January 26: Gautam Buddha International Airport (GBIA), which has been operational since May 16 last year, is currently closed for international flights.…
January 26: Gautam Buddha International Airport (GBIA), which has been operational since May 16 last year, is currently closed for international flights.…
January 26: In recent years, the portion of loans in foreign aid received by the government has been higher than that of grants.…
January 26: Budget spent for the national pride projects, which are considered as transformative projects with strategic significance, is found to be…
January 26: The government has forwarded a plan to construct 3,000 suspension bridges across the country in the next two years.…
January 25: Fifty-eight houses have been damaged by the 5.9 magnitude earthquake that jolted the far western Nepal on…
January 25: High hills and mountainous areas of western Nepal witnessed snowfall since Monday night due to the impact of low pressure system active in western parts of the…
The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) will construct transmission lines and substations with capacity ranging from 66 kV to 220 kV in the Kathmandu…
January 25: The rate of return of banks is headed on a downhill…
January 25: Surya Nepal Pvt. Ltd. handed over an ambulance to the Chitwan-based Prithvi Highway Trauma Hospital operated by Armed Police Force Nepal Disaster Management Training…
January 25: Nepal Airlines Corporation Captain Nar Bahadur Bishwakarma has refuted reports about his suspension from regular…
January 25: The widening of Narayangarh-Butwal road section along the East-West Highway has so far made only 23 percent progress with less than eight months left for the extended deadline to…
January 25: Stakeholders and experts have suggested that agencies should promote connection of innovation-based startup ecosystems between Nepal and…
January 24: An investigation carried out by the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) of Nepal Police has concluded that the recently held Nepal-T20 League was…
An earthquake measuring 5.9 on the Richter scale jolted western Nepal at 2:43 pm on Tuesday. The earthquake having its epicenter in the Mela area of Bajura district was felt in various districts, including Banke, Kailali, Bajhang, among others, in Sudurpaschim…
Community campuses are experiencing a financial crisis in Parbat district. Plummeting students’ number and lack of government grant have put a total of 12 public colleges under financial…
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', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">January 26: Gautam Buddha International Airport (GBIA), which has been operational since May 16 last year, is currently closed for international flights. Himalaya Airlines and Jazeera Airlines, which had been operating international flights from the airport in Bhairahawa, have suspended their flights since the last one month. The airport has been in operation for eight months now. Himalaya Airlines and Jazeera Airlines have stopped flying from December 15 and 21 respectively. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Govinda Prasad Dahal, general manager of Gautam Buddha Airport Office, said that international flights have not been operated at the airport since then.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">"The annual income from domestic flights is up to Rs 350 million," said Dahal, "Although it is sufficient to manage the regular expenses of the airport, it seems that it will be difficult to pay the principal/interest of foreign loans."</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to him, the airport has to pay Rs 400 million in annual instalments as the principal and interest amount. According to the loan agreement, the principal and interest of the loan taken at this airport should be paid in every six months. The airport has to pay Rs 33.3 million per month.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and OPEC Fund for International Development (OFFID) have invested in this airport. Although the problem of early morning flight delays due to adverse weather during the winter is not a new issue, this airport has been equipped with technology to ensure that there is no problem in flight/landing even in low visibility.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Even though the ILF (Instrument Landing System) technology that can land aircraft in low visibility (800 to 900 meters) has been installed, it has not been able to function smoothy.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Dahal said that India has not given permission to implement the ILF. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to Dahal, the airport is struggling to operate because of inclement weather and less number of passengers.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Dahal said that the passengers are compelled to take labour permits and other documents from the Department of Foreign Employment and also undergo health check-ups in Kathmandu, the passengers are reluctant to visit Bhairahawa for international flights.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">"The main problem now is the visa centres, labour offices, and health examination, which is not available in Bhairahawa," said Dahal.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Likewise, Indian citizens cannot fly directly to this airport even now.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">He said that the Indian government is yet to issue the No Objection Certificate (NOC) required for its citizens to go to other foreign destinations from this airport, so Indian passengers are not allowed to fly from this airport.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Vice President of Himalaya Airlines Vijay Shrestha said that they were forced to suspend the flights due to lack of passengers.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">So far, this airport has already served 25,481 passengers since it came into operation.<strong> </strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-26', 'modified' => '2023-01-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16589', 'image' => '20230126024419_Gautam Buddha.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-26 14:43:35', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16848', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Foreign Aid Constitutes more Loans than Grants', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 26: In recent years, the portion of loans in foreign aid received by the government has been higher than that of grants. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">January 26: In recent years, the portion of loans in foreign aid received by the government has been higher than that of grants. While some people opine that the share of loans is increasing because the government does not consult for the grants, the government report has revealed that the share of grants is decreasing due to the increasing capacity of loan repayment.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The mid-term review of the 15th Plan prepared by the National Planning Commission states that decreasing the share of grants in international development aid commitments means that Nepal's debt utilization capacity is increasing.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">In the current fiscal year, the government has set a target of receiving nearly Rs 300 billion through grants and loans from donors. Out of the total foreign assistance, government has sought Rs 55.46 billion as grants while the remaining amount will be debt. However, studies conducted in the past by government have shown that even though the government sets a target for debt collection in the budget each year, it has not been able to receive that target amount in any year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The mid-term review of the 15th Plan of the NPC has concluded that the government has given less emphasis to seek grants because debt repayment capacity is increasing due to the government's lack of emphasis on subsidies. The mid-term review also mentions that the share of external sources in the government expenditure has increased from 13.3 per cent to 17.5 per cent in the last three years.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Professor Doctor Shiv Adhikari, the former head of Tribhuvan University's economics department, shared that aid is decreasing because the agencies and countries that lend to Nepal are in a financial crisis. He said that the practice of giving loans more than grants is the new trend in the world. Globally, there has been an increase in the trend of emphasizing loans over grants.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">“In the 1980s-90s, the donors needed dollars and they gave grants in dollars with the expectation that those dollars would ultimately return back to them. Nepal used those dollars to import goods, and the dollars they gave returned back in their hands. That is the reason they gave grants," said Adhikari. "Recently, Nepal started receiving dollars from remittances and they started downsizing the grants."</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The ratio of external resource used in the gross domestic product has increased from 3.8 per cent in the year 2018/19 to 4.9 per cent in the year 2020/21, the NPC has mentioned in the mid-term review report of the 15th Plan. According to the commission, the development aid mobilization was 2.92 per cent in the year 2016/17. It increased to 3.87 per cent in the year 2017/18. Again in the year 2075/76, such aid mobilization seems to have dropped to 3.21.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">In 2019/20, foreign aid mobilization was 4.68 per cent, but it decreased in 2020/21. The report does not mention the situation of foreign aid mobilization in the year 2021/22. Officials of the Financial Comptroller General Office said that the funds could not be mobilized that year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Experts share that foreign debt is only up to 22 per cent of Nepal's gross domestic product, and there is no risk because Nepal has taken such debt at subsidized rates. It is said that foreign loans are not risky because the interest rate that Nepal has to pay is cheap, and the loan repayment period is lengthy.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to the latest information from the Public Debt Management Office under the Ministry of Finance, Nepal has taken loans from 23 foreign donors and agencies. All the loans taken by Nepal are subsidized so the interest rate is low. Nepal's biggest lenders are the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Hira Neupane, information officer of the office, said that the loans given by these two banks account for 80 per cent of Nepal's foreign loans.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to the Public Debt Management Office, the International Monetary Fund and Belgium have given loans to Nepal without any interest. The interest rate of a loan taken from the Exim Bank of China is less than 2 per cent. Nepal has taken loans from France at the most expensive interest rate. The interest rate of the loans taken from France is up to 3 per cent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The World Bank has given loans at an interest rate of 0.75 per cent. The second largest lender, the Asian Development Bank, has an interest rate of 1 to 1.5 per cent. Even Japan, the country that has given the most loans to Nepal, only charges interest rates of 0.1 to 1 per cent.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-26', 'modified' => '2023-01-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16588', 'image' => '20230126012032_Foreign investment.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-26 13:19:26', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16847', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Expenditure of National Pride Projects Dismal', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 26: Budget spent for the national pride projects, which are considered as transformative projects with strategic significance, is found to be negligible. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 26: Budget spent for the national pride projects, which are considered as transformative projects with strategic significance, is found to be negligible. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The mid-term review of the ongoing fiscal year’s budget has shown the progress in national pride projects is off the mark. The records maintained by Financial Comptroller General Office (FCGO) revealed that the total budget spent by the government was 32 percent as of January 14. Out of this, 38 percent was spent under current expenditure while 14 percent was under capital expenditure, and 29.44 percent financial management. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Only 23 percent budget was spent in the national pride projects till the mid-term review, the FCGO added. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The national pride projects were allocated a total of Rs 97 billion budget in the current fiscal year, but the progress is not satisfactory. The NPPs including the Millennium Challenge Account Nepal, South Asia Tourism Infrastructure Development Project, Kathmandu-Tarai Expressway, Pokhara Regional International Airport saw less than 5 percent expenditure till mid-January. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Newly appointed Vice Chair of the National Planning Commission, Dr Min Bahadur Shrestha, informed that the problem of low spending surfaced because the national pride projects were forwarded simultaneously. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">“There is resource crunch if all projects are taken together. Our contractors lack capacity. Oversight mechanism including bureaucracy is not able to work for it. So, certain projects should be prioritized and forwarded,” he observed. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Out of the budget allocated for the Millennium Challenge Account Nepal, it spent only 0.43 percent. Similarly, Kathmandu-Tarai Expressway was able to use only 5.13 percent (Rs 1.59 billion) by the mid-term. The South Asia Tourism Infrastructure was not able to spend more than 3.23 percent out of annual budget of Rs 2.20 billion. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-26', 'modified' => '2023-01-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16587', 'image' => '20230126121637_20220224090712_fast track nov 21.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-26 12:15:30', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16846', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Government to Construct 3,000 Suspension Bridges in the Next Two Years ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 26: The government has forwarded a plan to construct 3,000 suspension bridges across the country in the next two years. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 26: The government has forwarded a plan to construct 3,000 suspension bridges across the country in the next two years. This initiative has been taken to ensure that there is a suspension bridge in every half an hour’s walking distance in a bid to facilitate the mobility of people and not to deprive them of their rights to basic facilities like education and health due to the lack of bridges, according to the Ministry of Urban Development. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Soon after assuming office, newly-appointed Urban Development Minister Bikram Pandey approved the plan to construct the suspension bridges, a project mentioned in the current 15th plan of the government. The plan has been forwarded accordingly, said Director General of the Department of Local Infrastructure, Ishwor Chandra Marahatta. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"The project will save lives of people, who in general are risking their lives for want of bridges," he said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The government at all three levels -- federal, provincial and local – will be involved in the project. The local level is required to construct a bridge less than 120 meters in length, and the federal government is responsible for a bridge more than that length, said Marahatta. The federal government is required to provide budget to the local level for the project. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">In the current fiscal year (FY 2022/23), Rs 6 billion has been allocated for this project. The local levels have been already asked to provide project details including the location and the number, said Marahatta, adding, "Further decision will be taken after a team from the department carries out a study based on the demand. The project will be implemented in the current FY." -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-26', 'modified' => '2023-01-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16586', 'image' => '20230126110901_10-UTL-Landing-Pg-2400x1600.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-26 11:08:24', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16844', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Earthquake Destroys 58 Houses in Bajura ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: Fifty-eight houses have been damaged by the 5.9 magnitude earthquake that jolted the far western Nepal on Tuesday.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 25: Fifty-eight houses have been damaged by the 5.9 magnitude earthquake that jolted the far western Nepal on Tuesday. The epicentre of the earthquake was located at Bichchhya of Himali Rural Municipality in Bajura district. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to the District Police Office, Bajura some of the houses have suffered partial damage while others have been completely damaged. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">One person is reported to have lost life while there has been reports of property loss in various places of the district due to the tremor that occurred at 2.43 pm on Tuesday. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Some buildings of the government offices in the district have developed cracks due to the earthquake. Several private houses have also developed cracks and suffered broken walls. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The mud and stone houses have cracked and are unfit for accommodation, said Deputy Superintendent of Police Surya Thapa of the District Police Office. He said the policemen stationed at the Area Police Office and the police posts were sent to the villages to collect the details of the damages caused by the earthquake and have collected data that 58 houses have been damaged, including government buildings and private houses. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The earthquake killed a woman at Jureli of Gaumul Rural Municipality-2 while she was collecting fodder in a forest. The deceased has been identified as 32-year-old Jamuna Rokaya, who was hit on the head by a falling stone and died instantaneously, the District Police Office said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Three people were injured due to the earthquake in the district. Police said two of them are receiving treatment at local health facilities while one has already been discharged. Those injured are Rajdal Bohara of around 45 years of Amlika of Gaumul-1, Chandra Mahat of Badimalika Municipality-2, and Sarita Nepali, 16, from Humla who was in Bajura to visit her elder sister residing at Himali-6. Mahat has been already sent home after treatment. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The quake caused the death of a flock of sheep. They were 50 in numbers and got trapped in a rock rupture following the quake and died. The animals belonged to Bohara, one of the survivors who had taken the sheep for grazing when the incident happened, according to the District Police Office. -- RSS </span></span></span><br /> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16584', 'image' => '20230125080514_20230124052444_collage (85).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 20:04:49', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16842', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Chances of Light Snowfall in High-Hills and Mountainous Regions ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: High hills and mountainous areas of western Nepal witnessed snowfall since Monday night due to the impact of low pressure system active in western parts of the country.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 25: High hills and mountainous areas of western Nepal witnessed snowfall since Monday night due to the impact of low pressure system active in western parts of the country. </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"">Places like Jumla, Dolpa, Humla and Mugu were covered with snow on Tuesday as a result of snowfall that occurred in the country quite late 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"">There were reports of air service disruption in several districts of western Nepal due to the snowfall while the normal life in the remote areas came to a standstill due to the snowfall.</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 farmers who were worried due to the delay in rainfall rejoiced after receiving the first rainfall and snowfall this winter.</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"">According to the Meteorological Forecasting Division, light snowfall is likely to occur in a few places in the high hills and mountainous areas of Bagmati, Gandaki, Karnali and Sudur Pashchim provinces today (Wednesday) as well.</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"">Meanwhile, farmers of eastern Nepal are still worried as the winter crops have started wilting in the eastern region which is yet to receive rainfall 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 Meteorological Forecasting Division has predicted chances of light rainfall in a few places of Gandaki, Lumbini, Karnali and Sudur Pashchim provinces today (Wednesday). </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"">According to the division, the weather will be partly to generally cloudy in Province 1, Madesh, Bagmati , Gandaki and Lumbini provinces and partly cloudy to mainly fair in the rest of the country tonight. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""> </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""> </span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16582', 'image' => '20230125043141_HKC_Jajarkot-juphal.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 16:31:02', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16841', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NEA to Build Substations and Transmission Lines in Kathmandu Valley', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) will construct transmission lines and substations with capacity ranging from 66 kV to 220 kV in the Kathmandu Valley. ', 'content' => '<p><br /> <span style="font-size:16px">January 25: The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) will construct transmission lines and substations with capacity ranging from 66 kV to 220 kV in the Kathmandu Valley. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px">To make the power distribution system well-managed, the NEA is planning to construct a high capacity substation at Tarkeswor Municipality. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px">New transmission lines and substations aim at managing the electricity distribution system in the Kathmandu Valley by supplying high voltage electricity on a regular basis and reducing problems like electricity discontinuation in an emergency, said the NEA Executive Director Kulman Ghising.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px">With construction of new electricity infrastructures, the NEA will easily address the power demand in the Valley for the next 30 years, he said, adding “A ring circuit will be built in the valley”. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px">Ghising has already announced to construct a 132 kV transmission line along river banks. Similarly, substations will also be built in Kavrepalanchowk district, at the then Jitpurphedi VDC-5 and Goldhunga VDC-3. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px">It is learnt that the Kathmandu Valley has to suffer forced load-shedding due to a lack of transmission lines and substations. Likewise, electricity authority has expedited repair, upgrade and expansion of existing transmission lines and substations. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px">The NEA published a notice relating to the land acquisition for the projects as per Clause 61 of the Land Acquisition Act, 2034 BS on Wednesday. Lands of the total 61 families will be acquired for transmission lines and substations at Jitpurphedi VDC-5 and Goldhunga VDC-3. -RSS</span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16581', 'image' => '20230125041443_collage (86).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 16:06:30', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16840', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Rate of Return of Banks Declining', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The rate of return of banks is headed on a downhill path.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">January 25: The rate of return of banks is headed on a downhill path. As the profits of banks declined due to their failure to expand business amid liquidity crisis and the stiff competition among the banks as well as regulatory provisions, the rate of return of banks has also declined.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to the Nepal Bankers Association, the financial statements of commercial banks as of the second quarter of the current fiscal year show a drop of 11.73 percent on the return on equity (ROE) of commercial banks in an average. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">During the same period last year, the ROE of banks was 12.45 percent. Compared to mid-January last year, the ROE of nine banks decreased in the current fiscal year, while there has been an increase in ROE of 12 banks.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">As of mid-January this year, the net profit of Agricultural Development Bank decreased by 109 percent compared to the previous year and remained at minus 128.9 million rupees, making its ROE negative. NIC Asia Bank has the highest ROE of 26.25 percent by mid-January. NIC's ROE increased by 3.6 percentage points compared to last year. Nepal Investment Mega Bank is yet to publish its financial statements for the second quarter of this year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">President of Nepal Bankers Association and Chief Executive Officer of NMB Bank Sunil KC said that the rate of return is decreasing as the profitability of banks has been affected due to various factors. Addressing a press conference, KC said, “Banks provide most of their income to depositors and borrowers. Because of this, the rate of return of banks is decreasing.”</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war, the banks have been unable to expand their business. Similarly, the increase in bad loans of banks has also affected their profit. The total bad loans of banks increased to 2.29 percent till mid-January of the current fiscal year, which was 1.09 percent last year. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Anil Sharma, Chief Executive Officer of NBA, said that even though banks are accused of earning only profit, the figures state otherwise. He said that while the income of the banks from interest increased by 68 percent in the six months of the current year, their expenses on interest increased by 84 percent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to Sharma, in the previous year, the commercial banks distributed an average of 14.3 percent dividend, but in the last year, they could give only 10.76 percent and the ROE was 24.42 percent in the year 2069/70, which was limited to 11.73 percent last year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The Confederation of Banks and Financial Institutions (CBFIN), the umbrella organization of bank investors, also drew the attention of Nepal Rastra Bank, saying that the return of banks has been decreasing since a year and this has started to discourage investors.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">In the report which was submitted after studying the condition of the banks since 2073, the rate of return of banks and financial institutions has been continuously decreasing and to manage this challenge, NRB has been requested to allow the interest rate to be determined according to the concept of open market, not to limit the spread rate, and not to limit the premium fee. According to CBFIN’s report, the return on investment of banks increased from 19 percent in 2068 to 23 percent in 2073. After that, it dropped to 12 percent in the year 2077.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16580', 'image' => '20230125031815_Banks.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 15:17:41', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16839', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Surya Nepal Provides Ambulance to APF Trauma Center', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: Surya Nepal Pvt. Ltd. handed over an ambulance to the Chitwan-based Prithvi Highway Trauma Hospital operated by Armed Police Force Nepal Disaster Management Training Academy.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">January 25: Surya Nepal Pvt. Ltd. handed over an ambulance to the Chitwan-based Prithvi Highway Trauma Hospital operated by Armed Police Force Nepal Disaster Management Training Academy. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">During an event on Monday, the company's Vice President for Corporate Affairs Ravi KC handed over the key of the ambulance to Superintendent of Police Anjani Kumar Pokhrel of APF Nepal Disaster Management Training Academy Kurintar, Chitwan.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Surya Nepal said that the company provided an ambulance to the trauma hospital under its corporate social responsibility as the hospital was facing difficulty to rescue the injured immediately due to the lack of ambulances.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to the APF trauma center, the ambulance will be used to rescue the people injured in accidents along the highway.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16579', 'image' => '20230125022452_1674601856.Clipboard08.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 14:24:14', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16838', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NAC Captain Bishwakarma Refutes Suspension, says he is still in the Cockpit ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: Nepal Airlines Corporation Captain Nar Bahadur Bishwakarma has refuted reports about his suspension from regular duty.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 25: Nepal Airlines Corporation Captain Nar Bahadur Bishwakarma has refuted reports about his suspension from regular duty. Although it was reported that the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) had instructed to suspend five pilots of the Nepal Airlines Corporation, Captain Bishwakarma has clarified that he has not been suspended. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Captain Bishwakarma said that the CAAN had instructed to suspend pilots who disobeyed the instructions of the ATC during landing of an NAC plane at Hong Kong airport, but he was not involved in the flight, hence he was not suspended. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Bishwakarma however told RSS that he was in the same flight but only as a passenger when it landed at Hong Kong airport. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"I am dismayed over my name appearing on the list. Even today I am flying a NAC plane," he said before flying to Singapore on Tuesday night. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Meanwhile, Deputy Spokesperson of Nepal Airlines Corporation Ganesh Ghimire said that pilots Uddhav Ghimire and Rajesh Kushwaha, who disobeyed the instructions of the ATC while landing at the Hong Kong airport, and Prashanna Rana and YP Juwarchan who failed to follow the standard operational procedure during the flight from Kathmandu to Japan were suspended as per the instructions given by the CAAN. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">He also informed that although pilot Nar Bahadur Bishwakarma was on the NAC flight to Hong Kong, he was not suspended. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16578', 'image' => '20230125013624_naccccc.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 13:35:44', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16837', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Narayangarh-Butwal Road Expansion Sees Dismal Progress ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The widening of Narayangarh-Butwal road section along the East-West Highway has so far made only 23 percent progress with less than eight months left for the extended deadline to expire.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">January 25: The widening of Narayangarh-Butwal road section along the East-West Highway has so far made only 23 percent progress with less than eight months left for the extended deadline to expire.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The road widening project was supposed to be completed by August 2022 but the progress remains dismal even though it has been four years since the project started.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the China State Construction Engineering Corporation Limited, which is undertaking the expansion work, the widening of the road has been delayed due to complications brought out by COVID-19, tree felling, relocation of electric poles and mobilization of equipment. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Meanwhile, the Department of Roads had earlier concluded that the work was delayed due to the non-cooperation of the government, construction companies and local municipalities.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The department had even sought explanation from the Chinese construction company -- China State Construction Engineering Corporation Limited – as the progress was not satisfactory. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">A team of experts from the DoR led by Director General Arjun Jung Thapa had visited the site for inspection in early November and deduced that the construction was delayed due to three main reasons. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">“It was seen that there was a delay in the work to be done by the Nepal government as well. The local municipality prohibited on buying of construction materials like aggregates, gravel and soil despite paying royalty to the local municipality. In addition, there were problems with the management of the construction company, leading to the delay in completion of wok on time,” Thapa had told New Business Age in an earlier interview.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Even now, the electric poles on the road that needs to be widened have not been removed. Thapa said that he did not get any help from the local municipality. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">An agreement was reached between the Department of Roads and the Chinese company to complete the 114 km Narayangadh-Butwal road upgrading work in 3.5 years in January 2018.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The 114 kilometres of road stretch was divided in two sections while awarding the contract through a global bidding process. The China State Construction Engineering Corporation Limited had won the tender bids of both sections considering its proposal to construct the road section at the minimum base rate. However, several complaints have been received on part of the construction company regarding the dillydallying of the project. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The department earlier warned to terminate the contract arguing that the travelers and vehicles have faced several issues including difficulties in travel, air pollution and others problems due to carelessness of the construction company. The locals in the affected area have also suffered while road accidents have increased. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">As the contract agreement ended on August 7, the government has extended the deadline for one more year at the request of the construction company. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The expansion of this road section is estimated to cost around Rs 16 billion. The project is running with concessional loan provided by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16577', 'image' => '20230125121853_20220926014301_road.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 12:18:16', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16836', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Call to Promote Nepal-India Startup Ecosystem', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: Stakeholders and experts have suggested that agencies should promote connection of innovation-based startup ecosystems between Nepal and India. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 25: Stakeholders and experts have suggested that agencies should promote connection of innovation-based startup ecosystems between Nepal and India. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">At an interaction on ‘India-Nepal Startup Connect’ organized by the Embassy of India, Kathmandu, in association with the Young Entrepreneur Forum of the Confederation of Nepalese Industries on Tuesday, the speakers called for further collaboration in financial technology to bring together the startup ecosystems of both the countries. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The event focused on fostering a connection between Indian and Nepali startup ecosystems, according to a press statement by the Embassy of India, Kathmandu. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">On the occasion, Governor of Nepal Rastra Bank Maha Prasad Adhikari said that 2023 would be the year for promoting the digital payment system and urged for further cooperation between Nepal and India on fintech. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">He said that cross-border payment and QR payment should be advanced as the potential area of further cooperation. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Also speaking at the event, Naveen Srivastava, ambassador of India to Nepal, highlighted the importance of digital public goods in enabling financial inclusion and startups. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Likewise, Joint Secretary at the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies Babu Ram Gautam delivered a presentation on “Startup Opportunities in Nepal”. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16576', 'image' => '20230125115120_startup.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 11:50:28', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16835', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'CIB Confirms Spot-Fixing in Nepal T-20 League', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 24: An investigation carried out by the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) of Nepal Police has concluded that the recently held Nepal-T20 League was rigged.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">January 24: An investigation carried out by the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) of Nepal Police has concluded that the recently held Nepal-T20 League was rigged.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The police have already arrested two people, including former national cricketer Mehboob Alam for their alleged involvement in spot fixing during the league held from December 24 to January 11 at TU Cricket Ground, Kirtipur.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Police investigation has revealed that a total of 10 people, including six foeigners were involved in the fixing scam.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Organising a press conference on Tuesday, the CIB said that the police made the arrests based on evidences collected from Whatsapp messages and phone call details of the suspects. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The second person arrested in connection to the scam is 20-year old cricketer Mohammad Aadil Ansari, who was instructed to throw a no ball and a wide ball by Mehboob Alam, the police said. Alam allegedly approached the player offering him financial incentives. As per the rules of the International Cricket Council (ICC), a player should report to the Anti-Corruption Unit of ICC if anyone offers them incentives for fixing the game. However, Mohammad Aadil Ansari's failure to report to the unit led to his arrest, said the police source adding that three other players had reported offers to fix the game to the Anti-Corruption Unit of ICC. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Former captain of Nepal’s national team Gyanendra Malla had earlier claimed during a press conference that one of the players of his team during the league was approached for fixing. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) had entrusted an Indian company named Seven Three Sports for the overall management of the T-20 league, which courted controversy right from the beginning.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The organizers had revealed that a betting company was the main sponsor of the league, raising quite a few eyebrows. The Nepal T-20 league was also interrupted briefly after the players protested over salary issue.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">CAN had banned other domestic T-20 leagues of Nepal to organize this league arguing that the country can have only one official T-20 league as per the international rules.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-24', 'modified' => '2023-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16575', 'image' => '20230124070811_CIB-Logo.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-24 19:07:32', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16834', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => '5.9-magnitude Earthquake Jolts Western Nepal ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'An earthquake measuring 5.9 on the Richter scale jolted western Nepal at 2:43 pm on Tuesday. The earthquake having its epicenter in the Mela area of Bajura district was felt in various districts, including Banke, Kailali, Bajhang, among others, in Sudurpaschim Province. ', 'content' => '<p>January 24: An earthquake measuring 5.9 on the Richter scale jolted western Nepal at 2:43 pm on Tuesday. The earthquake having its epicenter in the Mela area of Bajura district was felt in various districts, including Banke, Kailali, Bajhang, among others, in Sudurpaschim Province. </p> <p>The powerful tremor had sent people out of their homes in panic. </p> <p>Information Officer at Seismological Centre, Surkhet, Tirtha Raj Dahal, said the earthquake of 5.9 on the Richter scale had struck the western Nepal with its epicenter at Mela of Bajura district, sending many residents out of their homes.</p> <p>The details of human casualties and physical damage are yet to come. </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-24', 'modified' => '2023-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16574', 'image' => '20230124052444_collage (85).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-24 17:17:33', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16833', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Community Campuses Face Financial Crisis in Parbat ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => ' Community campuses are experiencing a financial crisis in Parbat district. Plummeting students’ number and lack of government grant have put a total of 12 public colleges under financial strains. ', 'content' => '<p><br /> January 24: Community campuses are experiencing a financial crisis in Parbat district. Plummeting students’ number and lack of government grant have put a total of 12 public colleges under financial strains. </p> <p>Gupteswor and Shivalaya Multiple Campuses located at Parbat headquarters and Shankarpokhari Multiple Campus, Bahaki Campus, Janaat Sudarshan Campus, Navajagrit Campus, among others, located in rural areas have a minimum number of pupils. </p> <p>As a result, colleges have failed to collect fees from students as expected for their operation. <br /> Student number has plunged as some students have left for overseas for foreign employment, while others have gone outside the district to pursue education.</p> <p>“We are having a hard time running the campus due to the low number of students and fall of the government grant for the campus”, shared Campus Chief Suvash Panta of Gupteswor Multiple Campus.</p> <p>Shivalaya Multiple Campus Management Committee’s Chairman Bishnu Newar said that they had to face the financial crunch for lack of the campus’ credible source of income. </p> <p>Newar complained that they were operating the campus seeking help from various organizations at the request of party leaders, and playing deusi and bhailo. <br /> Tribhuvan University is yet to give permission of constituent campus to Gupteswor Campus, which is struggling financially for lack of a sustainable source of income. The college is hardly able to meet lecturers’ salary, infrastructure development, and miscellaneous expenses.</p> <p>Gupteswor Multiple Campus receives Rs 1.3 million annually, which is hardly enough to pay for the salary of two professors. <br /> Established in 2041 BS, Prabat Multiple Campus has a debt of Rs 15 million for want of source of income.</p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-24', 'modified' => '2023-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16573', 'image' => '20230124044449_collage (82).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-24 16:40:04', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ) ) $current_user = null $logged_in = falseinclude - APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 60 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::_renderElement() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 1224 View::element() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 418 include - APP/View/Articles/index.ctp, line 157 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 473 Controller::render() - CORE/Cake/Controller/Controller.php, line 968 Dispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 200 Dispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 167 [main] - APP/webroot/index.php, line 117
