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The prospect of Nepal exporting 50 MW of electricity to Bangladesh through the Indian transmission link may not happen soon. The Indian side has recently told Nepali officials that electricity export from Nepal to Bangladesh through the Baharampur-Bheramara cross-border power transmission line is not immediately possible. In August this year, Nepal and Bangladesh decided to request India to allow the export of 40-50 MW of electricity from Nepal to Bangladesh in the initial phase by utilizing the Baharampur-Bheramara cross-border power transmission line. As per the understanding reached on the secretary-level Joint Steering Committee (JSC) formed for energy cooperation between Nepal and Bangladesh, Nepal had notified India of the understanding it reached with Bangladesh in October. Nepali officials were hopeful that energy export to Bangladesh would happen as there had been a request from the highest political level of Bangladesh to India. Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina during her visit to India in September this year had requested her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi for a power transmission corridor to import electricity generated in Nepal. But, government officials and private sector representatives, who interacted with Indian officials during the conference on grid connectivity in the BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) in New Delhi last week said Indian officials notified the Nepali delegation that currently it is not possible to export electricity through the Baharampur-Bheramara transmission line. The conference was organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry on December 16. “An official of Power Grid Corporation of India told us that the Baharampur-Bheramara line is fully occupied with power and additional power cannot be transmitted through this power line,” said a private sector representative who participated in the conference. “The statement of the Indian official clarifies that exporting power through this transmission line is immediately not possible.” "In the conference, we were informed that there is a transmission constraint. It was told by the Indian authorities that the Baharampur-Bheramara transmission line does not have spare capacity, so, the proposal of exporting 50 MW of electricity from Nepal to Bangladesh is on hold," said Asish Garg, vice president of the Independent Power Producers' Association, Nepal (IPPAN). A senior official of the Nepal Electricity Authority who participated in the meeting also confirmed it saying the power is being transmitted in the transmission line to its almost full capacity. However, NEA officials say Nepal could still sell power to Bangladesh through another arrangement in the future. India is developing this project to transmit power to the northeast region of India. Nepali officials however said that the 765kV line, if constructed, could also help Nepal to transmit its power to Bangladesh in the future. Nepal and India can have cross-border connectivity to Katihar, Bihar. For example, the distance between Muzaffarpur to Katihar of Bihar is around 230 km through a straight line. There is already a cross-border transmission line between Nepal and India from Dhalkebar of Nepal to Muzaffarpur of India. Bangladesh has been keen on importing electricity from Nepal as well as developing hydropower projects in Nepal on a joint-venture model in recent years. The 683-megawatt Sunkoshi 3 hydropower project is one such project that Bangladesh is looking to develop under a joint venture arrangement with Nepal with the aim of taking power to Bangladesh. Bangladesh is also negotiating with the Indian company GMR to conclude a power sales agreement to buy 500MW electricity that will be produced from the proposed 900MW Upper Karnali Hydropower Project. With Nepal’s Supreme Court issuing an interim order not to implement the cabinet's decision of extending the deadline to GMR for its financial closure, it is not sure what happens with the planned power sales agreement.  

