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Indian Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra is arriving in Kathmandu on a two-day official visit to Nepal on Monday. He is visiting Nepal at the invitation of Foreign Secretary Bharat Raj Paudyal. According to a source, Kwatra, India's former envoy to Nepal, is visiting Nepal to fix the date and agenda of Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal’s India visit. This will be the first stand alone visit of the Foreign Secretary to Nepal since he assumed charge. "The visit is in keeping with the tradition of regular high-level exchanges between the two countries and the priority India attaches to its relations with Nepal under its 'Neighbourhood First' Policy," read a statement issued by the Ministry of External Affairs of Government of India. During the visit, the two Foreign Secretaries will hold discussions on the entire range of multifaceted cooperation between India and Nepal. India has historical and civilizational linkages with Nepal and bilateral cooperation between the two countries has strengthened in the recent years, with several major infrastructure and cross-border connectivity projects completed with India's assistance, the statement read. "This will be an opportunity to further advance out bilateral ties," the statement further read.

The rabble-rousing press conference by Rabi Lamichhane earlier this week has created a schism in Nepali society regarding its perception of the media. On one side are those who are lapping up Lamichhane’s claim that mainstream media is the enemy of the state, that publishers, editors and journalists are guided by corporate greed and are deep in corruption. And then there are others who see his boisterous condemnation of the press as a mere temper tantrum. It was clear that the leader of Rastriya Swatantra Party was angry at the media for covering the story about the validity of the citizenship he furnished to contest the election of Nov 20 last year. The case landed in the Supreme Court and Lamichhane went on to lose his status as Home Minister and Member of Parliament. It was also clear that his ad hominem diatribe filled with personal gripes and insults was aimed at pandering to his supporters. In doing so, he has sown a seed of distrust against the press. This could have a far-reaching impact on democracy, giving rise to politics of populism, where serious journalism is supplanted by misinformation and disinformation, which is taking hold in different parts of the world. In the age of social media, it is far too easy to distort the truth and bend the narrative. The role of traditional media is to bring out the truth, to report and to scrutinize those in power. Nepali mainstream media has been doing just that, and ever so proudly. If anyone, Lamichhane should know this better as a former member of the media fraternity. His TV show was based on the very concept of scrutinizing the powers that be. He should also know that the very media houses, publishers and journalists that he tried to discredit have always played a role of a bulwark to defend democracy and the rule of law. By delegitimizing the press in a Trumpian fashion, Lamichhane has put democracy in peril. He has also betrayed his own supporters, who, disenchanted by old political parties, voted him to power. People who voted for Lamichhane certainly did not want him to act in such a vindictive and bitter manner. That he had presented invalid citizenship to contest the election is true, and the Supreme Court passed down its judgment accordingly. Meanwhile, the media simply did its job and reported the story. Losing the home ministry and parliament seat should have been least of his concern, what with his widespread support base. But his anger and ego got in the way. Rather than fessing up to his transgression, he went on to play the victim card and portrayed the press as his cruel persecutor. Lamichhane’s attempt at incitement and intimidation is thoroughly condemnable. When a leader tries to undermine the credibility of the press, it creates space for propagandists and authoritarians.

The fifth edition of Revamp Nepal 2023 is all set to take place in Chhaya Center, Thamel on 11 Feb 2023. The daylong event will host a diverse lineup of ventures, entrepreneurial initiatives, and prominent business entities currently active in the Nepali business ecosystem, the organizer informed.  The event will provide a platform for participants to directly connect and interact with prospective customers, clients, and partners, and help them promote their products and services.  Jointly organized by FiBRO Nepal and Ideajar Digital in collaboration with Nabil Bank, Revamp Nepal has welcomed Dish Home, E-Beema, Phoenix College of Management, Upaya, Foodmandu, Nepal Airlines, E-sewa, Sysqube Technology, Artseum Production, Grace International Education, UG Cakes, and Ramailo Games as the partners and is supported by Sharing Opportunities, Hilife, and Nepal Young Entrepreneurs’ Forum (NYEF)-Kathmandu chapter.  According to the organizers, the event will host over 70 ventures and expects a footfall of over 7,000 attendees throughout the day.

