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Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba will pay an official visit to India from April 1-3. 

He will be visiting India at the invitation of his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi, read a statement issued by the Ministry of External Affairs of India on Monday

During his visit to India, he is will pay a courtesy call on Vice-President and his Indian counterpart Modi on April 2.

Besides official engagements in New Delhi,  Prime Minister Deuba will visit Vanarasi, UP, the statement read.

Nepal and India enjoy age-old and special ties of friendship and cooperation. In recent years, the partnership has witnessed significant growth inall areas of cooperation. The upcoming visit will provide and opportunity to the two sides to review this wide ranging cooperation partnership and to progress it further for the benefit of the people, the statement further read.

Two elderly men have been arrested for their alleged involvement in raping minor girls in different places of Kailali district. 

DSP Bed Prasad Joshi, spokesperson at the District Police Office, Kailali, said that they have apprehended Tilak Shah (60) for raping an 11-year-old girl of Chure Rural Municipality. 

Joshi said that Shah was arrested based on a complaint that he raped the girl while she had gone to a jungle to collect for the cattle. 

Similarly, police have nabbed Kallu Damai of Ghodaghadi Municipality-11 for raping an 11-year-old girl of the same municipality. 

DSP Laxman Bahadur Shahi, Chief at the Area Police Office, Sukhad, said that Damai was arrested on Sunday. 

Police said that they are looking into both cases. 

The Election Commission today released the number of voters eligible for the upcoming local level elections scheduled for May 13.

According to the EC, there will be 17,733,723 voters.

A meeting of the EC held today fixed the total number of voters for the local level polls, including 8,992,010 men, 8,741,530 women and 183 others, the EC Assistant Spokesperson Surya Prasad Aryal said.

According to EC, Morang has the highest number with 715,223 voters, while Manang counts the lowest number with 6,416.

Jhapa and Kathmandu are ranked second and third with the highest number of voters, while Mustang and Dolpa are ranked in the districts with the second and third lowest voters' number.

The EC has come up a new provision making voters eligible if they turn 18 years on May 12 this year.

Aryal said 10,756 voting stations and 21,955 voting centers have been set for the local level polls. RSS

Hong Kong said on Sunday it is shortening the ban on airlines that are found to have carried three or more passengers who test positive for COVID-19 upon arrival, as the number of local cases continues to ease from its peak, Reuters reported.

Starting on Friday, the ban on individual airline routes will be halved to seven days as part of an ongoing "flight suspension mechanism", the government said in a statement.

The change comes after the government said last week a ban on flights from nine countries - Canada, India, Pakistan, Nepal, Britain, the United States, France, Australia and the Philippines - would be lifted on April 1.

If there is at least one positive test and at least one case of non-compliance with pre-departure testing on any single flight, the airline will also be suspended from flying the route for seven days.

Hong Kong reported 8,037 new COVID-19 infections on Sunday and 151 deaths, the second day in a row below 10,000 cases, as its latest wave of infections continues to ease, according to Reuters.

The financial hub will relax the social distancing measures in phases starting April 21, allowing restaurant dining after 6 p.m. with tables of four people, up from two currently.

Hong Kong's economy is set to contract in the first quarter, breaking four quarters of recovery streak, as retail sales fell for the first time in 12 months in February and export growth slowed, Financial Secretary Paul Chan said on his blog.

Businesses and the city's economy are reeling from widespread closures, as the government has imposed stringent social distancing rules since January amid a dramatic spike in the Omicron variant.

While the former British colony has officially stuck to a "dynamic zero" coronavirus policy similar to that of mainland China, which seeks to curb all outbreaks, it has been shifting to mitigation strategies as deaths skyrocketed, Reuters reported.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has denied that the United States has any plans to bring about regime change in Russia or anywhere else, BBC reported.

Mr Blinken's comments come a day after President Joe Biden said his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, should not be allowed to remain in power. 

Mr Biden made the unscripted remark at the end of a speech in Poland.

Mr Blinken said the president simply made the point that Mr Putin could not be allowed to wage war against Ukraine. 

The Kremlin dismissed Mr Biden's remark, saying it was for Russians to choose their leader. 

"I think the president, the White House, made the point last night that, quite simply, President Putin cannot be empowered to wage war or engage in aggression against Ukraine or anyone else," Mr Blinken said on Sunday during a visit to Israel, according to BBC.

"As you know, and as you have heard us say repeatedly, we do not have a strategy of regime change in Russia, or anywhere else, for that matter.