As the country’s hospitality sector is gradually coming out from the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic, the government has come up with yet another grand strategy to revive the tourism sector. The new plan has been brought forward three years after Visit Nepal 2020 which was called off in March 2020 as the pandemic swept the globe. The Ministry of Culture, Tourism, and Civil Aviation on Friday unveiled the strategic framework designed for the Nepal Tourism Decade 2023-2032. As per the framework, Nepal plans to bring in 3.5 million tourists, excluding India and those coming overland, in the next 10 years. The framework developed by a four-member expert panel led by the former Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) CEO Prachanda Man Shrestha has set ambitious targets of increasing tourist spending to $125 daily from the existing $48, creating 1m direct jobs in the tourism sector, and increasing the tourism sector’s contribution to national GDP to 10 percent. The plan also aims to bring the tourist numbers to pre-pandemic levels by 2024 and increase arrivals in each subsequent year by 15 percent. The new plan has outlined areas of focus for each year from 2023 to 2032. While 2023 will be the year for preparations, 2024 will be focused on Bagmati Province, 2025 on Gandaki Province, and 2027 on Lumbini Province. In 2028, the focus will be on Madesh Province, while in 2029, 2030, and 2031, Sudur Paschhim, Province 1, and Karnali Province will get the focus. The year 2026 and 2032 will be marked by national-level programs. Unveiling the framework on Friday, Tourism Minister Jeevan Ram Shrestha said that the new plan’s objective is to revive the country’s tourism sector after the two years setback of Covid-19 and establish Nepal as a year-round destination. When Covid-19 hit the world, Nepal had already started the tourism extravaganza of Visit Nepal Year 2020. The campaign, launched to attract two million tourists and earn Rs 200 billion in foreign currency, was formally canceled due to the pandemic. And, what followed was the worst years for the Nepali tourism industry. The tourist arrivals hit a 34-year low in 2020 when only 230,085 foreigners visited Nepal. The next year, the situation was even worse as Nepal received only 150,962 foreigners, the lowest since 1977. In 2019, Nepal had 1.2m tourists visiting the country. Tourism entrepreneurs and experts have cautiously welcomed the government’s new grand plan. Binayak Shah, First Vice president of the Hotel Association of Nepal (HAN) welcomed the government’s move as a good decision. “It is like something is better than nothing,” he said. According to Shah, countries are trying to resurrect their tourism post-Covid. "While the intent is good, it is yet to be seen how the government will work to achieve the targets," said Shah. But, Deepak Raj Joshi, former CEO of NTB has a different opinion and said that the whole concept of organizing a Tourism Year or Tourism Decade is now old-fashioned. “I don’t think tourists will be attracted to this kind of campaign and slogans as we have been using the same formula for around three decades,” he said. The government’s new push for Nepali tourism has come at a time when star hotels have started to generate revenue as tourist arrivals have improved. The number of tourists has started to increase as Nepal welcomed 546,216 foreigners in the first 11 months of 2022. The business of five-star hotels which has slowed down due to the Covid-19 pandemic is also gradually bouncing back. The first quarter report of three hotels listed in the Nepal Stock Exchange (Nepse) shows five-star hotels have increased their business in this fiscal year. Orients Hotel Ltd which owns the five-star property Radisson Hotel has registered revenue of Rs 196.98m in the first quarter of FY 2022/23, compared to Rs 36.50 million in the same period of FY 2021/22. Taragaon Regency Hotels Limited, which operates the Hyatt Regency Hotel has logged a turnover of Rs 181.55 million in the first quarter of this fiscal compared to Rs 53.51m in the same period of the last fiscal. Meanwhile, Soaltee Hotel Limited posted a turnover of Rs 413.27m in the first quarter of FY 2022/23 compared to Rs 123.67m in the same period of the last fiscal. Despite the government’s grand tourism plan, there are still some stumbling blocks that could derail the recovery prospect. For Nepal to get a good number of international tourists in the coming years, the operation of two-recently built international airports is extremely critical. Tourism entrepreneurs agree there is a dire need to improve connectivity if Nepal wants to gain from the post-pandemic period in which tourist inflow is expected to surge. The government has recently started the operation of Gautam Buddha International Airport in Bhairahawa, Lumbini while it is planning a commercial operation of the other one - Pokhara Regional International Airport from 1 Jan 2023. However, stakeholders are skeptical about whether the two new airports will be commercially operational as envisioned. Joshi agrees the government should focus more on connectivity. According to him, the government should focus on strategic plans such as how we could invite more tourists by utilizing the existing resources we have. “The government should focus more on connectivity which I find lacking. For example, we now have three international airports. If we could use them at maximum, 3.5m tourists in 10 years is not a big deal,” said Joshi. Nepal Tourism Decade Target

• Increasing tourist spending to $125 from the existing $48
• Creating 1 million direct jobs in the tourism sector
• Increasing the tourism sector's contribution to national GDP to 10 percent
• Bringing the tourist numbers to pre-pandemic levels by 2024

A meeting held in Balkot has decided to make CPN (Maoist Center) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal the prime minister. The meeting has agreed to give prime minister to the CPN (Maoist Center) and president to the CPN-UML. The meeting of CPN-UML, CPN (Maoist Center), Rastriya Swatantra Party and Janamat Party has decided to make Dahal the prime minister. Before the four-party meeting, UML Chairman Oli and Rastriya Prajatantra Party Chairman Rajendra Lingden had reached an agreement for power sharing. Dahal had reached Balkot after the meeting of the ruling coalition failed to yield a decisive outcome. With this, the Nepali Congress, which had become the largest party from the election, will be the main opposition party.  

