April 21: The H5N1 bird flu virus strain has been detected in very high concentrations in raw milk from infected animals, the WHO said Friday, though how long the virus can survive in milk is…
April 21: The H5N1 bird flu virus strain has been detected in very high concentrations in raw milk from infected animals, the WHO said Friday, though how long the virus can survive in milk is…
April 21: More than 31,000 foreign tourists visited Ghodepani-Poon Hill area of Annapurna rural municipality-6 in Myagdi district in 2080 BS. …
As many as 265 cottage and small industries have closed down their shutters in Banke district in the last nine months of the current fiscal year,…
April 20: With the onset of season for climbing Mt Everest (Sagarmatha), the government has collected over Rs 500 million in royalties so…
April 19: Over 400,000 tourists visited Mustang in a one-year period from April 14, 2023 to April 12, 2024 by road, according to the data with the Ghasa police station located on the border of Myagdi and Mustang…
April 19: Around 550,000 people have acquired work permits for overseas employment as of April 12 of the current fiscal year…
April 19: Bal Kumari Mahato of Kawasoti in Nawalparasi (Bardaghat Susta Purba) district does not worry anymore how to run her household thanks to the income she makes from operating…
April 19: An auditor is commonly known as a person who examines the accounts.…
April 19: Malaysia's policy to stop hiring foreign workers in the formal sector from June 1 is a setback for the growing labor force of Nepal.…
April 19: The average stay and expenditure of foreign tourists in Nepal has seen a slight improvement in 2023.…
April 19: The United Arab Emirates struggled Thursday to recover from the heaviest recorded rainfall ever to hit the desert nation, as its main airport worked to restore normal operations even as floodwater still covered portions of major highways and…
April 19: The Tatopani Customs Office has collected revenue exceeding the target set for the first nine months of the current fiscal…
April 19: Tara Manandhar has been appointed as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Dish Media Network…
The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) Index experienced a decline of 19.56 points or 0.98%, closing at 1972.14 on Thursday, the last trading day of the…
April 18: Taplejung district has received a huge investment in hydropower projects in Tamor river, the main river in the district, and other…
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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"">April 21: The H5N1 bird flu virus strain has been detected in very high concentrations in raw milk from infected animals, the WHO said Friday, though how long the virus can survive in milk is unknown. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Avian influenza A(H5N1) first emerged in 1996 but since 2020, the number of outbreaks in birds has grown exponentially, alongside an increase in the number of infected mammals. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The strain has led to the deaths of tens of millions of poultry, with wild birds and land and marine mammals also infected. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Cows and goats joined the list last month -- a surprising development for experts because they were not thought to be susceptible to this type of influenza. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">US authorities earlier this month said a person working on a dairy farm in Texas was recovering from bird flu after being exposed to cattle. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"The case in Texas is the first case of a human infected by avian influenza by a cow," said Wenqing Zhang, head of the global influenza programme at the World Health Organization. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"Bird-to-cow, cow-to-cow and cow-to-bird transmission have also been registered during these current outbreaks, which suggest that the virus may have found other routes of transition than we previously understood," she told a media briefing in Geneva. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">It was only the second case of a human testing positive for bird flu in the United States, and came after the virus sickened herds that were apparently exposed to wild birds. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"Now we see multiple herds of cows affected in an increasing number of US states, which shows a further step of the virus spillover to mammals," Zhang said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"The virus has also been detected in milk from infected animals." </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Zhang said there was a "very high virus concentration in raw milk", but experts were still investigating exactly how long the virus is able to survive in milk. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The Texas health department has said the cattle infections do not present a concern for the commercial milk supply, as dairies are required to destroy milk from sick cows. Pasteurisation also kills the virus. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"It is important for people to ensure safe food practices, including consuming only pasteurised milk and milk products," said Zhang. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">- Recent human cases mild - </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">From 2003 to April 1 this year, the WHO said it had recorded 463 deaths from 889 human cases across 23 countries, putting the case fatality rate at 52 percent. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Zhang noted that the human cases recorded in Europe and the United States in the past few years -- since the virus surged -- have been mild cases. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">So far, there is no evidence that A(H5N1) is spreading between humans. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">And Zhang stressed that the A(H5N1) viruses identified in cows and in the human case in Texas showed no increased adaptation to mammals. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">As for potential vaccines, if required, Zhang said there were some in the pipeline. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"Having candidate vaccine viruses ready allows us to be prepared to quickly produce vaccines for humans, if this becomes necessary," she said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"For this particular H5N1 virus detected in dairy cows, there are a couple of candidate vaccine viruses available." </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">In the case of a pandemic, there are close to 20 influenza vaccines licensed for pandemic use and they could be tailored with the specific virus strain in circulation, she said. – AFP/RSS</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-21', 'modified' => '2024-04-21', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20499', 'image' => '20240421111652_20240117114238_WHO.jpg.jpeg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-21 11:16:00', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20770', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Over 31,000 Foreign Tourists Visited Ghodepani Last Year ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 21: More than 31,000 foreign tourists visited Ghodepani-Poon Hill area of Annapurna rural municipality-6 in Myagdi district in 2080 BS. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px">April 21: More than 31,000 foreign tourists visited Ghodepani-Poon Hill area of Annapurna rural municipality-6 in Myagdi district in 2080 BS. <br /> According to Tourist Police Post, Ghodepani, 31,439 tourists visited the area in a year. The Tourist Police Post keeps record of foreign tourists entering and leaving Ghodepani. However, the post does not keep the record of domestic tourists visiting the area. <br /> A total of 25,279 tourists entered Ghodepani-Poon Hill area while 6,160 tourists went to other places via Ghodepani last year, said senior head constable at the Ghodepani Police Post, Tek Bahadur Magar. <br /> The highest number of foreign tourists visited Ghodepani in the month of Chait (mid-March to mid-April), which stood at 5,849. <br /> Similarly, 4,414 tourists entered Ghodepani-Poon Hill area in Baishakh (mid-April to mid-May), 1,281 in Jeth (mid-May to mid-June), 441 in Asar (mid-June to mid-July), 947 in Saun (mid-July to mid-August), 972 in Bhadau (mid-August to mid-September), 4,298 in Asoj (mid-September to mid-October), 4,357 in Kartik (mid-October to mid-November), 3,199 in Mangsir (mid-November to mid-December), 1,627 in Push (mid-December to mid-January), 1,577 in Magh (mid-January to mid-February) and 2,477 in Falgun (mid-February to mid-March). <br /> Likewise, 26,301 foreign tourists had visited Ghodepani in 2079 BS. Hotel entrepreneur Juli Thakuri Pun said the increasing number of tourists visiting Ghodepani area has raised hope among the hotel entrepreneurs. <br /> The arrival of domestic tourists has also increased due to favourable weather and school vacation, she added. Around 60,000-70,000 tourists used to visit Ghodepani annually before the coronavirus pandemic. <br /> Tourists arrive at Poon Hill and Ghodepani to see sunrise as well as panoramic view of rhododendron forest and mountains. There are 27 small and big hotels at Ghodepani. Poon Hill lies at a distance of one hour trek from Ghodepani at 3,210 meters above sea level. <br /> A domestic tourist has to pay Rs 50 while foreign tourist Rs 150 to enter Poon Hill area. One can see panoramic view of Dhaulagiri, Sisne, Gurja, Manapathi, Nilgiri, Annapurna, Machhapuchhre and Manaslu mountains from Poon Hill. -- RSS</span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-21', 'modified' => '2024-04-21', 'keywords' => 'Ghodepani, Poon Hill, trekking, tourism, Nepal', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20497', 'image' => '20240421101244_20240420090559_20151117032323_Baglung-Tourist.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-21 10:11:28', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20769', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => '265 Cottage and Small Industries Shut Down in Banke', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'As many as 265 cottage and small industries have closed down their shutters in Banke district in the last nine months of the current fiscal year, 2023/24. ', 'content' => '<p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:20px">April 20: As many as 265 cottage and small industries have closed down their shutters in Banke district in the last nine months of the current fiscal year, 2023/24. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px">While only a small number of these closures were officially registered, the majority, amounting to 165, occurred due to failure to renew licenses on time, according to Kashilal Adhikari, Information Officer at the Office of Cottage and Small Industries in Banke.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px">A total of 105 enterprises registered under industry and 160 under commerce firms were shut down, informed Adhikari, adding that industrialists often cite their family issues as a reason for closing down their industries.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"> It may be noted that the district had recorded closure of 160 cottage and small industries in the last fiscal year, 2022/23. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px">Various factors have contributed to the shutdown of small scale industries such as COVID-19 pandemic's lingering impact, high interest rate of banks, liquidity crisis, said Madhu Khadka, President of the Federation of Nepal Cottage and Small Industries, Banke's Chapter.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px">Closures of many small-scale industries have resulted into displacement of many entrepreneurs from Nepalgunj. (RSS) </span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-21', 'modified' => '2024-04-21', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20496', 'image' => '20240421062719_collage (60).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-21 06:25:57', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20767', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Govt Collects Royalties of Over Rs 500 Million from Climbers', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 20: With the onset of season for climbing Mt Everest (Sagarmatha), the government has collected over Rs 500 million in royalties so far. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">April 20: With the onset of season for climbing Mt Everest (Sagarmatha), the government has collected over Rs 500 million in royalties so far. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The Department of Tourism informed RSS that it collected Rs 505 million from 352 persons who were issued climbing permit to scale the world's highest peak, Mt Everest. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Director of the Adventure Tourism and Mountaineering Section under the department, Rakesh Gurung, informed that the number of adventure tourists grew significantly this year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The department said that a total of 352 mountaineers from 33 expeditions including 65 women and 287 men have been issued permits to climb Everest. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Last year, a total of 478 climbers – the maximum number ever – were issued permits to climb Everest. The department collected revenue of Rs 760 million last year, while it has collected Rs 505 million so far this year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Gurung estimated that some Rs 500 to Rs 700 million more revenue could be generated this year as the season has just started. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The government has collected royalties by issuing permits for climbing 24 peaks, including Everest. The highest peak is the source of most of the revenue. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"This spring, Sagarmatha ascent is encouraging. The number of climbers has reached more than 352 by April 19. The number of climbers could increase to over 400," Gurung shared. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The mountaineering regulation, 2059 has provision to impose Rs 1.1 million from each foreign climber during the spring season for climbing Everest, while each Nepali needs to pay Rs 75,000. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">A foreign climber spends at least Rs 3 to 10 million for climbing Everest. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Major source of income in tourism sector comes from revenue on mountain climbing. Spring season is best time for climbing mountains. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">In addition to the highest peak of the world, climbers have also been issued permits to climb Makalu, Annapurna, Kanchanjungha, Dhaulagiri, Lhotse Amadablam, Jugal among other mountains. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Currently, the Sherpa climbers are mobilized to prepare the trail with rope fixing. The route up to second base camp of the Sagarmatha is already fixed by the Sherpas also known as ‘icefall doctors’. </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-20', 'modified' => '2024-04-20', 'keywords' => 'Everest, mountain, climbing, Nepal, season, spring, royalties', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20494', 'image' => '20240420085641_369154-01-02.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-20 20:55:50', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20766', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Over 400,000 Tourists Visited Mustang by Road Last Year', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: Over 400,000 tourists visited Mustang in a one-year period from April 14, 2023 to April 12, 2024 by road, according to the data with the Ghasa police station located on the border of Myagdi and Mustang districts.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">April 19: Over 400,000 tourists visited Mustang in a one-year period from April 14, 2023 to April 12, 2024 by road, according to the data with the Ghasa police station located on the border of Myagdi and Mustang districts.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">The statistics show that 414,280 domestic and foreign tourists visited Mustang during the review period.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">The number of domestic tourists entering Mustang via road stood at 335,466, including 220,724 male and 114,742 female, said Deputy Superintendent of Police Bhojraj Pandey, the chief of the District Police Office, Mustang.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">Similarly, DSP Pandey said 78,814 foreigners visited Mustang during the review period. Among them, 72,756 were from the SAARC countries while 6058 were from countries other than the SAARC member states.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">According to him, 38,821 males and 33,935 females from SAARC countries visited Mustang during the review period. Similarly, 3,648 male and 2,410 female visitors from countries other than the SAARC member countries visited Mustang in the same period.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">The data shows that 11,484 tourists arrived in Mustang via air. Among them, 1,679 were domestic tourists (1,134 males and 545 females) while 8,055 (including 3,767 males and 4,288 females) were from the SAARC countries and 1,750 visitors (886 males and 864 females) were from countries other than the SAARC member states.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">Often referred to as the district beyond the Himalayas, Mustang is a prime tourism destination known for its iconic desert-like landscape. The bare mountains, Himalayan climate, culture and lifestyle, lakes, monasteries, Muktinath temple, caves are the major attractions of Mustang.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">Inflow of tourists to the religious and tourist places of Mustang including Muktinath, Jomsom, Kagbeni, Lo Manthang, Marpha, Thini, Dhumba Lake has gradually started increasing since last year, according to local tourism entrepreneurs.</span> -- <span style="font-size:16.0pt">RSS</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20493', 'image' => '20240419081925_20230724112952_20220424035529_istockphoto-534638391-612x612.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 20:18:33', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20765', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => '550,000 People Acquire Work Permits in Nine Months of Current Fiscal Year', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: Around 550,000 people have acquired work permits for overseas employment as of April 12 of the current fiscal year 2023/24. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">April 19: Around 550,000 people have acquired work permits for overseas employment as of April 12 of the current fiscal year 2023/24. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">Of them, 70,933 workers acquired work permits from March 14 to April 12. Among them, 64,241 are men and 6,692 are women, said Kabiraj Upreti, Director at the Department of Foreign Employment and Information Officer.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">Similarly, 55,575 people received work permit from July 17-August 17, 2023; 50,884 from August 18-September 17, 2023; 56,235 from September 18-October 17, 2023; 43,622 from October 18-November 16, 2023; 71,276 from November 17-December 16, 2023; 65,813 from December 17, 2023-January 14, 2024; 62,147 from January 15-February 12, 2024 and 65,658 from February 13-March 13, 2024, according to data of the department.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">A total of 17,818 people have gone for overseas employment in the UAE while 13,614 in Saudi Arabia, 11,204 in Qatar, 12,602 in Malaysia, 4,076 in Kuwait and 964 in Bahrain from March 14-April 12, 2024.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">Similarly, 2,299 people have gone for foreign employment in Romania, 960 in Croatia, 789 in Cyprus, 1,351 in Japan, 493 in the Maldives, 620 in Mauritius, and 657 in South Korea, shows the data.</span> -- RSS</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20492', 'image' => '20240419060836_20220814044404_postQueueImg_3-626bcca48a757.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 18:08:13', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20764', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Nawalpur Women Achieve Economic Independence by Operating Homestay ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: Bal Kumari Mahato of Kawasoti in Nawalparasi (Bardaghat Susta Purba) district does not worry anymore how to run her household thanks to the income she makes from operating homestay. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">April 19: Bal Kumari Mahato of Kawasoti in Nawalparasi (Bardaghat Susta Purba) district does not worry anymore how to run her household thanks to the income she makes from operating homestay. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Earlier dependent on agriculture, Mahato has found better source of income from operation of homestay for nearly five years thereby gaining economic independence. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Like Mahato, there are a handful of women in Chilaha village who are engaged in homestay. Resham Kumari Mahato of Kawasoti-10 shared, "Earlier we were involved in agriculture and earned scantly. After operating homestay, our earning has increased." </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The entrepreneurial women admitted that they enjoy attending to the guests and entertain them with their cultural performances and delicacies besides enjoying financial freedom. The homestay initiative has further empowered them by developing leadership qualities in them and further harnessing their management skills. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"Earlier we were too shy to talk to strangers but since we forayed into homestay enterprises, we have learned how to talk and run our enterprises confidently," said Resham Kumari. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The village where they operate homestay is predominantly a Tharu settlement and lies nearby a buffer zone. Most of the women running homestay at present were involved in agriculture in the past, which did not yield them good returns due to the menace of wild animals. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Animal husbandry also failed them secure a good income for the wild animals would prey their domestic animals. In lack of good income, their living standard had gone down, admitted Mahato. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"Following the homestay operation, our village is witnessing a socio-economic transformation and the living standards of fellow villagers have improved notably," she observed. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">These entrepreneurial women have adequately secured support from their spouses and family in running their business. Since the introduction of homestay, the village has welcomed around 11,000 guests, both domestic and foreign, informed Prem Bahadur Mukhiya, a homestay manager. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Jeep safari is another attraction for the homestay guests, added Mukhiya. Besides savoring the Tharu delicacies, nature enthusiasts can enthrall themselves watching wild animals such as rhino, antelope, wild boar, peacock, crocodiles and various species of birds roaming around in the buffer zone, he said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Ward chairperson of Kawasoti-10 Tek Narayan Mahato asserted that homestay had contributed in development and upliftment of the local community besides aiding in nature and culture conservation. -- RSS</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20491', 'image' => '20240419020716_449834462.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 14:06:43', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20763', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Auditors Emphasize on Sustainable Accounting Practices', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: An auditor is commonly known as a person who examines the accounts. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">April 19: An auditor is commonly known as a person who examines the accounts. An auditor has the right to verify the accounts prepared by the management in an organization or company. The auditor's role is not only limited to examining and commenting on the company's accounts. Auditors are becoming aware of the fact that they have to play a role for the sustainability of the audited company. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">As the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), the international umbrella organization of accounting professionals, is lobbying for the implementation of 'Sustainability Standard 1 and 2', the debate has also started among accounting professionals of Nepal.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">The theme of the 3rd National Accounting Practitioner Conference organized by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nepal (ICAN), which is working to promote and regulate accounting in Nepal, is 'Sustainable Accounting Practice'. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">Sujan Kumar Kafle, president of ICAN, said that the conference, which started on Thursday and will conclude on Friday, will focus on this topic and present and discuss papers in this regard.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">According to Kafle, the auditors should also look into environmental protection, social responsibility and good governance in addition to financial indicators to ensure the business to be sustainable. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">As a member country of IFAC, Nepal is also working with the Accounting and Auditing Board for sustainable accounting practices. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">Deepak Pandey, president of Chartered Accountants Association of Nepal (ACAN), the umbrella organization of chartered accountants, says that audit in Nepal has not risen above financial indicators. "Worldwide, the practice has started that auditing should rise above the disclosure of financial indicators," he said, "Now non-financial indicators are more important than financial indicators."</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">President of IFAC, Asmaa Resmouki, who came to Nepal to participate as a keynote speaker in the conference, pointed out the need to address issues of public interest for sustainable accounting practice. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">Inaugurating the conference, Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supplies Damodar Bhandari said that accountants play an important role in the economic development and prosperity of the country. He said that compliance with the code of ethics is mandatory in the auditing profession. Nepal Rastra Bank’s Governor Maha Prasad Adhikari said auditors are playing an important role in the development of the country's economy.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">In Nepal, 1000 chartered accountants and 7000 registered auditors are involved in auditing more than 300,000 organizations annually. According to ICAN, Nepal Financial Reporting Standards (NFRS) are being implemented in Nepal according to the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) to make the accounting and auditing system of international standards. Thousands of accountants from all over the country are participating in the conference.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20490', 'image' => '20240419020557_903c25db.jpeg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 14:05:16', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20762', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Malaysia's Policy not to Hire Foreign Workers to Impact Nepal', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: Malaysia's policy to stop hiring foreign workers in the formal sector from June 1 is a setback for the growing labor force of Nepal. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">April 19: Malaysia's policy to stop hiring foreign workers in the formal sector from June 1 is a major setback for the growing labor force of Nepal. The Malaysian government announced in March 2023 that foreign workers will be allowed to enter Malaysia only until the end of May. The time to get visa was fixed till April 21.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Malaysia employs foreign workers from 15 countries including Nepal. A large number of Nepalis have been working in Malaysia. According to government data, most of the Nepalis who took labour permits to work abroad in the last fiscal year went to Malaysia for work.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the Department of Foreign Employment, a total of 259,596 Nepali workers were issued labour permits to work in Malaysia last year. The figure includes new workers as well as those who renewed their work permits.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">In the current fiscal year, the number of Nepalis visiting to Malaysia for work has declined compared to last fiscal year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">As of mid-March this year, 63,976 Nepalis have traveled to Malaysiafor work. Malaysia has long been an important labour destination for Nepali workers.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Foreign employment experts say that the new policy adopted by the Malaysian government regarding migrant workers may have a direct impact on Nepal.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Foreign employment expert Ganesh Gurung says that Nepali workers will lose work opportunities in a major labour destination due to Malaysia's new policy. He pointed out that there is a danger that the number of people going to Malaysia illegally may increase while it may cause unemployment rate to rise in Nepal.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">“Banning foreign workers does not mean that companies in that country do not need foreign workers. It will increase the number of people going to Malaysia illegally," said Gurung.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to government estimates, more than 500,000 new labor force enters the labor market in Nepal every year. Almost all the labor force that is added every year in the market goes abroad. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the Department of Foreign Employment, 497,704 new Nepali workers went abroad for work last year. The number of people who came to Nepal on vacation from abroad and returned for work stood at 277,272. The figure shows that about 800,000 Nepalis went abroad for work last year. The number of students who go abroad is also large.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The country lacks job opportunities due to the poor condition of the economy. According to a recent report of the World Bank entitled 'South Asia Development Update', the employment ratio (employment in percent of working-age population) in Nepal has decreased by 11 percent in the last 23 years. As the working-age population is increasing, the trend of people going abroad in search of work has increased due to the inability to create jobs in the country.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">If Malaysia stops hiring foreign workers, remittances from there will also decrease in the future. Remittances have been an important pillar of the Nepalese economy for many years. According to the World Bank, among the South Asian countries, Nepal receives the most remittances compared to the country's gross domestic product. In the last fiscal year, Nepal received remittances of Rs 1220.56 billion.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">“If the number of workers going to Malaysia decreases, remittances from that country will obviously decrease. It may affect the Nepalese economy," said Dr Gurung said. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Dilliram Pokharel, deputy spokesperson and information officer of Nepal Rastra Bank, said that although it is not possible to say exactly how much remittance comes from Malaysia, it can be estimated that a large amount of money comec from there as there are a large number of Nepali workers in Malaysia. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Rajendra Bhandari, president of Nepal Foreign Employment Professionals Association, says that Malaysia's policy of not hiring foreign workers has caused a big crisis in foreign employment.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">He said that the demand for workers is low even in the Gulf countries, and its impact is being seen in Nepal. Bhandari says that it is time for the government to facilitate sending workers to other countries including Europe. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"After the closure of Malaysia, the government should facilitate the sending of workers to other countries, including Europe, where Nepali workers are in demand," he said. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Workers who go to the Gulf and Malaysia send remittances and return back and work within the country. But those who go to developed countries usually do not return and tend to take as much property as possible from the country.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Therefore, employment in the Gulf and Malaysia is important for Nepal, Gurung said. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to labor expert Gurung, the government should now create conditions for employment within the country. It is important to do homework about how many jobs are to be created and when. However, the country has not been able to create job opportunities due to political instability and poor investment environment in the country. Due to this, there is a trend among youths to travel abroad for work.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Stakeholders say that the closure of regular destination countries of Nepali workers will force them to go to work in risky places. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"At present, the trend of going to different countries illegally has increased," said Bhandari, adding, "Nepalis are ready go to Russia and Ukraine and die."</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Labor Govinda Prasad Rijal said that although the government has not received any official information from Malaysia about the decision not to hire workers, the ministry is preparing to get information through diplomatic channels. "The ministry will take necessary decisions accordingly," he said.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The Department of Foreign Employment estimates that there are more than 500,000 Nepali workers in Malaysia. This number is of those who legally went to Malaysia by taking work permits from the government. The number of people working illegally in Malaysia is believed to be equally high. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">A senior official of the Department of Foreign Employment informed that 44 percent of the Nepali workers who went for foreign employment in the last fiscal year went to Malaysia. Malaysia stopped hiring foreign workers for two years during the Covid-19 pandemic.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Last May, the government declared some organizations involved in the process of sending Nepali workers to Malaysia to be illegal and shut down their operations. This made it further difficult for Nepali workers to go to Malaysia.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20489', 'image' => '20240419013937_20240118121412_20220329081003_labour.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 13:38:48', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20761', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Average Length of Stay and Expenditure of Tourists Increase Marginally', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: The average stay and expenditure of foreign tourists in Nepal has seen a slight improvement in 2023. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">April 19: The average stay and expenditure of foreign tourists in Nepal has seen a slight improvement in 2023. The Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation announced that the average length of stay of tourists in 2023 increased by 0.8 percent to 13.2 days compared to 13.1 days in 2022.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Their daily expenses have also increased to USD 41, according to the 'Nepal Tourism Statistics 2023' recently released by the ministry. According to the report, the average daily expenditure of tourists was $40.50 in 2022.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">During the two-year period of the COVID-19 pandemic (in 2020 and 2021), the length of stay of tourists in Nepal was 15.1 and 15.5 days respectively. The stay of tourists increased in those years due to the lockdown and quarantine measures during the pandemic period. As the length of stay increased, the average expenditure incurred by the tourists also increased. In 2020, the daily expenditure of tourists was USD 65. In 2021, such expenses decreased to USD 48.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Binayak Shah, president of the Hotel Association Nepal (HAN), disputed the tourists’ expenditure figures published by the government, arguing that they significantly underestimate actual spending.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">He claims that tourists must have spent at least twice the amount mentioned by the government. He argues that the data fails to capture expenditures accurately.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to government data, the contribution of the tourism sector to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is 3.2 percent. “The data of the World Bank indicates that it is much higher than that," he said.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Shah says that the real contribution of the tourism sector is not known due to the lack of uniformity in the data of the government, tourism entrepreneurs and other organizations.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"For this, the government should implement satellite accounting (an integrated information collection system that records the transactions made by tourists) at the earliest," he said, adding, “It helps to provide more precise insights into tourist spending habits.” </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Shah's concerns echo those of tourism professionals who emphasize the need to expand tourist services and destinations beyond Kathmandu, Pokhara, and Chitwan to prolong tourists' stays in Nepal. However, challenges such as poor road conditions and limited operational airports hinder intra-country travel, making it difficult for tourists to extend their visits.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20488', 'image' => '20240419124501_20220509072726_Clipboard96.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 12:42:58', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20760', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'United Arab Emirates Struggles to Recover after Heaviest Recorded Rainfall Ever Hits Desert Nation ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: The United Arab Emirates struggled Thursday to recover from the heaviest recorded rainfall ever to hit the desert nation, as its main airport worked to restore normal operations even as floodwater still covered portions of major highways and roads. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">April 19: The United Arab Emirates struggled Thursday to recover from the heaviest recorded rainfall ever to hit the desert nation, as its main airport worked to restore normal operations even as floodwater still covered portions of major highways and roads. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Dubai International Airport, the world's busiest for international travel, allowed global carriers on Thursday morning to again fly into Terminal 1 at the airfield. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">“Flights continue to be delayed and disrupted, so we urge you to only come to Terminal 1 if you have a confirmed booking,” the airport said on the social platform X. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The long-haul carrier Emirates, whose operations had been struggling since the storm Tuesday, had stopped travelers flying out of the UAE from checking into their flights as they tried to move out connecting passengers. Pilots and flight crews had been struggling to reach the airport given the water on roadways. But on Thursday, they lifted that order to allow customers into the airport. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Others who arrived at the airport described hourslong waits to get their baggage, with some just giving up to head home or to whatever hotel would have them. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The UAE, a hereditarily ruled, autocratic nation on the Arabian Peninsula, typically sees little rainfall in its arid desert climate. However, a massive storm forecasters had been warning about for days blew through the country's seven sheikhdoms. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">By the end of Tuesday, more than 142 millimeters (5.59 inches) of rainfall had soaked Dubai over 24 hours. An average year sees 94.7 millimeters (3.73 inches) of rain at Dubai International Airport. Other areas of the country saw even more precipitation. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The UAE's drainage systems quickly became overwhelmed, flooding out neighborhoods, business districts and even portions of the 12-lane Sheikh Zayed Road highway running through Dubai. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The state-run WAM news agency called the rain “a historic weather event” that surpassed “anything documented since the start of data collection in 1949.” </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">In a message to the nation late Wednesday, Emirati leader Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the ruler of Abu Dhabi, said authorities would “quickly work on studying the condition of infrastructure throughout the UAE and to limit the damage caused.” </span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">On Thursday, people waded through oil-slicked floodwater to reach cars earlier abandoned, checking to see if their engines still ran. Tanker trucks with vacuums began reaching some areas outside of Dubai's downtown core for the first time as well. Schools remain closed until next week. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Authorities have offered no overall damage or injury information from the floods, which killed at least one person. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">“Crises reveal the strength of countries and societies,” Dubai's ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, wrote on X. “The natural climate crisis that we experienced showed the great care, awareness, cohesion and love for every corner of the country from all its citizens and residents.” </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The flooding sparked speculation that the UAE's aggressive campaign of cloud seeding — flying small planes through clouds dispersing chemicals aimed at getting rain to fall — may have contributed to the deluge. But experts said the storm systems that produced the rain were forecast well in advance and that cloud seeding alone would not have caused such flooding. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Jeff Masters, a meteorologist for Yale Climate Connections, said the flooding in Dubai was caused by an unusually strong low pressure system that drove many rounds of heavy thunderstorms. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Scientists also say climate change is responsible for more intense and more frequent extreme storms, droughts, floods and wildfires around the world. Dubai hosted the United Nations’ COP28 climate talks just last year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Abu Dhabi’s state-linked newspaper The National in an editorial Thursday described the heavy rains as a warning to countries in the wider Persian Gulf region to “climate-proof their futures.” </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">“The scale of this task is more daunting that it appears even at first glance, because such changes involve changing the urban environment of a region that for as long as it has been inhabited, has experienced little but heat and sand,” the newspaper said. – AP/RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20487', 'image' => '20240419113333_370910-01-02.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 11:32:57', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20758', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Tatopani Customs Surpasses Revenue Collection Target', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: The Tatopani Customs Office has collected revenue exceeding the target set for the first nine months of the current fiscal year. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">April 19: The Tatopani Customs Office has collected revenue exceeding the target set for the first nine months of the current fiscal year. </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 office collected Rs 8.56 billion in revenue against the target of Rs 5.59 billion, Customs Chief Dayananda KC told RSS. </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 KC, trade from the Tatopani Customs Point has increased after the resumption of the Nepal-China border. </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 Chinese government agreed to resume the two-way trade via Tatopani-Khasa route during a bilateral meeting of Nepal-China Coordination Mechanism on Border Trade and Cooperation held in Lhasa in March last year.</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"">As per the agreement, the Tatopani transit point was opened for full-fledged operation on May 1 last year, raising high hopes of increased trade. The transit point was opened more than three years after it was initially closed to control the COVID-19 outbreak in March 2020. Nepal’s export through the Tatopani-Khasa border had been almost nil since the 2015 earthquake.</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"">Prior to the earthquake, the trade volume through this transit point used to be more than Rs 150 billion annually. </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 revenue collected in the first nine months of this year is more than the revenue collected during the entire last fiscal year. </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 government had set a target of collecting Rs 4.62 billion in revenue in the last fiscal year from this customs point, but it collected only Rs 2.20 billion in the corresponding period of that year. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""> </span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20486', 'image' => '20240419105835_20230512122723_20211109014016_20210518054607_20190510014655_Clipboard04-2.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 10:57:47', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20759', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Tara Manandhar Appointed as CEO of Dish Media Network Ltd', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: Tara Manandhar has been appointed as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Dish Media Network Ltd.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">April 19: Tara Manandhar has been appointed as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Dish Media Network Ltd. According to the company, Manandhar, who has played a leadership role in the banking sector for more than 25 years, has assumed the position from April 15.</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 the company, he previously worked in leadership roles at Mashreq Bank, Prabhu Bank, Standard Chartered Bank, etc.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The company expressed confidence in Manandhar's ability to enhance the quality of services provided by strengthening management.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">DishHome, known for its quality services and diverse channel offerings, has expanded its reach in recent years. With approval from the Nepal Telecommunication Authority for fiber internet distribution three years ago, DishHome has now emerged as the second-largest internet service provider in Nepal.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""> </span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20485', 'image' => '20240419112059_CEO.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 11:20:02', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20757', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NEPSE Dips 19.56 Points, Closing at 1972.14', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) Index experienced a decline of 19.56 points or 0.98%, closing at 1972.14 on Thursday, the last trading day of the week.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:17.0pt">April 18: The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) Index experienced a decline of 19.56 points or 0.98%, closing at 1972.14 on Thursday, the last trading day of the week.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:17.0pt">During today’s trading session, 315 scrips were traded in 40,912 transactions, with a total of 5,344,613 shares changing hands, resulting in a total turnover of Rs 2.9 billion.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:17.0pt">Gurkhas Finance Limited (GUFL) led the turnover amount with a total transaction value of Rs 17 crores. Khanikhola Hydropower Company Limited (KKHC) recorded the highest gain of 7.94%.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:17.0pt">Conversely, Ru Ru Jalbidhyut Pariyojana Limited (RURU) suffered the maximum loss at 9.99%, closing at a market price of Rs 504 per share.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:17.0pt">In terms of sector indices, all sectors closed in the red. The Microfinance Index experienced the highest loss of 1.72%, while the Mutual Fund sector saw the least loss at 0.22%.</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-18', 'modified' => '2024-04-18', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20484', 'image' => '20240418032246_collage (59).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-18 15:21:29', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20756', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => '16 Hydel Projects under Construction in Tamor River ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 18: Taplejung district has received a huge investment in hydropower projects in Tamor river, the main river in the district, and other rivers. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">April 18: Taplejung district has received a huge investment in hydropower projects in Tamor river, the main river in the district, and other rivers. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Officials shared that 16 hydroelectricity projects are under construction in Tamor river and as high as 1,654.51 megawatt of power is expected to be generated. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to the Department of Electricity Development, 14 hydropower projects in the river are exclusively based in Phaktanglung Rural Municipality and two other projects fall under other local levels. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Likewise, four hydropower projects are being constructed in Mewakhola (river) that flows through Mewakhola Rural Municipality. The projects in Mewakhola are expected to produce 178.42 megawatts of electricity. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The department said four projects are under development in Kabeli river and the projects there would generate 95.43 megawatts of electricity. </span><br /> </span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-18', 'modified' => '2024-04-18', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20483', 'image' => '20240418020511_hydro.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-18 14:04:34', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ) ) $current_user = null $logged_in = falseinclude - APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 60 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::_renderElement() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 1224 View::element() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 418 include - APP/View/Articles/index.ctp, line 157 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 473 Controller::render() - CORE/Cake/Controller/Controller.php, line 968 Dispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 200 Dispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 167 [main] - APP/webroot/index.php, line 117