"In this case, as in any case, it's up to the people of the country in question, it's up to the Russian people," he added.

"For God's sake, this man cannot remain in power," US President Joe Biden said about his Russian counterpart President Vladimir Putin during a speech in Poland's capital, Warsaw, on Saturday.

This was quickly followed by the White House saying Mr Biden wasn't calling for regime change, but was instead making a point about Mr Putin not being allowed to exercise power over his neighbours.

This was clearly an attempt at rolling back - the concern is that this is going to put more pressure on Putin and make him more uneasy.

Given that he is the head of a country that is struggling militarily, and is in control of a nuclear arsenal, the concern on the Americans' part is that they don't want to back Mr Putin into a corner.

Calling out for regime change directly could cause instability and increase unpredictability.

And the last thing you want in these circumstances is unpredictability, BBC reported.

Mr Biden's comment prompted strong criticism from veteran US diplomat Richard Haass.

The comments "made a difficult situation more difficult and a dangerous situation more dangerous", tweeted Mr Haass, who is president of the US Council on Foreign Relations.

"That is obvious," he added. "Less obvious is how to undo the damage, but I suggest his chief aides reach their counterparts & make clear the US is prepared to deal with this Russian government."

Mr Haass returned to the subject after the White House qualified President Biden's remarks, saying: "The White House walk back of @POTUS regime change call is unlikely to wash, according to BBC.

"Putin will see it as confirmation of what he's believed all along. Bad lapse in discipline that runs risk of extending the scope and duration of the war."

China began locking down most of its largest city of Shanghai on Monday as a coronavirus outbreak surges and amid questions about the economic toll of the nation’s “zero-COVID” strategy, Associated Press reported.

Shanghai’s Pudong financial district and nearby areas will be locked down from early Monday to Friday as citywide mass testing gets underway, the local government said. In the second phase of the lockdown, the vast downtown area west of the Huangpu River that divides the city will then start its own five-day lockdown Friday. 

Residents will be required to stay home and deliveries will be left at checkpoints to ensure there is no contact with the outside world. Offices and all businesses not considered essential will be closed and public transport suspended. 

Already, many communities within the city of 26 million have been locked down, with their residents required to submit to multiple tests for COVID-19. And Shanghai’s Disney theme park is among the businesses that closed earlier, according to the Associated Press.

Shanghai detected another 3,500 cases of infection on Sunday, though all but 50 were people who tested positive but were not showing symptoms of COVID-19. China categorizes such cases separately from “confirmed cases” — those in people who are sick — leading to much lower totals in daily reports.

China has reported more than 56,000 infections nationwide this month, with a surge in the northeastern province of Jilin accounting for most of them. 

In response to its biggest outbreak in two years, China has continued to enforce what it calls the “dynamic zero-COVID” approach, calling that the most economical and effective prevention strategy against COVID-19, Associated Press reported.

That requires lockdowns and mass testing, with close contacts often being quarantined at home or in a central government facility. The strategy focuses on eradicating community transmission of the virus as quickly as possible, sometimes by locking down entire cities. 

While officials, including Communist Party leader Xi Jinping have encouraged more targeted measures, local officials tend to take a more extreme approach, concerned with being fired or otherwise punished over accusations of failing to prevent outbreaks. 

With China’s economic growth already slowing, the extreme measures are seen as worsening difficulties striking employment, consumption and even global supply chains.

While China’s vaccination rate is around 87%, it is considerably lower among older people. 

National data released earlier this month showed that over 52 million people aged 60 and older have yet to be vaccinated with any COVID-19 vaccine. Booster rates are also low, with only 56.4% of people between 60-69 having received a booster shot, and 48.4% of people between 70-79 having received one, according to the Associated Press.

A 94th Academy Awards that steadily maintained a buoyant spirit was rocked by an unbelievable exchange after Will Smith took offense to a joke made by Chris Rock about his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, Associated Press reported.

After Rock joked to Smith that he was looking forward to a sequel to “G.I. Jane,” Smith stood up from his seat near the stage, strode up to Rock and slapped him. After sitting back down, Smith shouted at Rock to “keep my wife’s name out of your (expletive) mouth.” 

The moment shocked the Dolby Theatre audience and viewers at home. At the commercial break, presenter Daniel Kaluuya came up to to hug Smith, and Denzel Washington escorted him to the side of the stage. The two talked and hugged and Tyler Perry came over to talk as well. 