Warning (2): simplexml_load_file() [<a href='http://php.net/function.simplexml-load-file'>function.simplexml-load-file</a>]: I/O warning : failed to load external entity "" [APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 60]file not found!Code Context// $file = 'http://aabhiyan:QUVLg8Wzs2F7G9N7@nepalstock.com.np/api/indexdata.xml';if(!$xml = simplexml_load_file($file)){$viewFile = '/var/www/html/newbusinessage.com/app/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp' $dataForView = array( 'articles' => array( (int) 0 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ) ), 'current_user' => null, 'logged_in' => false ) $articles = array( (int) 0 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16849', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Gautam Buddha Airport Struggles to Pay Loan Instalments due to Lack of Int’l Flights', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 26: Gautam Buddha International Airport (GBIA), which has been operational since May 16 last year, is currently closed for international flights. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">January 26: Gautam Buddha International Airport (GBIA), which has been operational since May 16 last year, is currently closed for international flights. Himalaya Airlines and Jazeera Airlines, which had been operating international flights from the airport in Bhairahawa, have suspended their flights since the last one month. The airport has been in operation for eight months now. Himalaya Airlines and Jazeera Airlines have stopped flying from December 15 and 21 respectively. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Govinda Prasad Dahal, general manager of Gautam Buddha Airport Office, said that international flights have not been operated at the airport since then.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">"The annual income from domestic flights is up to Rs 350 million," said Dahal, "Although it is sufficient to manage the regular expenses of the airport, it seems that it will be difficult to pay the principal/interest of foreign loans."</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to him, the airport has to pay Rs 400 million in annual instalments as the principal and interest amount. According to the loan agreement, the principal and interest of the loan taken at this airport should be paid in every six months. The airport has to pay Rs 33.3 million per month.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and OPEC Fund for International Development (OFFID) have invested in this airport. Although the problem of early morning flight delays due to adverse weather during the winter is not a new issue, this airport has been equipped with technology to ensure that there is no problem in flight/landing even in low visibility.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Even though the ILF (Instrument Landing System) technology that can land aircraft in low visibility (800 to 900 meters) has been installed, it has not been able to function smoothy.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Dahal said that India has not given permission to implement the ILF. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to Dahal, the airport is struggling to operate because of inclement weather and less number of passengers.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Dahal said that the passengers are compelled to take labour permits and other documents from the Department of Foreign Employment and also undergo health check-ups in Kathmandu, the passengers are reluctant to visit Bhairahawa for international flights.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">"The main problem now is the visa centres, labour offices, and health examination, which is not available in Bhairahawa," said Dahal.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Likewise, Indian citizens cannot fly directly to this airport even now.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">He said that the Indian government is yet to issue the No Objection Certificate (NOC) required for its citizens to go to other foreign destinations from this airport, so Indian passengers are not allowed to fly from this airport.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Vice President of Himalaya Airlines Vijay Shrestha said that they were forced to suspend the flights due to lack of passengers.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">So far, this airport has already served 25,481 passengers since it came into operation.<strong> </strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-26', 'modified' => '2023-01-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16589', 'image' => '20230126024419_Gautam Buddha.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-26 14:43:35', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16848', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Foreign Aid Constitutes more Loans than Grants', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 26: In recent years, the portion of loans in foreign aid received by the government has been higher than that of grants. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">January 26: In recent years, the portion of loans in foreign aid received by the government has been higher than that of grants. While some people opine that the share of loans is increasing because the government does not consult for the grants, the government report has revealed that the share of grants is decreasing due to the increasing capacity of loan repayment.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The mid-term review of the 15th Plan prepared by the National Planning Commission states that decreasing the share of grants in international development aid commitments means that Nepal's debt utilization capacity is increasing.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">In the current fiscal year, the government has set a target of receiving nearly Rs 300 billion through grants and loans from donors. Out of the total foreign assistance, government has sought Rs 55.46 billion as grants while the remaining amount will be debt. However, studies conducted in the past by government have shown that even though the government sets a target for debt collection in the budget each year, it has not been able to receive that target amount in any year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The mid-term review of the 15th Plan of the NPC has concluded that the government has given less emphasis to seek grants because debt repayment capacity is increasing due to the government's lack of emphasis on subsidies. The mid-term review also mentions that the share of external sources in the government expenditure has increased from 13.3 per cent to 17.5 per cent in the last three years.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Professor Doctor Shiv Adhikari, the former head of Tribhuvan University's economics department, shared that aid is decreasing because the agencies and countries that lend to Nepal are in a financial crisis. He said that the practice of giving loans more than grants is the new trend in the world. Globally, there has been an increase in the trend of emphasizing loans over grants.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">“In the 1980s-90s, the donors needed dollars and they gave grants in dollars with the expectation that those dollars would ultimately return back to them. Nepal used those dollars to import goods, and the dollars they gave returned back in their hands. That is the reason they gave grants," said Adhikari. "Recently, Nepal started receiving dollars from remittances and they started downsizing the grants."</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The ratio of external resource used in the gross domestic product has increased from 3.8 per cent in the year 2018/19 to 4.9 per cent in the year 2020/21, the NPC has mentioned in the mid-term review report of the 15th Plan. According to the commission, the development aid mobilization was 2.92 per cent in the year 2016/17. It increased to 3.87 per cent in the year 2017/18. Again in the year 2075/76, such aid mobilization seems to have dropped to 3.21.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">In 2019/20, foreign aid mobilization was 4.68 per cent, but it decreased in 2020/21. The report does not mention the situation of foreign aid mobilization in the year 2021/22. Officials of the Financial Comptroller General Office said that the funds could not be mobilized that year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Experts share that foreign debt is only up to 22 per cent of Nepal's gross domestic product, and there is no risk because Nepal has taken such debt at subsidized rates. It is said that foreign loans are not risky because the interest rate that Nepal has to pay is cheap, and the loan repayment period is lengthy.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to the latest information from the Public Debt Management Office under the Ministry of Finance, Nepal has taken loans from 23 foreign donors and agencies. All the loans taken by Nepal are subsidized so the interest rate is low. Nepal's biggest lenders are the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Hira Neupane, information officer of the office, said that the loans given by these two banks account for 80 per cent of Nepal's foreign loans.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to the Public Debt Management Office, the International Monetary Fund and Belgium have given loans to Nepal without any interest. The interest rate of a loan taken from the Exim Bank of China is less than 2 per cent. Nepal has taken loans from France at the most expensive interest rate. The interest rate of the loans taken from France is up to 3 per cent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The World Bank has given loans at an interest rate of 0.75 per cent. The second largest lender, the Asian Development Bank, has an interest rate of 1 to 1.5 per cent. Even Japan, the country that has given the most loans to Nepal, only charges interest rates of 0.1 to 1 per cent.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-26', 'modified' => '2023-01-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16588', 'image' => '20230126012032_Foreign investment.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-26 13:19:26', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16847', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Expenditure of National Pride Projects Dismal', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 26: Budget spent for the national pride projects, which are considered as transformative projects with strategic significance, is found to be negligible. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 26: Budget spent for the national pride projects, which are considered as transformative projects with strategic significance, is found to be negligible. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The mid-term review of the ongoing fiscal year’s budget has shown the progress in national pride projects is off the mark. The records maintained by Financial Comptroller General Office (FCGO) revealed that the total budget spent by the government was 32 percent as of January 14. Out of this, 38 percent was spent under current expenditure while 14 percent was under capital expenditure, and 29.44 percent financial management. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Only 23 percent budget was spent in the national pride projects till the mid-term review, the FCGO added. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The national pride projects were allocated a total of Rs 97 billion budget in the current fiscal year, but the progress is not satisfactory. The NPPs including the Millennium Challenge Account Nepal, South Asia Tourism Infrastructure Development Project, Kathmandu-Tarai Expressway, Pokhara Regional International Airport saw less than 5 percent expenditure till mid-January. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Newly appointed Vice Chair of the National Planning Commission, Dr Min Bahadur Shrestha, informed that the problem of low spending surfaced because the national pride projects were forwarded simultaneously. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">“There is resource crunch if all projects are taken together. Our contractors lack capacity. Oversight mechanism including bureaucracy is not able to work for it. So, certain projects should be prioritized and forwarded,” he observed. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Out of the budget allocated for the Millennium Challenge Account Nepal, it spent only 0.43 percent. Similarly, Kathmandu-Tarai Expressway was able to use only 5.13 percent (Rs 1.59 billion) by the mid-term. The South Asia Tourism Infrastructure was not able to spend more than 3.23 percent out of annual budget of Rs 2.20 billion. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-26', 'modified' => '2023-01-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16587', 'image' => '20230126121637_20220224090712_fast track nov 21.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-26 12:15:30', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16846', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Government to Construct 3,000 Suspension Bridges in the Next Two Years ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 26: The government has forwarded a plan to construct 3,000 suspension bridges across the country in the next two years. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 26: The government has forwarded a plan to construct 3,000 suspension bridges across the country in the next two years. This initiative has been taken to ensure that there is a suspension bridge in every half an hour’s walking distance in a bid to facilitate the mobility of people and not to deprive them of their rights to basic facilities like education and health due to the lack of bridges, according to the Ministry of Urban Development. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Soon after assuming office, newly-appointed Urban Development Minister Bikram Pandey approved the plan to construct the suspension bridges, a project mentioned in the current 15th plan of the government. The plan has been forwarded accordingly, said Director General of the Department of Local Infrastructure, Ishwor Chandra Marahatta. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"The project will save lives of people, who in general are risking their lives for want of bridges," he said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The government at all three levels -- federal, provincial and local – will be involved in the project. The local level is required to construct a bridge less than 120 meters in length, and the federal government is responsible for a bridge more than that length, said Marahatta. The federal government is required to provide budget to the local level for the project. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">In the current fiscal year (FY 2022/23), Rs 6 billion has been allocated for this project. The local levels have been already asked to provide project details including the location and the number, said Marahatta, adding, "Further decision will be taken after a team from the department carries out a study based on the demand. The project will be implemented in the current FY." -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-26', 'modified' => '2023-01-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16586', 'image' => '20230126110901_10-UTL-Landing-Pg-2400x1600.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-26 11:08:24', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16844', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Earthquake Destroys 58 Houses in Bajura ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: Fifty-eight houses have been damaged by the 5.9 magnitude earthquake that jolted the far western Nepal on Tuesday.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 25: Fifty-eight houses have been damaged by the 5.9 magnitude earthquake that jolted the far western Nepal on Tuesday. The epicentre of the earthquake was located at Bichchhya of Himali Rural Municipality in Bajura district. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to the District Police Office, Bajura some of the houses have suffered partial damage while others have been completely damaged. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">One person is reported to have lost life while there has been reports of property loss in various places of the district due to the tremor that occurred at 2.43 pm on Tuesday. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Some buildings of the government offices in the district have developed cracks due to the earthquake. Several private houses have also developed cracks and suffered broken walls. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The mud and stone houses have cracked and are unfit for accommodation, said Deputy Superintendent of Police Surya Thapa of the District Police Office. He said the policemen stationed at the Area Police Office and the police posts were sent to the villages to collect the details of the damages caused by the earthquake and have collected data that 58 houses have been damaged, including government buildings and private houses. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The earthquake killed a woman at Jureli of Gaumul Rural Municipality-2 while she was collecting fodder in a forest. The deceased has been identified as 32-year-old Jamuna Rokaya, who was hit on the head by a falling stone and died instantaneously, the District Police Office said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Three people were injured due to the earthquake in the district. Police said two of them are receiving treatment at local health facilities while one has already been discharged. Those injured are Rajdal Bohara of around 45 years of Amlika of Gaumul-1, Chandra Mahat of Badimalika Municipality-2, and Sarita Nepali, 16, from Humla who was in Bajura to visit her elder sister residing at Himali-6. Mahat has been already sent home after treatment. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The quake caused the death of a flock of sheep. They were 50 in numbers and got trapped in a rock rupture following the quake and died. The animals belonged to Bohara, one of the survivors who had taken the sheep for grazing when the incident happened, according to the District Police Office. -- RSS </span></span></span><br /> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16584', 'image' => '20230125080514_20230124052444_collage (85).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 20:04:49', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16842', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Chances of Light Snowfall in High-Hills and Mountainous Regions ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: High hills and mountainous areas of western Nepal witnessed snowfall since Monday night due to the impact of low pressure system active in western parts of the country.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 25: High hills and mountainous areas of western Nepal witnessed snowfall since Monday night due to the impact of low pressure system active in western parts of the country. </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"">Places like Jumla, Dolpa, Humla and Mugu were covered with snow on Tuesday as a result of snowfall that occurred in the country quite late 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"">There were reports of air service disruption in several districts of western Nepal due to the snowfall while the normal life in the remote areas came to a standstill due to the snowfall.</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 farmers who were worried due to the delay in rainfall rejoiced after receiving the first rainfall and snowfall this winter.</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"">According to the Meteorological Forecasting Division, light snowfall is likely to occur in a few places in the high hills and mountainous areas of Bagmati, Gandaki, Karnali and Sudur Pashchim provinces today (Wednesday) as well.</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"">Meanwhile, farmers of eastern Nepal are still worried as the winter crops have started wilting in the eastern region which is yet to receive rainfall 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 Meteorological Forecasting Division has predicted chances of light rainfall in a few places of Gandaki, Lumbini, Karnali and Sudur Pashchim provinces today (Wednesday). </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"">According to the division, the weather will be partly to generally cloudy in Province 1, Madesh, Bagmati , Gandaki and Lumbini provinces and partly cloudy to mainly fair in the rest of the country tonight. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""> </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""> </span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16582', 'image' => '20230125043141_HKC_Jajarkot-juphal.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 16:31:02', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16841', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NEA to Build Substations and Transmission Lines in Kathmandu Valley', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) will construct transmission lines and substations with capacity ranging from 66 kV to 220 kV in the Kathmandu Valley. ', 'content' => '<p><br /> <span style="font-size:16px">January 25: The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) will construct transmission lines and substations with capacity ranging from 66 kV to 220 kV in the Kathmandu Valley. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px">To make the power distribution system well-managed, the NEA is planning to construct a high capacity substation at Tarkeswor Municipality. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px">New transmission lines and substations aim at managing the electricity distribution system in the Kathmandu Valley by supplying high voltage electricity on a regular basis and reducing problems like electricity discontinuation in an emergency, said the NEA Executive Director Kulman Ghising.