January 2: A record high number of tourists visited the Annapurna region in…
January 2: A record high number of tourists visited the Annapurna region in…
January 2: The price of tomatoes has decreased by Rs 10 in a single day.…
January 2: After the government turned a blind eye to the problems faced by the construction sector, the construction entrepreneurs warned to start protest again.…
January 2: The Nepal Electricity Authority will not be able to collect additional fees from the industries for the electricity consumed before and after the load shedding…
January 2: At a time when the government and the regulatory bodies are claiming that the economy has improved in in recent months, a survey conducted by the private sector has shown that there has not been any improvement in the country’s overall…
January 2: The number of tourists visiting the Kanchanjunga area to view the third highest peak in the world has declined sharply owing to growing cold of…
January 1: The outstanding dues of industries for using the Nepal Electricity Authority’s dedicated feeder and trunk lines during load shedding has increased from Rs billion to Rs 22 billion as the dispute continues to…
January 1: A government study has shown that when the policy-level decision of the government to ban marijuana only increases its illegal trade.…
January 1: The government has decided to cut down the expenses on snacks for the meeting of the Council of Ministers in a bid to reform the state…
January 1: Sauraha, a renowned tourist destination in Chitwan district, witnessed a large number of people on Sunday to celebrate the English New Year.…
January 1: The government was compelled to postpone the Visit Nepal Year 2020 campaign due to the outbreak of Covid-19…
January 1: The local government of Ichchhakamana rural municipality in Chitwan is organising a three-day orange festival starting from today with the objective of ensuring market for oranges produced in the local unit’s…
December 31: When Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal was assuring industrialists to form a high-level commission to resolve the tariff dispute of dedicated feeder and trunk lines, the Nepal Electricity Authority was preparing to cut off electricity supply to more…
December 31: Stakeholders have pointed out the need to expedite the construction of Nijgadh International Airport in order to manage air traffic congestion at the Tribhuvan International Airport in the…
December 31: The government has approved the Kathmandu-Tarai Expressway (Fast Track) Project to cut trees to expedite the construction work.…
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According to the Annapurna Conservation Area Project (ACAP), a total of </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">191</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">,5</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">58</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> foreign tourists visited the world-famous Annapurna Circuit for trekking in the review year</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Prior to this, the highest number of tourists (</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">181</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">,</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">000</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">) had visited the Annapurna region in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2019</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">A new record has been established in the arrival of tourists in the Annapurna region in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2023</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">," said the head of the Annapurna Conservation Area Project, Rabin Kadaria, adding, "Recently, there has been an increase in the number of tourists from South Asian countries, while tourists from other countries have decreased."</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2019</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">, a total of </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">53,710</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> tourists from South Asian countries reached Annapurna, while last year </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">97,554</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> people from this region visited the area.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Tourists from other countries have decreased compared to before, according to the statistics of ACAP. In </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2019</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">127,290</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> tourists from countries other than the SAARC region entered the Annapurna region, while last year a total of </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">94,400</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> tourists visited the region, Kadaria informed.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to him, tourists from </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">173</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> countries visited the Annapurna region in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2023</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> out of which </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">96</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">,</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">187</span></span> <span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">tourists were from India. In the review year, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">8,526</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> tourists from France, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">7,641</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> from Germany, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">7,249</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> from America, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">7,174</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> from Britain and </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">6,323</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> from China entered the Annapurna region.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The arrival of tourists took a nosedive with the onset of Covid-</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">19</span></span> <span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">pandemic. But with the end of the pandemic, tourism in the Annapurna region has returned to normalcy. A total of </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">16</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">,</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">10</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">5 tourists visited the Annapurna region in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2021</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> during the pandemic. The following year i.e. in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2022</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">, altogether </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">129,733</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> tourists reached the area.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">ACAP project chief Kadaria said that the number of tourists from Europe and America coming for trekking has decreased as the old foot trails are being displaced by newly-built roads. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">"The foot trails in the Annapurna Circuit are in existential crisis due to the expansion of the road network. As a result, Annapurna Circuit’s charm as a renowned trekking destination is diminishing,” said Kadaria, adding that all stakeholders need to protect the foot trails in order to protect the identity of the Annapurna Circuit, which is one of the top ten destinations in the world according to the list prepared by Lonely Planet.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Every year, millions of domestic and foreign tourists visit the Annapurna base camp, Mardi Himal, Ghandruk, Tilicho Lake in Manang, Thorangla Pass, Upper Mustang, Muktinath region, Ghodepani in Myagdi whih fall along the Annapurna Circuit.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The Annapurna Conservation Area Project only keeps the data of foreign tourists who visit these destinations. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">"It is ascertain the exact number of domestic tourists, but the number of people entering Mustang and Manang by road is significant," said the project chief Kadaria, adding, "There is more visitors during the two seasons – autumn and spring."</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The Annapurna conservation area spreads over </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">7,600</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> square kilometers and is considered an attractive destination for trekking.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Three years ago, the famous international travel site Lonely Planet listed the Annapurna Circuit as one of the top </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">10</span></span> <span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">destinations in the world. The importance of this area was further highlighted when UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres visited the Annapurna base camp during his recent visit to Nepal in November.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Mustang Valley, which was included in the list of </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">23</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> must-visit destinations in the world by the American news agency CNN in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2023</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">, is also located in the Annapurna Conservation Area. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Tourist guide Divas Gurung says that the Annapurna region is one of the preferred choices of tourists because of its natural beauty, bio-diversity, rustic mountain life, culture, among others.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Visitors can opt for short, medium and long-distance trekking in the Annapurna region from any route including Kaski, Lamjung, Manang, Myagdi," he said.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-02', 'modified' => '2024-01-02', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19597', 'image' => '20240102031942_20220508080527_Annapurna circuit (3).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-02 15:19:07', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19869', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Price of Tomatoes Drops by Ten Rupees in a Single Day', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 2: The price of tomatoes has decreased by Rs 10 in a single day. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">January 2: The price of tomatoes has decreased by Rs 10 in a single day. According to the Kalimati Fruit and Vegetable Market Development Committee, the price of tomatoes has decreased by Rs 10 per kg on Tuesday (today) compared to Monday (yesterday).</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">According to the committee, the average price of big tomatoes produced in the country which was Rs 55 per kg on Monday has dropped to Rs 45 per kg on Tuesday. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">Similarly, the average price of big tomatoes imported from India which was Rs 65 per kg on Monday, is being sold at Rs 55per kg on Tuesday.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">Similarly, small local tomatoes are being sold at Rs 15 per kg and tomatoes cultivated through tunnel farming are being sold at Rs 25 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">The committee has fixed the price of red potatoes at Rs 35 per kg on Tuesday. Potatoes imported from India are being sold at Rs 30 per kg in the wholesale market. Likewise, the wholesale price of white potatoes has been fixed at Rs 26 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">Likewise, the committee has fixed the price of onions imported from India at Rs 75 per kg and those imported from China at Rs 60 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">The price of local carrot has been fixed at Rs 40 per kg and local cabbage at Rs 30 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">The price of cauliflower has dropped to Rs 20 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">Local white radish is being sold at a wholesale price of Rs 12 per kg and red radish at Rs 15 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">Similarly, the price of peas has been fixed at Rs 50 per kg, local green beans at Rs 30 per kg, brinjal at Rs 30 per kg, pumpkin at Rs 40 per kg, lady’s finger at Rs 90 per kg and broad beans at Rs 80 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-02', 'modified' => '2024-01-02', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19596', 'image' => '20240102022251_20230818115845_Product-IMG_TOV-rev2.original.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-02 14:22:12', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19868', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Construction Entrepreneurs Warn of Fresh Protests', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 2: After the government turned a blind eye to the problems faced by the construction sector, the construction entrepreneurs warned to start protest again. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">January 2: After the government turned a blind eye to the problems faced by the construction sector, the construction entrepreneurs warned to start protest again. The Federation of Contractors Association of Nepal, the umbrella organization of construction entrepreneurs, said that they were unable to submit bills worth more than Rs 40 billion of the already-completed projects because the government did not take the issue of extension of the deadline seriously.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The federation has already staged several protests to pressurize the government to meet the demands of the construction entrepreneurs, including the payment of completed work. The federation issued a press statement on Monday and warned that they will begin a new protest as the government did not implement the agreements reached in the past.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">"Government offices have stated that those points cannot be implemented due to the fear of being monitored by agencies such as the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority, the National Vigilance Center and the Auditor General," the statement reads.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">General Secretary of the Federation Roshan Dahal said that the contractors could not even submit bills worth more than Rs 40 billion to the concerned offices due to the non-implementation of the past agreements.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">FCAN said that they have not been able to pay bank loans, taxes and the construction workers due to the delay in payment of dues by the government. This has also affected the supply chain, FCAN officials claimed. The federation stated that this has had a negative impact on the overall economy.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The statement further mentions that the construction industry is on the verge of closure due to the government’s indifference.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to the federation, businessmen who went bankrupt have even committed self-immolation.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The federation has warned that the situation will turn more complicated that if the state does not show any seriousness to solve the existing problems.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The statement further says that if the government does not implement the agreement as soon as possible, the federation will be forced to launch the final movement to ensure the rights of the construction industry. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">At a time when the government is struggling to spend capital expenditure, the construction entrepreneurs have warned of starting their protest during the peak season of construction. </span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-02', 'modified' => '2024-01-02', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19595', 'image' => '20240102125628_1704159819.1702872410.fcan.jpeg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-02 12:55:49', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19867', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NEA can Collect Additional Fees from Industries only for Load Shedding Period: Commission', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 2: The Nepal Electricity Authority will not be able to collect additional fees from the industries for the electricity consumed before and after the load shedding period.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">January 2: The Nepal Electricity Authority will not be able to collect additional fees from the industries for the electricity consumed before and after the load shedding period. This decision was taken by a meeting of the Electricity Regulatory Commission on Monday. The authority had announced that load shedding had ended on May 14, 2018.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The NEA has demanded the industries to pay additional tariffs even for the electricity consumed after the end of load shedding. The commission’s Secretary Gokarnaraj Pantha said that the commission meeting decided that the NEA will be allowed to collect additional fees only if there was load shedding in the country after May 2018.</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 Pantha, the commission canceled the additional fee for dedicated feeder and trunk line on June 15, 2020. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">As the additional charge was valid until the cut-off date, industries will be liable to pay the dues as of June 15, 2020 on condition that that they had utilized electricity for more than twenty hours a day during load-shedding.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The commission’s secretary made it clear that all the customers are getting regular supply of electricity and the authority will not be allowed to charge additional fee for dedicated feeder and trunk lines during normal circumstances.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“The NEA can levy additional charges for using dedicated feeder and trunk lines only in case of load shedding. If the NEA can provide evidence that load shedding was taking place at that time, then it can levy the fee. The main dispute at present is about the bill issued by NEA after it announced the end of load shedding.”</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-02', 'modified' => '2024-01-02', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19594', 'image' => '20240102121524_NEA_eight by six.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-02 12:14:48', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19866', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Economy yet to Improve: CNI Survey', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 2: At a time when the government and the regulatory bodies are claiming that the economy has improved in in recent months, a survey conducted by the private sector has shown that there has not been any improvement in the country’s overall economy.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">January 2: At a time when the government and the regulatory bodies are claiming that the economy has improved in in recent months, a survey conducted by the private sector has shown that there has not been any improvement in the country’s overall economy.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">A survey conducted by the Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) has shown that the economy has not improved in the first quarter of the current fiscal year as claimed by the government.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“The overall market demand has fallen. The prices of raw materials have been constantly rising. There has been a decline in the import of industrial raw materials,'' reads a press statement issued by CNI on Monday.</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 survey, the overall market demand for the industrial products decreased by 28.28 percent last year. It has further decreased by 12.06 percent in the same period of the current fiscal year.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Compared to the first quarter of the fiscal year (FY) 2021/22, the overall demand of industries has contracted by a total of 36.93 in the corresponding period of FY 2023/24. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Similarly, the turnover of the industries had decreased by 24.94 percent in the previous year while it decreased by 30.54 this year, the report added.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-02', 'modified' => '2024-01-02', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19593', 'image' => '20240102112342_20230828114446_CNIIII.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-02 11:23:00', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19865', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Cold Affects Arrival of Tourists in Kanchanjunga Region ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 2: The number of tourists visiting the Kanchanjunga area to view the third highest peak in the world has declined sharply owing to growing cold of late. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 2: The number of tourists visiting the Kanchanjunga area to view the third highest peak in the world has declined sharply owing to growing cold of late. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Tourism entrepreneur Pema Sherpa informed RSS that the area witnessed severe cold for some days, resulting in the decline in arrival of tourists. However, the region is yet to witness snowfall this year. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The hotel and lodges in the area are closed due to lack of visitors. The hoteliers of Kanchanjunga area have shifted down to Phungling, while some have traveled to Kathmandu to avoid cold. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The Kanchanjungha area witnessed the arrival of large number of tourists before the onset of winter, according to Tasi Tenjing Sherpa, who is affiliated to the Kanchanjungha Conservation Area Management Council. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"The Kanchanjunga area had recorded entry of 760 tourists from different countries from mid-September to mid-December. It was highest number of tourist inflow since the COVID-19 subsided," he said. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-02', 'modified' => '2024-01-02', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19592', 'image' => '20240102110049_Kanchanjunga SVO (4).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-02 10:59:53', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19864', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Industrialists Ready to Pay Electricity Bills if NEA Produces Evidence', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 1: The outstanding dues of industries for using the Nepal Electricity Authority’s dedicated feeder and trunk lines during load shedding has increased from Rs billion to Rs 22 billion as the dispute continues to linger.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">January 1: The outstanding dues of industries for using the Nepal Electricity Authority’s dedicated feeder and trunk lines during load shedding has increased from Rs billion to Rs 22 billion as the dispute continues to linger.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">When the dispute started about five years ago, the outstanding amount that the industries were liable to pay to the NEA was only Rs 4 billion. Due to the stance taken by the Nepal Electricity Authority and the industrialists, the outstanding amount has increased to Rs 22.24 billion. It seems to have a direct impact on Nepal's productive sector and the overall economy.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Speaking at a press conference organized by the Federation of Nepalese Chamber of Commerce and Industries (FNCCI) in the capital, former FNCCI President Pashupati Murarka said that a sub-committee formed under the coordination of NEA board member Bhakta Bahadur Pun by the 768th board meeting of the NEA on </span></span><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">May 14, 2018</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> had determined the outstanding dues that the industries were liable to pay to the NEA of using the dedicated feeder and trunk line at Rs 4 billion.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">"We could not pay the electricity tariff because the authority submitted false details. The outstanding amount has been piling up ever since then. As a result, the authority cut the line to the industries and its impact is affecting the productive sector and the overall economy of Nepal," he said.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The arrears of Rs 22.24 billion at present includes interest and fines of the fee determined by the Electricity Tariff Determination Commission for industries that used electricity continuously during the load-shedding period.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">On </span></span><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">October 2, 2016</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">, the commission had authorized the NEA to charge additional fee to customers who were using electricity continuously for 20 hours from the dedicated line during six hours of load shedding at that time. However, the NEA sent letter to the industries in </span></span><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">2018</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> demanding clearance of the electricity bills by ignoring the conditions set by the commission. This led to a dispute between the two parties. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Pawan Golyan, president of Yarn Producers' Association, said that the NEA was unable to provide any evidence that the industrialists had used excess electricity, and accused the NEA of trying to endanger the country's economy by cutting off power supply to the industries after the arrears increased to over Rs 22 billion. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">“The authority could neither present evidence at that time nor is it trying to present evidence now,” he said, adding that such a policy of the NEA could lead to further increase in arrears and the collapse of industries.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Dhruba Thapa, president of Nepal Cement Industry Association, also said that the authority has done injustice to the industries by sending fake bills without facts and evidence. He said that the recent move of the authority has created a situation due to which the industrialists have been compelled to migrate abroad. Thapa argues that the NEA charged the bill even for the electricity they never used just to show that the state-owned utility is in profit.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">“If the authority seeks help for making it profitable, the industrialists are ready to help as much as possible. However, we are not ready to bear unnecessary burden," he said.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""> </span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-01', 'modified' => '2024-01-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19591', 'image' => '20240101040647_1703994624.1612736027.Clipboard12.