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President Bidya Devi Bhandari said that the country has lost a parent with the death of veteran culture expert and historian Satya Mohan Joshi. She expressed her grief over the death of a centenarian cultural expert. Joshi passed away on Sunday at the age of 103 on Sunday. He breathed his last during the course of treatment at the Gwarko-based Kist Medical College this morning. According to a source at the hospital, he passed away at 7: 09 am today. Joshi, who had been suffering from prostate and heart-related ailments for the past many years, was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the hospital on October 10. Joshi was also suffering from pneumonia and was also found infected with dengue during the blood test. Earlier, he had announced to donate his body to the hospital after his death. Although Joshi’s health condition looked like it was improving in the initial few days of his hospitalization, it deteriorated later on. The KIST Medical College had been providing Joshi and his spouse free medical treatment. Born in 1919 in Patan, Joshi is celebrated for his achievements in the field of literature, history, and culture with more than 60 books on music, drama, culture, and history to his credit. Some of his prominent publications include Hamro Lok Sanskriti (Madan Puraskar in 1956); Nepali Rastriya Mudra (Madan Puraskar of 1960); Karnali Lok Sanskriti (a research collection); Charumati, Sunkeshari, Majipha Lakhe, Bagh Bhairab (dramas) Joshi is a three-time recipient of the Madan Puraskar for his work on folk studies, Nepali numismatics and the traditions of the Karnali region, Joshi is a name among Nepalis that elicits respect, honor and reverence. He is an institution in himself. Joshi’s contribution to Nepali culture, art and history are huge. He founded the Rashtriya NachGhar as part of his effort to keep Nepali culture and art alive. He has been honored with an honorary Doctor of Literature degree by the Kathmandu University. He set up the Araniko White Dagoba Gallery in Kirtipur, Kathmandu, using historical artifacts related to Araniko, a Nepali sculptor and architect of ancient Nepal who built the White Pagoda in China. The Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) issued three new coins of denominations Rs 100, Rs 1,000 and Rs 2,500 in September 2019, featuring Joshi’s portrait, to commemorate his 100th birthday. On 17 November 2021, Joshi became the first person to receive Nepal’s electronic passport. Joshi was working as the chancellor of the Nepal Bhasa Academy.  

Ahead of the elections scheduled for November 20, media experts have called on journalists to abide by  ethical standards and give proper space to concerns of voters. “Free and fair election reporting contributes to public understanding. Hence, media persons must avoid partisan reporting,” said Chairperson of Media Action Nepal Laxman Datt Pant at a workshop organized in Butwal, Lumbini Province, on Saturday on fair media coverage of the upcoming elections. “Be it in the time of elections or during normal circumstances, the perennial mantra is accuracy, balance and credibility,” he said, adding that journalists should adhere to the standards of ethical reporting to promote inclusive content. Another speaker at the event, Editor of Annapurna Express Kamal Dev Bhattarai, noted that media have a role to question the authority to safeguard citizens' rights to vote. The upcoming elections is an opportunity for journalists to promote plural voice, he added. Similarly, Editor of Health TV Online Kalpana Acharya, another facilitator of the workshop, said journalists have a great role in making elections free, fair and inclusive. “For this to happen, there must not be any scope for media sensationalism.” A total of 25 journalists of Lumbini Province attended the workshop, the fifth in a series ahead of the federal and provincial elections organized by Media Action Nepal with support from the Canada Fund for Local Initiative (CFLI). As the country is gearing up for the November 20 elections, the workshop is being held in all seven provinces with an aim at promoting ethical journalism and journalistic code of conduct as well as countering disinformation to promote free, plural and fair elections.