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px">With construction of new electricity infrastructures, the NEA will easily address the power demand in the Valley for the next 30 years, he said, adding “A ring circuit will be built in the valley”. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px">Ghising has already announced to construct a 132 kV transmission line along river banks. Similarly, substations will also be built in Kavrepalanchowk district, at the then Jitpurphedi VDC-5 and Goldhunga VDC-3. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px">It is learnt that the Kathmandu Valley has to suffer forced load-shedding due to a lack of transmission lines and substations. Likewise, electricity authority has expedited repair, upgrade and expansion of existing transmission lines and substations. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px">The NEA published a notice relating to the land acquisition for the projects as per Clause 61 of the Land Acquisition Act, 2034 BS on Wednesday. Lands of the total 61 families will be acquired for transmission lines and substations at Jitpurphedi VDC-5 and Goldhunga VDC-3. -RSS</span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16581', 'image' => '20230125041443_collage (86).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 16:06:30', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16840', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Rate of Return of Banks Declining', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The rate of return of banks is headed on a downhill path.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">January 25: The rate of return of banks is headed on a downhill path. As the profits of banks declined due to their failure to expand business amid liquidity crisis and the stiff competition among the banks as well as regulatory provisions, the rate of return of banks has also declined.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to the Nepal Bankers Association, the financial statements of commercial banks as of the second quarter of the current fiscal year show a drop of 11.73 percent on the return on equity (ROE) of commercial banks in an average. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">During the same period last year, the ROE of banks was 12.45 percent. Compared to mid-January last year, the ROE of nine banks decreased in the current fiscal year, while there has been an increase in ROE of 12 banks.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">As of mid-January this year, the net profit of Agricultural Development Bank decreased by 109 percent compared to the previous year and remained at minus 128.9 million rupees, making its ROE negative. NIC Asia Bank has the highest ROE of 26.25 percent by mid-January. NIC's ROE increased by 3.6 percentage points compared to last year. Nepal Investment Mega Bank is yet to publish its financial statements for the second quarter of this year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">President of Nepal Bankers Association and Chief Executive Officer of NMB Bank Sunil KC said that the rate of return is decreasing as the profitability of banks has been affected due to various factors. Addressing a press conference, KC said, “Banks provide most of their income to depositors and borrowers. Because of this, the rate of return of banks is decreasing.”</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war, the banks have been unable to expand their business. Similarly, the increase in bad loans of banks has also affected their profit. The total bad loans of banks increased to 2.29 percent till mid-January of the current fiscal year, which was 1.09 percent last year. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Anil Sharma, Chief Executive Officer of NBA, said that even though banks are accused of earning only profit, the figures state otherwise. He said that while the income of the banks from interest increased by 68 percent in the six months of the current year, their expenses on interest increased by 84 percent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to Sharma, in the previous year, the commercial banks distributed an average of 14.3 percent dividend, but in the last year, they could give only 10.76 percent and the ROE was 24.42 percent in the year 2069/70, which was limited to 11.73 percent last year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The Confederation of Banks and Financial Institutions (CBFIN), the umbrella organization of bank investors, also drew the attention of Nepal Rastra Bank, saying that the return of banks has been decreasing since a year and this has started to discourage investors.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">In the report which was submitted after studying the condition of the banks since 2073, the rate of return of banks and financial institutions has been continuously decreasing and to manage this challenge, NRB has been requested to allow the interest rate to be determined according to the concept of open market, not to limit the spread rate, and not to limit the premium fee. According to CBFIN’s report, the return on investment of banks increased from 19 percent in 2068 to 23 percent in 2073. After that, it dropped to 12 percent in the year 2077.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16580', 'image' => '20230125031815_Banks.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 15:17:41', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16839', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Surya Nepal Provides Ambulance to APF Trauma Center', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: Surya Nepal Pvt. Ltd. handed over an ambulance to the Chitwan-based Prithvi Highway Trauma Hospital operated by Armed Police Force Nepal Disaster Management Training Academy.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">January 25: Surya Nepal Pvt. Ltd. handed over an ambulance to the Chitwan-based Prithvi Highway Trauma Hospital operated by Armed Police Force Nepal Disaster Management Training Academy. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">During an event on Monday, the company's Vice President for Corporate Affairs Ravi KC handed over the key of the ambulance to Superintendent of Police Anjani Kumar Pokhrel of APF Nepal Disaster Management Training Academy Kurintar, Chitwan.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Surya Nepal said that the company provided an ambulance to the trauma hospital under its corporate social responsibility as the hospital was facing difficulty to rescue the injured immediately due to the lack of ambulances.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to the APF trauma center, the ambulance will be used to rescue the people injured in accidents along the highway.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16579', 'image' => '20230125022452_1674601856.Clipboard08.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 14:24:14', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16838', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NAC Captain Bishwakarma Refutes Suspension, says he is still in the Cockpit ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: Nepal Airlines Corporation Captain Nar Bahadur Bishwakarma has refuted reports about his suspension from regular duty.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 25: Nepal Airlines Corporation Captain Nar Bahadur Bishwakarma has refuted reports about his suspension from regular duty. Although it was reported that the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) had instructed to suspend five pilots of the Nepal Airlines Corporation, Captain Bishwakarma has clarified that he has not been suspended. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Captain Bishwakarma said that the CAAN had instructed to suspend pilots who disobeyed the instructions of the ATC during landing of an NAC plane at Hong Kong airport, but he was not involved in the flight, hence he was not suspended. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Bishwakarma however told RSS that he was in the same flight but only as a passenger when it landed at Hong Kong airport. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"I am dismayed over my name appearing on the list. Even today I am flying a NAC plane," he said before flying to Singapore on Tuesday night. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Meanwhile, Deputy Spokesperson of Nepal Airlines Corporation Ganesh Ghimire said that pilots Uddhav Ghimire and Rajesh Kushwaha, who disobeyed the instructions of the ATC while landing at the Hong Kong airport, and Prashanna Rana and YP Juwarchan who failed to follow the standard operational procedure during the flight from Kathmandu to Japan were suspended as per the instructions given by the CAAN. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">He also informed that although pilot Nar Bahadur Bishwakarma was on the NAC flight to Hong Kong, he was not suspended. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16578', 'image' => '20230125013624_naccccc.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 13:35:44', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16837', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Narayangarh-Butwal Road Expansion Sees Dismal Progress ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The widening of Narayangarh-Butwal road section along the East-West Highway has so far made only 23 percent progress with less than eight months left for the extended deadline to expire.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">January 25: The widening of Narayangarh-Butwal road section along the East-West Highway has so far made only 23 percent progress with less than eight months left for the extended deadline to expire.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The road widening project was supposed to be completed by August 2022 but the progress remains dismal even though it has been four years since the project started.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the China State Construction Engineering Corporation Limited, which is undertaking the expansion work, the widening of the road has been delayed due to complications brought out by COVID-19, tree felling, relocation of electric poles and mobilization of equipment. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Meanwhile, the Department of Roads had earlier concluded that the work was delayed due to the non-cooperation of the government, construction companies and local municipalities.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The department had even sought explanation from the Chinese construction company -- China State Construction Engineering Corporation Limited – as the progress was not satisfactory. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">A team of experts from the DoR led by Director General Arjun Jung Thapa had visited the site for inspection in early November and deduced that the construction was delayed due to three main reasons. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">“It was seen that there was a delay in the work to be done by the Nepal government as well. The local municipality prohibited on buying of construction materials like aggregates, gravel and soil despite paying royalty to the local municipality. In addition, there were problems with the management of the construction company, leading to the delay in completion of wok on time,” Thapa had told New Business Age in an earlier interview.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Even now, the electric poles on the road that needs to be widened have not been removed. Thapa said that he did not get any help from the local municipality. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">An agreement was reached between the Department of Roads and the Chinese company to complete the 114 km Narayangadh-Butwal road upgrading work in 3.5 years in January 2018.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The 114 kilometres of road stretch was divided in two sections while awarding the contract through a global bidding process. The China State Construction Engineering Corporation Limited had won the tender bids of both sections considering its proposal to construct the road section at the minimum base rate. However, several complaints have been received on part of the construction company regarding the dillydallying of the project. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The department earlier warned to terminate the contract arguing that the travelers and vehicles have faced several issues including difficulties in travel, air pollution and others problems due to carelessness of the construction company. The locals in the affected area have also suffered while road accidents have increased. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">As the contract agreement ended on August 7, the government has extended the deadline for one more year at the request of the construction company. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The expansion of this road section is estimated to cost around Rs 16 billion. The project is running with concessional loan provided by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16577', 'image' => '20230125121853_20220926014301_road.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 12:18:16', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16836', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Call to Promote Nepal-India Startup Ecosystem', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: Stakeholders and experts have suggested that agencies should promote connection of innovation-based startup ecosystems between Nepal and India. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 25: Stakeholders and experts have suggested that agencies should promote connection of innovation-based startup ecosystems between Nepal and India. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">At an interaction on ‘India-Nepal Startup Connect’ organized by the Embassy of India, Kathmandu, in association with the Young Entrepreneur Forum of the Confederation of Nepalese Industries on Tuesday, the speakers called for further collaboration in financial technology to bring together the startup ecosystems of both the countries. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The event focused on fostering a connection between Indian and Nepali startup ecosystems, according to a press statement by the Embassy of India, Kathmandu. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">On the occasion, Governor of Nepal Rastra Bank Maha Prasad Adhikari said that 2023 would be the year for promoting the digital payment system and urged for further cooperation between Nepal and India on fintech. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">He said that cross-border payment and QR payment should be advanced as the potential area of further cooperation. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Also speaking at the event, Naveen Srivastava, ambassador of India to Nepal, highlighted the importance of digital public goods in enabling financial inclusion and startups. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Likewise, Joint Secretary at the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies Babu Ram Gautam delivered a presentation on “Startup Opportunities in Nepal”. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16576', 'image' => '20230125115120_startup.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 11:50:28', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16835', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'CIB Confirms Spot-Fixing in Nepal T-20 League', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 24: An investigation carried out by the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) of Nepal Police has concluded that the recently held Nepal-T20 League was rigged.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">January 24: An investigation carried out by the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) of Nepal Police has concluded that the recently held Nepal-T20 League was rigged.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The police have already arrested two people, including former national cricketer Mehboob Alam for their alleged involvement in spot fixing during the league held from December 24 to January 11 at TU Cricket Ground, Kirtipur.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Police investigation has revealed that a total of 10 people, including six foeigners were involved in the fixing scam.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Organising a press conference on Tuesday, the CIB said that the police made the arrests based on evidences collected from Whatsapp messages and phone call details of the suspects. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The second person arrested in connection to the scam is 20-year old cricketer Mohammad Aadil Ansari, who was instructed to throw a no ball and a wide ball by Mehboob Alam, the police said. Alam allegedly approached the player offering him financial incentives. As per the rules of the International Cricket Council (ICC), a player should report to the Anti-Corruption Unit of ICC if anyone offers them incentives for fixing the game. However, Mohammad Aadil Ansari's failure to report to the unit led to his arrest, said the police source adding that three other players had reported offers to fix the game to the Anti-Corruption Unit of ICC. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Former captain of Nepal’s national team Gyanendra Malla had earlier claimed during a press conference that one of the players of his team during the league was approached for fixing. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) had entrusted an Indian company named Seven Three Sports for the overall management of the T-20 league, which courted controversy right from the beginning.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The organizers had revealed that a betting company was the main sponsor of the league, raising quite a few eyebrows. The Nepal T-20 league was also interrupted briefly after the players protested over salary issue.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">CAN had banned other domestic T-20 leagues of Nepal to organize this league arguing that the country can have only one official T-20 league as per the international rules.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-24', 'modified' => '2023-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16575', 'image' => '20230124070811_CIB-Logo.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-24 19:07:32', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16834', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => '5.9-magnitude Earthquake Jolts Western Nepal ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'An earthquake measuring 5.9 on the Richter scale jolted western Nepal at 2:43 pm on Tuesday. The earthquake having its epicenter in the Mela area of Bajura district was felt in various districts, including Banke, Kailali, Bajhang, among others, in Sudurpaschim Province. ', 'content' => '<p>January 24: An earthquake measuring 5.9 on the Richter scale jolted western Nepal at 2:43 pm on Tuesday. The earthquake having its epicenter in the Mela area of Bajura district was felt in various districts, including Banke, Kailali, Bajhang, among others, in Sudurpaschim Province. </p> <p>The powerful tremor had sent people out of their homes in panic. </p> <p>Information Officer at Seismological Centre, Surkhet, Tirtha Raj Dahal, said the earthquake of 5.9 on the Richter scale had struck the western Nepal with its epicenter at Mela of Bajura district, sending many residents out of their homes.</p> <p>The details of human casualties and physical damage are yet to come. </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-24', 'modified' => '2023-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16574', 'image' => '20230124052444_collage (85).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-24 17:17:33', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16833', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Community Campuses Face Financial Crisis in Parbat ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => ' Community campuses are experiencing a financial crisis in Parbat district. Plummeting students’ number and lack of government grant have put a total of 12 public colleges under financial strains. ', 'content' => '<p><br /> January 24: Community campuses are experiencing a financial crisis in Parbat district. Plummeting students’ number and lack of government grant have put a total of 12 public colleges under financial strains. </p> <p>Gupteswor and Shivalaya Multiple Campuses located at Parbat headquarters and Shankarpokhari Multiple Campus, Bahaki Campus, Janaat Sudarshan Campus, Navajagrit Campus, among others, located in rural areas have a minimum number of pupils. </p> <p>As a result, colleges have failed to collect fees from students as expected for their operation. <br /> Student number has plunged as some students have left for overseas for foreign employment, while others have gone outside the district to pursue education.</p> <p>“We are having a hard time running the campus due to the low number of students and fall of the government grant for the campus”, shared Campus Chief Suvash Panta of Gupteswor Multiple Campus.</p> <p>Shivalaya Multiple Campus Management Committee’s Chairman Bishnu Newar said that they had to face the financial crunch for lack of the campus’ credible source of income. </p> <p>Newar complained that they were operating the campus seeking help from various organizations at the request of party leaders, and playing deusi and bhailo. <br /> Tribhuvan University is yet to give permission of constituent campus to Gupteswor Campus, which is struggling financially for lack of a sustainable source of income. The college is hardly able to meet lecturers’ salary, infrastructure development, and miscellaneous expenses.</p> <p>Gupteswor Multiple Campus receives Rs 1.3 million annually, which is hardly enough to pay for the salary of two professors. <br /> Established in 2041 BS, Prabat Multiple Campus has a debt of Rs 15 million for want of source of income.</p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-24', 'modified' => '2023-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16573', 'image' => '20230124044449_collage (82).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-24 16:40:04', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ) ) $current_user = null $logged_in = falsesimplexml_load_file - [internal], line ?? include - APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 60 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::_renderElement() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 1224 View::element() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 418 include - APP/View/Articles/index.ctp, line 157 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 473 Controller::render() - CORE/Cake/Controller/Controller.php, line 968 Dispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 200 Dispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 167 [main] - APP/webroot/index.php, line 117
