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Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba and CPN (Unified Socialist) Chairman Madhav Nepal held a meeting at the former’s residence in Dhumbarahi on Wednesday. During the meeting, the duo discussed the election of Speaker. Though the CPN (Unified Socialist) had given a vote of confidence to the Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, the party has not participated in the government. The Nepali Congress is trying to form a new coalition by incorporating Janata Samajbadi Party, Nagarik Unmukti Party and Janamat Party among others. The Congress is trying to form a coalition targeting the elections of Speaker and President. During an all-party meeting held on Tuesday, Prime Minister Dahal had proposed to go together in the elections of Speaker and President also, NC Chief Whip Ramesh Lekhak said. The meeting discussed the issues of President, Speaker, Vice-President. However, the meeting ended without making a concrete decision. The Parliament Secretariat said that the candidates will file nominations for the post of Speaker from 1 pm to 4 pm today.

The CPN-UML has decided to field lawmaker Dev Raj Ghimire for the post of Speaker of the House of Representatives. Though the names of Prithvi Subba Gurung, Chabilal Bishwokarma, Raghuji Pant and Bidhya Bhattarai among others were discussed, the party has decided to make Ghimire the candidate, an office bearer said. He was elected as a member of the House of Representatives from Jhapa-2. According to an agreement made earlier, the CPN (Maoist Center) will take the post of Prime Minister, UML the post of President and share the Speaker’s post on rotation basis. As long as CPN (Maoist Center) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal remains as the Prime Minister from the ruling alliance, the UML will get the post of Speaker. That is why the UML is filing the candidacy from the ruling coalition. Nominations for the post of Speaker of the House of Representatives are being registered today. The Parliament Secretariat said that the candidates should file the nominations from 1 pm to 4 pm. The election for the post of Speaker of the Parliament has been scheduled for 11 am on Thursday.  

The Pokahara air crash has raised questions about aviation safety. In this context, Sunita Karki of Annapurna Post spoke with Raj Kumar Chhetri, former Director General of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal  (CAAN). Can we term Nepali skies unsafe? I would not consider the Nepali skies unsafe. Despite the unfortunate incident that happened on Sunday, it is important to note that we operate around 270-275 flights from Kathmandu every day. In my 33-year experience, I have not seen other countries with a difficult geographical situation like ours. A plane crashed eight months ago too. But that was due to inclement weather. In a mountainous country with weather conditions changing every 20 nautical miles, remote airfields and such, accidents may be more frequent than in other countries. Actually, accidents have gone down in comparison to the past. What do you think are the causes? In the past, a majority of air crashes in Nepal were caused by weather conditions. The country's difficult geography (with high hills and all) as well as some human errors and technical issues are also behind these incidents. There were some weaknesses in our systems earlier. The regulatory body, Civil Aviation Authority Nepal (CAAN), has been working to improve safety and address these issues. Additionally, airline companies are also adhering to safety requirements because a plane crash not only results in loss of life but also causes significant financial losses for the company. International organizations such as the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and the European Union also conduct safety checks. Furthermore, airlines themselves conduct safety audits regularly. Sometimes unfortunate events happen despite measures to improve air safety by reducing risks.  Are recommendations of air crash probe committees implemented? In the past, there were issues with implementation of recommendations from probe committees formed after air crashes. The reports would gather dust, which is not the case today. The government, the Ministry of Tourism and the Civil Aviation Authority Nepal (CAAN) are aware of the importance of these probe committees and their findings. Unlike in the past, only experts are included in the committees these days. Concerned authorities, airline companies and international bodies tasked with addressing non-compliance take the suggestions coming from these committees seriously. Nonetheless, it would be more effective to have a permanent mechanism for investigating air crashes instead of forming probe teams after every incident. Such a body should have the authority to conduct follow-ups on the implementation of recommendations and report instances of non-compliance. This would ensure a more comprehensive and consistent approach to improving safety and would make aviation safer in the long run. Do probe panels blaming human error for air accidents mean that Nepali pilots are not skilled? In the past, human error was often cited as the cause of air accidents because it was easier to blame someone who is not alive. However, this is no longer the case. Nepali pilots are flying in a challenging topography and they are highly skilled and capable, as capable as pilots in any other country. What policies and rules are needed to improve flight safety in Nepal? One key step that should be taken to improve flight safety in Nepal is to unbundle the CAAN into a regulatory agency and a service agency. This would ensure that the regulatory and service functions are separate and that there is no conflict of interest. Additionally, there should be a provision that prohibits inter-agency transfers as they can hinder the performance of employees. People should be appointed on the basis of their skills and past performance. Furthermore, the government should provide all necessary resources and equipment to airports to improve their safety. Airports not handling flights should be closed. https://www.annapurnapost.com/news/our-skies-are-not-safe-223155