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-01 16:06:05', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19863', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Banning Marijuana Promotes Illegal Trade: Government Study', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 1: A government study has shown that when the policy-level decision of the government to ban marijuana only increases its illegal trade. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">January 1: A government study has shown that when the policy-level decision of the government to ban marijuana only increases its illegal trade. The Narcotic Drugs (Control) Act, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2033</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> makes the dealing of marijuana or marijuana products illegal. However, as a result of the ban imposed by the law on marijuana trade, its illegal trade is increasing every year, according to a study conducted by the government.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">A report prepared by the state-run Institute of Policy and Research based on the data provided by the Ministry of Home Affairs shows that the number of people involved in illegal trade of marijuana has increased every year due to the ban. The report also suggests that the government should adopt a lenient policy on marijuana with certain conditions.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to the report, there is a possibility of illegal market of marijuana flourishing with the legal changes if the government adopts a lenient policy towards marijuana. In Canada, which has legalized the recreational use of marijuana, it has been found that the illegal trade has outpaced the legal business. It is believed that customers might have been attracted more to the illegal market because marijuana available in the illegal market is cheaper and contains more </span></span><span style="font-family:"Helvetica","sans-serif"">tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), a substance that is primarily responsible for the effects of marijuana on a person’s mental state</span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">It is mentioned in the report that countries that have legalized cannabis cultivation and business have also experienced an increase in illegal transactions due to the limitations of the legal market and complicated administrative procedures.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In the course of the study, it was found that marijuana produced in Nepal or exported from Nepal is popular in the Netherlands. The report further mentions that Alibaba company is selling and distributing Nepali marijuana online under the name of 'Dhawalagiri Cake'.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Marijuana cultivation and business is illegal in Nepal, but due to the open border with India, Nepal is becoming a transit for marijuana business with third countries, according to the report of the Ministry of Home Affairs. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">"Not only one, but many routes and patterns are active for illegal trade and transportation," the report states, adding, "Clothes, shoes, yarn, artistic and decorative materials made from hemp fibers or mixed with hemp fibers are sold unabated in Thamel, the main tourist hub of Kathmandu.'</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Since the production of marijuana is illegal, these marijuana products are usually sold under the name of hemp or natural fiber. There is high risk in operating business by changing the name, states the report prepared by Dr Manita Kusi, Dr Hari Sharma Neupane, Dr Mukunda Raj Kattel, Advocate Hari Prasad Mainali, Prof Rajendra Gyawali, Dr Prarak Regmi and Pushkar Basyal.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">It is also mentioned in the study report that the traders of Thamel were confused when they inquired whether products sold by them had more than the quantity of marijuana prescribed by the Narcotic Drugs Act. "This confusion is the result of the ambiguity in our existing laws which can be misused for illegal transactions," the report states, adding, "Therefore, it is necessary to have a clear policy as well as legal and administrative framework. If that is not done, Nepal will remain at risk of illegal business in one form or another even after the legalization of marijuana.”</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-01', 'modified' => '2024-01-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19590', 'image' => '20240101022832_20231210023326_20221030030309_20201204014433_1607039093.Clipboard09.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-01 14:27:57', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19862', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Government Cuts Down Expenses on Snacks for Cabinet Meetings, Saving Rs 6 Million Annually ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 1: The government has decided to cut down the expenses on snacks for the meeting of the Council of Ministers in a bid to reform the state apparatus.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 1: The government has decided to cut down the expenses on snacks for the meeting of the Council of Ministers in a bid to reform the state apparatus. Stating that the government should initiate reforms from small topics, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal announced at the cabinet meeting held in Singha Durbar on Monday morning that the expenditure on snacks served in such meetings will be been cut down from now onwards, according to the Prime Minister's Secretariat. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The PM’s Office stated that approximately Rs 60,000 is spent on snacks in each meeting of the Council of Ministers. It is said the Council of Ministers meets more than 100 times in a year. Govinda Acharya, the press advisor to the prime minister, said that around Rs 6 million will be saved annually with the decision to cut down the snack expenses in the meeting of the Council of Ministers. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Normal snacks will be served in the meeting of the Council of Ministers from now on, the PM’s Secretariat said. Acharya said PM Dahal has started reforms from his own office considering minor issues as significant measures for good governance and reforms. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Prime Minister Dahal who recently announced to change the working style of the government has been reaching the Prime Minister's Office at Singha Durbar at 10.0 am daily, except on public holidays. He has been taking daily briefing from various ministries and initiatives for resolving the problems seen in development projects, including the national pride projects, from the Singha Durbar. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Meanwhile, the government's decision to use the Nepal Sambat calendar in all the government documents has been implemented. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-01', 'modified' => '2024-01-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19589', 'image' => '20240101020213_20230224010200_1677194359.Clipboard07.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-01 14:01:31', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19861', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Tourists Flock to Sauraha to Celebrate English New Year', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 1: Sauraha, a renowned tourist destination in Chitwan district, witnessed a large number of people on Sunday to celebrate the English New Year. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">January 1: Sauraha, a renowned tourist destination in Chitwan district, witnessed a large number of people on Sunday to celebrate the English New Year. The number of domestic tourists has increased due to a public holiday on the New Year ’s Eve.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Tourists visit Sauraha to enjoy the tourist activities such as elephant ride, jeep safari and boating.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Regional Hotel Association’s Vice President Om Prakash Pandey said that has been a good influx of tourists since September. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">"In the last few days, the occupancy of hotels in Sauraha is encouraging,” said Pandey, adding that his hotel – Forest Park – had </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">75</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> percent occupancy.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">He said that the presence of Indian and Chinese tourists along with domestic tourists is also encouraging in Sauraha. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The general secretary of the association, Gunaraj Thapalia, said that all the rooms were full on Saturday as expected for the New Year’s Eve on Sunday.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to Thapalia, the owner of Unique Wild Resort, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">30</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> rooms in his hotel have been fully booked till January </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">4</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to Deepak Bhattarai, outgoing president of the association, there are around </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">160</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> hotels in Sauraha. The hotel has the capacity to serve seven thousand people at a time. Sauraha can accommodate more than </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">10,000</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> people for one night with the homestay facility. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Tourists who come to Sauraha go for a jeep safari in the nearby community forests. They can also enjoy jeep safari inside the Chitwan National Park. According to Bhattarai, around </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">100</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> jeep safaris are taking place daily in the community forest alone. Tourists have to wait for their turn for the jeep safaris.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Suman Ghimire, the former president of the association, said that the arrival of tourists was unprecedented during this period. According to him, tourists are coming now as in the pre-Covid situation. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">“Tourists prefer to visit here in winter season. Booking for the coming days is good. This has made us hopeful," he said.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to the outgoing president of Restaurant and Bar Association (REBAN), Dipendra Khatiwada, there is a good presence of tourists in the restaurants of Sauraha since Dashain.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Along with Sauraha, there is also a good presence of tourists in Patihani, Jagatpur, and Meghauli. There is a good presence of Indian and Chinese tourists as tourists from third countries go home to celebrate New Year and Christmas.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Ganesh Paudel, owner of Jungle Villa in Patihani, said that the arrival of tourists is encouraging. He said that they are hopeful that tourism industry will return to the pre-covid situation.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-01', 'modified' => '2024-01-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19588', 'image' => '20240101010417_jeep-drive.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-01 13:03:37', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19860', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Government Preparing to Celebrate Visit Nepal Year in 2025', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 1: The government was compelled to postpone the Visit Nepal Year 2020 campaign due to the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">January 1: The government was compelled to postpone the Visit Nepal Year </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2020</span></span> <span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">campaign due to the outbreak of Covid-</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">19</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> pandemic. The campaign, which started with the announcement of bringing two million tourists to Nepal in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2020</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">, was postponed due to unfavourable circumstances.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Now, the government is once again preparing to launch the campaign in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2025</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> AD</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">. </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Sudan Kirati revealed this on the occasion of the </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">25</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">th anniversary of Nepal Tourism Board.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The minister also emphasized on the development of Nepal’s tourism industry. “Apart from Kathmandu and some famous destinations, other destinations of Nepal are also worth visiting,” he said, adding that it is necessary to pay attention to this factor as well.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">On this occasion, Chief Executive Officer of Nepal Tourism Board, Dhananjay Regmi said that preparations are being made to announce the Visit Nepal Year </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2025</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">. He said that the campaign will be launched when the private sector is ready to welcome the tourists. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Nepal had previously organised the Visit Nepal Year in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2011. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Regmi also emphasized that the government and the private sector should work together to attract </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">3.5 </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">million tourists to Nepal annually after </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">10 </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">years as envisaged in the Tourism Decade plan of the government.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-01', 'modified' => '2024-01-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19587', 'image' => '20240101121158_1704073486.1566910573.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-01 12:11:11', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19859', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Orange Festival being Organised to Ensure its Market ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 1: The local government of Ichchhakamana rural municipality in Chitwan is organising a three-day orange festival starting from today with the objective of ensuring market for oranges produced in the local unit’s villages.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 1: The local government of Ichchhakamana rural municipality in Chitwan is organising a three-day orange festival starting from today with the objective of ensuring market for oranges produced in the local unit’s villages including Tokdand, Dhap, Majhgaun, Sirangaun and Dode. These villages are famed for producing a large quantity of oranges.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chairperson of Ichchhakamana Rural Municipality, Dan Bahadur Gurung, shared that the orange festival is being organised for the first time with the objective of ensuring market for oranges produced by the local farmers and its promotion. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"We have made arrangements for the visitors of the festival to pick and eat oranges by climbing the tree," he added. Similarly, the local government informed that the festival also includes an orange eating contest. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chair Gurung said that the visitors can buy oranges at a discounted price compared to market during the festival. He added that the orange farmers will be distributed different materials and a training would also be imparted to farmers by agriculture technicians. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"We are organising the festival with a belief that it will be easy to sell oranges produced in Ichchhakamana rural municipality at different markets of the country. We are also hopeful that it will help in the publicity of tourism sites of the area," he mentioned. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">It is estimated that more than 450 farmers of Ichchhamana rural municipality would sell orange worth Rs 100 million this year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Farmers are now selling orange at Rs 75-90 per kg from their farms. Orange is cultivated on 80 hectares of land in the rural municipality this year, according to the Agriculture Development Section of the rural municipality. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">A total of 1650 metric tonnes of orange was produced in the rural municipality last year. -- RSS</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-01', 'modified' => '2024-01-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19586', 'image' => '20240101112305_20230129104602_YB_BHOJPUR_SUNTALA.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-01 11:22:07', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19858', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'PM Gives Fake Assurance to Industries while NEA Cuts Electricity Supply', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'December 31: When Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal was assuring industrialists to form a high-level commission to resolve the tariff dispute of dedicated feeder and trunk lines, the Nepal Electricity Authority was preparing to cut off electricity supply to more industries.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">December 31: When Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal was assuring industrialists to form a high-level commission to resolve the tariff dispute of dedicated feeder and trunk lines, the Nepal Electricity Authority was preparing to cut off electricity supply to more industries.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The authority was actively involved in cutting the line of industries until Friday midnight. The authority's team was deployed in Bara-Parsa industrial corridor till 12 midnight of December 29.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Out of the 23 industries whose lines were cut due to tax arrears, nine large industries are located in the Bara-Parsa industrial corridor. As the production of the industry has come to a grinding halt, the workers of these industries have already landed in the streets.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Hari Gautam, senior vice president of Birgunj Chamber of Commerce, an umbrella organization of Bara-Parsa industrialists, says that the prime minister keeps giving assurances to the industrialists, but the authority keeps cutting the line. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“The government should have taken proper decisions to provide relief as the industries are reeling under the effect of the economic recession. However, it seems that the government is not trying to resolve the dispute, but to intensify it," said senior vice president Gautam.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Industrialists recall that the prime minister promised a proper solution many times before. The private sector alleges that the government has been making fake assurances and the NEA has been presenting fake bills.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The prime minister, in a meeting with the industrialists on Friday, assured that the premium tariff will not be levied before the Electricity Tariff Determination Commission approves the premium tariff. He had also made it clear that the premium tariff would not be charged after the end of load shedding.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The committee formed under the coordination of the then Energy Secretary Dinesh Ghimire also said that the premium tariff cannot not be charged before the tariff was fixed (before mid-July 2015) and after the end of load shedding (mid-May 2018).</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Industrialists say that the committee's report was approved by the then Council of Ministers. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">But now, the controversy has surfaced because of the government’s dubious nature and the NEA presenting fake bills.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The industrialists have demanded that the NEA download the Time of Day (TOD) meter data to clear the ambiguity. However, the NEA is not willing to comply which is evident from the fact that it has written to the district courts in Sunsari and Makwanpur that such data has been deleted.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The industrialists have said they are willing to clear the arrears if the NEA shows the TOD meter data.</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 authority, it is yet to collect a total arrears of Rs 22.24 billion from 61 industries including electricity tariff, interest and fines. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">It includes Rs 6 billion arrears from 2015 to 2018 and Rs 8 billion in two years after the end of load shedding in 2018.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The NEA had amended the electricity tariff collection regulations in June 2020.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-12-31', 'modified' => '2023-12-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19585', 'image' => '20231231031436_1703994624.1612736027.Clipboard12.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-12-31 15:13:47', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19857', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Stakeholders suggest Learning Lessons from GBIA and PRIA', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'December 31: Stakeholders have pointed out the need to expedite the construction of Nijgadh International Airport in order to manage air traffic congestion at the Tribhuvan International Airport in the future.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">December 31: Stakeholders have pointed out the need to expedite the construction of Nijgadh International Airport in order to manage air traffic congestion at the Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) in the future.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Minister of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, MPs of various parties, former director general of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal as well as infrastructure experts have said that there is no alternative to a new airport in Nijgadh.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Speaking at a function organized by the Trade Union of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Sudan Kirati, said that Tribhuvan International Airport will not be able to bear the current load after five years.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">“Hence, the Council of Minister has approved to build Nijgarh International Airport,” said Kirati.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Nepali Congress MP Uday Shamsher Rana said that Nijgadh Airport should be built but the government must learn lessons from the two newly-built airport -- Gautam Buddha International Airport (GBIA) and Pokhara Regional International Airport (PRIA). </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">"These two airports are struggling to operate even after the construction," Rana said, "Let's conduct an in-depth study with India on issues such as air route, air space, commercial modality, etc. while constructing Nijgadh," he added.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Similarly, Manish Jha, MP of the Rastra Swatantra Party, said that Nijgadh should not be limited to discussion. He said that delaying the project and keeping it only in discussion has only increased the price of land. "It is also necessary to invest in studies and research," he added.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Birendra Deuja, former director general of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), and the key speaker of the program, said that even though Nijgadh airport was identified 30 years ago, no progress has been made so far. He said that there should not be much protest for chopping off the trees and environmental protest for infrastructure development.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">"The Gautam Buddha and Pokhara International airports are not hardly operational," said Deuja, "There is no alternative to Nijgadh airport but CAAN’s preparation is not adequate.”</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Deuja also said that there is a need for a policy to encourage chartered flights in those airports that do not have international flights.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">As the Tribhuvan International Airport cannot cope with the arrival of 1-1.2 million tourists at present, the stakeholders emphasized that Nijgadh International Airport should be built keeping in mind the increasing number of tourists. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Pradeep Adhikari, director general of the CAAN, said that there is no alternative to Nijgadh airport. He also said that CAAN will build Nijgadh in a public-private partnership (PPP) model.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">"We cannot say that Gautam Buddha and Pokhara International airports not financially viable," said the Adhikari, "There should not be any excuse to build an airport just because of debt issue. CAAN can pay the debt, and the passengers should not be denied international services."</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-12-31', 'modified' => '2023-12-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19584', 'image' => '20231231025012_20201009013027_Clipboard19.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-12-31 14:49:27', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19856', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Cabinet Approves Cutting of more than 4,000 Trees under KTM-Tarai Fast Track', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'December 31: The government has approved the Kathmandu-Tarai Expressway (Fast Track) Project to cut trees to expedite the construction work. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">December 31: The government has approved the Kathmandu-Tarai Expressway (Fast Track) Project to cut trees to expedite the construction work. A meeting of the Council of Ministers on Thursday approved the felling of 4,345 trees in the forest areas of Makwanpur and Bara districts.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The cabinet meeting also approved the project to use 40.19 hectares of the forest land for the construction of the strategic road that is expected to shorten the distance between the capital and the southern Tarai districts. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The government had entrusted the project management to the army on May 4, 2017. The foundation stone was laid by the then Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal on May 28 the same year. According to the last extended deadline, the project should be completed by mid-April 2027. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Chief of Army Staff Prabhu Ram Sharma had recently informed the State Affairs and Good Governance Committee of the House of Representatives that the project had been delayed because the army was awaiting approval for cutting trees since nine months</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">He told the House committee that the government had instructed the army to complete the expressway on time, but it was yet to implement the legal provisions to facilitate felling trees.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“It is ironic to say that we need to do the work on a war footing on the basis of outdated laws drafted in 2017. If this is the case, the fast track will not be built by 2027,” Sharma had told the committee on December 20.</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 army, the financial progress of the expressway with an estimated cost of Rs 211.93 billion stands at 29.44 percent. In the current fiscal year, the physical progress of the expressway has reached 32.66 percent. The army claims that this year's financial progress is 10.8 percent.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The army has divided the work in 13 packages for the expressway. Five of them have not been contracted yet.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Along the fast track, there is one forest in Kathmandu, one in Lalitpur, in 22 Makwanpur and five in Bara.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-12-31', 'modified' => '2023-12-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19583', 'image' => '20231231020221_1703994063.1694388036.1607902819.Clipboard03.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-12-31 14:01:49', '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
