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The price of gold has increased by Rs 600 per tola in the domestic market on Tuesday.

According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association, the precious yellow metal is being traded at Rs 111, 700 per tola today. It was traded at Rs 111, 100 per tola on Monday.

Meanwhile, tejabi gold is being traded at Rs 111, 050 per tola. It was traded at Rs 110, 550 per tola.

Similarly, the price of silver has increased by Rs 5 and is being traded at Rs 1,465 per tola today.

Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal said that his visit to China will further strengthen the historical relations between the two countries.

During a question-answer program with Prime Minister Dahal at the Parliament meeting on Tuesday, Dahal said that the visit is focused on giving a new momentum to the social and economic development of Nepal.

During the visit, Prime Minister Dahal said that he would stress on the implementation of the agreements reached earlier.

He claimed that his visit would make the trade between Nepal and China easier.

The Prime Minister said that discussions will also be held to make the border operation effective and to open a new border point.

He said that priority will be given to the roads, energy and agriculture sector.

A person died of dengue infection in Kanchanpur on Monday.

The deceased has been identified as Hikmat Khatri (28) of Pachui of Belauri Municipality-8.

Belauri Municipality Chairman Bisham Ram Rana said that Khatri breathed his last during the course of treatment at the Nova Hospital of Dhangadhi in Kailali last night.

Khatri, who had come home from India last week, suffered high fever following which he was rushed to the hospital.

It is not ascertained whether he had dengue before returning home, Chairman Rana said.

Rana has urged all people in the municipality to participate in a search and destroy campaign against dengue-transmitting mosquitoes.

The newly elected Presidents of all the ten committees under the House of Representatives took the oath of office and secrecy on Monday.

Speaker Devraj Ghimire administered the oath of office and secrecy to the unanimously elected presidents amidst a program in Singha Durbar.

Ram Hari Khatiwada has been elected as the President of the State Affairs and Good Governance Committee, Santosh Chalise as the President of the Finance Committee, Arzu Rana Deuba as the President of the Agricultural Cooperatives and Natural Resources Committee. All of them are from the Nepali Congress.

Similarly, Rishikesh Pokharel and Kiran Kumar Sah of the CPN-UML have been elected as the Presidents of the Public Accounts Committee and Women and Social Affairs Committee respectively.

Likewise, Bimala Subedi of the CPN (Maoist Center) has been elected as the President of Law, Justice and Human Rights Committee, Deepak Kumar Singh as the President of Infrastructure Development Committee, Bhanubhakta Joshi as the President of Health and Information Technology Committee, Raj Kishor Yadav as the President of International Relations and Tourism Committee, and Abdul Khan of the Janamat Party as the President of Industry, Commerce, Labor and Consumer Welfare Committee.

The presidents of all the ten committees under the House of Representatives have been elected unopposed.

Ram Hari Khatiwada in the State Affairs and Good Governance Committee, Santosh Chalise in the Finance Committee, Arju Rana Deuba in the Agricultural Cooperatives and Natural Resources Committee from the Nepali Congress have been elected unanimously.

Similarly, Rishikesh Pokharel and Kiran Kumar Sah of the CPN-UML have been unanimously elected as the presidents of the Public Accounts Committee and Women and Social Affairs Committee respectively.

Likewise, Bimala Subedi of the CPN (Maoist Center) has been elected as the President of Law, Justice and Human Rights Committee, Deepak Kumar Singh as the President of Infrastructure Development Committee, Bhanubhakta Joshi as the President of Health and Information Technology Committee, Raj Kishor Yadav as the President of International Relations and Tourism Committee, and Abdul Khan of the Janamat Party as the President of Industry, Commerce, Labor and Consumer Welfare Committee unopposed.

They will take the oath of office and secrecy today itself.

The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) gained 5.09 points to close at 1,998.48 points on Monday.

Similarly, the sensitive index surged by 1.45 points to close at 383. 56 points.

 A total of 3,670,731-unit shares of 279 companies were traded for Rs 998 billion.

Meanwhile, Kutheli Bukhari Small Hydropower Limited was the top gainer today, with its price surging by 10. 00 percent. Similarly, Swabhimaan Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Limited was the top loser as its price fell by 4.38 percent.