The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) gained 37.72 points to close at 2,182.11 points on Tuesday. Similarly, the sensitive index surged by 4.58 points to close at 415. 83 points. A total of 11,883,287 unit shares of 250 companies were traded for Rs 3. 72 billion. Meanwhile, Green Ventures Limited, Adarsha Laghubitta Bittiya Sansthat Limited and People Hydropower Company Limited were the top gainers today, with their price surging by 10. 00 percent. Prabhu Select Fund was the top loser as its price fell by 8.45 percent. At the end of the day, total market capitalization stood at Rs 3. 15 trillion.

Manisha Acharya is a well-known student politician representing ANNISU (Revolutionary). She has recently published her debut novel ‘Chhori’ (daughter). Ever since she read the bestselling novel, ‘Karnali Blues’ by Buddhisagar, Acharya had always wanted to write. Chhori is the result of a rigorous writing routine that lasted three months. Acharya laments that she didn’t ask for feedback once the book was complete. She hopes her readers can be her critics now that the book is out. Birat Anupam caught up with Acharya to talk to her about her reading habits. Do you remember when you started reading? I have been reading for as long as I can remember. I guess I first picked up a book when I was in school. But I read mostly books prescribed by my school or college curriculum. The first non-course material I read was ‘Damini Bhir’. I was doing my bachelor’s by then. I was also recommended some books by Mao, Lenin, and Stalin and I picked those up too. How do you feel about digital books? I prefer physical books to digital ones. I feel it allows my mind to conjure up images more easily. I have recently taken to audiobooks as well. I listened to ‘Cleopatra’. It was great fun. What’s the biggest benefit of being a reader? Reading, I believe, disciplines you. It allows you to have multiple experiences in a single life. You are able to think creatively and come to solutions and conclusions you would have otherwise not gotten to yourself. Which is that one book that has left a lasting impression on you? The best book I have ever read is definitely the Karnali Blues. It was the book that made me want to write. I love everything about it, from the story to the wonderfully fleshed-out characters. How do you choose your next read? I don’t think there are good or bad books. It depends on an individual’s reading preferences. I browse through bookstores when I have the time and pick up what catches my fancy. I don’t have a book-buying budget like many people I know. I just go with the flow. Can you imagine a world without books? This is a very tough question. Even in the stone ages, people inscribed on walls and bamboo. There has always been a need to pass on messages and stories and books are important for that. Books, I believe, are necessary tools to pass ideas down from one generation to the next.

The price of gold has dropped by Rs 100 per tola in the domestic market on Tuesday. According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association, the yellow bullion is being traded at Rs 105, 100 per tola today. The yellow metal was traded at Rs 105, 200 per tola on Monday. Meanwhile, tejabi gold is being traded at Rs 104, 600 per tola. It was traded at Rs 104, 700. Similarly, the price of silver has dropped by Rs 10 and is being traded at Rs 1,390 per tola today.

