July 27: Nepal’s swimmer Gaurika Singh, who clinched multiple gold medals in the South Asian Games (SAG), has set a new national record in individual performance in the 20th edition of the World Aquatics Championship-2023 underway in Fukuoka,…
July 27: Nepal’s swimmer Gaurika Singh, who clinched multiple gold medals in the South Asian Games (SAG), has set a new national record in individual performance in the 20th edition of the World Aquatics Championship-2023 underway in Fukuoka,…
July 27: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has revised its outlook for global growth for this year on the back of resilient service sector activity in the first quarter and a strong labor market, the lender said on…
In the fiscal year 2022/2023, Nepal imported gold worth 22 billion 35 crore rupees. According to the statistics of the Department of Customs, in the fiscal year 2079/80, Nepal imported 29 lakh 16 thousand 586 grams of yellow…
July 26: The main opposition party, CPN (UML), on Wednesday obstructed the proceedings of the House of Representatives, demanding formation of a high-level committee to probe the recent gold…
July 26: Federal capital Kathmandu is the city having the largest population size and highest population density in the…
July 26: The integrated check post (ICP) along the Nepal-India border in Nepalgunj is yet to come into operation even one and a half months after its…
Due to a scarcity of rainfall during this year's rainy season, the paddy seedlings plantation in Tanahun district has faced significant…
July 26: Nepal Chamber of Commerce (NCC) has requested the newly appointed Pakistani Ambassador to Nepal, Abrar Hussain Hashmi, for the operation of direct air service between Nepal and…
July 26: The Nepal Infrastructure Construction Company, with an authorized capital of Rs 10 billion and issued capital of Rs 5 billion, established four years ago under the full ownership of the government, has no work to do at…
July 26: Nepal exported cement worth Rs 780 million in the last fiscal year (FY…
July 26: Standard Chartered Bank Nepal Limited (SCBNL) has joined hands with Nepal Eye Programme of Tilganga Institute of Ophthalmology and MITRA Samaj to identify and treat cases of avoidable blindness, cataract and posterior segment eye diseases across all provinces in the…
July 26: The Hotel Association Nepal (HAN) has expressed dissatisfaction with the monetary policy issued by Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) for the current fiscal year.…
Nepal imported millets worth Rs 513 million in the last fiscal year from…
The Bir Hospital has brought VIP and VVIP wards into operation. A fully equipped three-bed ward in the surgical building has a guest and visitor's hall, said the hospital director Dr Santosh…
In the fiscal year 2079/80 BS, Nepal imported vegetables and fruits worth a total of Rs 6.29 billion through the eastern check point,…
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', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">July 27: Nepal’s swimmer Gaurika Singh, who clinched multiple gold medals in the South Asian Games (SAG), has set a new national record in individual performance in the 20th edition of the World Aquatics Championship-2023 underway in Fukuoka, Japan. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chairperson of Nepal Swimming Association, Ashok Bajracharya informed RSS that Singh set a new national record by completing 50-meter backstroking in 31.44 seconds on Wednesday. With this, she broke her own record of 31.87 seconds in 50-meter backstroke category. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Singh has bettered on her previous record she had established in the 12th SAG held in India in 2016. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Singh made her debut in the Rio Olympics 2016 at a tender age of 13 and was the youngest sportsperson at the sports jamboree. According to the official website of the International Olympics Committee, Singh had secured 31<sup>st</sup> position in the women’s 100 meters backstroke in the Rio Olympics. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Only a few days ago, she had set another national record in women’s 100 meters backstroke with a timing of 1 minute 6.08 seconds in Japan.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Likewise, another Nepali swimmer Alexander Shah also set a new national record by slightly improving his performance in 100-meter freestyle category of swimming. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Alexander set a new record in the 100-meter swimming with a timing of 52.94 seconds by improving his previous record of 52.96 seconds. He had made the previous record in the recently-held 11th NSA Cup Championship. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Nepal’s team manager Naresh Baidya informed RSS that Dubana Lama and Alexander Shah are competing in 100-meter and 40-meter free style, respectively. </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-27', 'modified' => '2023-07-27', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18305', 'image' => '20230727110403_gaurika.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-27 11:03:02', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18575', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'IMF Revises Global Growth to 3 Percent in 2023', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 27: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has revised its outlook for global growth for this year on the back of resilient service sector activity in the first quarter and a strong labor market, the lender said on Tuesday.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px">July 27: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has revised its outlook for global growth for this year on the back of resilient service sector activity in the first quarter and a strong labor market, the lender said on Tuesday.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">The growth forecast for this year was raised by 0.2 percentage points from the IMF's last estimate in April, putting the world economy on track for three percent growth in both 2023 and 2024.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">“While the forecast for 2023 is modestly higher than predicted in the April 2023 World Economic Outlook (WEO), it remains weak by historical standards. Global growth is projected to fall from an estimated 3.5 percent in 2022 to 3.0 percent in both 2023 and 2024,” IMF said in its World Economic Outlook update in July.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">According to the latest report, the rise in central bank policy rates to fight inflation continues to weigh on economic activities. Global headline inflation is expected to fall from 8.7 percent in 2022 to 6.8 percent in 2023 and 5.2 percent in 2024, added the report.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">“Underlying (core) inflation is projected to decline more gradually, and forecasts for inflation in 2024 have been revised upward.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">The IMF said that the recent resolution of the US debt ceiling standoff and strong action by authorities to contain turbulence in US and Swiss banking reduced the immediate risks of financial sector turmoil.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">“This moderated adverse risks to the outlook. However, the balance of risks to global growth remains tilted to the downside. Inflation could remain high and even rise if further shocks occur, including those from an intensification of the war in Ukraine and extreme weather-related events, triggering more restrictive monetary policy,” states the report.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">According to the IMF, financial sector turbulence could resume as markets adjust to further policy tightening by central banks. On the upside, inflation could fall faster than expected, reducing the need for tight monetary policy, and domestic demand could again prove more resilient.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">In most economies, the priority remains achieving sustained disinflation while ensuring financial stability. Therefore, central banks should remain focused on restoring price stability and strengthen financial supervision and risk monitoring, added the report.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">“Should market strains materialize, countries should provide liquidity promptly while mitigating the possibility of moral hazard. They should also build fiscal buffers, with the composition of fiscal adjustment ensuring targeted support for the most vulnerable. Improvements to the supply side of the economy would facilitate fiscal consolidation and a smoother decline of inflation toward target levels.”</span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-27', 'modified' => '2023-07-27', 'keywords' => 'IMF, growth, global, economy, inflation, Ukraine, war, lender, estimate, percentage', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18304', 'image' => '20230727101422_20230726091211_20220426051733_imf.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-27 10:13:00', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18574', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Gold Imports Witness 42% Decrease in FY 2022/2023; Prices Double in Five Years', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'In the fiscal year 2022/2023, Nepal imported gold worth 22 billion 35 crore rupees. According to the statistics of the Department of Customs, in the fiscal year 2079/80, Nepal imported 29 lakh 16 thousand 586 grams of yellow metal.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">July 27: In the fiscal year 2022/2023, Nepal imported gold worth 22 billion 35 crore rupees. According to the statistics of the Department of Customs, in the fiscal year 2079/80, Nepal imported 29 lakh 16 thousand 586 grams of yellow metal. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The gold import in the last fiscal year marks a 42% decrease from the previous fiscal year (2078/79) when Nepal imported gold worth 35 billion 50 lakh 53 thousand grams. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">With the decrease in gold imports, the government’s revenue collection has also decreased. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">In the previous fiscal year, revenue collection from gold imports amounted to 4 billion 29 crore rupees, while in the last fiscal year, it stood at Rs 2 billion 53 crore rupees.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Nepal imported yellow metal from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Switzerland, Turkey, and Uzbekistan in the last fiscal year. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">During the review period, most of the gold was imported from the UAE. In the fiscal year, Nepal imported 24,66,546 grams of worth Rs 18 billion 91 crores from the UAE.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Similarly, Nepal imported 3 lakh 50 thousand grams of gold from Turkey worth 2 billion 72 crore rupees, 1 lakh grams from Switzerland worth 70 crore 99 lakh rupees, and 40 grams from Uzbekistan worth 2 lakh 80 thousand rupees.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Manik Ratna Shakya, the President of Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers Association, attributed the decrease in gold imports to the quota system. "The government has imposed a daily quota of 10 kilograms on gold imports till now. Therefore, the imports have decreased," Shakya said. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">He added that due to the economic slowdown, the current supply has sustained the demand in the market. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Gold prices have doubled in the last five years. In the month of Shrawan of 2075, gold was traded at Rs. 56,700 per tola.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">At present, the price of gold stands Rs. 1,12,700 per tola, according to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Although there have been fluctuations in gold prices over five years, the price has remained above one lakh in recent months. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The businessmen predict that the price of gold will continue to rise in the days to come. </span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-27', 'modified' => '2023-07-27', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18303', 'image' => '20230727061337_collage.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-27 06:11:09', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18572', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'UML Obstructs HoR Meeting, Demands Probe into Gold Scam ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: The main opposition party, CPN (UML), on Wednesday obstructed the proceedings of the House of Representatives, demanding formation of a high-level committee to probe the recent gold scam. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">July 26: The main opposition party, CPN (UML), on Wednesday obstructed the proceedings of the House of Representatives, demanding formation of a high-level committee to probe the recent gold scam. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chief Whip of the CPN (UML), Padam Giri, demanded parliamentary ruling in the name of the government for investigation into the recent gold scam. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Lawmakers of the CPN (UML) reached the 'rostrum' chanting slogans demanding action against gold smugglers. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Stating that all the agendas set for the house meeting were removed, Speaker Devraj Ghimire announced postponement of the meeting until July 31. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The recent case of gold smuggling has taken centre stage in the political and social circle after more than 100 kilograms of gold was cleared by the customs officials of Tribhuvan International Airport last Wednesday. However, a team from the Department of Revenue Investigation seized the large quantity of gold from outside the airport with the help of a special tip off. </span></span></span><br /> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18301', 'image' => '20230726085859_20230713052749_parliament building.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 20:58:24', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18571', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Kathmandu has the Highest Population Density in Nepal: National Census', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: Federal capital Kathmandu is the city having the largest population size and highest population density in the country.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">July 26: Federal capital Kathmandu is the city having the largest population size and highest population density in the country.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the National Census-2078 BS (2021) issued by the National Statistics Office, the population of Kathmandu has surpassed two million, reaching a total of 2,041,587 residents, whereas Manang has the lowest population with only 5,658 inhabitants.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The report shows Nepal's overall population density is 198 per square kilometer. The previous National Census 2011 had put this figure at 180. The population density is significantly higher in the Terai region, where it is 460 people per square kilometer and in the mountainous regions it is just 34 per square kilometer.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">While assessing the district-wise statistics, the population density in Kathmandu is 5,169 per square kilometer and in Manang it is just 3.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The segregated population data concerning Kathmandu shows that the number of males is 1,035,726 and the number of females is 1,005,861.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">On average, there are 3.75 people per household in Kathmandu, and the age group of 20-24 years constitutes the highest proportion of the population, with 226,660 individuals falling into this category. The figure is 11.10 percent of the total population of Kathmandu.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Similarly, the population of the 25 to 29 age group is 215,120, while the populace above 90 years of age is 980. A total of 542,892 families inhabit the district, of which 362,147 are headed by men, and 182,720 by women.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The number of married people stands at 1,788,062, of which 898,352 are married men, and 889,710 married women.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The figure of widows is 46,096 and widower 9,755 while the number of divorce cases stands at 4,182 (2,844 divorcee women and 1,338 divorcee men). A total of 197,347 people above five years of age are illiterate (52,952 male, and 144,395 female). A total of 283,862 people (149,806 male and 134,056 female) have received education up to primary level.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the report, 10,275 families use firewood for cooking. Similarly, 526,931 families have been dependent on LPG, 4,694 on electricity, 561 on biogas, 157 on kerosene and 274 on other energy sources.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Five hundred and seventy-five families in Kathmandu do not have toilet facility at home while 1,305 families use public toilets. The National Census data shows that 852,555 people, including 349,274 men and 503,281 women belonging to the 10 years and above age group in Kathmandu are not connected to any economic activities. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Among those people who are not connected to any income-generating activity in the last one year, 376,954 are students, 198,630 are people involved in domestic work, 63,103 are elderly and 16,011 are physically handicapped.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The statistics show that 512,427 people hold jobs, 32,318 have given employment to others, 282,552 people are running their business and 108,013 are assisting in their family businesses.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The number of children below 18 years of age is 508,399 and of them, 402,174 live with both parents, 55,369 live only with their mother, 7,200 live only with their father, 877 live with their father and stepmother, 228 live with their mother and step father, 28,343 live with other relatives and 971 are looked after by employees.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">There are 258,138 residential buildings, 24,476 buildings built for commercial and business purpose, 3,175 governmental buildings, 3,125 educational blocks, 667 health sector buildings, 3,892 industry sector blocks, 664 bank and financial sector-related buildings, 3,024 hotels and lodges and 4,276 store and warehouses in Kathmandu. -- RSS</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18300', 'image' => '20230726060105_Kathmandu-City-Of-Ruins.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 18:00:28', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18570', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'ICP yet to Operate Two Months after its Inauguration ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: The integrated check post (ICP) along the Nepal-India border in Nepalgunj is yet to come into operation even one and a half months after its inauguration. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">July 26: The integrated check post (ICP) along the Nepal-India border in Nepalgunj is yet to come into operation even one and a half months after its inauguration. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi had jointly inaugurated the ICP in Nepalgunj-Rupaidiya in June. They had inaugurated the check post remotely from Hyderabad House, the Office of the Indian Prime Minister during PM Dahal’s India visit. The ICP is expected to facilitate improved cross-border connectivity between Nepal and India. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chief of the Building Division Office in Nepalgunj, Bijay Keshar Khanal, said that the ICP has not been operational as the construction company is yet to hand over the building to the government. Likewise, the tasks of the physical works are still ongoing. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Similarly, the jobs of human resource management and security arrangement are likely to compete soon, he added. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Khanal stated that it could take some two more months for the operation of the ICP in Nepalgunj. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18299', 'image' => '20230726044350_nepalgunj-check-point-2023.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 16:43:06', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18569', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Insufficient Rainfall Delays Paddy Transplant in Tanahun District', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'Due to a scarcity of rainfall during this year's rainy season, the paddy seedlings plantation in Tanahun district has faced significant delays.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">July 26: Due to a scarcity of rainfall during this year's rainy season, the paddy seedlings plantation in Tanahun district has faced significant delays. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Typically, paddy transplantation is completed by the end of the Asar month in the district; however, the lack of sufficient rainfall has hindered paddy cultivation this year.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Farmers in various places of Tanahun have expressed their concerns over the situation. Dev Bahadur Kamali from Bhanu Municipality-2 reported that many farms have been left unplanted due to the absence of rain. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">This has resulted in worries among farmers regarding limited grain output. Shivalal Pradhan, a farmer from Kalesti in Byas Municipality-7, highlighted that the lack of water supply for plantation has compounded their difficulties.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Pradip Ghimire of Byas Municipality-7 pointed out that land plots could remain barren this year if adequate rainfall does not occur. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">According to Kul Prasad Tiwari, the Senior Agricultural Development Officer and Chief of Agriculture Knowledge Centre in Tanahun, an estimated 15 percent of the farmland in the district may remain unutilized due to the delayed planting caused by the lack of rainfall. