Haiti migrants: At least 17 Haitians die after boat capsizes in Bahamas

At least 17 people from Haiti have died in a boat accident off the coast of The Bahamas, the government has said, BBC reported.

Bahamian PM Philip Davis said it is thought those on board were travelling from Haiti to Miami, Florida in the US.

Police in The Bahamas said the boat capsized more than 11 km (6.8 miles) off the island of New Providence. 

Another 25 people were rescued, including one woman who was found alive inside the overturned boat, authorities said.

One child was among the dead. At least one person is still missing, with search missions underway.

Two people were taken into custody, both from The Bahamas, over the suspected human smuggling operation, officials said.

The numbers of people attempting the dangerous journey to the United States have increased significantly with the rise in Haiti of gang violence, coupled with endemic poverty.

Preliminary investigations suggest that the speed boat left New Providence, the most populous island in The Bahamian archipelago, around 01:00 (0500 GMT) on Sunday with some 60 people on board, according to BBC.

One woman was found alive after police heard her "knocking on the hull of the boat", said Clayton Fernander, police commissioner of The Bahamas.

"The divers eventually went down and that's where they recovered the bodies, the 17 bodies," he said.

"There was one female who was still alive, was up in the air pocket of the hull of that boat, so I believe that that's what kept her alive."

Immigration Minister Keith Bell said survivors indicated that they paid between $3,000 and $8,000 (£2,500 and £6,670) for the voyage.

"We mourn lives lost of those seeking a better way of life," Mr Bell said. "Those here with families and friends in Haiti, encourage your loved ones not to risk their lives."

In May, at least 11 people, mostly from Haiti, died near the US territory of Puerto Rico, BBC reported.

Indian national among 9 nabbed for alleged online fraud

Police on Sunday carried out a raid at a call centre in Janakinagar of Tilottama Municipality-2, Rupandehi and apprehended nine team leaders including an Indian national for their alleged involvement in defrauding people through various means.

A team deployed from the Area Police Office Butwal raided the Blue Sky Business Solution Pvt. Ltd and detained them for cheating the commoners through phone call and WhatsApp among others, DSP Thug Bahadur KC said.

He said that the team recovered 240 sets of mobile phones, hundreds of computers and other materials from the call centre being operated with an investment of Indian and Chinese nationals.

DSP KC said that they had been cheating and blackmailing people by sending fake messages, obscene pictures and videos of of the victims to the mobile phones of their relatives.

Police are interrogating with 240 staffers working at the call centre.

Rupendahi police said that they are looking into the case.

 

6 killed in Palpa bus accident

At least six persons died when a bus met with an accident at Laghuwa in Ribdikot Rural Municipality-2 of Palpa on Sunday.

The identities of the deceased are yet to be established, police said.

The incident occurred when the bus (Lu 1 Kha 5952) heading towards Butwal from Majuwa, Gulmi fell some 100 metres down the road at around 4 pm today.

Further details of the incident are awaited, police said.

Nepal logs 347 new Covid-19 cases, 2 deaths on Sunday

Nepal recorded 347 new Covid-19 cases and two deaths on Sunday.

According to the Ministry of Health and Population, 2, 360 swab samples were tested in the RT-PCR method, of which 303 returned positive. Likewise, 1,528 people underwent antigen tests, of which 44 tested positive.

The Ministry said that 95 infected people recovered from the disease in the last 24 hours.

As of today, there are 3, 177 active cases in the country.

Among them, 3, 035 are in home isolation and 142 are in institutionalized isolation.

Of the people who are staying in institutionalized isolation, 22 are undergoing treatment at the Intensive Care Units and two on ventilators.

Meanwhile, the Kathmandu recorded higest 169 new cases today.

According to the Ministry, 35 cases are reported in Lalitpur, 27 in Kaski and 17 in Morang and 12 in Bhaktapur.

Nepse surges by 61. 05 points on Sunday

The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) gained 61. 05 points to close at 2,078.51 points on Sunday.

