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Two persons, who went missing in the landslide at Bagmati Rural Municipality-5, Sikredobhan in Makawanpur, were found dead on Wednesday.

Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) of Makwanpur, Tek Bahadur Karki said that the bodies of two persons among others who went missing in the flood and landslide occurred after incessant rain since Tuesday morning were found on the bank of Bagmati River at Hariharpurigadh Rural Municipality-1, Kokare.

The deceased have been identified as Akkal Bahadur Syangtan (60) and his daughter Sheela Pahari (22).

With this, the death toll has reached three.

Pasang Ghising (17) of Hariharpur Rural Municipality-1, Kokati, Sindhuli, however, was rescued alive on Tuesday evening.

He was rescued from the Bagmati river bank.

Ghising, who was found injured, is being treated at the Hetauda Hospital.

Three people, who were swept away by flood and landslide, are still missing.

Whereabouts of Akkal Bahadur's son-in-law Jeewan Pahari (25), his four-year-old grandson Milan Pahari and one-and-a-half-year-old granddaughter Divya Pahari are still unknown.

Search for the missing is underway with the help of the police and locals, DSP Karki said.

Akkal Bahadur's wife Santamaya (55) was found dead on Tuesday, police said.

Two inmates died under mysterious circumstances in the Sankhuwasabha District Prison on Wednesday.

The deceased have been identified as Binod Tolangi (19) of Modi Municipality and Akash Balami (28) of Kakani Rural Municipality-7, Nuwakot.

DSP Birendra Godar said that the duo were arrested and handed over to the prison administration after they tried to flee from the toilet at around 1 am today.

“Both of them were taken to the hospital after they were found in an unconscious state inside the prison this morning. They breathed their last during the course of treatment at 6 am,” he said.

The bodies have been kept at the morgue of the hospital.

Tolangi and Balami, who were serving the jail sentence in a rape and theft cases, had tried to escape from the prison.

Following the incident, a large number of security personnel were deployed in the premises of the district prison.

A meeting of the District Security Committee is being held at the District Administration Office to discuss the issue.

Chief District Officer Shiva Kumar Karki said that a committee will be formed to investigate the incident.

Property worth around Rs 30 million was reduced to ashes when a fire broke out at the MM Plastic Industry in Biratnagar Metropolitan City-14 on Wednesday.

The fire broke out at the plastic industry belonging to Suyash Pyakurel at around 9 am today, SP Deepak Pokharel of the District Police Office, Morang.

Pyakurel said the inferno that started due to short-circuit destroyed two UPS, 200 batteries, AC, inverter and cable wires among others.

The fire was extinguished with the help of two fire engines of Nepal Police and Biratnagar metropolis after two hours.

SP Pokharel said that they are looking into the incident.

The incessant rain-triggered flooding took the lives of two people in Sarlahi.

As many as 72 people who were swept away by the flood-fed rivulet were rescued on Tuesday evening.

Superintendent of Police (SP) Naresh Raj Subedi said that Bhola Chaudhary (60) of Haripurba Municipality-7, who was swept away by the swollen Banke rivulet of Sarlahi, was found dead.

Chaudhary went missing in the flooded rivulet since Monday evening. His body was found in the Banke rivulet on Tuesday.

Likewise, Sahid Rain Bhat (65) of Gadhimai Municipality-2, Samanpur also died after being swept away by the Bagmati river.

He was rescued and rushed to the hospital but doctors pronounced him dead on arrival.

The Bagmati river flooding also washed away the road section in Samanpur towards Sarlahi.

Meanwhile, security personnel rescued the people who were stuck in the Bagmati river flood.

Chief District Officer of Sarlahi, Indradev Yadav said 70 among the flood survivors were rescued by a team of Nepal Police, Armed Police Force and Nepal Army.

Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) has taken action against three commercial banks that violated the regulatory norms in the last fiscal year.

The central bank has slapped cash penalties to Kumari Bank and Himalayan Bank for not maintaining the 90 percent credit-to-deposit ratio (CD ratio) as per the regulatory norms. 

Kumari Bank was slapped with a cash penalty of Rs 5.96m on non-compliance of the CD ratio in January of the last fiscal year.

Similarly, Himalayan Bank has been slapped with a cash penalty of Rs 13.9m for not meeting the CD ratio in October of the last fiscal year.

The central bank has cautioned the Prime Commercial Bank. According to the NRB officials, the bank has been found to be non-compliant with the loan loss provision. The bank has also been found calculating risk-weighted assets below the actual value and charging interest by increasing the premium rate contrary to the provision of section 100 of the Unified Directives 2079 BS.

The main opposition CPN-UML has demanded formation of a high-level probe committee to investigate the recent gold smuggling case.

The UML said that it would continue its protest until an investigation committee is formed.

Speaking at the Parliament meeting on Tuesday, UML lawmaker Yogesh Bhattarai said that all the lawmakers want the formation of a high-level probe committee.

Saying that the Accounts Committee of Parliament had also drawn the attention of the government towards the formation of the probe committee, he urged the government not to demonstrate “double standards”.

He also demanded voting for the formation of a probe committee.

Highlighting that there is a precedent of forming a high-level probe committee in the big countries like America and India, leader Bhattarai said that the committee is necessary in this case also.

He also gave the example of Sudan and Lalita Niwas land grab case.

“The then chiefs of Nepal Police were brought to book because of the probe committee formed to investigate the Sudan case,” he said, adding, “The door to investigate the former prime ministers in the Lalita Niwas land grab case was opened only after the formation of a probe committee.”

The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) plunged by 28. 40 points to close at 2,019.85 points on Tuesday.

Similarly, the sensitive index dropped by 4. 86 points to close at 385. 56 points.

A total of 4,860,741-unit shares of 265 companies were traded for Rs 1. 73 billion.

Meanwhile, Swarojgar Laghu Bitta Bikas Bank Ltd was the top gainer today with its price surging by 10. 00 percent. Likewise, 10.25% Global IME Bank Ltd. Debenture 2080/81 was the top loser with its price dropping by 9. 00 percent.

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

The CPN-UML, which has been continuously obstructing Parliament over the recent smuggling of 100-kg gold through Tribhuvan International Airport, has agreed to allow the operation of today's meeting of the House of Representatives.

The main opposition party is prepared to allow the today's House session on the condition that Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Narayan Kaji Shrestha will give the government's response in regard to the gold smuggling scam.

The party said that it will protest in case the Home Minister falls short of a commitment to form a high-level committee to probe into the scam. 

Although a meeting of the top leaders of the major parties together with Speaker Devraj Ghimire was held at the Prime Minister's residence at Baluwatar in a bid to remove the obstruction of the House business, it ended inconclusively.

"The House will resume at 3 pm today. The meeting will be allowed to proceed ahead if the Home Minister commits to forming a high-level committee and if not then we will stand up in a gesture of protest," UML Whip Mahesh Bartaula said.

According to him, the main opposition party reached the conclusion to allow the House meeting to listen to the reply from the Home Minister (regarding the main opposition party's demand of forming a high-level probe committee) although the government, meeting of the top leaders of the three parties, is stuck to its stance of not forming the high-level committee.

"The government did not budge from its stance in the meeting. We have allowed the House proceedings to move ahead for listening to the Home Minister's reply despite the government's unwillingness to form the high-level committee," he said, adding that they will listen to the Home Minister's response and will also create a condition in which lawmakers from across the country can put their views in the House.

The UML Whip reiterated that the House meeting scheduled for 3pm will be allowed to proceed ahead and they would not obstruct it.