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I’m a 24-year-old woman and my relationships don’t last, be it with friends or a romantic partner. Everyone wants to maintain distance with me. I think part of the problem is me, but I don’t know what to do. A lot of them have told me I victimize myself a lot and don’t like to take accountability for my mistakes. I know that’s true. But I can’t bring myself to admit it or work on myself. What should I do?—A troubled woman Answered by Dristy Moktan, psychosocial counselor, Happy Minds Accepting one’s own shortcomings isn’t easy. It takes a lot of courage to come to a conclusion that you might have to work on yourself in order to mend your relationships with others. But the good thing is you’re trying to improve, not everyone is willing to do so. You need to dig deeper into why the problems exist in the first place. Analyze your reactions to certain situations. Try figuring out why you act the way you do. Maybe that will give you an idea on where you can start working on yourself. Sometimes, what you do might be your way of defending yourself from getting hurt. Or there might be some underlying issues, for instance childhood traumas. So figuring out the core problem will help you find better solutions. Maintaining relationships should go both ways. So you also need to communicate with other people. Talk to them and share what you feel. This can make the relationship even better. Communicating and understanding each other’s feelings can lead to a fulfilling relationship. Also, try keeping realistic goals when it comes to maintaining relationships. For instance, you can’t expect someone to be there for you all the time. So, set a goal that’s achievable for the both of you. Focus on the things that are under your control. Having said that, before trying to fix relationships with others, it’s always important to have a good relationship with oneself. Be aware of what you need to work on. Spend quality time with yourself. Good relationship with oneself will always help you to better understand your relationship with others.

Chinese Ambassador to Nepal Chen Song paid a courtesy call on Prime Minister Puspa Kamal Dahal on Monday. Ambassador Chan reached Baluwatar at 9:30 am today to meet the Prime Minister. During the meeting, they discussed BRI projects and the recently concluded Dragon Festival in Pokhara. On the occasion, Prime Minister Dahal’s China visit was also discussed. Though the date has not been fixed, the Foreign Ministry and Chinese Embassy are preparing for the visit, a source said.  

The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority filed a corruption case at the Special Court against Pradeep Dhakal, the then member secretary of the Pashupati Area Development Trust. The corruption watchdog on Monday filed a corruption case against Dhakal on the charge of illegally amassing property amounting to Rs 1.44 million. The Commission claimed that the property details he presented in accordance with the prevailing law while holding a public post are nonpareil and unnatural. In addition to that, the CIAA claimed that he acquired the property illegally by misusing the public post.    

The country’s major metropolitans brought their budget for the fiscal year 2023/24 on Sunday. The Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) presented a budget of Rs 25.54bn, in which Rs 7.34bn has been allocated for the construction and improvement of the public infrastructure within the metropolis. The KMC budget presented by Deputy Mayor Sunita Dangol has earmarked Rs 1bn for the ‘dust-free Kathmandu’ campaign. KMC has allocated Rs 70m for solid waste management in the upcoming fiscal year. Additionally, KMC has allocated Rs 3.8bn for the Metropolis Pride Project, focusing on 10 thematic areas. And, Rs 2bn has been earmarked for 25 thematic sector schemes under the Metropolis Golden Project. Lalitpur Metropolitan City (LMC) has unveiled a Rs 6.50bn budget for the next fiscal year. Deputy Mayor Manjila Shakya who presented the budget, said that Rs 4.21bn has been allocated for capital expenditure. Bharatpur Metropolitan City has brought a budget of 6.317bn for the fiscal year 2023/24. Presenting the budget, Deputy Mayor Chitrasen Adhikari said that resources have been allocated for areas such as procurement of disaster materials, proper storage, manpower mobilization, risk reduction program, relief distribution, and rehabilitation. Biratnagar Metropolitan has made public a budget of 3.28bn for the upcoming fiscal year. The budget has allocated Rs 1.65bn for infrastructure development, Rs 852m for social development, and Rs 679.4m for the education sector. Butwal Sub-metropolitan has brought a 2.36bn budget for FY 2023/24. The budget presented by Deputy Mayor Savita Devi Aryal has given priority to social development and infrastructure.

Two persons drowned in a well at Om Bahal in Kathmandu. The deceased have been identified as Dipen Limbu (36) of Jhapa and Jitesh Gurung (22) of Sindhuli, SP Sitaram Rijal, spokesperson at the District Police Range, Kathmandu said. He said that the incident occurred when they were trying to pull out a motor which fell into the well while drawing the water. When Limbu, who had gone into the well to pull out a water motor, could not come out, Gurung went to save him but lost his life as well. Rijal said that the bodies have been sent to the Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital for postmortem.  

Around three dozen hydropower projects have been worst hit by the recent flood that hit Eastern Nepal last week. The rain and flood of June 16 and 17 in four districts damaged 30 hydropower projects creating a loss of Rs 8.5bn. A preliminary study carried out by Independent Power Producers Association Nepal (IPPAN) shows 30 hydropower projects with a combined capacity of 463 MW were damaged by the floods in Taplejung, Panchthar, Sankhuwasabha, and Bhojpur districts in the third week of June. According to IPPAN, of the 30 projects, 17 were under-construction projects. Among the projects that were already operating, the Lower Hewa Khola sustained the biggest loss. The 22.1 MW project has been the worst hit; it suffered a loss of Rs 1bn due to the flood. IPPAN has claimed that the 25 MW Kabeli B-1 Project suffered damage of Rs 500m. In terms of damage to physical infrastructure, the 4.7 MW Upper Piluwa-2 Hydropower Project has been the worst hit. According to Deepak Khadka, president of Menchiyam Hydropower which developed the Upper Piluwa-2, the project has suffered a loss of Rs 900m. Khadka said that the physical structures such as headworks, pipe alignment, and powerhouse have been completely damaged and it will take more than two years for the reconstruction of the project. The 14.9 MW Hewa Khola Project has suffered a loss of Rs 950m. IPPAN has said that 17 under-construction hydropower projects with a combined capacity of 327 MW suffered losses of over Rs 2bn due to floods. Among the under-construction projects, the most damage was seen in the Super Hewa Khola Project with estimated losses of Rs 800m. The construction work of the Super Hewa Khola Project was 90 percent completed before the flood hit it badly. Harka Bahadur Tamang, chairman of the project, said it will take two years to complete the project now. Similarly, the 97.5 MW Isuwakhola Hydropower Project and 9.7 MW Ingwa Khola Hydropower Project sustained damages of Rs 500mn each. IPPAN is preparing to present the details of the losses to the Prime Minister, Finance Minister, Energy Minister, NRB Governor, and Nepal Insurance Authority Chairman. IPPAN President Ganesh Karki has written a letter to Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal on Friday, seeking time to present the details of damages done by the flood.

The price of gold has increased by Rs 200 per tola in the domestic market on Monday. According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association, the precious yellow metal is being traded at Rs 110, 400 per tola today. The gold was traded at Rs 110, 200 per tola on Sunday. Meanwhile, tejabi gold is being traded at Rs 109, 850 per tola. It was traded at Rs 109, 650 per tola. Similarly, the silve is being traded at Rs 1,365 per tola today.

A Moldovan man has been arrested in possession of eight kg hashish from Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) on Sunday. The man with passport number 059627335 was about to board a Turkish Air flight (727) to Switzerland via Istanbul when police arrested him with 8. 7 kg hashish during a security check. According to a source, police apprehended him from the departure hall of the TIA. He has been taken to the Drug Control Bureau for investigation.