Veteran culture expert and historian Satya Mohan Joshi passed away on Sunday. He was 103. He breathed his last during the course of treatment at the Gwarko-based Kist Medical College this morning. According to a source at the hospital, he passed away at 7: 09 am today. Joshi, who had been suffering from prostate and heart-related ailments for the past many years, was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the hospital on October 10. Joshi was also suffering from pneumonia and was also found infected with dengue during the blood test. Earlier, he had announced to donate his body to the hospital after his death. Although Joshi's health condition looked like it was improving in the initial few days of his hospitalization, it deteriorated later on. The KIST Medical College had been providing Joshi and his spouse free medical treatment. Born in 1919 in Patan, Joshi is celebrated for his achievements in the field of literature, history, and culture with more than 60 books on music, drama, culture, and history to his credit. Some of his prominent publications include Hamro Lok Sanskriti (Madan Puraskar in 1956); Nepali Rastriya Mudra (Madan Puraskar of 1960); Karnali Lok Sanskriti (a research collection); Charumati, Sunkeshari, Majipha Lakhe, Bagh Bhairab (dramas) Joshi is a three-time recipient of the Madan Puraskar for his work on folk studies, Nepali numismatics and the traditions of the Karnali region, Joshi is a name among Nepalis that elicits respect, honor and reverence. He is an institution in himself. Joshi’s contribution to Nepali culture, art and history are huge. He founded the Rashtriya NachGhar as part of his effort to keep Nepali culture and art alive. He has been honored with an honorary Doctor of Literature degree by the Kathmandu University. He set up the Araniko White Dagoba Gallery in Kirtipur, Kathmandu, using historical artifacts related to Araniko, a Nepali sculptor and architect of ancient Nepal who built the White Pagoda in China. The Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) issued three new coins of denominations Rs 100, Rs 1,000 and Rs 2,500 in September 2019, featuring Joshi's portrait, to commemorate his 100th birthday. On 17 November 2021, Joshi became the first person to receive Nepal's electronic passport. Joshi was working as the chancellor of the Nepal Bhasa Academy.    

Perfect restaurants are hard to find in Kathmandu. If the seating is good, chances are the menu is limited. If the menu has a wide variety of options, you might not like the ambience. Some places don’t serve breakfast food after noon, and you might be in the mood for pancakes and eggs at say 4pm. It’s always a toss between this or that while choosing a place to eat and chill. Hunger Hub in Baneshwor, Kathmandu, is one of the best places we have come across. It has every food item you could think of and the seating arrangements are such that you can sit outdoors, indoors, or in a cozy corner if that’s what you prefer. That’s not it. There’s a bar area and big dining spaces, perfect for large family gatherings or meetings. The food is delicious here. We recommend Timur Chicken. It’s tangy, spicy and juicy. Though timur (Sichuan pepper) is the main ingredient, the burst of flavors is due to just the right combination of spices. Another equally good starter is Buff Sadeko. Red meat marinated in a mixture of different spices, this dish is what you might want to order to kick start your meal. Or you could try the nachos. Trust us when we say it’s one of the best we’ve had so far. Also, the momos, served with two different achars, deserve a special mention.   There’s a lot of good food at Hunger Hub. But what’s even better is that since it’s a pretty large place, you can come alone or with friends and hang out for a while, with a book or a cup of coffee. The service is a bit slow but that’s a small complaint compared to how they have managed to get everything else just right. We’ve been to Hunger Hub twice in the last couple of months. And we will definitely be going back to try the dishes we haven’t had a chance to sample yet. Their specials

