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Garbage management is one among many sectors of national life that is directly linked with the right to health, one of the fundamental rights enshrined in the Constitution. Without an iota of doubt, it is the duty of the state to safeguard this and other fundamental rights. Without a doubt, this right is for both the people living at the sources of waste as well as those living close to waste disposal sites. But this right, like other fundamental rights, has remained largely on paper. Waste collection and disposal coming to a halt has ceased to be news despite its serious impact on public health, especially at a time when the threat of coronavirus and other health risks are lurking. Imagine, for example, the situation in the Kathmandu Valley, which is home to millions of people and produces 1, 200 tons of waste daily—15-20 percent of it is recyclable—when waste collection and disposal comes to a halt. Avoiding such a situation requires increased coordination and cooperation between different tiers of the government, including the federal government, Kathmandu Metropolitan City and the local government, communities living close to the disposal sites, political parties as well as security apparatuses. Without a seamless coordination and cooperation, waste management is bound to come to a halt, much to the detriment of a large population. Forget seamlessness in this crucial task, even working coordination and cooperation between the federal government and the KMC seems to be a far cry as a recent, much-publicized spat between Mayor Balen Shah and Singhadurbar shows. Citing indifference on the part of Singhadurbar toward concerns regarding waste management, Mayor Shah has made it loud and clear that KMC will not collect garbage from nerve centers of the state, namely Singhadurbar and the Presidential Palace, unless the center addresses KMC’s concerns. Singha Durbar, on its part, has deemed Shah’s move as irresponsible and reminded him of KMC’s responsibility. This episode has once again shown that garbage management is a multi-lane way requiring all sides to work together for an obstruction-free traffic movement. Apart from concerns of people at the source, people living around disposal sites also have their concerns related to public health and the environment. Addressing conflicting concerns may not be easy, but there’s no shortcut to this problem. More often than not, political parties have faced charges of politicizing issues surrounding garbage management for petty gains. The onus is on them to mend ways and raise genuine concerns of the public. Waste management in urban centers like the valley will require short-term, medium-term and long-term plans. The policy of reducing, reusing and recycling non-degradable waste may help mitigate the problem apart from the promotion of greener alternatives. For now, the onus is on the feuding parties to sit together and prevent the conflict from aggravating further, in the larger interest of the public.

Takatoshi Nakamura, an engineer by profession, has been in the internet services business for over two decades. He currently is the CEO of Cipher-Core, Inc., a Japan-based company that provides information security services, end-to-end protection technology for communication systems and remote authentication technology for internet-of-things (IoT) systems, among others, to its clients across the globe. ApEx talked to Nakamura about the scope of internet business, new technology, security and how Nepal can benefit from it. Excerpts: What is information security? Information security is basically a process to secure information from various kinds of cyber threats such as information theft, fake information, pretending to be someone else, etc. Many technologies and online systems can be manipulated by hackers and engineers try to protect them considering all the loopholes. We have built a system that is secured at the topmost level. Our information security diagnosis software can secure both hardware and software. Why is it important? A lot of things are based on the internet. And, if the internet is not secured, your information is also not secured. And it doesn’t only matter for an individual, but for society, companies, governments and the entire world. In the world of finance, various kinds of automation and networking efforts have been made. However, due in part to inadequate information security technology, there have been huge losses in both internet banking and internet security. Furthermore, the development of quantum computers in recent years is accelerating further weakening information security. However, if perfect encryption, which has been developed in recent years by our company, is used, everything in finance will be safe. Remittances, payments and storage are no exception. How is the global scenario of information security? The powerful countries in this world actually determine the level of information security for ordinary people. They don’t want a higher level of security as it might turn into a security threat to them if terrorist groups start using higher information security. So, as of now, the scenario of this world is the same. All countries and people have almost the same level of information security. How is your company working to counter this situation? We want to break the syndicate and provide the topmost level of information security products to our clients. Many people and organizations have started inquiring about our products and I hope, sooner, we will be able to secure the internet and the information because globally, around USD 2 trillion is annually lost due to breaches of data. I have been inventing internet technologies since 2002. My inventions are ‘Prototype of encryption device’, ‘Encrypted communication remote I/O’, ‘Encrypted communication device (CP-S1)’, ‘Remote Monitoring System for Nagoya city’, and ‘4th generation PV (photovoltaics)’, among others. With all these experiences and experiments, I can guarantee that our company will provide the topmost information security. Can you please explain about your products? We have the ‘Cipher Security Information Security Diagnosis Business’ where we conduct an information security diagnosis for all businesses that handle confidential information, including financial institutions and auditing firms, and provide guidance and support for the implementation of countermeasures using the seven encryption-related products developed by our company. Our company is an IT support business, and we design and sell products as a subsidy application business. We also have the ‘Cipher Tunnel and Cipher Messenger Business’. Information exchange on the internet these days is extremely vulnerable in terms of information security, whether it is email, social networking services (SNS), or cloud storage, and is completely undisclosed to the business operators that provide these tools. This tool provides the ‘Cipher Tunnel’ software for confidential communication and remote authentication functions to all businesses that handle confidential information, such as finance and medical care, as software for users themselves to perform confidential communication and confidential messaging. Currently, we are working on the ‘Cipher Core Securities Platform’ where we are aiming to provide the software that issues and manages ‘digital securities’ with completely confidential storage, communication, and complete remote authentication functions. Real-time settlement of digital securities directly on the internet enables high-speed, high-turnover transactions and contributes to a high-density economy. How can Nepal benefit from information security? If your country has a secure internet, your national security will be in a better position. This will definitely help boost the investment environment in the country. And if your country uses our products, we will help develop your own application, product, technology and system. You can then sell those products to other countries, which will boost the national economy. Nepal will be a showcase for all the products with better internet infrastructures. It will also need a complete internet which should be strong enough and non-breakable. How will the internet connect the world as a global village? Since the opening of the internet for the private sector in the early 1990s, text, music, images and video have crossed all boundaries in an instant. The first stage of the internet has permeated every corner of the world as an ‘Information Service Platform’. Human activity is not limited to information exchange. Business transactions on the internet have also exploded and have fundamentally changed conventional business practices. When we will be more safe and secure to communicate and share our things, it will automatically help to form a global village with shared values.