Warning (2): simplexml_load_file() [<a href='http://php.net/function.simplexml-load-file'>function.simplexml-load-file</a>]: I/O warning : failed to load external entity "" [APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 60]file not found!Code Context// $file = 'http://aabhiyan:QUVLg8Wzs2F7G9N7@nepalstock.com.np/api/indexdata.xml';if(!$xml = simplexml_load_file($file)){$viewFile = '/var/www/html/newbusinessage.com/app/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp' $dataForView = array( 'articles' => array( (int) 0 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ) ), 'current_user' => null, 'logged_in' => false ) $articles = array( (int) 0 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20772', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'H5N1 Strain of Bird Flu Found in Milk: WHO ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 21: The H5N1 bird flu virus strain has been detected in very high concentrations in raw milk from infected animals, the WHO said Friday, though how long the virus can survive in milk is unknown. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">April 21: The H5N1 bird flu virus strain has been detected in very high concentrations in raw milk from infected animals, the WHO said Friday, though how long the virus can survive in milk is unknown. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Avian influenza A(H5N1) first emerged in 1996 but since 2020, the number of outbreaks in birds has grown exponentially, alongside an increase in the number of infected mammals. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The strain has led to the deaths of tens of millions of poultry, with wild birds and land and marine mammals also infected. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Cows and goats joined the list last month -- a surprising development for experts because they were not thought to be susceptible to this type of influenza. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">US authorities earlier this month said a person working on a dairy farm in Texas was recovering from bird flu after being exposed to cattle. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"The case in Texas is the first case of a human infected by avian influenza by a cow," said Wenqing Zhang, head of the global influenza programme at the World Health Organization. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"Bird-to-cow, cow-to-cow and cow-to-bird transmission have also been registered during these current outbreaks, which suggest that the virus may have found other routes of transition than we previously understood," she told a media briefing in Geneva. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">It was only the second case of a human testing positive for bird flu in the United States, and came after the virus sickened herds that were apparently exposed to wild birds. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"Now we see multiple herds of cows affected in an increasing number of US states, which shows a further step of the virus spillover to mammals," Zhang said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"The virus has also been detected in milk from infected animals." </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Zhang said there was a "very high virus concentration in raw milk", but experts were still investigating exactly how long the virus is able to survive in milk. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The Texas health department has said the cattle infections do not present a concern for the commercial milk supply, as dairies are required to destroy milk from sick cows. Pasteurisation also kills the virus. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"It is important for people to ensure safe food practices, including consuming only pasteurised milk and milk products," said Zhang. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">- Recent human cases mild - </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">From 2003 to April 1 this year, the WHO said it had recorded 463 deaths from 889 human cases across 23 countries, putting the case fatality rate at 52 percent. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Zhang noted that the human cases recorded in Europe and the United States in the past few years -- since the virus surged -- have been mild cases. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">So far, there is no evidence that A(H5N1) is spreading between humans. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">And Zhang stressed that the A(H5N1) viruses identified in cows and in the human case in Texas showed no increased adaptation to mammals. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">As for potential vaccines, if required, Zhang said there were some in the pipeline. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"Having candidate vaccine viruses ready allows us to be prepared to quickly produce vaccines for humans, if this becomes necessary," she said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"For this particular H5N1 virus detected in dairy cows, there are a couple of candidate vaccine viruses available." </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">In the case of a pandemic, there are close to 20 influenza vaccines licensed for pandemic use and they could be tailored with the specific virus strain in circulation, she said. – AFP/RSS</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-21', 'modified' => '2024-04-21', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20499', 'image' => '20240421111652_20240117114238_WHO.jpg.jpeg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-21 11:16:00', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20770', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Over 31,000 Foreign Tourists Visited Ghodepani Last Year ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 21: More than 31,000 foreign tourists visited Ghodepani-Poon Hill area of Annapurna rural municipality-6 in Myagdi district in 2080 BS. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px">April 21: More than 31,000 foreign tourists visited Ghodepani-Poon Hill area of Annapurna rural municipality-6 in Myagdi district in 2080 BS. <br /> According to Tourist Police Post, Ghodepani, 31,439 tourists visited the area in a year. The Tourist Police Post keeps record of foreign tourists entering and leaving Ghodepani. However, the post does not keep the record of domestic tourists visiting the area. <br /> A total of 25,279 tourists entered Ghodepani-Poon Hill area while 6,160 tourists went to other places via Ghodepani last year, said senior head constable at the Ghodepani Police Post, Tek Bahadur Magar. <br /> The highest number of foreign tourists visited Ghodepani in the month of Chait (mid-March to mid-April), which stood at 5,849. <br /> Similarly, 4,414 tourists entered Ghodepani-Poon Hill area in Baishakh (mid-April to mid-May), 1,281 in Jeth (mid-May to mid-June), 441 in Asar (mid-June to mid-July), 947 in Saun (mid-July to mid-August), 972 in Bhadau (mid-August to mid-September), 4,298 in Asoj (mid-September to mid-October), 4,357 in Kartik (mid-October to mid-November), 3,199 in Mangsir (mid-November to mid-December), 1,627 in Push (mid-December to mid-January), 1,577 in Magh (mid-January to mid-February) and 2,477 in Falgun (mid-February to mid-March). <br /> Likewise, 26,301 foreign tourists had visited Ghodepani in 2079 BS. Hotel entrepreneur Juli Thakuri Pun said the increasing number of tourists visiting Ghodepani area has raised hope among the hotel entrepreneurs. <br /> The arrival of domestic tourists has also increased due to favourable weather and school vacation, she added. Around 60,000-70,000 tourists used to visit Ghodepani annually before the coronavirus pandemic. <br /> Tourists arrive at Poon Hill and Ghodepani to see sunrise as well as panoramic view of rhododendron forest and mountains. There are 27 small and big hotels at Ghodepani. Poon Hill lies at a distance of one hour trek from Ghodepani at 3,210 meters above sea level. <br /> A domestic tourist has to pay Rs 50 while foreign tourist Rs 150 to enter Poon Hill area. One can see panoramic view of Dhaulagiri, Sisne, Gurja, Manapathi, Nilgiri, Annapurna, Machhapuchhre and Manaslu mountains from Poon Hill. -- RSS</span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-21', 'modified' => '2024-04-21', 'keywords' => 'Ghodepani, Poon Hill, trekking, tourism, Nepal', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20497', 'image' => '20240421101244_20240420090559_20151117032323_Baglung-Tourist.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-21 10:11:28', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20769', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => '265 Cottage and Small Industries Shut Down in Banke', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'As many as 265 cottage and small industries have closed down their shutters in Banke district in the last nine months of the current fiscal year, 2023/24. ', 'content' => '<p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:20px">April 20: As many as 265 cottage and small industries have closed down their shutters in Banke district in the last nine months of the current fiscal year, 2023/24. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px">While only a small number of these closures were officially registered, the majority, amounting to 165, occurred due to failure to renew licenses on time, according to Kashilal Adhikari, Information Officer at the Office of Cottage and Small Industries in Banke.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px">A total of 105 enterprises registered under industry and 160 under commerce firms were shut down, informed Adhikari, adding that industrialists often cite their family issues as a reason for closing down their industries.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"> It may be noted that the district had recorded closure of 160 cottage and small industries in the last fiscal year, 2022/23. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px">Various factors have contributed to the shutdown of small scale industries such as COVID-19 pandemic's lingering impact, high interest rate of banks, liquidity crisis, said Madhu Khadka, President of the Federation of Nepal Cottage and Small Industries, Banke's Chapter.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px">Closures of many small-scale industries have resulted into displacement of many entrepreneurs from Nepalgunj. (RSS) </span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-21', 'modified' => '2024-04-21', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20496', 'image' => '20240421062719_collage (60).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-21 06:25:57', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20767', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Govt Collects Royalties of Over Rs 500 Million from Climbers', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 20: With the onset of season for climbing Mt Everest (Sagarmatha), the government has collected over Rs 500 million in royalties so far. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">April 20: With the onset of season for climbing Mt Everest (Sagarmatha), the government has collected over Rs 500 million in royalties so far. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The Department of Tourism informed RSS that it collected Rs 505 million from 352 persons who were issued climbing permit to scale the world's highest peak, Mt Everest. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Director of the Adventure Tourism and Mountaineering Section under the department, Rakesh Gurung, informed that the number of adventure tourists grew significantly this year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The department said that a total of 352 mountaineers from 33 expeditions including 65 women and 287 men have been issued permits to climb Everest. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Last year, a total of 478 climbers – the maximum number ever – were issued permits to climb Everest. The department collected revenue of Rs 760 million last year, while it has collected Rs 505 million so far this year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Gurung estimated that some Rs 500 to Rs 700 million more revenue could be generated this year as the season has just started. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The government has collected royalties by issuing permits for climbing 24 peaks, including Everest. The highest peak is the source of most of the revenue. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"This spring, Sagarmatha ascent is encouraging. The number of climbers has reached more than 352 by April 19. The number of climbers could increase to over 400," Gurung shared. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The mountaineering regulation, 2059 has provision to impose Rs 1.1 million from each foreign climber during the spring season for climbing Everest, while each Nepali needs to pay Rs 75,000. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">A foreign climber spends at least Rs 3 to 10 million for climbing Everest. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Major source of income in tourism sector comes from revenue on mountain climbing. Spring season is best time for climbing mountains. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">In addition to the highest peak of the world, climbers have also been issued permits to climb Makalu, Annapurna, Kanchanjungha, Dhaulagiri, Lhotse Amadablam, Jugal among other mountains. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Currently, the Sherpa climbers are mobilized to prepare the trail with rope fixing. The route up to second base camp of the Sagarmatha is already fixed by the Sherpas also known as ‘icefall doctors’. </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-20', 'modified' => '2024-04-20', 'keywords' => 'Everest, mountain, climbing, Nepal, season, spring, royalties', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20494', 'image' => '20240420085641_369154-01-02.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-20 20:55:50', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20766', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Over 400,000 Tourists Visited Mustang by Road Last Year', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: Over 400,000 tourists visited Mustang in a one-year period from April 14, 2023 to April 12, 2024 by road, according to the data with the Ghasa police station located on the border of Myagdi and Mustang districts.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">April 19: Over 400,000 tourists visited Mustang in a one-year period from April 14, 2023 to April 12, 2024 by road, according to the data with the Ghasa police station located on the border of Myagdi and Mustang districts.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">The statistics show that 414,280 domestic and foreign tourists visited Mustang during the review period.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">The number of domestic tourists entering Mustang via road stood at 335,466, including 220,724 male and 114,742 female, said Deputy Superintendent of Police Bhojraj Pandey, the chief of the District Police Office, Mustang.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">Similarly, DSP Pandey said 78,814 foreigners visited Mustang during the review period. Among them, 72,756 were from the SAARC countries while 6058 were from countries other than the SAARC member states.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">According to him, 38,821 males and 33,935 females from SAARC countries visited Mustang during the review period. Similarly, 3,648 male and 2,410 female visitors from countries other than the SAARC member countries visited Mustang in the same period.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">The data shows that 11,484 tourists arrived in Mustang via air. Among them, 1,679 were domestic tourists (1,134 males and 545 females) while 8,055 (including 3,767 males and 4,288 females) were from the SAARC countries and 1,750 visitors (886 males and 864 females) were from countries other than the SAARC member states.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">Often referred to as the district beyond the Himalayas, Mustang is a prime tourism destination known for its iconic desert-like landscape. The bare mountains, Himalayan climate, culture and lifestyle, lakes, monasteries, Muktinath temple, caves are the major attractions of Mustang.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">Inflow of tourists to the religious and tourist places of Mustang including Muktinath, Jomsom, Kagbeni, Lo Manthang, Marpha, Thini, Dhumba Lake has gradually started increasing since last year, according to local tourism entrepreneurs.</span> -- <span style="font-size:16.0pt">RSS</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20493', 'image' => '20240419081925_20230724112952_20220424035529_istockphoto-534638391-612x612.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 20:18:33', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20765', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => '550,000 People Acquire Work Permits in Nine Months of Current Fiscal Year', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: Around 550,000 people have acquired work permits for overseas employment as of April 12 of the current fiscal year 2023/24. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">April 19: Around 550,000 people have acquired work permits for overseas employment as of April 12 of the current fiscal year 2023/24. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">Of them, 70,933 workers acquired work permits from March 14 to April 12. Among them, 64,241 are men and 6,692 are women, said Kabiraj Upreti, Director at the Department of Foreign Employment and Information Officer.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">Similarly, 55,575 people received work permit from July 17-August 17, 2023; 50,884 from August 18-September 17, 2023; 56,235 from September 18-October 17, 2023; 43,622 from October 18-November 16, 2023; 71,276 from November 17-December 16, 2023; 65,813 from December 17, 2023-January 14, 2024; 62,147 from January 15-February 12, 2024 and 65,658 from February 13-March 13, 2024, according to data of the department.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">A total of 17,818 people have gone for overseas employment in the UAE while 13,614 in Saudi Arabia, 11,204 in Qatar, 12,602 in Malaysia, 4,076 in Kuwait and 964 in Bahrain from March 14-April 12, 2024.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">Similarly, 2,299 people have gone for foreign employment in Romania, 960 in Croatia, 789 in Cyprus, 1,351 in Japan, 493 in the Maldives, 620 in Mauritius, and 657 in South Korea, shows the data.</span> -- RSS</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20492', 'image' => '20240419060836_20220814044404_postQueueImg_3-626bcca48a757.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 18:08:13', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20764', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Nawalpur Women Achieve Economic Independence by Operating Homestay ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: Bal Kumari Mahato of Kawasoti in Nawalparasi (Bardaghat Susta Purba) district does not worry anymore how to run her household thanks to the income she makes from operating homestay. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">April 19: Bal Kumari Mahato of Kawasoti in Nawalparasi (Bardaghat Susta Purba) district does not worry anymore how to run her household thanks to the income she makes from operating homestay. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Earlier dependent on agriculture, Mahato has found better source of income from operation of homestay for nearly five years thereby gaining economic independence. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Like Mahato, there are a handful of women in Chilaha village who are engaged in homestay. Resham Kumari Mahato of Kawasoti-10 shared, "Earlier we were involved in agriculture and earned scantly. After operating homestay, our earning has increased." </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The entrepreneurial women admitted that they enjoy attending to the guests and entertain them with their cultural performances and delicacies besides enjoying financial freedom. The homestay initiative has further empowered them by developing leadership qualities in them and further harnessing their management skills. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"Earlier we were too shy to talk to strangers but since we forayed into homestay enterprises, we have learned how to talk and run our enterprises confidently," said Resham Kumari. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The village where they operate homestay is predominantly a Tharu settlement and lies nearby a buffer zone. Most of the women running homestay at present were involved in agriculture in the past, which did not yield them good returns due to the menace of wild animals. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Animal husbandry also failed them secure a good income for the wild animals would prey their domestic animals. In lack of good income, their living standard had gone down, admitted Mahato. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"Following the homestay operation, our village is witnessing a socio-economic transformation and the living standards of fellow villagers have improved notably," she observed. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">These entrepreneurial women have adequately secured support from their spouses and family in running their business. Since the introduction of homestay, the village has welcomed around 11,000 guests, both domestic and foreign, informed Prem Bahadur Mukhiya, a homestay manager. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Jeep safari is another attraction for the homestay guests, added Mukhiya. Besides savoring the Tharu delicacies, nature enthusiasts can enthrall themselves watching wild animals such as rhino, antelope, wild boar, peacock, crocodiles and various species of birds roaming around in the buffer zone, he said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Ward chairperson of Kawasoti-10 Tek Narayan Mahato asserted that homestay had contributed in development and upliftment of the local community besides aiding in nature and culture conservation. -- RSS</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20491', 'image' => '20240419020716_449834462.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 14:06:43', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20763', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Auditors Emphasize on Sustainable Accounting Practices', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: An auditor is commonly known as a person who examines the accounts. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">April 19: An auditor is commonly known as a person who examines the accounts. An auditor has the right to verify the accounts prepared by the management in an organization or company. The auditor's role is not only limited to examining and commenting on the company's accounts. Auditors are becoming aware of the fact that they have to play a role for the sustainability of the audited company. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">As the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), the international umbrella organization of accounting professionals, is lobbying for the implementation of 'Sustainability Standard 1 and 2', the debate has also started among accounting professionals of Nepal.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">The theme of the 3rd National Accounting Practitioner Conference organized by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nepal (ICAN), which is working to promote and regulate accounting in Nepal, is 'Sustainable Accounting Practice'. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">Sujan Kumar Kafle, president of ICAN, said that the conference, which started on Thursday and will conclude on Friday, will focus on this topic and present and discuss papers in this regard.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">According to Kafle, the auditors should also look into environmental protection, social responsibility and good governance in addition to financial indicators to ensure the business to be sustainable. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">As a member country of IFAC, Nepal is also working with the Accounting and Auditing Board for sustainable accounting practices. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">Deepak Pandey, president of Chartered Accountants Association of Nepal (ACAN), the umbrella organization of chartered accountants, says that audit in Nepal has not risen above financial indicators. "Worldwide, the practice has started that auditing should rise above the disclosure of financial indicators," he said, "Now non-financial indicators are more important than financial indicators."