russia's war on Ukraine have been brought under control.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">But some economists argue that the spikes were only temporary -- and that inflation would have eased anyway, whether or not central banks tried to contain it with tighter monetary policy.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"It was not because of Fed action that the prices of cars, oil, food, or the host of other goods affected by supply-side interruptions came down, but because the underlying shortages were at least partially resolved," said Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Higher rates, however, are often the tool of choice by central bankers to increase borrowing costs for business, which can often spark an increase in jobless rates.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Households, meanwhile, are suddenly confronted with higher mortgage and housing costs, leading them to curb spending and drive down inflation through a fall of demand.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">For Stiglitz and other critics, inflation was not being driven by increased demand -- which can be influenced more directly by the cost of credit -- but by supply constraints due to Covid and the Ukraine war.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"In many ways the Fed made things worse. It was more difficult to make the investments required to alleviate shortages," Stiglitz wrote in an essay for The American Prospect this month.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""> 'Irony' </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Alan Blinder, an economist at Princeton and a former Fed vice chairman, agreed that global economic shocks -- by nature temporary -- stoked the inflation they have now eased even as economic growth on both sides of the Atlantic remains relatively robust.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"What the central banks did went in the right direction for sure, but it was of secondary importance," Blinder told AFP.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"The irony is that they got more blame than they deserved for letting inflation get out of control, and now they are getting more credit than they deserve for bringing it down," he said.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Other economists counter that it was massive Covid stimulus spending, from direct payouts to unemployment and business support, that flooded economies with money likely to drive prices higher.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">That view was countered in June 2022 by Fed chairman Jerome Powell, who discounted the impact of government pandemic aid but insisted nonetheless that sharply higher interest rates were necessary -- even if it meant a recession.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">For Stiglitz, Powell and his supporters were effectively prescribing economic pain for millions: "By killing the economy, there would be no excess demand, and by definition (in their minds) no inflation," he wrote.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Higher wages? </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Some proponents of the rate hikes argue that regardless of the source of inflation, unless central bankers showed they were serious about tackling it, expectations of persistent and widespread price increases would only grow.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"Without a tightening, economic agents could have anticipated inflation would have stayed high," Benoit Mojon, head of economic analysis at the Bank of International Settlements, wrote in a December report.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Those price hikes could have rippled throughout the economy "and resulted in higher wages", he wrote.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Wage pressure has indeed been restrained in recent months, bolstering hopes of a "soft landing" for the US and European economies in which inflation eases while growth stays solid.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Weighing how much of that success is due to central bank policy is likely to fuel debates for months as economists study the unprecedented impacts of Covid and two years of intense war on Europe's doorstep.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">In a recent study, Allianz Trade estimated that Federal Reserve action accounted for 45 percent of slowing inflation, with the rest the result of supply chains returning to normal across the planet.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"You could analyse that by saying everyone was right to an extent," said Maxime Darmet, an economist who authored the study.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"On the other hand you could say that those who think the inflation was only temporary completely ignore the impacts of central banks," he told AFP. – AFP/RSS</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19802', 'image' => '20240125013517_20230820111244_Rising-Inflation.min_.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 13:31:57', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20074', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Govt Forms Committee to Study the Requirement of New Stock Exchange', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The government has formed a three-member committee to study the need for a new stock exchange body in the country. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">January 25: The government has formed a three-member committee to study the need for a new stock exchange body in the country. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">A meeting of the Council of Ministers on Tuesday decided to form the committee headed by former Deputy Governor of Nepal Rastra Bank Chintamani Shiwakoti to study the issue that has courted controversy.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">Other members of the committee include Chartered Accountant Sujan Kumar Acharya and Advocate Sijan Guragain.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">According to the Ministry of Finance, the committee has been mandated to submit within 45 days a report on whether the country requires a new stock exchange or not. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">The Securities Board of Nepal (SEBON) had initiated the process of setting up a new stock exchange entity in September 2023. Currently, the country has only one body to oversee the securities market trading which is done by the state-owned Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE). After the regulatory body SEBON had completed all the due process to establish a new stock exchange entity to diversify the secondary market transaction, the government halted the process.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">A cabinet meeting in during last May instructed SEBON to halt the process of licensing the new security exchange. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">Subsequently, the Finance Committee of the House of Representatives had also instructed the SEBON to put on hold the process of issuing license for a new stock exchange. However, after studying all the documents related to the process of licensing a new stock exchange, the house panel after five months gave the go ahead with the licensing process arguing that the Supreme Court has already issued a verdict in favour of SEBON. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">Himalayan Stock Exchange, National Stock Exchange of Nepal and Annapurna Stock Exchange Limited have so far submitted applications to the SEBON seeking license to operate the new stock exchange entity.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19801', 'image' => '20240125121528_20220907055411_share.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 12:14:39', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20073', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Road Accidents in Kathmandu Valley Claim 88 Lives in Six Months ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: Hundreds of people have been losing their lives due to untimely deaths caused by road accidents in the Kathmandu Valley every year. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Cambria"><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">January 25: Hundreds of people have been losing their lives due to untimely deaths caused by road accidents in the Kathmandu Valley every year. </span></span><br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">According to the Kathmandu Valley Traffic Police Office, as many as 88 people lost their lives in 5,865 road accidents in the first six months of the current fiscal year. Likewise, 148 people were critically injured and 4,438 persons sustained minor injuries. </span></span><br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Most of the deceased in the accidents were motorcyclists and pedestrians. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Cambria"><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Senior vice-president of the National Federation of Nepal Transport Entrepreneurs Punya Prasad Sitaula said that two-wheelers in the Kathmandu Valley are more prone to accidents. "High speed of motorcycles and scooters and pedestrians rampantly crossing the road have caused the highest number of fatalities in Kathmandu," he said. </span></span><br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Spokesperson for the Kathmandu Valley Traffic Police Office, Senior Superintendent of Police Rajendra Prasad Bhatta, said that the traffic police have been conducting various awareness programs to reduce the number of vehicle accidents in the Valley. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Cambria"><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">"We have been tightening the checking of alcohol consumption to reduce accidents. We also ensure that the rules prohibiting vehicles from plying at a speed of more than 50 kilometers per hour to control speeding is followed. Other measures include checking the status of vehicles and whether there are two drivers in long-distance vehicles," he said.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Cambria"><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">During the last fiscal year, 178 people were killed in a total of 9,683 road accidents in the Kathmandu Valley (Kathmandu, Lalitpur and Bhaktapur districts) as of June 15, 2023, according to the Kathmandu Valley Traffic Police Office. </span></span><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">-- RSS </span></span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19800', 'image' => '20240125114306_20200903113103_1599056781.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 11:36:10', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20072', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'National Assembly Election Held', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The election to pick the National Assembly members for the seats that will be vacant from March 4 is taking place today (Thursday).', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Cambria"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">January 25: The election to pick the National Assembly members for the seats that will be vacant from March 4 is taking place today (Thursday). A total of 19 seats of the National Assebly will be vacant after the terms of the upper house menbers including National Assembly Chairman Ganesh Prasad Timilsina end on March 4. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">As per the law, the election has to be held 35 days before the end of the tenure of the upper house members. The election which started at 9.00 am will conclude at 3.00 pm in the designated polling stations of the provinces. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">The province assembly members, rural municipality chairs and vice chairs, municipality mayors and deputy mayors will cast their votes in the election. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">The electoral collage comprises of members of the Province Assembly and chairperson and vice-chairperson of the rural municipality and mayor and deputy mayor of the municipality. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">The weightage of a vote of a Province Assembly member is 53 while it is 19 for a vote from chairpersons and vice-chairpersons of the rural municipalities and mayors and deputy mayors of municipalities. With this, the total vote weightage will be 57,559. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">A total of 1,958 voters, including 549 provincial assembly members and chiefs and deputy chiefs of local levels, will cast their votes in the election. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">The Election Commission has said that it has already completed all necessary preparation for the election. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-29', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19799', 'image' => '20240125103536_20240108022303_Election_Commission.2e16d0ba.fill-650x500.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 10:33:22', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20071', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Company Owned by Entrepreneur of Nepali Origin to be Listed in US Stock Exchange NASDAQ ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The Fusemachines Inc, a company set up by an entrepreneur of Nepali origin, Dr Sameer Maskey, is set to be listed in the US Stock Exchange-NASDAQ. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Cambria"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">January 25: The Fusemachines Inc, a company set up by an entrepreneur of Nepali origin, Dr Sameer Maskey, is set to be listed in the US Stock Exchange-NASDAQ. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">The company recently entered into a definitive agreement for merger with CSLM Acquisition Corp, paving the path for the AI solutions provider enterprise to debut in the prestigious stock exchange NASDAQ. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Following the merger, the company's equity valuation is estimated to be worth USD 200 million, according to Dr Maskey, CEO of the company. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">It will be publicly traded company on the NASDAQ under the name 'Fuse', said Dr Maskey, adding that deal for business combination with the CSLM Acquisition Corp is expected to be carried out at the end of second quarter of fiscal year 2024. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">The board members of the both companies have already approved the deal and it will be listed on NASDAQ following approval of stakeholders and fulfilling legal process. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Dr Maskey, who is also an Associate Professor at the Columbia University, established Fusemachines in 2013. Headquartered in New York of the USA, his company is currently operating across Nepal, Canada and USA. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Of the total 450 employees working in the Fusemachines, 350 were Nepali and they were mostly outsourcing from Nepal, he said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Talking to RSS, he said, "It is a significant milestone for the company to be listed in the NASDAQ and become a publicly traded company. I am confident that the company after partnership with the CSLM would make a leap in the sector of Artificial Intelligence in future." -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19798', 'image' => '20240125102217_20240124094336_nasdaq-stocks-trends-up-down.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 10:20:57', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20068', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'The British College Launches BSc (Hons) Computer Science (Artificial Intelligence) Programme ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The British College (TBC) has officially launched its new BSc (Hons) Computer Science (Artificial Intelligence) program in collaboration with the University of the West of England (UWE), UK.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">January 24: The British College (TBC) has officially launched its new BSc (Hons) Computer Science (Artificial Intelligence) program in collaboration with the University of the West of England (UWE), UK. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The launch event, held at the Yak and Yeti Hotel in partnership with FinTech Alliance Nepal, marked the commencement of admissions for the accredited program, recognized by the Engineering Council and the British Computer Society in the UK.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The event saw the participation of industry professionals and distinguished guests, including the British Ambassador to Nepal.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Gunakar Bhatta, the Executive Director of Nepal Rastra Bank, delivered the opening address, setting the stage for a panel discussion on digital wallets. The panel, featuring experts from Esewa, Khalti, and Imepay, explored the world of digital wallets.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Sanjib Subba, the President of FinTech Alliance, highlighted the significance of Artificial Intelligence for the future of digital wallets and expressed gratitude to TBC for offering internationally recognized UK programs that contribute to transforming the IT landscape in Nepal.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The Chief Guest, British Ambassador to Nepal H.E. Rob Fenn, delivered the Keynote Speech, expressing delight in witnessing the launch of the pioneering program.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">He emphasized the program's role in strengthening ties between the UK and Nepal, reflecting a commitment to fostering education and innovation through collaboration between TBC and UWE.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Deputy Principal Dr. Patrick McCrudden of the TBC underscored the college's focus on shaping new talents for a better future. He highlighted the program's role in addressing the global demand for skilled AI professionals and preparing students to lead the charge in the fourth industrial revolution.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19795', 'image' => '20240124043946_collage (25).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 16:37:54', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20067', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Nepal Airlines Corporation Seeks Concessional Loan to Clear its Existing Debt', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 24: The state-owned Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) has started the process of seeking additional loans for various purposes', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">January 24: The state-owned Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) has started the process of seeking additional loans for various purposes. The NAC is looking for lenders to pay the debt of the existing aircraft, buy more aircraft and build a hangar. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">The debt-ridden Nepal Airlines Corporation issued an Expression of Interest (EOI) on Tuesday after making a financial statement of Rs 135 billion for the specific purpose. Accordingly, national and international companies can submit proposals for the loan.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">According to NAC Spokesperson Ramesh Paudel, the debt of the company is now more than Rs 48 billion. The NAC’s debt liability for the purchase of four aircraft in 2015 and the interest on the loans alone stand almost Rs 50 billion.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">The NAC plans to pay the outstanding debt and buy new aircraft with the new loan.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">According to the NAC, the new loan will mostly be utilized to buy new aircraft. The NAC requires an estimated loan of Rs 75 billion to buy new aircraft, Rs 55 billion to pay off the existing debt and Rs 5 billion to build the hangar. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">The NAC, which is under severe pressure due to lack of capital, increasing debt burden and lack of aircraft, has started the process of taking loans at subsidized interest rates. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">According to Spokesperson Paudel, the interest rate of the loans taken from the current lenders, including the Employee Provident Fund and the Citizens' Investment Trust, is expensive. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">"As the interest rate of the loan is high, we are forced to pay an annual installment of Rs 3.5 billion for the interest alone," said Paudel, “Since the interest is expensive, we are seeking concessional loans to 'swap' the existing loan." </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">Paudel said that it is possible to get loan at an interest rate of less than 5 percent at the international level. If the NAC gets the loan, it plans to clear the debt to the EPF and CIT.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">"The first priority is to pay the loan of EPF and CIT." </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">Committees and working groups formed by the government at various times for the reform of the corporation had also suggested increasing business or taking concessional loans to repay the debt. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">The NAC is less likely to clear its debts with the existing aircraft it has.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">Therefore, the NAC is opting to for a new alternative. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">However, experts in this field doubt that the NAC will be able to clear such a large debt with the current management and conditions.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">Shankar Prasad Adhikari, the former secretary of Nepal Government, says that it would be good to get a loan at a cheap interest rate, but it is not possible to get a loan in the current situation. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">"I don't see the ideal condition for getting a loan at the moment," said the official, "Some external organizations and agents have shown interest to provide loan at a subsidized rate. If the government gives the guarantee, there is a possibility of getting a loan, but looking at all the financial conditions of the organization (NAC), who will give the loan?”