Notice (8): Undefined variable: file [APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 133]Code Context// $file = 'http://aabhiyan:QUVLg8Wzs2F7G9N7@nepalstock.com.np/api/subindexdata.xml';if(!$xml = simplexml_load_file($file)){$viewFile = '/var/www/html/newbusinessage.com/app/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp' $dataForView = array( 'articles' => array( (int) 0 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ) ), 'current_user' => null, 'logged_in' => false ) $articles = array( (int) 0 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16849', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Gautam Buddha Airport Struggles to Pay Loan Instalments due to Lack of Int’l Flights', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 26: Gautam Buddha International Airport (GBIA), which has been operational since May 16 last year, is currently closed for international flights. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">January 26: Gautam Buddha International Airport (GBIA), which has been operational since May 16 last year, is currently closed for international flights. Himalaya Airlines and Jazeera Airlines, which had been operating international flights from the airport in Bhairahawa, have suspended their flights since the last one month. The airport has been in operation for eight months now. Himalaya Airlines and Jazeera Airlines have stopped flying from December 15 and 21 respectively. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Govinda Prasad Dahal, general manager of Gautam Buddha Airport Office, said that international flights have not been operated at the airport since then.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">"The annual income from domestic flights is up to Rs 350 million," said Dahal, "Although it is sufficient to manage the regular expenses of the airport, it seems that it will be difficult to pay the principal/interest of foreign loans."</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to him, the airport has to pay Rs 400 million in annual instalments as the principal and interest amount. According to the loan agreement, the principal and interest of the loan taken at this airport should be paid in every six months. The airport has to pay Rs 33.3 million per month.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and OPEC Fund for International Development (OFFID) have invested in this airport. Although the problem of early morning flight delays due to adverse weather during the winter is not a new issue, this airport has been equipped with technology to ensure that there is no problem in flight/landing even in low visibility.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Even though the ILF (Instrument Landing System) technology that can land aircraft in low visibility (800 to 900 meters) has been installed, it has not been able to function smoothy.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Dahal said that India has not given permission to implement the ILF. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to Dahal, the airport is struggling to operate because of inclement weather and less number of passengers.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Dahal said that the passengers are compelled to take labour permits and other documents from the Department of Foreign Employment and also undergo health check-ups in Kathmandu, the passengers are reluctant to visit Bhairahawa for international flights.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">"The main problem now is the visa centres, labour offices, and health examination, which is not available in Bhairahawa," said Dahal.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Likewise, Indian citizens cannot fly directly to this airport even now.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">He said that the Indian government is yet to issue the No Objection Certificate (NOC) required for its citizens to go to other foreign destinations from this airport, so Indian passengers are not allowed to fly from this airport.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Vice President of Himalaya Airlines Vijay Shrestha said that they were forced to suspend the flights due to lack of passengers.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">So far, this airport has already served 25,481 passengers since it came into operation.<strong> </strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-26', 'modified' => '2023-01-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16589', 'image' => '20230126024419_Gautam Buddha.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-26 14:43:35', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16848', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Foreign Aid Constitutes more Loans than Grants', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 26: In recent years, the portion of loans in foreign aid received by the government has been higher than that of grants. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">January 26: In recent years, the portion of loans in foreign aid received by the government has been higher than that of grants. While some people opine that the share of loans is increasing because the government does not consult for the grants, the government report has revealed that the share of grants is decreasing due to the increasing capacity of loan repayment.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The mid-term review of the 15th Plan prepared by the National Planning Commission states that decreasing the share of grants in international development aid commitments means that Nepal's debt utilization capacity is increasing.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">In the current fiscal year, the government has set a target of receiving nearly Rs 300 billion through grants and loans from donors. Out of the total foreign assistance, government has sought Rs 55.46 billion as grants while the remaining amount will be debt. However, studies conducted in the past by government have shown that even though the government sets a target for debt collection in the budget each year, it has not been able to receive that target amount in any year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The mid-term review of the 15th Plan of the NPC has concluded that the government has given less emphasis to seek grants because debt repayment capacity is increasing due to the government's lack of emphasis on subsidies. The mid-term review also mentions that the share of external sources in the government expenditure has increased from 13.3 per cent to 17.5 per cent in the last three years.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Professor Doctor Shiv Adhikari, the former head of Tribhuvan University's economics department, shared that aid is decreasing because the agencies and countries that lend to Nepal are in a financial crisis. He said that the practice of giving loans more than grants is the new trend in the world. Globally, there has been an increase in the trend of emphasizing loans over grants.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">“In the 1980s-90s, the donors needed dollars and they gave grants in dollars with the expectation that those dollars would ultimately return back to them. Nepal used those dollars to import goods, and the dollars they gave returned back in their hands. That is the reason they gave grants," said Adhikari. "Recently, Nepal started receiving dollars from remittances and they started downsizing the grants."</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The ratio of external resource used in the gross domestic product has increased from 3.8 per cent in the year 2018/19 to 4.9 per cent in the year 2020/21, the NPC has mentioned in the mid-term review report of the 15th Plan. According to the commission, the development aid mobilization was 2.92 per cent in the year 2016/17. It increased to 3.87 per cent in the year 2017/18. Again in the year 2075/76, such aid mobilization seems to have dropped to 3.21.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">In 2019/20, foreign aid mobilization was 4.68 per cent, but it decreased in 2020/21. The report does not mention the situation of foreign aid mobilization in the year 2021/22. Officials of the Financial Comptroller General Office said that the funds could not be mobilized that year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Experts share that foreign debt is only up to 22 per cent of Nepal's gross domestic product, and there is no risk because Nepal has taken such debt at subsidized rates. It is said that foreign loans are not risky because the interest rate that Nepal has to pay is cheap, and the loan repayment period is lengthy.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to the latest information from the Public Debt Management Office under the Ministry of Finance, Nepal has taken loans from 23 foreign donors and agencies. All the loans taken by Nepal are subsidized so the interest rate is low. Nepal's biggest lenders are the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Hira Neupane, information officer of the office, said that the loans given by these two banks account for 80 per cent of Nepal's foreign loans.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to the Public Debt Management Office, the International Monetary Fund and Belgium have given loans to Nepal without any interest. The interest rate of a loan taken from the Exim Bank of China is less than 2 per cent. Nepal has taken loans from France at the most expensive interest rate. The interest rate of the loans taken from France is up to 3 per cent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The World Bank has given loans at an interest rate of 0.75 per cent. The second largest lender, the Asian Development Bank, has an interest rate of 1 to 1.5 per cent. Even Japan, the country that has given the most loans to Nepal, only charges interest rates of 0.1 to 1 per cent.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-26', 'modified' => '2023-01-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16588', 'image' => '20230126012032_Foreign investment.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-26 13:19:26', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16847', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Expenditure of National Pride Projects Dismal', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 26: Budget spent for the national pride projects, which are considered as transformative projects with strategic significance, is found to be negligible. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 26: Budget spent for the national pride projects, which are considered as transformative projects with strategic significance, is found to be negligible. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The mid-term review of the ongoing fiscal year’s budget has shown the progress in national pride projects is off the mark. The records maintained by Financial Comptroller General Office (FCGO) revealed that the total budget spent by the government was 32 percent as of January 14. Out of this, 38 percent was spent under current expenditure while 14 percent was under capital expenditure, and 29.44 percent financial management. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Only 23 percent budget was spent in the national pride projects till the mid-term review, the FCGO added. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The national pride projects were allocated a total of Rs 97 billion budget in the current fiscal year, but the progress is not satisfactory. The NPPs including the Millennium Challenge Account Nepal, South Asia Tourism Infrastructure Development Project, Kathmandu-Tarai Expressway, Pokhara Regional International Airport saw less than 5 percent expenditure till mid-January. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Newly appointed Vice Chair of the National Planning Commission, Dr Min Bahadur Shrestha, informed that the problem of low spending surfaced because the national pride projects were forwarded simultaneously. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">“There is resource crunch if all projects are taken together. Our contractors lack capacity. Oversight mechanism including bureaucracy is not able to work for it. So, certain projects should be prioritized and forwarded,” he observed. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Out of the budget allocated for the Millennium Challenge Account Nepal, it spent only 0.43 percent. Similarly, Kathmandu-Tarai Expressway was able to use only 5.13 percent (Rs 1.59 billion) by the mid-term. The South Asia Tourism Infrastructure was not able to spend more than 3.23 percent out of annual budget of Rs 2.20 billion. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-26', 'modified' => '2023-01-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16587', 'image' => '20230126121637_20220224090712_fast track nov 21.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-26 12:15:30', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16846', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Government to Construct 3,000 Suspension Bridges in the Next Two Years ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 26: The government has forwarded a plan to construct 3,000 suspension bridges across the country in the next two years. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 26: The government has forwarded a plan to construct 3,000 suspension bridges across the country in the next two years. This initiative has been taken to ensure that there is a suspension bridge in every half an hour’s walking distance in a bid to facilitate the mobility of people and not to deprive them of their rights to basic facilities like education and health due to the lack of bridges, according to the Ministry of Urban Development. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Soon after assuming office, newly-appointed Urban Development Minister Bikram Pandey approved the plan to construct the suspension bridges, a project mentioned in the current 15th plan of the government. The plan has been forwarded accordingly, said Director General of the Department of Local Infrastructure, Ishwor Chandra Marahatta. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"The project will save lives of people, who in general are risking their lives for want of bridges," he said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The government at all three levels -- federal, provincial and local – will be involved in the project. The local level is required to construct a bridge less than 120 meters in length, and the federal government is responsible for a bridge more than that length, said Marahatta. The federal government is required to provide budget to the local level for the project. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">In the current fiscal year (FY 2022/23), Rs 6 billion has been allocated for this project. The local levels have been already asked to provide project details including the location and the number, said Marahatta, adding, "Further decision will be taken after a team from the department carries out a study based on the demand. The project will be implemented in the current FY." -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-26', 'modified' => '2023-01-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16586', 'image' => '20230126110901_10-UTL-Landing-Pg-2400x1600.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-26 11:08:24', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16844', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Earthquake Destroys 58 Houses in Bajura ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: Fifty-eight houses have been damaged by the 5.9 magnitude earthquake that jolted the far western Nepal on Tuesday.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 25: Fifty-eight houses have been damaged by the 5.9 magnitude earthquake that jolted the far western Nepal on Tuesday. The epicentre of the earthquake was located at Bichchhya of Himali Rural Municipality in Bajura district. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to the District Police Office, Bajura some of the houses have suffered partial damage while others have been completely damaged. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">One person is reported to have lost life while there has been reports of property loss in various places of the district due to the tremor that occurred at 2.43 pm on Tuesday. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Some buildings of the government offices in the district have developed cracks due to the earthquake. Several private houses have also developed cracks and suffered broken walls. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The mud and stone houses have cracked and are unfit for accommodation, said Deputy Superintendent of Police Surya Thapa of the District Police Office. He said the policemen stationed at the Area Police Office and the police posts were sent to the villages to collect the details of the damages caused by the earthquake and have collected data that 58 houses have been damaged, including government buildings and private houses. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The earthquake killed a woman at Jureli of Gaumul Rural Municipality-2 while she was collecting fodder in a forest. The deceased has been identified as 32-year-old Jamuna Rokaya, who was hit on the head by a falling stone and died instantaneously, the District Police Office said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Three people were injured due to the earthquake in the district. Police said two of them are receiving treatment at local health facilities while one has already been discharged. Those injured are Rajdal Bohara of around 45 years of Amlika of Gaumul-1, Chandra Mahat of Badimalika Municipality-2, and Sarita Nepali, 16, from Humla who was in Bajura to visit her elder sister residing at Himali-6. Mahat has been already sent home after treatment. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The quake caused the death of a flock of sheep. They were 50 in numbers and got trapped in a rock rupture following the quake and died. The animals belonged to Bohara, one of the survivors who had taken the sheep for grazing when the incident happened, according to the District Police Office. -- RSS </span></span></span><br /> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16584', 'image' => '20230125080514_20230124052444_collage (85).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 20:04:49', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16842', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Chances of Light Snowfall in High-Hills and Mountainous Regions ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: High hills and mountainous areas of western Nepal witnessed snowfall since Monday night due to the impact of low pressure system active in western parts of the country.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 25: High hills and mountainous areas of western Nepal witnessed snowfall since Monday night due to the impact of low pressure system active in western parts of the country. </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"">Places like Jumla, Dolpa, Humla and Mugu were covered with snow on Tuesday as a result of snowfall that occurred in the country quite late 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"">There were reports of air service disruption in several districts of western Nepal due to the snowfall while the normal life in the remote areas came to a standstill due to the snowfall.</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 farmers who were worried due to the delay in rainfall rejoiced after receiving the first rainfall and snowfall this winter.</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"">According to the Meteorological Forecasting Division, light snowfall is likely to occur in a few places in the high hills and mountainous areas of Bagmati, Gandaki, Karnali and Sudur Pashchim provinces today (Wednesday) as well.</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"">Meanwhile, farmers of eastern Nepal are still worried as the winter crops have started wilting in the eastern region which is yet to receive rainfall 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 Meteorological Forecasting Division has predicted chances of light rainfall in a few places of Gandaki, Lumbini, Karnali and Sudur Pashchim provinces today (Wednesday). </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"">According to the division, the weather will be partly to generally cloudy in Province 1, Madesh, Bagmati , Gandaki and Lumbini provinces and partly cloudy to mainly fair in the rest of the country tonight. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""> </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""> </span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16582', 'image' => '20230125043141_HKC_Jajarkot-juphal.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 16:31:02', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16841', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NEA to Build Substations and Transmission Lines in Kathmandu Valley', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) will construct transmission lines and substations with capacity ranging from 66 kV to 220 kV in the Kathmandu Valley. ', 'content' => '<p><br /> <span style="font-size:16px">January 25: The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) will construct transmission lines and substations with capacity ranging from 66 kV to 220 kV in the Kathmandu Valley. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px">To make the power distribution system well-managed, the NEA is planning to construct a high capacity substation at Tarkeswor Municipality. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px">New transmission lines and substations aim at managing the electricity distribution system in the Kathmandu Valley by supplying high voltage electricity on a regular basis and reducing problems like electricity discontinuation in an emergency, said the NEA Executive Director Kulman Ghising.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px">With construction of new electricity infrastructures, the NEA will easily address the power demand in the Valley for the next 30 years, he said, adding “A ring circuit will be built in the valley”. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px">Ghising has already announced to construct a 132 kV transmission line along river banks. Similarly, substations will also be built in Kavrepalanchowk district, at the then Jitpurphedi VDC-5 and Goldhunga VDC-3. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px">It is learnt that the Kathmandu Valley has to suffer forced load-shedding due to a lack of transmission lines and substations. Likewise, electricity authority has expedited repair, upgrade and expansion of existing transmission lines and substations. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px">The NEA published a notice relating to the land acquisition for the projects as per Clause 61 of the Land Acquisition Act, 2034 BS on Wednesday. Lands of the total 61 families will be acquired for transmission lines and substations at Jitpurphedi VDC-5 and Goldhunga VDC-3. -RSS</span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16581', 'image' => '20230125041443_collage (86).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 16:06:30', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16840', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Rate of Return of Banks Declining', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The rate of return of banks is headed on a downhill path.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">January 25: The rate of return of banks is headed on a downhill path. As the profits of banks declined due to their failure to expand business amid liquidity crisis and the stiff competition among the banks as well as regulatory provisions, the rate of return of banks has also declined.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to the Nepal Bankers Association, the financial statements of commercial banks as of the second quarter of the current fiscal year show a drop of 11.73 percent on the return on equity (ROE) of commercial banks in an average. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">During the same period last year, the ROE of banks was 12.45 percent. Compared to mid-January last year, the ROE of nine banks decreased in the current fiscal year, while there has been an increase in ROE of 12 banks.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">As of mid-January this year, the net profit of Agricultural Development Bank decreased by 109 percent compared to the previous year and remained at minus 128.9 million rupees, making its ROE negative. NIC Asia Bank has the highest ROE of 26.25 percent by mid-January. NIC's ROE increased by 3.6 percentage points compared to last year. Nepal Investment Mega Bank is yet to publish its financial statements for the second quarter of this year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">President of Nepal Bankers Association and Chief Executive Officer of NMB Bank Sunil KC said that the rate of return is decreasing as the profitability of banks has been affected due to various factors. Addressing a press conference, KC said, “Banks provide most of their income to depositors and borrowers. Because of this, the rate of return of banks is decreasing.”</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war, the banks have been unable to expand their business. Similarly, the increase in bad loans of banks has also affected their profit. The total bad loans of banks increased to 2.29 percent till mid-January of the current fiscal year, which was 1.09 percent last year. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Anil Sharma, Chief Executive Officer of NBA, said that even though banks are accused of earning only profit, the figures state otherwise. He said that while the income of the banks from interest increased by 68 percent in the six months of the current year, their expenses on interest increased by 84 percent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to Sharma, in the previous year, the commercial banks distributed an average of 14.3 percent dividend, but in the last year, they could give only 10.76 percent and the ROE was 24.42 percent in the year 2069/70, which was limited to 11.73 percent last year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The Confederation of Banks and Financial Institutions (CBFIN), the umbrella organization of bank investors, also drew the attention of Nepal Rastra Bank, saying that the return of banks has been decreasing since a year and this has started to discourage investors.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">In the report which was submitted after studying the condition of the banks since 2073, the rate of return of banks and financial institutions has been continuously decreasing and to manage this challenge, NRB has been requested to allow the interest rate to be determined according to the concept of open market, not to limit the spread rate, and not to limit the premium fee. According to CBFIN’s report, the return on investment of banks increased from 19 percent in 2068 to 23 percent in 2073. After that, it dropped to 12 percent in the year 2077.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16580', 'image' => '20230125031815_Banks.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 15:17:41', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16839', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Surya Nepal Provides Ambulance to APF Trauma Center', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: Surya Nepal Pvt. Ltd. handed over an ambulance to the Chitwan-based Prithvi Highway Trauma Hospital operated by Armed Police Force Nepal Disaster Management Training Academy.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">January 25: Surya Nepal Pvt. Ltd. handed over an ambulance to the Chitwan-based Prithvi Highway Trauma Hospital operated by Armed Police Force Nepal Disaster Management Training Academy. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">During an event on Monday, the company's Vice President for Corporate Affairs Ravi KC handed over the key of the ambulance to Superintendent of Police Anjani Kumar Pokhrel of APF Nepal Disaster Management Training Academy Kurintar, Chitwan.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Surya Nepal said that the company provided an ambulance to the trauma hospital under its corporate social responsibility as the hospital was facing difficulty to rescue the injured immediately due to the lack of ambulances.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to the APF trauma center, the ambulance will be used to rescue the people injured in accidents along the highway.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16579', 'image' => '20230125022452_1674601856.Clipboard08.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 14:24:14', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16838', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NAC Captain Bishwakarma Refutes Suspension, says he is still in the Cockpit ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: Nepal Airlines Corporation Captain Nar Bahadur Bishwakarma has refuted reports about his suspension from regular duty.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 25: Nepal Airlines Corporation Captain Nar Bahadur Bishwakarma has refuted reports about his suspension from regular duty. Although it was reported that the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) had instructed to suspend five pilots of the Nepal Airlines Corporation, Captain Bishwakarma has clarified that he has not been suspended. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Captain Bishwakarma said that the CAAN had instructed to suspend pilots who disobeyed the instructions of the ATC during landing of an NAC plane at Hong Kong airport, but he was not involved in the flight, hence he was not suspended. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Bishwakarma however told RSS that he was in the same flight but only as a passenger when it landed at Hong Kong airport. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"I am dismayed over my name appearing on the list. Even today I am flying a NAC plane," he said before flying to Singapore on Tuesday night. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Meanwhile, Deputy Spokesperson of Nepal Airlines Corporation Ganesh Ghimire said that pilots Uddhav Ghimire and Rajesh Kushwaha, who disobeyed the instructions of the ATC while landing at the Hong Kong airport, and Prashanna Rana and YP Juwarchan who failed to follow the standard operational procedure during the flight from Kathmandu to Japan were suspended as per the instructions given by the CAAN. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">He also informed that although pilot Nar Bahadur Bishwakarma was on the NAC flight to Hong Kong, he was not suspended. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16578', 'image' => '20230125013624_naccccc.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 13:35:44', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16837', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Narayangarh-Butwal Road Expansion Sees Dismal Progress ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The widening of Narayangarh-Butwal road section along the East-West Highway has so far made only 23 percent progress with less than eight months left for the extended deadline to expire.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">January 25: The widening of Narayangarh-Butwal road section along the East-West Highway has so far made only 23 percent progress with less than eight months left for the extended deadline to expire.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The road widening project was supposed to be completed by August 2022 but the progress remains dismal even though it has been four years since the project started.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the China State Construction Engineering Corporation Limited, which is undertaking the expansion work, the widening of the road has been delayed due to complications brought out by COVID-19, tree felling, relocation of electric poles and mobilization of equipment. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Meanwhile, the Department of Roads had earlier concluded that the work was delayed due to the non-cooperation of the government, construction companies and local municipalities.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The department had even sought explanation from the Chinese construction company -- China State Construction Engineering Corporation Limited – as the progress was not satisfactory. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">A team of experts from the DoR led by Director General Arjun Jung Thapa had visited the site for inspection in early November and deduced that the construction was delayed due to three main reasons. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">“It was seen that there was a delay in the work to be done by the Nepal government as well. The local municipality prohibited on buying of construction materials like aggregates, gravel and soil despite paying royalty to the local municipality. In addition, there were problems with the management of the construction company, leading to the delay in completion of wok on time,” Thapa had told New Business Age in an earlier interview.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Even now, the electric poles on the road that needs to be widened have not been removed. Thapa said that he did not get any help from the local municipality. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">An agreement was reached between the Department of Roads and the Chinese company to complete the 114 km Narayangadh-Butwal road upgrading work in 3.5 years in January 2018.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The 114 kilometres of road stretch was divided in two sections while awarding the contract through a global bidding process. The China State Construction Engineering Corporation Limited had won the tender bids of both sections considering its proposal to construct the road section at the minimum base rate. However, several complaints have been received on part of the construction company regarding the dillydallying of the project. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The department earlier warned to terminate the contract arguing that the travelers and vehicles have faced several issues including difficulties in travel, air pollution and others problems due to carelessness of the construction company. The locals in the affected area have also suffered while road accidents have increased. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">As the contract agreement ended on August 7, the government has extended the deadline for one more year at the request of the construction company. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The expansion of this road section is estimated to cost around Rs 16 billion. The project is running with concessional loan provided by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16577', 'image' => '20230125121853_20220926014301_road.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 12:18:16', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16836', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Call to Promote Nepal-India Startup Ecosystem', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: Stakeholders and experts have suggested that agencies should promote connection of innovation-based startup ecosystems between Nepal and India. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 25: Stakeholders and experts have suggested that agencies should promote connection of innovation-based startup ecosystems between Nepal and India. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">At an interaction on ‘India-Nepal Startup Connect’ organized by the Embassy of India, Kathmandu, in association with the Young Entrepreneur Forum of the Confederation of Nepalese Industries on Tuesday, the speakers called for further collaboration in financial technology to bring together the startup ecosystems of both the countries. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The event focused on fostering a connection between Indian and Nepali startup ecosystems, according to a press statement by the Embassy of India, Kathmandu. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">On the occasion, Governor of Nepal Rastra Bank Maha Prasad Adhikari said that 2023 would be the year for promoting the digital payment system and urged for further cooperation between Nepal and India on fintech. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">He said that cross-border payment and QR payment should be advanced as the potential area of further cooperation. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Also speaking at the event, Naveen Srivastava, ambassador of India to Nepal, highlighted the importance of digital public goods in enabling financial inclusion and startups. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Likewise, Joint Secretary at the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies Babu Ram Gautam delivered a presentation on “Startup Opportunities in Nepal”. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16576', 'image' => '20230125115120_startup.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 11:50:28', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16835', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'CIB Confirms Spot-Fixing in Nepal T-20 League', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 24: An investigation carried out by the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) of Nepal Police has concluded that the recently held Nepal-T20 League was rigged.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">January 24: An investigation carried out by the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) of Nepal Police has concluded that the recently held Nepal-T20 League was rigged.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The police have already arrested two people, including former national cricketer Mehboob Alam for their alleged involvement in spot fixing during the league held from December 24 to January 11 at TU Cricket Ground, Kirtipur.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Police investigation has revealed that a total of 10 people, including six foeigners were involved in the fixing scam.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Organising a press conference on Tuesday, the CIB said that the police made the arrests based on evidences collected from Whatsapp messages and phone call details of the suspects. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The second person arrested in connection to the scam is 20-year old cricketer Mohammad Aadil Ansari, who was instructed to throw a no ball and a wide ball by Mehboob Alam, the police said. Alam allegedly approached the player offering him financial incentives. As per the rules of the International Cricket Council (ICC), a player should report to the Anti-Corruption Unit of ICC if anyone offers them incentives for fixing the game. However, Mohammad Aadil Ansari's failure to report to the unit led to his arrest, said the police source adding that three other players had reported offers to fix the game to the Anti-Corruption Unit of ICC. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Former captain of Nepal’s national team Gyanendra Malla had earlier claimed during a press conference that one of the players of his team during the league was approached for fixing. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) had entrusted an Indian company named Seven Three Sports for the overall management of the T-20 league, which courted controversy right from the beginning.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The organizers had revealed that a betting company was the main sponsor of the league, raising quite a few eyebrows. The Nepal T-20 league was also interrupted briefly after the players protested over salary issue.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">CAN had banned other domestic T-20 leagues of Nepal to organize this league arguing that the country can have only one official T-20 league as per the international rules.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-24', 'modified' => '2023-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16575', 'image' => '20230124070811_CIB-Logo.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-24 19:07:32', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16834', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => '5.9-magnitude Earthquake Jolts Western Nepal ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'An earthquake measuring 5.9 on the Richter scale jolted western Nepal at 2:43 pm on Tuesday. The earthquake having its epicenter in the Mela area of Bajura district was felt in various districts, including Banke, Kailali, Bajhang, among others, in Sudurpaschim Province. ', 'content' => '<p>January 24: An earthquake measuring 5.9 on the Richter scale jolted western Nepal at 2:43 pm on Tuesday. The earthquake having its epicenter in the Mela area of Bajura district was felt in various districts, including Banke, Kailali, Bajhang, among others, in Sudurpaschim Province. </p> <p>The powerful tremor had sent people out of their homes in panic. </p> <p>Information Officer at Seismological Centre, Surkhet, Tirtha Raj Dahal, said the earthquake of 5.9 on the Richter scale had struck the western Nepal with its epicenter at Mela of Bajura district, sending many residents out of their homes.</p> <p>The details of human casualties and physical damage are yet to come. </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-24', 'modified' => '2023-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16574', 'image' => '20230124052444_collage (85).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-24 17:17:33', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16833', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Community Campuses Face Financial Crisis in Parbat ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => ' Community campuses are experiencing a financial crisis in Parbat district. Plummeting students’ number and lack of government grant have put a total of 12 public colleges under financial strains. ', 'content' => '<p><br /> January 24: Community campuses are experiencing a financial crisis in Parbat district. Plummeting students’ number and lack of government grant have put a total of 12 public colleges under financial strains. </p> <p>Gupteswor and Shivalaya Multiple Campuses located at Parbat headquarters and Shankarpokhari Multiple Campus, Bahaki Campus, Janaat Sudarshan Campus, Navajagrit Campus, among others, located in rural areas have a minimum number of pupils. </p> <p>As a result, colleges have failed to collect fees from students as expected for their operation. <br /> Student number has plunged as some students have left for overseas for foreign employment, while others have gone outside the district to pursue education.</p> <p>“We are having a hard time running the campus due to the low number of students and fall of the government grant for the campus”, shared Campus Chief Suvash Panta of Gupteswor Multiple Campus.</p> <p>Shivalaya Multiple Campus Management Committee’s Chairman Bishnu Newar said that they had to face the financial crunch for lack of the campus’ credible source of income. </p> <p>Newar complained that they were operating the campus seeking help from various organizations at the request of party leaders, and playing deusi and bhailo. <br /> Tribhuvan University is yet to give permission of constituent campus to Gupteswor Campus, which is struggling financially for lack of a sustainable source of income. The college is hardly able to meet lecturers’ salary, infrastructure development, and miscellaneous expenses.</p> <p>Gupteswor Multiple Campus receives Rs 1.3 million annually, which is hardly enough to pay for the salary of two professors. <br /> Established in 2041 BS, Prabat Multiple Campus has a debt of Rs 15 million for want of source of income.</p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-24', 'modified' => '2023-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16573', 'image' => '20230124044449_collage (82).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-24 16:40:04', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ) ) $current_user = null $logged_in = false $xml = falseinclude - APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 133 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::_renderElement() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 1224 View::element() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 418 include - APP/View/Articles/index.ctp, line 157 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 473 Controller::render() - CORE/Cake/Controller/Controller.php, line 968 Dispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 200 Dispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 167 [main] - APP/webroot/index.php, line 117