Nepal reported 106 new Covid-19 cases on Thursday. According to the Ministry of Health and Population, 541 swab samples were tested in the RT-PCR method, of which 64 returned positive. Likewise, 947 people underwent antigen tests, of which 42 were tested positive. The Ministry said that no one died of the virus in the last 24 hours. The Ministry said that 74 infected people recovered from the disease. As of today, there are 435 active cases in the country.

The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) plunged by 29. 08 points to close at 1,934.47 points on Thursday. Similarly, the sensitive index dropped by 29. 07 points to close at 1,934.47 points. A total of 4,913,702-unit shares of 270 companies were traded for Rs 1. 65 billion. Meanwhile, Adarsha Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Limited, Kalinchowk Darshan Limited and Molung Hydropower Company Limited are the top gainers today with their price surging by 10.00 percent. Likewise, Siddharatha Investment Growth Scheme is the top loser with its price dropped by 5. 50 percent. At the end of the day, the total market capitalization stood at Rs 2. 81 trillion.

Two years after it exited from Nepal, IHG Hotels & Resorts, the British multinational hospitality company, is again entering the country with a larger presence. This time, IHG has tied up with Shangri-La Hotel and Resort Group, one of Nepal's leading hospitality groups, with a management agreement to develop four new hotel properties in Nepal. Earlier, IHG was in a management partnership with the five-star Soaltee Hotel that ended in May 2021. The new hotels under the partnership with Shangri-La Group are InterContinental Kathmandu, Lazimpat, Hotel Indigo Pokhara, Gharipatan, InterContinental Resort Pokhara, Begnas Lake, and InterContinental Resort Chitwan, Meghauli. The agreement will see IHG adding close to 500 rooms to its portfolio in Nepal. Two of IHG's global brands, InterContinental and Hotel Indigo will also make their debut in the Nepali market. Currently under construction, the new hotels are scheduled to open in the next 1-4 years. According to Sudeep Jain, Managing Director, South West Asia, IHG Hotels & Resorts, the strategic location of all four hotels in different key tourism destinations of Nepal provides IHG with a great opportunity to offer world-class hospitality. “We are delighted to introduce two of our leading brands from the luxury and lifestyle portfolio, InterContinental Hotels & Resorts and Hotel Indigo, to Nepal," said Jain. Prasidha B. Panday, Chairman of Shangri-La Hotel & Resort Group said that partnership with IHG to open four new hotels will help to offer world-class hospitality to guests at a time when travel to Nepal has increased exponentially. "All new hotels will be located in top tourism hubs, and we expect to benefit from the strength and scale of IHG’s global systems, technology, and a strong loyalty program,” said Panday. InterContinental Kathmandu Lazimpat will be redeveloped on the same site as Shangri-la Kathmandu Hotel, which is one of the iconic hotels of Nepal. The Hotel Indigo Pokhara is located in Pokhara’s Gharipatan area and features 100-rooms The InterContinental Pokhara Begnas Lake is an 80 rooms hotel. Similarly, the InterContinental Resort Chitwan is located in the popular tourist destination of Mehgauli. The resort will feature 80 rooms. Of late, the IHG Group is expanding its presence in Nepal. In March 2021, the group signed a management agreement with the Swornim Hotel Pokhara Pvt. Ltd. to develop the Holiday Inn Express Pokhara Lakeside.