</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19794', 'image' => '20240124034545_20231121015002_1700527556.1692446817.चब.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 15:44:43', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20066', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Groundbreaking Groundwater Recharge System in Balaju Park Handed Over to KMC', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'Coca-Cola Beverages Nepal, the Centre for Integrated Urban Development (CIUD), and WaterAid Nepal (WAN) officially handed over a state-of-the-art groundwater recharge system at Balaju Park in ward number 16 of the Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC). The Deputy Mayor of KMC, Sunita Dangol, received the system on January 19, 2024.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">January 24: Coca-Cola Beverages Nepal, the Centre for Integrated Urban Development (CIUD), and WaterAid Nepal (WAN) officially handed over a state-of-the-art groundwater recharge system at Balaju Park in ward number 16 of the Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC). </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The Deputy Mayor of KMC, Sunita Dangol, received the system on January 19, 2024.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The project, initiated in October 2023 and concluded on January 19, 2024, features a comprehensive groundwater recharge system comprising 21 filter chambers, 21 recharge wells, two distilling chambers, recharge trenches spanning 75 feet, and seven bamboo check dams. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Funded by Bottlers Nepal Terai Limited (BNTL) and supported by WAN, the project is expected to recharge an estimated 30,000 kiloliters of water annually, contributing to the enhancement of the area's shallow groundwater table.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The primary goal of the initiative is to sustain the water table in the park area, rejuvenating stone spouts, including the renowned Baish Dhara, and supporting community wells and spring sources.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> The project aims not only to preserve the groundwater table in the project's peripheral areas but also to raise awareness among communities and local authorities, fostering accountability for similar initiatives. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">KMC Deputy Mayor Dangol lauded the initiative, expressing her commitment to supporting and coordinating with KMC for future public-private partnerships.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> She emphasized the importance of artificial groundwater recharge in Kathmandu, where groundwater extraction is high, but natural replenishment is hindered by the sealing of buildings and road construction in recharge zones.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Groundwater has been a historic source of drinking water in the Kathmandu valley, with stone spouts, wells, and kuwas serving as major water outlets. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">However, excessive groundwater extraction, unregulated construction, and altered rainfall patterns over the past two decades have led to a significant decline in groundwater levels, making initiatives like this vital for sustainable water management in the region.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19793', 'image' => '20240124031834_collage (28).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 15:17:07', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20064', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'This Year's SEE Exams to be Based on Letter Grading Directive 2078 ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 24: The National Examinations Board this year has decided to conduct the Secondary Education Examination (SEE) and publish its results in accordance with the Letter Grading Directive 2078 BS. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 24: The National Examinations Board this year has decided to conduct the Secondary Education Examination (SEE) and publish its results in accordance with the Letter Grading Directive 2078 BS. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The Board has scheduled the SEE for the year 2080 BS from upcoming March 28 to April 9. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Board Chair Dr Mahashram Sharma said that grade ten students this year will be sitting for the SEE as per the new curriculum and the results will be published based on the Letter Grading Directives 2078 BS. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">As per the new system, each SEE student is required to obtain 35 in theory subjects of 100 full marks to be qualified for pursuing higher studies. Any student failing to secure 35 in theory will not be eligible for getting enrolled in class 11 and will find the result under the Non-Graded category. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">In such situation, the chance exams for two subjects will be allowed for three times. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">A total of 489,000 students, both regular and towards grade improvement, will be appearing for the SEE, according Nandalal Paudel, SEE examinations controller. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Grading system has been already implemented in the exams of grade 11 and 12. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The Board has intensified the preparations for the SEE. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The printing of question papers, preparations of other logistics and fixing of examination centers are the parts of the preparations. -- RSS</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19791', 'image' => '20240124012950_20230706011345_20230703044048_exam-media1619757704.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 13:29:12', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20063', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Government Adopts Strict Measures for Nepalis Traveling Abroad on Visit Visas', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 24: The government has adopted strict measures for those who want to travel abroad on a visit visa. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">January 24: The government has adopted strict measures for those who want to travel abroad on a visit visa. The government has issued a new <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">6-</span>point procedure in place of the previous <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">17-</span>point procedure related to visit visas.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The Ministry of Home Affairs issued the new procedure after it was found that the previous procedure helped the activities of the groups that prepared fake documents for visit visas.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">As per the new provision, a person visiting foreign country on a visit visa needs to present passport, visa, ticket, hotel booking or a document sponsored by a relative along with <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">$500</span> and a self-declaration document to return back. The new provision has come into effect from Wednesday, January 24. Home Secretary Dinesh Bhattarai issued the new <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">6-</span>point procedure after receiving widespread criticism that the previous <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">17-</span>point procedure was impractical.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Head of the Immigration Office at the Tribhuvan International Airport, Gogan Bahadur Hamal, claimed that the new procedures will make it easier for Nepalis traveling abroad on visit visas. According to Hamal, the <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">17-</span>point procedure was issued through a secretary-level decision to stop the trend of people traveling abroad on a visit visa but not returning back. Hamal says that the previous procedure instead helped the illicit activities of the middlemen raising serious questions about the airport’s system.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Rudra Singh Tamang, director general of the Department of Immigration, urged the travelers visiting family abroad not to travel by paying money to any middleman and not to work abroad on visit and tourist visas.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">He has also requested to study the travel advisory issued by Government of Nepal before traveling on visit and tourist visa. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"In the last <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">24 </span>hours, Tribhuvan Airport Immigration Office has returned <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">48 </span>people who were going abroad on visit and tourist visas," said Tamang.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Meanwhile, Hamal, the head of the airport immigration office, informed that those who did not bring the necessary documents and could not explain the purpose of their visit were returned back from the airport. Most of them were going to the Gulf countries.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19790', 'image' => '20240124123854_7.visit-visa.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 12:38:09', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20062', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'PM Dahal Tells Finance Ministry not to Include New Plans in Budget', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 24: Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal has instructed the Ministry of Finance to completely stop adding unnecessary plans in the annual budget.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">January 24: Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal has instructed the Ministry of Finance to completely stop adding unnecessary plans in the annual budget. The prime minister made such remarks a few days after the government amended the Fiscal Procedures and Financial Accountability Act 2076 through an ordinance to change the budget schedule.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Speaking at a meeting held at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers on Tuesday afternoon to discuss the preparation of the next fiscal year's policies and programmes and the budget, Prime Minister Dahal said that problem arises when the Ministry of Finance adds new projects and programmes by itself, and instructed the ministry to stop such work completely. According to Prime Minister Dahal, the concerned ministries should be given full access to the budget system and they should be allowed to finalize their own programmes and projects. He lamented that the old plans are being shelved but new plans are being added. According to the prime minister, this will not only stall the work but also waste resources.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">“Development should be planned. Ironically, development projects are initiated without any feasibility study and ensuring resources for such projects. It often leads to freezing of the allocated budget,” said the PM.