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Ratna Mandir, the Lake­side palace where mem­bers of the royal family used to stay when they vis­ited Pokhara, is yet to open for public. Two years ago, Nepal Trust had decided to transform Ratna Mandir into a museum and started prelim­inary works such as painting, cleaning up the locality and printing entry tickets. But the palace is still not ready. Nepal Trust had planned to open Ratna Mandir as a museum by June 2016. Sur­rounded by tall walls on three sides, the palace is in the middle of the Fewa Lake, which makes it a place of great curiosity for locals and for­eigners alike.

The engineer of Nepal Trust Srikant Bhattarai revealed that Ratna Mandir could not be developed as a museum as the Ministry of Finance had failed to pony up the needed amount. He said that although an estimated Rs 50 million would be required, the minis­try has not set aside any bud­get for it.

The office head of Ratna Mandir Krishna Guvaju said that the palace needs to be repaired as the stones that make up the roof of the main building has started coming off. Entrance tickets had been printed two years ago—costing Rs 1,000 for foreigners, Rs 100 for locals and Rs 50 for students.

Travel agents in Pokhara say Ratna Mandir will be a big tourist draw. Barahi Mandir, which is in the middle of Fewa Lake, attracts over a 1,000 visitors every day.

On April 20, 2016 the com­mittee meeting of the Nepal Trust had decided to develop a ‘garden of dreams’ along with the museum. Mainte­nance works started right after that. Yet they have been pain­fully slow. Before turning the palace into a museum, a ticket house, a garden, and a resting area have to be built. Along with that, drinking water and toilets are also needed.

King Mahendra had built the palace for Queen Ratna in 1956. Late King Mahendra, and then King Birendra and King Gyanendra used to stay there whenever they visited Pokhara. The palace is spread over 56,468 square meters and the 11-room main bungalow is its centerpiece. Along with that, there is a boat house, an ACD office and a garden.

Civil society coordinator of Pokhara Ram Bahadur Pau­del said that Ratna Mandir should be open to public as a museum at the earliest. But he cautioned that the museum should be built in a way that does not in any way take away from the natural beauty of Fewa Lake.

Nepal Trust has 89,026 square meters of land in Pokhara, which includes Ratna Mandir, Hima Griha, a football ground, and a piece of land at Ratna Chowk.

The decision to allow Chinese NGOs to operate in Nepal, at a time the government has otherwise adopted a hard line against INGOs, is yet another indication that the ruling left coalition wants to minimize the role of the West and maximize the role of two big neighbors. It increasingly appears that Prime Minister KP Oli has decided that both his interest and that of his country lies in enhancing neighborly ties and developing Nepal as a ‘vibrant economic bridge’ between India and China. Since PM Oli has taken both India and China into confidence, the ‘scheming Westerners’ are needed no more. Neither India nor China wants to see the Americans and Europeans meddle in their backyard. It is no secret that over the years the two neighbors have repeatedly asked the government of Nepal to tighten the noose around Western countries and agencies. It was under their pressure that the government first bid farewell to the UNMIN in 2011 (which was set up in 2007 to supervise Maoist arms and army) and then to its successor, the Department of Political Affairs, this year.

Then came the National Integrity Policy, whose main aim was to circumscribe the role of INGOs and make things difficult for undocumented foreigners (read: Westerners) in Nepal. This was not just to keep India and China happy. Successive Nepali governments have been uncomfortable with the role of many INGOs they suspected of being active in proselytization and of thereby trying to fundamentally change the Nepali society. Repeated news stories that spoke of up to 90 percent funds of these INGOs being repatriated to the countries of their origin only added to public skepticism.

PM Oli has clearly tried to cash in on the recent thaw between India and China, and perhaps really does believe that they can now together contribute to Nepal’s growth and development. And if western NGOs can work in Nepal, why can’t Chinese or Indian NGOs? But whatever his broader goal, the strategy of admitting Chinese NGOs into ‘soft areas’ like livelihood and community development while also simultaneously pushing out their western counter­parts from these areas is not without its risks. The Chinese NGOs are virtual appendages of the Chinese government, much more so than the Western NGOs work for the interests of their countries of origin.