Similarly, the sensitive index plunged by 12. 09 points to close at 398. 33 points.

Meanwhile, a total of 6,423,156 unit shares of 219 companies were traded for Rs 3. 73 billion.

In today’s market, all sub-indices saw green. Life Insurance topped the chart with 207. 77 points.

Meanwhile, Central Finance Co. Limited, Samriddhi Finance Company Limited and Multipurpose Finance Company Limited were the top gainers today, with their price surging by 10%. 00 percent. NMB Debenture was the top loser as its price fell by 1.52 percent.

At the end of the day, total market capitalization stood at Rs 2. 96 trillion.

Three killed as tree crushes moving bus and scooter in Bhaktapur

Three persons died when a tree fell on a commuter bus and a scooter at Sallaghari in Bhaktapur on Sunday.

Police said that the tree crushed the moving bus (Ba Kha 3584) heading towards Dudhpati from Thimi and the scooter (Ba 61 Pa 3978) en route to Sallaghari from Dudhpati.

Chief District Officer Rudra Devi Sharma said that 12 others were injured in the incident.

One of the deceased has been identified as Nitesh Kharbuja.

The identities of others are yet to be established.

The injured are receiving treatment at the Yuwamora Hospital, Bhaktapur International Hospital and Madhyapur Hospital, police said.

Meanwhile, Home Minister Balkrishna Khand has directed the chiefs of the security agencies  to rescue the injured.

 

Delhi's 1st monkeypox case: 31-year-old man with with no foreign travel history

Delhi today reported its first monkeypox case as a 31-year-old man with no foreign travel history was diagnosed with the disease. This is the fourth monkeypox case reported in India with the previous three cases being reported from Kerala, NDTV reported.

The man had attended a party in Manali in Himachal Pradesh, news agency PTI reported citing sources.

The West Delhi resident was hospitalised with symptoms of the disease three days ago, it said, adding that his samples were sent to the National Institute of Virology yesterday.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal confirmed that the disease was detected in the city, while asserting there's no need to panic.

"The first case of Monkeypox was detected in Delhi. The patient is stable and recovering. There's no need to panic. The situation is under control. We have made a separate isolation ward at LNJP. Our best team is on the case to prevent the spread and protect Delhiites," said Mr Kejriwal.

Two-three suspected samples were coming every week in Mumbai, but these days the frequency has increased to two-three per day, sources told NDTV.

Sixteen laboratories are dedicated for monkeypox, including two only for Kerala.

Monkeypox is a zoonotic virus with symptoms similar to the smallpox, but less severe. The virus transmission occurs from infected animals to humans via direct or indirect contact. It can also be transmitted from humans to humans through direct contact with the infected person's skin or lesions, and respiratory droplets.

So far, more than 16,000 monkeypox cases have been reported from 75 countries across the world. Five deaths have also been reported in Africa.

Apart from India, only one such case has been reported from the WHO's South-East Asia Region - in Thailand, according to NDTV.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared the monkeypox outbreak a public health emergency - the highest alarm it can sound.

Nepal to celebrate 2023-2033 as Visit Nepal Decade

The government has announced to celebrate the year 2023-2033 as the Visit Nepal Decade.

The Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation said so while making a working procedure to revive the tourism sector which was hit the hardest by Covid-19 pandemic.

The Ministry said that the Visit Nepal Decade will be announced within three months.

Similarly, the Ministry has planned to bring the airports which are not in use as alternative airports.

The Ministry is also going to conduct a campaign ‘One Nepali One Foreign Friend Send Nepal’ under the leadership of the Non-Resident Nepali Association.

The Ministry said that the government is also planning to start a campaign ‘Night Heritage Tour’ in Kathmandu, Patan, Bhaktapur and Kirtipur.

Likewise, the government is also going to establish the Crisis Management Unit to make the stay of tourists in Nepal safer.