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According to the Annapurna Conservation Area Project (ACAP), a total of </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">191</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">,5</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">58</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> foreign tourists visited the world-famous Annapurna Circuit for trekking in the review year</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Prior to this, the highest number of tourists (</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">181</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">,</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">000</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">) had visited the Annapurna region in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2019</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">A new record has been established in the arrival of tourists in the Annapurna region in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2023</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">," said the head of the Annapurna Conservation Area Project, Rabin Kadaria, adding, "Recently, there has been an increase in the number of tourists from South Asian countries, while tourists from other countries have decreased."</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2019</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">, a total of </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">53,710</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> tourists from South Asian countries reached Annapurna, while last year </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">97,554</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> people from this region visited the area.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Tourists from other countries have decreased compared to before, according to the statistics of ACAP. In </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2019</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">127,290</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> tourists from countries other than the SAARC region entered the Annapurna region, while last year a total of </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">94,400</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> tourists visited the region, Kadaria informed.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to him, tourists from </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">173</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> countries visited the Annapurna region in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2023</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> out of which </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">96</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">,</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">187</span></span> <span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">tourists were from India. In the review year, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">8,526</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> tourists from France, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">7,641</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> from Germany, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">7,249</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> from America, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">7,174</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> from Britain and </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">6,323</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> from China entered the Annapurna region.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The arrival of tourists took a nosedive with the onset of Covid-</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">19</span></span> <span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">pandemic. But with the end of the pandemic, tourism in the Annapurna region has returned to normalcy. A total of </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">16</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">,</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">10</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">5 tourists visited the Annapurna region in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2021</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> during the pandemic. The following year i.e. in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2022</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">, altogether </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">129,733</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> tourists reached the area.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">ACAP project chief Kadaria said that the number of tourists from Europe and America coming for trekking has decreased as the old foot trails are being displaced by newly-built roads. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">"The foot trails in the Annapurna Circuit are in existential crisis due to the expansion of the road network. As a result, Annapurna Circuit’s charm as a renowned trekking destination is diminishing,” said Kadaria, adding that all stakeholders need to protect the foot trails in order to protect the identity of the Annapurna Circuit, which is one of the top ten destinations in the world according to the list prepared by Lonely Planet.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Every year, millions of domestic and foreign tourists visit the Annapurna base camp, Mardi Himal, Ghandruk, Tilicho Lake in Manang, Thorangla Pass, Upper Mustang, Muktinath region, Ghodepani in Myagdi whih fall along the Annapurna Circuit.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The Annapurna Conservation Area Project only keeps the data of foreign tourists who visit these destinations. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">"It is ascertain the exact number of domestic tourists, but the number of people entering Mustang and Manang by road is significant," said the project chief Kadaria, adding, "There is more visitors during the two seasons – autumn and spring."</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The Annapurna conservation area spreads over </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">7,600</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> square kilometers and is considered an attractive destination for trekking.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Three years ago, the famous international travel site Lonely Planet listed the Annapurna Circuit as one of the top </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">10</span></span> <span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">destinations in the world. The importance of this area was further highlighted when UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres visited the Annapurna base camp during his recent visit to Nepal in November.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Mustang Valley, which was included in the list of </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">23</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> must-visit destinations in the world by the American news agency CNN in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2023</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">, is also located in the Annapurna Conservation Area. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Tourist guide Divas Gurung says that the Annapurna region is one of the preferred choices of tourists because of its natural beauty, bio-diversity, rustic mountain life, culture, among others.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Visitors can opt for short, medium and long-distance trekking in the Annapurna region from any route including Kaski, Lamjung, Manang, Myagdi," he said.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-02', 'modified' => '2024-01-02', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19597', 'image' => '20240102031942_20220508080527_Annapurna circuit (3).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-02 15:19:07', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19869', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Price of Tomatoes Drops by Ten Rupees in a Single Day', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 2: The price of tomatoes has decreased by Rs 10 in a single day. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">January 2: The price of tomatoes has decreased by Rs 10 in a single day. According to the Kalimati Fruit and Vegetable Market Development Committee, the price of tomatoes has decreased by Rs 10 per kg on Tuesday (today) compared to Monday (yesterday).</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">According to the committee, the average price of big tomatoes produced in the country which was Rs 55 per kg on Monday has dropped to Rs 45 per kg on Tuesday. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">Similarly, the average price of big tomatoes imported from India which was Rs 65 per kg on Monday, is being sold at Rs 55per kg on Tuesday.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">Similarly, small local tomatoes are being sold at Rs 15 per kg and tomatoes cultivated through tunnel farming are being sold at Rs 25 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">The committee has fixed the price of red potatoes at Rs 35 per kg on Tuesday. Potatoes imported from India are being sold at Rs 30 per kg in the wholesale market. Likewise, the wholesale price of white potatoes has been fixed at Rs 26 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">Likewise, the committee has fixed the price of onions imported from India at Rs 75 per kg and those imported from China at Rs 60 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">The price of local carrot has been fixed at Rs 40 per kg and local cabbage at Rs 30 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">The price of cauliflower has dropped to Rs 20 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">Local white radish is being sold at a wholesale price of Rs 12 per kg and red radish at Rs 15 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">Similarly, the price of peas has been fixed at Rs 50 per kg, local green beans at Rs 30 per kg, brinjal at Rs 30 per kg, pumpkin at Rs 40 per kg, lady’s finger at Rs 90 per kg and broad beans at Rs 80 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-02', 'modified' => '2024-01-02', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19596', 'image' => '20240102022251_20230818115845_Product-IMG_TOV-rev2.original.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-02 14:22:12', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19868', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Construction Entrepreneurs Warn of Fresh Protests', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 2: After the government turned a blind eye to the problems faced by the construction sector, the construction entrepreneurs warned to start protest again. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">January 2: After the government turned a blind eye to the problems faced by the construction sector, the construction entrepreneurs warned to start protest again. The Federation of Contractors Association of Nepal, the umbrella organization of construction entrepreneurs, said that they were unable to submit bills worth more than Rs 40 billion of the already-completed projects because the government did not take the issue of extension of the deadline seriously.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The federation has already staged several protests to pressurize the government to meet the demands of the construction entrepreneurs, including the payment of completed work. The federation issued a press statement on Monday and warned that they will begin a new protest as the government did not implement the agreements reached in the past.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">"Government offices have stated that those points cannot be implemented due to the fear of being monitored by agencies such as the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority, the National Vigilance Center and the Auditor General," the statement reads.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">General Secretary of the Federation Roshan Dahal said that the contractors could not even submit bills worth more than Rs 40 billion to the concerned offices due to the non-implementation of the past agreements.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">FCAN said that they have not been able to pay bank loans, taxes and the construction workers due to the delay in payment of dues by the government. This has also affected the supply chain, FCAN officials claimed. The federation stated that this has had a negative impact on the overall economy.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The statement further mentions that the construction industry is on the verge of closure due to the government’s indifference.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to the federation, businessmen who went bankrupt have even committed self-immolation.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The federation has warned that the situation will turn more complicated that if the state does not show any seriousness to solve the existing problems.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The statement further says that if the government does not implement the agreement as soon as possible, the federation will be forced to launch the final movement to ensure the rights of the construction industry. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">At a time when the government is struggling to spend capital expenditure, the construction entrepreneurs have warned of starting their protest during the peak season of construction. </span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-02', 'modified' => '2024-01-02', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19595', 'image' => '20240102125628_1704159819.1702872410.fcan.jpeg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-02 12:55:49', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19867', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NEA can Collect Additional Fees from Industries only for Load Shedding Period: Commission', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 2: The Nepal Electricity Authority will not be able to collect additional fees from the industries for the electricity consumed before and after the load shedding period.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">January 2: The Nepal Electricity Authority will not be able to collect additional fees from the industries for the electricity consumed before and after the load shedding period. This decision was taken by a meeting of the Electricity Regulatory Commission on Monday. The authority had announced that load shedding had ended on May 14, 2018.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The NEA has demanded the industries to pay additional tariffs even for the electricity consumed after the end of load shedding. The commission’s Secretary Gokarnaraj Pantha said that the commission meeting decided that the NEA will be allowed to collect additional fees only if there was load shedding in the country after May 2018.</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 Pantha, the commission canceled the additional fee for dedicated feeder and trunk line on June 15, 2020. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">As the additional charge was valid until the cut-off date, industries will be liable to pay the dues as of June 15, 2020 on condition that that they had utilized electricity for more than twenty hours a day during load-shedding.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The commission’s secretary made it clear that all the customers are getting regular supply of electricity and the authority will not be allowed to charge additional fee for dedicated feeder and trunk lines during normal circumstances.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“The NEA can levy additional charges for using dedicated feeder and trunk lines only in case of load shedding. If the NEA can provide evidence that load shedding was taking place at that time, then it can levy the fee. The main dispute at present is about the bill issued by NEA after it announced the end of load shedding.”</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-02', 'modified' => '2024-01-02', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19594', 'image' => '20240102121524_NEA_eight by six.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-02 12:14:48', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19866', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Economy yet to Improve: CNI Survey', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 2: At a time when the government and the regulatory bodies are claiming that the economy has improved in in recent months, a survey conducted by the private sector has shown that there has not been any improvement in the country’s overall economy.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">January 2: At a time when the government and the regulatory bodies are claiming that the economy has improved in in recent months, a survey conducted by the private sector has shown that there has not been any improvement in the country’s overall economy.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">A survey conducted by the Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) has shown that the economy has not improved in the first quarter of the current fiscal year as claimed by the government.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“The overall market demand has fallen. The prices of raw materials have been constantly rising. There has been a decline in the import of industrial raw materials,'' reads a press statement issued by CNI on Monday.</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 survey, the overall market demand for the industrial products decreased by 28.28 percent last year. It has further decreased by 12.06 percent in the same period of the current fiscal year.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Compared to the first quarter of the fiscal year (FY) 2021/22, the overall demand of industries has contracted by a total of 36.93 in the corresponding period of FY 2023/24. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Similarly, the turnover of the industries had decreased by 24.94 percent in the previous year while it decreased by 30.54 this year, the report added.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-02', 'modified' => '2024-01-02', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19593', 'image' => '20240102112342_20230828114446_CNIIII.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-02 11:23:00', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19865', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Cold Affects Arrival of Tourists in Kanchanjunga Region ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 2: The number of tourists visiting the Kanchanjunga area to view the third highest peak in the world has declined sharply owing to growing cold of late. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 2: The number of tourists visiting the Kanchanjunga area to view the third highest peak in the world has declined sharply owing to growing cold of late. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Tourism entrepreneur Pema Sherpa informed RSS that the area witnessed severe cold for some days, resulting in the decline in arrival of tourists. However, the region is yet to witness snowfall this year. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The hotel and lodges in the area are closed due to lack of visitors. The hoteliers of Kanchanjunga area have shifted down to Phungling, while some have traveled to Kathmandu to avoid cold. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The Kanchanjungha area witnessed the arrival of large number of tourists before the onset of winter, according to Tasi Tenjing Sherpa, who is affiliated to the Kanchanjungha Conservation Area Management Council. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"The Kanchanjunga area had recorded entry of 760 tourists from different countries from mid-September to mid-December. It was highest number of tourist inflow since the COVID-19 subsided," he said. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-02', 'modified' => '2024-01-02', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19592', 'image' => '20240102110049_Kanchanjunga SVO (4).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-02 10:59:53', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19864', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Industrialists Ready to Pay Electricity Bills if NEA Produces Evidence', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 1: The outstanding dues of industries for using the Nepal Electricity Authority’s dedicated feeder and trunk lines during load shedding has increased from Rs billion to Rs 22 billion as the dispute continues to linger.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">January 1: The outstanding dues of industries for using the Nepal Electricity Authority’s dedicated feeder and trunk lines during load shedding has increased from Rs billion to Rs 22 billion as the dispute continues to linger.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">When the dispute started about five years ago, the outstanding amount that the industries were liable to pay to the NEA was only Rs 4 billion. Due to the stance taken by the Nepal Electricity Authority and the industrialists, the outstanding amount has increased to Rs 22.24 billion. It seems to have a direct impact on Nepal's productive sector and the overall economy.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Speaking at a press conference organized by the Federation of Nepalese Chamber of Commerce and Industries (FNCCI) in the capital, former FNCCI President Pashupati Murarka said that a sub-committee formed under the coordination of NEA board member Bhakta Bahadur Pun by the 768th board meeting of the NEA on </span></span><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">May 14, 2018</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> had determined the outstanding dues that the industries were liable to pay to the NEA of using the dedicated feeder and trunk line at Rs 4 billion.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">"We could not pay the electricity tariff because the authority submitted false details. The outstanding amount has been piling up ever since then. As a result, the authority cut the line to the industries and its impact is affecting the productive sector and the overall economy of Nepal," he said.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The arrears of Rs 22.24 billion at present includes interest and fines of the fee determined by the Electricity Tariff Determination Commission for industries that used electricity continuously during the load-shedding period.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">On </span></span><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">October 2, 2016</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">, the commission had authorized the NEA to charge additional fee to customers who were using electricity continuously for 20 hours from the dedicated line during six hours of load shedding at that time. However, the NEA sent letter to the industries in </span></span><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">2018</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> demanding clearance of the electricity bills by ignoring the conditions set by the commission. This led to a dispute between the two parties. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Pawan Golyan, president of Yarn Producers' Association, said that the NEA was unable to provide any evidence that the industrialists had used excess electricity, and accused the NEA of trying to endanger the country's economy by cutting off power supply to the industries after the arrears increased to over Rs 22 billion. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">“The authority could neither present evidence at that time nor is it trying to present evidence now,” he said, adding that such a policy of the NEA could lead to further increase in arrears and the collapse of industries.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Dhruba Thapa, president of Nepal Cement Industry Association, also said that the authority has done injustice to the industries by sending fake bills without facts and evidence. He said that the recent move of the authority has created a situation due to which the industrialists have been compelled to migrate abroad. Thapa argues that the NEA charged the bill even for the electricity they never used just to show that the state-owned utility is in profit.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">“If the authority seeks help for making it profitable, the industrialists are ready to help as much as possible. However, we are not ready to bear unnecessary burden," he said.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""> </span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-01', 'modified' => '2024-01-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19591', 'image' => '20240101040647_1703994624.1612736027.Clipboard12.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-01 16:06:05', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19863', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Banning Marijuana Promotes Illegal Trade: Government Study', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 1: A government study has shown that when the policy-level decision of the government to ban marijuana only increases its illegal trade. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">January 1: A government study has shown that when the policy-level decision of the government to ban marijuana only increases its illegal trade. The Narcotic Drugs (Control) Act, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2033</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> makes the dealing of marijuana or marijuana products illegal. However, as a result of the ban imposed by the law on marijuana trade, its illegal trade is increasing every year, according to a study conducted by the government.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">A report prepared by the state-run Institute of Policy and Research based on the data provided by the Ministry of Home Affairs shows that the number of people involved in illegal trade of marijuana has increased every year due to the ban. The report also suggests that the government should adopt a lenient policy on marijuana with certain conditions.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to the report, there is a possibility of illegal market of marijuana flourishing with the legal changes if the government adopts a lenient policy towards marijuana. In Canada, which has legalized the recreational use of marijuana, it has been found that the illegal trade has outpaced the legal business. It is believed that customers might have been attracted more to the illegal market because marijuana available in the illegal market is cheaper and contains more </span></span><span style="font-family:"Helvetica","sans-serif"">tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), a substance that is primarily responsible for the effects of marijuana on a person’s mental state</span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">It is mentioned in the report that countries that have legalized cannabis cultivation and business have also experienced an increase in illegal transactions due to the limitations of the legal market and complicated administrative procedures.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In the course of the study, it was found that marijuana produced in Nepal or exported from Nepal is popular in the Netherlands. The report further mentions that Alibaba company is selling and distributing Nepali marijuana online under the name of 'Dhawalagiri Cake'.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Marijuana cultivation and business is illegal in Nepal, but due to the open border with India, Nepal is becoming a transit for marijuana business with third countries, according to the report of the Ministry of Home Affairs. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">"Not only one, but many routes and patterns are active for illegal trade and transportation," the report states, adding, "Clothes, shoes, yarn, artistic and decorative materials made from hemp fibers or mixed with hemp fibers are sold unabated in Thamel, the main tourist hub of Kathmandu.'</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Since the production of marijuana is illegal, these marijuana products are usually sold under the name of hemp or natural fiber. There is high risk in operating business by changing the name, states the report prepared by Dr Manita Kusi, Dr Hari Sharma Neupane, Dr Mukunda Raj Kattel, Advocate Hari Prasad Mainali, Prof Rajendra Gyawali, Dr Prarak Regmi and Pushkar Basyal.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">It is also mentioned in the study report that the traders of Thamel were confused when they inquired whether products sold by them had more than the quantity of marijuana prescribed by the Narcotic Drugs Act. "This confusion is the result of the ambiguity in our existing laws which can be misused for illegal transactions," the report states, adding, "Therefore, it is necessary to have a clear policy as well as legal and administrative framework. If that is not done, Nepal will remain at risk of illegal business in one form or another even after the legalization of marijuana.”</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-01', 'modified' => '2024-01-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19590', 'image' => '20240101022832_20231210023326_20221030030309_20201204014433_1607039093.Clipboard09.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-01 14:27:57', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19862', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Government Cuts Down Expenses on Snacks for Cabinet Meetings, Saving Rs 6 Million Annually ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 1: The government has decided to cut down the expenses on snacks for the meeting of the Council of Ministers in a bid to reform the state apparatus.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 1: The government has decided to cut down the expenses on snacks for the meeting of the Council of Ministers in a bid to reform the state apparatus. Stating that the government should initiate reforms from small topics, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal announced at the cabinet meeting held in Singha Durbar on Monday morning that the expenditure on snacks served in such meetings will be been cut down from now onwards, according to the Prime Minister's Secretariat. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The PM’s Office stated that approximately Rs 60,000 is spent on snacks in each meeting of the Council of Ministers. It is said the Council of Ministers meets more than 100 times in a year. Govinda Acharya, the press advisor to the prime minister, said that around Rs 6 million will be saved annually with the decision to cut down the snack expenses in the meeting of the Council of Ministers. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Normal snacks will be served in the meeting of the Council of Ministers from now on, the PM’s Secretariat said. Acharya said PM Dahal has started reforms from his own office considering minor issues as significant measures for good governance and reforms. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Prime Minister Dahal who recently announced to change the working style of the government has been reaching the Prime Minister's Office at Singha Durbar at 10.0 am daily, except on public holidays. He has been taking daily briefing from various ministries and initiatives for resolving the problems seen in development projects, including the national pride projects, from the Singha Durbar. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Meanwhile, the government's decision to use the Nepal Sambat calendar in all the government documents has been implemented. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-01', 'modified' => '2024-01-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19589', 'image' => '20240101020213_20230224010200_1677194359.Clipboard07.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-01 14:01:31', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19861', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Tourists Flock to Sauraha to Celebrate English New Year', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 1: Sauraha, a renowned tourist destination in Chitwan district, witnessed a large number of people on Sunday to celebrate the English New Year. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">January 1: Sauraha, a renowned tourist destination in Chitwan district, witnessed a large number of people on Sunday to celebrate the English New Year. The number of domestic tourists has increased due to a public holiday on the New Year ’s Eve.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Tourists visit Sauraha to enjoy the tourist activities such as elephant ride, jeep safari and boating.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Regional Hotel Association’s Vice President Om Prakash Pandey said that has been a good influx of tourists since September. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">"In the last few days, the occupancy of hotels in Sauraha is encouraging,” said Pandey, adding that his hotel – Forest Park – had </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">75</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> percent occupancy.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">He said that the presence of Indian and Chinese tourists along with domestic tourists is also encouraging in Sauraha. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The general secretary of the association, Gunaraj Thapalia, said that all the rooms were full on Saturday as expected for the New Year’s Eve on Sunday.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to Thapalia, the owner of Unique Wild Resort, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">30</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> rooms in his hotel have been fully booked till January </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">4</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to Deepak Bhattarai, outgoing president of the association, there are around </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">160</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> hotels in Sauraha. The hotel has the capacity to serve seven thousand people at a time. Sauraha can accommodate more than </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">10,000</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> people for one night with the homestay facility. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Tourists who come to Sauraha go for a jeep safari in the nearby community forests. They can also enjoy jeep safari inside the Chitwan National Park. According to Bhattarai, around </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">100</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> jeep safaris are taking place daily in the community forest alone. Tourists have to wait for their turn for the jeep safaris.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Suman Ghimire, the former president of the association, said that the arrival of tourists was unprecedented during this period. According to him, tourists are coming now as in the pre-Covid situation. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">“Tourists prefer to visit here in winter season. Booking for the coming days is good. This has made us hopeful," he said.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to the outgoing president of Restaurant and Bar Association (REBAN), Dipendra Khatiwada, there is a good presence of tourists in the restaurants of Sauraha since Dashain.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Along with Sauraha, there is also a good presence of tourists in Patihani, Jagatpur, and Meghauli. There is a good presence of Indian and Chinese tourists as tourists from third countries go home to celebrate New Year and Christmas.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Ganesh Paudel, owner of Jungle Villa in Patihani, said that the arrival of tourists is encouraging. He said that they are hopeful that tourism industry will return to the pre-covid situation.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-01', 'modified' => '2024-01-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19588', 'image' => '20240101010417_jeep-drive.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-01 13:03:37', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19860', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Government Preparing to Celebrate Visit Nepal Year in 2025', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 1: The government was compelled to postpone the Visit Nepal Year 2020 campaign due to the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">January 1: The government was compelled to postpone the Visit Nepal Year </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2020</span></span> <span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">campaign due to the outbreak of Covid-</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">19</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> pandemic. The campaign, which started with the announcement of bringing two million tourists to Nepal in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2020</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">, was postponed due to unfavourable circumstances.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Now, the government is once again preparing to launch the campaign in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2025</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> AD</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">. </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Sudan Kirati revealed this on the occasion of the </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">25</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">th anniversary of Nepal Tourism Board.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The minister also emphasized on the development of Nepal’s tourism industry. “Apart from Kathmandu and some famous destinations, other destinations of Nepal are also worth visiting,” he said, adding that it is necessary to pay attention to this factor as well.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">On this occasion, Chief Executive Officer of Nepal Tourism Board, Dhananjay Regmi said that preparations are being made to announce the Visit Nepal Year </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2025</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">. He said that the campaign will be launched when the private sector is ready to welcome the tourists. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Nepal had previously organised the Visit Nepal Year in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2011. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Regmi also emphasized that the government and the private sector should work together to attract </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">3.5 </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">million tourists to Nepal annually after </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">10 </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">years as envisaged in the Tourism Decade plan of the government.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-01', 'modified' => '2024-01-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19587', 'image' => '20240101121158_1704073486.1566910573.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-01 12:11:11', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19859', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Orange Festival being Organised to Ensure its Market ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 1: The local government of Ichchhakamana rural municipality in Chitwan is organising a three-day orange festival starting from today with the objective of ensuring market for oranges produced in the local unit’s villages.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 1: The local government of Ichchhakamana rural municipality in Chitwan is organising a three-day orange festival starting from today with the objective of ensuring market for oranges produced in the local unit’s villages including Tokdand, Dhap, Majhgaun, Sirangaun and Dode. These villages are famed for producing a large quantity of oranges.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chairperson of Ichchhakamana Rural Municipality, Dan Bahadur Gurung, shared that the orange festival is being organised for the first time with the objective of ensuring market for oranges produced by the local farmers and its promotion. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"We have made arrangements for the visitors of the festival to pick and eat oranges by climbing the tree," he added. Similarly, the local government informed that the festival also includes an orange eating contest. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chair Gurung said that the visitors can buy oranges at a discounted price compared to market during the festival. He added that the orange farmers will be distributed different materials and a training would also be imparted to farmers by agriculture technicians. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"We are organising the festival with a belief that it will be easy to sell oranges produced in Ichchhakamana rural municipality at different markets of the country. We are also hopeful that it will help in the publicity of tourism sites of the area," he mentioned. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">It is estimated that more than 450 farmers of Ichchhamana rural municipality would sell orange worth Rs 100 million this year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Farmers are now selling orange at Rs 75-90 per kg from their farms. Orange is cultivated on 80 hectares of land in the rural municipality this year, according to the Agriculture Development Section of the rural municipality. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">A total of 1650 metric tonnes of orange was produced in the rural municipality last year. -- RSS</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-01', 'modified' => '2024-01-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19586', 'image' => '20240101112305_20230129104602_YB_BHOJPUR_SUNTALA.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-01 11:22:07', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19858', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'PM Gives Fake Assurance to Industries while NEA Cuts Electricity Supply', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'December 31: When Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal was assuring industrialists to form a high-level commission to resolve the tariff dispute of dedicated feeder and trunk lines, the Nepal Electricity Authority was preparing to cut off electricity supply to more industries.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">December 31: When Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal was assuring industrialists to form a high-level commission to resolve the tariff dispute of dedicated feeder and trunk lines, the Nepal Electricity Authority was preparing to cut off electricity supply to more industries.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The authority was actively involved in cutting the line of industries until Friday midnight. The authority's team was deployed in Bara-Parsa industrial corridor till 12 midnight of December 29.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Out of the 23 industries whose lines were cut due to tax arrears, nine large industries are located in the Bara-Parsa industrial corridor. As the production of the industry has come to a grinding halt, the workers of these industries have already landed in the streets.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Hari Gautam, senior vice president of Birgunj Chamber of Commerce, an umbrella organization of Bara-Parsa industrialists, says that the prime minister keeps giving assurances to the industrialists, but the authority keeps cutting the line. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“The government should have taken proper decisions to provide relief as the industries are reeling under the effect of the economic recession. However, it seems that the government is not trying to resolve the dispute, but to intensify it," said senior vice president Gautam.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Industrialists recall that the prime minister promised a proper solution many times before. The private sector alleges that the government has been making fake assurances and the NEA has been presenting fake bills.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The prime minister, in a meeting with the industrialists on Friday, assured that the premium tariff will not be levied before the Electricity Tariff Determination Commission approves the premium tariff. He had also made it clear that the premium tariff would not be charged after the end of load shedding.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The committee formed under the coordination of the then Energy Secretary Dinesh Ghimire also said that the premium tariff cannot not be charged before the tariff was fixed (before mid-July 2015) and after the end of load shedding (mid-May 2018).</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Industrialists say that the committee's report was approved by the then Council of Ministers. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">But now, the controversy has surfaced because of the government’s dubious nature and the NEA presenting fake bills.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The industrialists have demanded that the NEA download the Time of Day (TOD) meter data to clear the ambiguity. However, the NEA is not willing to comply which is evident from the fact that it has written to the district courts in Sunsari and Makwanpur that such data has been deleted.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The industrialists have said they are willing to clear the arrears if the NEA shows the TOD meter data.</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 authority, it is yet to collect a total arrears of Rs 22.24 billion from 61 industries including electricity tariff, interest and fines. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">It includes Rs 6 billion arrears from 2015 to 2018 and Rs 8 billion in two years after the end of load shedding in 2018.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The NEA had amended the electricity tariff collection regulations in June 2020.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-12-31', 'modified' => '2023-12-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19585', 'image' => '20231231031436_1703994624.1612736027.Clipboard12.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-12-31 15:13:47', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19857', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Stakeholders suggest Learning Lessons from GBIA and PRIA', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'December 31: Stakeholders have pointed out the need to expedite the construction of Nijgadh International Airport in order to manage air traffic congestion at the Tribhuvan International Airport in the future.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">December 31: Stakeholders have pointed out the need to expedite the construction of Nijgadh International Airport in order to manage air traffic congestion at the Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) in the future.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Minister of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, MPs of various parties, former director general of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal as well as infrastructure experts have said that there is no alternative to a new airport in Nijgadh.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Speaking at a function organized by the Trade Union of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Sudan Kirati, said that Tribhuvan International Airport will not be able to bear the current load after five years.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">“Hence, the Council of Minister has approved to build Nijgarh International Airport,” said Kirati.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Nepali Congress MP Uday Shamsher Rana said that Nijgadh Airport should be built but the government must learn lessons from the two newly-built airport -- Gautam Buddha International Airport (GBIA) and Pokhara Regional International Airport (PRIA). </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">"These two airports are struggling to operate even after the construction," Rana said, "Let's conduct an in-depth study with India on issues such as air route, air space, commercial modality, etc. while constructing Nijgadh," he added.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Similarly, Manish Jha, MP of the Rastra Swatantra Party, said that Nijgadh should not be limited to discussion. He said that delaying the project and keeping it only in discussion has only increased the price of land. "It is also necessary to invest in studies and research," he added.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Birendra Deuja, former director general of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), and the key speaker of the program, said that even though Nijgadh airport was identified 30 years ago, no progress has been made so far. He said that there should not be much protest for chopping off the trees and environmental protest for infrastructure development.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">"The Gautam Buddha and Pokhara International airports are not hardly operational," said Deuja, "There is no alternative to Nijgadh airport but CAAN’s preparation is not adequate.”</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Deuja also said that there is a need for a policy to encourage chartered flights in those airports that do not have international flights.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">As the Tribhuvan International Airport cannot cope with the arrival of 1-1.2 million tourists at present, the stakeholders emphasized that Nijgadh International Airport should be built keeping in mind the increasing number of tourists. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Pradeep Adhikari, director general of the CAAN, said that there is no alternative to Nijgadh airport. He also said that CAAN will build Nijgadh in a public-private partnership (PPP) model.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">"We cannot say that Gautam Buddha and Pokhara International airports not financially viable," said the Adhikari, "There should not be any excuse to build an airport just because of debt issue. CAAN can pay the debt, and the passengers should not be denied international services."</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-12-31', 'modified' => '2023-12-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19584', 'image' => '20231231025012_20201009013027_Clipboard19.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-12-31 14:49:27', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19856', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Cabinet Approves Cutting of more than 4,000 Trees under KTM-Tarai Fast Track', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'December 31: The government has approved the Kathmandu-Tarai Expressway (Fast Track) Project to cut trees to expedite the construction work. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">December 31: The government has approved the Kathmandu-Tarai Expressway (Fast Track) Project to cut trees to expedite the construction work. A meeting of the Council of Ministers on Thursday approved the felling of 4,345 trees in the forest areas of Makwanpur and Bara districts.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The cabinet meeting also approved the project to use 40.19 hectares of the forest land for the construction of the strategic road that is expected to shorten the distance between the capital and the southern Tarai districts. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The government had entrusted the project management to the army on May 4, 2017. The foundation stone was laid by the then Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal on May 28 the same year. According to the last extended deadline, the project should be completed by mid-April 2027. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Chief of Army Staff Prabhu Ram Sharma had recently informed the State Affairs and Good Governance Committee of the House of Representatives that the project had been delayed because the army was awaiting approval for cutting trees since nine months</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">He told the House committee that the government had instructed the army to complete the expressway on time, but it was yet to implement the legal provisions to facilitate felling trees.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“It is ironic to say that we need to do the work on a war footing on the basis of outdated laws drafted in 2017. If this is the case, the fast track will not be built by 2027,” Sharma had told the committee on December 20.</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 army, the financial progress of the expressway with an estimated cost of Rs 211.93 billion stands at 29.44 percent. In the current fiscal year, the physical progress of the expressway has reached 32.66 percent. The army claims that this year's financial progress is 10.8 percent.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The army has divided the work in 13 packages for the expressway. Five of them have not been contracted yet.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Along the fast track, there is one forest in Kathmandu, one in Lalitpur, in 22 Makwanpur and five in Bara.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-12-31', 'modified' => '2023-12-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19583', 'image' => '20231231020221_1703994063.1694388036.1607902819.Clipboard03.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-12-31 14:01:49', '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
