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Birgunj police have taken under control three trucks with goods passed through illegal channels to Nepal from India.

Police have handed over the trucks along with the seized goods worth around Rs 20 million to the Department of Revenue Investigation in Pathlaiya for investigation, DSP Om Prakash Khanal of the District Police Office, Parsa said.

Khanal said that the trucks (Ba 5 Kha 6558 and Lu 2 Kha 5349) laden with medicines and garments among others were taken under control from Ghantaghar, Birgunj.

Similarly, police said that the truck (Na 4 Kha 4301) carrying medicines among other goods was impounded from Maisthan Chok, Birgunj-8.

Unity for Sustainability, Annapurna Media Network’s climate change dialogue campaign, in association with Save Soil, and VFX Talks organized a panel discussion on the topic ‘Soil and I’ in Kathmandu on June 5.

The event held at Nepal Academy Hall to mark the World Environment Day was aimed at raising awareness about soil degradation in solidarity with the global movement ‘Save Soil’ initiated by Sadhguru, an Indian yogi and the founder of Isha Foundation.  

More than 1,000 people were in attendance to listen to the panelists representing various fields. 

Govinda Prasad Sharma, secretary at the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development, spoke about the importance of soil and the current soil condition in Nepal.

He pointed out that there were good amounts of potassium and phosphorus in Nepal’s soil, but it was deficient in nitrogen content. 

“Nepal’s soil has 1.96 percent of organic content, which is less than the minimum organic content requirement (3 percent) for the soil to be considered healthy,” he said.

Bhawani Rana, former president of Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry, it was high time that the private sector also came to terms with the effects of soil degradation and did the needful to save soil. 

“The private sector can do a lot to prevent soil degradation. It can, for instance, encourage agri-entrepreneurs and relevant government agencies to work together to maintain and improve the soil quality,” she said. 

Actor Rajesh Hamal said just acknowledging that Nepal’s soil quality is unhealthy was not going to make any difference. “It’s time to take action by assimilating the information and knowledge and information we have on our soil,” he added.

The panel discussion was moderated by banker Anil Shah. The program also had musical performances by Pushpan Pradhan, Pema Lama, Arjun Karki, and Manoj Maharjan. 

India's central bank on Wednesday raised its key interest rate to 4.9% from 4.4%, the second such hike in the last three weeks to contain inflation, Associated Press reported.

Reserve Bank of India Governor Shaktikanta Das said the decision was aimed at curbing price increases and mitigating the impact of geopolitical tensions, like the war in Ukraine.

"Upside risks to inflation ... materialized earlier than expected," Das said.

Wednesday's increase follows a 40 basis points rise in May.

The central bank raised its inflation projection for 2022-23 to 6.7% from 5.7% and kept its forecast for growth this year at 7.2%.

The war in Ukraine is giving rise to "newer challenges each passing day which is accentuating the existing supply chain disruptions. As a result, food, energy and commodity prices remain elevated," Das said.

The price spikes have impacted consumer spending, which accelerated to an eight-year high of nearly 7.8% in April, according to official data, according to Associated Press.

India's economy expanded at a 4.1% annual pace in the January-March quarter, following 5.4% growth in the previous quarter. Overall, the economy grew 8.7% in the 2021-22 financial year, slower than the 8.9% estimated by the government.

A speeding bus veered off a narrow mountain road and plummeted into a ravine in a remote area of southwest Pakistan on Wednesday, killing 22 passengers including women and children, a government official said, Associated Press reported.

The accident happened in the district of Qilla Saifullah in Baluchistan province.

Deputy District Administrator Mohammad Qasim said rescuers transported the bodies to a nearby hospital. There were apparently no survivors, he added. Qasim initially said 18 people died in the accident but later added that rescuers retrieved four more bodies from the badly destroyed wreckage of the bus.

He said relatives of passengers who died in the crash were arriving at a hospital to receive their bodies.

