September 1: Lawmakers have concluded that the existing laws are a hindrance in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals…
September 1: Lawmakers have concluded that the existing laws are a hindrance in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals…
September 1: The Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) is to collect garbage of Kathmandu Valley from Wednesday (September…
September 1: The Fifth International Women's Trade Exhibition is scheduled to be held in Kathmandu from September 1 to…
August 31: The government has invested Rs 349 billion in 24 national pride projects so far.…
August 31: The outbreak of stem borer (gawaro) disease has affected the paddy planted by farmers in several…
August 31: The Pokhara Metropolitan City has given priority to tourism in the three-year periodical plan with the slogan of Prosperous Tourism…
August 31: The government has reportedly intensified laying optical fibres in line with the ambition set by the Digital Nepal…
August 31: The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN)’s revenue collection has dropped significantly in the past two years due to COVID-19…
August 30: The process of drafting laws related to monitoring and evaluation of national pride projects has started to gain momentum after a year and a…
August 30: Nepal has significantly improved its foreign trade in the first month of the current fiscal year (FY 2021/22).…
August 30: Province 2 has a high potential for industrial development, according to Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB).…
August 30: Biratnagar chapter of Nepal-India Chamber of Commerce and Industry has elected a new executive committee following the third Annual General Meeting of the chamber on Saturday, August…
August 30: Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba has said that government officials handling public fund and authority should discharge their duty in a more transparent, accountable and legal…
August 30: The government has decided to appoint Krishna Hari Pushkar as the revenue secretary under the Ministry of…
August 29: The industries of Bara-Parsa, that have been hard hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, are now trying to claw back to normal…
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The committee members have instructed the government to remove legal hurdles and formulate laws that help the country meet its development goals.</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"">In this regard, the committee meeting held on Tuesday (August 31) directed the government to unveil an action plan for the amendment and revision of the laws that serve as obstacles to achieve the state’s commitments to SDGs. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The committee’s meeting concluded that the most of the laws were obsolete and unable to address the nee ds of the SDGs. The National Assembly members suggested that the laws should be amended to make them compatible with the current structures, thoughts and perspectives. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The committee members were of the view that most of the laws were formulated prior to the promulgation of the new constitution and they are not compatible to meet the SDGs. Therefore, they argued that it is necessary to amend the constitution and laws in line with the SDGs.Some members of the committee stated that around 350 laws need to be amended in the present context to meet the goals.</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"">Committee member Ganga Belbase said that the government needs to introduce a new bill to meet the SDGs. </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"">Meanwhile, another lawmaker and member of the committee Bimala Ghimire pointed out to the problems in implementing the laws that have been enacted. She stressed on effective implementation of laws.</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"">Another member Mahesh Kumar Mahara said that a study has to be conducted to find out whether the laws need to be simply amended or a sub-committee needs to be formed to figure which laws need to be amended. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Likewise, committee member Sharada Devi Bhatta stated that the laws that were formulated in the Rana regime needs to be amended to meet the target. Similarly, the committee members said that the government and parliament should not delay in making Nepal’s constitution and laws development-friendly if the country wants to achieve the SDGs. </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-09-01', 'modified' => '2021-09-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13642', 'image' => '20210901101744_Sustainable_Development_Goals_logo.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-09-01 10:15:54', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13897', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Garbage Collection in Kathmandu Valley to Resume from Today', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'September 1: The Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) is to collect garbage of Kathmandu Valley from Wednesday (September 1).', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">September 1: The Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) is to collect garbage of Kathmandu Valley from Wednesday (September 1). Garbage collection was halted since the past two weeks. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">A meeting held under the coordination of KMC Mayor Bidhya Sundar Shakya in presence of Chief District Officer of Kathmandu, Kali Prasad Rijal, Director General of Department of Roads, among others took a decision to this effect. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Solid waste has been piled up in different parts of the city due to the problem in transporting the waste to the landfill site and the obstruction caused by the locals. This has resulted in garbage being thrown haphazardly everywhere in the valley including the roads, river banks and city squares. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chief of the Environment Department of KMC, Hari Kumar Shrestha, said that the Department of Roads has taken a decision to repair the road to the landfill site in Sisdole immediately. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">He further said that problems with the locals of Sisdole would also be resolved. </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 home ministry will make arrangement of peace and security if there is any challenge in course of collecting garbage and its management," the state-owned national news agency RSS quoted Shrestha as saying. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">There would be coordination between the District Administration Office, Nuwakot, and Kathmandu, for the management of waste, added Shrestha. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Meanwhile, the Urban Development Ministry said the disposal of waste in the under-construction landfill site in Bancharedanda seems possible within a week. Information officer at the ministry Suresh Kumar Wagle said that the construction of first cell at the new site has reached the final phase. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Earlier on August 16, the Kathamandu Metropolis had issued a public notice appealing to the denizens of the metropolis for indoor management of waste for the time being. Back then, the KMC had assured of resume garbage collection after two weeks. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">In a normal day, around 1,200 metric tonnes of garbage gets transported from the Valley to Sisdole on a daily basis.</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 Sisdole-based landfill site was built 16 years ago for the disposal of waste for two years, is being used till date. The new landfill site at Bancharedanda lies two kilometers away from Sisdole towards the border between Nuwakot and Dhading districts. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">--- </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-09-01', 'modified' => '2021-09-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13641', 'image' => '20210901110128_20200903113103_1599056781.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-09-01 11:00:36', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13896', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => '5th International Women's Trade Expo Kicks off Today', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'September 1: The Fifth International Women's Trade Exhibition is scheduled to be held in Kathmandu from September 1 to 6. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">September 1: The Fifth International Women's Trade Exhibition is scheduled to be held in Kathmandu from September 1 to 6. </span></span><br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The Federation of Women Entrepreneurs' Association of Nepal (FWEAN) is organising the expo with the belief that women entrepreneurs can contribute to the national economy through small-scale and household business.</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:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">FWEAN said in a statement that the expo will be organised through virtual medium due to coronavirus pandemic. The association also intends to launch digital marketing to help women entrepreneurs who have been badly affected by the pandemic. </span></span><br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to the association, the expo is an opportunity to bring together women entrepreneurs of Nepal in a common digital platform and showcase their products and services to both domestic and international buyers, also give them the market opportunity to expand and promote their business through virtual exhibition. </span></span><br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The main attraction of the expo will be handicraft products, agro products, ornaments, wooden products, and decoration accessories. </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:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">FWEAN said that the expo will feature 79 stalls of 57 women entrepreneurs and 22 stalls representing district women entrepreneurs associations.</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:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">FWEAN noted that women entrepreneurs have been badly affected by the pandemic </span></span><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">on top of other problems like social exclusion, physical infrastructure and lack of capital. In this context, the expo would provide an opportunity to the women entrepreneurs to explore digital marketing in the current crisis.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> <br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">--- </span></span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-09-01', 'modified' => '2021-09-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13640', 'image' => '20210901104430_Photo.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-09-01 10:43:47', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13894', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Investment in National Pride Projects Amounts to Rs 349 Billion', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 31: The government has invested Rs 349 billion in 24 national pride projects so far. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">August 31: The government has invested Rs 349 billion in 24 national pride projects so far. Among the 24 projects, only the Upper Tamakoshi Hydropower Project has been completed. Even though the Melamchi Water Supply Project has been completed, uncertainty looms over it due to the damage caused by recent floods and landslides. Both these projects have been completed and inaugurated.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Apart from these two projects, all other projects have been under construction since a long time. Besides the Upper Tamakoshi and Melamchi projects, construction of Gautam Buddha International Airport and Pokhara Regional International Airport have made remarkable progress. Apart from these four projects, other projects have not shown encouraging result.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">According to the 58th annual report of the Office of the Auditor General, a dozen of national pride projects have made less than 50 percent progress, both in terms of finance and physical infrastructure.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The progress of the West Seti Hydropower and Power Transmission Project started in 2011 is negligible. Even though the project has kicked off, with the estimated cost, no expenditure has been made so far.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Only two projects have made progress of 80 to 90 percent. These projects include Pashupati Area Development Trust and Lumbini Area Development Trust. A total of Rs 551 billion and Rs 870 million have been spent on Lumbini Area Development Trust and Pashupati Area Development Trust respectively. Both of these projects are slated to be completed in the current fiscal year.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The progress report of the three corridors being constructed for easy access to the northern border is also not encouraging. The Karnali Corridor has made the progress of 20 percent by spending Rs 2.46 billion. With the expenditure of Rs 3.4 billion, the Koshi Corridor has made 19 percent progress. Similarly, construction of the Kali Gandaki Corridor has achieved progress of 22 percent with the expenditure of Rs 6.36 billion.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The overhead cost and time have been increasing as the projects had started decades ago and have not been completed on time. The issue of running railway and metro rail has become popular. However, the progress of railway and metro development projects is only 2.6 percent while Rs 19.68 billion has been spent out of an estimated cost of Rs 955 billion.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The progress of three big irrigation projects Rani Jamra Kulariya, Sikta and Babai Irrigation is also slow. Starting from 2011, the progress of Rani Jamara, Sikta and Babai irrigation projects have reached 48 percent, 59 percent and 52 percent respectively.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The report of the Auditor General for 2019/20 states that the projects could not be completed on time due to lack of implementation capacity, poor contract management, delay in land acquisition, lack of coordination, detailed feasibility study and delay in preparation of project structure.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">There is no example of national pride project being completed on stipulated time in the country. Economist Suman Sharma argues that the projects would provide a good outcome only if it is completed on time. Sharma said that the people will benefit but it will not yield any financial return. "To reap the benefits mentioned in the feasibility study, projects need to be completed on time," he said. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Govinda Pokhrel, former Vice Chairman of the National Planning Commission said that the national pride projects have been infamous for not yielding good results and adding extra cost. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“Due to lack of timely completion of the projects, their return is low," Pokhrel said. To minimize this, the government needs to arrange separate budgets, laws and human resources for national pride projects. </span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-31', 'modified' => '2021-08-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13639', 'image' => '20210831033034_20201206012152_1607211371.Clipboard13.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-31 15:29:51', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13893', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Stem Borer Disease Damaging Paddy Plants ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 31: The outbreak of stem borer (gawaro) disease has affected the paddy planted by farmers in several districts.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">August 31: The outbreak of stem borer (gawaro) disease has affected the paddy planted by farmers in several districts. With the outbreak of the disease, the farmers have complained that the paddy plants have started withering. Although the disease is increasing day by day, no initiative has been taken by the concerned bodies for its proper management and control. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">At present, the disease has spread to more than a dozen districts including Bara, Parsa, Rautahat, Sunsari, Banke and Bardiya. Bhubaneshwor Yadav, a Sunsari-based farmer, informed that the farmers are worried due to the outbreak of the disease. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">He complained that although the disease is spreading, the farmers could not get required medicine. After the farmers took their problems to Agriculture Knowledge Center, the center sent them back saying they could not help them due to the lack of budget. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Similar problem is also increasing in other districts. The disease has damaged 10 percent of paddy grown in a total of 35,000 hectares of land in Parsa district. Similarly, it has been reported that the disease has affected the farmers of Bardiya district as well. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Agni Aryal, coordinator of Rajapur Paddy Super Zone in Bardiya, said that more than 200 bigahas of paddy fields may have been affected by the disease. He said that the concerned stakeholders should take initiative for its prevention and control. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Despite the recent outbreak of the disease, the government, including the National Farmers Commission, does not seem to have shown much interest in controlling the disease. The Department of Agriculture under the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development has also stated that no action has been taken for the prevention as no information has been received in this regard. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Information Officer of the department Dr Mahadev Prasad Poudel said that the department has not received any information so far and necessary initiatives will be taken for prevention after receiving the information. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Chairman of the Commission Prem Dangal also said that the commission has not received any information in this regard and the commission is ready to provide necessary assistance to the farmers in case of any disturbance. </span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-31', 'modified' => '2021-08-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13638', 'image' => '20210831012343_640px-Rice_Plants_(IRRI).jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-31 13:22:53', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13892', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Pokhara Metropolis Prioritizes Tourism in its Periodic Plan', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 31: The Pokhara Metropolitan City has given priority to tourism in the three-year periodical plan with the slogan of Prosperous Tourism Pokhara.', '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"">August 31: The Pokhara Metropolitan City has given priority to tourism in the three-year periodical plan with the slogan of Prosperous Tourism Pokhara. The visionary plan for sustainable and rapid development of Pokhara, which is very important in terms of tourism, is an attempt to lay the foundation stone of socialism.</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"">In connection with the country’s long-term thinking vision of 'Prosperous Nepal, Happy Nepali', the plan has set a target to achieve dignified life, happy, civilized, and just society, and good health. Environment, good governance and strong democracy, national unity, and respect have also been included in the three-year plan.</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 periodic plan emphasizes that tourism policy and code of conduct will be formulated and implemented to develop the metropolis as a tourism hub. Literature, art, culture, tourism promotion, and enterprise development have been prioritized. It has been mentioned that the periodic plan will play a leading role in the protection, enhancement, and promotion of all language speakers as well as art, culture, literature, religion, and cultural heritages within the metropolis.</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"">It has been stated that Pokhara will be developed as a tourist destination in the world map by developing the tourism business with an innovative approach in the changing environment.</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 three-year periodic plan aims to build a socialist-oriented society as envisaged in the constitution of Nepal by radically transforming the entire metropolis with the participation of the people, according to Ram Chandra Lamichhane, vice chairperson of the Urban Development Commission of Pokhara Metropolitan City.</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 development principles, visions, goals, objectives, strategies, strategic programmes, and activities have been formed in line with the development plans and principles of the metropolis," he added.</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"">According to him, the periodic plan has set a target to achieve the goals of clear blue lakes, rich culture, safe city, and inclusive physical infrastructure. The periodic plan prepared by the commission covers 35 topics.</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"">With the objective of developing and expanding the necessary legislation and infrastructure for tourism, Pokhara will be developed as a center of world tourism destination. The metropolis plans to generate employment and income-generating opportunities.</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"">Similarly, the periodic plan includes strategies to develop the tourism sectors and to develop the skills, capacity, and efficiency of the human resources required for the tourism business on a regular basis. It also aims to establish partnerships between Pokhara Metropolitan City and other metropolis, including foreign and domestic metropolitan cities and municipalities, and to co-operate with various stakeholders.</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 periodic plans aim to beautify houses and settlements, plant trees on both sides of the road, plant bamboo shoots, and other trees along the river banks, manage public toilets, create necessary policies and resources for entrepreneurship to develop an extensive tourism project of the metropolis and develop it as a special tourist destination of South Asia. To do so, groups will be formed and mobilized for professional development of tourism by promoting art, literature, and culture within the metropolis.</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 metropolis aims to raise capital through cooperatives, microfinance companies, Pokhara Infrastructure Development Corporation, and public limited companies with the joint participation of citizens.</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"">“As the happiness and prosperity of the people of Pokhara is the first and last goal of this periodical plan, we expect the cooperation of various parties to prepare this master plan dedicated to the people of Pokhara,” said Manju Devi Gurung, Deputy Mayor and Coordinator of the Planning Facilitation Committee.</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"">She added that this was the first roadmap for the sustainable and rapid development of Pokhara Metropolitan City under the Constitution of Nepal 2072 BS and the Local Government Operation Act 2074 BS. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-31', 'modified' => '2021-08-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13637', 'image' => '20210831120842_20191017121120_1571271950.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-31 12:08:01', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13891', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NTA Lays Over 1000 Kilometres of Optical Fibre', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 31: The government has reportedly intensified laying optical fibres in line with the ambition set by the Digital Nepal Framework. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">August 31: The government has reportedly intensified laying optical fibres in line with the ambition set by the Digital Nepal Framework. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to the state-owned national news agency RSS, Nepal Telecommunications Authority (NTA) has mobilized the Rural Telecommunications Development Fund to expand the broadband internet service across the country. Related works have been completed in sixty districts under 15 packages out of 18 packages, RSS reported. Similarly, fifty percent works have been completed in other 10 districts under two separate packages. </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 NTA had decided on June 13, 2016 to utilize the fund to make the broadband internet service accessible in community schools, campuses, health posts, agriculture centres, tourism centres, all the wards and public places. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The NTA further said that the Mid-hill Highway and district headquarters are being connected to internet facility under the information superhighway project. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Under the first package, works have been launched in Province 1, 2 and Bagmati Province by forging agreement with Nepal Telecom. As per the agreement, extension of optical fibres would be complete in two years. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">So far, the optical fibres have been laid on 1,006-km length which is 46.16 percent of the target, RSS further reported. The concerned bodies have reached an agreement to lay2,179 km of optical fibres. </span></span></span><br /> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-31', 'modified' => '2021-08-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13636', 'image' => '20210831104852_20210221040652_20191021115126_adsfjjj.