The inquiry commission formed by the government to probe the issues of loan shark victims is preparing the necessary paperwork to start the field study. A Cabinet meeting on April 3 had formed the commission under the leadership of the former Chairman of the Special Court, Gauri Bahadur Karki. Former Assistant Inspector General of Nepal Police Uttam Bahadur Subedi and former Deputy Attorney General Ganesh Babu Aryal are the other members of the commission. The cabinet meeting also decided to establish the office of the high-level commission in Janakpur, the capital of Madhesh Province, as it will be easier for the victims to share their problems. Most of the loan shark victims are from districts of the Terai region. “We are preparing the complaint form to be filled by the loan shark victims,” said a member of the commission. “We will soon open the office in Janakpur and start receiving complaints.” The commission member also said that during the investigation, the money lenders would also be given the right to provide their explanations regarding the complaints of the victims. “In order to take complaints, we also have plans to open complaint desks in different districts as well,” the member said. The commission has been given a three-month deadline to prepare a concrete and practical report and recommend solutions to resolve the problems of loan shark victims. The government’s decision came two days after it reached a five-point agreement with a group of loan shark victims on April 1. The two sides also reached an agreement to expedite the process to amend the laws to criminalize unscrupulous lending. They also agreed to recommend to the government the formation of a district-level coordination/facilitation committee led by the chief district officer to address complaints related to loan sharking. A senior official of the Home Ministry said that the Law Ministry is drafting an amendment law that would criminalize loan sharking, a promise that the government made to the agitators. Currently, loan sharking is essentially categorized as an offense under the civil code. In this condition, the victims have to fight the deep-pocketed loan sharks alone. However, the acts of blackmailing, extortion, and other exploitations in the guise of loan sharking fall under criminal offenses. A report prepared by a task force formed by the government last year after a similar agitation launched by loan shark victims pointed out how the case filed by the loan sharks against the borrowers put the borrowers at a disadvantage. According to the report, loan sharks tend to file court cases based on the documents borrowers signed on terms dictated by loan sharks. As the loan sharks seek to recover the loans legally, the victims are often denied access to the court process. Even though the state has guaranteed people’s access to legal services for free by introducing a law, the loan shark victims are unaware of such provisions, according to the report. While a group of the loan shark victims returned home after signing an agreement, another group of victims hit the streets of Kathmandu. The government is negotiating with them too to address their demands.  

Commercial banks have decided to reduce the interest rate on fixed deposits to single digits. A meeting of the Nepal Bankers' Association (NBA) on Wednesday decided to lower the deposit interest rate effective from April 14, the Nepali new year 2080 BS. Over the past year, interest rates have been a subject of much debate and controversy with the business community, in particular, blaming high borrowing as one of the main reasons for the current economic slowdown in the country. In March, NBA fixed the interest rate on fixed deposits for individual depositors at 11 percent. Under huge pressure from the private sector, the association of bank CEOs has decided to reduce it to 9.99 percent for individual depositors effective from the new year. Similarly, the interest rate for institutional deposits will come down to 7.99 percent from the current 9 percent. The NBA has decided to reduce the interest rate of institutional and individual term deposits by 1.01 percentage points. Similarly, interest rates on savings account deposits have been set at a minimum of 5.40 percent to a maximum of 7.40 percent. Currently, the interest rate for savings account deposits ranges from a minimum of 6 percent to a maximum of 8 percent. Likewise, the interest rate on call deposits has been lowered to 2.7 percent from 3 percent at present. With this decision of the bankers, the interest rates on deposits will come to single digits after 11 months. The deposit interest rate was 9.96 percent in May last year which increased to 10.12 percent in June. The interest rate on deposits kept on increasing until January this year. Since January, banks have been lowering deposit interest rates for each month except for March. Considering the severe shortage of investment-grade liquidity in the financial system seen since last year, interest rates on both deposits and lending kept on rising. With the liquidity situation easing in the past 5-6 months, banks are in a better position in terms of liquidity management. The high interest rate has increased the cost of funds for banks. In addition, the demand for loans declined sharply as economic activities slowed dramatically. Currently, banks have around Rs 200 billion of investible funds. Lending rate also to decrease The lending rate is also expected to come down after NBA slashed interest rates on deposits. The cost of funds banks is high due to the interest rate of deposits. In that case, if the cost comes down, the base rate will also be reduced, and thus, the lending rate will decrease automatically. However, it may take some time before the lending rate comes down. Bankers say the lending rate will be set according to the previously reduced deposit interest rate for now. Banks have been calculating the base rate on a quarterly basis. and the last quarter of the current fiscal year starts from Baisakh. This way, the effect of the interest rate cut in Baisakh will be seen in Shrawan (July-August). The banks will also have to reduce the spread rate to 4 percent by the end of Ashad (mid-July) which is currently 4.4 percent. The Nepal Rastra Bank has instructed the banks to lower the spread rate to 4.2 percent by the end of Chaitra (mid-April) and 4 percent by the end of Ashad. As a result, bankers say that the lending rate will decrease. The private sector has been demanding to slash the interest rate. In response, the government has said that the demand of the business community will be met. Speaking at the 57th General Assembly of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry on Tuesday, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal and Finance Minister Dr. Prakash Saran Mahat also assured to reduce the interest rate. However, on the same day, NRB Governor Maha Prasad Adhikari said in a press meet that the interest rate will be determined by the market and not by the central bank.

The gold is being traded at Rs 110, 800 per tola in the domestic market on Thursday. According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association, tejabi gold is being traded at Rs 110, 250 per tola. Similarly, the silver is being traded at Rs 1,450 per tola today.