• Timur chicken
• Buff sadeko
• Nachos

I’m a 19-year-old guy with a sibling who is nine years younger than me. If I’m to be very honest, I cannot get along with him at all. I love him but every time we are together all we do is fight. My parents are always scolding me for everything, even when it’s my brother’s fault. I feel unloved. It’s proving to be quite difficult for me to adjust with my family. Sometimes, I just want to run away. But more than that I’m scared of resenting my brother. I don’t want to but the more time I spend with him, the more I start hating him. How do I deal with this feeling? Please help!—An angry brother Kapil Sharma, Counseling Psychologist, Nepal Institute of Mental Health Fights, misunderstandings and blame games are common in siblings. It’s even more normal when there’s a big age-gap between the two. As a 19-year-old, you are psychologically in that stage of life when there is a lot of confusion and conflict. You are creating your own identity and developing your sense of self as well as exploring your role in your relationship with your loved ones. Whereas your brother is in the stage where he is fighting inferiority, that is he learns the sense of competency by doing tasks and feeling inferior if he fails. It’s important to understand that you both have different psychological needs and acknowledging this is the first thing you can do to develop a better bond. Next, try and understand what causes fights between you two. Is it related to a specific thing or is it regular, daily life concerns? When you figure when and where you fight, then you can work on the why aspect of it, which is the most important. It could be because you feel ignored or your brother doesn’t act according to your expectations. Once you understand the reason behind your problems, you can work on fixing it. It’s important that you two don’t blame or try to mold each other but give each other some space instead. Then it’s also important to communicate with your parents. They will stop scolding you once they see where you are coming from and how hard you are trying to work things out. In our society, it’s common for elder siblings to get blamed for the mistakes of the younger ones. That doesn’t make it okay but knowing you aren’t in this alone, or being singled out can help you manage your emotions. Perhaps, you can ask your parents what they would do had they been in your shoes? Tell them how you are feeling and ask them to understand you. A person is never the problem. It’s his/her behavior, related to a specific thing, that’s the issue. Try to detach yourself from the problem and deal with it. It will help you understand others as well as yourself. Ask before you assume, connect before communicating, respond, don’t react, listen, don’t interrupt and try to help, not blame. If you struggle with processing your emotions, you can also visit a psychologist or psychosocial counselors who can help you manage it better.

The 32nd annual report of the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) reveals an alarming corruption situation in local bodies. Of the total complaints related to corruption received by the CIAA, 33.14 percent was related to corruption in local bodies followed by the offices related to the education sector. At the provincial level, Madhes is the most corrupted in terms of both data and public perception. Of the total complaints recorded, 28 percent were related to Madhes.  Government data and various surveys show corruption is more prevalent at the local level than at the center. Two years ago, the CIAA conducted a 15-district survey aimed to study the public perception of corruption. Of the 3,000 respondents, 67.6 percent reported increased corruption at local units and 14.9 percent said they paid bribes to officials to get things done. Respondents said corruption had increased after the formation of local units in 2017. Nepal elected representatives for 753 local governments for the second time in May this year. These subnational entities have no doubt become instrumental in providing services to the people and decentralizing power. But they are also becoming breeding grounds for corruption. Misuse of resources in local bodies has become a major source of income for political parties. Candidates of local governments are known to spend millions of rupees on their election campaigns.  Political protection of corrupt officials and party supporters, opaque election financing and toothless law enforcement agencies have all contributed to corruption culture. Everyone knows corruption is rife in local bodies but no one seems bothered about it. Constitutionally, the CIAA, as an anti-graft agency, is responsible for monitoring and controlling corruption. But the highly centralized agency can hardly do anything to monitor the goings-on in municipal offices. The CIAA is essentially receiving complaints when they are made. It is not working proactively to stem bribery and financial misappropriations at the local level.   The anti-corruption body is also ineffective due to heavy politicization. In many cases, it has shown reluctance to investigate large-scale corruption scandals linked to political parties and their leaders.  Time has come to think about a new mechanism to monitor and check malpractices in local governments. Unchecked corruption is already crippling local governance. 

CPN-UML Standing Committee member and Madhes Pradesh deputy in-charge Prabhu Sah, Rautahat district in-charge Upendra Sah and deputy in-charge Kundan Kushahawa have been expelled from the party. Issuing a statement, UML General Secretary Shankar Pokharel said that they were expelled from the party for carrying out anti-party activities. Meanwhile, party deputy in-charge Uddhav Regmi has been given the responsibility of Rautahat district in-charge. Secretary General Pokhrel has requested Regmi to carry out the assigned responsibility successfully. On top of that, the Rautahat District Committee of the UML has been dissolved. UML Madhes Pradesh Committee Chairman Ram Awatar Yadav dissolved the Rautahar District Committee headed by Tribhuvan Sah.

Madhes Pradesh Chief Minister Lal Babu Raut sacked three ministers of Nepali Congress on Friday. Physical Infrastructure Development Minister Ram Saroj Yaday, Women, Children, Youth and Sports Minister Birendra Prasad Singh and Drinking Water and Energy Development Minister Om Prakash Sharma were sacked today. Chief Minister Raut removed NepaIi Congress ministers and Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba sacked four ministers of the Janata Samajbadi Party that joined hands with the CPN-UML in the upcoming elections from the federal government on Wednesday evening.