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">He stressed the need to complete the plans that were selected in the past and are still incomplete.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">PM Dahal claimed that there has been an improvement economy but many problems in the development sector still persists. “The signs of the economy are positive. However, our economy is not free from pressure. There are many problems in development work. This time, let's rise above the traditional thinking and patterns. We should choose a plan that will not make everyone happy, but will fulfill the task of prosperity of the country.”</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The PM’s directed the National Planning Commission (NPC) and the Ministry of Finance to hold discussions with all the ministries by February 3 before finalizing the ceiling of the budget. Prime Minister Dahal has instructed them to hold a group discussion with all the ministries/agencies within February 8 after the completion of the ministry/agency discussions and make a schedule to discuss the national priorities and the state of national resources.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The PM’s instructions include allocation of the budget for new programs and plans only after ensuring that the ongoing projects are completed. He emphasized allocating the budget according to the approved procurement master plan for national pride projects.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">PM Dahal also directed government officials to allocate budget only for projects and programs that have received multi-year resource assurance, completed preparations, entered the project bank, and yielded returns. He also issued instructions to end the practice of ministries sending conditional grants to provincial and local levels in the middle of the fiscal year.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The prime minister also instructed to keep the budget ceilings of the ministries/organizations in the schedule when presenting the principles and priorities of the budget in the parliament and to prepare the budget by incorporating the topics raised in the parliament and the suggestions given by the general public on the principles and priorities of the budget.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">PM Dahal’s directive also emphasized restructuring the revenue system, focusing on building a system to increase production and productivity, expanding the scope of revenue, maintaining customs revenue of raw materials lower than that of finished goods, and making changes to the tax structure.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">PM Dahal instructed the Ministry of Finance to adopt austerity measures in recurrent expenses, increase development expenses, use external and internal loans only for development expenses. He highlighted the importance of allocating the budget for the productive sector. </span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19789', 'image' => '20240124114937_budgetttttt.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 11:48:53', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20061', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Asia-Pacific Countries Gather in KTM to Address Threat of Illicit Small Arms Trade ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 24: Delegations from over 25 countries of the Asia-Pacific region have gathered in Kathmandu to collectively tackle the issue of illicit arms trade. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 24: Delegations from over 25 countries of the Asia-Pacific region have gathered in Kathmandu to collectively tackle the issue of illicit arms trade. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The three-day regional preparatory meeting for the fourth review conference of the United Nations Programme for Action (UN PoA) to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All its Aspects and International Tracing Instrument kicked off on Tuesday. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The meeting is being chaired by president designate of the fourth review conference Maritza Chan Valverde of Costa Rica as well as Izumi Nakamitsu, UN Under-Secretary-General and High Representatives for Disarmament Affairs. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">UN PoA, established in 2001 at the UN General Assembly, is a critically and politically binding framework. It provides framework for activities to counter illicit trade in small arms and light weapons. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">It also encompasses commitments by UN member states to enhance control measures over small arms, including through improved national regulations, stockpile management, import/export controls and international cooperation. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The adoption of the International Tracing Instrument in 2005 further strengthened the mechanism and facilitated tracing, emphasizing the need for effective marking and record keeping of weapons. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">These measures are an integral part of global efforts to address the challenges posed by the illicit arms trade and are in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">UN member states will periodically review the progress of their commitments at the fourth review conference to be held in New York from June 16 -27, 2024. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The preparatory committee meeting is being held to set the agenda for the meeting in New York. United Nations Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Asia and the Pacific region in collaboration with the Government of Nepal is organizing this regional meeting in Kathmandu. The regional meeting will hold discussions with the participating countries and other stakeholders, including civil society organizations, to identify the challenges related to small arms and light weapons specified in the region and to discuss the priorities of the review conference. The meeting will make thematic presentations and group-wise discussions on formulating an effective national policy, increasing the tracing of small and light arms through the International Tracing Instrument format and identify and formulate strategies to control the demand for small arms. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19788', 'image' => '20240124111122_420669903_7516194481779058_311723704658705252_n1706053273_1024.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 11:10:41', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ) ) $current_user = null $logged_in = false $xml = falseinclude - APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 133 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::_renderElement() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 1224 View::element() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 418 include - APP/View/Articles/index.ctp, line 157 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 473 Controller::render() - CORE/Cake/Controller/Controller.php, line 968 Dispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 200 Dispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 167 [main] - APP/webroot/index.php, line 117
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(RSS) </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19805', 'image' => '20240125034648_collage (29).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 15:45:15', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20077', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Fitch Ratings to undertake Sovereign Credit Rating of Nepal', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The government is preparing to hand over the responsibility of the sovereign credit rating of Nepal to American credit company Fitch Ratings. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">January 25: The government is preparing to hand over the responsibility of the sovereign credit rating of Nepal to American credit company Fitch Ratings. This company has been involved in the sovereign credit rating of the USA.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">This year, the company has lowered the USA’s credit rating from 'AAA' to 'AA'. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">A triple-A rating is the highest rating given by the agency to a country or an institution based on their ability to repay the loan. This rating indirectly shows the company or the country's economic situation. Fitch Ratings had shown interest for rating Nepal since a long time.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Sources at the Ministry of Finance say that the government is preparing to hand over the responsibility of rating the country to Fitch Ratings as it will take a long time to begin a new process of selection of rating agency. The government had mentioned in the budget announcement five years ago that it will opt for the country’s sovereign credit rating. It took almost a year to find the donor for the rating. The government handed over the responsibility of rating to Fitch Ratings after DFIF pledged to financially support the credit rating of Nepal. However, the credit rating was halted due to the onset of the coronavirus pandemic the same year as the government was apprehensive that the credit rating outcome would not be as expected due to the impact of the pandemic.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The government once again included the topic of credit rating in the budget this year. As per the budget announcement, the government has decided to give the responsibility to Fitch Ratings.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19804', 'image' => '20240125023341_fitch-ratings-1671551049.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 14:32:59', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20076', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => '2,538 Trademarks Registered In Six Months of Current FY', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The number of trademark registrants in the first six months of the current fiscal year has reached 2,538. In the last one month alone, around 400 trademarks were registered with the Department of Industry.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">January 25: The number of trademark registrants in the first six months of the current fiscal year has reached <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2</span>,<span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">538</span>. In the last one month alone, around <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">400</span> trademarks were registered with the Department of Industry.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Acquiring trademark from the department means getting legal rights for any business.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Dik Bahadur Karki, director of Industrial Property Branch under the Department, said that the number of trademark registrations has increased of late. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"It indicates that the industries and businessmen are seeking protection of their products and services from the government,” said Karki.