</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">President of IFAC, Asmaa Resmouki, who came to Nepal to participate as a keynote speaker in the conference, pointed out the need to address issues of public interest for sustainable accounting practice. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">Inaugurating the conference, Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supplies Damodar Bhandari said that accountants play an important role in the economic development and prosperity of the country. He said that compliance with the code of ethics is mandatory in the auditing profession. Nepal Rastra Bank’s Governor Maha Prasad Adhikari said auditors are playing an important role in the development of the country's economy.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">In Nepal, 1000 chartered accountants and 7000 registered auditors are involved in auditing more than 300,000 organizations annually. According to ICAN, Nepal Financial Reporting Standards (NFRS) are being implemented in Nepal according to the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) to make the accounting and auditing system of international standards. Thousands of accountants from all over the country are participating in the conference.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20490', 'image' => '20240419020557_903c25db.jpeg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 14:05:16', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20762', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Malaysia's Policy not to Hire Foreign Workers to Impact Nepal', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: Malaysia's policy to stop hiring foreign workers in the formal sector from June 1 is a setback for the growing labor force of Nepal. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">April 19: Malaysia's policy to stop hiring foreign workers in the formal sector from June 1 is a major setback for the growing labor force of Nepal. The Malaysian government announced in March 2023 that foreign workers will be allowed to enter Malaysia only until the end of May. The time to get visa was fixed till April 21.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Malaysia employs foreign workers from 15 countries including Nepal. A large number of Nepalis have been working in Malaysia. According to government data, most of the Nepalis who took labour permits to work abroad in the last fiscal year went to Malaysia for work.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the Department of Foreign Employment, a total of 259,596 Nepali workers were issued labour permits to work in Malaysia last year. The figure includes new workers as well as those who renewed their work permits.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">In the current fiscal year, the number of Nepalis visiting to Malaysia for work has declined compared to last fiscal year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">As of mid-March this year, 63,976 Nepalis have traveled to Malaysiafor work. Malaysia has long been an important labour destination for Nepali workers.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Foreign employment experts say that the new policy adopted by the Malaysian government regarding migrant workers may have a direct impact on Nepal.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Foreign employment expert Ganesh Gurung says that Nepali workers will lose work opportunities in a major labour destination due to Malaysia's new policy. He pointed out that there is a danger that the number of people going to Malaysia illegally may increase while it may cause unemployment rate to rise in Nepal.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">“Banning foreign workers does not mean that companies in that country do not need foreign workers. It will increase the number of people going to Malaysia illegally," said Gurung.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to government estimates, more than 500,000 new labor force enters the labor market in Nepal every year. Almost all the labor force that is added every year in the market goes abroad. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the Department of Foreign Employment, 497,704 new Nepali workers went abroad for work last year. The number of people who came to Nepal on vacation from abroad and returned for work stood at 277,272. The figure shows that about 800,000 Nepalis went abroad for work last year. The number of students who go abroad is also large.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The country lacks job opportunities due to the poor condition of the economy. According to a recent report of the World Bank entitled 'South Asia Development Update', the employment ratio (employment in percent of working-age population) in Nepal has decreased by 11 percent in the last 23 years. As the working-age population is increasing, the trend of people going abroad in search of work has increased due to the inability to create jobs in the country.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">If Malaysia stops hiring foreign workers, remittances from there will also decrease in the future. Remittances have been an important pillar of the Nepalese economy for many years. According to the World Bank, among the South Asian countries, Nepal receives the most remittances compared to the country's gross domestic product. In the last fiscal year, Nepal received remittances of Rs 1220.56 billion.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">“If the number of workers going to Malaysia decreases, remittances from that country will obviously decrease. It may affect the Nepalese economy," said Dr Gurung said. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Dilliram Pokharel, deputy spokesperson and information officer of Nepal Rastra Bank, said that although it is not possible to say exactly how much remittance comes from Malaysia, it can be estimated that a large amount of money comec from there as there are a large number of Nepali workers in Malaysia. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Rajendra Bhandari, president of Nepal Foreign Employment Professionals Association, says that Malaysia's policy of not hiring foreign workers has caused a big crisis in foreign employment.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">He said that the demand for workers is low even in the Gulf countries, and its impact is being seen in Nepal. Bhandari says that it is time for the government to facilitate sending workers to other countries including Europe. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"After the closure of Malaysia, the government should facilitate the sending of workers to other countries, including Europe, where Nepali workers are in demand," he said. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Workers who go to the Gulf and Malaysia send remittances and return back and work within the country. But those who go to developed countries usually do not return and tend to take as much property as possible from the country.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Therefore, employment in the Gulf and Malaysia is important for Nepal, Gurung said. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to labor expert Gurung, the government should now create conditions for employment within the country. It is important to do homework about how many jobs are to be created and when. However, the country has not been able to create job opportunities due to political instability and poor investment environment in the country. Due to this, there is a trend among youths to travel abroad for work.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Stakeholders say that the closure of regular destination countries of Nepali workers will force them to go to work in risky places. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"At present, the trend of going to different countries illegally has increased," said Bhandari, adding, "Nepalis are ready go to Russia and Ukraine and die."</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Labor Govinda Prasad Rijal said that although the government has not received any official information from Malaysia about the decision not to hire workers, the ministry is preparing to get information through diplomatic channels. "The ministry will take necessary decisions accordingly," he said.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The Department of Foreign Employment estimates that there are more than 500,000 Nepali workers in Malaysia. This number is of those who legally went to Malaysia by taking work permits from the government. The number of people working illegally in Malaysia is believed to be equally high. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">A senior official of the Department of Foreign Employment informed that 44 percent of the Nepali workers who went for foreign employment in the last fiscal year went to Malaysia. Malaysia stopped hiring foreign workers for two years during the Covid-19 pandemic.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Last May, the government declared some organizations involved in the process of sending Nepali workers to Malaysia to be illegal and shut down their operations. This made it further difficult for Nepali workers to go to Malaysia.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20489', 'image' => '20240419013937_20240118121412_20220329081003_labour.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 13:38:48', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20761', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Average Length of Stay and Expenditure of Tourists Increase Marginally', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: The average stay and expenditure of foreign tourists in Nepal has seen a slight improvement in 2023. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">April 19: The average stay and expenditure of foreign tourists in Nepal has seen a slight improvement in 2023. The Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation announced that the average length of stay of tourists in 2023 increased by 0.8 percent to 13.2 days compared to 13.1 days in 2022.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Their daily expenses have also increased to USD 41, according to the 'Nepal Tourism Statistics 2023' recently released by the ministry. According to the report, the average daily expenditure of tourists was $40.50 in 2022.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">During the two-year period of the COVID-19 pandemic (in 2020 and 2021), the length of stay of tourists in Nepal was 15.1 and 15.5 days respectively. The stay of tourists increased in those years due to the lockdown and quarantine measures during the pandemic period. As the length of stay increased, the average expenditure incurred by the tourists also increased. In 2020, the daily expenditure of tourists was USD 65. In 2021, such expenses decreased to USD 48.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Binayak Shah, president of the Hotel Association Nepal (HAN), disputed the tourists’ expenditure figures published by the government, arguing that they significantly underestimate actual spending.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">He claims that tourists must have spent at least twice the amount mentioned by the government. He argues that the data fails to capture expenditures accurately.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to government data, the contribution of the tourism sector to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is 3.2 percent. “The data of the World Bank indicates that it is much higher than that," he said.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Shah says that the real contribution of the tourism sector is not known due to the lack of uniformity in the data of the government, tourism entrepreneurs and other organizations.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"For this, the government should implement satellite accounting (an integrated information collection system that records the transactions made by tourists) at the earliest," he said, adding, “It helps to provide more precise insights into tourist spending habits.” </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Shah's concerns echo those of tourism professionals who emphasize the need to expand tourist services and destinations beyond Kathmandu, Pokhara, and Chitwan to prolong tourists' stays in Nepal. However, challenges such as poor road conditions and limited operational airports hinder intra-country travel, making it difficult for tourists to extend their visits.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20488', 'image' => '20240419124501_20220509072726_Clipboard96.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 12:42:58', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20760', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'United Arab Emirates Struggles to Recover after Heaviest Recorded Rainfall Ever Hits Desert Nation ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: The United Arab Emirates struggled Thursday to recover from the heaviest recorded rainfall ever to hit the desert nation, as its main airport worked to restore normal operations even as floodwater still covered portions of major highways and roads. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">April 19: The United Arab Emirates struggled Thursday to recover from the heaviest recorded rainfall ever to hit the desert nation, as its main airport worked to restore normal operations even as floodwater still covered portions of major highways and roads. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Dubai International Airport, the world's busiest for international travel, allowed global carriers on Thursday morning to again fly into Terminal 1 at the airfield. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">“Flights continue to be delayed and disrupted, so we urge you to only come to Terminal 1 if you have a confirmed booking,” the airport said on the social platform X. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The long-haul carrier Emirates, whose operations had been struggling since the storm Tuesday, had stopped travelers flying out of the UAE from checking into their flights as they tried to move out connecting passengers. Pilots and flight crews had been struggling to reach the airport given the water on roadways. But on Thursday, they lifted that order to allow customers into the airport. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Others who arrived at the airport described hourslong waits to get their baggage, with some just giving up to head home or to whatever hotel would have them. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The UAE, a hereditarily ruled, autocratic nation on the Arabian Peninsula, typically sees little rainfall in its arid desert climate. However, a massive storm forecasters had been warning about for days blew through the country's seven sheikhdoms. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">By the end of Tuesday, more than 142 millimeters (5.59 inches) of rainfall had soaked Dubai over 24 hours. An average year sees 94.7 millimeters (3.73 inches) of rain at Dubai International Airport. Other areas of the country saw even more precipitation. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The UAE's drainage systems quickly became overwhelmed, flooding out neighborhoods, business districts and even portions of the 12-lane Sheikh Zayed Road highway running through Dubai. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The state-run WAM news agency called the rain “a historic weather event” that surpassed “anything documented since the start of data collection in 1949.” </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">In a message to the nation late Wednesday, Emirati leader Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the ruler of Abu Dhabi, said authorities would “quickly work on studying the condition of infrastructure throughout the UAE and to limit the damage caused.” </span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">On Thursday, people waded through oil-slicked floodwater to reach cars earlier abandoned, checking to see if their engines still ran. Tanker trucks with vacuums began reaching some areas outside of Dubai's downtown core for the first time as well. Schools remain closed until next week. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Authorities have offered no overall damage or injury information from the floods, which killed at least one person. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">“Crises reveal the strength of countries and societies,” Dubai's ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, wrote on X. “The natural climate crisis that we experienced showed the great care, awareness, cohesion and love for every corner of the country from all its citizens and residents.” </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The flooding sparked speculation that the UAE's aggressive campaign of cloud seeding — flying small planes through clouds dispersing chemicals aimed at getting rain to fall — may have contributed to the deluge. But experts said the storm systems that produced the rain were forecast well in advance and that cloud seeding alone would not have caused such flooding. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Jeff Masters, a meteorologist for Yale Climate Connections, said the flooding in Dubai was caused by an unusually strong low pressure system that drove many rounds of heavy thunderstorms. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Scientists also say climate change is responsible for more intense and more frequent extreme storms, droughts, floods and wildfires around the world. Dubai hosted the United Nations’ COP28 climate talks just last year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Abu Dhabi’s state-linked newspaper The National in an editorial Thursday described the heavy rains as a warning to countries in the wider Persian Gulf region to “climate-proof their futures.” </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">“The scale of this task is more daunting that it appears even at first glance, because such changes involve changing the urban environment of a region that for as long as it has been inhabited, has experienced little but heat and sand,” the newspaper said. – AP/RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20487', 'image' => '20240419113333_370910-01-02.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 11:32:57', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20758', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Tatopani Customs Surpasses Revenue Collection Target', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: The Tatopani Customs Office has collected revenue exceeding the target set for the first nine months of the current fiscal year. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">April 19: The Tatopani Customs Office has collected revenue exceeding the target set for the first nine months of the current fiscal year. </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 office collected Rs 8.56 billion in revenue against the target of Rs 5.59 billion, Customs Chief Dayananda KC told RSS. </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 KC, trade from the Tatopani Customs Point has increased after the resumption of the Nepal-China border. </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 Chinese government agreed to resume the two-way trade via Tatopani-Khasa route during a bilateral meeting of Nepal-China Coordination Mechanism on Border Trade and Cooperation held in Lhasa in March last year.</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"">As per the agreement, the Tatopani transit point was opened for full-fledged operation on May 1 last year, raising high hopes of increased trade. The transit point was opened more than three years after it was initially closed to control the COVID-19 outbreak in March 2020. Nepal’s export through the Tatopani-Khasa border had been almost nil since the 2015 earthquake.</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"">Prior to the earthquake, the trade volume through this transit point used to be more than Rs 150 billion annually. </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 revenue collected in the first nine months of this year is more than the revenue collected during the entire last fiscal year. </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 government had set a target of collecting Rs 4.62 billion in revenue in the last fiscal year from this customs point, but it collected only Rs 2.20 billion in the corresponding period of that year. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""> </span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20486', 'image' => '20240419105835_20230512122723_20211109014016_20210518054607_20190510014655_Clipboard04-2.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 10:57:47', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20759', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Tara Manandhar Appointed as CEO of Dish Media Network Ltd', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: Tara Manandhar has been appointed as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Dish Media Network Ltd.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">April 19: Tara Manandhar has been appointed as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Dish Media Network Ltd. According to the company, Manandhar, who has played a leadership role in the banking sector for more than 25 years, has assumed the position from April 15.</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 the company, he previously worked in leadership roles at Mashreq Bank, Prabhu Bank, Standard Chartered Bank, etc.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The company expressed confidence in Manandhar's ability to enhance the quality of services provided by strengthening management.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">DishHome, known for its quality services and diverse channel offerings, has expanded its reach in recent years. With approval from the Nepal Telecommunication Authority for fiber internet distribution three years ago, DishHome has now emerged as the second-largest internet service provider in Nepal.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""> </span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20485', 'image' => '20240419112059_CEO.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 11:20:02', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20757', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NEPSE Dips 19.56 Points, Closing at 1972.14', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) Index experienced a decline of 19.56 points or 0.98%, closing at 1972.14 on Thursday, the last trading day of the week.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:17.0pt">April 18: The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) Index experienced a decline of 19.56 points or 0.98%, closing at 1972.14 on Thursday, the last trading day of the week.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:17.0pt">During today’s trading session, 315 scrips were traded in 40,912 transactions, with a total of 5,344,613 shares changing hands, resulting in a total turnover of Rs 2.9 billion.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:17.0pt">Gurkhas Finance Limited (GUFL) led the turnover amount with a total transaction value of Rs 17 crores. Khanikhola Hydropower Company Limited (KKHC) recorded the highest gain of 7.94%.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:17.0pt">Conversely, Ru Ru Jalbidhyut Pariyojana Limited (RURU) suffered the maximum loss at 9.99%, closing at a market price of Rs 504 per share.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:17.0pt">In terms of sector indices, all sectors closed in the red. The Microfinance Index experienced the highest loss of 1.72%, while the Mutual Fund sector saw the least loss at 0.22%.</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-18', 'modified' => '2024-04-18', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20484', 'image' => '20240418032246_collage (59).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-18 15:21:29', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20756', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => '16 Hydel Projects under Construction in Tamor River ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 18: Taplejung district has received a huge investment in hydropower projects in Tamor river, the main river in the district, and other rivers. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">April 18: Taplejung district has received a huge investment in hydropower projects in Tamor river, the main river in the district, and other rivers. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Officials shared that 16 hydroelectricity projects are under construction in Tamor river and as high as 1,654.51 megawatt of power is expected to be generated. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to the Department of Electricity Development, 14 hydropower projects in the river are exclusively based in Phaktanglung Rural Municipality and two other projects fall under other local levels. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Likewise, four hydropower projects are being constructed in Mewakhola (river) that flows through Mewakhola Rural Municipality. The projects in Mewakhola are expected to produce 178.42 megawatts of electricity. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The department said four projects are under development in Kabeli river and the projects there would generate 95.43 megawatts of electricity. </span><br /> </span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-18', 'modified' => '2024-04-18', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20483', 'image' => '20240418020511_hydro.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-18 14:04:34', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ) ) $current_user = null $logged_in = falsesimplexml_load_file - [internal], line ?? include - APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 60 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::_renderElement() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 1224 View::element() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 418 include - APP/View/Articles/index.ctp, line 157 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 473 Controller::render() - CORE/Cake/Controller/Controller.php, line 968 Dispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 200 Dispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 167 [main] - APP/webroot/index.php, line 117