Warning (2): simplexml_load_file() [<a href='http://php.net/function.simplexml-load-file'>function.simplexml-load-file</a>]: I/O warning : failed to load external entity "" [APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 133]file not found!Code Context// $file = 'http://aabhiyan:QUVLg8Wzs2F7G9N7@nepalstock.com.np/api/subindexdata.xml';if(!$xml = simplexml_load_file($file)){$viewFile = '/var/www/html/newbusinessage.com/app/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp' $dataForView = array( 'articles' => array( (int) 0 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ) ), 'current_user' => null, 'logged_in' => false ) $articles = array( (int) 0 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16849', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Gautam Buddha Airport Struggles to Pay Loan Instalments due to Lack of Int’l Flights', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 26: Gautam Buddha International Airport (GBIA), which has been operational since May 16 last year, is currently closed for international flights. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">January 26: Gautam Buddha International Airport (GBIA), which has been operational since May 16 last year, is currently closed for international flights. Himalaya Airlines and Jazeera Airlines, which had been operating international flights from the airport in Bhairahawa, have suspended their flights since the last one month. The airport has been in operation for eight months now. Himalaya Airlines and Jazeera Airlines have stopped flying from December 15 and 21 respectively. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Govinda Prasad Dahal, general manager of Gautam Buddha Airport Office, said that international flights have not been operated at the airport since then.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">"The annual income from domestic flights is up to Rs 350 million," said Dahal, "Although it is sufficient to manage the regular expenses of the airport, it seems that it will be difficult to pay the principal/interest of foreign loans."</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to him, the airport has to pay Rs 400 million in annual instalments as the principal and interest amount. According to the loan agreement, the principal and interest of the loan taken at this airport should be paid in every six months. The airport has to pay Rs 33.3 million per month.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and OPEC Fund for International Development (OFFID) have invested in this airport. Although the problem of early morning flight delays due to adverse weather during the winter is not a new issue, this airport has been equipped with technology to ensure that there is no problem in flight/landing even in low visibility.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Even though the ILF (Instrument Landing System) technology that can land aircraft in low visibility (800 to 900 meters) has been installed, it has not been able to function smoothy.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Dahal said that India has not given permission to implement the ILF. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to Dahal, the airport is struggling to operate because of inclement weather and less number of passengers.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Dahal said that the passengers are compelled to take labour permits and other documents from the Department of Foreign Employment and also undergo health check-ups in Kathmandu, the passengers are reluctant to visit Bhairahawa for international flights.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">"The main problem now is the visa centres, labour offices, and health examination, which is not available in Bhairahawa," said Dahal.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Likewise, Indian citizens cannot fly directly to this airport even now.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">He said that the Indian government is yet to issue the No Objection Certificate (NOC) required for its citizens to go to other foreign destinations from this airport, so Indian passengers are not allowed to fly from this airport.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Vice President of Himalaya Airlines Vijay Shrestha said that they were forced to suspend the flights due to lack of passengers.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">So far, this airport has already served 25,481 passengers since it came into operation.<strong> </strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-26', 'modified' => '2023-01-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16589', 'image' => '20230126024419_Gautam Buddha.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-26 14:43:35', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16848', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Foreign Aid Constitutes more Loans than Grants', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 26: In recent years, the portion of loans in foreign aid received by the government has been higher than that of grants. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">January 26: In recent years, the portion of loans in foreign aid received by the government has been higher than that of grants. While some people opine that the share of loans is increasing because the government does not consult for the grants, the government report has revealed that the share of grants is decreasing due to the increasing capacity of loan repayment.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The mid-term review of the 15th Plan prepared by the National Planning Commission states that decreasing the share of grants in international development aid commitments means that Nepal's debt utilization capacity is increasing.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">In the current fiscal year, the government has set a target of receiving nearly Rs 300 billion through grants and loans from donors. Out of the total foreign assistance, government has sought Rs 55.46 billion as grants while the remaining amount will be debt. However, studies conducted in the past by government have shown that even though the government sets a target for debt collection in the budget each year, it has not been able to receive that target amount in any year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The mid-term review of the 15th Plan of the NPC has concluded that the government has given less emphasis to seek grants because debt repayment capacity is increasing due to the government's lack of emphasis on subsidies. The mid-term review also mentions that the share of external sources in the government expenditure has increased from 13.3 per cent to 17.5 per cent in the last three years.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Professor Doctor Shiv Adhikari, the former head of Tribhuvan University's economics department, shared that aid is decreasing because the agencies and countries that lend to Nepal are in a financial crisis. He said that the practice of giving loans more than grants is the new trend in the world. Globally, there has been an increase in the trend of emphasizing loans over grants.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">“In the 1980s-90s, the donors needed dollars and they gave grants in dollars with the expectation that those dollars would ultimately return back to them. Nepal used those dollars to import goods, and the dollars they gave returned back in their hands. That is the reason they gave grants," said Adhikari. "Recently, Nepal started receiving dollars from remittances and they started downsizing the grants."</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The ratio of external resource used in the gross domestic product has increased from 3.8 per cent in the year 2018/19 to 4.9 per cent in the year 2020/21, the NPC has mentioned in the mid-term review report of the 15th Plan. According to the commission, the development aid mobilization was 2.92 per cent in the year 2016/17. It increased to 3.87 per cent in the year 2017/18. Again in the year 2075/76, such aid mobilization seems to have dropped to 3.21.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">In 2019/20, foreign aid mobilization was 4.68 per cent, but it decreased in 2020/21. The report does not mention the situation of foreign aid mobilization in the year 2021/22. Officials of the Financial Comptroller General Office said that the funds could not be mobilized that year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Experts share that foreign debt is only up to 22 per cent of Nepal's gross domestic product, and there is no risk because Nepal has taken such debt at subsidized rates. It is said that foreign loans are not risky because the interest rate that Nepal has to pay is cheap, and the loan repayment period is lengthy.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to the latest information from the Public Debt Management Office under the Ministry of Finance, Nepal has taken loans from 23 foreign donors and agencies. All the loans taken by Nepal are subsidized so the interest rate is low. Nepal's biggest lenders are the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Hira Neupane, information officer of the office, said that the loans given by these two banks account for 80 per cent of Nepal's foreign loans.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to the Public Debt Management Office, the International Monetary Fund and Belgium have given loans to Nepal without any interest. The interest rate of a loan taken from the Exim Bank of China is less than 2 per cent. Nepal has taken loans from France at the most expensive interest rate. The interest rate of the loans taken from France is up to 3 per cent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The World Bank has given loans at an interest rate of 0.75 per cent. The second largest lender, the Asian Development Bank, has an interest rate of 1 to 1.5 per cent. Even Japan, the country that has given the most loans to Nepal, only charges interest rates of 0.1 to 1 per cent.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-26', 'modified' => '2023-01-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16588', 'image' => '20230126012032_Foreign investment.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-26 13:19:26', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16847', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Expenditure of National Pride Projects Dismal', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 26: Budget spent for the national pride projects, which are considered as transformative projects with strategic significance, is found to be negligible. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 26: Budget spent for the national pride projects, which are considered as transformative projects with strategic significance, is found to be negligible. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The mid-term review of the ongoing fiscal year’s budget has shown the progress in national pride projects is off the mark. The records maintained by Financial Comptroller General Office (FCGO) revealed that the total budget spent by the government was 32 percent as of January 14. Out of this, 38 percent was spent under current expenditure while 14 percent was under capital expenditure, and 29.44 percent financial management. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Only 23 percent budget was spent in the national pride projects till the mid-term review, the FCGO added. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The national pride projects were allocated a total of Rs 97 billion budget in the current fiscal year, but the progress is not satisfactory. The NPPs including the Millennium Challenge Account Nepal, South Asia Tourism Infrastructure Development Project, Kathmandu-Tarai Expressway, Pokhara Regional International Airport saw less than 5 percent expenditure till mid-January. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Newly appointed Vice Chair of the National Planning Commission, Dr Min Bahadur Shrestha, informed that the problem of low spending surfaced because the national pride projects were forwarded simultaneously. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">“There is resource crunch if all projects are taken together. Our contractors lack capacity. Oversight mechanism including bureaucracy is not able to work for it. So, certain projects should be prioritized and forwarded,” he observed. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Out of the budget allocated for the Millennium Challenge Account Nepal, it spent only 0.43 percent. Similarly, Kathmandu-Tarai Expressway was able to use only 5.13 percent (Rs 1.59 billion) by the mid-term. The South Asia Tourism Infrastructure was not able to spend more than 3.23 percent out of annual budget of Rs 2.20 billion. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-26', 'modified' => '2023-01-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16587', 'image' => '20230126121637_20220224090712_fast track nov 21.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-26 12:15:30', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16846', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Government to Construct 3,000 Suspension Bridges in the Next Two Years ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 26: The government has forwarded a plan to construct 3,000 suspension bridges across the country in the next two years. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 26: The government has forwarded a plan to construct 3,000 suspension bridges across the country in the next two years. This initiative has been taken to ensure that there is a suspension bridge in every half an hour’s walking distance in a bid to facilitate the mobility of people and not to deprive them of their rights to basic facilities like education and health due to the lack of bridges, according to the Ministry of Urban Development. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Soon after assuming office, newly-appointed Urban Development Minister Bikram Pandey approved the plan to construct the suspension bridges, a project mentioned in the current 15th plan of the government. The plan has been forwarded accordingly, said Director General of the Department of Local Infrastructure, Ishwor Chandra Marahatta. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"The project will save lives of people, who in general are risking their lives for want of bridges," he said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The government at all three levels -- federal, provincial and local – will be involved in the project. The local level is required to construct a bridge less than 120 meters in length, and the federal government is responsible for a bridge more than that length, said Marahatta. The federal government is required to provide budget to the local level for the project. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">In the current fiscal year (FY 2022/23), Rs 6 billion has been allocated for this project. The local levels have been already asked to provide project details including the location and the number, said Marahatta, adding, "Further decision will be taken after a team from the department carries out a study based on the demand. The project will be implemented in the current FY." -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-26', 'modified' => '2023-01-26', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16586', 'image' => '20230126110901_10-UTL-Landing-Pg-2400x1600.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-26 11:08:24', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16844', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Earthquake Destroys 58 Houses in Bajura ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: Fifty-eight houses have been damaged by the 5.9 magnitude earthquake that jolted the far western Nepal on Tuesday.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 25: Fifty-eight houses have been damaged by the 5.9 magnitude earthquake that jolted the far western Nepal on Tuesday. The epicentre of the earthquake was located at Bichchhya of Himali Rural Municipality in Bajura district. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to the District Police Office, Bajura some of the houses have suffered partial damage while others have been completely damaged. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">One person is reported to have lost life while there has been reports of property loss in various places of the district due to the tremor that occurred at 2.43 pm on Tuesday. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Some buildings of the government offices in the district have developed cracks due to the earthquake. Several private houses have also developed cracks and suffered broken walls. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The mud and stone houses have cracked and are unfit for accommodation, said Deputy Superintendent of Police Surya Thapa of the District Police Office. He said the policemen stationed at the Area Police Office and the police posts were sent to the villages to collect the details of the damages caused by the earthquake and have collected data that 58 houses have been damaged, including government buildings and private houses. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The earthquake killed a woman at Jureli of Gaumul Rural Municipality-2 while she was collecting fodder in a forest. The deceased has been identified as 32-year-old Jamuna Rokaya, who was hit on the head by a falling stone and died instantaneously, the District Police Office said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Three people were injured due to the earthquake in the district. Police said two of them are receiving treatment at local health facilities while one has already been discharged. Those injured are Rajdal Bohara of around 45 years of Amlika of Gaumul-1, Chandra Mahat of Badimalika Municipality-2, and Sarita Nepali, 16, from Humla who was in Bajura to visit her elder sister residing at Himali-6. Mahat has been already sent home after treatment. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The quake caused the death of a flock of sheep. They were 50 in numbers and got trapped in a rock rupture following the quake and died. The animals belonged to Bohara, one of the survivors who had taken the sheep for grazing when the incident happened, according to the District Police Office. -- RSS </span></span></span><br /> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16584', 'image' => '20230125080514_20230124052444_collage (85).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 20:04:49', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16842', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Chances of Light Snowfall in High-Hills and Mountainous Regions ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: High hills and mountainous areas of western Nepal witnessed snowfall since Monday night due to the impact of low pressure system active in western parts of the country.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 25: High hills and mountainous areas of western Nepal witnessed snowfall since Monday night due to the impact of low pressure system active in western parts of the country. </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"">Places like Jumla, Dolpa, Humla and Mugu were covered with snow on Tuesday as a result of snowfall that occurred in the country quite late 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"">There were reports of air service disruption in several districts of western Nepal due to the snowfall while the normal life in the remote areas came to a standstill due to the snowfall.</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 farmers who were worried due to the delay in rainfall rejoiced after receiving the first rainfall and snowfall this winter.</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"">According to the Meteorological Forecasting Division, light snowfall is likely to occur in a few places in the high hills and mountainous areas of Bagmati, Gandaki, Karnali and Sudur Pashchim provinces today (Wednesday) as well.</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"">Meanwhile, farmers of eastern Nepal are still worried as the winter crops have started wilting in the eastern region which is yet to receive rainfall 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 Meteorological Forecasting Division has predicted chances of light rainfall in a few places of Gandaki, Lumbini, Karnali and Sudur Pashchim provinces today (Wednesday). </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"">According to the division, the weather will be partly to generally cloudy in Province 1, Madesh, Bagmati , Gandaki and Lumbini provinces and partly cloudy to mainly fair in the rest of the country tonight. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""> </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""> </span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16582', 'image' => '20230125043141_HKC_Jajarkot-juphal.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 16:31:02', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16841', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NEA to Build Substations and Transmission Lines in Kathmandu Valley', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) will construct transmission lines and substations with capacity ranging from 66 kV to 220 kV in the Kathmandu Valley. ', 'content' => '<p><br /> <span style="font-size:16px">January 25: The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) will construct transmission lines and substations with capacity ranging from 66 kV to 220 kV in the Kathmandu Valley. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px">To make the power distribution system well-managed, the NEA is planning to construct a high capacity substation at Tarkeswor Municipality. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px">New transmission lines and substations aim at managing the electricity distribution system in the Kathmandu Valley by supplying high voltage electricity on a regular basis and reducing problems like electricity discontinuation in an emergency, said the NEA Executive Director Kulman Ghising.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px">With construction of new electricity infrastructures, the NEA will easily address the power demand in the Valley for the next 30 years, he said, adding “A ring circuit will be built in the valley”. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px">Ghising has already announced to construct a 132 kV transmission line along river banks. Similarly, substations will also be built in Kavrepalanchowk district, at the then Jitpurphedi VDC-5 and Goldhunga VDC-3. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px">It is learnt that the Kathmandu Valley has to suffer forced load-shedding due to a lack of transmission lines and substations. Likewise, electricity authority has expedited repair, upgrade and expansion of existing transmission lines and substations. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:16px">The NEA published a notice relating to the land acquisition for the projects as per Clause 61 of the Land Acquisition Act, 2034 BS on Wednesday. Lands of the total 61 families will be acquired for transmission lines and substations at Jitpurphedi VDC-5 and Goldhunga VDC-3. -RSS</span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16581', 'image' => '20230125041443_collage (86).