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Among the trademarks registered in the department, most of the industries are related to business. Such a trademark can also be owned by companies and businessmen as well as non-profit oranisations. However, most of the trademarks registered during the review period were related to businessmen, says Karki.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">He said that the number of trademarks issued has increased because of the department’s decision to approve the applications of around six to seven thousand that was halted in the past.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Stating that it used to take a year and a half to register a trademark in the past but now the registration process can be completed within six months.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Likewise, the department has received investment proposals worth Rs 136 billion including FDI proposals worth Rs 22 billion.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Altogether 211 industries including industries with domestic and foreign investments have been registered within the six months of current fiscal year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Among them, <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">167 </span>are small industries,<span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif""> 16</span> are middle-scale industries and <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif""> 28 </span>are large scale industries.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19803', 'image' => '20240125021039_20180313095356_Clipboard45.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 14:09:53', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20075', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Did Central Banks Break Inflation?', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: Central bankers who orchestrated the wave of interest rate hikes over the past two years, hoping to avoid a painful inflationary spiral, are now facing an uncomfortable question: Were their moves helpful?', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">January 25: Central bankers who orchestrated the wave of interest rate hikes over the past two years, hoping to avoid a painful inflationary spiral, are now facing an uncomfortable question: Were their moves helpful?</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The debate is heating up as European Central Bank policymakers meet this week, with many observers now expecting its benchmark lending rates to start coming down by this summer.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Governors at the US Federal Reserve are also weighing cuts for later this year, fanning hopes that the price surges seen in the wake of Covid-19 lockdowns and Russia's war on Ukraine have been brought under control.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">But some economists argue that the spikes were only temporary -- and that inflation would have eased anyway, whether or not central banks tried to contain it with tighter monetary policy.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"It was not because of Fed action that the prices of cars, oil, food, or the host of other goods affected by supply-side interruptions came down, but because the underlying shortages were at least partially resolved," said Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Higher rates, however, are often the tool of choice by central bankers to increase borrowing costs for business, which can often spark an increase in jobless rates.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Households, meanwhile, are suddenly confronted with higher mortgage and housing costs, leading them to curb spending and drive down inflation through a fall of demand.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">For Stiglitz and other critics, inflation was not being driven by increased demand -- which can be influenced more directly by the cost of credit -- but by supply constraints due to Covid and the Ukraine war.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"In many ways the Fed made things worse. It was more difficult to make the investments required to alleviate shortages," Stiglitz wrote in an essay for The American Prospect this month.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""> 'Irony' </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Alan Blinder, an economist at Princeton and a former Fed vice chairman, agreed that global economic shocks -- by nature temporary -- stoked the inflation they have now eased even as economic growth on both sides of the Atlantic remains relatively robust.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"What the central banks did went in the right direction for sure, but it was of secondary importance," Blinder told AFP.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"The irony is that they got more blame than they deserved for letting inflation get out of control, and now they are getting more credit than they deserve for bringing it down," he said.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Other economists counter that it was massive Covid stimulus spending, from direct payouts to unemployment and business support, that flooded economies with money likely to drive prices higher.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">That view was countered in June 2022 by Fed chairman Jerome Powell, who discounted the impact of government pandemic aid but insisted nonetheless that sharply higher interest rates were necessary -- even if it meant a recession.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">For Stiglitz, Powell and his supporters were effectively prescribing economic pain for millions: "By killing the economy, there would be no excess demand, and by definition (in their minds) no inflation," he wrote.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Higher wages? </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Some proponents of the rate hikes argue that regardless of the source of inflation, unless central bankers showed they were serious about tackling it, expectations of persistent and widespread price increases would only grow.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"Without a tightening, economic agents could have anticipated inflation would have stayed high," Benoit Mojon, head of economic analysis at the Bank of International Settlements, wrote in a December report.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Those price hikes could have rippled throughout the economy "and resulted in higher wages", he wrote.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Wage pressure has indeed been restrained in recent months, bolstering hopes of a "soft landing" for the US and European economies in which inflation eases while growth stays solid.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Weighing how much of that success is due to central bank policy is likely to fuel debates for months as economists study the unprecedented impacts of Covid and two years of intense war on Europe's doorstep.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">In a recent study, Allianz Trade estimated that Federal Reserve action accounted for 45 percent of slowing inflation, with the rest the result of supply chains returning to normal across the planet.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"You could analyse that by saying everyone was right to an extent," said Maxime Darmet, an economist who authored the study.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"On the other hand you could say that those who think the inflation was only temporary completely ignore the impacts of central banks," he told AFP. – AFP/RSS</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19802', 'image' => '20240125013517_20230820111244_Rising-Inflation.min_.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 13:31:57', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20074', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Govt Forms Committee to Study the Requirement of New Stock Exchange', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The government has formed a three-member committee to study the need for a new stock exchange body in the country. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">January 25: The government has formed a three-member committee to study the need for a new stock exchange body in the country. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">A meeting of the Council of Ministers on Tuesday decided to form the committee headed by former Deputy Governor of Nepal Rastra Bank Chintamani Shiwakoti to study the issue that has courted controversy.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">Other members of the committee include Chartered Accountant Sujan Kumar Acharya and Advocate Sijan Guragain.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">According to the Ministry of Finance, the committee has been mandated to submit within 45 days a report on whether the country requires a new stock exchange or not. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">The Securities Board of Nepal (SEBON) had initiated the process of setting up a new stock exchange entity in September 2023. Currently, the country has only one body to oversee the securities market trading which is done by the state-owned Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE). After the regulatory body SEBON had completed all the due process to establish a new stock exchange entity to diversify the secondary market transaction, the government halted the process.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">A cabinet meeting in during last May instructed SEBON to halt the process of licensing the new security exchange. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">Subsequently, the Finance Committee of the House of Representatives had also instructed the SEBON to put on hold the process of issuing license for a new stock exchange. However, after studying all the documents related to the process of licensing a new stock exchange, the house panel after five months gave the go ahead with the licensing process arguing that the Supreme Court has already issued a verdict in favour of SEBON. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Times">Himalayan Stock Exchange, National Stock Exchange of Nepal and Annapurna Stock Exchange Limited have so far submitted applications to the SEBON seeking license to operate the new stock exchange entity.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19801', 'image' => '20240125121528_20220907055411_share.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 12:14:39', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20073', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Road Accidents in Kathmandu Valley Claim 88 Lives in Six Months ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: Hundreds of people have been losing their lives due to untimely deaths caused by road accidents in the Kathmandu Valley every year. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Cambria"><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">January 25: Hundreds of people have been losing their lives due to untimely deaths caused by road accidents in the Kathmandu Valley every year. </span></span><br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">According to the Kathmandu Valley Traffic Police Office, as many as 88 people lost their lives in 5,865 road accidents in the first six months of the current fiscal year. Likewise, 148 people were critically injured and 4,438 persons sustained minor injuries. </span></span><br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Most of the deceased in the accidents were motorcyclists and pedestrians. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Cambria"><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Senior vice-president of the National Federation of Nepal Transport Entrepreneurs Punya Prasad Sitaula said that two-wheelers in the Kathmandu Valley are more prone to accidents. "High speed of motorcycles and scooters and pedestrians rampantly crossing the road have caused the highest number of fatalities in Kathmandu," he said. </span></span><br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Spokesperson for the Kathmandu Valley Traffic Police Office, Senior Superintendent of Police Rajendra Prasad Bhatta, said that the traffic police have been conducting various awareness programs to reduce the number of vehicle accidents in the Valley. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Cambria"><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">"We have been tightening the checking of alcohol consumption to reduce accidents. We also ensure that the rules prohibiting vehicles from plying at a speed of more than 50 kilometers per hour to control speeding is followed. Other measures include checking the status of vehicles and whether there are two drivers in long-distance vehicles," he said.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Cambria"><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">During the last fiscal year, 178 people were killed in a total of 9,683 road accidents in the Kathmandu Valley (Kathmandu, Lalitpur and Bhaktapur districts) as of June 15, 2023, according to the Kathmandu Valley Traffic Police Office. </span></span><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">-- RSS </span></span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19800', 'image' => '20240125114306_20200903113103_1599056781.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 11:36:10', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20072', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'National Assembly Election Held', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The election to pick the National Assembly members for the seats that will be vacant from March 4 is taking place today (Thursday).', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Cambria"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">January 25: The election to pick the National Assembly members for the seats that will be vacant from March 4 is taking place today (Thursday). A total of 19 seats of the National Assebly will be vacant after the terms of the upper house menbers including National Assembly Chairman Ganesh Prasad Timilsina end on March 4. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">As per the law, the election has to be held 35 days before the end of the tenure of the upper house members. The election which started at 9.00 am will conclude at 3.00 pm in the designated polling stations of the provinces. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">The province assembly members, rural municipality chairs and vice chairs, municipality mayors and deputy mayors will cast their votes in the election. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">The electoral collage comprises of members of the Province Assembly and chairperson and vice-chairperson of the rural municipality and mayor and deputy mayor of the municipality. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">The weightage of a vote of a Province Assembly member is 53 while it is 19 for a vote from chairpersons and vice-chairpersons of the rural municipalities and mayors and deputy mayors of municipalities. With this, the total vote weightage will be 57,559. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">A total of 1,958 voters, including 549 provincial assembly members and chiefs and deputy chiefs of local levels, will cast their votes in the election. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">The Election Commission has said that it has already completed all necessary preparation for the election. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-29', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19799', 'image' => '20240125103536_20240108022303_Election_Commission.2e16d0ba.fill-650x500.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 10:33:22', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20071', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Company Owned by Entrepreneur of Nepali Origin to be Listed in US Stock Exchange NASDAQ ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The Fusemachines Inc, a company set up by an entrepreneur of Nepali origin, Dr Sameer Maskey, is set to be listed in the US Stock Exchange-NASDAQ. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Cambria"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">January 25: The Fusemachines Inc, a company set up by an entrepreneur of Nepali origin, Dr Sameer Maskey, is set to be listed in the US Stock Exchange-NASDAQ. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">The company recently entered into a definitive agreement for merger with CSLM Acquisition Corp, paving the path for the AI solutions provider enterprise to debut in the prestigious stock exchange NASDAQ. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Following the merger, the company's equity valuation is estimated to be worth USD 200 million, according to Dr Maskey, CEO of the company. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">It will be publicly traded company on the NASDAQ under the name 'Fuse', said Dr Maskey, adding that deal for business combination with the CSLM Acquisition Corp is expected to be carried out at the end of second quarter of fiscal year 2024. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">The board members of the both companies have already approved the deal and it will be listed on NASDAQ following approval of stakeholders and fulfilling legal process. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Dr Maskey, who is also an Associate Professor at the Columbia University, established Fusemachines in 2013. Headquartered in New York of the USA, his company is currently operating across Nepal, Canada and USA. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Of the total 450 employees working in the Fusemachines, 350 were Nepali and they were mostly outsourcing from Nepal, he said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"">Talking to RSS, he said, "It is a significant milestone for the company to be listed in the NASDAQ and become a publicly traded company. I am confident that the company after partnership with the CSLM would make a leap in the sector of Artificial Intelligence in future." -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-25', 'modified' => '2024-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19798', 'image' => '20240125102217_20240124094336_nasdaq-stocks-trends-up-down.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-25 10:20:57', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20068', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'The British College Launches BSc (Hons) Computer Science (Artificial Intelligence) Programme ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The British College (TBC) has officially launched its new BSc (Hons) Computer Science (Artificial Intelligence) program in collaboration with the University of the West of England (UWE), UK.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">January 24: The British College (TBC) has officially launched its new BSc (Hons) Computer Science (Artificial Intelligence) program in collaboration with the University of the West of England (UWE), UK. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The launch event, held at the Yak and Yeti Hotel in partnership with FinTech Alliance Nepal, marked the commencement of admissions for the accredited program, recognized by the Engineering Council and the British Computer Society in the UK.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The event saw the participation of industry professionals and distinguished guests, including the British Ambassador to Nepal.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Gunakar Bhatta, the Executive Director of Nepal Rastra Bank, delivered the opening address, setting the stage for a panel discussion on digital wallets. The panel, featuring experts from Esewa, Khalti, and Imepay, explored the world of digital wallets.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Sanjib Subba, the President of FinTech Alliance, highlighted the significance of Artificial Intelligence for the future of digital wallets and expressed gratitude to TBC for offering internationally recognized UK programs that contribute to transforming the IT landscape in Nepal.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The Chief Guest, British Ambassador to Nepal H.E. Rob Fenn, delivered the Keynote Speech, expressing delight in witnessing the launch of the pioneering program.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">He emphasized the program's role in strengthening ties between the UK and Nepal, reflecting a commitment to fostering education and innovation through collaboration between TBC and UWE.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Deputy Principal Dr. Patrick McCrudden of the TBC underscored the college's focus on shaping new talents for a better future. He highlighted the program's role in addressing the global demand for skilled AI professionals and preparing students to lead the charge in the fourth industrial revolution.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19795', 'image' => '20240124043946_collage (25).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 16:37:54', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20067', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Nepal Airlines Corporation Seeks Concessional Loan to Clear its Existing Debt', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 24: The state-owned Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) has started the process of seeking additional loans for various purposes', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">January 24: The state-owned Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) has started the process of seeking additional loans for various purposes. The NAC is looking for lenders to pay the debt of the existing aircraft, buy more aircraft and build a hangar. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">The debt-ridden Nepal Airlines Corporation issued an Expression of Interest (EOI) on Tuesday after making a financial statement of Rs 135 billion for the specific purpose. Accordingly, national and international companies can submit proposals for the loan.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">According to NAC Spokesperson Ramesh Paudel, the debt of the company is now more than Rs 48 billion. The NAC’s debt liability for the purchase of four aircraft in 2015 and the interest on the loans alone stand almost Rs 50 billion.