At a time when the government is struggling to expedite capital spending, new challenges have erupted to increase capital expenditure. According to the Financial Comptroller General Office, the government has spent just Rs 53.45 billion, which accounts for just 14 percent of the allocated capital budget, since the start of the current fiscal year. This rate is similar to FY 2021/22 when the capital expenditure stood at 13.44 percent in the first half of the fiscal year. Though capital expenditure usually picks up in the second half of the fiscal year, the government’s inability to provide resources in a timely manner, shortage of construction materials in the market and liquidity crunch in the banking sector have emerged as major hindrances to accelerating the construction works of development projects. Issuing a circular on January 4, the Ministry of Home Affairs directed all District Administration Offices (DAOs) immediately shut down crusher industries involved in quarrying and processing of stone, gravel and sand, that are operating without registration and operating permits and renewing operating licenses. The ministry also instructed DAOs to investigate and immediately shut down quarry activities that have continued even after the completion of the various development projects, for which the crusher industries and construction businessmen concerned were granted permission to extract stone, gravel and sand. The ministry’s instruction came at a time when the construction activities picked up. It was expected that construction works of development projects would gather pace after disturbances due to the rainy season, festivals and federal and provincial elections. “Now several road projects, particularly the expansion works in Kathmandu valley, have been affected by the shortage of the sands and stones,” said a senior official at the Department of Roads (DoR). “We have been notified about the shortage of construction materials to concerned government agencies.” Past experiences show that the government's attempts to control the crusher operators resulted in a shortage of construction materials making the enforcement of the rules challenging. Contractors handling the construction works of development projects say that most projects are facing a shortage of essential materials like sand and stones following the local administration's efforts to enforce the rules. “Due to shortage of sands, pebbles and stones, their prices have also surged which have been unaffordable for the contractors,” a contractor said. “As much as 80 percent of construction projects have been affected by the shortage of construction materials.” The shortage of construction materials has come at a time when the government has been unable to provide enough resources to government agencies to continue the construction works. “Though we sought additional budget from the finance ministry to make payments to the contractors for the completed works for the last few months, we were told that there is no extra fund available for the payments,” the DoR official said, adding, ”We are now seeking approval from the finance ministry for the transferring budget to these projects from other projects that have not yet started construction works.” Amid the sluggish economic activities in the country, the government is struggling to meet the revenue target. As of January 15, the government's revenue collection stood at Rs 459 billion, which is barely enough to sustain the recurrent expenditure of Rs 455 billion. Contractors say that they are also struggling to borrow money from the banks due to the liquidity crunch in the banking sector to carry on with the construction works after failing to receive payments from government agencies.  

Like the banking sector, the drive for consolidation is also gaining momentum in the insurance sector. While the first two weeks of 2023 were dominated by mergers and acquisitions in the banking sector, the third week saw two merger agreements - one initial agreement and the other final agreement - being signed between insurers. On Sunday, Union Life Insurance Company, and Gurans Life Insurance Company signed a final merger agreement to form Himalayan Life Insurance Company Limited. The final agreement was signed by Sulav Agarwal on behalf of Union Life, Piyush Raj Aryal on behalf of Prime Life, and Vivek Dugar on behalf of Gurans Life. These three companies had inked a preliminary memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the merger on May 12, 2022. The three parties signed the final MoU after the completion of the due diligence audit (DDA) report agreeing on a swap ratio of 1:1:1. Himalayan Life Insurance, which will be formed after the merger, will have paid-up capital of Rs 7.69 billion. It has been agreed that Sulav Agrawal, the current Chairman of Union Life, will be the Chairman of Himalayan Life. Similarly, Manoj Lal Karn, the current CEO of Union Life, will lead the new entity as the CEO. Bipin Kumar Lal, CEO of Gurans Life and Nirmal Dahal, CEO of Prime Life will take the roles of Senior Deputy CEOs in Himalayan Life. The final merger deal between the three life insurers followed the signing of the initial agreement for the merger between two non-life insurance companies- Ajod Insurance and United Insurance - on January 11. The Ajod-United merger initiative has come after Ajod's unsuccessful merger attempt with Prabhu Insurance. United and Ajod agreed on a swap ratio of 100:90. The name of the entity formed after the merger will be United Ajod Insurance. Earlier, Ajod and Prabhu Insurance signed a merger agreement in the last week of July 2022. However, the proposed merger did not materialize as both companies could not agree on the swap ratio. With the Nepal Insurance Authority pushing for a consolidation drive by raising the minimum paid-up capital requirements for both life and non-life insurers, insurance companies have ratcheted their merger initiatives. The authority has increased the paid-up capital of non-life insurance companies to Rs 2 billion while it is Rs 5 billion for life insurance companies. The Nepali insurance sector has already seen two successful mergers in 2022. In July, Himalayan General Insurance and Everest Insurance merged to form Himalayan Everest Insurance Co. Ltd. Similarly, in October, Sanima General Insurance and General Insurance Company merged to form Sanima GIC Insurance Ltd.