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According to the Annapurna Conservation Area Project (ACAP), a total of </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">191</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">,5</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">58</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> foreign tourists visited the world-famous Annapurna Circuit for trekking in the review year</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Prior to this, the highest number of tourists (</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">181</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">,</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">000</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">) had visited the Annapurna region in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2019</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">A new record has been established in the arrival of tourists in the Annapurna region in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2023</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">," said the head of the Annapurna Conservation Area Project, Rabin Kadaria, adding, "Recently, there has been an increase in the number of tourists from South Asian countries, while tourists from other countries have decreased."</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2019</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">, a total of </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">53,710</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> tourists from South Asian countries reached Annapurna, while last year </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">97,554</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> people from this region visited the area.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Tourists from other countries have decreased compared to before, according to the statistics of ACAP. In </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2019</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">127,290</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> tourists from countries other than the SAARC region entered the Annapurna region, while last year a total of </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">94,400</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> tourists visited the region, Kadaria informed.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to him, tourists from </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">173</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> countries visited the Annapurna region in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2023</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> out of which </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">96</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">,</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">187</span></span> <span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">tourists were from India. In the review year, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">8,526</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> tourists from France, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">7,641</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> from Germany, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">7,249</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> from America, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">7,174</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> from Britain and </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">6,323</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> from China entered the Annapurna region.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The arrival of tourists took a nosedive with the onset of Covid-</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">19</span></span> <span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">pandemic. But with the end of the pandemic, tourism in the Annapurna region has returned to normalcy. A total of </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">16</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">,</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">10</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">5 tourists visited the Annapurna region in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2021</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> during the pandemic. The following year i.e. in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2022</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">, altogether </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">129,733</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> tourists reached the area.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">ACAP project chief Kadaria said that the number of tourists from Europe and America coming for trekking has decreased as the old foot trails are being displaced by newly-built roads. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">"The foot trails in the Annapurna Circuit are in existential crisis due to the expansion of the road network. As a result, Annapurna Circuit’s charm as a renowned trekking destination is diminishing,” said Kadaria, adding that all stakeholders need to protect the foot trails in order to protect the identity of the Annapurna Circuit, which is one of the top ten destinations in the world according to the list prepared by Lonely Planet.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Every year, millions of domestic and foreign tourists visit the Annapurna base camp, Mardi Himal, Ghandruk, Tilicho Lake in Manang, Thorangla Pass, Upper Mustang, Muktinath region, Ghodepani in Myagdi whih fall along the Annapurna Circuit.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The Annapurna Conservation Area Project only keeps the data of foreign tourists who visit these destinations. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">"It is ascertain the exact number of domestic tourists, but the number of people entering Mustang and Manang by road is significant," said the project chief Kadaria, adding, "There is more visitors during the two seasons – autumn and spring."</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The Annapurna conservation area spreads over </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">7,600</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> square kilometers and is considered an attractive destination for trekking.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Three years ago, the famous international travel site Lonely Planet listed the Annapurna Circuit as one of the top </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">10</span></span> <span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">destinations in the world. The importance of this area was further highlighted when UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres visited the Annapurna base camp during his recent visit to Nepal in November.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Mustang Valley, which was included in the list of </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">23</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> must-visit destinations in the world by the American news agency CNN in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2023</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">, is also located in the Annapurna Conservation Area. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Tourist guide Divas Gurung says that the Annapurna region is one of the preferred choices of tourists because of its natural beauty, bio-diversity, rustic mountain life, culture, among others.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Visitors can opt for short, medium and long-distance trekking in the Annapurna region from any route including Kaski, Lamjung, Manang, Myagdi," he said.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-02', 'modified' => '2024-01-02', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19597', 'image' => '20240102031942_20220508080527_Annapurna circuit (3).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-02 15:19:07', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19869', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Price of Tomatoes Drops by Ten Rupees in a Single Day', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 2: The price of tomatoes has decreased by Rs 10 in a single day. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">January 2: The price of tomatoes has decreased by Rs 10 in a single day. According to the Kalimati Fruit and Vegetable Market Development Committee, the price of tomatoes has decreased by Rs 10 per kg on Tuesday (today) compared to Monday (yesterday).</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">According to the committee, the average price of big tomatoes produced in the country which was Rs 55 per kg on Monday has dropped to Rs 45 per kg on Tuesday. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">Similarly, the average price of big tomatoes imported from India which was Rs 65 per kg on Monday, is being sold at Rs 55per kg on Tuesday.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">Similarly, small local tomatoes are being sold at Rs 15 per kg and tomatoes cultivated through tunnel farming are being sold at Rs 25 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">The committee has fixed the price of red potatoes at Rs 35 per kg on Tuesday. Potatoes imported from India are being sold at Rs 30 per kg in the wholesale market. Likewise, the wholesale price of white potatoes has been fixed at Rs 26 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">Likewise, the committee has fixed the price of onions imported from India at Rs 75 per kg and those imported from China at Rs 60 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">The price of local carrot has been fixed at Rs 40 per kg and local cabbage at Rs 30 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">The price of cauliflower has dropped to Rs 20 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">Local white radish is being sold at a wholesale price of Rs 12 per kg and red radish at Rs 15 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">Similarly, the price of peas has been fixed at Rs 50 per kg, local green beans at Rs 30 per kg, brinjal at Rs 30 per kg, pumpkin at Rs 40 per kg, lady’s finger at Rs 90 per kg and broad beans at Rs 80 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-02', 'modified' => '2024-01-02', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19596', 'image' => '20240102022251_20230818115845_Product-IMG_TOV-rev2.original.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-02 14:22:12', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19868', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Construction Entrepreneurs Warn of Fresh Protests', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 2: After the government turned a blind eye to the problems faced by the construction sector, the construction entrepreneurs warned to start protest again. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">January 2: After the government turned a blind eye to the problems faced by the construction sector, the construction entrepreneurs warned to start protest again. The Federation of Contractors Association of Nepal, the umbrella organization of construction entrepreneurs, said that they were unable to submit bills worth more than Rs 40 billion of the already-completed projects because the government did not take the issue of extension of the deadline seriously.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The federation has already staged several protests to pressurize the government to meet the demands of the construction entrepreneurs, including the payment of completed work. The federation issued a press statement on Monday and warned that they will begin a new protest as the government did not implement the agreements reached in the past.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">"Government offices have stated that those points cannot be implemented due to the fear of being monitored by agencies such as the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority, the National Vigilance Center and the Auditor General," the statement reads.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">General Secretary of the Federation Roshan Dahal said that the contractors could not even submit bills worth more than Rs 40 billion to the concerned offices due to the non-implementation of the past agreements.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">FCAN said that they have not been able to pay bank loans, taxes and the construction workers due to the delay in payment of dues by the government. This has also affected the supply chain, FCAN officials claimed. The federation stated that this has had a negative impact on the overall economy.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The statement further mentions that the construction industry is on the verge of closure due to the government’s indifference.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to the federation, businessmen who went bankrupt have even committed self-immolation.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The federation has warned that the situation will turn more complicated that if the state does not show any seriousness to solve the existing problems.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The statement further says that if the government does not implement the agreement as soon as possible, the federation will be forced to launch the final movement to ensure the rights of the construction industry. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">At a time when the government is struggling to spend capital expenditure, the construction entrepreneurs have warned of starting their protest during the peak season of construction. </span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-02', 'modified' => '2024-01-02', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19595', 'image' => '20240102125628_1704159819.1702872410.fcan.jpeg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-02 12:55:49', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19867', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NEA can Collect Additional Fees from Industries only for Load Shedding Period: Commission', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 2: The Nepal Electricity Authority will not be able to collect additional fees from the industries for the electricity consumed before and after the load shedding period.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">January 2: The Nepal Electricity Authority will not be able to collect additional fees from the industries for the electricity consumed before and after the load shedding period. This decision was taken by a meeting of the Electricity Regulatory Commission on Monday. The authority had announced that load shedding had ended on May 14, 2018.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The NEA has demanded the industries to pay additional tariffs even for the electricity consumed after the end of load shedding. The commission’s Secretary Gokarnaraj Pantha said that the commission meeting decided that the NEA will be allowed to collect additional fees only if there was load shedding in the country after May 2018.</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 Pantha, the commission canceled the additional fee for dedicated feeder and trunk line on June 15, 2020. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">As the additional charge was valid until the cut-off date, industries will be liable to pay the dues as of June 15, 2020 on condition that that they had utilized electricity for more than twenty hours a day during load-shedding.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The commission’s secretary made it clear that all the customers are getting regular supply of electricity and the authority will not be allowed to charge additional fee for dedicated feeder and trunk lines during normal circumstances.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“The NEA can levy additional charges for using dedicated feeder and trunk lines only in case of load shedding. If the NEA can provide evidence that load shedding was taking place at that time, then it can levy the fee. The main dispute at present is about the bill issued by NEA after it announced the end of load shedding.”</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-02', 'modified' => '2024-01-02', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19594', 'image' => '20240102121524_NEA_eight by six.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-02 12:14:48', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19866', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Economy yet to Improve: CNI Survey', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 2: At a time when the government and the regulatory bodies are claiming that the economy has improved in in recent months, a survey conducted by the private sector has shown that there has not been any improvement in the country’s overall economy.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">January 2: At a time when the government and the regulatory bodies are claiming that the economy has improved in in recent months, a survey conducted by the private sector has shown that there has not been any improvement in the country’s overall economy.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">A survey conducted by the Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) has shown that the economy has not improved in the first quarter of the current fiscal year as claimed by the government.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“The overall market demand has fallen. The prices of raw materials have been constantly rising. There has been a decline in the import of industrial raw materials,'' reads a press statement issued by CNI on Monday.</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 survey, the overall market demand for the industrial products decreased by 28.28 percent last year. It has further decreased by 12.06 percent in the same period of the current fiscal year.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Compared to the first quarter of the fiscal year (FY) 2021/22, the overall demand of industries has contracted by a total of 36.93 in the corresponding period of FY 2023/24. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Similarly, the turnover of the industries had decreased by 24.94 percent in the previous year while it decreased by 30.54 this year, the report added.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-02', 'modified' => '2024-01-02', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19593', 'image' => '20240102112342_20230828114446_CNIIII.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-02 11:23:00', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19865', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Cold Affects Arrival of Tourists in Kanchanjunga Region ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 2: The number of tourists visiting the Kanchanjunga area to view the third highest peak in the world has declined sharply owing to growing cold of late. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 2: The number of tourists visiting the Kanchanjunga area to view the third highest peak in the world has declined sharply owing to growing cold of late. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Tourism entrepreneur Pema Sherpa informed RSS that the area witnessed severe cold for some days, resulting in the decline in arrival of tourists. However, the region is yet to witness snowfall this year. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The hotel and lodges in the area are closed due to lack of visitors. The hoteliers of Kanchanjunga area have shifted down to Phungling, while some have traveled to Kathmandu to avoid cold. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The Kanchanjungha area witnessed the arrival of large number of tourists before the onset of winter, according to Tasi Tenjing Sherpa, who is affiliated to the Kanchanjungha Conservation Area Management Council. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"The Kanchanjunga area had recorded entry of 760 tourists from different countries from mid-September to mid-December. It was highest number of tourist inflow since the COVID-19 subsided," he said. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-02', 'modified' => '2024-01-02', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19592', 'image' => '20240102110049_Kanchanjunga SVO (4).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-02 10:59:53', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19864', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Industrialists Ready to Pay Electricity Bills if NEA Produces Evidence', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 1: The outstanding dues of industries for using the Nepal Electricity Authority’s dedicated feeder and trunk lines during load shedding has increased from Rs billion to Rs 22 billion as the dispute continues to linger.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">January 1: The outstanding dues of industries for using the Nepal Electricity Authority’s dedicated feeder and trunk lines during load shedding has increased from Rs billion to Rs 22 billion as the dispute continues to linger.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">When the dispute started about five years ago, the outstanding amount that the industries were liable to pay to the NEA was only Rs 4 billion. Due to the stance taken by the Nepal Electricity Authority and the industrialists, the outstanding amount has increased to Rs 22.24 billion. It seems to have a direct impact on Nepal's productive sector and the overall economy.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Speaking at a press conference organized by the Federation of Nepalese Chamber of Commerce and Industries (FNCCI) in the capital, former FNCCI President Pashupati Murarka said that a sub-committee formed under the coordination of NEA board member Bhakta Bahadur Pun by the 768th board meeting of the NEA on </span></span><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">May 14, 2018</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> had determined the outstanding dues that the industries were liable to pay to the NEA of using the dedicated feeder and trunk line at Rs 4 billion.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">"We could not pay the electricity tariff because the authority submitted false details. The outstanding amount has been piling up ever since then. As a result, the authority cut the line to the industries and its impact is affecting the productive sector and the overall economy of Nepal," he said.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The arrears of Rs 22.24 billion at present includes interest and fines of the fee determined by the Electricity Tariff Determination Commission for industries that used electricity continuously during the load-shedding period.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">On </span></span><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">October 2, 2016</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">, the commission had authorized the NEA to charge additional fee to customers who were using electricity continuously for 20 hours from the dedicated line during six hours of load shedding at that time. However, the NEA sent letter to the industries in </span></span><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">2018</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> demanding clearance of the electricity bills by ignoring the conditions set by the commission. This led to a dispute between the two parties. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Pawan Golyan, president of Yarn Producers' Association, said that the NEA was unable to provide any evidence that the industrialists had used excess electricity, and accused the NEA of trying to endanger the country's economy by cutting off power supply to the industries after the arrears increased to over Rs 22 billion. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">“The authority could neither present evidence at that time nor is it trying to present evidence now,” he said, adding that such a policy of the NEA could lead to further increase in arrears and the collapse of industries.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Dhruba Thapa, president of Nepal Cement Industry Association, also said that the authority has done injustice to the industries by sending fake bills without facts and evidence. He said that the recent move of the authority has created a situation due to which the industrialists have been compelled to migrate abroad. Thapa argues that the NEA charged the bill even for the electricity they never used just to show that the state-owned utility is in profit.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">“If the authority seeks help for making it profitable, the industrialists are ready to help as much as possible. However, we are not ready to bear unnecessary burden," he said.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""> </span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-01', 'modified' => '2024-01-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19591', 'image' => '20240101040647_1703994624.1612736027.Clipboard12.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-01 16:06:05', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19863', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Banning Marijuana Promotes Illegal Trade: Government Study', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 1: A government study has shown that when the policy-level decision of the government to ban marijuana only increases its illegal trade. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">January 1: A government study has shown that when the policy-level decision of the government to ban marijuana only increases its illegal trade. The Narcotic Drugs (Control) Act, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2033</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> makes the dealing of marijuana or marijuana products illegal. However, as a result of the ban imposed by the law on marijuana trade, its illegal trade is increasing every year, according to a study conducted by the government.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">A report prepared by the state-run Institute of Policy and Research based on the data provided by the Ministry of Home Affairs shows that the number of people involved in illegal trade of marijuana has increased every year due to the ban. The report also suggests that the government should adopt a lenient policy on marijuana with certain conditions.