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">The NAC plans to pay the outstanding debt and buy new aircraft with the new loan.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">According to the NAC, the new loan will mostly be utilized to buy new aircraft. The NAC requires an estimated loan of Rs 75 billion to buy new aircraft, Rs 55 billion to pay off the existing debt and Rs 5 billion to build the hangar. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">The NAC, which is under severe pressure due to lack of capital, increasing debt burden and lack of aircraft, has started the process of taking loans at subsidized interest rates. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">According to Spokesperson Paudel, the interest rate of the loans taken from the current lenders, including the Employee Provident Fund and the Citizens' Investment Trust, is expensive. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">"As the interest rate of the loan is high, we are forced to pay an annual installment of Rs 3.5 billion for the interest alone," said Paudel, “Since the interest is expensive, we are seeking concessional loans to 'swap' the existing loan." </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">Paudel said that it is possible to get loan at an interest rate of less than 5 percent at the international level. If the NAC gets the loan, it plans to clear the debt to the EPF and CIT.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">"The first priority is to pay the loan of EPF and CIT." </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">Committees and working groups formed by the government at various times for the reform of the corporation had also suggested increasing business or taking concessional loans to repay the debt. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">The NAC is less likely to clear its debts with the existing aircraft it has.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">Therefore, the NAC is opting to for a new alternative. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">However, experts in this field doubt that the NAC will be able to clear such a large debt with the current management and conditions.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">Shankar Prasad Adhikari, the former secretary of Nepal Government, says that it would be good to get a loan at a cheap interest rate, but it is not possible to get a loan in the current situation. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Cambria">"I don't see the ideal condition for getting a loan at the moment," said the official, "Some external organizations and agents have shown interest to provide loan at a subsidized rate. If the government gives the guarantee, there is a possibility of getting a loan, but looking at all the financial conditions of the organization (NAC), who will give the loan?”</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19794', 'image' => '20240124034545_20231121015002_1700527556.1692446817.चब.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 15:44:43', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20066', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Groundbreaking Groundwater Recharge System in Balaju Park Handed Over to KMC', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'Coca-Cola Beverages Nepal, the Centre for Integrated Urban Development (CIUD), and WaterAid Nepal (WAN) officially handed over a state-of-the-art groundwater recharge system at Balaju Park in ward number 16 of the Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC). The Deputy Mayor of KMC, Sunita Dangol, received the system on January 19, 2024.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">January 24: Coca-Cola Beverages Nepal, the Centre for Integrated Urban Development (CIUD), and WaterAid Nepal (WAN) officially handed over a state-of-the-art groundwater recharge system at Balaju Park in ward number 16 of the Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC). </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The Deputy Mayor of KMC, Sunita Dangol, received the system on January 19, 2024.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The project, initiated in October 2023 and concluded on January 19, 2024, features a comprehensive groundwater recharge system comprising 21 filter chambers, 21 recharge wells, two distilling chambers, recharge trenches spanning 75 feet, and seven bamboo check dams. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Funded by Bottlers Nepal Terai Limited (BNTL) and supported by WAN, the project is expected to recharge an estimated 30,000 kiloliters of water annually, contributing to the enhancement of the area's shallow groundwater table.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The primary goal of the initiative is to sustain the water table in the park area, rejuvenating stone spouts, including the renowned Baish Dhara, and supporting community wells and spring sources.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> The project aims not only to preserve the groundwater table in the project's peripheral areas but also to raise awareness among communities and local authorities, fostering accountability for similar initiatives. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">KMC Deputy Mayor Dangol lauded the initiative, expressing her commitment to supporting and coordinating with KMC for future public-private partnerships.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> She emphasized the importance of artificial groundwater recharge in Kathmandu, where groundwater extraction is high, but natural replenishment is hindered by the sealing of buildings and road construction in recharge zones.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Groundwater has been a historic source of drinking water in the Kathmandu valley, with stone spouts, wells, and kuwas serving as major water outlets. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">However, excessive groundwater extraction, unregulated construction, and altered rainfall patterns over the past two decades have led to a significant decline in groundwater levels, making initiatives like this vital for sustainable water management in the region.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19793', 'image' => '20240124031834_collage (28).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 15:17:07', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20064', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'This Year's SEE Exams to be Based on Letter Grading Directive 2078 ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 24: The National Examinations Board this year has decided to conduct the Secondary Education Examination (SEE) and publish its results in accordance with the Letter Grading Directive 2078 BS. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 24: The National Examinations Board this year has decided to conduct the Secondary Education Examination (SEE) and publish its results in accordance with the Letter Grading Directive 2078 BS. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The Board has scheduled the SEE for the year 2080 BS from upcoming March 28 to April 9. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Board Chair Dr Mahashram Sharma said that grade ten students this year will be sitting for the SEE as per the new curriculum and the results will be published based on the Letter Grading Directives 2078 BS. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">As per the new system, each SEE student is required to obtain 35 in theory subjects of 100 full marks to be qualified for pursuing higher studies. Any student failing to secure 35 in theory will not be eligible for getting enrolled in class 11 and will find the result under the Non-Graded category. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">In such situation, the chance exams for two subjects will be allowed for three times. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">A total of 489,000 students, both regular and towards grade improvement, will be appearing for the SEE, according Nandalal Paudel, SEE examinations controller. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Grading system has been already implemented in the exams of grade 11 and 12. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The Board has intensified the preparations for the SEE. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The printing of question papers, preparations of other logistics and fixing of examination centers are the parts of the preparations. -- RSS</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19791', 'image' => '20240124012950_20230706011345_20230703044048_exam-media1619757704.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 13:29:12', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20063', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Government Adopts Strict Measures for Nepalis Traveling Abroad on Visit Visas', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 24: The government has adopted strict measures for those who want to travel abroad on a visit visa. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">January 24: The government has adopted strict measures for those who want to travel abroad on a visit visa. The government has issued a new <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">6-</span>point procedure in place of the previous <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">17-</span>point procedure related to visit visas.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The Ministry of Home Affairs issued the new procedure after it was found that the previous procedure helped the activities of the groups that prepared fake documents for visit visas.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">As per the new provision, a person visiting foreign country on a visit visa needs to present passport, visa, ticket, hotel booking or a document sponsored by a relative along with <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">$500</span> and a self-declaration document to return back. The new provision has come into effect from Wednesday, January 24. Home Secretary Dinesh Bhattarai issued the new <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">6-</span>point procedure after receiving widespread criticism that the previous <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">17-</span>point procedure was impractical.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Head of the Immigration Office at the Tribhuvan International Airport, Gogan Bahadur Hamal, claimed that the new procedures will make it easier for Nepalis traveling abroad on visit visas. According to Hamal, the <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">17-</span>point procedure was issued through a secretary-level decision to stop the trend of people traveling abroad on a visit visa but not returning back. Hamal says that the previous procedure instead helped the illicit activities of the middlemen raising serious questions about the airport’s system.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Rudra Singh Tamang, director general of the Department of Immigration, urged the travelers visiting family abroad not to travel by paying money to any middleman and not to work abroad on visit and tourist visas.