Notice (8): Undefined variable: file [APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 133]Code Context// $file = 'http://aabhiyan:QUVLg8Wzs2F7G9N7@nepalstock.com.np/api/subindexdata.xml';if(!$xml = simplexml_load_file($file)){$viewFile = '/var/www/html/newbusinessage.com/app/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp' $dataForView = array( 'articles' => array( (int) 0 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ) ), 'current_user' => null, 'logged_in' => false ) $articles = array( (int) 0 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20772', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'H5N1 Strain of Bird Flu Found in Milk: WHO ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 21: The H5N1 bird flu virus strain has been detected in very high concentrations in raw milk from infected animals, the WHO said Friday, though how long the virus can survive in milk is unknown. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">April 21: The H5N1 bird flu virus strain has been detected in very high concentrations in raw milk from infected animals, the WHO said Friday, though how long the virus can survive in milk is unknown. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Avian influenza A(H5N1) first emerged in 1996 but since 2020, the number of outbreaks in birds has grown exponentially, alongside an increase in the number of infected mammals. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The strain has led to the deaths of tens of millions of poultry, with wild birds and land and marine mammals also infected. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Cows and goats joined the list last month -- a surprising development for experts because they were not thought to be susceptible to this type of influenza. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">US authorities earlier this month said a person working on a dairy farm in Texas was recovering from bird flu after being exposed to cattle. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"The case in Texas is the first case of a human infected by avian influenza by a cow," said Wenqing Zhang, head of the global influenza programme at the World Health Organization. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"Bird-to-cow, cow-to-cow and cow-to-bird transmission have also been registered during these current outbreaks, which suggest that the virus may have found other routes of transition than we previously understood," she told a media briefing in Geneva. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">It was only the second case of a human testing positive for bird flu in the United States, and came after the virus sickened herds that were apparently exposed to wild birds. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"Now we see multiple herds of cows affected in an increasing number of US states, which shows a further step of the virus spillover to mammals," Zhang said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"The virus has also been detected in milk from infected animals." </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Zhang said there was a "very high virus concentration in raw milk", but experts were still investigating exactly how long the virus is able to survive in milk. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The Texas health department has said the cattle infections do not present a concern for the commercial milk supply, as dairies are required to destroy milk from sick cows. Pasteurisation also kills the virus. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"It is important for people to ensure safe food practices, including consuming only pasteurised milk and milk products," said Zhang. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">- Recent human cases mild - </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">From 2003 to April 1 this year, the WHO said it had recorded 463 deaths from 889 human cases across 23 countries, putting the case fatality rate at 52 percent. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Zhang noted that the human cases recorded in Europe and the United States in the past few years -- since the virus surged -- have been mild cases. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">So far, there is no evidence that A(H5N1) is spreading between humans. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">And Zhang stressed that the A(H5N1) viruses identified in cows and in the human case in Texas showed no increased adaptation to mammals. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">As for potential vaccines, if required, Zhang said there were some in the pipeline. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"Having candidate vaccine viruses ready allows us to be prepared to quickly produce vaccines for humans, if this becomes necessary," she said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"For this particular H5N1 virus detected in dairy cows, there are a couple of candidate vaccine viruses available." </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">In the case of a pandemic, there are close to 20 influenza vaccines licensed for pandemic use and they could be tailored with the specific virus strain in circulation, she said. – AFP/RSS</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-21', 'modified' => '2024-04-21', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20499', 'image' => '20240421111652_20240117114238_WHO.jpg.jpeg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-21 11:16:00', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20770', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Over 31,000 Foreign Tourists Visited Ghodepani Last Year ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 21: More than 31,000 foreign tourists visited Ghodepani-Poon Hill area of Annapurna rural municipality-6 in Myagdi district in 2080 BS. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px">April 21: More than 31,000 foreign tourists visited Ghodepani-Poon Hill area of Annapurna rural municipality-6 in Myagdi district in 2080 BS. <br /> According to Tourist Police Post, Ghodepani, 31,439 tourists visited the area in a year. The Tourist Police Post keeps record of foreign tourists entering and leaving Ghodepani. However, the post does not keep the record of domestic tourists visiting the area. <br /> A total of 25,279 tourists entered Ghodepani-Poon Hill area while 6,160 tourists went to other places via Ghodepani last year, said senior head constable at the Ghodepani Police Post, Tek Bahadur Magar. <br /> The highest number of foreign tourists visited Ghodepani in the month of Chait (mid-March to mid-April), which stood at 5,849. <br /> Similarly, 4,414 tourists entered Ghodepani-Poon Hill area in Baishakh (mid-April to mid-May), 1,281 in Jeth (mid-May to mid-June), 441 in Asar (mid-June to mid-July), 947 in Saun (mid-July to mid-August), 972 in Bhadau (mid-August to mid-September), 4,298 in Asoj (mid-September to mid-October), 4,357 in Kartik (mid-October to mid-November), 3,199 in Mangsir (mid-November to mid-December), 1,627 in Push (mid-December to mid-January), 1,577 in Magh (mid-January to mid-February) and 2,477 in Falgun (mid-February to mid-March). <br /> Likewise, 26,301 foreign tourists had visited Ghodepani in 2079 BS. Hotel entrepreneur Juli Thakuri Pun said the increasing number of tourists visiting Ghodepani area has raised hope among the hotel entrepreneurs. <br /> The arrival of domestic tourists has also increased due to favourable weather and school vacation, she added. Around 60,000-70,000 tourists used to visit Ghodepani annually before the coronavirus pandemic. <br /> Tourists arrive at Poon Hill and Ghodepani to see sunrise as well as panoramic view of rhododendron forest and mountains. There are 27 small and big hotels at Ghodepani. Poon Hill lies at a distance of one hour trek from Ghodepani at 3,210 meters above sea level. <br /> A domestic tourist has to pay Rs 50 while foreign tourist Rs 150 to enter Poon Hill area. One can see panoramic view of Dhaulagiri, Sisne, Gurja, Manapathi, Nilgiri, Annapurna, Machhapuchhre and Manaslu mountains from Poon Hill. -- RSS</span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-21', 'modified' => '2024-04-21', 'keywords' => 'Ghodepani, Poon Hill, trekking, tourism, Nepal', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20497', 'image' => '20240421101244_20240420090559_20151117032323_Baglung-Tourist.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-21 10:11:28', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20769', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => '265 Cottage and Small Industries Shut Down in Banke', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'As many as 265 cottage and small industries have closed down their shutters in Banke district in the last nine months of the current fiscal year, 2023/24. ', 'content' => '<p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:20px">April 20: As many as 265 cottage and small industries have closed down their shutters in Banke district in the last nine months of the current fiscal year, 2023/24. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px">While only a small number of these closures were officially registered, the majority, amounting to 165, occurred due to failure to renew licenses on time, according to Kashilal Adhikari, Information Officer at the Office of Cottage and Small Industries in Banke.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px">A total of 105 enterprises registered under industry and 160 under commerce firms were shut down, informed Adhikari, adding that industrialists often cite their family issues as a reason for closing down their industries.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"> It may be noted that the district had recorded closure of 160 cottage and small industries in the last fiscal year, 2022/23. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px">Various factors have contributed to the shutdown of small scale industries such as COVID-19 pandemic's lingering impact, high interest rate of banks, liquidity crisis, said Madhu Khadka, President of the Federation of Nepal Cottage and Small Industries, Banke's Chapter.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px">Closures of many small-scale industries have resulted into displacement of many entrepreneurs from Nepalgunj. (RSS) </span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-21', 'modified' => '2024-04-21', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20496', 'image' => '20240421062719_collage (60).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-21 06:25:57', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20767', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Govt Collects Royalties of Over Rs 500 Million from Climbers', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 20: With the onset of season for climbing Mt Everest (Sagarmatha), the government has collected over Rs 500 million in royalties so far. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">April 20: With the onset of season for climbing Mt Everest (Sagarmatha), the government has collected over Rs 500 million in royalties so far. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The Department of Tourism informed RSS that it collected Rs 505 million from 352 persons who were issued climbing permit to scale the world's highest peak, Mt Everest. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Director of the Adventure Tourism and Mountaineering Section under the department, Rakesh Gurung, informed that the number of adventure tourists grew significantly this year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The department said that a total of 352 mountaineers from 33 expeditions including 65 women and 287 men have been issued permits to climb Everest. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Last year, a total of 478 climbers – the maximum number ever – were issued permits to climb Everest. The department collected revenue of Rs 760 million last year, while it has collected Rs 505 million so far this year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Gurung estimated that some Rs 500 to Rs 700 million more revenue could be generated this year as the season has just started. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The government has collected royalties by issuing permits for climbing 24 peaks, including Everest. The highest peak is the source of most of the revenue. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"This spring, Sagarmatha ascent is encouraging. The number of climbers has reached more than 352 by April 19. The number of climbers could increase to over 400," Gurung shared. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The mountaineering regulation, 2059 has provision to impose Rs 1.1 million from each foreign climber during the spring season for climbing Everest, while each Nepali needs to pay Rs 75,000. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">A foreign climber spends at least Rs 3 to 10 million for climbing Everest. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Major source of income in tourism sector comes from revenue on mountain climbing. Spring season is best time for climbing mountains. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">In addition to the highest peak of the world, climbers have also been issued permits to climb Makalu, Annapurna, Kanchanjungha, Dhaulagiri, Lhotse Amadablam, Jugal among other mountains. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Currently, the Sherpa climbers are mobilized to prepare the trail with rope fixing. The route up to second base camp of the Sagarmatha is already fixed by the Sherpas also known as ‘icefall doctors’. </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-20', 'modified' => '2024-04-20', 'keywords' => 'Everest, mountain, climbing, Nepal, season, spring, royalties', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20494', 'image' => '20240420085641_369154-01-02.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-20 20:55:50', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20766', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Over 400,000 Tourists Visited Mustang by Road Last Year', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: Over 400,000 tourists visited Mustang in a one-year period from April 14, 2023 to April 12, 2024 by road, according to the data with the Ghasa police station located on the border of Myagdi and Mustang districts.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">April 19: Over 400,000 tourists visited Mustang in a one-year period from April 14, 2023 to April 12, 2024 by road, according to the data with the Ghasa police station located on the border of Myagdi and Mustang districts.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">The statistics show that 414,280 domestic and foreign tourists visited Mustang during the review period.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">The number of domestic tourists entering Mustang via road stood at 335,466, including 220,724 male and 114,742 female, said Deputy Superintendent of Police Bhojraj Pandey, the chief of the District Police Office, Mustang.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">Similarly, DSP Pandey said 78,814 foreigners visited Mustang during the review period. Among them, 72,756 were from the SAARC countries while 6058 were from countries other than the SAARC member states.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">According to him, 38,821 males and 33,935 females from SAARC countries visited Mustang during the review period. Similarly, 3,648 male and 2,410 female visitors from countries other than the SAARC member countries visited Mustang in the same period.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">The data shows that 11,484 tourists arrived in Mustang via air. Among them, 1,679 were domestic tourists (1,134 males and 545 females) while 8,055 (including 3,767 males and 4,288 females) were from the SAARC countries and 1,750 visitors (886 males and 864 females) were from countries other than the SAARC member states.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">Often referred to as the district beyond the Himalayas, Mustang is a prime tourism destination known for its iconic desert-like landscape. The bare mountains, Himalayan climate, culture and lifestyle, lakes, monasteries, Muktinath temple, caves are the major attractions of Mustang.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">Inflow of tourists to the religious and tourist places of Mustang including Muktinath, Jomsom, Kagbeni, Lo Manthang, Marpha, Thini, Dhumba Lake has gradually started increasing since last year, according to local tourism entrepreneurs.</span> -- <span style="font-size:16.0pt">RSS</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20493', 'image' => '20240419081925_20230724112952_20220424035529_istockphoto-534638391-612x612.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 20:18:33', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20765', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => '550,000 People Acquire Work Permits in Nine Months of Current Fiscal Year', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: Around 550,000 people have acquired work permits for overseas employment as of April 12 of the current fiscal year 2023/24. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">April 19: Around 550,000 people have acquired work permits for overseas employment as of April 12 of the current fiscal year 2023/24. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">Of them, 70,933 workers acquired work permits from March 14 to April 12. Among them, 64,241 are men and 6,692 are women, said Kabiraj Upreti, Director at the Department of Foreign Employment and Information Officer.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">Similarly, 55,575 people received work permit from July 17-August 17, 2023; 50,884 from August 18-September 17, 2023; 56,235 from September 18-October 17, 2023; 43,622 from October 18-November 16, 2023; 71,276 from November 17-December 16, 2023; 65,813 from December 17, 2023-January 14, 2024; 62,147 from January 15-February 12, 2024 and 65,658 from February 13-March 13, 2024, according to data of the department.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">A total of 17,818 people have gone for overseas employment in the UAE while 13,614 in Saudi Arabia, 11,204 in Qatar, 12,602 in Malaysia, 4,076 in Kuwait and 964 in Bahrain from March 14-April 12, 2024.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">Similarly, 2,299 people have gone for foreign employment in Romania, 960 in Croatia, 789 in Cyprus, 1,351 in Japan, 493 in the Maldives, 620 in Mauritius, and 657 in South Korea, shows the data.</span> -- RSS</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20492', 'image' => '20240419060836_20220814044404_postQueueImg_3-626bcca48a757.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 18:08:13', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20764', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Nawalpur Women Achieve Economic Independence by Operating Homestay ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: Bal Kumari Mahato of Kawasoti in Nawalparasi (Bardaghat Susta Purba) district does not worry anymore how to run her household thanks to the income she makes from operating homestay. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">April 19: Bal Kumari Mahato of Kawasoti in Nawalparasi (Bardaghat Susta Purba) district does not worry anymore how to run her household thanks to the income she makes from operating homestay. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Earlier dependent on agriculture, Mahato has found better source of income from operation of homestay for nearly five years thereby gaining economic independence. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Like Mahato, there are a handful of women in Chilaha village who are engaged in homestay. Resham Kumari Mahato of Kawasoti-10 shared, "Earlier we were involved in agriculture and earned scantly. After operating homestay, our earning has increased." </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The entrepreneurial women admitted that they enjoy attending to the guests and entertain them with their cultural performances and delicacies besides enjoying financial freedom. The homestay initiative has further empowered them by developing leadership qualities in them and further harnessing their management skills. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"Earlier we were too shy to talk to strangers but since we forayed into homestay enterprises, we have learned how to talk and run our enterprises confidently," said Resham Kumari. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The village where they operate homestay is predominantly a Tharu settlement and lies nearby a buffer zone. Most of the women running homestay at present were involved in agriculture in the past, which did not yield them good returns due to the menace of wild animals. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Animal husbandry also failed them secure a good income for the wild animals would prey their domestic animals. In lack of good income, their living standard had gone down, admitted Mahato. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"Following the homestay operation, our village is witnessing a socio-economic transformation and the living standards of fellow villagers have improved notably," she observed. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">These entrepreneurial women have adequately secured support from their spouses and family in running their business. Since the introduction of homestay, the village has welcomed around 11,000 guests, both domestic and foreign, informed Prem Bahadur Mukhiya, a homestay manager. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Jeep safari is another attraction for the homestay guests, added Mukhiya. Besides savoring the Tharu delicacies, nature enthusiasts can enthrall themselves watching wild animals such as rhino, antelope, wild boar, peacock, crocodiles and various species of birds roaming around in the buffer zone, he said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Ward chairperson of Kawasoti-10 Tek Narayan Mahato asserted that homestay had contributed in development and upliftment of the local community besides aiding in nature and culture conservation. -- RSS</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20491', 'image' => '20240419020716_449834462.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 14:06:43', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20763', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Auditors Emphasize on Sustainable Accounting Practices', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: An auditor is commonly known as a person who examines the accounts. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">April 19: An auditor is commonly known as a person who examines the accounts. An auditor has the right to verify the accounts prepared by the management in an organization or company. The auditor's role is not only limited to examining and commenting on the company's accounts. Auditors are becoming aware of the fact that they have to play a role for the sustainability of the audited company. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">As the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), the international umbrella organization of accounting professionals, is lobbying for the implementation of 'Sustainability Standard 1 and 2', the debate has also started among accounting professionals of Nepal.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">The theme of the 3rd National Accounting Practitioner Conference organized by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nepal (ICAN), which is working to promote and regulate accounting in Nepal, is 'Sustainable Accounting Practice'. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">Sujan Kumar Kafle, president of ICAN, said that the conference, which started on Thursday and will conclude on Friday, will focus on this topic and present and discuss papers in this regard.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">According to Kafle, the auditors should also look into environmental protection, social responsibility and good governance in addition to financial indicators to ensure the business to be sustainable. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">As a member country of IFAC, Nepal is also working with the Accounting and Auditing Board for sustainable accounting practices. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">Deepak Pandey, president of Chartered Accountants Association of Nepal (ACAN), the umbrella organization of chartered accountants, says that audit in Nepal has not risen above financial indicators. "Worldwide, the practice has started that auditing should rise above the disclosure of financial indicators," he said, "Now non-financial indicators are more important than financial indicators."</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">President of IFAC, Asmaa Resmouki, who came to Nepal to participate as a keynote speaker in the conference, pointed out the need to address issues of public interest for sustainable accounting practice. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">Inaugurating the conference, Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supplies Damodar Bhandari said that accountants play an important role in the economic development and prosperity of the country. He said that compliance with the code of ethics is mandatory in the auditing profession. Nepal Rastra Bank’s Governor Maha Prasad Adhikari said auditors are playing an important role in the development of the country's economy.