Thus, in a way, the government is making the country ripe for active Chinese interference that Nepal has been lucky to escape thus far. Should India-China relations sour again, or should there be another blockade, Nepal will also have fewer friends abroad speaking on its behalf.

When it comes to com­mercial pickups, there are a number of options to choose from, and Mahindra and Tata are leading the pack in terms of sheer number of offerings. But there is a new player in town: Force Motors. While most auto enthusi­asts will relate the brand with the popular Gurkha, the commercial segment is where they excel. You will have noticed their Trav­eller model, which is a passenger carrier often used as school busses or as public transport.

But what we have with us is the Kargo King single cabin pick up, their goods carrier. We bring you the experience from behind the wheels.

Exterior

The masculine, boxy design of the Force Kargo King is an aesthetic advan­tage. A macho radiator grille with metal bumpers is flanked by clear lens headlamps. There isn’t a lot of fuss with the bonnets, but it accentuates the overall hand­some appeal.

Because it is a single cabin pickup the elongated side pro­file is evidently visible. The overall length is a massive 5,060 mm, with the cargo hold 2,442 mm long and 1,610 mm wide. With a clearance of 210 mm, it is a fair distance off the ground to ensure no road poses a problem.

Interiors

Ingress and egress from the Kargo King is as easy as you’d expect them to be. There is only a single cabin capable of seating two adults, plus with the driver. Hand brakes have been shifted to the right to ensure there is enough legroom for all three occupants.

In order to provide a clear vantage point, the driving position is high and upright, with the driver seat getting adjustment options. Analog dials and a clean dash is pretty much all that you get, so don’t bother asking about added interior equipment.

Cargo hold

The overall dimensions of the cabin are 2,242 mm in length, and 1,610 mm in breadth and the gate measures 546 mm. Loading and unloading does not pose any particular diffi­culty, and the vehicle comes with with a maximum payload capacity of 1,250 kg.

Performance

We had a lot of fun driving the Force Kargo King. The van­tage point is terrific and you can see everything that is hap­pening ahead and around the bumper. It might not be too peppy off the line but there is undeniable power under the bonnet. There is a 2.0 liter engine with a trusted Mercedes derived driveline sending 67bhp and 175Nm of torque to the rear wheels.

It is surprisingly slick through the gears. Leaf spring suspensions with hydrau­lic telescopic shock absorb­ers at both ends take care of suspension duties, providing decent ride quality. Discs at the front and drums at the rear take up braking duties.

You do get power steering as an option, which we had in the one that we were test-driving. This came handy while making tight turns and U turns with the 7.0 meter turning radius.

Verdict

The Force Motors Kargo King is a great commercial vehicle for carrying goods. The single cabin pickup can be put to good use in the commercial sector and the masculine good looks are added bonus. Drivability is great and reliability wise you get a three-year war­ranty or a 300,000 kilometer warranty. They also claim to have phenomenal mileage and minimal maintenance cost. This makes the Kargo King a profitable option for commercial use o

An Aeromexico flight crashed on takeoff during a heavy hail storm in northern Mexico, engulfing the plane in flames and injuring 97 people, officials said Tuesday. 

The Embraer 190 aircraft, which was operating between Durango and Mexico City and crashed around 3:00 pm local time (20:00 GMT), was carrying "88 adults, nine minors, two infants, two pilots and two flight attendants," the airline's director general Andres Conesa told a news conference. 

"It is confirmed that there have been no deaths from the flight #AM2431 accident," tweeted Jose Rosas, the governor of Durango state where the crash occurred. 

The accident did cause two series injuries: a pilot had to undergo a spinal operation, and a young girl suffered burns on 25 percent of her body, the governor said. 

A total of 97 people were admitted for treatment following the crash, most of them for "very light" injuries, according to Durango civil defense spokesman Alejandro Cardoza. 

Cardoza said the plane was caught in a heavy hailstorm and the pilots tried to make an emergency landing, after which the fire broke out. 