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to the report, there is a possibility of illegal market of marijuana flourishing with the legal changes if the government adopts a lenient policy towards marijuana. In Canada, which has legalized the recreational use of marijuana, it has been found that the illegal trade has outpaced the legal business. It is believed that customers might have been attracted more to the illegal market because marijuana available in the illegal market is cheaper and contains more </span></span><span style="font-family:"Helvetica","sans-serif"">tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), a substance that is primarily responsible for the effects of marijuana on a person’s mental state</span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">It is mentioned in the report that countries that have legalized cannabis cultivation and business have also experienced an increase in illegal transactions due to the limitations of the legal market and complicated administrative procedures.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In the course of the study, it was found that marijuana produced in Nepal or exported from Nepal is popular in the Netherlands. The report further mentions that Alibaba company is selling and distributing Nepali marijuana online under the name of 'Dhawalagiri Cake'.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Marijuana cultivation and business is illegal in Nepal, but due to the open border with India, Nepal is becoming a transit for marijuana business with third countries, according to the report of the Ministry of Home Affairs. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">"Not only one, but many routes and patterns are active for illegal trade and transportation," the report states, adding, "Clothes, shoes, yarn, artistic and decorative materials made from hemp fibers or mixed with hemp fibers are sold unabated in Thamel, the main tourist hub of Kathmandu.'</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Since the production of marijuana is illegal, these marijuana products are usually sold under the name of hemp or natural fiber. There is high risk in operating business by changing the name, states the report prepared by Dr Manita Kusi, Dr Hari Sharma Neupane, Dr Mukunda Raj Kattel, Advocate Hari Prasad Mainali, Prof Rajendra Gyawali, Dr Prarak Regmi and Pushkar Basyal.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">It is also mentioned in the study report that the traders of Thamel were confused when they inquired whether products sold by them had more than the quantity of marijuana prescribed by the Narcotic Drugs Act. "This confusion is the result of the ambiguity in our existing laws which can be misused for illegal transactions," the report states, adding, "Therefore, it is necessary to have a clear policy as well as legal and administrative framework. If that is not done, Nepal will remain at risk of illegal business in one form or another even after the legalization of marijuana.”</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-01', 'modified' => '2024-01-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19590', 'image' => '20240101022832_20231210023326_20221030030309_20201204014433_1607039093.Clipboard09.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-01 14:27:57', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19862', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Government Cuts Down Expenses on Snacks for Cabinet Meetings, Saving Rs 6 Million Annually ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 1: The government has decided to cut down the expenses on snacks for the meeting of the Council of Ministers in a bid to reform the state apparatus.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 1: The government has decided to cut down the expenses on snacks for the meeting of the Council of Ministers in a bid to reform the state apparatus. Stating that the government should initiate reforms from small topics, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal announced at the cabinet meeting held in Singha Durbar on Monday morning that the expenditure on snacks served in such meetings will be been cut down from now onwards, according to the Prime Minister's Secretariat. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The PM’s Office stated that approximately Rs 60,000 is spent on snacks in each meeting of the Council of Ministers. It is said the Council of Ministers meets more than 100 times in a year. Govinda Acharya, the press advisor to the prime minister, said that around Rs 6 million will be saved annually with the decision to cut down the snack expenses in the meeting of the Council of Ministers. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Normal snacks will be served in the meeting of the Council of Ministers from now on, the PM’s Secretariat said. Acharya said PM Dahal has started reforms from his own office considering minor issues as significant measures for good governance and reforms. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Prime Minister Dahal who recently announced to change the working style of the government has been reaching the Prime Minister's Office at Singha Durbar at 10.0 am daily, except on public holidays. He has been taking daily briefing from various ministries and initiatives for resolving the problems seen in development projects, including the national pride projects, from the Singha Durbar. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Meanwhile, the government's decision to use the Nepal Sambat calendar in all the government documents has been implemented. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-01', 'modified' => '2024-01-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19589', 'image' => '20240101020213_20230224010200_1677194359.Clipboard07.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-01 14:01:31', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19861', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Tourists Flock to Sauraha to Celebrate English New Year', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 1: Sauraha, a renowned tourist destination in Chitwan district, witnessed a large number of people on Sunday to celebrate the English New Year. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">January 1: Sauraha, a renowned tourist destination in Chitwan district, witnessed a large number of people on Sunday to celebrate the English New Year. The number of domestic tourists has increased due to a public holiday on the New Year ’s Eve.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Tourists visit Sauraha to enjoy the tourist activities such as elephant ride, jeep safari and boating.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Regional Hotel Association’s Vice President Om Prakash Pandey said that has been a good influx of tourists since September. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">"In the last few days, the occupancy of hotels in Sauraha is encouraging,” said Pandey, adding that his hotel – Forest Park – had </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">75</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> percent occupancy.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">He said that the presence of Indian and Chinese tourists along with domestic tourists is also encouraging in Sauraha. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The general secretary of the association, Gunaraj Thapalia, said that all the rooms were full on Saturday as expected for the New Year’s Eve on Sunday.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to Thapalia, the owner of Unique Wild Resort, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">30</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> rooms in his hotel have been fully booked till January </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">4</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to Deepak Bhattarai, outgoing president of the association, there are around </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">160</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> hotels in Sauraha. The hotel has the capacity to serve seven thousand people at a time. Sauraha can accommodate more than </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">10,000</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> people for one night with the homestay facility. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Tourists who come to Sauraha go for a jeep safari in the nearby community forests. They can also enjoy jeep safari inside the Chitwan National Park. According to Bhattarai, around </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">100</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> jeep safaris are taking place daily in the community forest alone. Tourists have to wait for their turn for the jeep safaris.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Suman Ghimire, the former president of the association, said that the arrival of tourists was unprecedented during this period. According to him, tourists are coming now as in the pre-Covid situation. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">“Tourists prefer to visit here in winter season. Booking for the coming days is good. This has made us hopeful," he said.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to the outgoing president of Restaurant and Bar Association (REBAN), Dipendra Khatiwada, there is a good presence of tourists in the restaurants of Sauraha since Dashain.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Along with Sauraha, there is also a good presence of tourists in Patihani, Jagatpur, and Meghauli. There is a good presence of Indian and Chinese tourists as tourists from third countries go home to celebrate New Year and Christmas.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Ganesh Paudel, owner of Jungle Villa in Patihani, said that the arrival of tourists is encouraging. He said that they are hopeful that tourism industry will return to the pre-covid situation.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-01', 'modified' => '2024-01-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19588', 'image' => '20240101010417_jeep-drive.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-01 13:03:37', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19860', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Government Preparing to Celebrate Visit Nepal Year in 2025', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 1: The government was compelled to postpone the Visit Nepal Year 2020 campaign due to the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">January 1: The government was compelled to postpone the Visit Nepal Year </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2020</span></span> <span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">campaign due to the outbreak of Covid-</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">19</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> pandemic. The campaign, which started with the announcement of bringing two million tourists to Nepal in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2020</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">, was postponed due to unfavourable circumstances.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Now, the government is once again preparing to launch the campaign in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2025</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> AD</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">. </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Sudan Kirati revealed this on the occasion of the </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">25</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">th anniversary of Nepal Tourism Board.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The minister also emphasized on the development of Nepal’s tourism industry. “Apart from Kathmandu and some famous destinations, other destinations of Nepal are also worth visiting,” he said, adding that it is necessary to pay attention to this factor as well.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">On this occasion, Chief Executive Officer of Nepal Tourism Board, Dhananjay Regmi said that preparations are being made to announce the Visit Nepal Year </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2025</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">. He said that the campaign will be launched when the private sector is ready to welcome the tourists. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Nepal had previously organised the Visit Nepal Year in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2011. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Regmi also emphasized that the government and the private sector should work together to attract </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">3.5 </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">million tourists to Nepal annually after </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">10 </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">years as envisaged in the Tourism Decade plan of the government.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-01', 'modified' => '2024-01-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19587', 'image' => '20240101121158_1704073486.1566910573.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-01 12:11:11', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19859', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Orange Festival being Organised to Ensure its Market ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 1: The local government of Ichchhakamana rural municipality in Chitwan is organising a three-day orange festival starting from today with the objective of ensuring market for oranges produced in the local unit’s villages.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 1: The local government of Ichchhakamana rural municipality in Chitwan is organising a three-day orange festival starting from today with the objective of ensuring market for oranges produced in the local unit’s villages including Tokdand, Dhap, Majhgaun, Sirangaun and Dode. These villages are famed for producing a large quantity of oranges.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chairperson of Ichchhakamana Rural Municipality, Dan Bahadur Gurung, shared that the orange festival is being organised for the first time with the objective of ensuring market for oranges produced by the local farmers and its promotion. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"We have made arrangements for the visitors of the festival to pick and eat oranges by climbing the tree," he added. Similarly, the local government informed that the festival also includes an orange eating contest. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chair Gurung said that the visitors can buy oranges at a discounted price compared to market during the festival. He added that the orange farmers will be distributed different materials and a training would also be imparted to farmers by agriculture technicians. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"We are organising the festival with a belief that it will be easy to sell oranges produced in Ichchhakamana rural municipality at different markets of the country. We are also hopeful that it will help in the publicity of tourism sites of the area," he mentioned. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">It is estimated that more than 450 farmers of Ichchhamana rural municipality would sell orange worth Rs 100 million this year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Farmers are now selling orange at Rs 75-90 per kg from their farms. Orange is cultivated on 80 hectares of land in the rural municipality this year, according to the Agriculture Development Section of the rural municipality. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">A total of 1650 metric tonnes of orange was produced in the rural municipality last year. -- RSS</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-01', 'modified' => '2024-01-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19586', 'image' => '20240101112305_20230129104602_YB_BHOJPUR_SUNTALA.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-01 11:22:07', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19858', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'PM Gives Fake Assurance to Industries while NEA Cuts Electricity Supply', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'December 31: When Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal was assuring industrialists to form a high-level commission to resolve the tariff dispute of dedicated feeder and trunk lines, the Nepal Electricity Authority was preparing to cut off electricity supply to more industries.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">December 31: When Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal was assuring industrialists to form a high-level commission to resolve the tariff dispute of dedicated feeder and trunk lines, the Nepal Electricity Authority was preparing to cut off electricity supply to more industries.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The authority was actively involved in cutting the line of industries until Friday midnight. The authority's team was deployed in Bara-Parsa industrial corridor till 12 midnight of December 29.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Out of the 23 industries whose lines were cut due to tax arrears, nine large industries are located in the Bara-Parsa industrial corridor. As the production of the industry has come to a grinding halt, the workers of these industries have already landed in the streets.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Hari Gautam, senior vice president of Birgunj Chamber of Commerce, an umbrella organization of Bara-Parsa industrialists, says that the prime minister keeps giving assurances to the industrialists, but the authority keeps cutting the line. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“The government should have taken proper decisions to provide relief as the industries are reeling under the effect of the economic recession. However, it seems that the government is not trying to resolve the dispute, but to intensify it," said senior vice president Gautam.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Industrialists recall that the prime minister promised a proper solution many times before. The private sector alleges that the government has been making fake assurances and the NEA has been presenting fake bills.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The prime minister, in a meeting with the industrialists on Friday, assured that the premium tariff will not be levied before the Electricity Tariff Determination Commission approves the premium tariff. He had also made it clear that the premium tariff would not be charged after the end of load shedding.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The committee formed under the coordination of the then Energy Secretary Dinesh Ghimire also said that the premium tariff cannot not be charged before the tariff was fixed (before mid-July 2015) and after the end of load shedding (mid-May 2018).</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Industrialists say that the committee's report was approved by the then Council of Ministers. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">But now, the controversy has surfaced because of the government’s dubious nature and the NEA presenting fake bills.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The industrialists have demanded that the NEA download the Time of Day (TOD) meter data to clear the ambiguity. However, the NEA is not willing to comply which is evident from the fact that it has written to the district courts in Sunsari and Makwanpur that such data has been deleted.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The industrialists have said they are willing to clear the arrears if the NEA shows the TOD meter data.</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 authority, it is yet to collect a total arrears of Rs 22.24 billion from 61 industries including electricity tariff, interest and fines. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">It includes Rs 6 billion arrears from 2015 to 2018 and Rs 8 billion in two years after the end of load shedding in 2018.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The NEA had amended the electricity tariff collection regulations in June 2020.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-12-31', 'modified' => '2023-12-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19585', 'image' => '20231231031436_1703994624.1612736027.Clipboard12.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-12-31 15:13:47', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19857', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Stakeholders suggest Learning Lessons from GBIA and PRIA', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'December 31: Stakeholders have pointed out the need to expedite the construction of Nijgadh International Airport in order to manage air traffic congestion at the Tribhuvan International Airport in the future.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">December 31: Stakeholders have pointed out the need to expedite the construction of Nijgadh International Airport in order to manage air traffic congestion at the Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) in the future.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Minister of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, MPs of various parties, former director general of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal as well as infrastructure experts have said that there is no alternative to a new airport in Nijgadh.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Speaking at a function organized by the Trade Union of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Sudan Kirati, said that Tribhuvan International Airport will not be able to bear the current load after five years.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">“Hence, the Council of Minister has approved to build Nijgarh International Airport,” said Kirati.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Nepali Congress MP Uday Shamsher Rana said that Nijgadh Airport should be built but the government must learn lessons from the two newly-built airport -- Gautam Buddha International Airport (GBIA) and Pokhara Regional International Airport (PRIA). </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">"These two airports are struggling to operate even after the construction," Rana said, "Let's conduct an in-depth study with India on issues such as air route, air space, commercial modality, etc. while constructing Nijgadh," he added.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Similarly, Manish Jha, MP of the Rastra Swatantra Party, said that Nijgadh should not be limited to discussion. He said that delaying the project and keeping it only in discussion has only increased the price of land. "It is also necessary to invest in studies and research," he added.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Birendra Deuja, former director general of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), and the key speaker of the program, said that even though Nijgadh airport was identified 30 years ago, no progress has been made so far. He said that there should not be much protest for chopping off the trees and environmental protest for infrastructure development.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">"The Gautam Buddha and Pokhara International airports are not hardly operational," said Deuja, "There is no alternative to Nijgadh airport but CAAN’s preparation is not adequate.”</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Deuja also said that there is a need for a policy to encourage chartered flights in those airports that do not have international flights.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">As the Tribhuvan International Airport cannot cope with the arrival of 1-1.2 million tourists at present, the stakeholders emphasized that Nijgadh International Airport should be built keeping in mind the increasing number of tourists. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Pradeep Adhikari, director general of the CAAN, said that there is no alternative to Nijgadh airport. He also said that CAAN will build Nijgadh in a public-private partnership (PPP) model.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">"We cannot say that Gautam Buddha and Pokhara International airports not financially viable," said the Adhikari, "There should not be any excuse to build an airport just because of debt issue. CAAN can pay the debt, and the passengers should not be denied international services."</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-12-31', 'modified' => '2023-12-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19584', 'image' => '20231231025012_20201009013027_Clipboard19.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-12-31 14:49:27', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19856', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Cabinet Approves Cutting of more than 4,000 Trees under KTM-Tarai Fast Track', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'December 31: The government has approved the Kathmandu-Tarai Expressway (Fast Track) Project to cut trees to expedite the construction work. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">December 31: The government has approved the Kathmandu-Tarai Expressway (Fast Track) Project to cut trees to expedite the construction work. A meeting of the Council of Ministers on Thursday approved the felling of 4,345 trees in the forest areas of Makwanpur and Bara districts.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The cabinet meeting also approved the project to use 40.19 hectares of the forest land for the construction of the strategic road that is expected to shorten the distance between the capital and the southern Tarai districts. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The government had entrusted the project management to the army on May 4, 2017. The foundation stone was laid by the then Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal on May 28 the same year. According to the last extended deadline, the project should be completed by mid-April 2027. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Chief of Army Staff Prabhu Ram Sharma had recently informed the State Affairs and Good Governance Committee of the House of Representatives that the project had been delayed because the army was awaiting approval for cutting trees since nine months</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">He told the House committee that the government had instructed the army to complete the expressway on time, but it was yet to implement the legal provisions to facilitate felling trees.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“It is ironic to say that we need to do the work on a war footing on the basis of outdated laws drafted in 2017. If this is the case, the fast track will not be built by 2027,” Sharma had told the committee on December 20.</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 army, the financial progress of the expressway with an estimated cost of Rs 211.93 billion stands at 29.44 percent. In the current fiscal year, the physical progress of the expressway has reached 32.66 percent. The army claims that this year's financial progress is 10.8 percent.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The army has divided the work in 13 packages for the expressway. Five of them have not been contracted yet.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Along the fast track, there is one forest in Kathmandu, one in Lalitpur, in 22 Makwanpur and five in Bara.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-12-31', 'modified' => '2023-12-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19583', 'image' => '20231231020221_1703994063.1694388036.1607902819.Clipboard03.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-12-31 14:01:49', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ) ) $current_user = null $logged_in = false $xml = falseinclude - APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 133 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::_renderElement() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 1224 View::element() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 418 include - APP/View/Articles/index.ctp, line 157 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 473 Controller::render() - CORE/Cake/Controller/Controller.php, line 968 Dispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 200 Dispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 167 [main] - APP/webroot/index.php, line 117