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-31 10:47:09', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13890', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'CAAN hit by Significant Fall in Revenue Collection ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 31: The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN)’s revenue collection has dropped significantly in the past two years due to COVID-19 crisis. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">August 31: The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN)’s revenue collection has dropped significantly in the past two years due to COVID-19 crisis. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA), the country’s sole international airport, recorded a significant fall in the number of passengers since the outbreak of COVID-19. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Tourism and civil aviation is one of the sectors hard-hit by the pandemic. CAAN, the regulatory body of avian sector, said it recorded a major fall in its income in the past two consecutive years. Its income went down by 43 per cent in the first year of COVID-19 outbreak and the figure rose to 72 per cent in the following year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to CAAN’s annual progress report for the fiscal year 2020-21, its income decreased by 43 per cent than the projected income of Rs 10.544 billion of the previous year and it further decreased to 72 per cent in the following year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The COVID-19 crisis seen since the beginning of 2020 had adversely affected projects and programmes funded by the CAAN during the last fiscal year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Construction of many airport infrastructure development projects with investments of the Government of Nepal and donor agencies have been affected due to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis and prohibitory orders, according to the report. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The infection has taken its toll most on air transport. The year 2020 witnessed a 73.27 per cent fall in air passengers in international flights as compared to 2019. In 2019, over 4.1 million passengers took international flights against 1.1 million in 2020. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Likewise, in 2020, more than 1.2 million passengers took domestic flights as compared to over 3.1 million in 2019. The figure in 2020 is a 59.46 per cent drop than in 2019. -- RSS</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-31', 'modified' => '2021-08-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13635', 'image' => '20210831103623_CAAN.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-31 10:35:27', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13889', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Drafting of Laws on National Pride Projects Gathers Pace', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 30: The process of drafting laws related to monitoring and evaluation of national pride projects has started to gain momentum after a year and a half.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">August 30: The process of drafting laws related to monitoring and evaluation of national pride projects has started to gain momentum after a year and a half. The then KP Sharma Oli-led government had tabled a bill in the National Assembly in 2019 to make the monitoring and evaluation of National Pride Projects effective amidst the poor performance of development projects. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">However, the bill was not discussed for a long time and the law-making process was affected. A year and a half later, the Legislative Management Committee under the National Assembly discussed the bill on Sunday, August 30. The bill was presented to form a law to evaluate and monitor development projects prepared by all three levels of government. During the discussion, the members of the committee urged the government to enact a law and implement it as soon as possible.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Speaking at the discussion, Parashuram Meghi Gurung, chairman of the committee and member Jitendra Narayan Dev said the progress of the projects was stagnant due to the delay in monitoring and evaluation. So, provisions need to be made to monitor these projects every six months.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Dev disagreed on the proposal which has proposed to monitor the projects once in a year. Dev, who is also a lawmaker from the ruling Nepali Congress, said that considering the current performance of the projects and the needs of the country, those projects need to be evaluated at least every six months. Evaluating these projects once in a year would not help to get rid of the poor performance of the development projects, he argued. Evaluation would have no importance if it is not carried out even in six months. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Committee Chairman Parashuram Meghi Gurung said, "Provisions should be introduced to take legal action against the organizations that are preventing smooth performance of projects. Organizations should be penalized even for a minor fault. The committee will discuss the nature of penalties and fines to be taken."</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Dhanraj Gyawali, secretary at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers, suggested monitoring and evaluation of the projects could be done once a year or as required. He also clarified that the bill has been brought to enact the law to monitor the performance of the projects. The bill will be further discussed in the next meeting and will focus on the penalties and fines.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">A high-level committee will be formed under the leadership of the prime minister to resolve problems. All the ministers, chief ministers of all provinces, vice-chairman of the National Planning Commission, its members, chief secretary, finance secretary will be its members.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The same committee will review the plans of the government, study, research, evaluate problems seen in the implementation of the plans, discuss the problems, give necessary instructions, and resolve the problems.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Similarly, a ministerial-level development related problem solving committee has been proposed which will be chaired by all the ministers of the government of Nepal and head of public bodies will hold the major responsibility in monitoring and evaluation. The government expects the proposed bill will play a crucial role to make development projects productive. </span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-30', 'modified' => '2021-08-30', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13634', 'image' => '20210830015930_20210214110031_20190923120140_20190514035934_int6.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-30 13:58:51', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13888', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Export Jumps by 115 Percent in the First Month of the Current Fiscal Year ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 30: Nepal has significantly improved its foreign trade in the first month of the current fiscal year (FY 2021/22). ', '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"">August 30: Nepal has significantly improved its foreign trade in the first month of the current fiscal year (FY 2021/22). According to the data of mid-July to mid-August released by the Department of Customs, Nepal's growth in foreign trade has also led to an increase in imports. </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"">According to the data, exports of Nepali goods has increased by 115 percent in July compared to the corresponding period of the previous fiscal year. In the corresponding period of the previous FY, goods worth Rs 9.62 billion were exported, which has increased to Rs 20.76 billion this year. </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"">Refined soybean oil was exported the most during the review period. Soybean oil worth Rs 8.98 billion were exported during the review month which accounted for 43.25 percent of the total export. </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"">Data show that export of products that are made by importing raw materials from abroad has increased. </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"">After soybean oil, the export of palm oil and sunflower oil has also increased. Palm oil worth Rs 1.42 billion were exported during this period. Likewise, sunflower oil worth Rs 790 million were exported. </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"">Export of synthetic yarns amounted to Rs 960 million. </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"">Meanwhile, imports have increased by 75 percent during this period. The import of Rs 85.80 billion in the corresponding period of the previous year has increased to Rs 150.73 billion this year. </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"">Mostly, petroleum products have been imported during this period. According to the department, diesel, petrol and cooking gas worth Rs 15.01 billion have been imported. Similarly, the import of mobile phones, which has been steadily increasing since July last year, increased by Rs 4.82 billion. After that, iron, food items, laptops and other items have been imported the most. </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"">Despite significant improvement in exports, due to the import-dependent economy, Nepal has trade deficit stands at Rs 149.31 billion. </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"">Economist Shankar Sharma says that Nepal has not been able to improve its exports in foreign trade. Stating that Nepal cannot make economic progress by importing raw palm, sunflower and soybean from other countries and exporting them, he said that domestic industries should be promoted. </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 trade deficit can be reduced by exporting energy to Bangladesh via India," he said, adding, "Nepal's biggest industry is energy, so production should be increased and exported." </span></span></span></span></p> <p><br /> <br /> <br /> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-30', 'modified' => '2021-08-30', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13633', 'image' => '20210830014755_1630279826.5.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-30 13:47:06', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13887', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Province 2 has High Potential for Industrial Development: NRB Report', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 30: Province 2 has a high potential for industrial development, according to Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB). ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">August 30: Province 2 has a high potential for industrial development, according to Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB). Favourable terrain of the province, sufficient manpower, road network, and access to border points all indicate to high potential for industrial development in the province, according to a study conducted by the central bank.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Nepal Rastra Bank had conducted a study on the economic activities of Province 2 during the first six months of the last fiscal year 2077/78. The study has shown high potential for industrial development in Province 2.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The study says that the province has high commercial potential for industries that produce items of religious and cultural significance based on traditional crafts. As there are famous religious as well as tourist sites in Province 2, the study has shown that the income of the local people can be increased by promoting such religious tourism. The study has shown that the base of revenue mobilization will be widened if such industries are promoted.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The study has also pointed out that production costs will be less in Province 2. As Province 2 is the second-most populous province, there seems to be a smooth supply of labor. As a result, industrial costs are estimated to remain low.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The study has also shown that increasing production by establishing industries in the state will increase the competitiveness of the products.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">As most of the territory of Province 2 is connected to the Indian border, transportation of industrial raw materials from India will also be cheaper. As a result, it is possible to produce goods at a low cost and export them to India easily.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">As there is a road network connecting the federal capital Kathmandu and other hill districts, including the east-west highway in the state, it will be easier to supply the manufactured goods across the country. The study report has shown that agro-based industries such as milk, fish, meat, and grains have a huge potential in the province. There is ample potential to supply the products all over the country, the report suggests.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Due to the favourable terrain, running industries in the province seems to be comparatively easier.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The study has shown that employment opportunities can be increased within the country if a large number of industries are established.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Due to the abundant production of grains like paddy, wheat, maize, and geographical location, the state also has a tremendous possibility for flour-based industries.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Executive Director of Nepal Rastra Bank, Prakash Shrestha, said that the potential for industrial development in Province 2 is high. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“During the study, we found the potential for industrial development in Province 2 high due to various reasons. However, the study shows that there are some challenges as well,” he said.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Coronavirus poses challenges to revive the industries and businesses, and also to reduce production costs, improve labor relations, and reduce losses of raw material.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Similarly, the study report states that there is a challenge to create a conducive environment for setting up new industries due to the high price of land.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">There is also a challenge to supply skilled manpower to the industrial sector. The study report states that reducing the production cost, increasing competitiveness of industrial goods, and encouraging the establishment of industries based on local raw materials will also be a challenge.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Given that most of the industries are based on raw materials imported from India or other countries and the backward linkages of such industries are weak, setting up industries based on local raw materials is also seen as a challenge.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Most of the industries operating in Province 2 are operating at less than 50 percent capacity. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The study has shown that creating an environment for timely availability of raw materials for the industry as well as creating an environment for exporting goods to neighboring countries by expanding the market for manufactured goods is also a challenge.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Although there is good potential for agriculture and fishery in the state, it is not commercially viable. Establishing fish processing industries to end seasonal fish production is also seen as a challenge.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Due to misunderstandings between sugarcane farmers and industrialists from time to time, making the country self-reliant in sugar is also seen as a challenge. The study has shown that Nepal should be made self-reliant in sugar production by finding a long-term solution to the misunderstanding between the farmers and the industrialists.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-30', 'modified' => '2021-08-30', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13632', 'image' => '20210830110916_1630279766.3.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-30 11:08:39', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13886', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Biratnagar Chapter of Nepal-India Chamber of Commerce and Industry gets New Chairman', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 30: Biratnagar chapter of Nepal-India Chamber of Commerce and Industry has elected a new executive committee following the third Annual General Meeting of the chamber on Saturday, August 28.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">August 30: Biratnagar chapter of Nepal-India Chamber of Commerce and Industry has elected a new executive committee following the third Annual General Meeting of the chamber on Saturday, August 28. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Avinash Bohra has been elected as the chairperson of the chamber while Mukesh Upadhyay is the new first vice president. Likewise, the AGM also elected Shyam Poudel as the second vice president, Ramesh Kumar Rathi as general secretary, and Bikash Chaudhary as treasurer. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Similarly, other members of the executive committee elected by the AGM include Beni Gopal Mundada, Yadav Pokharel, Bijay Kumar Dalmia, Gayatri Bhandari, Santosh Kumar Chaudhary and Shrawan Kumar Agrawal.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The newly elected chairperson has nominated four members to the executive committee. The newly appointed members are Som Adhikari, Binod Basnet, Mahesh Poudel and Rabin Dahal.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The Biratnagar Chapter of Nepal India Chamber of Commerce and Industry said in a statement that it has been playing a crucial role in resolving the problems that have surfaced in trade and transit between Nepal and India.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-30', 'modified' => '2021-08-30', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13631', 'image' => '20210830105156_IMG-20210829-WA0016.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-30 10:51:10', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => false, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13884', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'PM Deuba Calls for Fiscal Discipline to Reduce Arrears ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 30: Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba has said that government officials handling public fund and authority should discharge their duty in a more transparent, accountable and legal manner. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">August 30: Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba has said that government officials handling public fund and authority should discharge their duty in a more transparent, accountable and legal manner. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The PM was speaking at a programme organised by the Office of the Auditor General in regard to Audit Report of the FY 2076/77. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The PM also directed the officials to maintain fiscal discipline in course of transaction of public fund, justify the relevance of expenses, ensure growth of productivity and abide by economic procedures. PM Deuba also directed the chief secretary and secretaries of the government to strictly follow the Public Procurement Act and other laws. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">On the occasion, Auditor General Tanka Mani Sharma Dangal also made his presentation. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Similarly, PM Deuba also drew the attention of government office-bearers to make their role more effective and mobilise public resources to meet the people’s expectations. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Spokesperson at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers Krishna Bahadur Raut said that PM Deuba directed the officials to make their working style smart. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-30', 'modified' => '2021-08-30', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13630', 'image' => '20210830101838_20210715115732_adsafd (2).jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-30 10:16:47', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13885', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Government Picks Krishna Hari Pushkar as Revenue Secretary', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 30: The government has decided to appoint Krishna Hari Pushkar as the revenue secretary under the Ministry of Finance.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">August 30: The government has decided to appoint Krishna Hari Pushkar as the revenue secretary under the Ministry of Finance.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">A recent cabinet meeting had decided to appoint Pushkar as the revenue secretary.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Until now, Pushkar was stationed at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers. With his appointment, the post of revenue secretary has been filled. The post was vacant since the past one and a half months following the retirement of the then Revenue Secretary Ram Sharan Pudasauni.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Pushkar, who entered the civil service in 2053 BS, was promoted to secretary by the government last June. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Pushkar has the experience of working in various departments under the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies, the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority and other bodies under the Ministry of Home Affairs.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Pushkar now has to face the challenge of improving revenue administration along with the economy affected by the pandemic, preventing revenue leakage and implementing a strong revenue collection action plan.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-30', 'modified' => '2021-08-30', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13629', 'image' => '20210830103351_1630154722.k h puskar.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-30 10:32:58', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13883', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Risk of Third wave of Covid-19 worries Industries in Bara-Parsa Corridor', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 29: The industries of Bara-Parsa, that have been hard hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, are now trying to claw back to normal business.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">August 29: The industries of Bara-Parsa, that have been hard hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, are now trying to claw back to normal business. However, entrepreneurs are worried by the prospect of third wave of Covid-19.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">According to the president of Birgunj Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Subodh Kumar Gupta, the industrialists are worried that if the third wave of pandemic strikes, there will be another ban or prohibitory order which will cripple their businesses.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Recalling that the ban imposed during the second wave of coronavirus was relatively easy for the industry to operate but the market was closed, Gupta said, “Even if goods are produced, they cannot be sent to the market due to the ban. The product will be stored in the warehouse.”</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Industrialists say that after the market closes, even ready-made products would be kept in warehouses because they cannot be sold. Another problem is that there won’t be any new demand and production will come to a halt. Gupta argues that such a situation will destabilize the whole economy.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Entrepreneur Rajesh Kyal says that the facilitation in import of raw materials and transportation of finished goods will not give the expected results when there is no demand in the market.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">“We are forced to cut production when we can’t send the products to the market,” he told New Business Age.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Entrepreneurs say that although transportation was eased during the second wave of coronavirus compared to the first wave, most of the production was shut down due to the closure of the market. Industrialists say that even the production of very essential goods in Bara-Parsa was limited to 20 to 25 percent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Even though there was no nationwide ban at that time, trade was halted as prohibitory order was imposed in most parts of the country.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">At present, the Bara-Parsa Industrial Corridor is operating at 70 to 80 percent capacity. The industries that were hit by the pandemic in March 2020, were badly affected again by the second wave in April 2021.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">At present, an average of 3,000 people are being infected each day and 25 to 30 people are dying due to the virus since the ban was eased. Health experts say a third wave could break out at any moment. Anup Agrawal, chairman of the Nepalese Young Entrepreneurs’ Forum Birgunj, says that the entrepreneurs are worried that their business will be halted again.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">He said that in order to keep the country’s economy afloat even during the pandemic, the entrepreneurs and workers working at the forefront should be fully vaccinated so that this will reduce the concern of their health security.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Gupta is of the view that since the third wave is likely to occur in the near future, it will create more problems for the economy along with industry and trade. </span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-29', 'modified' => '2021-08-29', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13628', 'image' => '20210829030025_20200907020811_1599429995.Clipboard02.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-29 14:59:37', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ) ) $current_user = null $logged_in = falseinclude - APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 60 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::_renderElement() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 1224 View::element() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 418 include - APP/View/Articles/index.ctp, line 157 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 473 Controller::render() - CORE/Cake/Controller/Controller.php, line 968 Dispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 200 Dispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 167 [main] - APP/webroot/index.php, line 117