The exact cause of the crash was not immediately known.

Authorities said the weather was fine at the time of the crash, and that police officers were looking into possible mechanical problems or human error as witnesses said the bus appeared to be speeding when it lost control and fell into a ravine.

Eyewitness Abdul Ali told The Associated Press by phone that he was traveling on the same road on motorcycle when he saw a small bus going faster, skidding and falling into a ravine, according to Associated Press.

Ali said that after the bus fell people from a nearby village alerted police, who rushed to the scene. He said he then joined rescuers who were transporting bodies to the hospital in ambulances.

Qillah Saifullah is located about 200 kilometers (120 miles) north of Quetta, the capital of Baluchistan province.

Pakistan's President Arif Alvi and other government officials expressed sorrow over the tragic accident, and ordered authorities to make arrangements to deliver the bodies of passengers to their families.

Deadly road accidents such as this one are common in Pakistan due to poor road infrastructure and disregard for traffic laws, as well as poorly maintained vehicles.

In July of last year, a jam-packed bus carrying mostly laborers traveling home for a major Muslim holiday rammed into a container truck on a busy highway in central Pakistan, killing at least 33 people, Associated Press reported.

The Biden administration unveiled a new proposed US economic partnership with Latin America on Wednesday (Jun 8) as regional leaders gathered for a US-hosted summit whose agenda has been undermined by discord over the guest list, Reuters reported.

Seeking to counter China's growing clout, a senior administration official said President Joe Biden is offering America's neighbours to the south an alternative that calls for increased US engagement, including stepped-up investment, strengthening supply lines and building on existing trade deals.

However, Biden's "Americas Partnership for Economic Prosperity," which still appears to be a work in progress, stops short of offering tariff relief and, according to the US official, will initially focus on "like-minded partners" that already have US trade accords. Negotiations are expected to begin in early fall, the official added.

Biden was due to outline his plan in a speech later on Wednesday to formally open the summit, which was originally conceived as a platform to showcase US leadership in reviving Latin American economies and tackling migratory pressures.

But Biden's agenda has been marred by a partial boycott by leaders upset at Washington's decision to exclude Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua from the summit, according to Reuters.

US officials hope the Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles and a parallel gathering of top business executives can pave the way for greater economic cooperation as regional nations grappling with higher inflation work to bring supply chains stretched by the Covid-19 pandemic closer to home.

"It's much better for us ... to have a supply chain here in the Americas than it is for us to be dependant on a supply chain that comes from China," US ambassador to Mexico Ken Salazar told Reuters.

Biden is seeking to press the administration's competitive goals against China with the launch of the new partnership for the region, the US official said.

Washington, which already has a combined trade pact with Canada and Mexico, a collective one with Central America and a series of bilateral agreements in the region, will attempt to develop new customs, digital trade, labour, environmental and corporate accountability standards, according to the official.

The plan would also aim to mobilise investments, revitalise the Inter-American Development Bank, create clean energy jobs and strengthen supply chains whose weakness were exposed by the pandemic.

Still, the Biden administration appeared to be moving cautiously, mindful an initiative that promotes jobs abroad could face US protectionist pushback, Reuters reported.

Sri Lanka's prime minister says the country needs at least $5bn (£4bn) over the next six months to pay for essential goods as it faces its worst economic crisis in more than 70 years, BBC reported.

Ranil Wickremesinghe told parliament the money is needed for basic items such as food, fuel and fertiliser.

In May, Sri Lanka defaulted on its debts with international lenders for the first time in its history.

The country has held bailout talks with the International Monetary Fund.

On Tuesday, Mr Wickremesinghe, who is also the country's finance minister, told parliament that more money was required this year to meet Sri Lanka's basic needs.

He said the island nation, which has a population of around 22 million, requires $3.3bn for fuel imports, $900m for food, $600m for fertiliser, and $250m for cooking gas, according to BBC.