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According to the Annapurna Conservation Area Project (ACAP), a total of </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">191</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">,5</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">58</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> foreign tourists visited the world-famous Annapurna Circuit for trekking in the review year</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Prior to this, the highest number of tourists (</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">181</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">,</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">000</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">) had visited the Annapurna region in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2019</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">A new record has been established in the arrival of tourists in the Annapurna region in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2023</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">," said the head of the Annapurna Conservation Area Project, Rabin Kadaria, adding, "Recently, there has been an increase in the number of tourists from South Asian countries, while tourists from other countries have decreased."</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2019</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">, a total of </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">53,710</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> tourists from South Asian countries reached Annapurna, while last year </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">97,554</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> people from this region visited the area.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Tourists from other countries have decreased compared to before, according to the statistics of ACAP. In </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2019</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">127,290</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> tourists from countries other than the SAARC region entered the Annapurna region, while last year a total of </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">94,400</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> tourists visited the region, Kadaria informed.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to him, tourists from </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">173</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> countries visited the Annapurna region in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2023</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> out of which </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">96</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">,</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">187</span></span> <span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">tourists were from India. In the review year, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">8,526</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> tourists from France, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">7,641</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> from Germany, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">7,249</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> from America, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">7,174</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> from Britain and </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">6,323</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> from China entered the Annapurna region.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The arrival of tourists took a nosedive with the onset of Covid-</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">19</span></span> <span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">pandemic. But with the end of the pandemic, tourism in the Annapurna region has returned to normalcy. A total of </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">16</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">,</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">10</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">5 tourists visited the Annapurna region in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2021</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> during the pandemic. The following year i.e. in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2022</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">, altogether </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">129,733</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> tourists reached the area.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">ACAP project chief Kadaria said that the number of tourists from Europe and America coming for trekking has decreased as the old foot trails are being displaced by newly-built roads. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">"The foot trails in the Annapurna Circuit are in existential crisis due to the expansion of the road network. As a result, Annapurna Circuit’s charm as a renowned trekking destination is diminishing,” said Kadaria, adding that all stakeholders need to protect the foot trails in order to protect the identity of the Annapurna Circuit, which is one of the top ten destinations in the world according to the list prepared by Lonely Planet.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Every year, millions of domestic and foreign tourists visit the Annapurna base camp, Mardi Himal, Ghandruk, Tilicho Lake in Manang, Thorangla Pass, Upper Mustang, Muktinath region, Ghodepani in Myagdi whih fall along the Annapurna Circuit.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The Annapurna Conservation Area Project only keeps the data of foreign tourists who visit these destinations. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">"It is ascertain the exact number of domestic tourists, but the number of people entering Mustang and Manang by road is significant," said the project chief Kadaria, adding, "There is more visitors during the two seasons – autumn and spring."</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The Annapurna conservation area spreads over </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">7,600</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> square kilometers and is considered an attractive destination for trekking.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Three years ago, the famous international travel site Lonely Planet listed the Annapurna Circuit as one of the top </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">10</span></span> <span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">destinations in the world. The importance of this area was further highlighted when UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres visited the Annapurna base camp during his recent visit to Nepal in November.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Mustang Valley, which was included in the list of </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">23</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> must-visit destinations in the world by the American news agency CNN in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2023</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">, is also located in the Annapurna Conservation Area. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Tourist guide Divas Gurung says that the Annapurna region is one of the preferred choices of tourists because of its natural beauty, bio-diversity, rustic mountain life, culture, among others.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Visitors can opt for short, medium and long-distance trekking in the Annapurna region from any route including Kaski, Lamjung, Manang, Myagdi," he said.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-02', 'modified' => '2024-01-02', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19597', 'image' => '20240102031942_20220508080527_Annapurna circuit (3).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-02 15:19:07', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19869', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Price of Tomatoes Drops by Ten Rupees in a Single Day', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 2: The price of tomatoes has decreased by Rs 10 in a single day. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">January 2: The price of tomatoes has decreased by Rs 10 in a single day. According to the Kalimati Fruit and Vegetable Market Development Committee, the price of tomatoes has decreased by Rs 10 per kg on Tuesday (today) compared to Monday (yesterday).</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">According to the committee, the average price of big tomatoes produced in the country which was Rs 55 per kg on Monday has dropped to Rs 45 per kg on Tuesday. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">Similarly, the average price of big tomatoes imported from India which was Rs 65 per kg on Monday, is being sold at Rs 55per kg on Tuesday.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">Similarly, small local tomatoes are being sold at Rs 15 per kg and tomatoes cultivated through tunnel farming are being sold at Rs 25 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">The committee has fixed the price of red potatoes at Rs 35 per kg on Tuesday. Potatoes imported from India are being sold at Rs 30 per kg in the wholesale market. Likewise, the wholesale price of white potatoes has been fixed at Rs 26 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">Likewise, the committee has fixed the price of onions imported from India at Rs 75 per kg and those imported from China at Rs 60 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">The price of local carrot has been fixed at Rs 40 per kg and local cabbage at Rs 30 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">The price of cauliflower has dropped to Rs 20 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">Local white radish is being sold at a wholesale price of Rs 12 per kg and red radish at Rs 15 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Nirmala UI","sans-serif"">Similarly, the price of peas has been fixed at Rs 50 per kg, local green beans at Rs 30 per kg, brinjal at Rs 30 per kg, pumpkin at Rs 40 per kg, lady’s finger at Rs 90 per kg and broad beans at Rs 80 per kg.</span></span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-02', 'modified' => '2024-01-02', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19596', 'image' => '20240102022251_20230818115845_Product-IMG_TOV-rev2.original.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-02 14:22:12', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19868', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Construction Entrepreneurs Warn of Fresh Protests', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 2: After the government turned a blind eye to the problems faced by the construction sector, the construction entrepreneurs warned to start protest again. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">January 2: After the government turned a blind eye to the problems faced by the construction sector, the construction entrepreneurs warned to start protest again. The Federation of Contractors Association of Nepal, the umbrella organization of construction entrepreneurs, said that they were unable to submit bills worth more than Rs 40 billion of the already-completed projects because the government did not take the issue of extension of the deadline seriously.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The federation has already staged several protests to pressurize the government to meet the demands of the construction entrepreneurs, including the payment of completed work. The federation issued a press statement on Monday and warned that they will begin a new protest as the government did not implement the agreements reached in the past.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">"Government offices have stated that those points cannot be implemented due to the fear of being monitored by agencies such as the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority, the National Vigilance Center and the Auditor General," the statement reads.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">General Secretary of the Federation Roshan Dahal said that the contractors could not even submit bills worth more than Rs 40 billion to the concerned offices due to the non-implementation of the past agreements.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">FCAN said that they have not been able to pay bank loans, taxes and the construction workers due to the delay in payment of dues by the government. This has also affected the supply chain, FCAN officials claimed. The federation stated that this has had a negative impact on the overall economy.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The statement further mentions that the construction industry is on the verge of closure due to the government’s indifference.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to the federation, businessmen who went bankrupt have even committed self-immolation.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The federation has warned that the situation will turn more complicated that if the state does not show any seriousness to solve the existing problems.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The statement further says that if the government does not implement the agreement as soon as possible, the federation will be forced to launch the final movement to ensure the rights of the construction industry. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">At a time when the government is struggling to spend capital expenditure, the construction entrepreneurs have warned of starting their protest during the peak season of construction. </span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-02', 'modified' => '2024-01-02', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19595', 'image' => '20240102125628_1704159819.1702872410.fcan.jpeg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-02 12:55:49', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19867', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NEA can Collect Additional Fees from Industries only for Load Shedding Period: Commission', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 2: The Nepal Electricity Authority will not be able to collect additional fees from the industries for the electricity consumed before and after the load shedding period.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">January 2: The Nepal Electricity Authority will not be able to collect additional fees from the industries for the electricity consumed before and after the load shedding period. This decision was taken by a meeting of the Electricity Regulatory Commission on Monday. The authority had announced that load shedding had ended on May 14, 2018.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The NEA has demanded the industries to pay additional tariffs even for the electricity consumed after the end of load shedding. The commission’s Secretary Gokarnaraj Pantha said that the commission meeting decided that the NEA will be allowed to collect additional fees only if there was load shedding in the country after May 2018.</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 Pantha, the commission canceled the additional fee for dedicated feeder and trunk line on June 15, 2020. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">As the additional charge was valid until the cut-off date, industries will be liable to pay the dues as of June 15, 2020 on condition that that they had utilized electricity for more than twenty hours a day during load-shedding.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The commission’s secretary made it clear that all the customers are getting regular supply of electricity and the authority will not be allowed to charge additional fee for dedicated feeder and trunk lines during normal circumstances.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“The NEA can levy additional charges for using dedicated feeder and trunk lines only in case of load shedding. If the NEA can provide evidence that load shedding was taking place at that time, then it can levy the fee. The main dispute at present is about the bill issued by NEA after it announced the end of load shedding.”</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-02', 'modified' => '2024-01-02', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19594', 'image' => '20240102121524_NEA_eight by six.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-02 12:14:48', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19866', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Economy yet to Improve: CNI Survey', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 2: At a time when the government and the regulatory bodies are claiming that the economy has improved in in recent months, a survey conducted by the private sector has shown that there has not been any improvement in the country’s overall economy.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">January 2: At a time when the government and the regulatory bodies are claiming that the economy has improved in in recent months, a survey conducted by the private sector has shown that there has not been any improvement in the country’s overall economy.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">A survey conducted by the Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) has shown that the economy has not improved in the first quarter of the current fiscal year as claimed by the government.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“The overall market demand has fallen. The prices of raw materials have been constantly rising. There has been a decline in the import of industrial raw materials,'' reads a press statement issued by CNI on Monday.</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 survey, the overall market demand for the industrial products decreased by 28.28 percent last year. It has further decreased by 12.06 percent in the same period of the current fiscal year.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Compared to the first quarter of the fiscal year (FY) 2021/22, the overall demand of industries has contracted by a total of 36.93 in the corresponding period of FY 2023/24. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Similarly, the turnover of the industries had decreased by 24.94 percent in the previous year while it decreased by 30.54 this year, the report added.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-02', 'modified' => '2024-01-02', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19593', 'image' => '20240102112342_20230828114446_CNIIII.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-02 11:23:00', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19865', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Cold Affects Arrival of Tourists in Kanchanjunga Region ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 2: The number of tourists visiting the Kanchanjunga area to view the third highest peak in the world has declined sharply owing to growing cold of late. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 2: The number of tourists visiting the Kanchanjunga area to view the third highest peak in the world has declined sharply owing to growing cold of late. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Tourism entrepreneur Pema Sherpa informed RSS that the area witnessed severe cold for some days, resulting in the decline in arrival of tourists. However, the region is yet to witness snowfall this year. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The hotel and lodges in the area are closed due to lack of visitors. The hoteliers of Kanchanjunga area have shifted down to Phungling, while some have traveled to Kathmandu to avoid cold. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The Kanchanjungha area witnessed the arrival of large number of tourists before the onset of winter, according to Tasi Tenjing Sherpa, who is affiliated to the Kanchanjungha Conservation Area Management Council. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"The Kanchanjunga area had recorded entry of 760 tourists from different countries from mid-September to mid-December. It was highest number of tourist inflow since the COVID-19 subsided," he said. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-02', 'modified' => '2024-01-02', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19592', 'image' => '20240102110049_Kanchanjunga SVO (4).jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-02 10:59:53', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19864', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Industrialists Ready to Pay Electricity Bills if NEA Produces Evidence', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 1: The outstanding dues of industries for using the Nepal Electricity Authority’s dedicated feeder and trunk lines during load shedding has increased from Rs billion to Rs 22 billion as the dispute continues to linger.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">January 1: The outstanding dues of industries for using the Nepal Electricity Authority’s dedicated feeder and trunk lines during load shedding has increased from Rs billion to Rs 22 billion as the dispute continues to linger.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">When the dispute started about five years ago, the outstanding amount that the industries were liable to pay to the NEA was only Rs 4 billion. Due to the stance taken by the Nepal Electricity Authority and the industrialists, the outstanding amount has increased to Rs 22.24 billion. It seems to have a direct impact on Nepal's productive sector and the overall economy.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Speaking at a press conference organized by the Federation of Nepalese Chamber of Commerce and Industries (FNCCI) in the capital, former FNCCI President Pashupati Murarka said that a sub-committee formed under the coordination of NEA board member Bhakta Bahadur Pun by the 768th board meeting of the NEA on </span></span><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">May 14, 2018</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> had determined the outstanding dues that the industries were liable to pay to the NEA of using the dedicated feeder and trunk line at Rs 4 billion.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">"We could not pay the electricity tariff because the authority submitted false details. The outstanding amount has been piling up ever since then. As a result, the authority cut the line to the industries and its impact is affecting the productive sector and the overall economy of Nepal," he said.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The arrears of Rs 22.24 billion at present includes interest and fines of the fee determined by the Electricity Tariff Determination Commission for industries that used electricity continuously during the load-shedding period.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">On </span></span><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">October 2, 2016</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">, the commission had authorized the NEA to charge additional fee to customers who were using electricity continuously for 20 hours from the dedicated line during six hours of load shedding at that time. However, the NEA sent letter to the industries in </span></span><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">2018</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> demanding clearance of the electricity bills by ignoring the conditions set by the commission. This led to a dispute between the two parties. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Pawan Golyan, president of Yarn Producers' Association, said that the NEA was unable to provide any evidence that the industrialists had used excess electricity, and accused the NEA of trying to endanger the country's economy by cutting off power supply to the industries after the arrears increased to over Rs 22 billion. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">“The authority could neither present evidence at that time nor is it trying to present evidence now,” he said, adding that such a policy of the NEA could lead to further increase in arrears and the collapse of industries.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Dhruba Thapa, president of Nepal Cement Industry Association, also said that the authority has done injustice to the industries by sending fake bills without facts and evidence. He said that the recent move of the authority has created a situation due to which the industrialists have been compelled to migrate abroad. Thapa argues that the NEA charged the bill even for the electricity they never used just to show that the state-owned utility is in profit.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">“If the authority seeks help for making it profitable, the industrialists are ready to help as much as possible. However, we are not ready to bear unnecessary burden," he said.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""> </span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-01', 'modified' => '2024-01-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19591', 'image' => '20240101040647_1703994624.1612736027.Clipboard12.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-01 16:06:05', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19863', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Banning Marijuana Promotes Illegal Trade: Government Study', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 1: A government study has shown that when the policy-level decision of the government to ban marijuana only increases its illegal trade. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">January 1: A government study has shown that when the policy-level decision of the government to ban marijuana only increases its illegal trade. The Narcotic Drugs (Control) Act, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2033</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> makes the dealing of marijuana or marijuana products illegal. However, as a result of the ban imposed by the law on marijuana trade, its illegal trade is increasing every year, according to a study conducted by the government.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">A report prepared by the state-run Institute of Policy and Research based on the data provided by the Ministry of Home Affairs shows that the number of people involved in illegal trade of marijuana has increased every year due to the ban. The report also suggests that the government should adopt a lenient policy on marijuana with certain conditions.