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">In Nepal, 1000 chartered accountants and 7000 registered auditors are involved in auditing more than 300,000 organizations annually. According to ICAN, Nepal Financial Reporting Standards (NFRS) are being implemented in Nepal according to the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) to make the accounting and auditing system of international standards. Thousands of accountants from all over the country are participating in the conference.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20490', 'image' => '20240419020557_903c25db.jpeg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 14:05:16', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20762', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Malaysia's Policy not to Hire Foreign Workers to Impact Nepal', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: Malaysia's policy to stop hiring foreign workers in the formal sector from June 1 is a setback for the growing labor force of Nepal. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">April 19: Malaysia's policy to stop hiring foreign workers in the formal sector from June 1 is a major setback for the growing labor force of Nepal. The Malaysian government announced in March 2023 that foreign workers will be allowed to enter Malaysia only until the end of May. The time to get visa was fixed till April 21.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Malaysia employs foreign workers from 15 countries including Nepal. A large number of Nepalis have been working in Malaysia. According to government data, most of the Nepalis who took labour permits to work abroad in the last fiscal year went to Malaysia for work.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the Department of Foreign Employment, a total of 259,596 Nepali workers were issued labour permits to work in Malaysia last year. The figure includes new workers as well as those who renewed their work permits.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">In the current fiscal year, the number of Nepalis visiting to Malaysia for work has declined compared to last fiscal year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">As of mid-March this year, 63,976 Nepalis have traveled to Malaysiafor work. Malaysia has long been an important labour destination for Nepali workers.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Foreign employment experts say that the new policy adopted by the Malaysian government regarding migrant workers may have a direct impact on Nepal.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Foreign employment expert Ganesh Gurung says that Nepali workers will lose work opportunities in a major labour destination due to Malaysia's new policy. He pointed out that there is a danger that the number of people going to Malaysia illegally may increase while it may cause unemployment rate to rise in Nepal.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">“Banning foreign workers does not mean that companies in that country do not need foreign workers. It will increase the number of people going to Malaysia illegally," said Gurung.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to government estimates, more than 500,000 new labor force enters the labor market in Nepal every year. Almost all the labor force that is added every year in the market goes abroad. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the Department of Foreign Employment, 497,704 new Nepali workers went abroad for work last year. The number of people who came to Nepal on vacation from abroad and returned for work stood at 277,272. The figure shows that about 800,000 Nepalis went abroad for work last year. The number of students who go abroad is also large.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The country lacks job opportunities due to the poor condition of the economy. According to a recent report of the World Bank entitled 'South Asia Development Update', the employment ratio (employment in percent of working-age population) in Nepal has decreased by 11 percent in the last 23 years. As the working-age population is increasing, the trend of people going abroad in search of work has increased due to the inability to create jobs in the country.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">If Malaysia stops hiring foreign workers, remittances from there will also decrease in the future. Remittances have been an important pillar of the Nepalese economy for many years. According to the World Bank, among the South Asian countries, Nepal receives the most remittances compared to the country's gross domestic product. In the last fiscal year, Nepal received remittances of Rs 1220.56 billion.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">“If the number of workers going to Malaysia decreases, remittances from that country will obviously decrease. It may affect the Nepalese economy," said Dr Gurung said. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Dilliram Pokharel, deputy spokesperson and information officer of Nepal Rastra Bank, said that although it is not possible to say exactly how much remittance comes from Malaysia, it can be estimated that a large amount of money comec from there as there are a large number of Nepali workers in Malaysia. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Rajendra Bhandari, president of Nepal Foreign Employment Professionals Association, says that Malaysia's policy of not hiring foreign workers has caused a big crisis in foreign employment.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">He said that the demand for workers is low even in the Gulf countries, and its impact is being seen in Nepal. Bhandari says that it is time for the government to facilitate sending workers to other countries including Europe. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"After the closure of Malaysia, the government should facilitate the sending of workers to other countries, including Europe, where Nepali workers are in demand," he said. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Workers who go to the Gulf and Malaysia send remittances and return back and work within the country. But those who go to developed countries usually do not return and tend to take as much property as possible from the country.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Therefore, employment in the Gulf and Malaysia is important for Nepal, Gurung said. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to labor expert Gurung, the government should now create conditions for employment within the country. It is important to do homework about how many jobs are to be created and when. However, the country has not been able to create job opportunities due to political instability and poor investment environment in the country. Due to this, there is a trend among youths to travel abroad for work.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Stakeholders say that the closure of regular destination countries of Nepali workers will force them to go to work in risky places. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"At present, the trend of going to different countries illegally has increased," said Bhandari, adding, "Nepalis are ready go to Russia and Ukraine and die."</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Labor Govinda Prasad Rijal said that although the government has not received any official information from Malaysia about the decision not to hire workers, the ministry is preparing to get information through diplomatic channels. "The ministry will take necessary decisions accordingly," he said.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The Department of Foreign Employment estimates that there are more than 500,000 Nepali workers in Malaysia. This number is of those who legally went to Malaysia by taking work permits from the government. The number of people working illegally in Malaysia is believed to be equally high. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">A senior official of the Department of Foreign Employment informed that 44 percent of the Nepali workers who went for foreign employment in the last fiscal year went to Malaysia. Malaysia stopped hiring foreign workers for two years during the Covid-19 pandemic.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Last May, the government declared some organizations involved in the process of sending Nepali workers to Malaysia to be illegal and shut down their operations. This made it further difficult for Nepali workers to go to Malaysia.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20489', 'image' => '20240419013937_20240118121412_20220329081003_labour.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 13:38:48', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20761', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Average Length of Stay and Expenditure of Tourists Increase Marginally', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: The average stay and expenditure of foreign tourists in Nepal has seen a slight improvement in 2023. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">April 19: The average stay and expenditure of foreign tourists in Nepal has seen a slight improvement in 2023. The Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation announced that the average length of stay of tourists in 2023 increased by 0.8 percent to 13.2 days compared to 13.1 days in 2022.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Their daily expenses have also increased to USD 41, according to the 'Nepal Tourism Statistics 2023' recently released by the ministry. According to the report, the average daily expenditure of tourists was $40.50 in 2022.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">During the two-year period of the COVID-19 pandemic (in 2020 and 2021), the length of stay of tourists in Nepal was 15.1 and 15.5 days respectively. The stay of tourists increased in those years due to the lockdown and quarantine measures during the pandemic period. As the length of stay increased, the average expenditure incurred by the tourists also increased. In 2020, the daily expenditure of tourists was USD 65. In 2021, such expenses decreased to USD 48.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Binayak Shah, president of the Hotel Association Nepal (HAN), disputed the tourists’ expenditure figures published by the government, arguing that they significantly underestimate actual spending.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">He claims that tourists must have spent at least twice the amount mentioned by the government. He argues that the data fails to capture expenditures accurately.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to government data, the contribution of the tourism sector to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is 3.2 percent. “The data of the World Bank indicates that it is much higher than that," he said.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Shah says that the real contribution of the tourism sector is not known due to the lack of uniformity in the data of the government, tourism entrepreneurs and other organizations.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"For this, the government should implement satellite accounting (an integrated information collection system that records the transactions made by tourists) at the earliest," he said, adding, “It helps to provide more precise insights into tourist spending habits.” </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Shah's concerns echo those of tourism professionals who emphasize the need to expand tourist services and destinations beyond Kathmandu, Pokhara, and Chitwan to prolong tourists' stays in Nepal. However, challenges such as poor road conditions and limited operational airports hinder intra-country travel, making it difficult for tourists to extend their visits.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20488', 'image' => '20240419124501_20220509072726_Clipboard96.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 12:42:58', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20760', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'United Arab Emirates Struggles to Recover after Heaviest Recorded Rainfall Ever Hits Desert Nation ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: The United Arab Emirates struggled Thursday to recover from the heaviest recorded rainfall ever to hit the desert nation, as its main airport worked to restore normal operations even as floodwater still covered portions of major highways and roads. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">April 19: The United Arab Emirates struggled Thursday to recover from the heaviest recorded rainfall ever to hit the desert nation, as its main airport worked to restore normal operations even as floodwater still covered portions of major highways and roads. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Dubai International Airport, the world's busiest for international travel, allowed global carriers on Thursday morning to again fly into Terminal 1 at the airfield. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">“Flights continue to be delayed and disrupted, so we urge you to only come to Terminal 1 if you have a confirmed booking,” the airport said on the social platform X. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The long-haul carrier Emirates, whose operations had been struggling since the storm Tuesday, had stopped travelers flying out of the UAE from checking into their flights as they tried to move out connecting passengers. Pilots and flight crews had been struggling to reach the airport given the water on roadways. But on Thursday, they lifted that order to allow customers into the airport. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Others who arrived at the airport described hourslong waits to get their baggage, with some just giving up to head home or to whatever hotel would have them. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The UAE, a hereditarily ruled, autocratic nation on the Arabian Peninsula, typically sees little rainfall in its arid desert climate. However, a massive storm forecasters had been warning about for days blew through the country's seven sheikhdoms. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">By the end of Tuesday, more than 142 millimeters (5.59 inches) of rainfall had soaked Dubai over 24 hours. An average year sees 94.7 millimeters (3.73 inches) of rain at Dubai International Airport. Other areas of the country saw even more precipitation. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The UAE's drainage systems quickly became overwhelmed, flooding out neighborhoods, business districts and even portions of the 12-lane Sheikh Zayed Road highway running through Dubai. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The state-run WAM news agency called the rain “a historic weather event” that surpassed “anything documented since the start of data collection in 1949.” </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">In a message to the nation late Wednesday, Emirati leader Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the ruler of Abu Dhabi, said authorities would “quickly work on studying the condition of infrastructure throughout the UAE and to limit the damage caused.” </span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">On Thursday, people waded through oil-slicked floodwater to reach cars earlier abandoned, checking to see if their engines still ran. Tanker trucks with vacuums began reaching some areas outside of Dubai's downtown core for the first time as well. Schools remain closed until next week. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Authorities have offered no overall damage or injury information from the floods, which killed at least one person. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">“Crises reveal the strength of countries and societies,” Dubai's ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, wrote on X. “The natural climate crisis that we experienced showed the great care, awareness, cohesion and love for every corner of the country from all its citizens and residents.” </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The flooding sparked speculation that the UAE's aggressive campaign of cloud seeding — flying small planes through clouds dispersing chemicals aimed at getting rain to fall — may have contributed to the deluge. But experts said the storm systems that produced the rain were forecast well in advance and that cloud seeding alone would not have caused such flooding. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Jeff Masters, a meteorologist for Yale Climate Connections, said the flooding in Dubai was caused by an unusually strong low pressure system that drove many rounds of heavy thunderstorms. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Scientists also say climate change is responsible for more intense and more frequent extreme storms, droughts, floods and wildfires around the world. Dubai hosted the United Nations’ COP28 climate talks just last year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Abu Dhabi’s state-linked newspaper The National in an editorial Thursday described the heavy rains as a warning to countries in the wider Persian Gulf region to “climate-proof their futures.” </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">“The scale of this task is more daunting that it appears even at first glance, because such changes involve changing the urban environment of a region that for as long as it has been inhabited, has experienced little but heat and sand,” the newspaper said. – AP/RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20487', 'image' => '20240419113333_370910-01-02.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 11:32:57', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20758', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Tatopani Customs Surpasses Revenue Collection Target', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: The Tatopani Customs Office has collected revenue exceeding the target set for the first nine months of the current fiscal year. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">April 19: The Tatopani Customs Office has collected revenue exceeding the target set for the first nine months of the current fiscal year. </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 office collected Rs 8.56 billion in revenue against the target of Rs 5.59 billion, Customs Chief Dayananda KC told RSS. </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 KC, trade from the Tatopani Customs Point has increased after the resumption of the Nepal-China border. </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 Chinese government agreed to resume the two-way trade via Tatopani-Khasa route during a bilateral meeting of Nepal-China Coordination Mechanism on Border Trade and Cooperation held in Lhasa in March last year.</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"">As per the agreement, the Tatopani transit point was opened for full-fledged operation on May 1 last year, raising high hopes of increased trade. The transit point was opened more than three years after it was initially closed to control the COVID-19 outbreak in March 2020. Nepal’s export through the Tatopani-Khasa border had been almost nil since the 2015 earthquake.</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"">Prior to the earthquake, the trade volume through this transit point used to be more than Rs 150 billion annually. </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 revenue collected in the first nine months of this year is more than the revenue collected during the entire last fiscal year. </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 government had set a target of collecting Rs 4.62 billion in revenue in the last fiscal year from this customs point, but it collected only Rs 2.20 billion in the corresponding period of that year. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""> </span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20486', 'image' => '20240419105835_20230512122723_20211109014016_20210518054607_20190510014655_Clipboard04-2.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 10:57:47', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20759', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Tara Manandhar Appointed as CEO of Dish Media Network Ltd', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: Tara Manandhar has been appointed as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Dish Media Network Ltd.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">April 19: Tara Manandhar has been appointed as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Dish Media Network Ltd. According to the company, Manandhar, who has played a leadership role in the banking sector for more than 25 years, has assumed the position from April 15.</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 the company, he previously worked in leadership roles at Mashreq Bank, Prabhu Bank, Standard Chartered Bank, etc.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The company expressed confidence in Manandhar's ability to enhance the quality of services provided by strengthening management.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">DishHome, known for its quality services and diverse channel offerings, has expanded its reach in recent years. With approval from the Nepal Telecommunication Authority for fiber internet distribution three years ago, DishHome has now emerged as the second-largest internet service provider in Nepal.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""> </span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20485', 'image' => '20240419112059_CEO.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 11:20:02', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20757', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NEPSE Dips 19.56 Points, Closing at 1972.14', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) Index experienced a decline of 19.56 points or 0.98%, closing at 1972.14 on Thursday, the last trading day of the week.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:17.0pt">April 18: The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) Index experienced a decline of 19.56 points or 0.98%, closing at 1972.14 on Thursday, the last trading day of the week.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:17.0pt">During today’s trading session, 315 scrips were traded in 40,912 transactions, with a total of 5,344,613 shares changing hands, resulting in a total turnover of Rs 2.9 billion.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:17.0pt">Gurkhas Finance Limited (GUFL) led the turnover amount with a total transaction value of Rs 17 crores. Khanikhola Hydropower Company Limited (KKHC) recorded the highest gain of 7.94%.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:17.0pt">Conversely, Ru Ru Jalbidhyut Pariyojana Limited (RURU) suffered the maximum loss at 9.99%, closing at a market price of Rs 504 per share.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:17.0pt">In terms of sector indices, all sectors closed in the red. The Microfinance Index experienced the highest loss of 1.72%, while the Mutual Fund sector saw the least loss at 0.22%.</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-18', 'modified' => '2024-04-18', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20484', 'image' => '20240418032246_collage (59).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-18 15:21:29', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20756', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => '16 Hydel Projects under Construction in Tamor River ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 18: Taplejung district has received a huge investment in hydropower projects in Tamor river, the main river in the district, and other rivers. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">April 18: Taplejung district has received a huge investment in hydropower projects in Tamor river, the main river in the district, and other rivers. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Officials shared that 16 hydroelectricity projects are under construction in Tamor river and as high as 1,654.51 megawatt of power is expected to be generated. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to the Department of Electricity Development, 14 hydropower projects in the river are exclusively based in Phaktanglung Rural Municipality and two other projects fall under other local levels. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Likewise, four hydropower projects are being constructed in Mewakhola (river) that flows through Mewakhola Rural Municipality. The projects in Mewakhola are expected to produce 178.42 megawatts of electricity. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The department said four projects are under development in Kabeli river and the projects there would generate 95.43 megawatts of electricity. </span><br /> </span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-18', 'modified' => '2024-04-18', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20483', 'image' => '20240418020511_hydro.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-18 14:04:34', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ) ) $current_user = null $logged_in = false $xml = falseinclude - APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 133 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::_renderElement() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 1224 View::element() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 418 include - APP/View/Articles/index.ctp, line 157 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 473 Controller::render() - CORE/Cake/Controller/Controller.php, line 968 Dispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 200 Dispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 167 [main] - APP/webroot/index.php, line 117