It comes as Sri Lankan lawmakers accepted a $55m loan for fertilisers from India's Exim Bank.

The United Nations also plans to make a worldwide appeal for Sri Lanka, and has pledged $48m for food, agriculture and healthcare, Mr Wickremesinghe added.

He also warned of a slowdown in government payments to businesses and workers across the country, as funds are redirected to pay for food supplies.

"A lot of people will be without food, so the food programme we are initiating will ensure that all families, even if they have no income, they will have food," Mr Wickremesinghe said.

"We can have community kitchens in temples [and] churches to supply the food. The community has to get involved," he added.

The South Asian nation will also try to renegotiate a $1.5bn financial support deal with China, Mr Wickremesinghe said, BBC reported.

Sri Lanka is struggling with its worst economic crisis since gaining independence from the UK in 1948.

The country's economy has been hit hard by the pandemic, rising energy prices, and populist tax cuts.

A shortage of medicines, fuel and other essentials has also helped to push the cost of living to record highs.

Sri Lanka's official rate of inflation, the pace at which prices rise, rose by 39.1% year-on-year in May. At the same time, food prices in its largest city Colombo increased by 57.4%.

Mr Wickremesinghe is set to unveil an interim budget next month, as he faces the challenge of slashing overall government spending while still providing social welfare payments.

Last week, Sri Lanka's agriculture minister called on farmers to grow more rice as he said the country's "food situation is becoming worse".

The government also announced an immediate increase to value added tax (VAT) from 8% to 12%. The move was expected to boost revenue by 65bn Sri Lankan rupees ($181m; £144m). It also said corporate tax would rise in October from 24% to 30%, according to BBC.

People in Thailand can now grow cannabis plants at home and sell the crop after the nation removed marijuana from its banned narcotics list, BBC reported.

The nation is the first to advance such a move in South-East Asia, a region known for its stringent drug laws.

But recreational use is still banned, even though advocates say the easing effectively decriminalises marijuana.

The government is hoping that developing a local cannabis trade will boost agriculture and tourism.

It's even giving away one million cannabis seedlings to citizens to encourage pick-up.

"It is an opportunity for people and the state to earn income from marijuana and hemp," said Anutin Charnvirakul, deputy prime minister and health minister, on his social media accounts last month, according to BBC.

He shared a photo on Facebook of a chicken dish cooked with cannabis, adding that anyone could sell the dish if they followed the rules - the main one being that products must contain less than 0.2% of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the compound that gives users that "high" feeling.

From Thursday, households will be able to cultivate up to six cannabis pot plants at home if they register with authorities, and companies can also farm the plant with a permit. 

Diners will also be able to order cannabis-infused dishes and drinks at restaurants.

Clinics across the country can also more freely offer cannabis as a treatment. Thailand was the first in Asia to legalise medicinal cannabis use in 2018.

However, using the drug for personal use is still illegal. Officials have warned people against smoking in public, saying it's considered a public nuisance and offenders risked arrest, BBC reported.

Under the plan the government says it also aims to release about 4,000 prisoners convicted of cannabis-related offences.

Thailand, with its year-round tropical climate, has long had a history with cannabis which many locals commonly used in traditional medicines.

A wider draft law on cannabis control is currently being considered in Thai parliament. Advocates believe that coming years could see a gradual relaxing on the rules governing use, according to BBC.

Scientists have for the first time found microplastics in freshly fallen Antarctic snow, BBC reported.

Researchers from the University of Canterbury in New Zealand collected samples from 19 sites in Antarctica and each contained tiny plastic fragments.

Microplastics stem from the erosion of plastic materials and are smaller than a grain of rice - sometimes even invisible to the naked eye.

The researchers found an average of 29 particles per litre of melted snow, according to BBC.

They identified 13 different types of plastics and the most common was polyethylene terephthalate (PET), mostly used in soft-drink bottles and clothing. This was found in 79% of the samples.