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Tiwari said that paddy transplantation has been completed on approximately 75 percent of the land in Tanahun, and this figure could potentially reach 85 percent by the end of the season, assuming more rainfall arrives.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18298', 'image' => '20230726043746_collage (3).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 16:36:20', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18567', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NCC Demands Direct Flights between Nepal and Pakistan', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: Nepal Chamber of Commerce (NCC) has requested the newly appointed Pakistani Ambassador to Nepal, Abrar Hussain Hashmi, for the operation of direct air service between Nepal and Pakistan.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">July 26: Nepal Chamber of Commerce (NCC) has requested the newly appointed Pakistani Ambassador to Nepal, Abrar Hussain Hashmi, for the operation of direct air service between Nepal and Pakistan. The NCC is of the view that direct air connectivity is necessary to facilitate trade between the two countries and promote tourism activities.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In a meeting with the newly appointed Ambassador Hasmi, NCC President Rajendra Malla emphasized that the Kathmandu-Karachi flights should be resumed immediately for the expansion of trade between the two countries, exchange of tourism and growth of economic and commercial activities. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Malla urged Ambassador Hashmi to take the initiative for the operation of air services between the two countries at the government level. The also requested for cooperation with the private sector.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> "The air distance between Nepal and Pakistan is three hours. If it can be utilized, trade and tourism can be expanded between the two countries," he said. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to NCC President Malla, there is great potential for both the countries to benefit by increasing joint investment in air services and small and medium industries through cooperation between the private sector.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Pakistani Ambassador to Nepal Hasmi said that there should be an initiative from the government for the operation of air services.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Nepal is currently importing medicines, processed leather products, machinery items, shoes, slippers among others from Paksitan while Nepal exports honey, coffee, tea, handicraft products, cardamom, eye lenses, woolen yarn and other items to Pakistan. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to Malla, direct flights will also facilitate tourism activities. Ambassador Hasmi expressed his commitment to take further initiatives for the expansion of business activities by holding discussions between the officials of the chambers of commerce of the two countries.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18296', 'image' => '20230726015538_ncccc.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 13:54:20', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18566', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => ' Nepal Infrastructure Construction Company Devoid of Work', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: The Nepal Infrastructure Construction Company, with an authorized capital of Rs 10 billion and issued capital of Rs 5 billion, established four years ago under the full ownership of the government, has no work to do at all.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">July 26: The Nepal Infrastructure Construction Company, with an authorized capital of Rs 10 billion and issued capital of Rs 5 billion, established four years ago under the full ownership of the government, has no work to do at all. This company, which was established on July 10, 2019 by the then KP Sharma Oli-led government to work in the field of construction, has gone out of business due to the lack of a clear policy. So far, it has not been able to do any other work in the field of construction apart from general consultation. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The company has been given the right to engage in almost all areas of infrastructure development. The then government had established the company with the aim of undertaking construction works related to roads, airports, expressways, highways, railways, dry ports, harbors, canals, pipelines, substations. It seems that this company is not among the priorities of the successive governments formed after the fall of the Oli government. This company is lagging behind in achieving its objectives due to the lack of a clear policy of the government. The government officials admit that the company has not been able to produce results.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Rajesh Kumar Thapa, joint secretary at the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport, who is also the secretary of the company, says that the existing law does not allow the company to move forward as per the objective. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">According to him, this state-owned company was established with the aim of engaging in procurement and construction work of public concern at any time. However, as the current Public Procurement Act stipulates that no company can get any work without competition, it has become difficult for this company to bag contracts.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“The Ministry of Physical Infrastructure has already taken the initiative for amending the Public Procurement Act. After removing the policy hurdles, the company will be able to work in the field of construction as per its objective,” he said in a conversation with New Business Age. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Nepal Infrastructure Construction Company, Devendra KC admitted that the company was unable to achieve results due to the lack of policy. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">According to him, the company can work only if the legal arrangements in the Public Procurement Act are amended. Currently, the company has only done general works related to consultation. No work related to construction has been done.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">KC said that there is some hope because a bill to amend Some Nepal Acts has been registered in the parliament to remove legal complications. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The bill proposes entrusting the construction company with work under special circumstances when it is required to undertake construction works immediately and it not possible to indulge in the bidding process.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">T<span style="font-size:14.0pt">he bill registered in the Parliament also proposes allowing the company to carry out all types of construction works including construction of buildings, factories, airports, expressways, highways, roads, access roads, railways, dry ports, bridges, tunnels, waterways, and ropeways among others.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Arrangements are being made to allow the construction of hangars, ports, and coastal roads as well. Similarly, construction of canals, pipelines, reservoirs, water tanks, ponds, dams, civil engineering construction works, workshops, garages, hotels, warehouses, and cold storage facilities are also to be given to the company. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">In addition legal arrangements are being made so that this company can carry out the construction of markets, shops, towns, residences, new settlements and also get involved in integrated urban development, urban infrastructure development, housing development and land consolidation projects, along with urban regeneration, well drilling and mining, hydroelectric power plant construction, flood control, recreational facilities, swimming ponds, fishing ponds, public, industrial, agricultural and all other types of buildings and useful facilities.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The government had previously established the National Construction Company Nepal (NCCN), which was canceled after six consecutive years of losses. The interesting part is that the current infrastructure construction company is running profitably by doing consulting work with nine employees without any construction work or even buying equipment.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18295', 'image' => '20230726124936_1690334987.asdasdasdadasdasdasdasd - Copy.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 12:48:31', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18565', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Nepal Exported Cement worth Rs 780 Million in Last FY', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: Nepal exported cement worth Rs 780 million in the last fiscal year (FY 2022/23).', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">July 26: Nepal exported cement worth Rs 780 million in the last fiscal year (FY 2022/23).</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the Department of Customs, three cement industries exported over 1 million tons of cement worth Rs 777.93 million in the review year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the department, the industries exported 607,073 metric tons of cement worth Rs 420.35 million and 396,950 metric tons of clinker worth Rs 358.95 million.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Currently, three cement industries namely Palpa, Arghakhanchi and Balaji are exporting cement to India. Besides, other industries are preparing to export cement. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Palpa Cement's 'Tansen' brand was exported to India from July 9 last year. Meanwhile, Arghakhanchi Cement and Balaji Cement started exporting PPC cement under the brands 'Bahubali' and 'Shrishti' from October 17 and June 12 last year respectively.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The industries started exporting cement after the government announced up to eight percent cash subsidy on cement exports along with a subsidy of 2-15 percent on electricity tariff for the industries that consume worth more than Rs 100 million annually. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The Cement Producers Association of Nepal has said that many cement industries are waiting for quality certificate for cement export from the Government of India. Nepali cement industry will have to get a quality certificate from the Indian government for exporting cement to India. The cement industry operating in Nepal has an annual production capacity of around 22 million tons. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18294', 'image' => '20230726114157_20220607103309_Clipboard18.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 11:39:53', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18564', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Standard Chartered Bank Nepal Funds Eyecare Projects worth Rs 10 Million', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: Standard Chartered Bank Nepal Limited (SCBNL) has joined hands with Nepal Eye Programme of Tilganga Institute of Ophthalmology and MITRA Samaj to identify and treat cases of avoidable blindness, cataract and posterior segment eye diseases across all provinces in the country.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">July 26: Standard Chartered Bank Nepal Limited (SCBNL) has joined hands with Nepal Eye Programme of Tilganga Institute of Ophthalmology and MITRA Samaj to identify and treat cases of avoidable blindness, cataract and posterior segment eye diseases across all provinces in the country.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The bank has donated USD 36,434 (Rs 4,790,866) to Nepal Eye Programme which will be used in the establishment of a Community Eye Centre (CEC) at Nichuta, Parsa, to deliver comprehensive eye care services to the people of Paterwa Sugauli Rural Municipality-5 and its adjoining rural and urban municipalities, reads a statement issued by the bank. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the bank, the project will focus on elderly people, women, children, people with impairment, and people with disabilities. A total of 7,200 persons will directly benefit from this project such as community eye centre (3,000), community screenings (2,000), school screenings (2,000) and cataract surgeries (200) through the outreach programme in a year, added the statement.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The bank said it also donated USD 51,379 (NPR 6,725,000) to MITRA Samaj. According to the bank, the amount will be used for the Cataract Blindness Alleviation Project aimed at identifying cases of avoidable blinding, including cataract, among the hard-to-reach population (especially 50+years), in priority areas of all provinces of Nepal. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Altogether 3,000 people are expected to benefit through the screenings. The bank said that 700 to 1,000 cataract cases will be identified, 1,500 people with refractive error are expected to get treated and/or receive reading glasses, and at least 700 cataract cases will be restored with vision through this project.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">During the cheque handover event, Harsha Pillai, head of Corporate Affairs, Brand and Marketing at Standard Chartered Bank Nepal Limited (SCBNL) said that the bank aims to provide eye care services in collaboration with Nepal Eye Programme (Tilganga Institute of Ophthalmology) and MITRA Samaj to those who would not have easy access or cannot afford this treatment.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">“The focus is on early detection of eye ailments, referral, and appropriate treatment. Serving communities will always be at the heart of Standard Chartered,” added Pillai.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Similarly, Reeta Gurung, chief executive officer of the Tilganga Institute of Ophthalmology, assured that the funds will be well spent for the benefit of the needy people of Nichuta area.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Vivek Singh Thakuri, executive director of MITRA Samaj shared, "We are super excited to partner with Standard Chartered Bank to identify cases of avoidable blindness and improve people’s vision by organising free Outreach Micro Surgical Eye Clinics (OMSEC). We are looking forward to touching lives positively.”</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The statement mentions that eye health care is an essential component of basic health service to be provided to all citizens as stated in the constitution of Nepal. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">“Despite efforts from various stakeholders, vision impairment continues to be a major problem. With this in mind, Standard Chartered Bank has decided to make these significant donations to help provide accessible, affordable and quality eye care in the country.”</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18293', 'image' => '20230726105932_stan.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 10:58:43', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18563', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'HAN Dissatisfied with New Monetary Policy', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: The Hotel Association Nepal (HAN) has expressed dissatisfaction with the monetary policy issued by Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) for the current fiscal year. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">July 26: The Hotel Association Nepal (HAN) has expressed dissatisfaction with the monetary policy issued by Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) for the current fiscal year. Issuing a statement on Tuesday, HAN expressed dissatisfaction stating that the monetary policy could not address the problems of the hotel and tourism sector.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Announcing its views on the monetary policy on Tuesday, HAN said that it was enthusiastic about the new policy because it did not have any new initiatives to uplift the hotel and tourism industry which was hit hard by the recession in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">HAN complained that although the businessmen have demanded measures like re-financing and rescheduling of loans as well as the development of the tourism sector through the provision of low interest rates, the monetary policy has not addressed these issues.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">HAN said that the current fiscal year's budget and monetary policy have admitted that the number of tourists and economic activities have increased but the capacity of the hotels, which is constantly being added, is under-utilized with less than one-third occupancy. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">As a result, the hotel industry is in loss and unable to pay regular interest to the banks, it has been mentioned in the statement. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The review of last year's monetary policy had provision of re-financing and rescheduling of the interest to be paid to the banks. However, the hotel and tourism industry operators are now confused because there are no such provisions in the new monetary policy.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to HAN, the entry of world-class hotel brands in the country is increasing, but the monetary policy is not encouraging enough. HAN argued that it will be difficult to increase the number of tourists this year due to taxes imposed on raw materials including vegetables consumed by customers and tourists and the introduction of luxury tax.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18292', 'image' => '20230726102038_1690335515.hanadasdasdasdasd.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 10:19:52', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18562', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Nepal Imports Millets worth Rs 510 Million from India ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'Nepal imported millets worth Rs 513 million in the last fiscal year from India. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">July 26: Youths of Nepal are leaving the country for foreign jobs in large numbers and the farmlands in the rural areas are left barren. As a result, the country imported millets worth Rs 513 million in the last fiscal year from India. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to customs officials, millets worth Rs 513 million were imported from Kakadbhitta customs alone in the fiscal year 2022/23.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Information Officer at the Plant Quarantine Office in Kakadbhitta, Chandra Kishor Thakur, said that a total of 16,035 metric tonnes of millets were imported from Kakadbhitta customs point in the review year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Likewise, pumpkins worth Rs 57.7 million were imported from India in the last fiscal year from Kakadbhitta customs point, according to Thakur. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Similarly, chilies worth Rs 200 million were imported from Kakadbhitta customs point in the fiscal year 2022/23, Thakur said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Thakur said that fruits and vegetables including onions, tomatoes, long guards, yams, watermelons, gingers and others worth billions were imported during this period from India. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Meanwhile, the local producers in the districts of eastern Nepal have complained of limited market for the domestic products due to unrestricted imports of vegetables and fruits from India and other countries. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18291', 'image' => '20230726095554_Hardy-Millet.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 09:54:48', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18561', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Bir Hospital Launches VIP, VVIP Wards', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The Bir Hospital has brought VIP and VVIP wards into operation. A fully equipped three-bed ward in the surgical building has a guest and visitor's hall, said the hospital director Dr Santosh Paudel. ', 'content' => '<p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">July 26: The Bir Hospital has brought VIP and VVIP wards into operation. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">A fully equipped three-bed ward in the surgical building has a guest and visitor's hall, said the hospital director Dr Santosh Paudel. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Two beds have been already allocated for VIP and VVIP persons on the first floor of the old building of the hospital. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Minister for Health and Population Mohan Bahadur Basnet on Tuesday inaugurated the VIP and VVIP wards amid a function. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Beds have been added so patients get treatment for all sorts of diseases, said the minister. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The hospital has formed a 15-member team of specialist doctors from government and private hospitals for the same. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">“The team of doctors provides treatment. No one needs to go to foreign countries for medical treatment," he said. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Minister Basnet also directed office bearers of the National Academy of Medical Sciences (NAMS) and Bir Hospital to make the hospital service more effective. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Members of the VIP and VVIP treatment specialist committee led by the NAMS chancellor Prof Dr Bhupendra Kumar Basnet are Dr Kiran Shrestha, Dr Dhurba Gaire, Dr Rabiram Shrestha, and Dr Shaili Pradhan.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The committee also includes Dr Bhagawan Koirala, Dr Pukar Chandra Shrestha, Dr Mahesh Adhikari, Dr Subhash Acharya, Dr Sanduk Ruit, Dr Shashi Sharma, Dr Ratna Gajurel, Dr Badri Rijal, Dr Man Bahadur Gajurel and Dr Ramesh Chokhani. (RSS) </span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18290', 'image' => '20230726055406_collage (6).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 05:52:17', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18560', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Vegetables, Fruits Worth Rs 6.29 Billion Imported via Kakadvitta', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'In the fiscal year 2079/80 BS, Nepal imported vegetables and fruits worth a total of Rs 6.29 billion through the eastern check point, Kakadvitta.