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 16:06:30', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16840', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Rate of Return of Banks Declining', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The rate of return of banks is headed on a downhill path.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">January 25: The rate of return of banks is headed on a downhill path. As the profits of banks declined due to their failure to expand business amid liquidity crisis and the stiff competition among the banks as well as regulatory provisions, the rate of return of banks has also declined.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to the Nepal Bankers Association, the financial statements of commercial banks as of the second quarter of the current fiscal year show a drop of 11.73 percent on the return on equity (ROE) of commercial banks in an average. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">During the same period last year, the ROE of banks was 12.45 percent. Compared to mid-January last year, the ROE of nine banks decreased in the current fiscal year, while there has been an increase in ROE of 12 banks.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">As of mid-January this year, the net profit of Agricultural Development Bank decreased by 109 percent compared to the previous year and remained at minus 128.9 million rupees, making its ROE negative. NIC Asia Bank has the highest ROE of 26.25 percent by mid-January. NIC's ROE increased by 3.6 percentage points compared to last year. Nepal Investment Mega Bank is yet to publish its financial statements for the second quarter of this year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">President of Nepal Bankers Association and Chief Executive Officer of NMB Bank Sunil KC said that the rate of return is decreasing as the profitability of banks has been affected due to various factors. Addressing a press conference, KC said, “Banks provide most of their income to depositors and borrowers. Because of this, the rate of return of banks is decreasing.”</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war, the banks have been unable to expand their business. Similarly, the increase in bad loans of banks has also affected their profit. The total bad loans of banks increased to 2.29 percent till mid-January of the current fiscal year, which was 1.09 percent last year. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Anil Sharma, Chief Executive Officer of NBA, said that even though banks are accused of earning only profit, the figures state otherwise. He said that while the income of the banks from interest increased by 68 percent in the six months of the current year, their expenses on interest increased by 84 percent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to Sharma, in the previous year, the commercial banks distributed an average of 14.3 percent dividend, but in the last year, they could give only 10.76 percent and the ROE was 24.42 percent in the year 2069/70, which was limited to 11.73 percent last year.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The Confederation of Banks and Financial Institutions (CBFIN), the umbrella organization of bank investors, also drew the attention of Nepal Rastra Bank, saying that the return of banks has been decreasing since a year and this has started to discourage investors.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">In the report which was submitted after studying the condition of the banks since 2073, the rate of return of banks and financial institutions has been continuously decreasing and to manage this challenge, NRB has been requested to allow the interest rate to be determined according to the concept of open market, not to limit the spread rate, and not to limit the premium fee. According to CBFIN’s report, the return on investment of banks increased from 19 percent in 2068 to 23 percent in 2073. After that, it dropped to 12 percent in the year 2077.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16580', 'image' => '20230125031815_Banks.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 15:17:41', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16839', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Surya Nepal Provides Ambulance to APF Trauma Center', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: Surya Nepal Pvt. Ltd. handed over an ambulance to the Chitwan-based Prithvi Highway Trauma Hospital operated by Armed Police Force Nepal Disaster Management Training Academy.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">January 25: Surya Nepal Pvt. Ltd. handed over an ambulance to the Chitwan-based Prithvi Highway Trauma Hospital operated by Armed Police Force Nepal Disaster Management Training Academy. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">During an event on Monday, the company's Vice President for Corporate Affairs Ravi KC handed over the key of the ambulance to Superintendent of Police Anjani Kumar Pokhrel of APF Nepal Disaster Management Training Academy Kurintar, Chitwan.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Surya Nepal said that the company provided an ambulance to the trauma hospital under its corporate social responsibility as the hospital was facing difficulty to rescue the injured immediately due to the lack of ambulances.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">According to the APF trauma center, the ambulance will be used to rescue the people injured in accidents along the highway.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16579', 'image' => '20230125022452_1674601856.Clipboard08.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 14:24:14', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16838', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NAC Captain Bishwakarma Refutes Suspension, says he is still in the Cockpit ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: Nepal Airlines Corporation Captain Nar Bahadur Bishwakarma has refuted reports about his suspension from regular duty.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 25: Nepal Airlines Corporation Captain Nar Bahadur Bishwakarma has refuted reports about his suspension from regular duty. Although it was reported that the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) had instructed to suspend five pilots of the Nepal Airlines Corporation, Captain Bishwakarma has clarified that he has not been suspended. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Captain Bishwakarma said that the CAAN had instructed to suspend pilots who disobeyed the instructions of the ATC during landing of an NAC plane at Hong Kong airport, but he was not involved in the flight, hence he was not suspended. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Bishwakarma however told RSS that he was in the same flight but only as a passenger when it landed at Hong Kong airport. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"I am dismayed over my name appearing on the list. Even today I am flying a NAC plane," he said before flying to Singapore on Tuesday night. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Meanwhile, Deputy Spokesperson of Nepal Airlines Corporation Ganesh Ghimire said that pilots Uddhav Ghimire and Rajesh Kushwaha, who disobeyed the instructions of the ATC while landing at the Hong Kong airport, and Prashanna Rana and YP Juwarchan who failed to follow the standard operational procedure during the flight from Kathmandu to Japan were suspended as per the instructions given by the CAAN. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">He also informed that although pilot Nar Bahadur Bishwakarma was on the NAC flight to Hong Kong, he was not suspended. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16578', 'image' => '20230125013624_naccccc.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 13:35:44', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16837', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Narayangarh-Butwal Road Expansion Sees Dismal Progress ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: The widening of Narayangarh-Butwal road section along the East-West Highway has so far made only 23 percent progress with less than eight months left for the extended deadline to expire.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">January 25: The widening of Narayangarh-Butwal road section along the East-West Highway has so far made only 23 percent progress with less than eight months left for the extended deadline to expire.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The road widening project was supposed to be completed by August 2022 but the progress remains dismal even though it has been four years since the project started.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">According to the China State Construction Engineering Corporation Limited, which is undertaking the expansion work, the widening of the road has been delayed due to complications brought out by COVID-19, tree felling, relocation of electric poles and mobilization of equipment. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Meanwhile, the Department of Roads had earlier concluded that the work was delayed due to the non-cooperation of the government, construction companies and local municipalities.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The department had even sought explanation from the Chinese construction company -- China State Construction Engineering Corporation Limited – as the progress was not satisfactory. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">A team of experts from the DoR led by Director General Arjun Jung Thapa had visited the site for inspection in early November and deduced that the construction was delayed due to three main reasons. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">“It was seen that there was a delay in the work to be done by the Nepal government as well. The local municipality prohibited on buying of construction materials like aggregates, gravel and soil despite paying royalty to the local municipality. In addition, there were problems with the management of the construction company, leading to the delay in completion of wok on time,” Thapa had told New Business Age in an earlier interview.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Even now, the electric poles on the road that needs to be widened have not been removed. Thapa said that he did not get any help from the local municipality. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">An agreement was reached between the Department of Roads and the Chinese company to complete the 114 km Narayangadh-Butwal road upgrading work in 3.5 years in January 2018.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The 114 kilometres of road stretch was divided in two sections while awarding the contract through a global bidding process. The China State Construction Engineering Corporation Limited had won the tender bids of both sections considering its proposal to construct the road section at the minimum base rate. However, several complaints have been received on part of the construction company regarding the dillydallying of the project. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The department earlier warned to terminate the contract arguing that the travelers and vehicles have faced several issues including difficulties in travel, air pollution and others problems due to carelessness of the construction company. The locals in the affected area have also suffered while road accidents have increased. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">As the contract agreement ended on August 7, the government has extended the deadline for one more year at the request of the construction company. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The expansion of this road section is estimated to cost around Rs 16 billion. The project is running with concessional loan provided by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16577', 'image' => '20230125121853_20220926014301_road.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 12:18:16', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16836', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Call to Promote Nepal-India Startup Ecosystem', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 25: Stakeholders and experts have suggested that agencies should promote connection of innovation-based startup ecosystems between Nepal and India. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">January 25: Stakeholders and experts have suggested that agencies should promote connection of innovation-based startup ecosystems between Nepal and India. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">At an interaction on ‘India-Nepal Startup Connect’ organized by the Embassy of India, Kathmandu, in association with the Young Entrepreneur Forum of the Confederation of Nepalese Industries on Tuesday, the speakers called for further collaboration in financial technology to bring together the startup ecosystems of both the countries. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The event focused on fostering a connection between Indian and Nepali startup ecosystems, according to a press statement by the Embassy of India, Kathmandu. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">On the occasion, Governor of Nepal Rastra Bank Maha Prasad Adhikari said that 2023 would be the year for promoting the digital payment system and urged for further cooperation between Nepal and India on fintech. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">He said that cross-border payment and QR payment should be advanced as the potential area of further cooperation. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Also speaking at the event, Naveen Srivastava, ambassador of India to Nepal, highlighted the importance of digital public goods in enabling financial inclusion and startups. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Likewise, Joint Secretary at the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies Babu Ram Gautam delivered a presentation on “Startup Opportunities in Nepal”. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-25', 'modified' => '2023-01-25', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16576', 'image' => '20230125115120_startup.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-25 11:50:28', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16835', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'CIB Confirms Spot-Fixing in Nepal T-20 League', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'January 24: An investigation carried out by the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) of Nepal Police has concluded that the recently held Nepal-T20 League was rigged.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">January 24: An investigation carried out by the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) of Nepal Police has concluded that the recently held Nepal-T20 League was rigged.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The police have already arrested two people, including former national cricketer Mehboob Alam for their alleged involvement in spot fixing during the league held from December 24 to January 11 at TU Cricket Ground, Kirtipur.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Police investigation has revealed that a total of 10 people, including six foeigners were involved in the fixing scam.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Organising a press conference on Tuesday, the CIB said that the police made the arrests based on evidences collected from Whatsapp messages and phone call details of the suspects. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The second person arrested in connection to the scam is 20-year old cricketer Mohammad Aadil Ansari, who was instructed to throw a no ball and a wide ball by Mehboob Alam, the police said. Alam allegedly approached the player offering him financial incentives. As per the rules of the International Cricket Council (ICC), a player should report to the Anti-Corruption Unit of ICC if anyone offers them incentives for fixing the game. However, Mohammad Aadil Ansari's failure to report to the unit led to his arrest, said the police source adding that three other players had reported offers to fix the game to the Anti-Corruption Unit of ICC. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Former captain of Nepal’s national team Gyanendra Malla had earlier claimed during a press conference that one of the players of his team during the league was approached for fixing. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) had entrusted an Indian company named Seven Three Sports for the overall management of the T-20 league, which courted controversy right from the beginning.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The organizers had revealed that a betting company was the main sponsor of the league, raising quite a few eyebrows. The Nepal T-20 league was also interrupted briefly after the players protested over salary issue.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">CAN had banned other domestic T-20 leagues of Nepal to organize this league arguing that the country can have only one official T-20 league as per the international rules.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-24', 'modified' => '2023-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16575', 'image' => '20230124070811_CIB-Logo.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-24 19:07:32', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16834', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => '5.9-magnitude Earthquake Jolts Western Nepal ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'An earthquake measuring 5.9 on the Richter scale jolted western Nepal at 2:43 pm on Tuesday. The earthquake having its epicenter in the Mela area of Bajura district was felt in various districts, including Banke, Kailali, Bajhang, among others, in Sudurpaschim Province. ', 'content' => '<p>January 24: An earthquake measuring 5.9 on the Richter scale jolted western Nepal at 2:43 pm on Tuesday. The earthquake having its epicenter in the Mela area of Bajura district was felt in various districts, including Banke, Kailali, Bajhang, among others, in Sudurpaschim Province. </p> <p>The powerful tremor had sent people out of their homes in panic. </p> <p>Information Officer at Seismological Centre, Surkhet, Tirtha Raj Dahal, said the earthquake of 5.9 on the Richter scale had struck the western Nepal with its epicenter at Mela of Bajura district, sending many residents out of their homes.</p> <p>The details of human casualties and physical damage are yet to come. </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-24', 'modified' => '2023-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16574', 'image' => '20230124052444_collage (85).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-24 17:17:33', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '16833', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Community Campuses Face Financial Crisis in Parbat ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => ' Community campuses are experiencing a financial crisis in Parbat district. Plummeting students’ number and lack of government grant have put a total of 12 public colleges under financial strains. ', 'content' => '<p><br /> January 24: Community campuses are experiencing a financial crisis in Parbat district. Plummeting students’ number and lack of government grant have put a total of 12 public colleges under financial strains. </p> <p>Gupteswor and Shivalaya Multiple Campuses located at Parbat headquarters and Shankarpokhari Multiple Campus, Bahaki Campus, Janaat Sudarshan Campus, Navajagrit Campus, among others, located in rural areas have a minimum number of pupils. </p> <p>As a result, colleges have failed to collect fees from students as expected for their operation. <br /> Student number has plunged as some students have left for overseas for foreign employment, while others have gone outside the district to pursue education.</p> <p>“We are having a hard time running the campus due to the low number of students and fall of the government grant for the campus”, shared Campus Chief Suvash Panta of Gupteswor Multiple Campus.</p> <p>Shivalaya Multiple Campus Management Committee’s Chairman Bishnu Newar said that they had to face the financial crunch for lack of the campus’ credible source of income. </p> <p>Newar complained that they were operating the campus seeking help from various organizations at the request of party leaders, and playing deusi and bhailo. <br /> Tribhuvan University is yet to give permission of constituent campus to Gupteswor Campus, which is struggling financially for lack of a sustainable source of income. The college is hardly able to meet lecturers’ salary, infrastructure development, and miscellaneous expenses.</p> <p>Gupteswor Multiple Campus receives Rs 1.3 million annually, which is hardly enough to pay for the salary of two professors. <br /> Established in 2041 BS, Prabat Multiple Campus has a debt of Rs 15 million for want of source of income.</p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-01-24', 'modified' => '2023-01-24', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '16573', 'image' => '20230124044449_collage (82).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-01-24 16:40:04', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '42' ) ) ) $current_user = null $logged_in = false $xml = falsesimplexml_load_file - [internal], line ?? include - APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 133 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::_renderElement() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 1224 View::element() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 418 include - APP/View/Articles/index.ctp, line 157 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 473 Controller::render() - CORE/Cake/Controller/Controller.php, line 968 Dispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 200 Dispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 167 [main] - APP/webroot/index.php, line 117
| Currency | Unit |
Buy | Sell |
| U.S. Dollar | 1 | 121.23 | 121.83 |
| European Euro | 1 | 131.65 | 132.31 |
| UK Pound Sterling | 1 | 142.47 | 143.18 |
| Swiss Franc | 1 | 124.29 | 124.90 |
| Australian Dollar | 1 | 71.69 | 72.05 |
| Canadian Dollar | 1 | 83.90 | 84.32 |
| Japanese Yen | 10 | 10.94 | 11.00 |
| Chinese Yuan | 1 | 17.17 | 17.26 |
| Saudi Arabian Riyal | 1 | 32.27 | 32.43 |
| UAE Dirham | 1 | 33.01 | 33.17 |
| Malaysian Ringgit | 1 | 27.36 | 27.50 |
| South Korean Won | 100 | 9.77 | 9.82 |
Update: 2020-03-25 | Source: Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB)
| Fine Gold | 1 tola | 77000.00 |
| Tejabi Gold | 1 tola | 76700.00 |
| Silver | 1 tola | 720.00 |
Update : 2020-03-25
Source: Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers' Association
| Petrol | 1 Liter | 106.00 |
| Diesel | 1 Liter | 95.00 |
| Kerosene | 1 Liter | 95.00 |
| LP Gas | 1 Cylinder | 1375.00 |
Update : 2020-03-25
