Submit your Article

The Embassy of Israel has launched an Environment Conservation Activity initiative to highlight the issues related to the environment. Under the initiative, various activities will be organised particularly in schools with a slogan ‘stop pollution: used batteries collection.’

The embassy has already cooperated with schools of the valley including Kathmandu Pragya Kunja School, Shanti Sikshya School, KMC School, Kavya School, etc. in reducing pollution with individual steps of their students; the students collected used batteries (alkaline batteries, coin cell batteries, and other non-rechargeable batteries), brought it to the school, which later were taken for recycling at DOKO Recyclers, according to a press release issued by Embassy.

On 3 January 2022, an event was held at Kathmandu Pragya Kunja School to hand over collected used batteries with an important message of responsibility of an individual step towards a cleaner environment. The jars of batteries were collected and handed over to DOKO Recyclers.

Ramsahay Prasad Yadav, Minister for Forests and Environment has attended the program. Appreciating the initiative of collecting old batteries and sending them for recycling, Yadav said, “This activity is very important in today’s time. Human activities are hampering themselves, flora, fauna, and nature, as a whole. This initiative will definitely contribute to environmental protection, as batteries are something that is used in everything, ranging from mobile phones, computers to other electronic devices hence, it’s crucial to recycle them.” He further said that socio-economic development should not happen at the expense of environmental degradation and we should preserve our nature. 

Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has said that his country was ready to convene the 19th Summit of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) at the earliest. 

He further added that India can join it virtually if the leadership in New Delhi is not willing to visit Islamabad. The 19th SAARC Summit which was scheduled to take place in Islamabad on November 9-10, 2016 was postponed indefinitely due to India-Pakistan tensions.

Addressing a press conference in Islamabad on January 3, the Pakistani foreign minister accused India of making SAARC dysfunctional through its stubbornness by refusing to come to Islamabad for the Summit meeting.

"I reiterate the invitation for the 19th SAARC summit. If India is not ready to come to Islamabad, it can join virtually… but it should not stop others from attending,” he said.

For five years, India has stated that the regional environment is not appropriate for holding the Summit. SAARC chair Nepal is also pressing other member countries for holding the summit.

Parliament-elect Resham Chaudhary, the prime suspect of the Kailali killings, has registered a new party Nagarik Unmukti Party on January 3.  

The party was registered at Election Commission under the name of his spouse Ranjita Shrestha.

Chaudhary who is in Dillibazar jail had sought permission to go for EC for the registration but authorities declined his request.  

Following then prime Minister KP Sharma Oli’s ‘instruction’ to federal lower house Speaker Krishna Bahadur Mahara had administered oath of office and secrecy to Chaudhary in 2019.

Kailai District Court in 2019 handed down a life sentence to 11 people including Chaudhary in connection with the 2015 Tikapur incident in which nine people were killed in a violent clash.

Madhes-based parties are pressing government to withdraw the cases against Chaudhary. CPN-UML Chairman KP Sharma Oli-led government in 2020 had started the process of withdrawing the cases against Chaudhary.

When the first draft of the con­stitution was finalized in July 2015, some political parties and groups protested against it. In the far-western Tarai districts, the Tharu community organized a series of protests demanding an autonomous Tharu province.

The Tikapur killings took place on Aug 23, when high-level police officials were trying to negotiate with the Tharu protestors. It took several weeks to bring the situation under control and prevent possible communal tension.

Chaudhary was elected as a member of the House of Representatives from the Kailali-1 constituency in the 2017 national elections. He had filed his nomination in absentia and had conducted his election campaign secretly.

CPN (Maoist Center) has re-elected Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda as a party Chairman. Prachanda is at the helm of the party leadership for 40 years.

Party’s Central Committee meeting that took place on January 3 in Kathmandu elected Prachanda as party chairman. Party’s 8th General Convention selected the party’s Central Committee which is mandated to elect officer bearer including party chair.

 In the CC meeting, Maoist leaders Narayan Kaji Shrestha and Krishna Bahadur Mahara had proposed Prachanda as a party chair which was unanimously endorsed.   "I am shouldering a huge responsibility, it is equally challenging as well," said Prachanda after being re-elected. 

The first Australian Education Fair of 2022 is being held in Kathmandu tomorrow with the theme “Study in Australia”.

The fair is being organized from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm at Everest Hotel in New Baneshwor, said fair organizer Nova Education & Consulting Services. Australian Ambassador to Nepal Felicity Volk will inaugurate the study fair.

“This year’s Australian Educational Fair will be attended by thousands of students studying in grades 11 and 12 as well as Bachelors- and Masters-level students,” said Nova Education’s Executive Director Raman Koirala.