Warning (2): simplexml_load_file() [<a href='http://php.net/function.simplexml-load-file'>function.simplexml-load-file</a>]: I/O warning : failed to load external entity "" [APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 60]file not found!Code Context// $file = 'http://aabhiyan:QUVLg8Wzs2F7G9N7@nepalstock.com.np/api/indexdata.xml';if(!$xml = simplexml_load_file($file)){$viewFile = '/var/www/html/newbusinessage.com/app/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp' $dataForView = array( 'articles' => array( (int) 0 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ) ), 'current_user' => null, 'logged_in' => false ) $articles = array( (int) 0 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13895', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Existing Laws are the Main Obstacles in Achieving SGDs: National Assembly Members ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'September 1: Lawmakers have concluded that the existing laws are a hindrance in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">September 1: Lawmakers have concluded that the existing laws are a hindrance in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). </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"">Members of the Sustainable Development and Good Governance Committee under the National Assembly have pointed out that the existing laws do not comply with the SDGs and therefore the country has failed to meet its target. The committee members have instructed the government to remove legal hurdles and formulate laws that help the country meet its development goals.</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"">In this regard, the committee meeting held on Tuesday (August 31) directed the government to unveil an action plan for the amendment and revision of the laws that serve as obstacles to achieve the state’s commitments to SDGs. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The committee’s meeting concluded that the most of the laws were obsolete and unable to address the nee ds of the SDGs. The National Assembly members suggested that the laws should be amended to make them compatible with the current structures, thoughts and perspectives. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The committee members were of the view that most of the laws were formulated prior to the promulgation of the new constitution and they are not compatible to meet the SDGs. Therefore, they argued that it is necessary to amend the constitution and laws in line with the SDGs.Some members of the committee stated that around 350 laws need to be amended in the present context to meet the goals.</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"">Committee member Ganga Belbase said that the government needs to introduce a new bill to meet the SDGs. </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"">Meanwhile, another lawmaker and member of the committee Bimala Ghimire pointed out to the problems in implementing the laws that have been enacted. She stressed on effective implementation of laws.</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"">Another member Mahesh Kumar Mahara said that a study has to be conducted to find out whether the laws need to be simply amended or a sub-committee needs to be formed to figure which laws need to be amended. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Likewise, committee member Sharada Devi Bhatta stated that the laws that were formulated in the Rana regime needs to be amended to meet the target. Similarly, the committee members said that the government and parliament should not delay in making Nepal’s constitution and laws development-friendly if the country wants to achieve the SDGs. </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-09-01', 'modified' => '2021-09-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13642', 'image' => '20210901101744_Sustainable_Development_Goals_logo.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-09-01 10:15:54', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13897', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Garbage Collection in Kathmandu Valley to Resume from Today', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'September 1: The Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) is to collect garbage of Kathmandu Valley from Wednesday (September 1).', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">September 1: The Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) is to collect garbage of Kathmandu Valley from Wednesday (September 1). Garbage collection was halted since the past two weeks. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">A meeting held under the coordination of KMC Mayor Bidhya Sundar Shakya in presence of Chief District Officer of Kathmandu, Kali Prasad Rijal, Director General of Department of Roads, among others took a decision to this effect. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Solid waste has been piled up in different parts of the city due to the problem in transporting the waste to the landfill site and the obstruction caused by the locals. This has resulted in garbage being thrown haphazardly everywhere in the valley including the roads, river banks and city squares. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chief of the Environment Department of KMC, Hari Kumar Shrestha, said that the Department of Roads has taken a decision to repair the road to the landfill site in Sisdole immediately. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">He further said that problems with the locals of Sisdole would also be resolved. </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 home ministry will make arrangement of peace and security if there is any challenge in course of collecting garbage and its management," the state-owned national news agency RSS quoted Shrestha as saying. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">There would be coordination between the District Administration Office, Nuwakot, and Kathmandu, for the management of waste, added Shrestha. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Meanwhile, the Urban Development Ministry said the disposal of waste in the under-construction landfill site in Bancharedanda seems possible within a week. Information officer at the ministry Suresh Kumar Wagle said that the construction of first cell at the new site has reached the final phase. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Earlier on August 16, the Kathamandu Metropolis had issued a public notice appealing to the denizens of the metropolis for indoor management of waste for the time being. Back then, the KMC had assured of resume garbage collection after two weeks. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">In a normal day, around 1,200 metric tonnes of garbage gets transported from the Valley to Sisdole on a daily basis.</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 Sisdole-based landfill site was built 16 years ago for the disposal of waste for two years, is being used till date. The new landfill site at Bancharedanda lies two kilometers away from Sisdole towards the border between Nuwakot and Dhading districts. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">--- </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-09-01', 'modified' => '2021-09-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13641', 'image' => '20210901110128_20200903113103_1599056781.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-09-01 11:00:36', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13896', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => '5th International Women's Trade Expo Kicks off Today', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'September 1: The Fifth International Women's Trade Exhibition is scheduled to be held in Kathmandu from September 1 to 6. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">September 1: The Fifth International Women's Trade Exhibition is scheduled to be held in Kathmandu from September 1 to 6. </span></span><br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The Federation of Women Entrepreneurs' Association of Nepal (FWEAN) is organising the expo with the belief that women entrepreneurs can contribute to the national economy through small-scale and household business.</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:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">FWEAN said in a statement that the expo will be organised through virtual medium due to coronavirus pandemic. The association also intends to launch digital marketing to help women entrepreneurs who have been badly affected by the pandemic. </span></span><br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to the association, the expo is an opportunity to bring together women entrepreneurs of Nepal in a common digital platform and showcase their products and services to both domestic and international buyers, also give them the market opportunity to expand and promote their business through virtual exhibition. </span></span><br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The main attraction of the expo will be handicraft products, agro products, ornaments, wooden products, and decoration accessories. </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:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">FWEAN said that the expo will feature 79 stalls of 57 women entrepreneurs and 22 stalls representing district women entrepreneurs associations.</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:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">FWEAN noted that women entrepreneurs have been badly affected by the pandemic </span></span><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">on top of other problems like social exclusion, physical infrastructure and lack of capital. In this context, the expo would provide an opportunity to the women entrepreneurs to explore digital marketing in the current crisis.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> <br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">--- </span></span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-09-01', 'modified' => '2021-09-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13640', 'image' => '20210901104430_Photo.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-09-01 10:43:47', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13894', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Investment in National Pride Projects Amounts to Rs 349 Billion', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 31: The government has invested Rs 349 billion in 24 national pride projects so far. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">August 31: The government has invested Rs 349 billion in 24 national pride projects so far. Among the 24 projects, only the Upper Tamakoshi Hydropower Project has been completed. Even though the Melamchi Water Supply Project has been completed, uncertainty looms over it due to the damage caused by recent floods and landslides. Both these projects have been completed and inaugurated.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Apart from these two projects, all other projects have been under construction since a long time. Besides the Upper Tamakoshi and Melamchi projects, construction of Gautam Buddha International Airport and Pokhara Regional International Airport have made remarkable progress. Apart from these four projects, other projects have not shown encouraging result.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">According to the 58th annual report of the Office of the Auditor General, a dozen of national pride projects have made less than 50 percent progress, both in terms of finance and physical infrastructure.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The progress of the West Seti Hydropower and Power Transmission Project started in 2011 is negligible. Even though the project has kicked off, with the estimated cost, no expenditure has been made so far.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Only two projects have made progress of 80 to 90 percent. These projects include Pashupati Area Development Trust and Lumbini Area Development Trust. A total of Rs 551 billion and Rs 870 million have been spent on Lumbini Area Development Trust and Pashupati Area Development Trust respectively. Both of these projects are slated to be completed in the current fiscal year.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The progress report of the three corridors being constructed for easy access to the northern border is also not encouraging. The Karnali Corridor has made the progress of 20 percent by spending Rs 2.46 billion. With the expenditure of Rs 3.4 billion, the Koshi Corridor has made 19 percent progress. Similarly, construction of the Kali Gandaki Corridor has achieved progress of 22 percent with the expenditure of Rs 6.36 billion.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The overhead cost and time have been increasing as the projects had started decades ago and have not been completed on time. The issue of running railway and metro rail has become popular. However, the progress of railway and metro development projects is only 2.6 percent while Rs 19.68 billion has been spent out of an estimated cost of Rs 955 billion.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The progress of three big irrigation projects Rani Jamra Kulariya, Sikta and Babai Irrigation is also slow. Starting from 2011, the progress of Rani Jamara, Sikta and Babai irrigation projects have reached 48 percent, 59 percent and 52 percent respectively.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The report of the Auditor General for 2019/20 states that the projects could not be completed on time due to lack of implementation capacity, poor contract management, delay in land acquisition, lack of coordination, detailed feasibility study and delay in preparation of project structure.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">There is no example of national pride project being completed on stipulated time in the country. Economist Suman Sharma argues that the projects would provide a good outcome only if it is completed on time. Sharma said that the people will benefit but it will not yield any financial return. "To reap the benefits mentioned in the feasibility study, projects need to be completed on time," he said. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Govinda Pokhrel, former Vice Chairman of the National Planning Commission said that the national pride projects have been infamous for not yielding good results and adding extra cost. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“Due to lack of timely completion of the projects, their return is low," Pokhrel said. To minimize this, the government needs to arrange separate budgets, laws and human resources for national pride projects. </span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-31', 'modified' => '2021-08-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13639', 'image' => '20210831033034_20201206012152_1607211371.Clipboard13.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-31 15:29:51', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13893', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Stem Borer Disease Damaging Paddy Plants ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 31: The outbreak of stem borer (gawaro) disease has affected the paddy planted by farmers in several districts.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">August 31: The outbreak of stem borer (gawaro) disease has affected the paddy planted by farmers in several districts. With the outbreak of the disease, the farmers have complained that the paddy plants have started withering. Although the disease is increasing day by day, no initiative has been taken by the concerned bodies for its proper management and control. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">At present, the disease has spread to more than a dozen districts including Bara, Parsa, Rautahat, Sunsari, Banke and Bardiya. Bhubaneshwor Yadav, a Sunsari-based farmer, informed that the farmers are worried due to the outbreak of the disease. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">He complained that although the disease is spreading, the farmers could not get required medicine. After the farmers took their problems to Agriculture Knowledge Center, the center sent them back saying they could not help them due to the lack of budget. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Similar problem is also increasing in other districts. The disease has damaged 10 percent of paddy grown in a total of 35,000 hectares of land in Parsa district. Similarly, it has been reported that the disease has affected the farmers of Bardiya district as well. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Agni Aryal, coordinator of Rajapur Paddy Super Zone in Bardiya, said that more than 200 bigahas of paddy fields may have been affected by the disease. He said that the concerned stakeholders should take initiative for its prevention and control. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Despite the recent outbreak of the disease, the government, including the National Farmers Commission, does not seem to have shown much interest in controlling the disease. The Department of Agriculture under the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development has also stated that no action has been taken for the prevention as no information has been received in this regard. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Information Officer of the department Dr Mahadev Prasad Poudel said that the department has not received any information so far and necessary initiatives will be taken for prevention after receiving the information. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Chairman of the Commission Prem Dangal also said that the commission has not received any information in this regard and the commission is ready to provide necessary assistance to the farmers in case of any disturbance. </span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-31', 'modified' => '2021-08-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13638', 'image' => '20210831012343_640px-Rice_Plants_(IRRI).jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-31 13:22:53', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13892', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Pokhara Metropolis Prioritizes Tourism in its Periodic Plan', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 31: The Pokhara Metropolitan City has given priority to tourism in the three-year periodical plan with the slogan of Prosperous Tourism Pokhara.', '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"">August 31: The Pokhara Metropolitan City has given priority to tourism in the three-year periodical plan with the slogan of Prosperous Tourism Pokhara. The visionary plan for sustainable and rapid development of Pokhara, which is very important in terms of tourism, is an attempt to lay the foundation stone of socialism.</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"">In connection with the country’s long-term thinking vision of 'Prosperous Nepal, Happy Nepali', the plan has set a target to achieve dignified life, happy, civilized, and just society, and good health. Environment, good governance and strong democracy, national unity, and respect have also been included in the three-year plan.</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 periodic plan emphasizes that tourism policy and code of conduct will be formulated and implemented to develop the metropolis as a tourism hub. Literature, art, culture, tourism promotion, and enterprise development have been prioritized. It has been mentioned that the periodic plan will play a leading role in the protection, enhancement, and promotion of all language speakers as well as art, culture, literature, religion, and cultural heritages within the metropolis.</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"">It has been stated that Pokhara will be developed as a tourist destination in the world map by developing the tourism business with an innovative approach in the changing environment.</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 three-year periodic plan aims to build a socialist-oriented society as envisaged in the constitution of Nepal by radically transforming the entire metropolis with the participation of the people, according to Ram Chandra Lamichhane, vice chairperson of the Urban Development Commission of Pokhara Metropolitan City.</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 development principles, visions, goals, objectives, strategies, strategic programmes, and activities have been formed in line with the development plans and principles of the metropolis," he added.</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"">According to him, the periodic plan has set a target to achieve the goals of clear blue lakes, rich culture, safe city, and inclusive physical infrastructure. The periodic plan prepared by the commission covers 35 topics.</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"">With the objective of developing and expanding the necessary legislation and infrastructure for tourism, Pokhara will be developed as a center of world tourism destination. The metropolis plans to generate employment and income-generating opportunities.</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"">Similarly, the periodic plan includes strategies to develop the tourism sectors and to develop the skills, capacity, and efficiency of the human resources required for the tourism business on a regular basis. It also aims to establish partnerships between Pokhara Metropolitan City and other metropolis, including foreign and domestic metropolitan cities and municipalities, and to co-operate with various stakeholders.</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 periodic plans aim to beautify houses and settlements, plant trees on both sides of the road, plant bamboo shoots, and other trees along the river banks, manage public toilets, create necessary policies and resources for entrepreneurship to develop an extensive tourism project of the metropolis and develop it as a special tourist destination of South Asia. To do so, groups will be formed and mobilized for professional development of tourism by promoting art, literature, and culture within the metropolis.</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 metropolis aims to raise capital through cooperatives, microfinance companies, Pokhara Infrastructure Development Corporation, and public limited companies with the joint participation of citizens.</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"">“As the happiness and prosperity of the people of Pokhara is the first and last goal of this periodical plan, we expect the cooperation of various parties to prepare this master plan dedicated to the people of Pokhara,” said Manju Devi Gurung, Deputy Mayor and Coordinator of the Planning Facilitation Committee.</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"">She added that this was the first roadmap for the sustainable and rapid development of Pokhara Metropolitan City under the Constitution of Nepal 2072 BS and the Local Government Operation Act 2074 BS. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-31', 'modified' => '2021-08-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13637', 'image' => '20210831120842_20191017121120_1571271950.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-31 12:08:01', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13891', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NTA Lays Over 1000 Kilometres of Optical Fibre', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 31: The government has reportedly intensified laying optical fibres in line with the ambition set by the Digital Nepal Framework. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">August 31: The government has reportedly intensified laying optical fibres in line with the ambition set by the Digital Nepal Framework. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to the state-owned national news agency RSS, Nepal Telecommunications Authority (NTA) has mobilized the Rural Telecommunications Development Fund to expand the broadband internet service across the country. Related works have been completed in sixty districts under 15 packages out of 18 packages, RSS reported. Similarly, fifty percent works have been completed in other 10 districts under two separate packages. </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 NTA had decided on June 13, 2016 to utilize the fund to make the broadband internet service accessible in community schools, campuses, health posts, agriculture centres, tourism centres, all the wards and public places. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The NTA further said that the Mid-hill Highway and district headquarters are being connected to internet facility under the information superhighway project. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Under the first package, works have been launched in Province 1, 2 and Bagmati Province by forging agreement with Nepal Telecom. As per the agreement, extension of optical fibres would be complete in two years. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">So far, the optical fibres have been laid on 1,006-km length which is 46.16 percent of the target, RSS further reported. The concerned bodies have reached an agreement to lay2,179 km of optical fibres. </span></span></span><br /> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-31', 'modified' => '2021-08-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13636', 'image' => '20210831104852_20210221040652_20191021115126_adsfjjj.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-31 10:47:09', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13890', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'CAAN hit by Significant Fall in Revenue Collection ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 31: The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN)’s revenue collection has dropped significantly in the past two years due to COVID-19 crisis. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">August 31: The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN)’s revenue collection has dropped significantly in the past two years due to COVID-19 crisis. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA), the country’s sole international airport, recorded a significant fall in the number of passengers since the outbreak of COVID-19. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Tourism and civil aviation is one of the sectors hard-hit by the pandemic. CAAN, the regulatory body of avian sector, said it recorded a major fall in its income in the past two consecutive years. Its income went down by 43 per cent in the first year of COVID-19 outbreak and the figure rose to 72 per cent in the following year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to CAAN’s annual progress report for the fiscal year 2020-21, its income decreased by 43 per cent than the projected income of Rs 10.544 billion of the previous year and it further decreased to 72 per cent in the following year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The COVID-19 crisis seen since the beginning of 2020 had adversely affected projects and programmes funded by the CAAN during the last fiscal year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Construction of many airport infrastructure development projects with investments of the Government of Nepal and donor agencies have been affected due to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis and prohibitory orders, according to the report. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The infection has taken its toll most on air transport. The year 2020 witnessed a 73.27 per cent fall in air passengers in international flights as compared to 2019. In 2019, over 4.1 million passengers took international flights against 1.1 million in 2020. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Likewise, in 2020, more than 1.2 million passengers took domestic flights as compared to over 3.1 million in 2019. The figure in 2020 is a 59.46 per cent drop than in 2019. -- RSS</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-31', 'modified' => '2021-08-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13635', 'image' => '20210831103623_CAAN.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-31 10:35:27', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13889', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Drafting of Laws on National Pride Projects Gathers Pace', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 30: The process of drafting laws related to monitoring and evaluation of national pride projects has started to gain momentum after a year and a half.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">August 30: The process of drafting laws related to monitoring and evaluation of national pride projects has started to gain momentum after a year and a half. The then KP Sharma Oli-led government had tabled a bill in the National Assembly in 2019 to make the monitoring and evaluation of National Pride Projects effective amidst the poor performance of development projects. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">However, the bill was not discussed for a long time and the law-making process was affected. A year and a half later, the Legislative Management Committee under the National Assembly discussed the bill on Sunday, August 30. The bill was presented to form a law to evaluate and monitor development projects prepared by all three levels of government. During the discussion, the members of the committee urged the government to enact a law and implement it as soon as possible.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Speaking at the discussion, Parashuram Meghi Gurung, chairman of the committee and member Jitendra Narayan Dev said the progress of the projects was stagnant due to the delay in monitoring and evaluation. So, provisions need to be made to monitor these projects every six months.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Dev disagreed on the proposal which has proposed to monitor the projects once in a year. Dev, who is also a lawmaker from the ruling Nepali Congress, said that considering the current performance of the projects and the needs of the country, those projects need to be evaluated at least every six months. Evaluating these projects once in a year would not help to get rid of the poor performance of the development projects, he argued. Evaluation would have no importance if it is not carried out even in six months. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Committee Chairman Parashuram Meghi Gurung said, "Provisions should be introduced to take legal action against the organizations that are preventing smooth performance of projects. Organizations should be penalized even for a minor fault. The committee will discuss the nature of penalties and fines to be taken."</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Dhanraj Gyawali, secretary at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers, suggested monitoring and evaluation of the projects could be done once a year or as required. He also clarified that the bill has been brought to enact the law to monitor the performance of the projects. The bill will be further discussed in the next meeting and will focus on the penalties and fines.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">A high-level committee will be formed under the leadership of the prime minister to resolve problems. All the ministers, chief ministers of all provinces, vice-chairman of the National Planning Commission, its members, chief secretary, finance secretary will be its members.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The same committee will review the plans of the government, study, research, evaluate problems seen in the implementation of the plans, discuss the problems, give necessary instructions, and resolve the problems.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Similarly, a ministerial-level development related problem solving committee has been proposed which will be chaired by all the ministers of the government of Nepal and head of public bodies will hold the major responsibility in monitoring and evaluation. The government expects the proposed bill will play a crucial role to make development projects productive. </span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-30', 'modified' => '2021-08-30', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13634', 'image' => '20210830015930_20210214110031_20190923120140_20190514035934_int6.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-30 13:58:51', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13888', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Export Jumps by 115 Percent in the First Month of the Current Fiscal Year ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 30: Nepal has significantly improved its foreign trade in the first month of the current fiscal year (FY 2021/22). ', '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"">August 30: Nepal has significantly improved its foreign trade in the first month of the current fiscal year (FY 2021/22). According to the data of mid-July to mid-August released by the Department of Customs, Nepal's growth in foreign trade has also led to an increase in imports. </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"">According to the data, exports of Nepali goods has increased by 115 percent in July compared to the corresponding period of the previous fiscal year. In the corresponding period of the previous FY, goods worth Rs 9.62 billion were exported, which has increased to Rs 20.76 billion this year. </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"">Refined soybean oil was exported the most during the review period. Soybean oil worth Rs 8.98 billion were exported during the review month which accounted for 43.25 percent of the total export. </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"">Data show that export of products that are made by importing raw materials from abroad has increased. </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"">After soybean oil, the export of palm oil and sunflower oil has also increased. Palm oil worth Rs 1.42 billion were exported during this period. Likewise, sunflower oil worth Rs 790 million were exported. </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"">Export of synthetic yarns amounted to Rs 960 million. </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"">Meanwhile, imports have increased by 75 percent during this period. The import of Rs 85.80 billion in the corresponding period of the previous year has increased to Rs 150.73 billion this year. </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"">Mostly, petroleum products have been imported during this period. According to the department, diesel, petrol and cooking gas worth Rs 15.01 billion have been imported. Similarly, the import of mobile phones, which has been steadily increasing since July last year, increased by Rs 4.82 billion. After that, iron, food items, laptops and other items have been imported the most. </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"">Despite significant improvement in exports, due to the import-dependent economy, Nepal has trade deficit stands at Rs 149.31 billion. </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"">Economist Shankar Sharma says that Nepal has not been able to improve its exports in foreign trade. Stating that Nepal cannot make economic progress by importing raw palm, sunflower and soybean from other countries and exporting them, he said that domestic industries should be promoted. </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 trade deficit can be reduced by exporting energy to Bangladesh via India," he said, adding, "Nepal's biggest industry is energy, so production should be increased and exported." </span></span></span></span></p> <p><br /> <br /> <br /> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-30', 'modified' => '2021-08-30', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13633', 'image' => '20210830014755_1630279826.5.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-30 13:47:06', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13887', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Province 2 has High Potential for Industrial Development: NRB Report', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 30: Province 2 has a high potential for industrial development, according to Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB). ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">August 30: Province 2 has a high potential for industrial development, according to Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB). Favourable terrain of the province, sufficient manpower, road network, and access to border points all indicate to high potential for industrial development in the province, according to a study conducted by the central bank.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Nepal Rastra Bank had conducted a study on the economic activities of Province 2 during the first six months of the last fiscal year 2077/78. The study has shown high potential for industrial development in Province 2.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The study says that the province has high commercial potential for industries that produce items of religious and cultural significance based on traditional crafts. As there are famous religious as well as tourist sites in Province 2, the study has shown that the income of the local people can be increased by promoting such religious tourism. The study has shown that the base of revenue mobilization will be widened if such industries are promoted.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The study has also pointed out that production costs will be less in Province 2. As Province 2 is the second-most populous province, there seems to be a smooth supply of labor. As a result, industrial costs are estimated to remain low.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The study has also shown that increasing production by establishing industries in the state will increase the competitiveness of the products.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">As most of the territory of Province 2 is connected to the Indian border, transportation of industrial raw materials from India will also be cheaper. As a result, it is possible to produce goods at a low cost and export them to India easily.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">As there is a road network connecting the federal capital Kathmandu and other hill districts, including the east-west highway in the state, it will be easier to supply the manufactured goods across the country. The study report has shown that agro-based industries such as milk, fish, meat, and grains have a huge potential in the province. There is ample potential to supply the products all over the country, the report suggests.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Due to the favourable terrain, running industries in the province seems to be comparatively easier.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The study has shown that employment opportunities can be increased within the country if a large number of industries are established.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Due to the abundant production of grains like paddy, wheat, maize, and geographical location, the state also has a tremendous possibility for flour-based industries.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Executive Director of Nepal Rastra Bank, Prakash Shrestha, said that the potential for industrial development in Province 2 is high. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“During the study, we found the potential for industrial development in Province 2 high due to various reasons. However, the study shows that there are some challenges as well,” he said.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Coronavirus poses challenges to revive the industries and businesses, and also to reduce production costs, improve labor relations, and reduce losses of raw material.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Similarly, the study report states that there is a challenge to create a conducive environment for setting up new industries due to the high price of land.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">There is also a challenge to supply skilled manpower to the industrial sector. The study report states that reducing the production cost, increasing competitiveness of industrial goods, and encouraging the establishment of industries based on local raw materials will also be a challenge.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Given that most of the industries are based on raw materials imported from India or other countries and the backward linkages of such industries are weak, setting up industries based on local raw materials is also seen as a challenge.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Most of the industries operating in Province 2 are operating at less than 50 percent capacity. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The study has shown that creating an environment for timely availability of raw materials for the industry as well as creating an environment for exporting goods to neighboring countries by expanding the market for manufactured goods is also a challenge.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Although there is good potential for agriculture and fishery in the state, it is not commercially viable. Establishing fish processing industries to end seasonal fish production is also seen as a challenge.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Due to misunderstandings between sugarcane farmers and industrialists from time to time, making the country self-reliant in sugar is also seen as a challenge. The study has shown that Nepal should be made self-reliant in sugar production by finding a long-term solution to the misunderstanding between the farmers and the industrialists.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-30', 'modified' => '2021-08-30', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13632', 'image' => '20210830110916_1630279766.3.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-30 11:08:39', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13886', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Biratnagar Chapter of Nepal-India Chamber of Commerce and Industry gets New Chairman', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 30: Biratnagar chapter of Nepal-India Chamber of Commerce and Industry has elected a new executive committee following the third Annual General Meeting of the chamber on Saturday, August 28.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">August 30: Biratnagar chapter of Nepal-India Chamber of Commerce and Industry has elected a new executive committee following the third Annual General Meeting of the chamber on Saturday, August 28. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Avinash Bohra has been elected as the chairperson of the chamber while Mukesh Upadhyay is the new first vice president. Likewise, the AGM also elected Shyam Poudel as the second vice president, Ramesh Kumar Rathi as general secretary, and Bikash Chaudhary as treasurer. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Similarly, other members of the executive committee elected by the AGM include Beni Gopal Mundada, Yadav Pokharel, Bijay Kumar Dalmia, Gayatri Bhandari, Santosh Kumar Chaudhary and Shrawan Kumar Agrawal.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The newly elected chairperson has nominated four members to the executive committee. The newly appointed members are Som Adhikari, Binod Basnet, Mahesh Poudel and Rabin Dahal.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The Biratnagar Chapter of Nepal India Chamber of Commerce and Industry said in a statement that it has been playing a crucial role in resolving the problems that have surfaced in trade and transit between Nepal and India.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-30', 'modified' => '2021-08-30', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13631', 'image' => '20210830105156_IMG-20210829-WA0016.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-30 10:51:10', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => false, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13884', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'PM Deuba Calls for Fiscal Discipline to Reduce Arrears ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 30: Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba has said that government officials handling public fund and authority should discharge their duty in a more transparent, accountable and legal manner. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">August 30: Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba has said that government officials handling public fund and authority should discharge their duty in a more transparent, accountable and legal manner. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The PM was speaking at a programme organised by the Office of the Auditor General in regard to Audit Report of the FY 2076/77. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The PM also directed the officials to maintain fiscal discipline in course of transaction of public fund, justify the relevance of expenses, ensure growth of productivity and abide by economic procedures. PM Deuba also directed the chief secretary and secretaries of the government to strictly follow the Public Procurement Act and other laws. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">On the occasion, Auditor General Tanka Mani Sharma Dangal also made his presentation. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Similarly, PM Deuba also drew the attention of government office-bearers to make their role more effective and mobilise public resources to meet the people’s expectations. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Spokesperson at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers Krishna Bahadur Raut said that PM Deuba directed the officials to make their working style smart. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-30', 'modified' => '2021-08-30', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13630', 'image' => '20210830101838_20210715115732_adsafd (2).jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-30 10:16:47', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13885', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Government Picks Krishna Hari Pushkar as Revenue Secretary', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 30: The government has decided to appoint Krishna Hari Pushkar as the revenue secretary under the Ministry of Finance.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">August 30: The government has decided to appoint Krishna Hari Pushkar as the revenue secretary under the Ministry of Finance.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">A recent cabinet meeting had decided to appoint Pushkar as the revenue secretary.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Until now, Pushkar was stationed at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers. With his appointment, the post of revenue secretary has been filled. The post was vacant since the past one and a half months following the retirement of the then Revenue Secretary Ram Sharan Pudasauni.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Pushkar, who entered the civil service in 2053 BS, was promoted to secretary by the government last June. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Pushkar has the experience of working in various departments under the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies, the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority and other bodies under the Ministry of Home Affairs.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Pushkar now has to face the challenge of improving revenue administration along with the economy affected by the pandemic, preventing revenue leakage and implementing a strong revenue collection action plan.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-30', 'modified' => '2021-08-30', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13629', 'image' => '20210830103351_1630154722.k h puskar.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-30 10:32:58', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13883', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Risk of Third wave of Covid-19 worries Industries in Bara-Parsa Corridor', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 29: The industries of Bara-Parsa, that have been hard hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, are now trying to claw back to normal business.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">August 29: The industries of Bara-Parsa, that have been hard hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, are now trying to claw back to normal business. However, entrepreneurs are worried by the prospect of third wave of Covid-19.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">According to the president of Birgunj Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Subodh Kumar Gupta, the industrialists are worried that if the third wave of pandemic strikes, there will be another ban or prohibitory order which will cripple their businesses.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Recalling that the ban imposed during the second wave of coronavirus was relatively easy for the industry to operate but the market was closed, Gupta said, “Even if goods are produced, they cannot be sent to the market due to the ban. The product will be stored in the warehouse.”</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Industrialists say that after the market closes, even ready-made products would be kept in warehouses because they cannot be sold. Another problem is that there won’t be any new demand and production will come to a halt. Gupta argues that such a situation will destabilize the whole economy.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Entrepreneur Rajesh Kyal says that the facilitation in import of raw materials and transportation of finished goods will not give the expected results when there is no demand in the market.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">“We are forced to cut production when we can’t send the products to the market,” he told New Business Age.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Entrepreneurs say that although transportation was eased during the second wave of coronavirus compared to the first wave, most of the production was shut down due to the closure of the market. Industrialists say that even the production of very essential goods in Bara-Parsa was limited to 20 to 25 percent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Even though there was no nationwide ban at that time, trade was halted as prohibitory order was imposed in most parts of the country.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">At present, the Bara-Parsa Industrial Corridor is operating at 70 to 80 percent capacity. The industries that were hit by the pandemic in March 2020, were badly affected again by the second wave in April 2021.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">At present, an average of 3,000 people are being infected each day and 25 to 30 people are dying due to the virus since the ban was eased. Health experts say a third wave could break out at any moment. Anup Agrawal, chairman of the Nepalese Young Entrepreneurs’ Forum Birgunj, says that the entrepreneurs are worried that their business will be halted again.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">He said that in order to keep the country’s economy afloat even during the pandemic, the entrepreneurs and workers working at the forefront should be fully vaccinated so that this will reduce the concern of their health security.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Gupta is of the view that since the third wave is likely to occur in the near future, it will create more problems for the economy along with industry and trade. </span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-29', 'modified' => '2021-08-29', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13628', 'image' => '20210829030025_20200907020811_1599429995.Clipboard02.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-29 14:59:37', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ) ) $current_user = null $logged_in = falsesimplexml_load_file - [internal], line ?? include - APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 60 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::_renderElement() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 1224 View::element() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 418 include - APP/View/Articles/index.ctp, line 157 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 473 Controller::render() - CORE/Cake/Controller/Controller.php, line 968 Dispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 200 Dispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 167 [main] - APP/webroot/index.php, line 117
