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Nepali Congress President and former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba has lauded the contribution of the private sector to boost the national economy.

Speaking at an interaction organized by the NC's Industry and Trade Department here today, President Deuba said the role of the private sector was important for the economic prosperity of the country. "Industries and businesses should be strengthened to promote the market for domestic goods and services," Deuba added.

The role of the private sector is important in increasing the production of indigenous goods. There is a need for coordination between the private sector and the government to increase employment," he said, adding that the digital economy also has a large share in it.

"The budget for the next fiscal year should be to promote the digital economy. This will help in the promotion of information technology," Deuba added.

He further expressed the belief that the budget for the upcoming fiscal year would address the issues raised by the private sector and make the economic sector more vibrant.

Revenue collection from land and housing transactions has increased by 13.89 percent to Rs 33.2bn over the first nine months of fiscal year 2024/25.

According to the Department of Land Management and Archive (DoLMA), revenue collection from land and housing transactions in the same period of the previous fiscal year stood at Rs 29.15bn. Capital gains tax (CGT) from such transactions also rose by 17 percent in the nine-month period. That total CGT collections from land and housing transactions from mid-July 2024 to mid-April 2025 remained at Rs 12.8bn, up from Rs 10.32bn collected between mid-July 2023 and mid-April 2024.

An official from the DoLMA said the increase in CGT is due to the rise in land valuation and the revised property assessment rates introduced this fiscal year. A five percent CGT is levied on profits from land sales within five years, while the rate drops to 2.5 percent for sales after that period. Despite the higher revenue, the DoLMA noted that real estate transaction volumes have not improved compared to the previous fiscal year.

Land Revenue Offices collect various taxes, including registration fees, under nearly half a dozen categories from real estate transactions. Among these, capital gains tax is the largest source of revenue after registration fees. According to the DoLMA, land revenue offices across the country have collected an average monthly revenue of Rs 3.68bn this fiscal year. Similarly, the monthly average CGT collection has remained at Rs 1.34bn over the first nine months of 2024/25.

The real estate market, which had been declining since early 2025, saw a sudden surge in Chaitra (mid-March to mid-April). The DoLMA recorded 49,832 transactions nationwide during the month—the highest so far this fiscal year. The first quarter of 2024/25 saw total revenue collections of Rs 10bn from land and housing transactions. While the collection started strong in Shrawan with Rs 3.83bn, it gradually declined to Rs 3.09bn in Bhadra and further to Rs 3.08bn in Ashoj, indicating a slowing trend in real estate activity during the initial months.

The second quarter began with a concerning dip, as revenue plummeted to Rs 2.7bn in Kartik—the lowest monthly collection in the fiscal year. However, the market rebounded strongly in Mangsir with Rs 3.87bn, followed by an even better performance in Poush at Rs 4.25bn. This remarkable recovery pushed the second quarter’s total to Rs 10.82bn. The third quarter maintained this positive momentum, with total revenue of Rs 3.87bn in Magh and climbing to Rs 4.12bn in Falgun. The quarter peaked in Chaitra with Rs 4.39bn–the highest monthly collection recorded so far this fiscal year. This brought the third quarter’s total to Rs 12.38bn.
 

The Indian government has banned 16 Pakistani YouTube channels, including major news outlets like Dawn News and ARY News, accusing them of spreading provocative content. Former cricketer Shoaib Akhtar’s channel, with over 3.5 million subscribers was also restricted, according to the Firstpost.

The action follows a terror attack in Pahalgam, Kashmir, in which 26 tourists were killed. Officials said the banned channels were found disseminating misinformation aimed at inciting communal tensions, based on recommendations from the Ministry of Home Affairs.

Individual channels owned by Pakistani journalists Irshad Bhatti, Asma Shirazi, Umar Cheema, and Muneeb Farooq were also attacked, as were channels such as The Pakistan Reference, Samaa Sports, Uzair Cricket, and Razi Naama.

As stated by the Firstpost, the Indian government sent a strongly worded letter to the BBC, protesting to the portrayal of the Pahalgam attackers as "militants" in its reporting. Authorities stated that they will closely examine the BBC's future coverage on the matter.