Smith is widely expected to win his first Oscar later in the ceremony.

Up until that moment, the show had been running fairly smoothly. Ariana DeBose became the first Afro-Latina to win an Academy Award for supporting actress, while Troy Kotsur became the first deaf actor to win an acting award, according to the Associated Press.

After record-low ratings and a pandemic-marred 2021 show, producers this year turned to one of the biggest stars around — Beyoncé — to kick off an Oscars intended to revive the awards’ place in pop culture. After an introduction from Venus and Serena Williams, Beyoncé performed her “King Richard” nominated song, “Be Alive,” in an elaborately choreographed performance from a lime-colored, open-air stage in Compton, where the Williams sisters grew up.

Hosts Wanda Sykes, Amy Schumer and Regina Hall then began the telecast from the Dolby Theatre. 

“All right, we are here at the Oscars,” began Hall. Sykes finished: “Where movie lovers unite and watch TV.”

Sykes, Schumer and Hall breezily joked through prominent Hollywood issues like pay equity — they said three female hosts were “cheaper than one man” — the Lady Gaga drama that Sykes called “House of Random Accents,” the state of the Golden Globes (now relegated to the memoriam package, said Sykes) and Leonardo DiCaprio’s girlfriends. Their most pointed political point came at the end of their routine, in which they promised a great night and then alluded to Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill, Associated Press reported.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused the West of cowardice Sunday while another top official said Russia was trying to split the nation in two, like North and South Korea, Associated Press reported.

Zelenskyy made an exasperated plea for fighter jets and tanks to help defend his country from Russia’s invading troops. Russia now says its main focus is on taking control of the eastern Donbas region, an apparent pullback from its earlier, more expansive goals, but one which is raising fears of a divided Ukraine. 

Speaking after US President Joe Biden said in a lacerating speech that Russian President Vladimir Putin could not stay in power — words the White House immediately sought to downplay — Zelenskyy lashed out at the West’s “ping-pong about who and how should hand over jets” and other weapons while Russian missile attacks kill and trap civilians.

“I’ve talked to the defenders of Mariupol today. I’m in constant contact with them. Their determination, heroism and firmness are astonishing,” Zelenskyy said in a video address, referring to the besieged southern city that has suffered some of the war’s greatest deprivations and horrors. “If only those who have been thinking for 31 days on how to hand over dozens of jets and tanks had 1% of their courage.” 

Zelenskyy also told independent Russian journalists Sunday that his government would consider declaring neutrality and offering security guarantees to Russia, repeating earlier statements. That would include keeping Ukraine nuclear-free, he said, according to the Associated Press.

He told the reporters that the issue of neutrality – and agreeing to stay out of NATO – should be put to Ukrainian voters in a referendum after Russian troops withdraw. He said a vote could take place within a few months of the troops leaving.

Russia quickly banned the interview from being published. Roskomnadzor, which regulates communications for Moscow, issued the ban, saying there could be action taken against the Russian media outlets that took part, which included “those that are foreign media outlets acting as foreign agents.”

Russia-based outlets appeared to comply with the ban although the interview was published abroad.

Zelenskyy responded by saying Moscow was afraid of a relatively short conversation with journalists. “It would be funny if it weren’t so tragic,” he said, according to the Ukrainian news agency RBK Ukraina.

At the Academy Awards ceremony in Los Angeles, attendees expressed support for Ukraine by falling silent for 30 seconds. Some arrived wearing blue-and-gold ribbons, the colors of the Ukrainian flag. Actor Sean Penn had unsuccessfully campaigned for Zelenskyy — a former actor — to speak at the ceremony. 

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has stalled in many areas. Its aim to quickly encircle the capital, Kyiv, and force its surrender has faltered against staunch Ukrainian resistance — bolstered by weapons from the US and other Western allies, Associated Press reported.

Moscow claims its focus is on wresting the entire eastern Donbas region, which has been partially controlled by Russia-backed separatists since 2014. A high-ranking Russian military official on Friday said that troops were being redirected to the east from other parts of the country.

Russia has supported the separatist rebels in Luhansk and neighboring Donetsk since the insurgency erupted there shortly after Moscow annexed the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine. In talks with Ukraine, Moscow has demanded Kyiv acknowledge the independence of Donetsk and Luhansk.

Kyrylo Budanov, the head of Ukrainian military intelligence, accused Russia of seeking to split Ukraine in two, making the comparison to North and South Korea, according to the Associated Press.