Kamal Bahadur Shah of the Nepali Congress has been appointed as the Chief Minister of Sudurpaschim Province. Chief Minister Rajendra Singh Rawal-led government was toppled after he failed to secure a vote of confidence today. He submitted the resignation letter to Province Chief Dev Raj Joshi today itself. Later, the Province Chief appointed Shah as the Chief Minister in accordance with Article 168 (3) of the Constitution. Shah also has to seek a vote of confidence within a month.

Sudurpaschim Province Chief Minister Rajendra Singh Rawal failed to secure a vote of confidence in the National Assembly on Thursday. Majority of the lawmakers voted against the motion Rawal tabled in the National Assembly meeting today. After Rawal lost the trust motion, he has automatically been relieved of his post. He was appointed as the Chief Minister from the CPN-UML. Rawal failed to secure the vote of confidence after the lawmakers of the Nagarik Unmukti Party, which had extended support to the government, remained absent in the meeting. The Party has been saying that it would not give a vote of confidence until Resham Chaudhary is released.  

Chief of Army Staff (CoAS) Parshuram Sharma and Chinese Ambassador to Nepal Chen Song held a meeting on Thursday. During the meeting held at the Nepal Army headquarters in Bhadrakali, the duo discussed issues of mutual interest. “Issues related to bilateral relations and mutual interest were discussed in the meeting. This kind of meeting will help further strengthen the ties between the two countries,” read a statement issued by the Nepal Army today. According to a source, they also discussed conducting military drills between the Nepal Army and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army.  

The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) gained 12.45 points to close at 2,182.63 points on Thursday. Similarly, the sensitive index surged by 1.42 points to close at 415. 42 points. A total of 5,648,212 unit shares of 257 companies were traded for Rs 2. 06 billion. Meanwhile, Barahi Hydropower Company Limited was the top gainer today, with its price surging by 10. 00 percent. At the end of the day, total market capitalization stood at Rs 3. 14 trillion.

With the economic slowdown impacting the income of general people, the insured are increasingly resorting to surrendering life insurance policies in recent years. According to life insurance companies, of the total policies they've sold, nine percent have been surrendered. Currently, there are 18 life insurance companies operating in Nepal. The companies have collected a total of Rs 71.65 billion in insurance premiums in the first six months of the current fiscal year 2022/23. However, insurers have surrendered Rs 6.08 billion during this period. As per the statistics of the Nepal Insurance Authority (NIA), 43,715 insurance policies were surrendered in the last six months. Generally, people buy life insurance for a certain period to get covered for the period. As per existing arrangements, the insured can surrender the policy they bought before maturity and take back the amount they paid to the insurers as premiums. Now, the trend of surrendering the policy before the maturity period is increasing, according to insurance companies. People surrendering the policy are paid the premium and bonus amount up to the date of surrender in a lump sum. Last year, NIA changed the arrangements barring buyers of life insurance policies from surrendering before settling the premium payments for three years. In the new rule, insurers cannot issue general life insurance policies for less than five years of maturity. NIA data shows 63,331 policies worth Rs 9.88 billion were surrendered in FY 2020/21. While the authority introduced a new provision to control the cancellation of the policies in FY 2021/22, the same year saw the number of policies surrendered increasing to 81,860 amounting to Rs 12.18 billion. NIA officials estimate if the policy surrender increases at this rate, the number will go up further in the current fiscal year. Insurers say that policy surrenders are basically due to the ongoing economic slump which has hit the income of general people. According to them, high-interest rates, and rising inflation have hit the common people hard, affecting their purchasing power. In most cases, the insured surrenders a life insurance policy to get rid of the burden of the premium amount to be paid to the insurers. An increase in the surrender rate this year could be due to an increased financial burden to the insured caused by increased interest rates of banks and soaring consumer prices, said analysts. According to Manoj Lal Karna, CEO of Union Life Insurance, people are surrendering policies to solve their financial problems. "The growth of the insurance business has been held back in the current fiscal year due to the economic slowdown. We are observing a surge in policy surrender," said Karna. According to him, there has been growth in the number of policies lapse. Policy lapse happens when people do not pay the installment of the premium within the specified time. The government records show that a total of 41 percent of the population now has access to insurance services. However, the case of surrendering the policies is also on the rise.