The fair will feature colleges and universities from Australia, NMB Bank as an educational loan provider from Nepal, IDP IELTS as an IELTS partner, and Allianz Partners as an educational insurance partner, among 15 different institutions attending the education fair.

The fair will also provide information on scholarships, post-study work, and regional campuses to students. One hundred participants will receive free IELTS or PTE classes, and one lucky winner will receive free airfare to Australia, said the organizer.

According to the organizers, students will be able to get free educational counseling at the fair and will be provided with many gifts as well as scholarships. Interdiction Trade Show Nepal is managing the event.

The CPN (Maoist Center) has concluded its 8th General Convention selecting 236 Central Committee(CC) members.

The closed session of the party endorsed the names proposed by Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda. The size of CC is 299 and Prachanda will nominate the rest of the CC members.

The Central Committee will select the party’s 15-member office bearer on Monday. A week-long convention of the party endorsed a political document tabled by Prachanda. 

Nepal’s cultural diversity also translates into a diversity in its food options.Take the Sherpa food. Located in Jhamsikhel, Sherpa Cafe offers a taste of traditional Sherpa food and culture, the food from the Himalayas dedicated to keeping your body warm and energized throughout the day. 

As you enter the peaceful cafe, artwork from typical Sherpa homes will welcome you into this family- and children-friendly cafe, which is ideal for a lively lunch or a cozy dinner. The recipes, ingredients, and flavors come all the way from the Himalayas, with a menu that serves traditional sherpa food but also Tibetan food with a touch of Sherpa culture. Sherpa food is a wonderful mixture of exciting and familiar but newfangled flavors, and all the offerings are healthy too. The cafe is also soon opening for breakfast. 

Sherpa Cafe

Chef’s Special Dishes:

Shapta
Shyakpa
Rigikur

Opening time: 11:30 AM to 9:00 PM
Location: Jhamsikhel
Meal for 2 - 1000
Card/Phone pay - Yes
Reservation - 01 - 5548119

After two decades, say some estimates, we may need automation as much as we need our phones now. Automation can do anything it is designed for.

Simply Automatic, a new automation brand, offers smart products and solutions for everyday-tasks in homes, enterprises as well as industries. “We want more people from our country to access and afford smart products for their homes,” says Prajwal Neupane, CEO of Simply Automatic.

With an objective of introducing Artificial Intelligence in Nepal, Simply Automatic has brought an AI-generated home automation system.

Artificial Intelligence has over the years evolved to make our lives more convenient because “there are limits to things we humans can do,” says Neupane. “We invariably reach a point where we get tired and our productivity declines.” 

“Doing daily chores using artificial intelligence is a revolution in itself,” he adds, acknowledging limits to our efficiency, effort, time, energy and intelligence.

AI solutions are limitless and outcomes are often 10 times better than what humans can achieve. With home automation, daily lives can become more convenient and house owners can be safer.

Simply Automatic was brought under the franchise of Life Smart, a global brand providing smart home products and solutions that offers a diverse range of smart devices. All of these operate under advanced IoT technologies and cloud services to create a base for smart home systems. Serving more than two million users in over 80 countries, it is a CA-certified brand in the UK and CE-certified brand in the US. 

Also read: Business | A relaxing weekend getaway at Meraki 

Simply Automatic works to bring those smart services to Nepal. Their new product is ‘Home Automation’, a simple automatic starter set that can do a list of household work through AI. From simple tasks like turning the lights on or locking doors, to making the more complex ones easier, this system is designed to make every-day work a luxury.

All you need is a master setup directly connected to the internet, which in turn takes the user’s command to run tasks entered from a home automation mirror. Everyday tasks thus become more convenient and productive. The easy accessibility and convenience also contribute to energy-conservation.

“There are times when we unknowingly end up leaving appliances like air conditioning and light bulbs on. Besides keeping them on unnecessarily and wasting energy, we leave behind a huge carbon footprint. If we can save that, little by little, we can eventually contribute a lot to a healthy environment,” says Neupane. The system can turn off lights when you aren’t using them on its own and lower the total utility budget by 10 to 25 percent. 

Home Automation comes with a ‘simply automatic starter set’, ‘homekit’ and is compatible with other smart home devices. Along with making repetitive tasks more convenient, it also ensures safety and provides inexpensive home security services. It is affordable too. It maintains cyber security by using minimal data to function.

“Home automation is just the start to a future full of possibilities,” Neupane says. “And we plan on taking our services to different parts of Nepal.”