Lawmakers have drawn the government's attention towards creating an environment for the community school teachers, currently staging protests in Kathmandu, to return to their workplace.

Speaking during the emergency session of today's meeting of the House of Representatives, they said that it was unfortunate that a clash had occured between police personnel and teachers on Sunday.

The lawmakers have also demanded that the government create an environment for teachers to return to school by enacting the School Education Act.

CPN (Maoist Center) leader Janardan Sharma said that the government should show readiness to address the demands of teachers. He strongly condemned the incident that took place on Sunday where dozens of teachers were injured with police using water cannons and batons against the teachers staging peaceful protest.

Sharma stressed that the state should enact a law to fulfill the legitimate demands of teachers, and also demanded that the agreement reached between the government and teachers in the past be implemented.

Similarly, Rastriya Swatantra Party lawmaker Sumana Shrestha demanded that the government immediately fulfill the demands of the teachers. She drew the government's attention to creating an environment for the teachers to get back to school as soon as possible, as children were being deprived of education. She also condemned the attack on journalists covering the protests on Sunday.

Likewise, Rastriya Prajatantra Party lawmaker Roshan Karki said that the suppression and use of water cannon and batons by police against the teachers was unfortunate and demanded that the government fulfill the teachers' demands. She condemned the attack on journalists during the teachers' protest.

On a different note, she also demanded that the legitimate demands of the resident doctors be addressed as soon as possible.

CPN-UML lawmaker Surya Bahadur Thapa Chhetri expressed sorrow over the incident that took place on Sunday during the teachers' protest and demanded that the government prevent such incidents from recurring.

The Yari Customs Office in the northern Humla has come into operation after a gap of four months.

The office remained closed since December 25 due to extreme cold weather. The customs service resumed after office Chief Ramraj Jaisi returned to Hilsa.

"The office was closed after informing the Customs Department since snow started accumulating in the area. It came back into operation from Sunday," Office Chief Jaisi said.

The road section here was completely closed for traffic after snowfall during the winter. It is expected that the transport service will also come into operation soon as the Hilsa-Simkot road project has started removing the snow.

Import of goods from Taklakot will also resume once the transport service comes into operation.

US military strikes on Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, have killed dozens.Eight individuals, including women and children, were killed in the Thaqban neighborhood of the Bani al-Harith district. After an attack on a migrant detention center, another 30 people were reported dead, according to Al Jazeera.

More casualties were reported as a result of additional US strikes that targeted the governorates of Amran and Saada. Although it has verified more than 800 strikes on Yemeni targets since mid-March, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) has not disclosed details of the most recent operations. 

More than 220 deaths have been reported during the ongoing campaign, Al Jazeera reported.

President Donald Trump urged Russia on Sunday (April 27) to stop its attacks in Ukraine while his top diplomat said the United States might walk away from peace efforts if it does not see progress, Reuters reported.

Speaking to reporters in New Jersey, Trump said he was disappointed that Russia has continued to attack Ukraine, and said his one-on-one meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy at the Vatican on Saturday had gone well.

"I see him as calmer. I think he understands the picture, and I think he wants to make a deal," Trump said of Zelenskiy.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, meanwhile, said the Trump administration might abandon its attempts to broker a deal if Russia and Ukraine do not make headway, according to Reuters.

South Korea’s opposition Democratic Party of Korea has named Lee Jae-myung as its candidate for the snap presidential election set for June 3.

“I am not only the candidate of the Democratic Party, but of all people who yearn for the end of insurrection, the overcoming of crisis, and the pursuit of unity and happiness,” Lee said in his acceptance speech after securing the nomination on Sunday.

Lee won his party’s nomination with nearly 90 percent of the vote during the primary, outpacing two other contenders.

A progressive leader advocating for greater economic equality and improved relations with North Korea, Lee is now the frontrunner to succeed President Yoon Suk-yeol, who was ousted following the attempted imposition of martial law late last year.

The 60-year-old former leader of the main opposition party led the impeachment process against Yoon over the martial law order in December.