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A Simrik Air helicopter is trying to douse the fire that broke out at a hardware store in Damauli, Tanahun by sprinkling water lifted from the Madi River.

The helicopter carrying a team of firefighters had reached Damauli to take the fire under control this afternoon.

The fire broke out at the Bhupal Hardware Store in Bholetar Chok of Byas Municipality-4 at around 10 am today.

According to the District Police Office, Tanahun, efforts are being made to extinguish the fire.

The Nepali Embassy in London has started homework to solve the problem of former Gurkha army personnel. The embassy has started discussions with the members of the Ex-Gurkha associations about the preparations for the talks.

Embassy Spokesperson and Deputy Chief of Mission Roshan Khanal said that they are likely to be informed soon about the date of the talks with the British government. According to the Gurkha Satyagraha, Major Juddha Gurung will participate in the talks to represent the Gurkhas, while other additional representatives will be selected based on the theme of the issues concerned.

The embassy said a formal letter would be sent to the UK government following the conclusion of discussions at the embassy. The talks with the embassy have been attended by members representing Gurkha Satyagraha Struggle Committee, Gurkha Ex-Servicemen's Association (GESO), British Gurkha Welfare Society (BGWS), Naples Ex-Servicemen's Association (NESA) and Gurkha Justice Group affiliated Gurkha Campaign Committee.

From the Embassy, Deputy Chief of Mission Khanal and Military Attaché' Ratna Bahadur Godar, who are also members of the talks committee along with the Ambassador are said to be present in the talks.

It may be noted that the Government of Nepal had decided to form a negotiation team led by Nepali Ambassador to the UK Gyan Chandra Acharya for the Gurkha talks. The first priority of Ambassador Acharya is to take the initiative to address the long-standing concerns of the ex-Gurkha army personnel, the Embassy has said. RSS

Mastercard and Visa are suspending their operations in Russia, the companies said Saturday, in the latest blow to the country’s financial system after its invasion of Ukraine, Associated Press reported.

Mastercard said cards issued by Russian banks will no longer be supported by its network and any Mastercard issued outside the country will not work at Russian stores or ATMs.

“We don’t take this decision lightly,” Mastercard said in a statement, adding that it made the move after discussions with customers, partners and governments.

Visa said it’s working with clients and partners in Russia to cease all Visa transactions over the coming days, according to the Associated Press.

“We are compelled to act following Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, and the unacceptable events that we have witnessed,” Visa Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Al Kelly said in a statement.

The twin suspensions were announced within 16 minutes of each other, and they followed a private video call earlier in the day between President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine and U.S. lawmakers. During that conversation, Zelenskyy “asked us to turn off MasterCard and Visa for Russia,” Rep. Brad Sherman, a Democrat from California, tweeted. “I agree,” he added, before Mastercard and Visa made their announcements.

Earlier in the week, Visa and Mastercard had announced more limited moves to block financial institutions from the networks that serve as arteries for the payments system. Russian people have already been hit hard by heavy sanctions and financial penalties imposed by the U.S. government and others, Associated Press reported.

Since the invasion of Ukraine, the value of the Russian currency, the ruble, has plunged by more than a third to a record low. That’s pushing up inflation for Russian households, and all the fear has helped cause long lines at ATMs.

The price of the gold crossed Rs 100,000 per tola in the domestic market on Sunday.

According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers' Association, the yellow metal is being traded at Rs 101,900 per tola today.

It was traded at Rs 99,900 per tola on the previous day, the Association said.

Meanwhile, tejabi gold is being traded at Rs 101,400 per tola today.

Similarly, the price of silver rose by Rs 35 per tola and is being traded at Rs 1,415 per tola.

A massive fire broke out at a hardware store in Bholetar Chok, Damauli on Sunday. 

Locals and police personnel backed by four fire engines are battling to extinguish the fire that broke out at the Bhupal Hardware this morning. 

Human rights activist and advocate Ganesh Prasad Ghimire will be honoured with the Gandhi Nobel Peace Award.

Ghimire is among the 104 persons of world who will be honoured with the Gandhi Nobel Peace Award, Gandhi Peace Foundation Nepal Chairman Lal Bahadur Rana said.

The award giving ceremony will be organised at the South Hall, World Hindu Centre in London on June 3.

Ghimire has an experience of more than two decades in the field of human rights and journalism.

Former General Secretary of the Human Rights Journalists’ Association, Ghimire has been playing an instrumental role to take the news of human rights of Nepal at the international level.

Rastriya Prajatantra Party leader Ganesh Sherchan passed away on Sunday. He was 78.

Sherchan breathed his last during the course of treatment at the Grande Hospital this morning, RPP spokesperson Mohan Shrestha said.

He had been suffering from diabetes and kidney related problems for a long time.

Sherchan was the founding leader of RPP and the then general secretary of the RPP-N.

RPP Chairman Rajendra Lingden said that he was saddened by the demise of Sherchan.

Russian President Vladimir Putin warned Saturday that Ukrainian statehood is in jeopardy and likened the West’s sanctions on Russia to “declaring war,” while a promised cease-fire in the besieged port city of Mariupol collapsed amid scenes of terror, Associated Press reported.

With the Kremlin’s rhetoric growing fiercer and a reprieve from fighting dissolving, Russian troops continued to shell encircled cities and the number of Ukrainians forced from their country grew to 1.4 million. By Saturday night Russian forces had intensified their shelling of Mariupol, while dropping powerful bombs on residential areas of Chernihiv, a city north of Kyiv, Ukrainian officials said.

Bereft mothers mourned slain children, wounded soldiers were fitted with tourniquets and doctors worked by the light of their cellphones as bleakness and desperation pervaded. Putin continued to pin the blamefor all of it squarely on the Ukrainian leadership and slammed their resistance to the invasion, Associated Press reported.

“If they continue to do what they are doing, they are calling into question the future of Ukrainian statehood,” he said. “And if this happens, it will be entirely on their conscience.”

He also hit out at Western sanctions that have crippled Russia’s economy and sent the value of its currency tumbling.

“These sanctions that are being imposed, they are akin to declaring war,” he said during a televised meeting with flight attendants from Russian airline Aeroflot. “But thank God, we haven’t got there yet.”

Russia’s financial system suffered yet another blow as Mastercard and Visa announced they were suspending operations in the country, according to Associated Press.

Ten days after Russian forces invaded, the struggle to enforce the temporary cease-fires in Mariupol and the eastern city of Volnovakha showed the fragility of efforts to stop the fighting across Ukraine.

Ukrainian officials said Russian artillery fire and airstrikes had prevented residents from leaving before the agreed-to evacuations got underway. Putin accused Ukraine of sabotaging the effort.