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to the report, there is a possibility of illegal market of marijuana flourishing with the legal changes if the government adopts a lenient policy towards marijuana. In Canada, which has legalized the recreational use of marijuana, it has been found that the illegal trade has outpaced the legal business. It is believed that customers might have been attracted more to the illegal market because marijuana available in the illegal market is cheaper and contains more </span></span><span style="font-family:"Helvetica","sans-serif"">tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), a substance that is primarily responsible for the effects of marijuana on a person’s mental state</span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">It is mentioned in the report that countries that have legalized cannabis cultivation and business have also experienced an increase in illegal transactions due to the limitations of the legal market and complicated administrative procedures.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In the course of the study, it was found that marijuana produced in Nepal or exported from Nepal is popular in the Netherlands. The report further mentions that Alibaba company is selling and distributing Nepali marijuana online under the name of 'Dhawalagiri Cake'.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Marijuana cultivation and business is illegal in Nepal, but due to the open border with India, Nepal is becoming a transit for marijuana business with third countries, according to the report of the Ministry of Home Affairs. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">"Not only one, but many routes and patterns are active for illegal trade and transportation," the report states, adding, "Clothes, shoes, yarn, artistic and decorative materials made from hemp fibers or mixed with hemp fibers are sold unabated in Thamel, the main tourist hub of Kathmandu.'</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Since the production of marijuana is illegal, these marijuana products are usually sold under the name of hemp or natural fiber. There is high risk in operating business by changing the name, states the report prepared by Dr Manita Kusi, Dr Hari Sharma Neupane, Dr Mukunda Raj Kattel, Advocate Hari Prasad Mainali, Prof Rajendra Gyawali, Dr Prarak Regmi and Pushkar Basyal.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">It is also mentioned in the study report that the traders of Thamel were confused when they inquired whether products sold by them had more than the quantity of marijuana prescribed by the Narcotic Drugs Act. "This confusion is the result of the ambiguity in our existing laws which can be misused for illegal transactions," the report states, adding, "Therefore, it is necessary to have a clear policy as well as legal and administrative framework. If that is not done, Nepal will remain at risk of illegal business in one form or another even after the legalization of marijuana.”</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-01', 'modified' => '2024-01-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19590', 'image' => '20240101022832_20231210023326_20221030030309_20201204014433_1607039093.Clipboard09.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-01 14:27:57', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19862', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Government Cuts Down Expenses on Snacks for Cabinet Meetings, Saving Rs 6 Million Annually ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 1: The government has decided to cut down the expenses on snacks for the meeting of the Council of Ministers in a bid to reform the state apparatus.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 1: The government has decided to cut down the expenses on snacks for the meeting of the Council of Ministers in a bid to reform the state apparatus. Stating that the government should initiate reforms from small topics, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal announced at the cabinet meeting held in Singha Durbar on Monday morning that the expenditure on snacks served in such meetings will be been cut down from now onwards, according to the Prime Minister's Secretariat. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The PM’s Office stated that approximately Rs 60,000 is spent on snacks in each meeting of the Council of Ministers. It is said the Council of Ministers meets more than 100 times in a year. Govinda Acharya, the press advisor to the prime minister, said that around Rs 6 million will be saved annually with the decision to cut down the snack expenses in the meeting of the Council of Ministers. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Normal snacks will be served in the meeting of the Council of Ministers from now on, the PM’s Secretariat said. Acharya said PM Dahal has started reforms from his own office considering minor issues as significant measures for good governance and reforms. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Prime Minister Dahal who recently announced to change the working style of the government has been reaching the Prime Minister's Office at Singha Durbar at 10.0 am daily, except on public holidays. He has been taking daily briefing from various ministries and initiatives for resolving the problems seen in development projects, including the national pride projects, from the Singha Durbar. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Meanwhile, the government's decision to use the Nepal Sambat calendar in all the government documents has been implemented. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-01', 'modified' => '2024-01-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19589', 'image' => '20240101020213_20230224010200_1677194359.Clipboard07.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-01 14:01:31', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19861', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Tourists Flock to Sauraha to Celebrate English New Year', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 1: Sauraha, a renowned tourist destination in Chitwan district, witnessed a large number of people on Sunday to celebrate the English New Year. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">January 1: Sauraha, a renowned tourist destination in Chitwan district, witnessed a large number of people on Sunday to celebrate the English New Year. The number of domestic tourists has increased due to a public holiday on the New Year ’s Eve.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Tourists visit Sauraha to enjoy the tourist activities such as elephant ride, jeep safari and boating.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Regional Hotel Association’s Vice President Om Prakash Pandey said that has been a good influx of tourists since September. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">"In the last few days, the occupancy of hotels in Sauraha is encouraging,” said Pandey, adding that his hotel – Forest Park – had </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">75</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> percent occupancy.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">He said that the presence of Indian and Chinese tourists along with domestic tourists is also encouraging in Sauraha. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The general secretary of the association, Gunaraj Thapalia, said that all the rooms were full on Saturday as expected for the New Year’s Eve on Sunday.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to Thapalia, the owner of Unique Wild Resort, </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">30</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> rooms in his hotel have been fully booked till January </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">4</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to Deepak Bhattarai, outgoing president of the association, there are around </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">160</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> hotels in Sauraha. The hotel has the capacity to serve seven thousand people at a time. Sauraha can accommodate more than </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">10,000</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> people for one night with the homestay facility. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Tourists who come to Sauraha go for a jeep safari in the nearby community forests. They can also enjoy jeep safari inside the Chitwan National Park. According to Bhattarai, around </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">100</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> jeep safaris are taking place daily in the community forest alone. Tourists have to wait for their turn for the jeep safaris.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Suman Ghimire, the former president of the association, said that the arrival of tourists was unprecedented during this period. According to him, tourists are coming now as in the pre-Covid situation. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">“Tourists prefer to visit here in winter season. Booking for the coming days is good. This has made us hopeful," he said.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to the outgoing president of Restaurant and Bar Association (REBAN), Dipendra Khatiwada, there is a good presence of tourists in the restaurants of Sauraha since Dashain.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Along with Sauraha, there is also a good presence of tourists in Patihani, Jagatpur, and Meghauli. There is a good presence of Indian and Chinese tourists as tourists from third countries go home to celebrate New Year and Christmas.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Ganesh Paudel, owner of Jungle Villa in Patihani, said that the arrival of tourists is encouraging. He said that they are hopeful that tourism industry will return to the pre-covid situation.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-01', 'modified' => '2024-01-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19588', 'image' => '20240101010417_jeep-drive.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-01 13:03:37', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19860', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Government Preparing to Celebrate Visit Nepal Year in 2025', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 1: The government was compelled to postpone the Visit Nepal Year 2020 campaign due to the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">January 1: The government was compelled to postpone the Visit Nepal Year </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2020</span></span> <span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">campaign due to the outbreak of Covid-</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">19</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> pandemic. The campaign, which started with the announcement of bringing two million tourists to Nepal in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2020</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">, was postponed due to unfavourable circumstances.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Now, the government is once again preparing to launch the campaign in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2025</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""> AD</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">. </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Sudan Kirati revealed this on the occasion of the </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">25</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">th anniversary of Nepal Tourism Board.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The minister also emphasized on the development of Nepal’s tourism industry. “Apart from Kathmandu and some famous destinations, other destinations of Nepal are also worth visiting,” he said, adding that it is necessary to pay attention to this factor as well.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">On this occasion, Chief Executive Officer of Nepal Tourism Board, Dhananjay Regmi said that preparations are being made to announce the Visit Nepal Year </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2025</span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">. He said that the campaign will be launched when the private sector is ready to welcome the tourists. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Nepal had previously organised the Visit Nepal Year in </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">2011. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Regmi also emphasized that the government and the private sector should work together to attract </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">3.5 </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">million tourists to Nepal annually after </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">10 </span></span><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">years as envisaged in the Tourism Decade plan of the government.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-01', 'modified' => '2024-01-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19587', 'image' => '20240101121158_1704073486.1566910573.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-01 12:11:11', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19859', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Orange Festival being Organised to Ensure its Market ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 1: The local government of Ichchhakamana rural municipality in Chitwan is organising a three-day orange festival starting from today with the objective of ensuring market for oranges produced in the local unit’s villages.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 1: The local government of Ichchhakamana rural municipality in Chitwan is organising a three-day orange festival starting from today with the objective of ensuring market for oranges produced in the local unit’s villages including Tokdand, Dhap, Majhgaun, Sirangaun and Dode. These villages are famed for producing a large quantity of oranges.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chairperson of Ichchhakamana Rural Municipality, Dan Bahadur Gurung, shared that the orange festival is being organised for the first time with the objective of ensuring market for oranges produced by the local farmers and its promotion. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"We have made arrangements for the visitors of the festival to pick and eat oranges by climbing the tree," he added. Similarly, the local government informed that the festival also includes an orange eating contest. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chair Gurung said that the visitors can buy oranges at a discounted price compared to market during the festival. He added that the orange farmers will be distributed different materials and a training would also be imparted to farmers by agriculture technicians. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"We are organising the festival with a belief that it will be easy to sell oranges produced in Ichchhakamana rural municipality at different markets of the country. We are also hopeful that it will help in the publicity of tourism sites of the area," he mentioned. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">It is estimated that more than 450 farmers of Ichchhamana rural municipality would sell orange worth Rs 100 million this year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Farmers are now selling orange at Rs 75-90 per kg from their farms. Orange is cultivated on 80 hectares of land in the rural municipality this year, according to the Agriculture Development Section of the rural municipality. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">A total of 1650 metric tonnes of orange was produced in the rural municipality last year. -- RSS</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2024-01-01', 'modified' => '2024-01-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19586', 'image' => '20240101112305_20230129104602_YB_BHOJPUR_SUNTALA.jpg', 'article_date' => '2024-01-01 11:22:07', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19858', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'PM Gives Fake Assurance to Industries while NEA Cuts Electricity Supply', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'December 31: When Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal was assuring industrialists to form a high-level commission to resolve the tariff dispute of dedicated feeder and trunk lines, the Nepal Electricity Authority was preparing to cut off electricity supply to more industries.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">December 31: When Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal was assuring industrialists to form a high-level commission to resolve the tariff dispute of dedicated feeder and trunk lines, the Nepal Electricity Authority was preparing to cut off electricity supply to more industries.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The authority was actively involved in cutting the line of industries until Friday midnight. The authority's team was deployed in Bara-Parsa industrial corridor till 12 midnight of December 29.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Out of the 23 industries whose lines were cut due to tax arrears, nine large industries are located in the Bara-Parsa industrial corridor. As the production of the industry has come to a grinding halt, the workers of these industries have already landed in the streets.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Hari Gautam, senior vice president of Birgunj Chamber of Commerce, an umbrella organization of Bara-Parsa industrialists, says that the prime minister keeps giving assurances to the industrialists, but the authority keeps cutting the line. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“The government should have taken proper decisions to provide relief as the industries are reeling under the effect of the economic recession. However, it seems that the government is not trying to resolve the dispute, but to intensify it," said senior vice president Gautam.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Industrialists recall that the prime minister promised a proper solution many times before. The private sector alleges that the government has been making fake assurances and the NEA has been presenting fake bills.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The prime minister, in a meeting with the industrialists on Friday, assured that the premium tariff will not be levied before the Electricity Tariff Determination Commission approves the premium tariff. He had also made it clear that the premium tariff would not be charged after the end of load shedding.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The committee formed under the coordination of the then Energy Secretary Dinesh Ghimire also said that the premium tariff cannot not be charged before the tariff was fixed (before mid-July 2015) and after the end of load shedding (mid-May 2018).</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Industrialists say that the committee's report was approved by the then Council of Ministers. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">But now, the controversy has surfaced because of the government’s dubious nature and the NEA presenting fake bills.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The industrialists have demanded that the NEA download the Time of Day (TOD) meter data to clear the ambiguity. However, the NEA is not willing to comply which is evident from the fact that it has written to the district courts in Sunsari and Makwanpur that such data has been deleted.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The industrialists have said they are willing to clear the arrears if the NEA shows the TOD meter data.</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 authority, it is yet to collect a total arrears of Rs 22.24 billion from 61 industries including electricity tariff, interest and fines. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">It includes Rs 6 billion arrears from 2015 to 2018 and Rs 8 billion in two years after the end of load shedding in 2018.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The NEA had amended the electricity tariff collection regulations in June 2020.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-12-31', 'modified' => '2023-12-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19585', 'image' => '20231231031436_1703994624.1612736027.Clipboard12.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-12-31 15:13:47', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19857', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Stakeholders suggest Learning Lessons from GBIA and PRIA', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'December 31: Stakeholders have pointed out the need to expedite the construction of Nijgadh International Airport in order to manage air traffic congestion at the Tribhuvan International Airport in the future.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">December 31: Stakeholders have pointed out the need to expedite the construction of Nijgadh International Airport in order to manage air traffic congestion at the Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) in the future.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Minister of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, MPs of various parties, former director general of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal as well as infrastructure experts have said that there is no alternative to a new airport in Nijgadh.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Speaking at a function organized by the Trade Union of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Sudan Kirati, said that Tribhuvan International Airport will not be able to bear the current load after five years.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">“Hence, the Council of Minister has approved to build Nijgarh International Airport,” said Kirati.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Nepali Congress MP Uday Shamsher Rana said that Nijgadh Airport should be built but the government must learn lessons from the two newly-built airport -- Gautam Buddha International Airport (GBIA) and Pokhara Regional International Airport (PRIA). </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">"These two airports are struggling to operate even after the construction," Rana said, "Let's conduct an in-depth study with India on issues such as air route, air space, commercial modality, etc. while constructing Nijgadh," he added.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Similarly, Manish Jha, MP of the Rastra Swatantra Party, said that Nijgadh should not be limited to discussion. He said that delaying the project and keeping it only in discussion has only increased the price of land. "It is also necessary to invest in studies and research," he added.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Birendra Deuja, former director general of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), and the key speaker of the program, said that even though Nijgadh airport was identified 30 years ago, no progress has been made so far. He said that there should not be much protest for chopping off the trees and environmental protest for infrastructure development.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">"The Gautam Buddha and Pokhara International airports are not hardly operational," said Deuja, "There is no alternative to Nijgadh airport but CAAN’s preparation is not adequate.”</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Deuja also said that there is a need for a policy to encourage chartered flights in those airports that do not have international flights.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">As the Tribhuvan International Airport cannot cope with the arrival of 1-1.2 million tourists at present, the stakeholders emphasized that Nijgadh International Airport should be built keeping in mind the increasing number of tourists. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Pradeep Adhikari, director general of the CAAN, said that there is no alternative to Nijgadh airport. He also said that CAAN will build Nijgadh in a public-private partnership (PPP) model.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">"We cannot say that Gautam Buddha and Pokhara International airports not financially viable," said the Adhikari, "There should not be any excuse to build an airport just because of debt issue. CAAN can pay the debt, and the passengers should not be denied international services."</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-12-31', 'modified' => '2023-12-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19584', 'image' => '20231231025012_20201009013027_Clipboard19.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-12-31 14:49:27', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19856', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Cabinet Approves Cutting of more than 4,000 Trees under KTM-Tarai Fast Track', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'December 31: The government has approved the Kathmandu-Tarai Expressway (Fast Track) Project to cut trees to expedite the construction work. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">December 31: The government has approved the Kathmandu-Tarai Expressway (Fast Track) Project to cut trees to expedite the construction work. A meeting of the Council of Ministers on Thursday approved the felling of 4,345 trees in the forest areas of Makwanpur and Bara districts.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The cabinet meeting also approved the project to use 40.19 hectares of the forest land for the construction of the strategic road that is expected to shorten the distance between the capital and the southern Tarai districts. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The government had entrusted the project management to the army on May 4, 2017. The foundation stone was laid by the then Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal on May 28 the same year. According to the last extended deadline, the project should be completed by mid-April 2027. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Chief of Army Staff Prabhu Ram Sharma had recently informed the State Affairs and Good Governance Committee of the House of Representatives that the project had been delayed because the army was awaiting approval for cutting trees since nine months</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">He told the House committee that the government had instructed the army to complete the expressway on time, but it was yet to implement the legal provisions to facilitate felling trees.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“It is ironic to say that we need to do the work on a war footing on the basis of outdated laws drafted in 2017. If this is the case, the fast track will not be built by 2027,” Sharma had told the committee on December 20.</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 army, the financial progress of the expressway with an estimated cost of Rs 211.93 billion stands at 29.44 percent. In the current fiscal year, the physical progress of the expressway has reached 32.66 percent. The army claims that this year's financial progress is 10.8 percent.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The army has divided the work in 13 packages for the expressway. Five of them have not been contracted yet.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Along the fast track, there is one forest in Kathmandu, one in Lalitpur, in 22 Makwanpur and five in Bara.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-12-31', 'modified' => '2023-12-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '19583', 'image' => '20231231020221_1703994063.1694388036.1607902819.Clipboard03.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-12-31 14:01:49', '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