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The committee members have instructed the government to remove legal hurdles and formulate laws that help the country meet its development goals.</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"">In this regard, the committee meeting held on Tuesday (August 31) directed the government to unveil an action plan for the amendment and revision of the laws that serve as obstacles to achieve the state’s commitments to SDGs. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The committee’s meeting concluded that the most of the laws were obsolete and unable to address the nee ds of the SDGs. The National Assembly members suggested that the laws should be amended to make them compatible with the current structures, thoughts and perspectives. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The committee members were of the view that most of the laws were formulated prior to the promulgation of the new constitution and they are not compatible to meet the SDGs. Therefore, they argued that it is necessary to amend the constitution and laws in line with the SDGs.Some members of the committee stated that around 350 laws need to be amended in the present context to meet the goals.</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"">Committee member Ganga Belbase said that the government needs to introduce a new bill to meet the SDGs. </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"">Meanwhile, another lawmaker and member of the committee Bimala Ghimire pointed out to the problems in implementing the laws that have been enacted. She stressed on effective implementation of laws.</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"">Another member Mahesh Kumar Mahara said that a study has to be conducted to find out whether the laws need to be simply amended or a sub-committee needs to be formed to figure which laws need to be amended. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Likewise, committee member Sharada Devi Bhatta stated that the laws that were formulated in the Rana regime needs to be amended to meet the target. Similarly, the committee members said that the government and parliament should not delay in making Nepal’s constitution and laws development-friendly if the country wants to achieve the SDGs. </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-09-01', 'modified' => '2021-09-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13642', 'image' => '20210901101744_Sustainable_Development_Goals_logo.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-09-01 10:15:54', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13897', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Garbage Collection in Kathmandu Valley to Resume from Today', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'September 1: The Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) is to collect garbage of Kathmandu Valley from Wednesday (September 1).', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">September 1: The Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) is to collect garbage of Kathmandu Valley from Wednesday (September 1). Garbage collection was halted since the past two weeks. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">A meeting held under the coordination of KMC Mayor Bidhya Sundar Shakya in presence of Chief District Officer of Kathmandu, Kali Prasad Rijal, Director General of Department of Roads, among others took a decision to this effect. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Solid waste has been piled up in different parts of the city due to the problem in transporting the waste to the landfill site and the obstruction caused by the locals. This has resulted in garbage being thrown haphazardly everywhere in the valley including the roads, river banks and city squares. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chief of the Environment Department of KMC, Hari Kumar Shrestha, said that the Department of Roads has taken a decision to repair the road to the landfill site in Sisdole immediately. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">He further said that problems with the locals of Sisdole would also be resolved. </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 home ministry will make arrangement of peace and security if there is any challenge in course of collecting garbage and its management," the state-owned national news agency RSS quoted Shrestha as saying. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">There would be coordination between the District Administration Office, Nuwakot, and Kathmandu, for the management of waste, added Shrestha. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Meanwhile, the Urban Development Ministry said the disposal of waste in the under-construction landfill site in Bancharedanda seems possible within a week. Information officer at the ministry Suresh Kumar Wagle said that the construction of first cell at the new site has reached the final phase. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Earlier on August 16, the Kathamandu Metropolis had issued a public notice appealing to the denizens of the metropolis for indoor management of waste for the time being. Back then, the KMC had assured of resume garbage collection after two weeks. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">In a normal day, around 1,200 metric tonnes of garbage gets transported from the Valley to Sisdole on a daily basis.</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 Sisdole-based landfill site was built 16 years ago for the disposal of waste for two years, is being used till date. The new landfill site at Bancharedanda lies two kilometers away from Sisdole towards the border between Nuwakot and Dhading districts. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">--- </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-09-01', 'modified' => '2021-09-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13641', 'image' => '20210901110128_20200903113103_1599056781.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-09-01 11:00:36', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13896', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => '5th International Women's Trade Expo Kicks off Today', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'September 1: The Fifth International Women's Trade Exhibition is scheduled to be held in Kathmandu from September 1 to 6. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">September 1: The Fifth International Women's Trade Exhibition is scheduled to be held in Kathmandu from September 1 to 6. </span></span><br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The Federation of Women Entrepreneurs' Association of Nepal (FWEAN) is organising the expo with the belief that women entrepreneurs can contribute to the national economy through small-scale and household business.</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:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">FWEAN said in a statement that the expo will be organised through virtual medium due to coronavirus pandemic. The association also intends to launch digital marketing to help women entrepreneurs who have been badly affected by the pandemic. </span></span><br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to the association, the expo is an opportunity to bring together women entrepreneurs of Nepal in a common digital platform and showcase their products and services to both domestic and international buyers, also give them the market opportunity to expand and promote their business through virtual exhibition. </span></span><br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The main attraction of the expo will be handicraft products, agro products, ornaments, wooden products, and decoration accessories. </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:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">FWEAN said that the expo will feature 79 stalls of 57 women entrepreneurs and 22 stalls representing district women entrepreneurs associations.</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:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">FWEAN noted that women entrepreneurs have been badly affected by the pandemic </span></span><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">on top of other problems like social exclusion, physical infrastructure and lack of capital. In this context, the expo would provide an opportunity to the women entrepreneurs to explore digital marketing in the current crisis.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> <br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">--- </span></span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-09-01', 'modified' => '2021-09-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13640', 'image' => '20210901104430_Photo.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-09-01 10:43:47', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13894', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Investment in National Pride Projects Amounts to Rs 349 Billion', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 31: The government has invested Rs 349 billion in 24 national pride projects so far. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">August 31: The government has invested Rs 349 billion in 24 national pride projects so far. Among the 24 projects, only the Upper Tamakoshi Hydropower Project has been completed. Even though the Melamchi Water Supply Project has been completed, uncertainty looms over it due to the damage caused by recent floods and landslides. Both these projects have been completed and inaugurated.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Apart from these two projects, all other projects have been under construction since a long time. Besides the Upper Tamakoshi and Melamchi projects, construction of Gautam Buddha International Airport and Pokhara Regional International Airport have made remarkable progress. Apart from these four projects, other projects have not shown encouraging result.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">According to the 58th annual report of the Office of the Auditor General, a dozen of national pride projects have made less than 50 percent progress, both in terms of finance and physical infrastructure.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The progress of the West Seti Hydropower and Power Transmission Project started in 2011 is negligible. Even though the project has kicked off, with the estimated cost, no expenditure has been made so far.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Only two projects have made progress of 80 to 90 percent. These projects include Pashupati Area Development Trust and Lumbini Area Development Trust. A total of Rs 551 billion and Rs 870 million have been spent on Lumbini Area Development Trust and Pashupati Area Development Trust respectively. Both of these projects are slated to be completed in the current fiscal year.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The progress report of the three corridors being constructed for easy access to the northern border is also not encouraging. The Karnali Corridor has made the progress of 20 percent by spending Rs 2.46 billion. With the expenditure of Rs 3.4 billion, the Koshi Corridor has made 19 percent progress. Similarly, construction of the Kali Gandaki Corridor has achieved progress of 22 percent with the expenditure of Rs 6.36 billion.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The overhead cost and time have been increasing as the projects had started decades ago and have not been completed on time. The issue of running railway and metro rail has become popular. However, the progress of railway and metro development projects is only 2.6 percent while Rs 19.68 billion has been spent out of an estimated cost of Rs 955 billion.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The progress of three big irrigation projects Rani Jamra Kulariya, Sikta and Babai Irrigation is also slow. Starting from 2011, the progress of Rani Jamara, Sikta and Babai irrigation projects have reached 48 percent, 59 percent and 52 percent respectively.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The report of the Auditor General for 2019/20 states that the projects could not be completed on time due to lack of implementation capacity, poor contract management, delay in land acquisition, lack of coordination, detailed feasibility study and delay in preparation of project structure.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">There is no example of national pride project being completed on stipulated time in the country. Economist Suman Sharma argues that the projects would provide a good outcome only if it is completed on time. Sharma said that the people will benefit but it will not yield any financial return. "To reap the benefits mentioned in the feasibility study, projects need to be completed on time," he said. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Govinda Pokhrel, former Vice Chairman of the National Planning Commission said that the national pride projects have been infamous for not yielding good results and adding extra cost. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“Due to lack of timely completion of the projects, their return is low," Pokhrel said. To minimize this, the government needs to arrange separate budgets, laws and human resources for national pride projects. </span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-31', 'modified' => '2021-08-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13639', 'image' => '20210831033034_20201206012152_1607211371.Clipboard13.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-31 15:29:51', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13893', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Stem Borer Disease Damaging Paddy Plants ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 31: The outbreak of stem borer (gawaro) disease has affected the paddy planted by farmers in several districts.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">August 31: The outbreak of stem borer (gawaro) disease has affected the paddy planted by farmers in several districts. With the outbreak of the disease, the farmers have complained that the paddy plants have started withering. Although the disease is increasing day by day, no initiative has been taken by the concerned bodies for its proper management and control. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">At present, the disease has spread to more than a dozen districts including Bara, Parsa, Rautahat, Sunsari, Banke and Bardiya. Bhubaneshwor Yadav, a Sunsari-based farmer, informed that the farmers are worried due to the outbreak of the disease. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">He complained that although the disease is spreading, the farmers could not get required medicine. After the farmers took their problems to Agriculture Knowledge Center, the center sent them back saying they could not help them due to the lack of budget. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Similar problem is also increasing in other districts. The disease has damaged 10 percent of paddy grown in a total of 35,000 hectares of land in Parsa district. Similarly, it has been reported that the disease has affected the farmers of Bardiya district as well. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Agni Aryal, coordinator of Rajapur Paddy Super Zone in Bardiya, said that more than 200 bigahas of paddy fields may have been affected by the disease. He said that the concerned stakeholders should take initiative for its prevention and control. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Despite the recent outbreak of the disease, the government, including the National Farmers Commission, does not seem to have shown much interest in controlling the disease. The Department of Agriculture under the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development has also stated that no action has been taken for the prevention as no information has been received in this regard. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Information Officer of the department Dr Mahadev Prasad Poudel said that the department has not received any information so far and necessary initiatives will be taken for prevention after receiving the information. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Chairman of the Commission Prem Dangal also said that the commission has not received any information in this regard and the commission is ready to provide necessary assistance to the farmers in case of any disturbance. </span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-31', 'modified' => '2021-08-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13638', 'image' => '20210831012343_640px-Rice_Plants_(IRRI).jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-31 13:22:53', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13892', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Pokhara Metropolis Prioritizes Tourism in its Periodic Plan', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 31: The Pokhara Metropolitan City has given priority to tourism in the three-year periodical plan with the slogan of Prosperous Tourism Pokhara.', '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"">August 31: The Pokhara Metropolitan City has given priority to tourism in the three-year periodical plan with the slogan of Prosperous Tourism Pokhara. The visionary plan for sustainable and rapid development of Pokhara, which is very important in terms of tourism, is an attempt to lay the foundation stone of socialism.</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"">In connection with the country’s long-term thinking vision of 'Prosperous Nepal, Happy Nepali', the plan has set a target to achieve dignified life, happy, civilized, and just society, and good health. Environment, good governance and strong democracy, national unity, and respect have also been included in the three-year plan.</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 periodic plan emphasizes that tourism policy and code of conduct will be formulated and implemented to develop the metropolis as a tourism hub. Literature, art, culture, tourism promotion, and enterprise development have been prioritized. It has been mentioned that the periodic plan will play a leading role in the protection, enhancement, and promotion of all language speakers as well as art, culture, literature, religion, and cultural heritages within the metropolis.</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"">It has been stated that Pokhara will be developed as a tourist destination in the world map by developing the tourism business with an innovative approach in the changing environment.</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 three-year periodic plan aims to build a socialist-oriented society as envisaged in the constitution of Nepal by radically transforming the entire metropolis with the participation of the people, according to Ram Chandra Lamichhane, vice chairperson of the Urban Development Commission of Pokhara Metropolitan City.</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 development principles, visions, goals, objectives, strategies, strategic programmes, and activities have been formed in line with the development plans and principles of the metropolis," he added.</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"">According to him, the periodic plan has set a target to achieve the goals of clear blue lakes, rich culture, safe city, and inclusive physical infrastructure. The periodic plan prepared by the commission covers 35 topics.</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"">With the objective of developing and expanding the necessary legislation and infrastructure for tourism, Pokhara will be developed as a center of world tourism destination. The metropolis plans to generate employment and income-generating opportunities.</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"">Similarly, the periodic plan includes strategies to develop the tourism sectors and to develop the skills, capacity, and efficiency of the human resources required for the tourism business on a regular basis. It also aims to establish partnerships between Pokhara Metropolitan City and other metropolis, including foreign and domestic metropolitan cities and municipalities, and to co-operate with various stakeholders.</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 periodic plans aim to beautify houses and settlements, plant trees on both sides of the road, plant bamboo shoots, and other trees along the river banks, manage public toilets, create necessary policies and resources for entrepreneurship to develop an extensive tourism project of the metropolis and develop it as a special tourist destination of South Asia. To do so, groups will be formed and mobilized for professional development of tourism by promoting art, literature, and culture within the metropolis.</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 metropolis aims to raise capital through cooperatives, microfinance companies, Pokhara Infrastructure Development Corporation, and public limited companies with the joint participation of citizens.</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"">“As the happiness and prosperity of the people of Pokhara is the first and last goal of this periodical plan, we expect the cooperation of various parties to prepare this master plan dedicated to the people of Pokhara,” said Manju Devi Gurung, Deputy Mayor and Coordinator of the Planning Facilitation Committee.</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"">She added that this was the first roadmap for the sustainable and rapid development of Pokhara Metropolitan City under the Constitution of Nepal 2072 BS and the Local Government Operation Act 2074 BS. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-31', 'modified' => '2021-08-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13637', 'image' => '20210831120842_20191017121120_1571271950.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-31 12:08:01', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13891', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NTA Lays Over 1000 Kilometres of Optical Fibre', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 31: The government has reportedly intensified laying optical fibres in line with the ambition set by the Digital Nepal Framework. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">August 31: The government has reportedly intensified laying optical fibres in line with the ambition set by the Digital Nepal Framework. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to the state-owned national news agency RSS, Nepal Telecommunications Authority (NTA) has mobilized the Rural Telecommunications Development Fund to expand the broadband internet service across the country. Related works have been completed in sixty districts under 15 packages out of 18 packages, RSS reported. Similarly, fifty percent works have been completed in other 10 districts under two separate packages. </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 NTA had decided on June 13, 2016 to utilize the fund to make the broadband internet service accessible in community schools, campuses, health posts, agriculture centres, tourism centres, all the wards and public places. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The NTA further said that the Mid-hill Highway and district headquarters are being connected to internet facility under the information superhighway project. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Under the first package, works have been launched in Province 1, 2 and Bagmati Province by forging agreement with Nepal Telecom. As per the agreement, extension of optical fibres would be complete in two years. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">So far, the optical fibres have been laid on 1,006-km length which is 46.16 percent of the target, RSS further reported. The concerned bodies have reached an agreement to lay2,179 km of optical fibres. </span></span></span><br /> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-31', 'modified' => '2021-08-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13636', 'image' => '20210831104852_20210221040652_20191021115126_adsfjjj.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-31 10:47:09', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13890', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'CAAN hit by Significant Fall in Revenue Collection ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 31: The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN)’s revenue collection has dropped significantly in the past two years due to COVID-19 crisis. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">August 31: The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN)’s revenue collection has dropped significantly in the past two years due to COVID-19 crisis. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA), the country’s sole international airport, recorded a significant fall in the number of passengers since the outbreak of COVID-19. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Tourism and civil aviation is one of the sectors hard-hit by the pandemic. CAAN, the regulatory body of avian sector, said it recorded a major fall in its income in the past two consecutive years. Its income went down by 43 per cent in the first year of COVID-19 outbreak and the figure rose to 72 per cent in the following year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to CAAN’s annual progress report for the fiscal year 2020-21, its income decreased by 43 per cent than the projected income of Rs 10.544 billion of the previous year and it further decreased to 72 per cent in the following year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The COVID-19 crisis seen since the beginning of 2020 had adversely affected projects and programmes funded by the CAAN during the last fiscal year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Construction of many airport infrastructure development projects with investments of the Government of Nepal and donor agencies have been affected due to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis and prohibitory orders, according to the report. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The infection has taken its toll most on air transport. The year 2020 witnessed a 73.27 per cent fall in air passengers in international flights as compared to 2019. In 2019, over 4.1 million passengers took international flights against 1.1 million in 2020. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Likewise, in 2020, more than 1.2 million passengers took domestic flights as compared to over 3.1 million in 2019. The figure in 2020 is a 59.46 per cent drop than in 2019. -- RSS</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-31', 'modified' => '2021-08-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13635', 'image' => '20210831103623_CAAN.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-31 10:35:27', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13889', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Drafting of Laws on National Pride Projects Gathers Pace', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 30: The process of drafting laws related to monitoring and evaluation of national pride projects has started to gain momentum after a year and a half.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">August 30: The process of drafting laws related to monitoring and evaluation of national pride projects has started to gain momentum after a year and a half. The then KP Sharma Oli-led government had tabled a bill in the National Assembly in 2019 to make the monitoring and evaluation of National Pride Projects effective amidst the poor performance of development projects. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">However, the bill was not discussed for a long time and the law-making process was affected. A year and a half later, the Legislative Management Committee under the National Assembly discussed the bill on Sunday, August 30. The bill was presented to form a law to evaluate and monitor development projects prepared by all three levels of government. During the discussion, the members of the committee urged the government to enact a law and implement it as soon as possible.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Speaking at the discussion, Parashuram Meghi Gurung, chairman of the committee and member Jitendra Narayan Dev said the progress of the projects was stagnant due to the delay in monitoring and evaluation. So, provisions need to be made to monitor these projects every six months.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Dev disagreed on the proposal which has proposed to monitor the projects once in a year. Dev, who is also a lawmaker from the ruling Nepali Congress, said that considering the current performance of the projects and the needs of the country, those projects need to be evaluated at least every six months. Evaluating these projects once in a year would not help to get rid of the poor performance of the development projects, he argued. Evaluation would have no importance if it is not carried out even in six months. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Committee Chairman Parashuram Meghi Gurung said, "Provisions should be introduced to take legal action against the organizations that are preventing smooth performance of projects. Organizations should be penalized even for a minor fault. The committee will discuss the nature of penalties and fines to be taken."</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Dhanraj Gyawali, secretary at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers, suggested monitoring and evaluation of the projects could be done once a year or as required. He also clarified that the bill has been brought to enact the law to monitor the performance of the projects. The bill will be further discussed in the next meeting and will focus on the penalties and fines.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">A high-level committee will be formed under the leadership of the prime minister to resolve problems. All the ministers, chief ministers of all provinces, vice-chairman of the National Planning Commission, its members, chief secretary, finance secretary will be its members.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The same committee will review the plans of the government, study, research, evaluate problems seen in the implementation of the plans, discuss the problems, give necessary instructions, and resolve the problems.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Similarly, a ministerial-level development related problem solving committee has been proposed which will be chaired by all the ministers of the government of Nepal and head of public bodies will hold the major responsibility in monitoring and evaluation. The government expects the proposed bill will play a crucial role to make development projects productive. </span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-30', 'modified' => '2021-08-30', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13634', 'image' => '20210830015930_20210214110031_20190923120140_20190514035934_int6.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-30 13:58:51', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13888', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Export Jumps by 115 Percent in the First Month of the Current Fiscal Year ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 30: Nepal has significantly improved its foreign trade in the first month of the current fiscal year (FY 2021/22). ', '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"">August 30: Nepal has significantly improved its foreign trade in the first month of the current fiscal year (FY 2021/22). According to the data of mid-July to mid-August released by the Department of Customs, Nepal's growth in foreign trade has also led to an increase in imports. </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"">According to the data, exports of Nepali goods has increased by 115 percent in July compared to the corresponding period of the previous fiscal year. In the corresponding period of the previous FY, goods worth Rs 9.62 billion were exported, which has increased to Rs 20.76 billion this year. </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"">Refined soybean oil was exported the most during the review period. Soybean oil worth Rs 8.98 billion were exported during the review month which accounted for 43.25 percent of the total export. </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"">Data show that export of products that are made by importing raw materials from abroad has increased. </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"">After soybean oil, the export of palm oil and sunflower oil has also increased. Palm oil worth Rs 1.42 billion were exported during this period. Likewise, sunflower oil worth Rs 790 million were exported. </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"">Export of synthetic yarns amounted to Rs 960 million. </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"">Meanwhile, imports have increased by 75 percent during this period. The import of Rs 85.80 billion in the corresponding period of the previous year has increased to Rs 150.73 billion this year. </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"">Mostly, petroleum products have been imported during this period. According to the department, diesel, petrol and cooking gas worth Rs 15.01 billion have been imported. Similarly, the import of mobile phones, which has been steadily increasing since July last year, increased by Rs 4.82 billion. After that, iron, food items, laptops and other items have been imported the most. </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"">Despite significant improvement in exports, due to the import-dependent economy, Nepal has trade deficit stands at Rs 149.31 billion. </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"">Economist Shankar Sharma says that Nepal has not been able to improve its exports in foreign trade. Stating that Nepal cannot make economic progress by importing raw palm, sunflower and soybean from other countries and exporting them, he said that domestic industries should be promoted. </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 trade deficit can be reduced by exporting energy to Bangladesh via India," he said, adding, "Nepal's biggest industry is energy, so production should be increased and exported." </span></span></span></span></p> <p><br /> <br /> <br /> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-30', 'modified' => '2021-08-30', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13633', 'image' => '20210830014755_1630279826.5.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-30 13:47:06', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13887', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Province 2 has High Potential for Industrial Development: NRB Report', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 30: Province 2 has a high potential for industrial development, according to Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB). ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">August 30: Province 2 has a high potential for industrial development, according to Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB). Favourable terrain of the province, sufficient manpower, road network, and access to border points all indicate to high potential for industrial development in the province, according to a study conducted by the central bank.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Nepal Rastra Bank had conducted a study on the economic activities of Province 2 during the first six months of the last fiscal year 2077/78. The study has shown high potential for industrial development in Province 2.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The study says that the province has high commercial potential for industries that produce items of religious and cultural significance based on traditional crafts. As there are famous religious as well as tourist sites in Province 2, the study has shown that the income of the local people can be increased by promoting such religious tourism. The study has shown that the base of revenue mobilization will be widened if such industries are promoted.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The study has also pointed out that production costs will be less in Province 2. As Province 2 is the second-most populous province, there seems to be a smooth supply of labor. As a result, industrial costs are estimated to remain low.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The study has also shown that increasing production by establishing industries in the state will increase the competitiveness of the products.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">As most of the territory of Province 2 is connected to the Indian border, transportation of industrial raw materials from India will also be cheaper. As a result, it is possible to produce goods at a low cost and export them to India easily.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">As there is a road network connecting the federal capital Kathmandu and other hill districts, including the east-west highway in the state, it will be easier to supply the manufactured goods across the country. The study report has shown that agro-based industries such as milk, fish, meat, and grains have a huge potential in the province. There is ample potential to supply the products all over the country, the report suggests.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Due to the favourable terrain, running industries in the province seems to be comparatively easier.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The study has shown that employment opportunities can be increased within the country if a large number of industries are established.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Due to the abundant production of grains like paddy, wheat, maize, and geographical location, the state also has a tremendous possibility for flour-based industries.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Executive Director of Nepal Rastra Bank, Prakash Shrestha, said that the potential for industrial development in Province 2 is high. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“During the study, we found the potential for industrial development in Province 2 high due to various reasons. However, the study shows that there are some challenges as well,” he said.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Coronavirus poses challenges to revive the industries and businesses, and also to reduce production costs, improve labor relations, and reduce losses of raw material.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Similarly, the study report states that there is a challenge to create a conducive environment for setting up new industries due to the high price of land.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">There is also a challenge to supply skilled manpower to the industrial sector. The study report states that reducing the production cost, increasing competitiveness of industrial goods, and encouraging the establishment of industries based on local raw materials will also be a challenge.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Given that most of the industries are based on raw materials imported from India or other countries and the backward linkages of such industries are weak, setting up industries based on local raw materials is also seen as a challenge.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Most of the industries operating in Province 2 are operating at less than 50 percent capacity. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The study has shown that creating an environment for timely availability of raw materials for the industry as well as creating an environment for exporting goods to neighboring countries by expanding the market for manufactured goods is also a challenge.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Although there is good potential for agriculture and fishery in the state, it is not commercially viable. Establishing fish processing industries to end seasonal fish production is also seen as a challenge.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Due to misunderstandings between sugarcane farmers and industrialists from time to time, making the country self-reliant in sugar is also seen as a challenge. The study has shown that Nepal should be made self-reliant in sugar production by finding a long-term solution to the misunderstanding between the farmers and the industrialists.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-30', 'modified' => '2021-08-30', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13632', 'image' => '20210830110916_1630279766.3.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-30 11:08:39', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13886', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Biratnagar Chapter of Nepal-India Chamber of Commerce and Industry gets New Chairman', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 30: Biratnagar chapter of Nepal-India Chamber of Commerce and Industry has elected a new executive committee following the third Annual General Meeting of the chamber on Saturday, August 28.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">August 30: Biratnagar chapter of Nepal-India Chamber of Commerce and Industry has elected a new executive committee following the third Annual General Meeting of the chamber on Saturday, August 28. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Avinash Bohra has been elected as the chairperson of the chamber while Mukesh Upadhyay is the new first vice president. Likewise, the AGM also elected Shyam Poudel as the second vice president, Ramesh Kumar Rathi as general secretary, and Bikash Chaudhary as treasurer. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Similarly, other members of the executive committee elected by the AGM include Beni Gopal Mundada, Yadav Pokharel, Bijay Kumar Dalmia, Gayatri Bhandari, Santosh Kumar Chaudhary and Shrawan Kumar Agrawal.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The newly elected chairperson has nominated four members to the executive committee. The newly appointed members are Som Adhikari, Binod Basnet, Mahesh Poudel and Rabin Dahal.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The Biratnagar Chapter of Nepal India Chamber of Commerce and Industry said in a statement that it has been playing a crucial role in resolving the problems that have surfaced in trade and transit between Nepal and India.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-30', 'modified' => '2021-08-30', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13631', 'image' => '20210830105156_IMG-20210829-WA0016.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-30 10:51:10', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => false, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13884', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'PM Deuba Calls for Fiscal Discipline to Reduce Arrears ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 30: Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba has said that government officials handling public fund and authority should discharge their duty in a more transparent, accountable and legal manner. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">August 30: Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba has said that government officials handling public fund and authority should discharge their duty in a more transparent, accountable and legal manner. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The PM was speaking at a programme organised by the Office of the Auditor General in regard to Audit Report of the FY 2076/77. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The PM also directed the officials to maintain fiscal discipline in course of transaction of public fund, justify the relevance of expenses, ensure growth of productivity and abide by economic procedures. PM Deuba also directed the chief secretary and secretaries of the government to strictly follow the Public Procurement Act and other laws. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">On the occasion, Auditor General Tanka Mani Sharma Dangal also made his presentation. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Similarly, PM Deuba also drew the attention of government office-bearers to make their role more effective and mobilise public resources to meet the people’s expectations. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Spokesperson at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers Krishna Bahadur Raut said that PM Deuba directed the officials to make their working style smart. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-30', 'modified' => '2021-08-30', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13630', 'image' => '20210830101838_20210715115732_adsafd (2).jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-30 10:16:47', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13885', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Government Picks Krishna Hari Pushkar as Revenue Secretary', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 30: The government has decided to appoint Krishna Hari Pushkar as the revenue secretary under the Ministry of Finance.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">August 30: The government has decided to appoint Krishna Hari Pushkar as the revenue secretary under the Ministry of Finance.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">A recent cabinet meeting had decided to appoint Pushkar as the revenue secretary.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Until now, Pushkar was stationed at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers. With his appointment, the post of revenue secretary has been filled. The post was vacant since the past one and a half months following the retirement of the then Revenue Secretary Ram Sharan Pudasauni.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Pushkar, who entered the civil service in 2053 BS, was promoted to secretary by the government last June. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Pushkar has the experience of working in various departments under the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies, the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority and other bodies under the Ministry of Home Affairs.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Pushkar now has to face the challenge of improving revenue administration along with the economy affected by the pandemic, preventing revenue leakage and implementing a strong revenue collection action plan.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-30', 'modified' => '2021-08-30', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13629', 'image' => '20210830103351_1630154722.k h puskar.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-30 10:32:58', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13883', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Risk of Third wave of Covid-19 worries Industries in Bara-Parsa Corridor', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 29: The industries of Bara-Parsa, that have been hard hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, are now trying to claw back to normal business.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">August 29: The industries of Bara-Parsa, that have been hard hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, are now trying to claw back to normal business. However, entrepreneurs are worried by the prospect of third wave of Covid-19.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">According to the president of Birgunj Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Subodh Kumar Gupta, the industrialists are worried that if the third wave of pandemic strikes, there will be another ban or prohibitory order which will cripple their businesses.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Recalling that the ban imposed during the second wave of coronavirus was relatively easy for the industry to operate but the market was closed, Gupta said, “Even if goods are produced, they cannot be sent to the market due to the ban. The product will be stored in the warehouse.”</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Industrialists say that after the market closes, even ready-made products would be kept in warehouses because they cannot be sold. Another problem is that there won’t be any new demand and production will come to a halt. Gupta argues that such a situation will destabilize the whole economy.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Entrepreneur Rajesh Kyal says that the facilitation in import of raw materials and transportation of finished goods will not give the expected results when there is no demand in the market.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">“We are forced to cut production when we can’t send the products to the market,” he told New Business Age.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Entrepreneurs say that although transportation was eased during the second wave of coronavirus compared to the first wave, most of the production was shut down due to the closure of the market. Industrialists say that even the production of very essential goods in Bara-Parsa was limited to 20 to 25 percent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Even though there was no nationwide ban at that time, trade was halted as prohibitory order was imposed in most parts of the country.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">At present, the Bara-Parsa Industrial Corridor is operating at 70 to 80 percent capacity. The industries that were hit by the pandemic in March 2020, were badly affected again by the second wave in April 2021.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">At present, an average of 3,000 people are being infected each day and 25 to 30 people are dying due to the virus since the ban was eased. Health experts say a third wave could break out at any moment. Anup Agrawal, chairman of the Nepalese Young Entrepreneurs’ Forum Birgunj, says that the entrepreneurs are worried that their business will be halted again.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">He said that in order to keep the country’s economy afloat even during the pandemic, the entrepreneurs and workers working at the forefront should be fully vaccinated so that this will reduce the concern of their health security.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Gupta is of the view that since the third wave is likely to occur in the near future, it will create more problems for the economy along with industry and trade. </span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-29', 'modified' => '2021-08-29', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13628', 'image' => '20210829030025_20200907020811_1599429995.Clipboard02.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-29 14:59:37', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ) ) $current_user = null $logged_in = false $xml = falseinclude - APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 133 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::_renderElement() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 1224 View::element() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 418 include - APP/View/Articles/index.ctp, line 157 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 473 Controller::render() - CORE/Cake/Controller/Controller.php, line 968 Dispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 200 Dispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 167 [main] - APP/webroot/index.php, line 117