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:20.0pt">July 26: In the fiscal year 2079/80 BS, Nepal imported vegetables and fruits worth a total of Rs 6.29 billion through the eastern check point, Kakadvitta. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:20.0pt">The imports consisted of fresh vegetables worth Rs 3.35 billion and fruits worth Rs 2.94 billion,<span style="font-family:"Segoe UI",sans-serif"> according to information Officer at Plant Quarantine Office, Kakadvitta, Chandra Kishor Thakur. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:20.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Segoe UI",sans-serif">Plant Quarantine Office, Kakadvitta</span></span><span style="font-size:20.0pt"> said that three main vegetables were imported from India in significant quantities. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:20.0pt">These included 25,312 metric tonnes of onions worth Rs 809.9 million, 38,010 metric tonnes of tomatoes worth Rs 608.1 million, and 19,988 metric tonnes of bitter gourd worth Rs 319.8 million.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:20.0pt">Furthermore, Nepal also imported 617 metric tonnes of apples worth Rs 685.8 million and 15,531 metric tonnes of pineapples worth Rs 621.2 million.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:20.0pt">Additionally, other fruits that were imported via the eastern check point included 7,718 metric tonnes of oranges worth Rs 370.4 million, 3,072 metric tonnes of grapes worth Rs 196.6 million, and 2,763 metric tonnes of pomegranates worth Rs 264.8 million. (RSS)</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18289', 'image' => '20230726054053_collage (4).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 05:39:20', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ) ) $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' => '18576', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Swimmer Gaurika Singh Sets New National Record in Japan', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 27: Nepal’s swimmer Gaurika Singh, who clinched multiple gold medals in the South Asian Games (SAG), has set a new national record in individual performance in the 20th edition of the World Aquatics Championship-2023 underway in Fukuoka, Japan. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">July 27: Nepal’s swimmer Gaurika Singh, who clinched multiple gold medals in the South Asian Games (SAG), has set a new national record in individual performance in the 20th edition of the World Aquatics Championship-2023 underway in Fukuoka, Japan. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chairperson of Nepal Swimming Association, Ashok Bajracharya informed RSS that Singh set a new national record by completing 50-meter backstroking in 31.44 seconds on Wednesday. With this, she broke her own record of 31.87 seconds in 50-meter backstroke category. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Singh has bettered on her previous record she had established in the 12th SAG held in India in 2016. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Singh made her debut in the Rio Olympics 2016 at a tender age of 13 and was the youngest sportsperson at the sports jamboree. According to the official website of the International Olympics Committee, Singh had secured 31<sup>st</sup> position in the women’s 100 meters backstroke in the Rio Olympics. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Only a few days ago, she had set another national record in women’s 100 meters backstroke with a timing of 1 minute 6.08 seconds in Japan.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Likewise, another Nepali swimmer Alexander Shah also set a new national record by slightly improving his performance in 100-meter freestyle category of swimming. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Alexander set a new record in the 100-meter swimming with a timing of 52.94 seconds by improving his previous record of 52.96 seconds. He had made the previous record in the recently-held 11th NSA Cup Championship. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Nepal’s team manager Naresh Baidya informed RSS that Dubana Lama and Alexander Shah are competing in 100-meter and 40-meter free style, respectively. </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-27', 'modified' => '2023-07-27', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18305', 'image' => '20230727110403_gaurika.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-27 11:03:02', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18575', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'IMF Revises Global Growth to 3 Percent in 2023', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 27: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has revised its outlook for global growth for this year on the back of resilient service sector activity in the first quarter and a strong labor market, the lender said on Tuesday.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px">July 27: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has revised its outlook for global growth for this year on the back of resilient service sector activity in the first quarter and a strong labor market, the lender said on Tuesday.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">The growth forecast for this year was raised by 0.2 percentage points from the IMF's last estimate in April, putting the world economy on track for three percent growth in both 2023 and 2024.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">“While the forecast for 2023 is modestly higher than predicted in the April 2023 World Economic Outlook (WEO), it remains weak by historical standards. Global growth is projected to fall from an estimated 3.5 percent in 2022 to 3.0 percent in both 2023 and 2024,” IMF said in its World Economic Outlook update in July.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">According to the latest report, the rise in central bank policy rates to fight inflation continues to weigh on economic activities. Global headline inflation is expected to fall from 8.7 percent in 2022 to 6.8 percent in 2023 and 5.2 percent in 2024, added the report.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">“Underlying (core) inflation is projected to decline more gradually, and forecasts for inflation in 2024 have been revised upward.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">The IMF said that the recent resolution of the US debt ceiling standoff and strong action by authorities to contain turbulence in US and Swiss banking reduced the immediate risks of financial sector turmoil.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">“This moderated adverse risks to the outlook. However, the balance of risks to global growth remains tilted to the downside. Inflation could remain high and even rise if further shocks occur, including those from an intensification of the war in Ukraine and extreme weather-related events, triggering more restrictive monetary policy,” states the report.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">According to the IMF, financial sector turbulence could resume as markets adjust to further policy tightening by central banks. On the upside, inflation could fall faster than expected, reducing the need for tight monetary policy, and domestic demand could again prove more resilient.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">In most economies, the priority remains achieving sustained disinflation while ensuring financial stability. Therefore, central banks should remain focused on restoring price stability and strengthen financial supervision and risk monitoring, added the report.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">“Should market strains materialize, countries should provide liquidity promptly while mitigating the possibility of moral hazard. They should also build fiscal buffers, with the composition of fiscal adjustment ensuring targeted support for the most vulnerable. Improvements to the supply side of the economy would facilitate fiscal consolidation and a smoother decline of inflation toward target levels.”</span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-27', 'modified' => '2023-07-27', 'keywords' => 'IMF, growth, global, economy, inflation, Ukraine, war, lender, estimate, percentage', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18304', 'image' => '20230727101422_20230726091211_20220426051733_imf.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-27 10:13:00', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18574', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Gold Imports Witness 42% Decrease in FY 2022/2023; Prices Double in Five Years', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'In the fiscal year 2022/2023, Nepal imported gold worth 22 billion 35 crore rupees. According to the statistics of the Department of Customs, in the fiscal year 2079/80, Nepal imported 29 lakh 16 thousand 586 grams of yellow metal.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">July 27: In the fiscal year 2022/2023, Nepal imported gold worth 22 billion 35 crore rupees. According to the statistics of the Department of Customs, in the fiscal year 2079/80, Nepal imported 29 lakh 16 thousand 586 grams of yellow metal. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The gold import in the last fiscal year marks a 42% decrease from the previous fiscal year (2078/79) when Nepal imported gold worth 35 billion 50 lakh 53 thousand grams. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">With the decrease in gold imports, the government’s revenue collection has also decreased. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">In the previous fiscal year, revenue collection from gold imports amounted to 4 billion 29 crore rupees, while in the last fiscal year, it stood at Rs 2 billion 53 crore rupees.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Nepal imported yellow metal from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Switzerland, Turkey, and Uzbekistan in the last fiscal year. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">During the review period, most of the gold was imported from the UAE. In the fiscal year, Nepal imported 24,66,546 grams of worth Rs 18 billion 91 crores from the UAE.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Similarly, Nepal imported 3 lakh 50 thousand grams of gold from Turkey worth 2 billion 72 crore rupees, 1 lakh grams from Switzerland worth 70 crore 99 lakh rupees, and 40 grams from Uzbekistan worth 2 lakh 80 thousand rupees.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Manik Ratna Shakya, the President of Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers Association, attributed the decrease in gold imports to the quota system. "The government has imposed a daily quota of 10 kilograms on gold imports till now. Therefore, the imports have decreased," Shakya said. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">He added that due to the economic slowdown, the current supply has sustained the demand in the market. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Gold prices have doubled in the last five years. In the month of Shrawan of 2075, gold was traded at Rs. 56,700 per tola.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">At present, the price of gold stands Rs. 1,12,700 per tola, according to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Although there have been fluctuations in gold prices over five years, the price has remained above one lakh in recent months. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The businessmen predict that the price of gold will continue to rise in the days to come. </span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-27', 'modified' => '2023-07-27', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18303', 'image' => '20230727061337_collage.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-27 06:11:09', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18572', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'UML Obstructs HoR Meeting, Demands Probe into Gold Scam ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: The main opposition party, CPN (UML), on Wednesday obstructed the proceedings of the House of Representatives, demanding formation of a high-level committee to probe the recent gold scam. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">July 26: The main opposition party, CPN (UML), on Wednesday obstructed the proceedings of the House of Representatives, demanding formation of a high-level committee to probe the recent gold scam. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chief Whip of the CPN (UML), Padam Giri, demanded parliamentary ruling in the name of the government for investigation into the recent gold scam. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Lawmakers of the CPN (UML) reached the 'rostrum' chanting slogans demanding action against gold smugglers. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Stating that all the agendas set for the house meeting were removed, Speaker Devraj Ghimire announced postponement of the meeting until July 31. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The recent case of gold smuggling has taken centre stage in the political and social circle after more than 100 kilograms of gold was cleared by the customs officials of Tribhuvan International Airport last Wednesday. However, a team from the Department of Revenue Investigation seized the large quantity of gold from outside the airport with the help of a special tip off. </span></span></span><br /> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18301', 'image' => '20230726085859_20230713052749_parliament building.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 20:58:24', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18571', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Kathmandu has the Highest Population Density in Nepal: National Census', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: Federal capital Kathmandu is the city having the largest population size and highest population density in the country.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">July 26: Federal capital Kathmandu is the city having the largest population size and highest population density in the country.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the National Census-2078 BS (2021) issued by the National Statistics Office, the population of Kathmandu has surpassed two million, reaching a total of 2,041,587 residents, whereas Manang has the lowest population with only 5,658 inhabitants.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The report shows Nepal's overall population density is 198 per square kilometer. The previous National Census 2011 had put this figure at 180. The population density is significantly higher in the Terai region, where it is 460 people per square kilometer and in the mountainous regions it is just 34 per square kilometer.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">While assessing the district-wise statistics, the population density in Kathmandu is 5,169 per square kilometer and in Manang it is just 3.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The segregated population data concerning Kathmandu shows that the number of males is 1,035,726 and the number of females is 1,005,861.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">On average, there are 3.75 people per household in Kathmandu, and the age group of 20-24 years constitutes the highest proportion of the population, with 226,660 individuals falling into this category. The figure is 11.10 percent of the total population of Kathmandu.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Similarly, the population of the 25 to 29 age group is 215,120, while the populace above 90 years of age is 980. A total of 542,892 families inhabit the district, of which 362,147 are headed by men, and 182,720 by women.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The number of married people stands at 1,788,062, of which 898,352 are married men, and 889,710 married women.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The figure of widows is 46,096 and widower 9,755 while the number of divorce cases stands at 4,182 (2,844 divorcee women and 1,338 divorcee men). A total of 197,347 people above five years of age are illiterate (52,952 male, and 144,395 female). A total of 283,862 people (149,806 male and 134,056 female) have received education up to primary level.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the report, 10,275 families use firewood for cooking. Similarly, 526,931 families have been dependent on LPG, 4,694 on electricity, 561 on biogas, 157 on kerosene and 274 on other energy sources.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Five hundred and seventy-five families in Kathmandu do not have toilet facility at home while 1,305 families use public toilets. The National Census data shows that 852,555 people, including 349,274 men and 503,281 women belonging to the 10 years and above age group in Kathmandu are not connected to any economic activities. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Among those people who are not connected to any income-generating activity in the last one year, 376,954 are students, 198,630 are people involved in domestic work, 63,103 are elderly and 16,011 are physically handicapped.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The statistics show that 512,427 people hold jobs, 32,318 have given employment to others, 282,552 people are running their business and 108,013 are assisting in their family businesses.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The number of children below 18 years of age is 508,399 and of them, 402,174 live with both parents, 55,369 live only with their mother, 7,200 live only with their father, 877 live with their father and stepmother, 228 live with their mother and step father, 28,343 live with other relatives and 971 are looked after by employees.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">There are 258,138 residential buildings, 24,476 buildings built for commercial and business purpose, 3,175 governmental buildings, 3,125 educational blocks, 667 health sector buildings, 3,892 industry sector blocks, 664 bank and financial sector-related buildings, 3,024 hotels and lodges and 4,276 store and warehouses in Kathmandu. -- RSS</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18300', 'image' => '20230726060105_Kathmandu-City-Of-Ruins.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 18:00:28', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18570', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'ICP yet to Operate Two Months after its Inauguration ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: The integrated check post (ICP) along the Nepal-India border in Nepalgunj is yet to come into operation even one and a half months after its inauguration. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">July 26: The integrated check post (ICP) along the Nepal-India border in Nepalgunj is yet to come into operation even one and a half months after its inauguration. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi had jointly inaugurated the ICP in Nepalgunj-Rupaidiya in June. They had inaugurated the check post remotely from Hyderabad House, the Office of the Indian Prime Minister during PM Dahal’s India visit. The ICP is expected to facilitate improved cross-border connectivity between Nepal and India. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chief of the Building Division Office in Nepalgunj, Bijay Keshar Khanal, said that the ICP has not been operational as the construction company is yet to hand over the building to the government. Likewise, the tasks of the physical works are still ongoing. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Similarly, the jobs of human resource management and security arrangement are likely to compete soon, he added. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Khanal stated that it could take some two more months for the operation of the ICP in Nepalgunj. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18299', 'image' => '20230726044350_nepalgunj-check-point-2023.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 16:43:06', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18569', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Insufficient Rainfall Delays Paddy Transplant in Tanahun District', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'Due to a scarcity of rainfall during this year's rainy season, the paddy seedlings plantation in Tanahun district has faced significant delays.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">July 26: Due to a scarcity of rainfall during this year's rainy season, the paddy seedlings plantation in Tanahun district has faced significant delays. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Typically, paddy transplantation is completed by the end of the Asar month in the district; however, the lack of sufficient rainfall has hindered paddy cultivation this year.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Farmers in various places of Tanahun have expressed their concerns over the situation. Dev Bahadur Kamali from Bhanu Municipality-2 reported that many farms have been left unplanted due to the absence of rain. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">This has resulted in worries among farmers regarding limited grain output. Shivalal Pradhan, a farmer from Kalesti in Byas Municipality-7, highlighted that the lack of water supply for plantation has compounded their difficulties.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Pradip Ghimire of Byas Municipality-7 pointed out that land plots could remain barren this year if adequate rainfall does not occur. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">According to Kul Prasad Tiwari, the Senior Agricultural Development Officer and Chief of Agriculture Knowledge Centre in Tanahun, an estimated 15 percent of the farmland in the district may remain unutilized due to the delayed planting caused by the lack of rainfall. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Tiwari said that paddy transplantation has been completed on approximately 75 percent of the land in Tanahun, and this figure could potentially reach 85 percent by the end of the season, assuming more rainfall arrives.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18298', 'image' => '20230726043746_collage (3).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 16:36:20', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18567', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NCC Demands Direct Flights between Nepal and Pakistan', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: Nepal Chamber of Commerce (NCC) has requested the newly appointed Pakistani Ambassador to Nepal, Abrar Hussain Hashmi, for the operation of direct air service between Nepal and Pakistan.