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 133]file not found!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' => '20772', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'H5N1 Strain of Bird Flu Found in Milk: WHO ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 21: The H5N1 bird flu virus strain has been detected in very high concentrations in raw milk from infected animals, the WHO said Friday, though how long the virus can survive in milk is unknown. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">April 21: The H5N1 bird flu virus strain has been detected in very high concentrations in raw milk from infected animals, the WHO said Friday, though how long the virus can survive in milk is unknown. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Avian influenza A(H5N1) first emerged in 1996 but since 2020, the number of outbreaks in birds has grown exponentially, alongside an increase in the number of infected mammals. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The strain has led to the deaths of tens of millions of poultry, with wild birds and land and marine mammals also infected. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Cows and goats joined the list last month -- a surprising development for experts because they were not thought to be susceptible to this type of influenza. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">US authorities earlier this month said a person working on a dairy farm in Texas was recovering from bird flu after being exposed to cattle. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"The case in Texas is the first case of a human infected by avian influenza by a cow," said Wenqing Zhang, head of the global influenza programme at the World Health Organization. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"Bird-to-cow, cow-to-cow and cow-to-bird transmission have also been registered during these current outbreaks, which suggest that the virus may have found other routes of transition than we previously understood," she told a media briefing in Geneva. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">It was only the second case of a human testing positive for bird flu in the United States, and came after the virus sickened herds that were apparently exposed to wild birds. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"Now we see multiple herds of cows affected in an increasing number of US states, which shows a further step of the virus spillover to mammals," Zhang said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"The virus has also been detected in milk from infected animals." </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Zhang said there was a "very high virus concentration in raw milk", but experts were still investigating exactly how long the virus is able to survive in milk. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The Texas health department has said the cattle infections do not present a concern for the commercial milk supply, as dairies are required to destroy milk from sick cows. Pasteurisation also kills the virus. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"It is important for people to ensure safe food practices, including consuming only pasteurised milk and milk products," said Zhang. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">- Recent human cases mild - </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">From 2003 to April 1 this year, the WHO said it had recorded 463 deaths from 889 human cases across 23 countries, putting the case fatality rate at 52 percent. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Zhang noted that the human cases recorded in Europe and the United States in the past few years -- since the virus surged -- have been mild cases. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">So far, there is no evidence that A(H5N1) is spreading between humans. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">And Zhang stressed that the A(H5N1) viruses identified in cows and in the human case in Texas showed no increased adaptation to mammals. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">As for potential vaccines, if required, Zhang said there were some in the pipeline. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"Having candidate vaccine viruses ready allows us to be prepared to quickly produce vaccines for humans, if this becomes necessary," she said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"For this particular H5N1 virus detected in dairy cows, there are a couple of candidate vaccine viruses available." </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">In the case of a pandemic, there are close to 20 influenza vaccines licensed for pandemic use and they could be tailored with the specific virus strain in circulation, she said. – AFP/RSS</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-21', 'modified' => '2024-04-21', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20499', 'image' => '20240421111652_20240117114238_WHO.jpg.jpeg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-21 11:16:00', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20770', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Over 31,000 Foreign Tourists Visited Ghodepani Last Year ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 21: More than 31,000 foreign tourists visited Ghodepani-Poon Hill area of Annapurna rural municipality-6 in Myagdi district in 2080 BS. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px">April 21: More than 31,000 foreign tourists visited Ghodepani-Poon Hill area of Annapurna rural municipality-6 in Myagdi district in 2080 BS. <br /> According to Tourist Police Post, Ghodepani, 31,439 tourists visited the area in a year. The Tourist Police Post keeps record of foreign tourists entering and leaving Ghodepani. However, the post does not keep the record of domestic tourists visiting the area. <br /> A total of 25,279 tourists entered Ghodepani-Poon Hill area while 6,160 tourists went to other places via Ghodepani last year, said senior head constable at the Ghodepani Police Post, Tek Bahadur Magar. <br /> The highest number of foreign tourists visited Ghodepani in the month of Chait (mid-March to mid-April), which stood at 5,849. <br /> Similarly, 4,414 tourists entered Ghodepani-Poon Hill area in Baishakh (mid-April to mid-May), 1,281 in Jeth (mid-May to mid-June), 441 in Asar (mid-June to mid-July), 947 in Saun (mid-July to mid-August), 972 in Bhadau (mid-August to mid-September), 4,298 in Asoj (mid-September to mid-October), 4,357 in Kartik (mid-October to mid-November), 3,199 in Mangsir (mid-November to mid-December), 1,627 in Push (mid-December to mid-January), 1,577 in Magh (mid-January to mid-February) and 2,477 in Falgun (mid-February to mid-March). <br /> Likewise, 26,301 foreign tourists had visited Ghodepani in 2079 BS. Hotel entrepreneur Juli Thakuri Pun said the increasing number of tourists visiting Ghodepani area has raised hope among the hotel entrepreneurs. <br /> The arrival of domestic tourists has also increased due to favourable weather and school vacation, she added. Around 60,000-70,000 tourists used to visit Ghodepani annually before the coronavirus pandemic. <br /> Tourists arrive at Poon Hill and Ghodepani to see sunrise as well as panoramic view of rhododendron forest and mountains. There are 27 small and big hotels at Ghodepani. Poon Hill lies at a distance of one hour trek from Ghodepani at 3,210 meters above sea level. <br /> A domestic tourist has to pay Rs 50 while foreign tourist Rs 150 to enter Poon Hill area. One can see panoramic view of Dhaulagiri, Sisne, Gurja, Manapathi, Nilgiri, Annapurna, Machhapuchhre and Manaslu mountains from Poon Hill. -- RSS</span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-21', 'modified' => '2024-04-21', 'keywords' => 'Ghodepani, Poon Hill, trekking, tourism, Nepal', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20497', 'image' => '20240421101244_20240420090559_20151117032323_Baglung-Tourist.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-21 10:11:28', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20769', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => '265 Cottage and Small Industries Shut Down in Banke', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'As many as 265 cottage and small industries have closed down their shutters in Banke district in the last nine months of the current fiscal year, 2023/24. ', 'content' => '<p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:20px">April 20: As many as 265 cottage and small industries have closed down their shutters in Banke district in the last nine months of the current fiscal year, 2023/24. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px">While only a small number of these closures were officially registered, the majority, amounting to 165, occurred due to failure to renew licenses on time, according to Kashilal Adhikari, Information Officer at the Office of Cottage and Small Industries in Banke.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px">A total of 105 enterprises registered under industry and 160 under commerce firms were shut down, informed Adhikari, adding that industrialists often cite their family issues as a reason for closing down their industries.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"> It may be noted that the district had recorded closure of 160 cottage and small industries in the last fiscal year, 2022/23. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px">Various factors have contributed to the shutdown of small scale industries such as COVID-19 pandemic's lingering impact, high interest rate of banks, liquidity crisis, said Madhu Khadka, President of the Federation of Nepal Cottage and Small Industries, Banke's Chapter.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px">Closures of many small-scale industries have resulted into displacement of many entrepreneurs from Nepalgunj. (RSS) </span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-21', 'modified' => '2024-04-21', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20496', 'image' => '20240421062719_collage (60).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-21 06:25:57', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20767', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Govt Collects Royalties of Over Rs 500 Million from Climbers', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 20: With the onset of season for climbing Mt Everest (Sagarmatha), the government has collected over Rs 500 million in royalties so far. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">April 20: With the onset of season for climbing Mt Everest (Sagarmatha), the government has collected over Rs 500 million in royalties so far. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The Department of Tourism informed RSS that it collected Rs 505 million from 352 persons who were issued climbing permit to scale the world's highest peak, Mt Everest. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Director of the Adventure Tourism and Mountaineering Section under the department, Rakesh Gurung, informed that the number of adventure tourists grew significantly this year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The department said that a total of 352 mountaineers from 33 expeditions including 65 women and 287 men have been issued permits to climb Everest. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Last year, a total of 478 climbers – the maximum number ever – were issued permits to climb Everest. The department collected revenue of Rs 760 million last year, while it has collected Rs 505 million so far this year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Gurung estimated that some Rs 500 to Rs 700 million more revenue could be generated this year as the season has just started. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The government has collected royalties by issuing permits for climbing 24 peaks, including Everest. The highest peak is the source of most of the revenue. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"This spring, Sagarmatha ascent is encouraging. The number of climbers has reached more than 352 by April 19. The number of climbers could increase to over 400," Gurung shared. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The mountaineering regulation, 2059 has provision to impose Rs 1.1 million from each foreign climber during the spring season for climbing Everest, while each Nepali needs to pay Rs 75,000. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">A foreign climber spends at least Rs 3 to 10 million for climbing Everest. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Major source of income in tourism sector comes from revenue on mountain climbing. Spring season is best time for climbing mountains. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">In addition to the highest peak of the world, climbers have also been issued permits to climb Makalu, Annapurna, Kanchanjungha, Dhaulagiri, Lhotse Amadablam, Jugal among other mountains. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Currently, the Sherpa climbers are mobilized to prepare the trail with rope fixing. The route up to second base camp of the Sagarmatha is already fixed by the Sherpas also known as ‘icefall doctors’. </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-20', 'modified' => '2024-04-20', 'keywords' => 'Everest, mountain, climbing, Nepal, season, spring, royalties', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20494', 'image' => '20240420085641_369154-01-02.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-20 20:55:50', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20766', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Over 400,000 Tourists Visited Mustang by Road Last Year', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: Over 400,000 tourists visited Mustang in a one-year period from April 14, 2023 to April 12, 2024 by road, according to the data with the Ghasa police station located on the border of Myagdi and Mustang districts.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">April 19: Over 400,000 tourists visited Mustang in a one-year period from April 14, 2023 to April 12, 2024 by road, according to the data with the Ghasa police station located on the border of Myagdi and Mustang districts.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">The statistics show that 414,280 domestic and foreign tourists visited Mustang during the review period.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">The number of domestic tourists entering Mustang via road stood at 335,466, including 220,724 male and 114,742 female, said Deputy Superintendent of Police Bhojraj Pandey, the chief of the District Police Office, Mustang.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">Similarly, DSP Pandey said 78,814 foreigners visited Mustang during the review period. Among them, 72,756 were from the SAARC countries while 6058 were from countries other than the SAARC member states.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">According to him, 38,821 males and 33,935 females from SAARC countries visited Mustang during the review period. Similarly, 3,648 male and 2,410 female visitors from countries other than the SAARC member countries visited Mustang in the same period.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">The data shows that 11,484 tourists arrived in Mustang via air. Among them, 1,679 were domestic tourists (1,134 males and 545 females) while 8,055 (including 3,767 males and 4,288 females) were from the SAARC countries and 1,750 visitors (886 males and 864 females) were from countries other than the SAARC member states.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">Often referred to as the district beyond the Himalayas, Mustang is a prime tourism destination known for its iconic desert-like landscape. The bare mountains, Himalayan climate, culture and lifestyle, lakes, monasteries, Muktinath temple, caves are the major attractions of Mustang.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">Inflow of tourists to the religious and tourist places of Mustang including Muktinath, Jomsom, Kagbeni, Lo Manthang, Marpha, Thini, Dhumba Lake has gradually started increasing since last year, according to local tourism entrepreneurs.</span> -- <span style="font-size:16.0pt">RSS</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20493', 'image' => '20240419081925_20230724112952_20220424035529_istockphoto-534638391-612x612.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 20:18:33', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20765', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => '550,000 People Acquire Work Permits in Nine Months of Current Fiscal Year', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: Around 550,000 people have acquired work permits for overseas employment as of April 12 of the current fiscal year 2023/24. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">April 19: Around 550,000 people have acquired work permits for overseas employment as of April 12 of the current fiscal year 2023/24. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">Of them, 70,933 workers acquired work permits from March 14 to April 12. Among them, 64,241 are men and 6,692 are women, said Kabiraj Upreti, Director at the Department of Foreign Employment and Information Officer.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">Similarly, 55,575 people received work permit from July 17-August 17, 2023; 50,884 from August 18-September 17, 2023; 56,235 from September 18-October 17, 2023; 43,622 from October 18-November 16, 2023; 71,276 from November 17-December 16, 2023; 65,813 from December 17, 2023-January 14, 2024; 62,147 from January 15-February 12, 2024 and 65,658 from February 13-March 13, 2024, according to data of the department.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">A total of 17,818 people have gone for overseas employment in the UAE while 13,614 in Saudi Arabia, 11,204 in Qatar, 12,602 in Malaysia, 4,076 in Kuwait and 964 in Bahrain from March 14-April 12, 2024.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:16.0pt">Similarly, 2,299 people have gone for foreign employment in Romania, 960 in Croatia, 789 in Cyprus, 1,351 in Japan, 493 in the Maldives, 620 in Mauritius, and 657 in South Korea, shows the data.</span> -- RSS</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20492', 'image' => '20240419060836_20220814044404_postQueueImg_3-626bcca48a757.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 18:08:13', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20764', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Nawalpur Women Achieve Economic Independence by Operating Homestay ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: Bal Kumari Mahato of Kawasoti in Nawalparasi (Bardaghat Susta Purba) district does not worry anymore how to run her household thanks to the income she makes from operating homestay. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">April 19: Bal Kumari Mahato of Kawasoti in Nawalparasi (Bardaghat Susta Purba) district does not worry anymore how to run her household thanks to the income she makes from operating homestay. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Earlier dependent on agriculture, Mahato has found better source of income from operation of homestay for nearly five years thereby gaining economic independence. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Like Mahato, there are a handful of women in Chilaha village who are engaged in homestay. Resham Kumari Mahato of Kawasoti-10 shared, "Earlier we were involved in agriculture and earned scantly. After operating homestay, our earning has increased." </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The entrepreneurial women admitted that they enjoy attending to the guests and entertain them with their cultural performances and delicacies besides enjoying financial freedom. The homestay initiative has further empowered them by developing leadership qualities in them and further harnessing their management skills. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"Earlier we were too shy to talk to strangers but since we forayed into homestay enterprises, we have learned how to talk and run our enterprises confidently," said Resham Kumari. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The village where they operate homestay is predominantly a Tharu settlement and lies nearby a buffer zone. Most of the women running homestay at present were involved in agriculture in the past, which did not yield them good returns due to the menace of wild animals. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Animal husbandry also failed them secure a good income for the wild animals would prey their domestic animals. In lack of good income, their living standard had gone down, admitted Mahato. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"Following the homestay operation, our village is witnessing a socio-economic transformation and the living standards of fellow villagers have improved notably," she observed. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">These entrepreneurial women have adequately secured support from their spouses and family in running their business. Since the introduction of homestay, the village has welcomed around 11,000 guests, both domestic and foreign, informed Prem Bahadur Mukhiya, a homestay manager. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Jeep safari is another attraction for the homestay guests, added Mukhiya. Besides savoring the Tharu delicacies, nature enthusiasts can enthrall themselves watching wild animals such as rhino, antelope, wild boar, peacock, crocodiles and various species of birds roaming around in the buffer zone, he said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Ward chairperson of Kawasoti-10 Tek Narayan Mahato asserted that homestay had contributed in development and upliftment of the local community besides aiding in nature and culture conservation. -- RSS</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20491', 'image' => '20240419020716_449834462.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 14:06:43', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20763', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Auditors Emphasize on Sustainable Accounting Practices', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: An auditor is commonly known as a person who examines the accounts. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">April 19: An auditor is commonly known as a person who examines the accounts. An auditor has the right to verify the accounts prepared by the management in an organization or company. The auditor's role is not only limited to examining and commenting on the company's accounts. Auditors are becoming aware of the fact that they have to play a role for the sustainability of the audited company. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">As the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), the international umbrella organization of accounting professionals, is lobbying for the implementation of 'Sustainability Standard 1 and 2', the debate has also started among accounting professionals of Nepal.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">The theme of the 3rd National Accounting Practitioner Conference organized by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nepal (ICAN), which is working to promote and regulate accounting in Nepal, is 'Sustainable Accounting Practice'. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">Sujan Kumar Kafle, president of ICAN, said that the conference, which started on Thursday and will conclude on Friday, will focus on this topic and present and discuss papers in this regard.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">According to Kafle, the auditors should also look into environmental protection, social responsibility and good governance in addition to financial indicators to ensure the business to be sustainable. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">As a member country of IFAC, Nepal is also working with the Accounting and Auditing Board for sustainable accounting practices. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">Deepak Pandey, president of Chartered Accountants Association of Nepal (ACAN), the umbrella organization of chartered accountants, says that audit in Nepal has not risen above financial indicators. "Worldwide, the practice has started that auditing should rise above the disclosure of financial indicators," he said, "Now non-financial indicators are more important than financial indicators."</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">President of IFAC, Asmaa Resmouki, who came to Nepal to participate as a keynote speaker in the conference, pointed out the need to address issues of public interest for sustainable accounting practice. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">Inaugurating the conference, Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supplies Damodar Bhandari said that accountants play an important role in the economic development and prosperity of the country. He said that compliance with the code of ethics is mandatory in the auditing profession. Nepal Rastra Bank’s Governor Maha Prasad Adhikari said auditors are playing an important role in the development of the country's economy.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"ekmukta","serif"">In Nepal, 1000 chartered accountants and 7000 registered auditors are involved in auditing more than 300,000 organizations annually. According to ICAN, Nepal Financial Reporting Standards (NFRS) are being implemented in Nepal according to the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) to make the accounting and auditing system of international standards. Thousands of accountants from all over the country are participating in the conference.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20490', 'image' => '20240419020557_903c25db.jpeg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 14:05:16', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20762', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Malaysia's Policy not to Hire Foreign Workers to Impact Nepal', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: Malaysia's policy to stop hiring foreign workers in the formal sector from June 1 is a setback for the growing labor force of Nepal. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">April 19: Malaysia's policy to stop hiring foreign workers in the formal sector from June 1 is a major setback for the growing labor force of Nepal. The Malaysian government announced in March 2023 that foreign workers will be allowed to enter Malaysia only until the end of May. The time to get visa was fixed till April 21.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Malaysia employs foreign workers from 15 countries including Nepal. A large number of Nepalis have been working in Malaysia. According to government data, most of the Nepalis who took labour permits to work abroad in the last fiscal year went to Malaysia for work.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the Department of Foreign Employment, a total of 259,596 Nepali workers were issued labour permits to work in Malaysia last year. The figure includes new workers as well as those who renewed their work permits.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">In the current fiscal year, the number of Nepalis visiting to Malaysia for work has declined compared to last fiscal year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">As of mid-March this year, 63,976 Nepalis have traveled to Malaysiafor work. Malaysia has long been an important labour destination for Nepali workers.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Foreign employment experts say that the new policy adopted by the Malaysian government regarding migrant workers may have a direct impact on Nepal.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Foreign employment expert Ganesh Gurung says that Nepali workers will lose work opportunities in a major labour destination due to Malaysia's new policy. He pointed out that there is a danger that the number of people going to Malaysia illegally may increase while it may cause unemployment rate to rise in Nepal.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">“Banning foreign workers does not mean that companies in that country do not need foreign workers. It will increase the number of people going to Malaysia illegally," said Gurung.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to government estimates, more than 500,000 new labor force enters the labor market in Nepal every year. Almost all the labor force that is added every year in the market goes abroad. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the Department of Foreign Employment, 497,704 new Nepali workers went abroad for work last year. The number of people who came to Nepal on vacation from abroad and returned for work stood at 277,272. The figure shows that about 800,000 Nepalis went abroad for work last year. The number of students who go abroad is also large.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The country lacks job opportunities due to the poor condition of the economy. According to a recent report of the World Bank entitled 'South Asia Development Update', the employment ratio (employment in percent of working-age population) in Nepal has decreased by 11 percent in the last 23 years. As the working-age population is increasing, the trend of people going abroad in search of work has increased due to the inability to create jobs in the country.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">If Malaysia stops hiring foreign workers, remittances from there will also decrease in the future. Remittances have been an important pillar of the Nepalese economy for many years. According to the World Bank, among the South Asian countries, Nepal receives the most remittances compared to the country's gross domestic product. In the last fiscal year, Nepal received remittances of Rs 1220.56 billion.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">“If the number of workers going to Malaysia decreases, remittances from that country will obviously decrease. It may affect the Nepalese economy," said Dr Gurung said. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Dilliram Pokharel, deputy spokesperson and information officer of Nepal Rastra Bank, said that although it is not possible to say exactly how much remittance comes from Malaysia, it can be estimated that a large amount of money comec from there as there are a large number of Nepali workers in Malaysia. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Rajendra Bhandari, president of Nepal Foreign Employment Professionals Association, says that Malaysia's policy of not hiring foreign workers has caused a big crisis in foreign employment.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">He said that the demand for workers is low even in the Gulf countries, and its impact is being seen in Nepal. Bhandari says that it is time for the government to facilitate sending workers to other countries including Europe. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"After the closure of Malaysia, the government should facilitate the sending of workers to other countries, including Europe, where Nepali workers are in demand," he said. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Workers who go to the Gulf and Malaysia send remittances and return back and work within the country. But those who go to developed countries usually do not return and tend to take as much property as possible from the country.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Therefore, employment in the Gulf and Malaysia is important for Nepal, Gurung said. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to labor expert Gurung, the government should now create conditions for employment within the country. It is important to do homework about how many jobs are to be created and when. However, the country has not been able to create job opportunities due to political instability and poor investment environment in the country. Due to this, there is a trend among youths to travel abroad for work.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Stakeholders say that the closure of regular destination countries of Nepali workers will force them to go to work in risky places. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"At present, the trend of going to different countries illegally has increased," said Bhandari, adding, "Nepalis are ready go to Russia and Ukraine and die."</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Labor Govinda Prasad Rijal said that although the government has not received any official information from Malaysia about the decision not to hire workers, the ministry is preparing to get information through diplomatic channels. "The ministry will take necessary decisions accordingly," he said.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The Department of Foreign Employment estimates that there are more than 500,000 Nepali workers in Malaysia. This number is of those who legally went to Malaysia by taking work permits from the government. The number of people working illegally in Malaysia is believed to be equally high. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">A senior official of the Department of Foreign Employment informed that 44 percent of the Nepali workers who went for foreign employment in the last fiscal year went to Malaysia. Malaysia stopped hiring foreign workers for two years during the Covid-19 pandemic.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Last May, the government declared some organizations involved in the process of sending Nepali workers to Malaysia to be illegal and shut down their operations. This made it further difficult for Nepali workers to go to Malaysia.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20489', 'image' => '20240419013937_20240118121412_20220329081003_labour.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 13:38:48', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20761', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Average Length of Stay and Expenditure of Tourists Increase Marginally', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: The average stay and expenditure of foreign tourists in Nepal has seen a slight improvement in 2023. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">April 19: The average stay and expenditure of foreign tourists in Nepal has seen a slight improvement in 2023. The Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation announced that the average length of stay of tourists in 2023 increased by 0.8 percent to 13.2 days compared to 13.1 days in 2022.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Their daily expenses have also increased to USD 41, according to the 'Nepal Tourism Statistics 2023' recently released by the ministry. According to the report, the average daily expenditure of tourists was $40.50 in 2022.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">During the two-year period of the COVID-19 pandemic (in 2020 and 2021), the length of stay of tourists in Nepal was 15.1 and 15.5 days respectively. The stay of tourists increased in those years due to the lockdown and quarantine measures during the pandemic period. As the length of stay increased, the average expenditure incurred by the tourists also increased. In 2020, the daily expenditure of tourists was USD 65. In 2021, such expenses decreased to USD 48.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Binayak Shah, president of the Hotel Association Nepal (HAN), disputed the tourists’ expenditure figures published by the government, arguing that they significantly underestimate actual spending.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">He claims that tourists must have spent at least twice the amount mentioned by the government. He argues that the data fails to capture expenditures accurately.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to government data, the contribution of the tourism sector to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is 3.2 percent. “The data of the World Bank indicates that it is much higher than that," he said.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Shah says that the real contribution of the tourism sector is not known due to the lack of uniformity in the data of the government, tourism entrepreneurs and other organizations.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">"For this, the government should implement satellite accounting (an integrated information collection system that records the transactions made by tourists) at the earliest," he said, adding, “It helps to provide more precise insights into tourist spending habits.” </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Shah's concerns echo those of tourism professionals who emphasize the need to expand tourist services and destinations beyond Kathmandu, Pokhara, and Chitwan to prolong tourists' stays in Nepal. However, challenges such as poor road conditions and limited operational airports hinder intra-country travel, making it difficult for tourists to extend their visits.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20488', 'image' => '20240419124501_20220509072726_Clipboard96.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 12:42:58', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20760', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'United Arab Emirates Struggles to Recover after Heaviest Recorded Rainfall Ever Hits Desert Nation ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: The United Arab Emirates struggled Thursday to recover from the heaviest recorded rainfall ever to hit the desert nation, as its main airport worked to restore normal operations even as floodwater still covered portions of major highways and roads. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">April 19: The United Arab Emirates struggled Thursday to recover from the heaviest recorded rainfall ever to hit the desert nation, as its main airport worked to restore normal operations even as floodwater still covered portions of major highways and roads. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Dubai International Airport, the world's busiest for international travel, allowed global carriers on Thursday morning to again fly into Terminal 1 at the airfield. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">“Flights continue to be delayed and disrupted, so we urge you to only come to Terminal 1 if you have a confirmed booking,” the airport said on the social platform X. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The long-haul carrier Emirates, whose operations had been struggling since the storm Tuesday, had stopped travelers flying out of the UAE from checking into their flights as they tried to move out connecting passengers. Pilots and flight crews had been struggling to reach the airport given the water on roadways. But on Thursday, they lifted that order to allow customers into the airport. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Others who arrived at the airport described hourslong waits to get their baggage, with some just giving up to head home or to whatever hotel would have them. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The UAE, a hereditarily ruled, autocratic nation on the Arabian Peninsula, typically sees little rainfall in its arid desert climate. However, a massive storm forecasters had been warning about for days blew through the country's seven sheikhdoms. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">By the end of Tuesday, more than 142 millimeters (5.59 inches) of rainfall had soaked Dubai over 24 hours. An average year sees 94.7 millimeters (3.73 inches) of rain at Dubai International Airport. Other areas of the country saw even more precipitation. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The UAE's drainage systems quickly became overwhelmed, flooding out neighborhoods, business districts and even portions of the 12-lane Sheikh Zayed Road highway running through Dubai. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The state-run WAM news agency called the rain “a historic weather event” that surpassed “anything documented since the start of data collection in 1949.” </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">In a message to the nation late Wednesday, Emirati leader Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the ruler of Abu Dhabi, said authorities would “quickly work on studying the condition of infrastructure throughout the UAE and to limit the damage caused.” </span><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">On Thursday, people waded through oil-slicked floodwater to reach cars earlier abandoned, checking to see if their engines still ran. Tanker trucks with vacuums began reaching some areas outside of Dubai's downtown core for the first time as well. Schools remain closed until next week. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Authorities have offered no overall damage or injury information from the floods, which killed at least one person. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">“Crises reveal the strength of countries and societies,” Dubai's ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, wrote on X. “The natural climate crisis that we experienced showed the great care, awareness, cohesion and love for every corner of the country from all its citizens and residents.” </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The flooding sparked speculation that the UAE's aggressive campaign of cloud seeding — flying small planes through clouds dispersing chemicals aimed at getting rain to fall — may have contributed to the deluge. But experts said the storm systems that produced the rain were forecast well in advance and that cloud seeding alone would not have caused such flooding. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Jeff Masters, a meteorologist for Yale Climate Connections, said the flooding in Dubai was caused by an unusually strong low pressure system that drove many rounds of heavy thunderstorms. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Scientists also say climate change is responsible for more intense and more frequent extreme storms, droughts, floods and wildfires around the world. Dubai hosted the United Nations’ COP28 climate talks just last year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Abu Dhabi’s state-linked newspaper The National in an editorial Thursday described the heavy rains as a warning to countries in the wider Persian Gulf region to “climate-proof their futures.” </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">“The scale of this task is more daunting that it appears even at first glance, because such changes involve changing the urban environment of a region that for as long as it has been inhabited, has experienced little but heat and sand,” the newspaper said. – AP/RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20487', 'image' => '20240419113333_370910-01-02.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 11:32:57', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20758', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Tatopani Customs Surpasses Revenue Collection Target', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: The Tatopani Customs Office has collected revenue exceeding the target set for the first nine months of the current fiscal year. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">April 19: The Tatopani Customs Office has collected revenue exceeding the target set for the first nine months of the current fiscal year. </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 office collected Rs 8.56 billion in revenue against the target of Rs 5.59 billion, Customs Chief Dayananda KC told RSS. </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 KC, trade from the Tatopani Customs Point has increased after the resumption of the Nepal-China border. </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 Chinese government agreed to resume the two-way trade via Tatopani-Khasa route during a bilateral meeting of Nepal-China Coordination Mechanism on Border Trade and Cooperation held in Lhasa in March last year.</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"">As per the agreement, the Tatopani transit point was opened for full-fledged operation on May 1 last year, raising high hopes of increased trade. The transit point was opened more than three years after it was initially closed to control the COVID-19 outbreak in March 2020. Nepal’s export through the Tatopani-Khasa border had been almost nil since the 2015 earthquake.</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"">Prior to the earthquake, the trade volume through this transit point used to be more than Rs 150 billion annually. </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 revenue collected in the first nine months of this year is more than the revenue collected during the entire last fiscal year. </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 government had set a target of collecting Rs 4.62 billion in revenue in the last fiscal year from this customs point, but it collected only Rs 2.20 billion in the corresponding period of that year. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""> </span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20486', 'image' => '20240419105835_20230512122723_20211109014016_20210518054607_20190510014655_Clipboard04-2.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 10:57:47', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20759', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Tara Manandhar Appointed as CEO of Dish Media Network Ltd', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 19: Tara Manandhar has been appointed as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Dish Media Network Ltd.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">April 19: Tara Manandhar has been appointed as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Dish Media Network Ltd. According to the company, Manandhar, who has played a leadership role in the banking sector for more than 25 years, has assumed the position from April 15.</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 the company, he previously worked in leadership roles at Mashreq Bank, Prabhu Bank, Standard Chartered Bank, etc.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The company expressed confidence in Manandhar's ability to enhance the quality of services provided by strengthening management.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">DishHome, known for its quality services and diverse channel offerings, has expanded its reach in recent years. With approval from the Nepal Telecommunication Authority for fiber internet distribution three years ago, DishHome has now emerged as the second-largest internet service provider in Nepal.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""> </span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-19', 'modified' => '2024-04-19', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20485', 'image' => '20240419112059_CEO.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-19 11:20:02', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20757', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NEPSE Dips 19.56 Points, Closing at 1972.14', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) Index experienced a decline of 19.56 points or 0.98%, closing at 1972.14 on Thursday, the last trading day of the week.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:17.0pt">April 18: The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) Index experienced a decline of 19.56 points or 0.98%, closing at 1972.14 on Thursday, the last trading day of the week.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:17.0pt">During today’s trading session, 315 scrips were traded in 40,912 transactions, with a total of 5,344,613 shares changing hands, resulting in a total turnover of Rs 2.9 billion.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:17.0pt">Gurkhas Finance Limited (GUFL) led the turnover amount with a total transaction value of Rs 17 crores. Khanikhola Hydropower Company Limited (KKHC) recorded the highest gain of 7.94%.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:17.0pt">Conversely, Ru Ru Jalbidhyut Pariyojana Limited (RURU) suffered the maximum loss at 9.99%, closing at a market price of Rs 504 per share.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:17.0pt">In terms of sector indices, all sectors closed in the red. The Microfinance Index experienced the highest loss of 1.72%, while the Mutual Fund sector saw the least loss at 0.22%.</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-18', 'modified' => '2024-04-18', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20484', 'image' => '20240418032246_collage (59).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-18 15:21:29', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '20756', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => '16 Hydel Projects under Construction in Tamor River ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'April 18: Taplejung district has received a huge investment in hydropower projects in Tamor river, the main river in the district, and other rivers. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">April 18: Taplejung district has received a huge investment in hydropower projects in Tamor river, the main river in the district, and other rivers. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Officials shared that 16 hydroelectricity projects are under construction in Tamor river and as high as 1,654.51 megawatt of power is expected to be generated. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to the Department of Electricity Development, 14 hydropower projects in the river are exclusively based in Phaktanglung Rural Municipality and two other projects fall under other local levels. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Likewise, four hydropower projects are being constructed in Mewakhola (river) that flows through Mewakhola Rural Municipality. The projects in Mewakhola are expected to produce 178.42 megawatts of electricity. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The department said four projects are under development in Kabeli river and the projects there would generate 95.43 megawatts of electricity. </span><br /> </span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-04-18', 'modified' => '2024-04-18', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '20483', 'image' => '20240418020511_hydro.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-04-18 14:04:34', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ) ) $current_user = null $logged_in = false $xml = falsesimplexml_load_file - [internal], line ?? include - APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 133 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::_renderElement() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 1224 View::element() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 418 include - APP/View/Articles/index.ctp, line 157 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 473 Controller::render() - CORE/Cake/Controller/Controller.php, line 968 Dispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 200 Dispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 167 [main] - APP/webroot/index.php, line 117
| Currency | Unit |
Buy | Sell |
| U.S. Dollar | 1 | 121.23 | 121.83 |
| European Euro | 1 | 131.65 | 132.31 |
| UK Pound Sterling | 1 | 142.47 | 143.18 |
| Swiss Franc | 1 | 124.29 | 124.90 |
| Australian Dollar | 1 | 71.69 | 72.05 |
| Canadian Dollar | 1 | 83.90 | 84.32 |
| Japanese Yen | 10 | 10.94 | 11.00 |
| Chinese Yuan | 1 | 17.17 | 17.26 |
| Saudi Arabian Riyal | 1 | 32.27 | 32.43 |
| UAE Dirham | 1 | 33.01 | 33.17 |
| Malaysian Ringgit | 1 | 27.36 | 27.50 |
| South Korean Won | 100 | 9.77 | 9.82 |
Update: 2020-03-25 | Source: Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB)
| Fine Gold | 1 tola | 77000.00 |
| Tejabi Gold | 1 tola | 76700.00 |
| Silver | 1 tola | 720.00 |
Update : 2020-03-25
Source: Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers' Association
| Petrol | 1 Liter | 106.00 |
| Diesel | 1 Liter | 95.00 |
| Kerosene | 1 Liter | 95.00 |
| LP Gas | 1 Cylinder | 1375.00 |
Update : 2020-03-25