Warning (2): simplexml_load_file() [<a href='http://php.net/function.simplexml-load-file'>function.simplexml-load-file</a>]: I/O warning : failed to load external entity "" [APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 133]file not found!Code Context// $file = 'http://aabhiyan:QUVLg8Wzs2F7G9N7@nepalstock.com.np/api/subindexdata.xml';if(!$xml = simplexml_load_file($file)){$viewFile = '/var/www/html/newbusinessage.com/app/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp' $dataForView = array( 'articles' => array( (int) 0 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ) ), 'current_user' => null, 'logged_in' => false ) $articles = array( (int) 0 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13895', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Existing Laws are the Main Obstacles in Achieving SGDs: National Assembly Members ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'September 1: Lawmakers have concluded that the existing laws are a hindrance in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">September 1: Lawmakers have concluded that the existing laws are a hindrance in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). </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"">Members of the Sustainable Development and Good Governance Committee under the National Assembly have pointed out that the existing laws do not comply with the SDGs and therefore the country has failed to meet its target. The committee members have instructed the government to remove legal hurdles and formulate laws that help the country meet its development goals.</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"">In this regard, the committee meeting held on Tuesday (August 31) directed the government to unveil an action plan for the amendment and revision of the laws that serve as obstacles to achieve the state’s commitments to SDGs. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The committee’s meeting concluded that the most of the laws were obsolete and unable to address the nee ds of the SDGs. The National Assembly members suggested that the laws should be amended to make them compatible with the current structures, thoughts and perspectives. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The committee members were of the view that most of the laws were formulated prior to the promulgation of the new constitution and they are not compatible to meet the SDGs. Therefore, they argued that it is necessary to amend the constitution and laws in line with the SDGs.Some members of the committee stated that around 350 laws need to be amended in the present context to meet the goals.</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"">Committee member Ganga Belbase said that the government needs to introduce a new bill to meet the SDGs. </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"">Meanwhile, another lawmaker and member of the committee Bimala Ghimire pointed out to the problems in implementing the laws that have been enacted. She stressed on effective implementation of laws.</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"">Another member Mahesh Kumar Mahara said that a study has to be conducted to find out whether the laws need to be simply amended or a sub-committee needs to be formed to figure which laws need to be amended. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Likewise, committee member Sharada Devi Bhatta stated that the laws that were formulated in the Rana regime needs to be amended to meet the target. Similarly, the committee members said that the government and parliament should not delay in making Nepal’s constitution and laws development-friendly if the country wants to achieve the SDGs. </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-09-01', 'modified' => '2021-09-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13642', 'image' => '20210901101744_Sustainable_Development_Goals_logo.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-09-01 10:15:54', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13897', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Garbage Collection in Kathmandu Valley to Resume from Today', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'September 1: The Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) is to collect garbage of Kathmandu Valley from Wednesday (September 1).', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">September 1: The Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) is to collect garbage of Kathmandu Valley from Wednesday (September 1). Garbage collection was halted since the past two weeks. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">A meeting held under the coordination of KMC Mayor Bidhya Sundar Shakya in presence of Chief District Officer of Kathmandu, Kali Prasad Rijal, Director General of Department of Roads, among others took a decision to this effect. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Solid waste has been piled up in different parts of the city due to the problem in transporting the waste to the landfill site and the obstruction caused by the locals. This has resulted in garbage being thrown haphazardly everywhere in the valley including the roads, river banks and city squares. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chief of the Environment Department of KMC, Hari Kumar Shrestha, said that the Department of Roads has taken a decision to repair the road to the landfill site in Sisdole immediately. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">He further said that problems with the locals of Sisdole would also be resolved. </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 home ministry will make arrangement of peace and security if there is any challenge in course of collecting garbage and its management," the state-owned national news agency RSS quoted Shrestha as saying. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">There would be coordination between the District Administration Office, Nuwakot, and Kathmandu, for the management of waste, added Shrestha. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Meanwhile, the Urban Development Ministry said the disposal of waste in the under-construction landfill site in Bancharedanda seems possible within a week. Information officer at the ministry Suresh Kumar Wagle said that the construction of first cell at the new site has reached the final phase. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Earlier on August 16, the Kathamandu Metropolis had issued a public notice appealing to the denizens of the metropolis for indoor management of waste for the time being. Back then, the KMC had assured of resume garbage collection after two weeks. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">In a normal day, around 1,200 metric tonnes of garbage gets transported from the Valley to Sisdole on a daily basis.</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 Sisdole-based landfill site was built 16 years ago for the disposal of waste for two years, is being used till date. The new landfill site at Bancharedanda lies two kilometers away from Sisdole towards the border between Nuwakot and Dhading districts. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">--- </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-09-01', 'modified' => '2021-09-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13641', 'image' => '20210901110128_20200903113103_1599056781.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-09-01 11:00:36', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13896', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => '5th International Women's Trade Expo Kicks off Today', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'September 1: The Fifth International Women's Trade Exhibition is scheduled to be held in Kathmandu from September 1 to 6. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">September 1: The Fifth International Women's Trade Exhibition is scheduled to be held in Kathmandu from September 1 to 6. </span></span><br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The Federation of Women Entrepreneurs' Association of Nepal (FWEAN) is organising the expo with the belief that women entrepreneurs can contribute to the national economy through small-scale and household business.</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:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">FWEAN said in a statement that the expo will be organised through virtual medium due to coronavirus pandemic. The association also intends to launch digital marketing to help women entrepreneurs who have been badly affected by the pandemic. </span></span><br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to the association, the expo is an opportunity to bring together women entrepreneurs of Nepal in a common digital platform and showcase their products and services to both domestic and international buyers, also give them the market opportunity to expand and promote their business through virtual exhibition. </span></span><br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The main attraction of the expo will be handicraft products, agro products, ornaments, wooden products, and decoration accessories. </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:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">FWEAN said that the expo will feature 79 stalls of 57 women entrepreneurs and 22 stalls representing district women entrepreneurs associations.</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:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">FWEAN noted that women entrepreneurs have been badly affected by the pandemic </span></span><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">on top of other problems like social exclusion, physical infrastructure and lack of capital. In this context, the expo would provide an opportunity to the women entrepreneurs to explore digital marketing in the current crisis.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> <br /> <span style="font-size:14.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">--- </span></span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-09-01', 'modified' => '2021-09-01', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13640', 'image' => '20210901104430_Photo.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-09-01 10:43:47', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13894', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Investment in National Pride Projects Amounts to Rs 349 Billion', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 31: The government has invested Rs 349 billion in 24 national pride projects so far. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">August 31: The government has invested Rs 349 billion in 24 national pride projects so far. Among the 24 projects, only the Upper Tamakoshi Hydropower Project has been completed. Even though the Melamchi Water Supply Project has been completed, uncertainty looms over it due to the damage caused by recent floods and landslides. Both these projects have been completed and inaugurated.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Apart from these two projects, all other projects have been under construction since a long time. Besides the Upper Tamakoshi and Melamchi projects, construction of Gautam Buddha International Airport and Pokhara Regional International Airport have made remarkable progress. Apart from these four projects, other projects have not shown encouraging result.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">According to the 58th annual report of the Office of the Auditor General, a dozen of national pride projects have made less than 50 percent progress, both in terms of finance and physical infrastructure.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The progress of the West Seti Hydropower and Power Transmission Project started in 2011 is negligible. Even though the project has kicked off, with the estimated cost, no expenditure has been made so far.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Only two projects have made progress of 80 to 90 percent. These projects include Pashupati Area Development Trust and Lumbini Area Development Trust. A total of Rs 551 billion and Rs 870 million have been spent on Lumbini Area Development Trust and Pashupati Area Development Trust respectively. Both of these projects are slated to be completed in the current fiscal year.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The progress report of the three corridors being constructed for easy access to the northern border is also not encouraging. The Karnali Corridor has made the progress of 20 percent by spending Rs 2.46 billion. With the expenditure of Rs 3.4 billion, the Koshi Corridor has made 19 percent progress. Similarly, construction of the Kali Gandaki Corridor has achieved progress of 22 percent with the expenditure of Rs 6.36 billion.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The overhead cost and time have been increasing as the projects had started decades ago and have not been completed on time. The issue of running railway and metro rail has become popular. However, the progress of railway and metro development projects is only 2.6 percent while Rs 19.68 billion has been spent out of an estimated cost of Rs 955 billion.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The progress of three big irrigation projects Rani Jamra Kulariya, Sikta and Babai Irrigation is also slow. Starting from 2011, the progress of Rani Jamara, Sikta and Babai irrigation projects have reached 48 percent, 59 percent and 52 percent respectively.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The report of the Auditor General for 2019/20 states that the projects could not be completed on time due to lack of implementation capacity, poor contract management, delay in land acquisition, lack of coordination, detailed feasibility study and delay in preparation of project structure.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">There is no example of national pride project being completed on stipulated time in the country. Economist Suman Sharma argues that the projects would provide a good outcome only if it is completed on time. Sharma said that the people will benefit but it will not yield any financial return. "To reap the benefits mentioned in the feasibility study, projects need to be completed on time," he said. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Govinda Pokhrel, former Vice Chairman of the National Planning Commission said that the national pride projects have been infamous for not yielding good results and adding extra cost. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“Due to lack of timely completion of the projects, their return is low," Pokhrel said. To minimize this, the government needs to arrange separate budgets, laws and human resources for national pride projects. </span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-31', 'modified' => '2021-08-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13639', 'image' => '20210831033034_20201206012152_1607211371.Clipboard13.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-31 15:29:51', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13893', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Stem Borer Disease Damaging Paddy Plants ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 31: The outbreak of stem borer (gawaro) disease has affected the paddy planted by farmers in several districts.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">August 31: The outbreak of stem borer (gawaro) disease has affected the paddy planted by farmers in several districts. With the outbreak of the disease, the farmers have complained that the paddy plants have started withering. Although the disease is increasing day by day, no initiative has been taken by the concerned bodies for its proper management and control. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">At present, the disease has spread to more than a dozen districts including Bara, Parsa, Rautahat, Sunsari, Banke and Bardiya. Bhubaneshwor Yadav, a Sunsari-based farmer, informed that the farmers are worried due to the outbreak of the disease. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">He complained that although the disease is spreading, the farmers could not get required medicine. After the farmers took their problems to Agriculture Knowledge Center, the center sent them back saying they could not help them due to the lack of budget. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Similar problem is also increasing in other districts. The disease has damaged 10 percent of paddy grown in a total of 35,000 hectares of land in Parsa district. Similarly, it has been reported that the disease has affected the farmers of Bardiya district as well. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Agni Aryal, coordinator of Rajapur Paddy Super Zone in Bardiya, said that more than 200 bigahas of paddy fields may have been affected by the disease. He said that the concerned stakeholders should take initiative for its prevention and control. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Despite the recent outbreak of the disease, the government, including the National Farmers Commission, does not seem to have shown much interest in controlling the disease. The Department of Agriculture under the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development has also stated that no action has been taken for the prevention as no information has been received in this regard. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Information Officer of the department Dr Mahadev Prasad Poudel said that the department has not received any information so far and necessary initiatives will be taken for prevention after receiving the information. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Chairman of the Commission Prem Dangal also said that the commission has not received any information in this regard and the commission is ready to provide necessary assistance to the farmers in case of any disturbance. </span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-31', 'modified' => '2021-08-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13638', 'image' => '20210831012343_640px-Rice_Plants_(IRRI).jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-31 13:22:53', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13892', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Pokhara Metropolis Prioritizes Tourism in its Periodic Plan', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 31: The Pokhara Metropolitan City has given priority to tourism in the three-year periodical plan with the slogan of Prosperous Tourism Pokhara.', '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"">August 31: The Pokhara Metropolitan City has given priority to tourism in the three-year periodical plan with the slogan of Prosperous Tourism Pokhara. The visionary plan for sustainable and rapid development of Pokhara, which is very important in terms of tourism, is an attempt to lay the foundation stone of socialism.</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"">In connection with the country’s long-term thinking vision of 'Prosperous Nepal, Happy Nepali', the plan has set a target to achieve dignified life, happy, civilized, and just society, and good health. Environment, good governance and strong democracy, national unity, and respect have also been included in the three-year plan.</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 periodic plan emphasizes that tourism policy and code of conduct will be formulated and implemented to develop the metropolis as a tourism hub. Literature, art, culture, tourism promotion, and enterprise development have been prioritized. It has been mentioned that the periodic plan will play a leading role in the protection, enhancement, and promotion of all language speakers as well as art, culture, literature, religion, and cultural heritages within the metropolis.</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"">It has been stated that Pokhara will be developed as a tourist destination in the world map by developing the tourism business with an innovative approach in the changing environment.</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 three-year periodic plan aims to build a socialist-oriented society as envisaged in the constitution of Nepal by radically transforming the entire metropolis with the participation of the people, according to Ram Chandra Lamichhane, vice chairperson of the Urban Development Commission of Pokhara Metropolitan City.</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 development principles, visions, goals, objectives, strategies, strategic programmes, and activities have been formed in line with the development plans and principles of the metropolis," he added.</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"">According to him, the periodic plan has set a target to achieve the goals of clear blue lakes, rich culture, safe city, and inclusive physical infrastructure. The periodic plan prepared by the commission covers 35 topics.</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"">With the objective of developing and expanding the necessary legislation and infrastructure for tourism, Pokhara will be developed as a center of world tourism destination. The metropolis plans to generate employment and income-generating opportunities.</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"">Similarly, the periodic plan includes strategies to develop the tourism sectors and to develop the skills, capacity, and efficiency of the human resources required for the tourism business on a regular basis. It also aims to establish partnerships between Pokhara Metropolitan City and other metropolis, including foreign and domestic metropolitan cities and municipalities, and to co-operate with various stakeholders.</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 periodic plans aim to beautify houses and settlements, plant trees on both sides of the road, plant bamboo shoots, and other trees along the river banks, manage public toilets, create necessary policies and resources for entrepreneurship to develop an extensive tourism project of the metropolis and develop it as a special tourist destination of South Asia. To do so, groups will be formed and mobilized for professional development of tourism by promoting art, literature, and culture within the metropolis.</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 metropolis aims to raise capital through cooperatives, microfinance companies, Pokhara Infrastructure Development Corporation, and public limited companies with the joint participation of citizens.</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"">“As the happiness and prosperity of the people of Pokhara is the first and last goal of this periodical plan, we expect the cooperation of various parties to prepare this master plan dedicated to the people of Pokhara,” said Manju Devi Gurung, Deputy Mayor and Coordinator of the Planning Facilitation Committee.</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"">She added that this was the first roadmap for the sustainable and rapid development of Pokhara Metropolitan City under the Constitution of Nepal 2072 BS and the Local Government Operation Act 2074 BS. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-31', 'modified' => '2021-08-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13637', 'image' => '20210831120842_20191017121120_1571271950.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-31 12:08:01', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13891', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NTA Lays Over 1000 Kilometres of Optical Fibre', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 31: The government has reportedly intensified laying optical fibres in line with the ambition set by the Digital Nepal Framework. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">August 31: The government has reportedly intensified laying optical fibres in line with the ambition set by the Digital Nepal Framework. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to the state-owned national news agency RSS, Nepal Telecommunications Authority (NTA) has mobilized the Rural Telecommunications Development Fund to expand the broadband internet service across the country. Related works have been completed in sixty districts under 15 packages out of 18 packages, RSS reported. Similarly, fifty percent works have been completed in other 10 districts under two separate packages. </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 NTA had decided on June 13, 2016 to utilize the fund to make the broadband internet service accessible in community schools, campuses, health posts, agriculture centres, tourism centres, all the wards and public places. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The NTA further said that the Mid-hill Highway and district headquarters are being connected to internet facility under the information superhighway project. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Under the first package, works have been launched in Province 1, 2 and Bagmati Province by forging agreement with Nepal Telecom. As per the agreement, extension of optical fibres would be complete in two years. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">So far, the optical fibres have been laid on 1,006-km length which is 46.16 percent of the target, RSS further reported. The concerned bodies have reached an agreement to lay2,179 km of optical fibres. </span></span></span><br /> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-31', 'modified' => '2021-08-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13636', 'image' => '20210831104852_20210221040652_20191021115126_adsfjjj.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-31 10:47:09', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13890', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'CAAN hit by Significant Fall in Revenue Collection ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 31: The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN)’s revenue collection has dropped significantly in the past two years due to COVID-19 crisis. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">August 31: The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN)’s revenue collection has dropped significantly in the past two years due to COVID-19 crisis. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA), the country’s sole international airport, recorded a significant fall in the number of passengers since the outbreak of COVID-19. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Tourism and civil aviation is one of the sectors hard-hit by the pandemic. CAAN, the regulatory body of avian sector, said it recorded a major fall in its income in the past two consecutive years. Its income went down by 43 per cent in the first year of COVID-19 outbreak and the figure rose to 72 per cent in the following year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to CAAN’s annual progress report for the fiscal year 2020-21, its income decreased by 43 per cent than the projected income of Rs 10.544 billion of the previous year and it further decreased to 72 per cent in the following year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The COVID-19 crisis seen since the beginning of 2020 had adversely affected projects and programmes funded by the CAAN during the last fiscal year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Construction of many airport infrastructure development projects with investments of the Government of Nepal and donor agencies have been affected due to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis and prohibitory orders, according to the report. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The infection has taken its toll most on air transport. The year 2020 witnessed a 73.27 per cent fall in air passengers in international flights as compared to 2019. In 2019, over 4.1 million passengers took international flights against 1.1 million in 2020. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Likewise, in 2020, more than 1.2 million passengers took domestic flights as compared to over 3.1 million in 2019. The figure in 2020 is a 59.46 per cent drop than in 2019. -- RSS</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-31', 'modified' => '2021-08-31', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13635', 'image' => '20210831103623_CAAN.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-31 10:35:27', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13889', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Drafting of Laws on National Pride Projects Gathers Pace', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 30: The process of drafting laws related to monitoring and evaluation of national pride projects has started to gain momentum after a year and a half.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">August 30: The process of drafting laws related to monitoring and evaluation of national pride projects has started to gain momentum after a year and a half. The then KP Sharma Oli-led government had tabled a bill in the National Assembly in 2019 to make the monitoring and evaluation of National Pride Projects effective amidst the poor performance of development projects. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">However, the bill was not discussed for a long time and the law-making process was affected. A year and a half later, the Legislative Management Committee under the National Assembly discussed the bill on Sunday, August 30. The bill was presented to form a law to evaluate and monitor development projects prepared by all three levels of government. During the discussion, the members of the committee urged the government to enact a law and implement it as soon as possible.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Speaking at the discussion, Parashuram Meghi Gurung, chairman of the committee and member Jitendra Narayan Dev said the progress of the projects was stagnant due to the delay in monitoring and evaluation. So, provisions need to be made to monitor these projects every six months.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Dev disagreed on the proposal which has proposed to monitor the projects once in a year. Dev, who is also a lawmaker from the ruling Nepali Congress, said that considering the current performance of the projects and the needs of the country, those projects need to be evaluated at least every six months. Evaluating these projects once in a year would not help to get rid of the poor performance of the development projects, he argued. Evaluation would have no importance if it is not carried out even in six months. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Committee Chairman Parashuram Meghi Gurung said, "Provisions should be introduced to take legal action against the organizations that are preventing smooth performance of projects. Organizations should be penalized even for a minor fault. The committee will discuss the nature of penalties and fines to be taken."</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Dhanraj Gyawali, secretary at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers, suggested monitoring and evaluation of the projects could be done once a year or as required. He also clarified that the bill has been brought to enact the law to monitor the performance of the projects. The bill will be further discussed in the next meeting and will focus on the penalties and fines.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">A high-level committee will be formed under the leadership of the prime minister to resolve problems. All the ministers, chief ministers of all provinces, vice-chairman of the National Planning Commission, its members, chief secretary, finance secretary will be its members.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The same committee will review the plans of the government, study, research, evaluate problems seen in the implementation of the plans, discuss the problems, give necessary instructions, and resolve the problems.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Similarly, a ministerial-level development related problem solving committee has been proposed which will be chaired by all the ministers of the government of Nepal and head of public bodies will hold the major responsibility in monitoring and evaluation. The government expects the proposed bill will play a crucial role to make development projects productive. </span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-30', 'modified' => '2021-08-30', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13634', 'image' => '20210830015930_20210214110031_20190923120140_20190514035934_int6.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-30 13:58:51', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13888', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Export Jumps by 115 Percent in the First Month of the Current Fiscal Year ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 30: Nepal has significantly improved its foreign trade in the first month of the current fiscal year (FY 2021/22). ', '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"">August 30: Nepal has significantly improved its foreign trade in the first month of the current fiscal year (FY 2021/22). According to the data of mid-July to mid-August released by the Department of Customs, Nepal's growth in foreign trade has also led to an increase in imports. </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"">According to the data, exports of Nepali goods has increased by 115 percent in July compared to the corresponding period of the previous fiscal year. In the corresponding period of the previous FY, goods worth Rs 9.62 billion were exported, which has increased to Rs 20.76 billion this year. </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"">Refined soybean oil was exported the most during the review period. Soybean oil worth Rs 8.98 billion were exported during the review month which accounted for 43.25 percent of the total export. </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"">Data show that export of products that are made by importing raw materials from abroad has increased. </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"">After soybean oil, the export of palm oil and sunflower oil has also increased. Palm oil worth Rs 1.42 billion were exported during this period. Likewise, sunflower oil worth Rs 790 million were exported. </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"">Export of synthetic yarns amounted to Rs 960 million. </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"">Meanwhile, imports have increased by 75 percent during this period. The import of Rs 85.80 billion in the corresponding period of the previous year has increased to Rs 150.73 billion this year. </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"">Mostly, petroleum products have been imported during this period. According to the department, diesel, petrol and cooking gas worth Rs 15.01 billion have been imported. Similarly, the import of mobile phones, which has been steadily increasing since July last year, increased by Rs 4.82 billion. After that, iron, food items, laptops and other items have been imported the most. </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"">Despite significant improvement in exports, due to the import-dependent economy, Nepal has trade deficit stands at Rs 149.31 billion. </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"">Economist Shankar Sharma says that Nepal has not been able to improve its exports in foreign trade. Stating that Nepal cannot make economic progress by importing raw palm, sunflower and soybean from other countries and exporting them, he said that domestic industries should be promoted. </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 trade deficit can be reduced by exporting energy to Bangladesh via India," he said, adding, "Nepal's biggest industry is energy, so production should be increased and exported." </span></span></span></span></p> <p><br /> <br /> <br /> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-30', 'modified' => '2021-08-30', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13633', 'image' => '20210830014755_1630279826.5.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-30 13:47:06', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13887', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Province 2 has High Potential for Industrial Development: NRB Report', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 30: Province 2 has a high potential for industrial development, according to Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB). ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">August 30: Province 2 has a high potential for industrial development, according to Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB). Favourable terrain of the province, sufficient manpower, road network, and access to border points all indicate to high potential for industrial development in the province, according to a study conducted by the central bank.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Nepal Rastra Bank had conducted a study on the economic activities of Province 2 during the first six months of the last fiscal year 2077/78. The study has shown high potential for industrial development in Province 2.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The study says that the province has high commercial potential for industries that produce items of religious and cultural significance based on traditional crafts. As there are famous religious as well as tourist sites in Province 2, the study has shown that the income of the local people can be increased by promoting such religious tourism. The study has shown that the base of revenue mobilization will be widened if such industries are promoted.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The study has also pointed out that production costs will be less in Province 2. As Province 2 is the second-most populous province, there seems to be a smooth supply of labor. As a result, industrial costs are estimated to remain low.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The study has also shown that increasing production by establishing industries in the state will increase the competitiveness of the products.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">As most of the territory of Province 2 is connected to the Indian border, transportation of industrial raw materials from India will also be cheaper. As a result, it is possible to produce goods at a low cost and export them to India easily.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">As there is a road network connecting the federal capital Kathmandu and other hill districts, including the east-west highway in the state, it will be easier to supply the manufactured goods across the country. The study report has shown that agro-based industries such as milk, fish, meat, and grains have a huge potential in the province. There is ample potential to supply the products all over the country, the report suggests.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Due to the favourable terrain, running industries in the province seems to be comparatively easier.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The study has shown that employment opportunities can be increased within the country if a large number of industries are established.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Due to the abundant production of grains like paddy, wheat, maize, and geographical location, the state also has a tremendous possibility for flour-based industries.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Executive Director of Nepal Rastra Bank, Prakash Shrestha, said that the potential for industrial development in Province 2 is high. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">“During the study, we found the potential for industrial development in Province 2 high due to various reasons. However, the study shows that there are some challenges as well,” he said.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Coronavirus poses challenges to revive the industries and businesses, and also to reduce production costs, improve labor relations, and reduce losses of raw material.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Similarly, the study report states that there is a challenge to create a conducive environment for setting up new industries due to the high price of land.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">There is also a challenge to supply skilled manpower to the industrial sector. The study report states that reducing the production cost, increasing competitiveness of industrial goods, and encouraging the establishment of industries based on local raw materials will also be a challenge.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Given that most of the industries are based on raw materials imported from India or other countries and the backward linkages of such industries are weak, setting up industries based on local raw materials is also seen as a challenge.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Most of the industries operating in Province 2 are operating at less than 50 percent capacity. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">The study has shown that creating an environment for timely availability of raw materials for the industry as well as creating an environment for exporting goods to neighboring countries by expanding the market for manufactured goods is also a challenge.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Although there is good potential for agriculture and fishery in the state, it is not commercially viable. Establishing fish processing industries to end seasonal fish production is also seen as a challenge.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Due to misunderstandings between sugarcane farmers and industrialists from time to time, making the country self-reliant in sugar is also seen as a challenge. The study has shown that Nepal should be made self-reliant in sugar production by finding a long-term solution to the misunderstanding between the farmers and the industrialists.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-30', 'modified' => '2021-08-30', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13632', 'image' => '20210830110916_1630279766.3.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-30 11:08:39', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13886', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Biratnagar Chapter of Nepal-India Chamber of Commerce and Industry gets New Chairman', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 30: Biratnagar chapter of Nepal-India Chamber of Commerce and Industry has elected a new executive committee following the third Annual General Meeting of the chamber on Saturday, August 28.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">August 30: Biratnagar chapter of Nepal-India Chamber of Commerce and Industry has elected a new executive committee following the third Annual General Meeting of the chamber on Saturday, August 28. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Avinash Bohra has been elected as the chairperson of the chamber while Mukesh Upadhyay is the new first vice president. Likewise, the AGM also elected Shyam Poudel as the second vice president, Ramesh Kumar Rathi as general secretary, and Bikash Chaudhary as treasurer. </span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Similarly, other members of the executive committee elected by the AGM include Beni Gopal Mundada, Yadav Pokharel, Bijay Kumar Dalmia, Gayatri Bhandari, Santosh Kumar Chaudhary and Shrawan Kumar Agrawal.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The newly elected chairperson has nominated four members to the executive committee. The newly appointed members are Som Adhikari, Binod Basnet, Mahesh Poudel and Rabin Dahal.</span></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:15.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The Biratnagar Chapter of Nepal India Chamber of Commerce and Industry said in a statement that it has been playing a crucial role in resolving the problems that have surfaced in trade and transit between Nepal and India.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-30', 'modified' => '2021-08-30', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13631', 'image' => '20210830105156_IMG-20210829-WA0016.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-30 10:51:10', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => false, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13884', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'PM Deuba Calls for Fiscal Discipline to Reduce Arrears ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 30: Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba has said that government officials handling public fund and authority should discharge their duty in a more transparent, accountable and legal manner. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">August 30: Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba has said that government officials handling public fund and authority should discharge their duty in a more transparent, accountable and legal manner. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The PM was speaking at a programme organised by the Office of the Auditor General in regard to Audit Report of the FY 2076/77. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The PM also directed the officials to maintain fiscal discipline in course of transaction of public fund, justify the relevance of expenses, ensure growth of productivity and abide by economic procedures. PM Deuba also directed the chief secretary and secretaries of the government to strictly follow the Public Procurement Act and other laws. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">On the occasion, Auditor General Tanka Mani Sharma Dangal also made his presentation. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Similarly, PM Deuba also drew the attention of government office-bearers to make their role more effective and mobilise public resources to meet the people’s expectations. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Spokesperson at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers Krishna Bahadur Raut said that PM Deuba directed the officials to make their working style smart. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-30', 'modified' => '2021-08-30', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13630', 'image' => '20210830101838_20210715115732_adsafd (2).jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-30 10:16:47', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13885', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Government Picks Krishna Hari Pushkar as Revenue Secretary', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 30: The government has decided to appoint Krishna Hari Pushkar as the revenue secretary under the Ministry of Finance.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">August 30: The government has decided to appoint Krishna Hari Pushkar as the revenue secretary under the Ministry of Finance.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">A recent cabinet meeting had decided to appoint Pushkar as the revenue secretary.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Until now, Pushkar was stationed at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers. With his appointment, the post of revenue secretary has been filled. The post was vacant since the past one and a half months following the retirement of the then Revenue Secretary Ram Sharan Pudasauni.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Pushkar, who entered the civil service in 2053 BS, was promoted to secretary by the government last June. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Pushkar has the experience of working in various departments under the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies, the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority and other bodies under the Ministry of Home Affairs.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Pushkar now has to face the challenge of improving revenue administration along with the economy affected by the pandemic, preventing revenue leakage and implementing a strong revenue collection action plan.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-30', 'modified' => '2021-08-30', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13629', 'image' => '20210830103351_1630154722.k h puskar.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-30 10:32:58', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '13883', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Risk of Third wave of Covid-19 worries Industries in Bara-Parsa Corridor', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'August 29: The industries of Bara-Parsa, that have been hard hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, are now trying to claw back to normal business.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">August 29: The industries of Bara-Parsa, that have been hard hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, are now trying to claw back to normal business. However, entrepreneurs are worried by the prospect of third wave of Covid-19.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">According to the president of Birgunj Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Subodh Kumar Gupta, the industrialists are worried that if the third wave of pandemic strikes, there will be another ban or prohibitory order which will cripple their businesses.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Recalling that the ban imposed during the second wave of coronavirus was relatively easy for the industry to operate but the market was closed, Gupta said, “Even if goods are produced, they cannot be sent to the market due to the ban. The product will be stored in the warehouse.”</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Industrialists say that after the market closes, even ready-made products would be kept in warehouses because they cannot be sold. Another problem is that there won’t be any new demand and production will come to a halt. Gupta argues that such a situation will destabilize the whole economy.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Entrepreneur Rajesh Kyal says that the facilitation in import of raw materials and transportation of finished goods will not give the expected results when there is no demand in the market.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">“We are forced to cut production when we can’t send the products to the market,” he told New Business Age.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Entrepreneurs say that although transportation was eased during the second wave of coronavirus compared to the first wave, most of the production was shut down due to the closure of the market. Industrialists say that even the production of very essential goods in Bara-Parsa was limited to 20 to 25 percent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Even though there was no nationwide ban at that time, trade was halted as prohibitory order was imposed in most parts of the country.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">At present, the Bara-Parsa Industrial Corridor is operating at 70 to 80 percent capacity. The industries that were hit by the pandemic in March 2020, were badly affected again by the second wave in April 2021.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">At present, an average of 3,000 people are being infected each day and 25 to 30 people are dying due to the virus since the ban was eased. Health experts say a third wave could break out at any moment. Anup Agrawal, chairman of the Nepalese Young Entrepreneurs’ Forum Birgunj, says that the entrepreneurs are worried that their business will be halted again.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">He said that in order to keep the country’s economy afloat even during the pandemic, the entrepreneurs and workers working at the forefront should be fully vaccinated so that this will reduce the concern of their health security.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Gupta is of the view that since the third wave is likely to occur in the near future, it will create more problems for the economy along with industry and trade. </span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2021-08-29', 'modified' => '2021-08-29', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '13628', 'image' => '20210829030025_20200907020811_1599429995.Clipboard02.jpg', 'article_date' => '2021-08-29 14:59:37', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ) ) $current_user = null $logged_in = false $xml = falsesimplexml_load_file - [internal], line ?? include - APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 133 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::_renderElement() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 1224 View::element() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 418 include - APP/View/Articles/index.ctp, line 157 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 473 Controller::render() - CORE/Cake/Controller/Controller.php, line 968 Dispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 200 Dispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 167 [main] - APP/webroot/index.php, line 117
| Currency | Unit |
Buy | Sell |
| U.S. Dollar | 1 | 121.23 | 121.83 |
| European Euro | 1 | 131.65 | 132.31 |
| UK Pound Sterling | 1 | 142.47 | 143.18 |
| Swiss Franc | 1 | 124.29 | 124.90 |
| Australian Dollar | 1 | 71.69 | 72.05 |
| Canadian Dollar | 1 | 83.90 | 84.32 |
| Japanese Yen | 10 | 10.94 | 11.00 |
| Chinese Yuan | 1 | 17.17 | 17.26 |
| Saudi Arabian Riyal | 1 | 32.27 | 32.43 |
| UAE Dirham | 1 | 33.01 | 33.17 |
| Malaysian Ringgit | 1 | 27.36 | 27.50 |
| South Korean Won | 100 | 9.77 | 9.82 |
Update: 2020-03-25 | Source: Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB)
| Fine Gold | 1 tola | 77000.00 |
| Tejabi Gold | 1 tola | 76700.00 |
| Silver | 1 tola | 720.00 |
Update : 2020-03-25
Source: Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers' Association
| Petrol | 1 Liter | 106.00 |
| Diesel | 1 Liter | 95.00 |
| Kerosene | 1 Liter | 95.00 |
| LP Gas | 1 Cylinder | 1375.00 |
Update : 2020-03-25