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">July 26: Nepal Chamber of Commerce (NCC) has requested the newly appointed Pakistani Ambassador to Nepal, Abrar Hussain Hashmi, for the operation of direct air service between Nepal and Pakistan. The NCC is of the view that direct air connectivity is necessary to facilitate trade between the two countries and promote tourism activities.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In a meeting with the newly appointed Ambassador Hasmi, NCC President Rajendra Malla emphasized that the Kathmandu-Karachi flights should be resumed immediately for the expansion of trade between the two countries, exchange of tourism and growth of economic and commercial activities. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Malla urged Ambassador Hashmi to take the initiative for the operation of air services between the two countries at the government level. The also requested for cooperation with the private sector.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> "The air distance between Nepal and Pakistan is three hours. If it can be utilized, trade and tourism can be expanded between the two countries," he said. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to NCC President Malla, there is great potential for both the countries to benefit by increasing joint investment in air services and small and medium industries through cooperation between the private sector.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Pakistani Ambassador to Nepal Hasmi said that there should be an initiative from the government for the operation of air services.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Nepal is currently importing medicines, processed leather products, machinery items, shoes, slippers among others from Paksitan while Nepal exports honey, coffee, tea, handicraft products, cardamom, eye lenses, woolen yarn and other items to Pakistan. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to Malla, direct flights will also facilitate tourism activities. Ambassador Hasmi expressed his commitment to take further initiatives for the expansion of business activities by holding discussions between the officials of the chambers of commerce of the two countries.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18296', 'image' => '20230726015538_ncccc.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 13:54:20', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18566', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => ' Nepal Infrastructure Construction Company Devoid of Work', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: The Nepal Infrastructure Construction Company, with an authorized capital of Rs 10 billion and issued capital of Rs 5 billion, established four years ago under the full ownership of the government, has no work to do at all.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">July 26: The Nepal Infrastructure Construction Company, with an authorized capital of Rs 10 billion and issued capital of Rs 5 billion, established four years ago under the full ownership of the government, has no work to do at all. This company, which was established on July 10, 2019 by the then KP Sharma Oli-led government to work in the field of construction, has gone out of business due to the lack of a clear policy. So far, it has not been able to do any other work in the field of construction apart from general consultation. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The company has been given the right to engage in almost all areas of infrastructure development. The then government had established the company with the aim of undertaking construction works related to roads, airports, expressways, highways, railways, dry ports, harbors, canals, pipelines, substations. It seems that this company is not among the priorities of the successive governments formed after the fall of the Oli government. This company is lagging behind in achieving its objectives due to the lack of a clear policy of the government. The government officials admit that the company has not been able to produce results.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Rajesh Kumar Thapa, joint secretary at the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport, who is also the secretary of the company, says that the existing law does not allow the company to move forward as per the objective. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">According to him, this state-owned company was established with the aim of engaging in procurement and construction work of public concern at any time. However, as the current Public Procurement Act stipulates that no company can get any work without competition, it has become difficult for this company to bag contracts.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“The Ministry of Physical Infrastructure has already taken the initiative for amending the Public Procurement Act. After removing the policy hurdles, the company will be able to work in the field of construction as per its objective,” he said in a conversation with New Business Age. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Nepal Infrastructure Construction Company, Devendra KC admitted that the company was unable to achieve results due to the lack of policy. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">According to him, the company can work only if the legal arrangements in the Public Procurement Act are amended. Currently, the company has only done general works related to consultation. No work related to construction has been done.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">KC said that there is some hope because a bill to amend Some Nepal Acts has been registered in the parliament to remove legal complications. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The bill proposes entrusting the construction company with work under special circumstances when it is required to undertake construction works immediately and it not possible to indulge in the bidding process.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">T<span style="font-size:14.0pt">he bill registered in the Parliament also proposes allowing the company to carry out all types of construction works including construction of buildings, factories, airports, expressways, highways, roads, access roads, railways, dry ports, bridges, tunnels, waterways, and ropeways among others.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Arrangements are being made to allow the construction of hangars, ports, and coastal roads as well. Similarly, construction of canals, pipelines, reservoirs, water tanks, ponds, dams, civil engineering construction works, workshops, garages, hotels, warehouses, and cold storage facilities are also to be given to the company. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">In addition legal arrangements are being made so that this company can carry out the construction of markets, shops, towns, residences, new settlements and also get involved in integrated urban development, urban infrastructure development, housing development and land consolidation projects, along with urban regeneration, well drilling and mining, hydroelectric power plant construction, flood control, recreational facilities, swimming ponds, fishing ponds, public, industrial, agricultural and all other types of buildings and useful facilities.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The government had previously established the National Construction Company Nepal (NCCN), which was canceled after six consecutive years of losses. The interesting part is that the current infrastructure construction company is running profitably by doing consulting work with nine employees without any construction work or even buying equipment.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18295', 'image' => '20230726124936_1690334987.asdasdasdadasdasdasdasd - Copy.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 12:48:31', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18565', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Nepal Exported Cement worth Rs 780 Million in Last FY', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: Nepal exported cement worth Rs 780 million in the last fiscal year (FY 2022/23).', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">July 26: Nepal exported cement worth Rs 780 million in the last fiscal year (FY 2022/23).</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the Department of Customs, three cement industries exported over 1 million tons of cement worth Rs 777.93 million in the review year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the department, the industries exported 607,073 metric tons of cement worth Rs 420.35 million and 396,950 metric tons of clinker worth Rs 358.95 million.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Currently, three cement industries namely Palpa, Arghakhanchi and Balaji are exporting cement to India. Besides, other industries are preparing to export cement. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Palpa Cement's 'Tansen' brand was exported to India from July 9 last year. Meanwhile, Arghakhanchi Cement and Balaji Cement started exporting PPC cement under the brands 'Bahubali' and 'Shrishti' from October 17 and June 12 last year respectively.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The industries started exporting cement after the government announced up to eight percent cash subsidy on cement exports along with a subsidy of 2-15 percent on electricity tariff for the industries that consume worth more than Rs 100 million annually. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The Cement Producers Association of Nepal has said that many cement industries are waiting for quality certificate for cement export from the Government of India. Nepali cement industry will have to get a quality certificate from the Indian government for exporting cement to India. The cement industry operating in Nepal has an annual production capacity of around 22 million tons. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18294', 'image' => '20230726114157_20220607103309_Clipboard18.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 11:39:53', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18564', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Standard Chartered Bank Nepal Funds Eyecare Projects worth Rs 10 Million', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: Standard Chartered Bank Nepal Limited (SCBNL) has joined hands with Nepal Eye Programme of Tilganga Institute of Ophthalmology and MITRA Samaj to identify and treat cases of avoidable blindness, cataract and posterior segment eye diseases across all provinces in the country.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">July 26: Standard Chartered Bank Nepal Limited (SCBNL) has joined hands with Nepal Eye Programme of Tilganga Institute of Ophthalmology and MITRA Samaj to identify and treat cases of avoidable blindness, cataract and posterior segment eye diseases across all provinces in the country.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The bank has donated USD 36,434 (Rs 4,790,866) to Nepal Eye Programme which will be used in the establishment of a Community Eye Centre (CEC) at Nichuta, Parsa, to deliver comprehensive eye care services to the people of Paterwa Sugauli Rural Municipality-5 and its adjoining rural and urban municipalities, reads a statement issued by the bank. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the bank, the project will focus on elderly people, women, children, people with impairment, and people with disabilities. A total of 7,200 persons will directly benefit from this project such as community eye centre (3,000), community screenings (2,000), school screenings (2,000) and cataract surgeries (200) through the outreach programme in a year, added the statement.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The bank said it also donated USD 51,379 (NPR 6,725,000) to MITRA Samaj. According to the bank, the amount will be used for the Cataract Blindness Alleviation Project aimed at identifying cases of avoidable blinding, including cataract, among the hard-to-reach population (especially 50+years), in priority areas of all provinces of Nepal. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Altogether 3,000 people are expected to benefit through the screenings. The bank said that 700 to 1,000 cataract cases will be identified, 1,500 people with refractive error are expected to get treated and/or receive reading glasses, and at least 700 cataract cases will be restored with vision through this project.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">During the cheque handover event, Harsha Pillai, head of Corporate Affairs, Brand and Marketing at Standard Chartered Bank Nepal Limited (SCBNL) said that the bank aims to provide eye care services in collaboration with Nepal Eye Programme (Tilganga Institute of Ophthalmology) and MITRA Samaj to those who would not have easy access or cannot afford this treatment.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">“The focus is on early detection of eye ailments, referral, and appropriate treatment. Serving communities will always be at the heart of Standard Chartered,” added Pillai.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Similarly, Reeta Gurung, chief executive officer of the Tilganga Institute of Ophthalmology, assured that the funds will be well spent for the benefit of the needy people of Nichuta area.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Vivek Singh Thakuri, executive director of MITRA Samaj shared, "We are super excited to partner with Standard Chartered Bank to identify cases of avoidable blindness and improve people’s vision by organising free Outreach Micro Surgical Eye Clinics (OMSEC). We are looking forward to touching lives positively.”</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The statement mentions that eye health care is an essential component of basic health service to be provided to all citizens as stated in the constitution of Nepal. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">“Despite efforts from various stakeholders, vision impairment continues to be a major problem. With this in mind, Standard Chartered Bank has decided to make these significant donations to help provide accessible, affordable and quality eye care in the country.”</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18293', 'image' => '20230726105932_stan.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 10:58:43', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18563', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'HAN Dissatisfied with New Monetary Policy', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: The Hotel Association Nepal (HAN) has expressed dissatisfaction with the monetary policy issued by Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) for the current fiscal year. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">July 26: The Hotel Association Nepal (HAN) has expressed dissatisfaction with the monetary policy issued by Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) for the current fiscal year. Issuing a statement on Tuesday, HAN expressed dissatisfaction stating that the monetary policy could not address the problems of the hotel and tourism sector.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Announcing its views on the monetary policy on Tuesday, HAN said that it was enthusiastic about the new policy because it did not have any new initiatives to uplift the hotel and tourism industry which was hit hard by the recession in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">HAN complained that although the businessmen have demanded measures like re-financing and rescheduling of loans as well as the development of the tourism sector through the provision of low interest rates, the monetary policy has not addressed these issues.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">HAN said that the current fiscal year's budget and monetary policy have admitted that the number of tourists and economic activities have increased but the capacity of the hotels, which is constantly being added, is under-utilized with less than one-third occupancy. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">As a result, the hotel industry is in loss and unable to pay regular interest to the banks, it has been mentioned in the statement. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The review of last year's monetary policy had provision of re-financing and rescheduling of the interest to be paid to the banks. However, the hotel and tourism industry operators are now confused because there are no such provisions in the new monetary policy.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to HAN, the entry of world-class hotel brands in the country is increasing, but the monetary policy is not encouraging enough. HAN argued that it will be difficult to increase the number of tourists this year due to taxes imposed on raw materials including vegetables consumed by customers and tourists and the introduction of luxury tax.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18292', 'image' => '20230726102038_1690335515.hanadasdasdasdasd.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 10:19:52', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18562', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Nepal Imports Millets worth Rs 510 Million from India ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'Nepal imported millets worth Rs 513 million in the last fiscal year from India. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">July 26: Youths of Nepal are leaving the country for foreign jobs in large numbers and the farmlands in the rural areas are left barren. As a result, the country imported millets worth Rs 513 million in the last fiscal year from India. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to customs officials, millets worth Rs 513 million were imported from Kakadbhitta customs alone in the fiscal year 2022/23.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Information Officer at the Plant Quarantine Office in Kakadbhitta, Chandra Kishor Thakur, said that a total of 16,035 metric tonnes of millets were imported from Kakadbhitta customs point in the review year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Likewise, pumpkins worth Rs 57.7 million were imported from India in the last fiscal year from Kakadbhitta customs point, according to Thakur. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Similarly, chilies worth Rs 200 million were imported from Kakadbhitta customs point in the fiscal year 2022/23, Thakur said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Thakur said that fruits and vegetables including onions, tomatoes, long guards, yams, watermelons, gingers and others worth billions were imported during this period from India. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Meanwhile, the local producers in the districts of eastern Nepal have complained of limited market for the domestic products due to unrestricted imports of vegetables and fruits from India and other countries. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18291', 'image' => '20230726095554_Hardy-Millet.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 09:54:48', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18561', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Bir Hospital Launches VIP, VVIP Wards', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The Bir Hospital has brought VIP and VVIP wards into operation. A fully equipped three-bed ward in the surgical building has a guest and visitor's hall, said the hospital director Dr Santosh Paudel. ', 'content' => '<p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">July 26: The Bir Hospital has brought VIP and VVIP wards into operation. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">A fully equipped three-bed ward in the surgical building has a guest and visitor's hall, said the hospital director Dr Santosh Paudel. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Two beds have been already allocated for VIP and VVIP persons on the first floor of the old building of the hospital. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Minister for Health and Population Mohan Bahadur Basnet on Tuesday inaugurated the VIP and VVIP wards amid a function. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Beds have been added so patients get treatment for all sorts of diseases, said the minister. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The hospital has formed a 15-member team of specialist doctors from government and private hospitals for the same. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">“The team of doctors provides treatment. No one needs to go to foreign countries for medical treatment," he said. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Minister Basnet also directed office bearers of the National Academy of Medical Sciences (NAMS) and Bir Hospital to make the hospital service more effective. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Members of the VIP and VVIP treatment specialist committee led by the NAMS chancellor Prof Dr Bhupendra Kumar Basnet are Dr Kiran Shrestha, Dr Dhurba Gaire, Dr Rabiram Shrestha, and Dr Shaili Pradhan.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The committee also includes Dr Bhagawan Koirala, Dr Pukar Chandra Shrestha, Dr Mahesh Adhikari, Dr Subhash Acharya, Dr Sanduk Ruit, Dr Shashi Sharma, Dr Ratna Gajurel, Dr Badri Rijal, Dr Man Bahadur Gajurel and Dr Ramesh Chokhani. (RSS) </span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18290', 'image' => '20230726055406_collage (6).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 05:52:17', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18560', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Vegetables, Fruits Worth Rs 6.29 Billion Imported via Kakadvitta', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'In the fiscal year 2079/80 BS, Nepal imported vegetables and fruits worth a total of Rs 6.29 billion through the eastern check point, Kakadvitta.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:20.0pt">July 26: In the fiscal year 2079/80 BS, Nepal imported vegetables and fruits worth a total of Rs 6.29 billion through the eastern check point, Kakadvitta. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:20.0pt">The imports consisted of fresh vegetables worth Rs 3.35 billion and fruits worth Rs 2.94 billion,<span style="font-family:"Segoe UI",sans-serif"> according to information Officer at Plant Quarantine Office, Kakadvitta, Chandra Kishor Thakur. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:20.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Segoe UI",sans-serif">Plant Quarantine Office, Kakadvitta</span></span><span style="font-size:20.0pt"> said that three main vegetables were imported from India in significant quantities. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:20.0pt">These included 25,312 metric tonnes of onions worth Rs 809.9 million, 38,010 metric tonnes of tomatoes worth Rs 608.1 million, and 19,988 metric tonnes of bitter gourd worth Rs 319.8 million.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:20.0pt">Furthermore, Nepal also imported 617 metric tonnes of apples worth Rs 685.8 million and 15,531 metric tonnes of pineapples worth Rs 621.2 million.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:20.0pt">Additionally, other fruits that were imported via the eastern check point included 7,718 metric tonnes of oranges worth Rs 370.4 million, 3,072 metric tonnes of grapes worth Rs 196.6 million, and 2,763 metric tonnes of pomegranates worth Rs 264.8 million. (RSS)</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18289', 'image' => '20230726054053_collage (4).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 05:39:20', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ) ) $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' => '18576', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Swimmer Gaurika Singh Sets New National Record in Japan', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 27: Nepal’s swimmer Gaurika Singh, who clinched multiple gold medals in the South Asian Games (SAG), has set a new national record in individual performance in the 20th edition of the World Aquatics Championship-2023 underway in Fukuoka, Japan. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">July 27: Nepal’s swimmer Gaurika Singh, who clinched multiple gold medals in the South Asian Games (SAG), has set a new national record in individual performance in the 20th edition of the World Aquatics Championship-2023 underway in Fukuoka, Japan. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chairperson of Nepal Swimming Association, Ashok Bajracharya informed RSS that Singh set a new national record by completing 50-meter backstroking in 31.44 seconds on Wednesday. With this, she broke her own record of 31.87 seconds in 50-meter backstroke category. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Singh has bettered on her previous record she had established in the 12th SAG held in India in 2016. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Singh made her debut in the Rio Olympics 2016 at a tender age of 13 and was the youngest sportsperson at the sports jamboree. According to the official website of the International Olympics Committee, Singh had secured 31<sup>st</sup> position in the women’s 100 meters backstroke in the Rio Olympics. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Only a few days ago, she had set another national record in women’s 100 meters backstroke with a timing of 1 minute 6.08 seconds in Japan.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Likewise, another Nepali swimmer Alexander Shah also set a new national record by slightly improving his performance in 100-meter freestyle category of swimming. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Alexander set a new record in the 100-meter swimming with a timing of 52.94 seconds by improving his previous record of 52.96 seconds. He had made the previous record in the recently-held 11th NSA Cup Championship. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Nepal’s team manager Naresh Baidya informed RSS that Dubana Lama and Alexander Shah are competing in 100-meter and 40-meter free style, respectively. </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-27', 'modified' => '2023-07-27', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18305', 'image' => '20230727110403_gaurika.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-27 11:03:02', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18575', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'IMF Revises Global Growth to 3 Percent in 2023', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 27: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has revised its outlook for global growth for this year on the back of resilient service sector activity in the first quarter and a strong labor market, the lender said on Tuesday.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px">July 27: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has revised its outlook for global growth for this year on the back of resilient service sector activity in the first quarter and a strong labor market, the lender said on Tuesday.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">The growth forecast for this year was raised by 0.2 percentage points from the IMF's last estimate in April, putting the world economy on track for three percent growth in both 2023 and 2024.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">“While the forecast for 2023 is modestly higher than predicted in the April 2023 World Economic Outlook (WEO), it remains weak by historical standards. Global growth is projected to fall from an estimated 3.5 percent in 2022 to 3.0 percent in both 2023 and 2024,” IMF said in its World Economic Outlook update in July.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">According to the latest report, the rise in central bank policy rates to fight inflation continues to weigh on economic activities. Global headline inflation is expected to fall from 8.7 percent in 2022 to 6.8 percent in 2023 and 5.2 percent in 2024, added the report.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">“Underlying (core) inflation is projected to decline more gradually, and forecasts for inflation in 2024 have been revised upward.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">The IMF said that the recent resolution of the US debt ceiling standoff and strong action by authorities to contain turbulence in US and Swiss banking reduced the immediate risks of financial sector turmoil.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">“This moderated adverse risks to the outlook. However, the balance of risks to global growth remains tilted to the downside. Inflation could remain high and even rise if further shocks occur, including those from an intensification of the war in Ukraine and extreme weather-related events, triggering more restrictive monetary policy,” states the report.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">According to the IMF, financial sector turbulence could resume as markets adjust to further policy tightening by central banks. On the upside, inflation could fall faster than expected, reducing the need for tight monetary policy, and domestic demand could again prove more resilient.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">In most economies, the priority remains achieving sustained disinflation while ensuring financial stability. Therefore, central banks should remain focused on restoring price stability and strengthen financial supervision and risk monitoring, added the report.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">“Should market strains materialize, countries should provide liquidity promptly while mitigating the possibility of moral hazard. They should also build fiscal buffers, with the composition of fiscal adjustment ensuring targeted support for the most vulnerable. Improvements to the supply side of the economy would facilitate fiscal consolidation and a smoother decline of inflation toward target levels.”</span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-27', 'modified' => '2023-07-27', 'keywords' => 'IMF, growth, global, economy, inflation, Ukraine, war, lender, estimate, percentage', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18304', 'image' => '20230727101422_20230726091211_20220426051733_imf.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-27 10:13:00', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18574', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Gold Imports Witness 42% Decrease in FY 2022/2023; Prices Double in Five Years', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'In the fiscal year 2022/2023, Nepal imported gold worth 22 billion 35 crore rupees. According to the statistics of the Department of Customs, in the fiscal year 2079/80, Nepal imported 29 lakh 16 thousand 586 grams of yellow metal.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">July 27: In the fiscal year 2022/2023, Nepal imported gold worth 22 billion 35 crore rupees. According to the statistics of the Department of Customs, in the fiscal year 2079/80, Nepal imported 29 lakh 16 thousand 586 grams of yellow metal. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The gold import in the last fiscal year marks a 42% decrease from the previous fiscal year (2078/79) when Nepal imported gold worth 35 billion 50 lakh 53 thousand grams. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">With the decrease in gold imports, the government’s revenue collection has also decreased. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">In the previous fiscal year, revenue collection from gold imports amounted to 4 billion 29 crore rupees, while in the last fiscal year, it stood at Rs 2 billion 53 crore rupees.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Nepal imported yellow metal from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Switzerland, Turkey, and Uzbekistan in the last fiscal year. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">During the review period, most of the gold was imported from the UAE. In the fiscal year, Nepal imported 24,66,546 grams of worth Rs 18 billion 91 crores from the UAE.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Similarly, Nepal imported 3 lakh 50 thousand grams of gold from Turkey worth 2 billion 72 crore rupees, 1 lakh grams from Switzerland worth 70 crore 99 lakh rupees, and 40 grams from Uzbekistan worth 2 lakh 80 thousand rupees.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Manik Ratna Shakya, the President of Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers Association, attributed the decrease in gold imports to the quota system. "The government has imposed a daily quota of 10 kilograms on gold imports till now. Therefore, the imports have decreased," Shakya said. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">He added that due to the economic slowdown, the current supply has sustained the demand in the market. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Gold prices have doubled in the last five years. In the month of Shrawan of 2075, gold was traded at Rs. 56,700 per tola.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">At present, the price of gold stands Rs. 1,12,700 per tola, according to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Although there have been fluctuations in gold prices over five years, the price has remained above one lakh in recent months. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The businessmen predict that the price of gold will continue to rise in the days to come. </span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-27', 'modified' => '2023-07-27', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18303', 'image' => '20230727061337_collage.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-27 06:11:09', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18572', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'UML Obstructs HoR Meeting, Demands Probe into Gold Scam ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: The main opposition party, CPN (UML), on Wednesday obstructed the proceedings of the House of Representatives, demanding formation of a high-level committee to probe the recent gold scam. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">July 26: The main opposition party, CPN (UML), on Wednesday obstructed the proceedings of the House of Representatives, demanding formation of a high-level committee to probe the recent gold scam. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chief Whip of the CPN (UML), Padam Giri, demanded parliamentary ruling in the name of the government for investigation into the recent gold scam. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Lawmakers of the CPN (UML) reached the 'rostrum' chanting slogans demanding action against gold smugglers. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Stating that all the agendas set for the house meeting were removed, Speaker Devraj Ghimire announced postponement of the meeting until July 31. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The recent case of gold smuggling has taken centre stage in the political and social circle after more than 100 kilograms of gold was cleared by the customs officials of Tribhuvan International Airport last Wednesday. However, a team from the Department of Revenue Investigation seized the large quantity of gold from outside the airport with the help of a special tip off. </span></span></span><br /> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18301', 'image' => '20230726085859_20230713052749_parliament building.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 20:58:24', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18571', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Kathmandu has the Highest Population Density in Nepal: National Census', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: Federal capital Kathmandu is the city having the largest population size and highest population density in the country.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">July 26: Federal capital Kathmandu is the city having the largest population size and highest population density in the country.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the National Census-2078 BS (2021) issued by the National Statistics Office, the population of Kathmandu has surpassed two million, reaching a total of 2,041,587 residents, whereas Manang has the lowest population with only 5,658 inhabitants.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The report shows Nepal's overall population density is 198 per square kilometer. The previous National Census 2011 had put this figure at 180. The population density is significantly higher in the Terai region, where it is 460 people per square kilometer and in the mountainous regions it is just 34 per square kilometer.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">While assessing the district-wise statistics, the population density in Kathmandu is 5,169 per square kilometer and in Manang it is just 3.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The segregated population data concerning Kathmandu shows that the number of males is 1,035,726 and the number of females is 1,005,861.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">On average, there are 3.75 people per household in Kathmandu, and the age group of 20-24 years constitutes the highest proportion of the population, with 226,660 individuals falling into this category. The figure is 11.10 percent of the total population of Kathmandu.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Similarly, the population of the 25 to 29 age group is 215,120, while the populace above 90 years of age is 980. A total of 542,892 families inhabit the district, of which 362,147 are headed by men, and 182,720 by women.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The number of married people stands at 1,788,062, of which 898,352 are married men, and 889,710 married women.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The figure of widows is 46,096 and widower 9,755 while the number of divorce cases stands at 4,182 (2,844 divorcee women and 1,338 divorcee men). A total of 197,347 people above five years of age are illiterate (52,952 male, and 144,395 female). A total of 283,862 people (149,806 male and 134,056 female) have received education up to primary level.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the report, 10,275 families use firewood for cooking. Similarly, 526,931 families have been dependent on LPG, 4,694 on electricity, 561 on biogas, 157 on kerosene and 274 on other energy sources.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Five hundred and seventy-five families in Kathmandu do not have toilet facility at home while 1,305 families use public toilets. The National Census data shows that 852,555 people, including 349,274 men and 503,281 women belonging to the 10 years and above age group in Kathmandu are not connected to any economic activities. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Among those people who are not connected to any income-generating activity in the last one year, 376,954 are students, 198,630 are people involved in domestic work, 63,103 are elderly and 16,011 are physically handicapped.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The statistics show that 512,427 people hold jobs, 32,318 have given employment to others, 282,552 people are running their business and 108,013 are assisting in their family businesses.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The number of children below 18 years of age is 508,399 and of them, 402,174 live with both parents, 55,369 live only with their mother, 7,200 live only with their father, 877 live with their father and stepmother, 228 live with their mother and step father, 28,343 live with other relatives and 971 are looked after by employees.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">There are 258,138 residential buildings, 24,476 buildings built for commercial and business purpose, 3,175 governmental buildings, 3,125 educational blocks, 667 health sector buildings, 3,892 industry sector blocks, 664 bank and financial sector-related buildings, 3,024 hotels and lodges and 4,276 store and warehouses in Kathmandu. -- RSS</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18300', 'image' => '20230726060105_Kathmandu-City-Of-Ruins.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 18:00:28', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18570', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'ICP yet to Operate Two Months after its Inauguration ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: The integrated check post (ICP) along the Nepal-India border in Nepalgunj is yet to come into operation even one and a half months after its inauguration. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">July 26: The integrated check post (ICP) along the Nepal-India border in Nepalgunj is yet to come into operation even one and a half months after its inauguration. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi had jointly inaugurated the ICP in Nepalgunj-Rupaidiya in June. They had inaugurated the check post remotely from Hyderabad House, the Office of the Indian Prime Minister during PM Dahal’s India visit. The ICP is expected to facilitate improved cross-border connectivity between Nepal and India. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chief of the Building Division Office in Nepalgunj, Bijay Keshar Khanal, said that the ICP has not been operational as the construction company is yet to hand over the building to the government. Likewise, the tasks of the physical works are still ongoing. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Similarly, the jobs of human resource management and security arrangement are likely to compete soon, he added. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Khanal stated that it could take some two more months for the operation of the ICP in Nepalgunj. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18299', 'image' => '20230726044350_nepalgunj-check-point-2023.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 16:43:06', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18569', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Insufficient Rainfall Delays Paddy Transplant in Tanahun District', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'Due to a scarcity of rainfall during this year's rainy season, the paddy seedlings plantation in Tanahun district has faced significant delays.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">July 26: Due to a scarcity of rainfall during this year's rainy season, the paddy seedlings plantation in Tanahun district has faced significant delays. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Typically, paddy transplantation is completed by the end of the Asar month in the district; however, the lack of sufficient rainfall has hindered paddy cultivation this year.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Farmers in various places of Tanahun have expressed their concerns over the situation. Dev Bahadur Kamali from Bhanu Municipality-2 reported that many farms have been left unplanted due to the absence of rain. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">This has resulted in worries among farmers regarding limited grain output. Shivalal Pradhan, a farmer from Kalesti in Byas Municipality-7, highlighted that the lack of water supply for plantation has compounded their difficulties.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Pradip Ghimire of Byas Municipality-7 pointed out that land plots could remain barren this year if adequate rainfall does not occur. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">According to Kul Prasad Tiwari, the Senior Agricultural Development Officer and Chief of Agriculture Knowledge Centre in Tanahun, an estimated 15 percent of the farmland in the district may remain unutilized due to the delayed planting caused by the lack of rainfall. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Tiwari said that paddy transplantation has been completed on approximately 75 percent of the land in Tanahun, and this figure could potentially reach 85 percent by the end of the season, assuming more rainfall arrives.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18298', 'image' => '20230726043746_collage (3).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 16:36:20', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18567', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NCC Demands Direct Flights between Nepal and Pakistan', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: Nepal Chamber of Commerce (NCC) has requested the newly appointed Pakistani Ambassador to Nepal, Abrar Hussain Hashmi, for the operation of direct air service between Nepal and Pakistan.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">July 26: Nepal Chamber of Commerce (NCC) has requested the newly appointed Pakistani Ambassador to Nepal, Abrar Hussain Hashmi, for the operation of direct air service between Nepal and Pakistan. The NCC is of the view that direct air connectivity is necessary to facilitate trade between the two countries and promote tourism activities.