Conesa thanked the crew "for their professionalism" and said that the aircraft "was perfectly maintained," but did not provide details on the circumstances of the accident. 

Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer announced the dispatch of a team to investigate the crash. Dozens of lightly injured passengers were seen leaving the plane, which was engulfed in gray smoke in a field. AFP

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India captain Virat Kohli says he does not feel he has to prove himself in his side's five-Test series against England.The tourists are the top-ranked Test side going into the series, which starts at Edgbaston on Wednesday.Kohli, second in the Test batsmen rankings, averaged just 13.40 on India's last tour of England in 2014."I want to score runs for the team and take Indian cricket forward, and that's my only motive," the 29-year-old said.

"I'm not in a frame of mind to prove myself in any country, I want to perform for the team."

India have not won a Test series in England since 2007.

They were beaten 3-1 in the five-match series in 2014, and lost their final two matches by an innings.

Kohli was among the batsmen who struggled - he scored 134 runs in 10 innings and was dismissed four times by pace bowler James Anderson.

However, since becoming captain at the end of 2014, he has taken India from seventh to first in the world rankings and has scored 14 Test hundreds.

"If you're an underdog it's not a given that the pressure will only be on the opposition," he said.

"If you're favourites it's not certain that the underdogs will just come out and be fearless the whole time.

"I think it's a balance that is required and we've played enough cricket at this level to understand that."

India will not name their XI for the match until Wednesday morning, although they are likely to select two spinners.

Regular spinners Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin bowled a combined seven overs during India's warm-up match against Essex, while left-arm spinner Kuldeep Yadav was hit for 24 runs from four overs.

"There's total honesty and total ownership all around the squad," Kohli added.

"We are very comfortable with where we stand as a team."

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A passenger plane has crashed in the capital of Mexico's Durango state, just moments after take-off.

All 103 passengers and crew on board the Aeroméxico flight survived the crash but 97 of them are injured.

State Governor José Rosas Aispuro said the plane was hit by a gust of wind, which caused a sudden descent. Its left wing then touched the ground and two engines came off.

Most of the passengers were able to walk away before it caught fire.

But the airline's chief executive, Andres Conesa, said the captain had sustained injuries.

"The flight captain is being operated on. What we know so far is that these aren't life-threatening injuries," he said.

The names and nationalities of those on board are currently unknown.

Aeroméxico flight AM2431 was flying from Guadalupe Victoria International Airport to Mexico City.

The airport operator, Grupo Aeroportuario Centro Norte, said early data suggests bad weather was the cause, and that the plane had taken off during a heavy hailstorm before being forced to attempt an emergency landing.

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Nepal Airline Corporation’s second wide-body aircraft has arrived in Nepal. The A330-200 with registration ‘9N-ALZ’ is named ‘Makalu’.The first wide-body had arrived on June 28. The aircraft has since flown to New Delhi on its maiden proofing flight and is all set to oper­ate commercial flights to Qatar starting August 1.

The general manager of NAC Sugat Ratna Kansakar along with his team had flown to Toulouse, France for the purchase of the sec­ond aircraft.

This new aircraft has 272 seats, just like the first one, out of which 18 are business class and 256 are economy class seats.

These two wide-body aircrafts were purchased via a loan of Rs 12 billion from the Employees Provi­dent Fund and the Citizen Invest­ment Trust, with guarantee from Nepal Government. Each aircraft cost around $105 million.

The corporation believes these two aircraft will help make ‘Visit Nepal 2020’ a grand success. It has also made public its commercial plan of increasing its international flight market share from the cur­rent 9 percent to 17 percent.

Makalu plans to fly to des­tinations in Europe, the US, Japan and South Korea. In the first stage, it will fly to Japan, Korea and Saudi Arabia. NAC plans to provide direct flights to the US and Europe when it purchases a third aircraft.

Attend the exhibition “Health transformed by Art (HTA)” between 11 am-5 pm at Siddhartha Art Gallery. HTA is a community art project that aims to bring out the untapped therapeutic value of visual art in a hospital setting. Even artwork made out of hospital waste will be showcased. If you are an art lover, this is an event you should not miss. The exhibition ends on August 17.