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">He has also requested to study the travel advisory issued by Government of Nepal before traveling on visit and tourist visa. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"In the last <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">24 </span>hours, Tribhuvan Airport Immigration Office has returned <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">48 </span>people who were going abroad on visit and tourist visas," said Tamang.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Meanwhile, Hamal, the head of the airport immigration office, informed that those who did not bring the necessary documents and could not explain the purpose of their visit were returned back from the airport. Most of them were going to the Gulf countries.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19790', 'image' => '20240124123854_7.visit-visa.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 12:38:09', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20062', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'PM Dahal Tells Finance Ministry not to Include New Plans in Budget', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 24: Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal has instructed the Ministry of Finance to completely stop adding unnecessary plans in the annual budget.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">January 24: Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal has instructed the Ministry of Finance to completely stop adding unnecessary plans in the annual budget. The prime minister made such remarks a few days after the government amended the Fiscal Procedures and Financial Accountability Act 2076 through an ordinance to change the budget schedule.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Speaking at a meeting held at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers on Tuesday afternoon to discuss the preparation of the next fiscal year's policies and programmes and the budget, Prime Minister Dahal said that problem arises when the Ministry of Finance adds new projects and programmes by itself, and instructed the ministry to stop such work completely. According to Prime Minister Dahal, the concerned ministries should be given full access to the budget system and they should be allowed to finalize their own programmes and projects. He lamented that the old plans are being shelved but new plans are being added. According to the prime minister, this will not only stall the work but also waste resources.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">“Development should be planned. Ironically, development projects are initiated without any feasibility study and ensuring resources for such projects. It often leads to freezing of the allocated budget,” said the PM.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">He stressed the need to complete the plans that were selected in the past and are still incomplete.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">PM Dahal claimed that there has been an improvement economy but many problems in the development sector still persists. “The signs of the economy are positive. However, our economy is not free from pressure. There are many problems in development work. This time, let's rise above the traditional thinking and patterns. We should choose a plan that will not make everyone happy, but will fulfill the task of prosperity of the country.”</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The PM’s directed the National Planning Commission (NPC) and the Ministry of Finance to hold discussions with all the ministries by February 3 before finalizing the ceiling of the budget. Prime Minister Dahal has instructed them to hold a group discussion with all the ministries/agencies within February 8 after the completion of the ministry/agency discussions and make a schedule to discuss the national priorities and the state of national resources.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The PM’s instructions include allocation of the budget for new programs and plans only after ensuring that the ongoing projects are completed. He emphasized allocating the budget according to the approved procurement master plan for national pride projects.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">PM Dahal also directed government officials to allocate budget only for projects and programs that have received multi-year resource assurance, completed preparations, entered the project bank, and yielded returns. He also issued instructions to end the practice of ministries sending conditional grants to provincial and local levels in the middle of the fiscal year.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The prime minister also instructed to keep the budget ceilings of the ministries/organizations in the schedule when presenting the principles and priorities of the budget in the parliament and to prepare the budget by incorporating the topics raised in the parliament and the suggestions given by the general public on the principles and priorities of the budget.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">PM Dahal’s directive also emphasized restructuring the revenue system, focusing on building a system to increase production and productivity, expanding the scope of revenue, maintaining customs revenue of raw materials lower than that of finished goods, and making changes to the tax structure.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:13.5pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">PM Dahal instructed the Ministry of Finance to adopt austerity measures in recurrent expenses, increase development expenses, use external and internal loans only for development expenses. He highlighted the importance of allocating the budget for the productive sector. </span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19789', 'image' => '20240124114937_budgetttttt.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 11:48:53', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20061', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Asia-Pacific Countries Gather in KTM to Address Threat of Illicit Small Arms Trade ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 24: Delegations from over 25 countries of the Asia-Pacific region have gathered in Kathmandu to collectively tackle the issue of illicit arms trade. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 24: Delegations from over 25 countries of the Asia-Pacific region have gathered in Kathmandu to collectively tackle the issue of illicit arms trade. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The three-day regional preparatory meeting for the fourth review conference of the United Nations Programme for Action (UN PoA) to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All its Aspects and International Tracing Instrument kicked off on Tuesday. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The meeting is being chaired by president designate of the fourth review conference Maritza Chan Valverde of Costa Rica as well as Izumi Nakamitsu, UN Under-Secretary-General and High Representatives for Disarmament Affairs. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">UN PoA, established in 2001 at the UN General Assembly, is a critically and politically binding framework. It provides framework for activities to counter illicit trade in small arms and light weapons. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">It also encompasses commitments by UN member states to enhance control measures over small arms, including through improved national regulations, stockpile management, import/export controls and international cooperation. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The adoption of the International Tracing Instrument in 2005 further strengthened the mechanism and facilitated tracing, emphasizing the need for effective marking and record keeping of weapons. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">These measures are an integral part of global efforts to address the challenges posed by the illicit arms trade and are in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">UN member states will periodically review the progress of their commitments at the fourth review conference to be held in New York from June 16 -27, 2024. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The preparatory committee meeting is being held to set the agenda for the meeting in New York. United Nations Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Asia and the Pacific region in collaboration with the Government of Nepal is organizing this regional meeting in Kathmandu. The regional meeting will hold discussions with the participating countries and other stakeholders, including civil society organizations, to identify the challenges related to small arms and light weapons specified in the region and to discuss the priorities of the review conference. The meeting will make thematic presentations and group-wise discussions on formulating an effective national policy, increasing the tracing of small and light arms through the International Tracing Instrument format and identify and formulate strategies to control the demand for small arms. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-24', 'modified' => '2024-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19788', 'image' => '20240124111122_420669903_7516194481779058_311723704658705252_n1706053273_1024.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-24 11:10:41', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ) ) $current_user = null $logged_in = false $xml = falsesimplexml_load_file - [internal], line ?? include - APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 133 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::_renderElement() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 1224 View::element() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 418 include - APP/View/Articles/index.ctp, line 157 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 473 Controller::render() - CORE/Cake/Controller/Controller.php, line 968 Dispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 200 Dispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 167 [main] - APP/webroot/index.php, line 117
| Currency | Unit |
Buy | Sell |
| U.S. Dollar | 1 | 121.23 | 121.83 |
| European Euro | 1 | 131.65 | 132.31 |
| UK Pound Sterling | 1 | 142.47 | 143.18 |
| Swiss Franc | 1 | 124.29 | 124.90 |
| Australian Dollar | 1 | 71.69 | 72.05 |
| Canadian Dollar | 1 | 83.90 | 84.32 |
| Japanese Yen | 10 | 10.94 | 11.00 |
| Chinese Yuan | 1 | 17.17 | 17.26 |
| Saudi Arabian Riyal | 1 | 32.27 | 32.43 |
| UAE Dirham | 1 | 33.01 | 33.17 |
| Malaysian Ringgit | 1 | 27.36 | 27.50 |
| South Korean Won | 100 | 9.77 | 9.82 |
Update: 2020-03-25 | Source: Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB)
| Fine Gold | 1 tola | 77000.00 |
| Tejabi Gold | 1 tola | 76700.00 |
| Silver | 1 tola | 720.00 |
Update : 2020-03-25
Source: Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers' Association
| Petrol | 1 Liter | 106.00 |
| Diesel | 1 Liter | 95.00 |
| Kerosene | 1 Liter | 95.00 |
| LP Gas | 1 Cylinder | 1375.00 |
Update : 2020-03-25