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In a meeting with the newly appointed Ambassador Hasmi, NCC President Rajendra Malla emphasized that the Kathmandu-Karachi flights should be resumed immediately for the expansion of trade between the two countries, exchange of tourism and growth of economic and commercial activities. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Malla urged Ambassador Hashmi to take the initiative for the operation of air services between the two countries at the government level. The also requested for cooperation with the private sector.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> "The air distance between Nepal and Pakistan is three hours. If it can be utilized, trade and tourism can be expanded between the two countries," he said. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to NCC President Malla, there is great potential for both the countries to benefit by increasing joint investment in air services and small and medium industries through cooperation between the private sector.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Pakistani Ambassador to Nepal Hasmi said that there should be an initiative from the government for the operation of air services.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Nepal is currently importing medicines, processed leather products, machinery items, shoes, slippers among others from Paksitan while Nepal exports honey, coffee, tea, handicraft products, cardamom, eye lenses, woolen yarn and other items to Pakistan. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to Malla, direct flights will also facilitate tourism activities. Ambassador Hasmi expressed his commitment to take further initiatives for the expansion of business activities by holding discussions between the officials of the chambers of commerce of the two countries.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18296', 'image' => '20230726015538_ncccc.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 13:54:20', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18566', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => ' Nepal Infrastructure Construction Company Devoid of Work', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: The Nepal Infrastructure Construction Company, with an authorized capital of Rs 10 billion and issued capital of Rs 5 billion, established four years ago under the full ownership of the government, has no work to do at all.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">July 26: The Nepal Infrastructure Construction Company, with an authorized capital of Rs 10 billion and issued capital of Rs 5 billion, established four years ago under the full ownership of the government, has no work to do at all. This company, which was established on July 10, 2019 by the then KP Sharma Oli-led government to work in the field of construction, has gone out of business due to the lack of a clear policy. So far, it has not been able to do any other work in the field of construction apart from general consultation. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The company has been given the right to engage in almost all areas of infrastructure development. The then government had established the company with the aim of undertaking construction works related to roads, airports, expressways, highways, railways, dry ports, harbors, canals, pipelines, substations. It seems that this company is not among the priorities of the successive governments formed after the fall of the Oli government. This company is lagging behind in achieving its objectives due to the lack of a clear policy of the government. The government officials admit that the company has not been able to produce results.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Rajesh Kumar Thapa, joint secretary at the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport, who is also the secretary of the company, says that the existing law does not allow the company to move forward as per the objective. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">According to him, this state-owned company was established with the aim of engaging in procurement and construction work of public concern at any time. However, as the current Public Procurement Act stipulates that no company can get any work without competition, it has become difficult for this company to bag contracts.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“The Ministry of Physical Infrastructure has already taken the initiative for amending the Public Procurement Act. After removing the policy hurdles, the company will be able to work in the field of construction as per its objective,” he said in a conversation with New Business Age. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Nepal Infrastructure Construction Company, Devendra KC admitted that the company was unable to achieve results due to the lack of policy. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">According to him, the company can work only if the legal arrangements in the Public Procurement Act are amended. Currently, the company has only done general works related to consultation. No work related to construction has been done.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">KC said that there is some hope because a bill to amend Some Nepal Acts has been registered in the parliament to remove legal complications. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The bill proposes entrusting the construction company with work under special circumstances when it is required to undertake construction works immediately and it not possible to indulge in the bidding process.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">T<span style="font-size:14.0pt">he bill registered in the Parliament also proposes allowing the company to carry out all types of construction works including construction of buildings, factories, airports, expressways, highways, roads, access roads, railways, dry ports, bridges, tunnels, waterways, and ropeways among others.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Arrangements are being made to allow the construction of hangars, ports, and coastal roads as well. Similarly, construction of canals, pipelines, reservoirs, water tanks, ponds, dams, civil engineering construction works, workshops, garages, hotels, warehouses, and cold storage facilities are also to be given to the company. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">In addition legal arrangements are being made so that this company can carry out the construction of markets, shops, towns, residences, new settlements and also get involved in integrated urban development, urban infrastructure development, housing development and land consolidation projects, along with urban regeneration, well drilling and mining, hydroelectric power plant construction, flood control, recreational facilities, swimming ponds, fishing ponds, public, industrial, agricultural and all other types of buildings and useful facilities.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The government had previously established the National Construction Company Nepal (NCCN), which was canceled after six consecutive years of losses. The interesting part is that the current infrastructure construction company is running profitably by doing consulting work with nine employees without any construction work or even buying equipment.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18295', 'image' => '20230726124936_1690334987.asdasdasdadasdasdasdasd - Copy.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 12:48:31', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18565', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Nepal Exported Cement worth Rs 780 Million in Last FY', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: Nepal exported cement worth Rs 780 million in the last fiscal year (FY 2022/23).', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">July 26: Nepal exported cement worth Rs 780 million in the last fiscal year (FY 2022/23).</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the Department of Customs, three cement industries exported over 1 million tons of cement worth Rs 777.93 million in the review year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the department, the industries exported 607,073 metric tons of cement worth Rs 420.35 million and 396,950 metric tons of clinker worth Rs 358.95 million.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Currently, three cement industries namely Palpa, Arghakhanchi and Balaji are exporting cement to India. Besides, other industries are preparing to export cement. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Palpa Cement's 'Tansen' brand was exported to India from July 9 last year. Meanwhile, Arghakhanchi Cement and Balaji Cement started exporting PPC cement under the brands 'Bahubali' and 'Shrishti' from October 17 and June 12 last year respectively.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The industries started exporting cement after the government announced up to eight percent cash subsidy on cement exports along with a subsidy of 2-15 percent on electricity tariff for the industries that consume worth more than Rs 100 million annually. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The Cement Producers Association of Nepal has said that many cement industries are waiting for quality certificate for cement export from the Government of India. Nepali cement industry will have to get a quality certificate from the Indian government for exporting cement to India. The cement industry operating in Nepal has an annual production capacity of around 22 million tons. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18294', 'image' => '20230726114157_20220607103309_Clipboard18.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 11:39:53', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18564', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Standard Chartered Bank Nepal Funds Eyecare Projects worth Rs 10 Million', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: Standard Chartered Bank Nepal Limited (SCBNL) has joined hands with Nepal Eye Programme of Tilganga Institute of Ophthalmology and MITRA Samaj to identify and treat cases of avoidable blindness, cataract and posterior segment eye diseases across all provinces in the country.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">July 26: Standard Chartered Bank Nepal Limited (SCBNL) has joined hands with Nepal Eye Programme of Tilganga Institute of Ophthalmology and MITRA Samaj to identify and treat cases of avoidable blindness, cataract and posterior segment eye diseases across all provinces in the country.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The bank has donated USD 36,434 (Rs 4,790,866) to Nepal Eye Programme which will be used in the establishment of a Community Eye Centre (CEC) at Nichuta, Parsa, to deliver comprehensive eye care services to the people of Paterwa Sugauli Rural Municipality-5 and its adjoining rural and urban municipalities, reads a statement issued by the bank. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the bank, the project will focus on elderly people, women, children, people with impairment, and people with disabilities. A total of 7,200 persons will directly benefit from this project such as community eye centre (3,000), community screenings (2,000), school screenings (2,000) and cataract surgeries (200) through the outreach programme in a year, added the statement.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The bank said it also donated USD 51,379 (NPR 6,725,000) to MITRA Samaj. According to the bank, the amount will be used for the Cataract Blindness Alleviation Project aimed at identifying cases of avoidable blinding, including cataract, among the hard-to-reach population (especially 50+years), in priority areas of all provinces of Nepal. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Altogether 3,000 people are expected to benefit through the screenings. The bank said that 700 to 1,000 cataract cases will be identified, 1,500 people with refractive error are expected to get treated and/or receive reading glasses, and at least 700 cataract cases will be restored with vision through this project.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">During the cheque handover event, Harsha Pillai, head of Corporate Affairs, Brand and Marketing at Standard Chartered Bank Nepal Limited (SCBNL) said that the bank aims to provide eye care services in collaboration with Nepal Eye Programme (Tilganga Institute of Ophthalmology) and MITRA Samaj to those who would not have easy access or cannot afford this treatment.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">“The focus is on early detection of eye ailments, referral, and appropriate treatment. Serving communities will always be at the heart of Standard Chartered,” added Pillai.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Similarly, Reeta Gurung, chief executive officer of the Tilganga Institute of Ophthalmology, assured that the funds will be well spent for the benefit of the needy people of Nichuta area.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Vivek Singh Thakuri, executive director of MITRA Samaj shared, "We are super excited to partner with Standard Chartered Bank to identify cases of avoidable blindness and improve people’s vision by organising free Outreach Micro Surgical Eye Clinics (OMSEC). We are looking forward to touching lives positively.”</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The statement mentions that eye health care is an essential component of basic health service to be provided to all citizens as stated in the constitution of Nepal. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">“Despite efforts from various stakeholders, vision impairment continues to be a major problem. With this in mind, Standard Chartered Bank has decided to make these significant donations to help provide accessible, affordable and quality eye care in the country.”</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18293', 'image' => '20230726105932_stan.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 10:58:43', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18563', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'HAN Dissatisfied with New Monetary Policy', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: The Hotel Association Nepal (HAN) has expressed dissatisfaction with the monetary policy issued by Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) for the current fiscal year. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">July 26: The Hotel Association Nepal (HAN) has expressed dissatisfaction with the monetary policy issued by Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) for the current fiscal year. Issuing a statement on Tuesday, HAN expressed dissatisfaction stating that the monetary policy could not address the problems of the hotel and tourism sector.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Announcing its views on the monetary policy on Tuesday, HAN said that it was enthusiastic about the new policy because it did not have any new initiatives to uplift the hotel and tourism industry which was hit hard by the recession in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">HAN complained that although the businessmen have demanded measures like re-financing and rescheduling of loans as well as the development of the tourism sector through the provision of low interest rates, the monetary policy has not addressed these issues.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">HAN said that the current fiscal year's budget and monetary policy have admitted that the number of tourists and economic activities have increased but the capacity of the hotels, which is constantly being added, is under-utilized with less than one-third occupancy. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">As a result, the hotel industry is in loss and unable to pay regular interest to the banks, it has been mentioned in the statement. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The review of last year's monetary policy had provision of re-financing and rescheduling of the interest to be paid to the banks. However, the hotel and tourism industry operators are now confused because there are no such provisions in the new monetary policy.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to HAN, the entry of world-class hotel brands in the country is increasing, but the monetary policy is not encouraging enough. HAN argued that it will be difficult to increase the number of tourists this year due to taxes imposed on raw materials including vegetables consumed by customers and tourists and the introduction of luxury tax.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18292', 'image' => '20230726102038_1690335515.hanadasdasdasdasd.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 10:19:52', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18562', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Nepal Imports Millets worth Rs 510 Million from India ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'Nepal imported millets worth Rs 513 million in the last fiscal year from India. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">July 26: Youths of Nepal are leaving the country for foreign jobs in large numbers and the farmlands in the rural areas are left barren. As a result, the country imported millets worth Rs 513 million in the last fiscal year from India. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to customs officials, millets worth Rs 513 million were imported from Kakadbhitta customs alone in the fiscal year 2022/23.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Information Officer at the Plant Quarantine Office in Kakadbhitta, Chandra Kishor Thakur, said that a total of 16,035 metric tonnes of millets were imported from Kakadbhitta customs point in the review year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Likewise, pumpkins worth Rs 57.7 million were imported from India in the last fiscal year from Kakadbhitta customs point, according to Thakur. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Similarly, chilies worth Rs 200 million were imported from Kakadbhitta customs point in the fiscal year 2022/23, Thakur said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Thakur said that fruits and vegetables including onions, tomatoes, long guards, yams, watermelons, gingers and others worth billions were imported during this period from India. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Meanwhile, the local producers in the districts of eastern Nepal have complained of limited market for the domestic products due to unrestricted imports of vegetables and fruits from India and other countries. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18291', 'image' => '20230726095554_Hardy-Millet.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 09:54:48', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18561', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Bir Hospital Launches VIP, VVIP Wards', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The Bir Hospital has brought VIP and VVIP wards into operation. A fully equipped three-bed ward in the surgical building has a guest and visitor's hall, said the hospital director Dr Santosh Paudel. ', 'content' => '<p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">July 26: The Bir Hospital has brought VIP and VVIP wards into operation. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">A fully equipped three-bed ward in the surgical building has a guest and visitor's hall, said the hospital director Dr Santosh Paudel. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Two beds have been already allocated for VIP and VVIP persons on the first floor of the old building of the hospital. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Minister for Health and Population Mohan Bahadur Basnet on Tuesday inaugurated the VIP and VVIP wards amid a function. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Beds have been added so patients get treatment for all sorts of diseases, said the minister. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The hospital has formed a 15-member team of specialist doctors from government and private hospitals for the same. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">“The team of doctors provides treatment. No one needs to go to foreign countries for medical treatment," he said. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Minister Basnet also directed office bearers of the National Academy of Medical Sciences (NAMS) and Bir Hospital to make the hospital service more effective. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Members of the VIP and VVIP treatment specialist committee led by the NAMS chancellor Prof Dr Bhupendra Kumar Basnet are Dr Kiran Shrestha, Dr Dhurba Gaire, Dr Rabiram Shrestha, and Dr Shaili Pradhan.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The committee also includes Dr Bhagawan Koirala, Dr Pukar Chandra Shrestha, Dr Mahesh Adhikari, Dr Subhash Acharya, Dr Sanduk Ruit, Dr Shashi Sharma, Dr Ratna Gajurel, Dr Badri Rijal, Dr Man Bahadur Gajurel and Dr Ramesh Chokhani. (RSS) </span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18290', 'image' => '20230726055406_collage (6).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 05:52:17', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18560', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Vegetables, Fruits Worth Rs 6.29 Billion Imported via Kakadvitta', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'In the fiscal year 2079/80 BS, Nepal imported vegetables and fruits worth a total of Rs 6.29 billion through the eastern check point, Kakadvitta.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:20.0pt">July 26: In the fiscal year 2079/80 BS, Nepal imported vegetables and fruits worth a total of Rs 6.29 billion through the eastern check point, Kakadvitta. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:20.0pt">The imports consisted of fresh vegetables worth Rs 3.35 billion and fruits worth Rs 2.94 billion,<span style="font-family:"Segoe UI",sans-serif"> according to information Officer at Plant Quarantine Office, Kakadvitta, Chandra Kishor Thakur. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:20.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Segoe UI",sans-serif">Plant Quarantine Office, Kakadvitta</span></span><span style="font-size:20.0pt"> said that three main vegetables were imported from India in significant quantities. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:20.0pt">These included 25,312 metric tonnes of onions worth Rs 809.9 million, 38,010 metric tonnes of tomatoes worth Rs 608.1 million, and 19,988 metric tonnes of bitter gourd worth Rs 319.8 million.