At the end of the day, total market capitalization stood at Rs 2. 99 trillion.

The Karnali Chisapani Hydroelectric Project is back in the news with the government preparing to entrust the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) with the responsibility of a new study of the project. 

The 10,800 MW project stands as Nepal’s most ambitious hydroelectric plant to date and will be constructed on the Karnali river. Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal while addressing the program to mark the 38th anniversary of the NEA said that the government is preparing to develop the Karnali Chisapani Project with the involvement of the NEA. 

According to Energy Ministry officials, the government will soon make a formal decision to hand it over to the NEA for further study. Madhu Prasad Bhetuwal, spokesperson at the Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, said that the responsibility for further study of the Karnali Chisapani Project will be given to the NEA through a formal decision. “A formal decision will be made soon,” said Bhetuwal. 

It's been 57 years since the first feasibility study of this project was done in the 1960s. The Japanese company Nippon Koei Co Ltd (NK) did a feasibility study between 1962 and 1966. The study proposed the development of a 1,800 MW run-of-the-river project through the construction of a tall dam at the Chisapani Gorge. 

In 1968, the Snowy Mountain Hydroelectric Authority (SMHA) of Australia further evaluated the finding of the Nippon Koei and recommended enhancing the installed capacity of Karnali Chisapani to 3,600 MW. 

The most recent feasibility assessment for the project was initiated in 1986 and finalized in 1989. A consortium known as Himalayan Power Consultants (HPC), composed of Acres from Canada, Ebasco USA, Shawinigan from Canada, and SNC from Canada, conducted this study, determining the project’s capacity to be 10,800 MW. 

While the project has been in the news many times in the past, successive governments failed to take the project into the implementation stage.

The 2016/17 budget had announced the development of the Karnali Chisapani Multipurpose Project as a tripartite project involving India and China. And, the White Paper issued in May 2018, during the then Energy Minister Barsha Man Pun's tenure talks about conducting a detailed study of the project within five years. 

The planned new study, according to Bhetuwal, is being mulled to ascertain the water flow of the river, and what kind of infrastructure is required. “The issues such as the market for the electricity generated from the project should be studied,” he said. 

The 1989 study had shown that Rs 500bn would be needed to develop the project and around 60,000 people would be displaced.

Earlier studies have shown that Karnali Chisapani Project is technically feasible and financially viable, as a multipurpose project with irrigation and electricity as the main benefits from the project. 

According to Bhetuwal, discussions will be held with India for the construction of this project. “After the construction of this project, not only Nepal will benefit but India will also benefit greatly from the project,” said Bhetuwal. “Therefore, this project will have to be made in cooperation between the two countries. Therefore, we will discuss this further with India.” 

Last year, India's Adani Group also showed interest in this project. However, he said, there is no discussion about it now. The representatives of the Adani Group flew to Kathmandu in April 2022 and met the senior officials of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers’ Office, Investment Board Nepal, National Planning Commission, Ministry of Energy, and NEA. The Adani Group had shown interest in the projects of the Karnali basin including Karnali Chisapani.

Rape-accused cricketer Sandeep Lamichhane has left for Pakistan on Monday to play Asia Cup.

National Sports Council member-secretary Tanka Lal Ghising bid farewell to cricketer Lamichhane from the Tribhuvan International Airport.

The Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) said that he will reach Pakistan via Doha of Qatar.

The Nepali team had left for Pakistan on August 22 to take part in the Asia Cup to be held in Pakistan and Sri Lanka from August 30 to September 17.

The final hearing of Lamichhane’s case was scheduled for Sunday but it was deferred until September 7 due to some reasons.

A 17-member team will be led by Rohit Paudel.

Along with Captain Paudel, Asif Sheikh, Kushal Bhurtel, Lalita Rajbansi, Bhim Sarki, Kushal Malla, Dipendra Singh Airee and Sandeep Lamichhane are in the team.

Similarly, the CAN has included Karan KC, Gulsan Jha, Sompal Kami, Pratish GC, Kishor Mahato, Sandeep Jora, Arjun Saud and Shyam Dhakal in the team.

Nepal are playing the Asia Cup for the first time.

Nepal and Pakistan will play in the inaugural match while Nepal will play against Indian in the second match in Sri Lanka.