CPN (Maoist Center) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal reached Balkot on Sunday. Dahal reached Balkot to meet CPN-UML Chairman KP Sharma Oli after Nepali Congress and Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba refused to give up his claim for the post of prime minister. Though Deuba called Dahal in Baluwatar, instead he went to Balkot. Dev Gurung, Shankar Pokharel, Naryankaji Shrestha and Bishnu Rimal among others are in the meeting. This is the first time that Dahal reached Balkot after the split of the Nepal Communist Party. The ruling coalition meeting had started following a one-on-one meeting between CPN (Maoist Center) Chairman Dahal and Prime Minister and Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba. But, Dahal walked out of Baluwatar after the meeting failed to reach consensus. Deuba had called the Maoist supremo, who had walked out of the meeting saying the coalition had broken apart, in Baluwatar to persuade him for the last time, but he went to Balkot. According to the Article 76 (2) of the Constitution, President Bidya Devi Bhandari had set a deadline of 5 pm today to claim the post of prime minister by securing a majority. The party with the majority will have to submit the claim by 5 pm today. Dahal reached Balkot to hold talks with Oli on a new strategy after the meeting failed to reach an agreement.  

CPN (Maoist Center) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal walked out of a meeting of the ruling coalition held in Baluwatar on Sunday. He, however, refused to give any comments. The ruling coalition meeting had started following a one-on-one meeting between CPN (Maoist Center) Chairman Dahal and Prime Minister and Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba. But, the meeting failed to yield any decisive outcome. According to the Article 76 (2) of the Constitution, President Bidya Devi Bhandari had set a deadline of 5 pm today to claim the post of prime minister by securing a majority. The party with the majority will have to submit the claim by 5 pm today.

The price of gold has increased by Rs 200 per tola in the domestic market on Sunday. According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association, the precious yellow metal is being traded at Rs 100, 500 per tola today. It was traded at Rs 100, 300 on Friday. Meanwhile, tejabi gold is being traded at Rs 100, 000 per tola. Similarly, the silver is being traded at Rs 1, 390 per tola today.

Nepali Congress has started internal discussions after CPN (Maoist Center) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal did not give up his claim for the post of prime minister. Prime Minister and Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba held a meeting with party senior leader Ram Chandra Paudel, Vice-President Purna Bahadur Khadka, leaders Ram Sharan Mahat, Bal Krishna Khand and Bimalendra Nidhi among others on Sunday morning. Leaders have stressed that the Nepali Congress should lead the government in the first phase. Saying that people have given mandate to the Nepali Congress to lead the government, leaders said that that the leadership should not be given to the Maoist Center, who has secured just 32 seats. The leaders held a meeting to make a strategy before the meeting of the coalition. According to the Article 76 (2) of the Constitution, President Bidya Devi Bhandari had set a deadline of 5 pm today to claim the post of prime minister by securing a majority. During a meeting of the coalition held on Saturday, the Nepali Congress and the CPN (Maoist Center) failed to reach an agreement after they refused to budge from their stance. Earlier this morning, Congress leader Nidhi had reached Khumaltar to cajole Dahal. Nidhi had reached Dahal’s residence taking the message of Deuba. The NC leader had urged Deuba to leave his stance of becoming the prime minister. According to a source, Nidhi said that the Nepali Congress will cooperate with the CPN-UML if Dahal did not give up his claim for the post of prime minister. The Nepali Congress started talks with the UML after Dahal through party Deputy General Secretary Barshaman Pun on Saturday warned that they would leave the coalition if he did not get the post of prime minister. Soon after the meeting of the coalition, Prime Minister Deuba sent Nidhi to Balkot on Saturday evening. Nidhi conveyed Prime Minister Deuba’s notice to Oli and also that the Nepali Congress is ready to discuss possible power sharing with the UML.

Nepali Congress has made a last-ditch effort to cajole the CPN (Maoist Center). Congress leader Bimalendra Nidhi held a meeting with Maoist Center Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal at the latter’s residence in Khumaltar on Sunday. According to the Article 76 (2) of the Constitution, President Bidya Devi Bhandari had set a deadline of 5 pm today to claim the post of prime minister by securing a majority. During a meeting of the coalition held on Saturday, the Nepali Congress and the CPN (Maoist Center) failed to reach an agreement after they refused to budge from their stance. On the occasion, the two leaders discussed a new government formation, power sharing and contemporary political issues. Nidhi had reached Dahal’s residence taking the message of Prime Minister and Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba. The NC leader urged Deuba to leave his stance of becoming the prime minister. According to a source, Nidhi said that the Nepali Congress will cooperate with the CPN-UML if Dahal did not give up his claim for the post of prime minister. The Nepali Congress started talks with the UML after Dahal through party Deputy General Secretary Barshaman Pun on Saturday warned that they would leave the coalition if he did not get the post of prime minister. Soon after the meeting of the coalition, Prime Minister Deuba sent Nidhi to Balkot on Saturday evening. Nidhi conveyed Prime Minister Deuba’s notice to Oli and also that the Nepali Congress is ready to discuss possible power sharing with the UML. A source claimed that the duo discussed possible power sharing between the Nepali Congress and the UML.