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:20.0pt">Furthermore, Nepal also imported 617 metric tonnes of apples worth Rs 685.8 million and 15,531 metric tonnes of pineapples worth Rs 621.2 million.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:20.0pt">Additionally, other fruits that were imported via the eastern check point included 7,718 metric tonnes of oranges worth Rs 370.4 million, 3,072 metric tonnes of grapes worth Rs 196.6 million, and 2,763 metric tonnes of pomegranates worth Rs 264.8 million. (RSS)</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18289', 'image' => '20230726054053_collage (4).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 05:39:20', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ) ) $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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', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">July 27: Nepal’s swimmer Gaurika Singh, who clinched multiple gold medals in the South Asian Games (SAG), has set a new national record in individual performance in the 20th edition of the World Aquatics Championship-2023 underway in Fukuoka, Japan. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chairperson of Nepal Swimming Association, Ashok Bajracharya informed RSS that Singh set a new national record by completing 50-meter backstroking in 31.44 seconds on Wednesday. With this, she broke her own record of 31.87 seconds in 50-meter backstroke category. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Singh has bettered on her previous record she had established in the 12th SAG held in India in 2016. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Singh made her debut in the Rio Olympics 2016 at a tender age of 13 and was the youngest sportsperson at the sports jamboree. According to the official website of the International Olympics Committee, Singh had secured 31<sup>st</sup> position in the women’s 100 meters backstroke in the Rio Olympics. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Only a few days ago, she had set another national record in women’s 100 meters backstroke with a timing of 1 minute 6.08 seconds in Japan.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Likewise, another Nepali swimmer Alexander Shah also set a new national record by slightly improving his performance in 100-meter freestyle category of swimming. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Alexander set a new record in the 100-meter swimming with a timing of 52.94 seconds by improving his previous record of 52.96 seconds. He had made the previous record in the recently-held 11th NSA Cup Championship. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Nepal’s team manager Naresh Baidya informed RSS that Dubana Lama and Alexander Shah are competing in 100-meter and 40-meter free style, respectively. </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-27', 'modified' => '2023-07-27', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18305', 'image' => '20230727110403_gaurika.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-27 11:03:02', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18575', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'IMF Revises Global Growth to 3 Percent in 2023', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 27: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has revised its outlook for global growth for this year on the back of resilient service sector activity in the first quarter and a strong labor market, the lender said on Tuesday.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px">July 27: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has revised its outlook for global growth for this year on the back of resilient service sector activity in the first quarter and a strong labor market, the lender said on Tuesday.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">The growth forecast for this year was raised by 0.2 percentage points from the IMF's last estimate in April, putting the world economy on track for three percent growth in both 2023 and 2024.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">“While the forecast for 2023 is modestly higher than predicted in the April 2023 World Economic Outlook (WEO), it remains weak by historical standards. Global growth is projected to fall from an estimated 3.5 percent in 2022 to 3.0 percent in both 2023 and 2024,” IMF said in its World Economic Outlook update in July.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">According to the latest report, the rise in central bank policy rates to fight inflation continues to weigh on economic activities. Global headline inflation is expected to fall from 8.7 percent in 2022 to 6.8 percent in 2023 and 5.2 percent in 2024, added the report.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">“Underlying (core) inflation is projected to decline more gradually, and forecasts for inflation in 2024 have been revised upward.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">The IMF said that the recent resolution of the US debt ceiling standoff and strong action by authorities to contain turbulence in US and Swiss banking reduced the immediate risks of financial sector turmoil.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">“This moderated adverse risks to the outlook. However, the balance of risks to global growth remains tilted to the downside. Inflation could remain high and even rise if further shocks occur, including those from an intensification of the war in Ukraine and extreme weather-related events, triggering more restrictive monetary policy,” states the report.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">According to the IMF, financial sector turbulence could resume as markets adjust to further policy tightening by central banks. On the upside, inflation could fall faster than expected, reducing the need for tight monetary policy, and domestic demand could again prove more resilient.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">In most economies, the priority remains achieving sustained disinflation while ensuring financial stability. Therefore, central banks should remain focused on restoring price stability and strengthen financial supervision and risk monitoring, added the report.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px">“Should market strains materialize, countries should provide liquidity promptly while mitigating the possibility of moral hazard. They should also build fiscal buffers, with the composition of fiscal adjustment ensuring targeted support for the most vulnerable. Improvements to the supply side of the economy would facilitate fiscal consolidation and a smoother decline of inflation toward target levels.”</span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-27', 'modified' => '2023-07-27', 'keywords' => 'IMF, growth, global, economy, inflation, Ukraine, war, lender, estimate, percentage', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18304', 'image' => '20230727101422_20230726091211_20220426051733_imf.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-27 10:13:00', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18574', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Gold Imports Witness 42% Decrease in FY 2022/2023; Prices Double in Five Years', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'In the fiscal year 2022/2023, Nepal imported gold worth 22 billion 35 crore rupees. According to the statistics of the Department of Customs, in the fiscal year 2079/80, Nepal imported 29 lakh 16 thousand 586 grams of yellow metal.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">July 27: In the fiscal year 2022/2023, Nepal imported gold worth 22 billion 35 crore rupees. According to the statistics of the Department of Customs, in the fiscal year 2079/80, Nepal imported 29 lakh 16 thousand 586 grams of yellow metal. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The gold import in the last fiscal year marks a 42% decrease from the previous fiscal year (2078/79) when Nepal imported gold worth 35 billion 50 lakh 53 thousand grams. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">With the decrease in gold imports, the government’s revenue collection has also decreased. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">In the previous fiscal year, revenue collection from gold imports amounted to 4 billion 29 crore rupees, while in the last fiscal year, it stood at Rs 2 billion 53 crore rupees.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Nepal imported yellow metal from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Switzerland, Turkey, and Uzbekistan in the last fiscal year. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">During the review period, most of the gold was imported from the UAE. In the fiscal year, Nepal imported 24,66,546 grams of worth Rs 18 billion 91 crores from the UAE.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Similarly, Nepal imported 3 lakh 50 thousand grams of gold from Turkey worth 2 billion 72 crore rupees, 1 lakh grams from Switzerland worth 70 crore 99 lakh rupees, and 40 grams from Uzbekistan worth 2 lakh 80 thousand rupees.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Manik Ratna Shakya, the President of Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers Association, attributed the decrease in gold imports to the quota system. "The government has imposed a daily quota of 10 kilograms on gold imports till now. Therefore, the imports have decreased," Shakya said. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">He added that due to the economic slowdown, the current supply has sustained the demand in the market. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Gold prices have doubled in the last five years. In the month of Shrawan of 2075, gold was traded at Rs. 56,700 per tola.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">At present, the price of gold stands Rs. 1,12,700 per tola, according to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Although there have been fluctuations in gold prices over five years, the price has remained above one lakh in recent months. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The businessmen predict that the price of gold will continue to rise in the days to come. </span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-27', 'modified' => '2023-07-27', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18303', 'image' => '20230727061337_collage.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-27 06:11:09', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18572', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'UML Obstructs HoR Meeting, Demands Probe into Gold Scam ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: The main opposition party, CPN (UML), on Wednesday obstructed the proceedings of the House of Representatives, demanding formation of a high-level committee to probe the recent gold scam. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">July 26: The main opposition party, CPN (UML), on Wednesday obstructed the proceedings of the House of Representatives, demanding formation of a high-level committee to probe the recent gold scam. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chief Whip of the CPN (UML), Padam Giri, demanded parliamentary ruling in the name of the government for investigation into the recent gold scam. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Lawmakers of the CPN (UML) reached the 'rostrum' chanting slogans demanding action against gold smugglers. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Stating that all the agendas set for the house meeting were removed, Speaker Devraj Ghimire announced postponement of the meeting until July 31. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The recent case of gold smuggling has taken centre stage in the political and social circle after more than 100 kilograms of gold was cleared by the customs officials of Tribhuvan International Airport last Wednesday. However, a team from the Department of Revenue Investigation seized the large quantity of gold from outside the airport with the help of a special tip off. </span></span></span><br /> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18301', 'image' => '20230726085859_20230713052749_parliament building.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 20:58:24', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18571', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Kathmandu has the Highest Population Density in Nepal: National Census', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: Federal capital Kathmandu is the city having the largest population size and highest population density in the country.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">July 26: Federal capital Kathmandu is the city having the largest population size and highest population density in the country.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the National Census-2078 BS (2021) issued by the National Statistics Office, the population of Kathmandu has surpassed two million, reaching a total of 2,041,587 residents, whereas Manang has the lowest population with only 5,658 inhabitants.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The report shows Nepal's overall population density is 198 per square kilometer. The previous National Census 2011 had put this figure at 180. The population density is significantly higher in the Terai region, where it is 460 people per square kilometer and in the mountainous regions it is just 34 per square kilometer.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">While assessing the district-wise statistics, the population density in Kathmandu is 5,169 per square kilometer and in Manang it is just 3.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The segregated population data concerning Kathmandu shows that the number of males is 1,035,726 and the number of females is 1,005,861.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">On average, there are 3.75 people per household in Kathmandu, and the age group of 20-24 years constitutes the highest proportion of the population, with 226,660 individuals falling into this category. The figure is 11.10 percent of the total population of Kathmandu.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Similarly, the population of the 25 to 29 age group is 215,120, while the populace above 90 years of age is 980. A total of 542,892 families inhabit the district, of which 362,147 are headed by men, and 182,720 by women.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The number of married people stands at 1,788,062, of which 898,352 are married men, and 889,710 married women.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The figure of widows is 46,096 and widower 9,755 while the number of divorce cases stands at 4,182 (2,844 divorcee women and 1,338 divorcee men). A total of 197,347 people above five years of age are illiterate (52,952 male, and 144,395 female). A total of 283,862 people (149,806 male and 134,056 female) have received education up to primary level.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the report, 10,275 families use firewood for cooking. Similarly, 526,931 families have been dependent on LPG, 4,694 on electricity, 561 on biogas, 157 on kerosene and 274 on other energy sources.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Five hundred and seventy-five families in Kathmandu do not have toilet facility at home while 1,305 families use public toilets. The National Census data shows that 852,555 people, including 349,274 men and 503,281 women belonging to the 10 years and above age group in Kathmandu are not connected to any economic activities. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Among those people who are not connected to any income-generating activity in the last one year, 376,954 are students, 198,630 are people involved in domestic work, 63,103 are elderly and 16,011 are physically handicapped.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The statistics show that 512,427 people hold jobs, 32,318 have given employment to others, 282,552 people are running their business and 108,013 are assisting in their family businesses.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The number of children below 18 years of age is 508,399 and of them, 402,174 live with both parents, 55,369 live only with their mother, 7,200 live only with their father, 877 live with their father and stepmother, 228 live with their mother and step father, 28,343 live with other relatives and 971 are looked after by employees.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">There are 258,138 residential buildings, 24,476 buildings built for commercial and business purpose, 3,175 governmental buildings, 3,125 educational blocks, 667 health sector buildings, 3,892 industry sector blocks, 664 bank and financial sector-related buildings, 3,024 hotels and lodges and 4,276 store and warehouses in Kathmandu. -- RSS</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18300', 'image' => '20230726060105_Kathmandu-City-Of-Ruins.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 18:00:28', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18570', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'ICP yet to Operate Two Months after its Inauguration ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: The integrated check post (ICP) along the Nepal-India border in Nepalgunj is yet to come into operation even one and a half months after its inauguration. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">July 26: The integrated check post (ICP) along the Nepal-India border in Nepalgunj is yet to come into operation even one and a half months after its inauguration. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi had jointly inaugurated the ICP in Nepalgunj-Rupaidiya in June. They had inaugurated the check post remotely from Hyderabad House, the Office of the Indian Prime Minister during PM Dahal’s India visit. The ICP is expected to facilitate improved cross-border connectivity between Nepal and India. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chief of the Building Division Office in Nepalgunj, Bijay Keshar Khanal, said that the ICP has not been operational as the construction company is yet to hand over the building to the government. Likewise, the tasks of the physical works are still ongoing. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Similarly, the jobs of human resource management and security arrangement are likely to compete soon, he added. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Khanal stated that it could take some two more months for the operation of the ICP in Nepalgunj. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18299', 'image' => '20230726044350_nepalgunj-check-point-2023.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 16:43:06', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18569', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Insufficient Rainfall Delays Paddy Transplant in Tanahun District', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'Due to a scarcity of rainfall during this year's rainy season, the paddy seedlings plantation in Tanahun district has faced significant delays.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">July 26: Due to a scarcity of rainfall during this year's rainy season, the paddy seedlings plantation in Tanahun district has faced significant delays. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Typically, paddy transplantation is completed by the end of the Asar month in the district; however, the lack of sufficient rainfall has hindered paddy cultivation this year.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Farmers in various places of Tanahun have expressed their concerns over the situation. Dev Bahadur Kamali from Bhanu Municipality-2 reported that many farms have been left unplanted due to the absence of rain. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">This has resulted in worries among farmers regarding limited grain output. Shivalal Pradhan, a farmer from Kalesti in Byas Municipality-7, highlighted that the lack of water supply for plantation has compounded their difficulties.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Pradip Ghimire of Byas Municipality-7 pointed out that land plots could remain barren this year if adequate rainfall does not occur. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">According to Kul Prasad Tiwari, the Senior Agricultural Development Officer and Chief of Agriculture Knowledge Centre in Tanahun, an estimated 15 percent of the farmland in the district may remain unutilized due to the delayed planting caused by the lack of rainfall. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Tiwari said that paddy transplantation has been completed on approximately 75 percent of the land in Tanahun, and this figure could potentially reach 85 percent by the end of the season, assuming more rainfall arrives.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18298', 'image' => '20230726043746_collage (3).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 16:36:20', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18567', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NCC Demands Direct Flights between Nepal and Pakistan', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: Nepal Chamber of Commerce (NCC) has requested the newly appointed Pakistani Ambassador to Nepal, Abrar Hussain Hashmi, for the operation of direct air service between Nepal and Pakistan.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">July 26: Nepal Chamber of Commerce (NCC) has requested the newly appointed Pakistani Ambassador to Nepal, Abrar Hussain Hashmi, for the operation of direct air service between Nepal and Pakistan. The NCC is of the view that direct air connectivity is necessary to facilitate trade between the two countries and promote tourism activities.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In a meeting with the newly appointed Ambassador Hasmi, NCC President Rajendra Malla emphasized that the Kathmandu-Karachi flights should be resumed immediately for the expansion of trade between the two countries, exchange of tourism and growth of economic and commercial activities. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Malla urged Ambassador Hashmi to take the initiative for the operation of air services between the two countries at the government level. The also requested for cooperation with the private sector.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> "The air distance between Nepal and Pakistan is three hours. If it can be utilized, trade and tourism can be expanded between the two countries," he said. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to NCC President Malla, there is great potential for both the countries to benefit by increasing joint investment in air services and small and medium industries through cooperation between the private sector.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Pakistani Ambassador to Nepal Hasmi said that there should be an initiative from the government for the operation of air services.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Nepal is currently importing medicines, processed leather products, machinery items, shoes, slippers among others from Paksitan while Nepal exports honey, coffee, tea, handicraft products, cardamom, eye lenses, woolen yarn and other items to Pakistan. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to Malla, direct flights will also facilitate tourism activities. Ambassador Hasmi expressed his commitment to take further initiatives for the expansion of business activities by holding discussions between the officials of the chambers of commerce of the two countries.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18296', 'image' => '20230726015538_ncccc.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 13:54:20', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18566', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => ' Nepal Infrastructure Construction Company Devoid of Work', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: The Nepal Infrastructure Construction Company, with an authorized capital of Rs 10 billion and issued capital of Rs 5 billion, established four years ago under the full ownership of the government, has no work to do at all.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">July 26: The Nepal Infrastructure Construction Company, with an authorized capital of Rs 10 billion and issued capital of Rs 5 billion, established four years ago under the full ownership of the government, has no work to do at all. This company, which was established on July 10, 2019 by the then KP Sharma Oli-led government to work in the field of construction, has gone out of business due to the lack of a clear policy. So far, it has not been able to do any other work in the field of construction apart from general consultation. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The company has been given the right to engage in almost all areas of infrastructure development. The then government had established the company with the aim of undertaking construction works related to roads, airports, expressways, highways, railways, dry ports, harbors, canals, pipelines, substations. It seems that this company is not among the priorities of the successive governments formed after the fall of the Oli government. This company is lagging behind in achieving its objectives due to the lack of a clear policy of the government. The government officials admit that the company has not been able to produce results.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Rajesh Kumar Thapa, joint secretary at the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport, who is also the secretary of the company, says that the existing law does not allow the company to move forward as per the objective. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">According to him, this state-owned company was established with the aim of engaging in procurement and construction work of public concern at any time. However, as the current Public Procurement Act stipulates that no company can get any work without competition, it has become difficult for this company to bag contracts.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“The Ministry of Physical Infrastructure has already taken the initiative for amending the Public Procurement Act. After removing the policy hurdles, the company will be able to work in the field of construction as per its objective,” he said in a conversation with New Business Age. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Nepal Infrastructure Construction Company, Devendra KC admitted that the company was unable to achieve results due to the lack of policy. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">According to him, the company can work only if the legal arrangements in the Public Procurement Act are amended. Currently, the company has only done general works related to consultation. No work related to construction has been done.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">KC said that there is some hope because a bill to amend Some Nepal Acts has been registered in the parliament to remove legal complications. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The bill proposes entrusting the construction company with work under special circumstances when it is required to undertake construction works immediately and it not possible to indulge in the bidding process.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">T<span style="font-size:14.0pt">he bill registered in the Parliament also proposes allowing the company to carry out all types of construction works including construction of buildings, factories, airports, expressways, highways, roads, access roads, railways, dry ports, bridges, tunnels, waterways, and ropeways among others.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Arrangements are being made to allow the construction of hangars, ports, and coastal roads as well. Similarly, construction of canals, pipelines, reservoirs, water tanks, ponds, dams, civil engineering construction works, workshops, garages, hotels, warehouses, and cold storage facilities are also to be given to the company. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">In addition legal arrangements are being made so that this company can carry out the construction of markets, shops, towns, residences, new settlements and also get involved in integrated urban development, urban infrastructure development, housing development and land consolidation projects, along with urban regeneration, well drilling and mining, hydroelectric power plant construction, flood control, recreational facilities, swimming ponds, fishing ponds, public, industrial, agricultural and all other types of buildings and useful facilities.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The government had previously established the National Construction Company Nepal (NCCN), which was canceled after six consecutive years of losses. The interesting part is that the current infrastructure construction company is running profitably by doing consulting work with nine employees without any construction work or even buying equipment.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18295', 'image' => '20230726124936_1690334987.asdasdasdadasdasdasdasd - Copy.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 12:48:31', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18565', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Nepal Exported Cement worth Rs 780 Million in Last FY', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: Nepal exported cement worth Rs 780 million in the last fiscal year (FY 2022/23).', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">July 26: Nepal exported cement worth Rs 780 million in the last fiscal year (FY 2022/23).</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the Department of Customs, three cement industries exported over 1 million tons of cement worth Rs 777.93 million in the review year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the department, the industries exported 607,073 metric tons of cement worth Rs 420.35 million and 396,950 metric tons of clinker worth Rs 358.95 million.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Currently, three cement industries namely Palpa, Arghakhanchi and Balaji are exporting cement to India. Besides, other industries are preparing to export cement. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Palpa Cement's 'Tansen' brand was exported to India from July 9 last year. Meanwhile, Arghakhanchi Cement and Balaji Cement started exporting PPC cement under the brands 'Bahubali' and 'Shrishti' from October 17 and June 12 last year respectively.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The industries started exporting cement after the government announced up to eight percent cash subsidy on cement exports along with a subsidy of 2-15 percent on electricity tariff for the industries that consume worth more than Rs 100 million annually. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The Cement Producers Association of Nepal has said that many cement industries are waiting for quality certificate for cement export from the Government of India. Nepali cement industry will have to get a quality certificate from the Indian government for exporting cement to India. The cement industry operating in Nepal has an annual production capacity of around 22 million tons. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18294', 'image' => '20230726114157_20220607103309_Clipboard18.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 11:39:53', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18564', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Standard Chartered Bank Nepal Funds Eyecare Projects worth Rs 10 Million', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: Standard Chartered Bank Nepal Limited (SCBNL) has joined hands with Nepal Eye Programme of Tilganga Institute of Ophthalmology and MITRA Samaj to identify and treat cases of avoidable blindness, cataract and posterior segment eye diseases across all provinces in the country.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">July 26: Standard Chartered Bank Nepal Limited (SCBNL) has joined hands with Nepal Eye Programme of Tilganga Institute of Ophthalmology and MITRA Samaj to identify and treat cases of avoidable blindness, cataract and posterior segment eye diseases across all provinces in the country.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The bank has donated USD 36,434 (Rs 4,790,866) to Nepal Eye Programme which will be used in the establishment of a Community Eye Centre (CEC) at Nichuta, Parsa, to deliver comprehensive eye care services to the people of Paterwa Sugauli Rural Municipality-5 and its adjoining rural and urban municipalities, reads a statement issued by the bank. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the bank, the project will focus on elderly people, women, children, people with impairment, and people with disabilities. A total of 7,200 persons will directly benefit from this project such as community eye centre (3,000), community screenings (2,000), school screenings (2,000) and cataract surgeries (200) through the outreach programme in a year, added the statement.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The bank said it also donated USD 51,379 (NPR 6,725,000) to MITRA Samaj. According to the bank, the amount will be used for the Cataract Blindness Alleviation Project aimed at identifying cases of avoidable blinding, including cataract, among the hard-to-reach population (especially 50+years), in priority areas of all provinces of Nepal. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Altogether 3,000 people are expected to benefit through the screenings. The bank said that 700 to 1,000 cataract cases will be identified, 1,500 people with refractive error are expected to get treated and/or receive reading glasses, and at least 700 cataract cases will be restored with vision through this project.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">During the cheque handover event, Harsha Pillai, head of Corporate Affairs, Brand and Marketing at Standard Chartered Bank Nepal Limited (SCBNL) said that the bank aims to provide eye care services in collaboration with Nepal Eye Programme (Tilganga Institute of Ophthalmology) and MITRA Samaj to those who would not have easy access or cannot afford this treatment.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">“The focus is on early detection of eye ailments, referral, and appropriate treatment. Serving communities will always be at the heart of Standard Chartered,” added Pillai.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Similarly, Reeta Gurung, chief executive officer of the Tilganga Institute of Ophthalmology, assured that the funds will be well spent for the benefit of the needy people of Nichuta area.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Vivek Singh Thakuri, executive director of MITRA Samaj shared, "We are super excited to partner with Standard Chartered Bank to identify cases of avoidable blindness and improve people’s vision by organising free Outreach Micro Surgical Eye Clinics (OMSEC). We are looking forward to touching lives positively.”</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The statement mentions that eye health care is an essential component of basic health service to be provided to all citizens as stated in the constitution of Nepal. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">“Despite efforts from various stakeholders, vision impairment continues to be a major problem. With this in mind, Standard Chartered Bank has decided to make these significant donations to help provide accessible, affordable and quality eye care in the country.”</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18293', 'image' => '20230726105932_stan.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 10:58:43', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18563', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'HAN Dissatisfied with New Monetary Policy', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'July 26: The Hotel Association Nepal (HAN) has expressed dissatisfaction with the monetary policy issued by Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) for the current fiscal year. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">July 26: The Hotel Association Nepal (HAN) has expressed dissatisfaction with the monetary policy issued by Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) for the current fiscal year. Issuing a statement on Tuesday, HAN expressed dissatisfaction stating that the monetary policy could not address the problems of the hotel and tourism sector.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Announcing its views on the monetary policy on Tuesday, HAN said that it was enthusiastic about the new policy because it did not have any new initiatives to uplift the hotel and tourism industry which was hit hard by the recession in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">HAN complained that although the businessmen have demanded measures like re-financing and rescheduling of loans as well as the development of the tourism sector through the provision of low interest rates, the monetary policy has not addressed these issues.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">HAN said that the current fiscal year's budget and monetary policy have admitted that the number of tourists and economic activities have increased but the capacity of the hotels, which is constantly being added, is under-utilized with less than one-third occupancy. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">As a result, the hotel industry is in loss and unable to pay regular interest to the banks, it has been mentioned in the statement. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The review of last year's monetary policy had provision of re-financing and rescheduling of the interest to be paid to the banks. However, the hotel and tourism industry operators are now confused because there are no such provisions in the new monetary policy.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to HAN, the entry of world-class hotel brands in the country is increasing, but the monetary policy is not encouraging enough. HAN argued that it will be difficult to increase the number of tourists this year due to taxes imposed on raw materials including vegetables consumed by customers and tourists and the introduction of luxury tax.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18292', 'image' => '20230726102038_1690335515.hanadasdasdasdasd.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 10:19:52', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18562', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Nepal Imports Millets worth Rs 510 Million from India ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'Nepal imported millets worth Rs 513 million in the last fiscal year from India. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">July 26: Youths of Nepal are leaving the country for foreign jobs in large numbers and the farmlands in the rural areas are left barren. As a result, the country imported millets worth Rs 513 million in the last fiscal year from India. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to customs officials, millets worth Rs 513 million were imported from Kakadbhitta customs alone in the fiscal year 2022/23.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Information Officer at the Plant Quarantine Office in Kakadbhitta, Chandra Kishor Thakur, said that a total of 16,035 metric tonnes of millets were imported from Kakadbhitta customs point in the review year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Likewise, pumpkins worth Rs 57.7 million were imported from India in the last fiscal year from Kakadbhitta customs point, according to Thakur. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Similarly, chilies worth Rs 200 million were imported from Kakadbhitta customs point in the fiscal year 2022/23, Thakur said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Thakur said that fruits and vegetables including onions, tomatoes, long guards, yams, watermelons, gingers and others worth billions were imported during this period from India. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Meanwhile, the local producers in the districts of eastern Nepal have complained of limited market for the domestic products due to unrestricted imports of vegetables and fruits from India and other countries. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18291', 'image' => '20230726095554_Hardy-Millet.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 09:54:48', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18561', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Bir Hospital Launches VIP, VVIP Wards', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The Bir Hospital has brought VIP and VVIP wards into operation. A fully equipped three-bed ward in the surgical building has a guest and visitor's hall, said the hospital director Dr Santosh Paudel. ', 'content' => '<p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">July 26: The Bir Hospital has brought VIP and VVIP wards into operation. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">A fully equipped three-bed ward in the surgical building has a guest and visitor's hall, said the hospital director Dr Santosh Paudel. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Two beds have been already allocated for VIP and VVIP persons on the first floor of the old building of the hospital. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Minister for Health and Population Mohan Bahadur Basnet on Tuesday inaugurated the VIP and VVIP wards amid a function. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Beds have been added so patients get treatment for all sorts of diseases, said the minister. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The hospital has formed a 15-member team of specialist doctors from government and private hospitals for the same. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">“The team of doctors provides treatment. No one needs to go to foreign countries for medical treatment," he said. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Minister Basnet also directed office bearers of the National Academy of Medical Sciences (NAMS) and Bir Hospital to make the hospital service more effective. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Members of the VIP and VVIP treatment specialist committee led by the NAMS chancellor Prof Dr Bhupendra Kumar Basnet are Dr Kiran Shrestha, Dr Dhurba Gaire, Dr Rabiram Shrestha, and Dr Shaili Pradhan.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The committee also includes Dr Bhagawan Koirala, Dr Pukar Chandra Shrestha, Dr Mahesh Adhikari, Dr Subhash Acharya, Dr Sanduk Ruit, Dr Shashi Sharma, Dr Ratna Gajurel, Dr Badri Rijal, Dr Man Bahadur Gajurel and Dr Ramesh Chokhani. (RSS) </span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18290', 'image' => '20230726055406_collage (6).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 05:52:17', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '18560', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Vegetables, Fruits Worth Rs 6.29 Billion Imported via Kakadvitta', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'In the fiscal year 2079/80 BS, Nepal imported vegetables and fruits worth a total of Rs 6.29 billion through the eastern check point, Kakadvitta.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:20.0pt">July 26: In the fiscal year 2079/80 BS, Nepal imported vegetables and fruits worth a total of Rs 6.29 billion through the eastern check point, Kakadvitta. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:20.0pt">The imports consisted of fresh vegetables worth Rs 3.35 billion and fruits worth Rs 2.94 billion,<span style="font-family:"Segoe UI",sans-serif"> according to information Officer at Plant Quarantine Office, Kakadvitta, Chandra Kishor Thakur. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:20.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Segoe UI",sans-serif">Plant Quarantine Office, Kakadvitta</span></span><span style="font-size:20.0pt"> said that three main vegetables were imported from India in significant quantities. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:20.0pt">These included 25,312 metric tonnes of onions worth Rs 809.9 million, 38,010 metric tonnes of tomatoes worth Rs 608.1 million, and 19,988 metric tonnes of bitter gourd worth Rs 319.8 million.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:20.0pt">Furthermore, Nepal also imported 617 metric tonnes of apples worth Rs 685.8 million and 15,531 metric tonnes of pineapples worth Rs 621.2 million.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:20.0pt">Additionally, other fruits that were imported via the eastern check point included 7,718 metric tonnes of oranges worth Rs 370.4 million, 3,072 metric tonnes of grapes worth Rs 196.6 million, and 2,763 metric tonnes of pomegranates worth Rs 264.8 million. (RSS)</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-07-26', 'modified' => '2023-07-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18289', 'image' => '20230726054053_collage (4).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-07-26 05:39:20', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ) ) $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
