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The price of gold has increased by Rs 2, 700 per tola in the domestic market on Tuesday.

According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association, the precious yellow metal is being traded at Rs 142, 700 per tola today. It was traded at Rs 141, 000 per tola on Monday.

Similarly, tejabi gold is being traded at Rs 142, 000 per tola.

Meanwhile, the price of silver has increased by Rs 25 and is being traded at Rs 1,860 per tola today.

The Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) has arranged 374 beds at 52 hospitals for the free treatment of helpless and poor people.

The private hospitals are obliged to allocate minimum 10 percent beds and free treatment to the helpless and indigent people as per KMC's edict.

Public health inspector at Health Department of KMC, Dhanendra Shrestha, informed that, so far, 70 patients benefited from the scheme launched last February. Most of those receiving the service are from out of the capital city.

After the private hospitals flouted legal provisions, the KMC introduced a free treatment work procedure, 2080 and brought to strict implementation.

The KMC has also managed a system where the availability of beds, treatment services and other schemes at private hospitals can be checked online. Some of such indigent patients were discharged after treatment while some still undergoing treatment.

Shrestha further informed that most of such patients are suffering from ear, nose and throat (ENT) problems, and kidney disease, while some had respiratory and eye problems.

A hotline 1180 of KMC could be dialed to receive information about the treatment or for the service.

Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal has extended best wishes to the Nepali cricket players for the excellent performance in the ICC T20 World Cup going on in the US.

Issuing a press note today, PM Dahal believed that the World Cup would further glorify Nepal's identity.

He said he was confident that Nepali team would achieve a historic victory.

PM Dahal reminded that the government he had led were taking significant decisions for the development of sports and encouragement to players while the country known for the Sagarmatha and the Buddha is adding a new hat- the country of cricket players.

"Nepali team is playing the ICC T20 World Cup after a decade. It is a matter of glory. It has drawn global attention towards Nepal. I thank Nepali cricket team for its untiring efforts and struggle for success," PM Dahal reiterated. 

In a move to promote menstrual hygiene and create inclusive economic growth opportunities, USAID Nepal and the USAID Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Partnership and Learning for Sustainability #2 (WASHPaLS#2) Dignified Workplace Program convened around 100 Nepali business leaders to celebrate Menstrual Hygiene Day 2024 in Kathmandu.

The event underscored the commitment of Nepal’s industrial and private sector leaders to fostering menstruation-friendly workplaces, highlighting the positive impact on working women and businesses. This initiative aims to create inclusive economic growth opportunities for all Nepali people.

Two major pledges marked the event: Dignified Workplace Advisory Board members and directors of the Annapurna Media Network, Sachan Thapa and Subha Khanal, committed Rs 1m worth of media spotlight to the Dignified Workplace Program in Nepal. Additionally, Executive Director of Jasmine Hygiene, Punit Sarda, pledged NPR one million worth of sanitary pads to the program.

USAID Nepal Health Office Director Patricia Mengech attended the event and stated, “The United States Government, through the US Agency for International Development (USAID), is proud of our partnership with the private sector to dignify menstruation across the country and improve the sexual and reproductive health of women workers in Nepal. This support is part of a long-standing partnership—dating back over 70 years—between the US Government and Nepal to improve the health care and wellbeing of Nepalis. By helping remove another obstacle to the advancement of women, together we are contributing to our joint responsibility to make sure economic growth is inclusive of the vulnerable, poor, and marginalized populations (which so often include women), and to promote gender equality and inclusion.”

Dignified Workplace Advisory Board member Gaurav Agarwal, Director of Everest Hospitality and Chairman of the Shikhar Insurance Board, expressed his gratitude in a vote of thanks, stating, “A Dignified Workplace where women are respected and taken care of, including their menstrual hygiene needs, is a human right.” Agarwal also thanked the client companies pioneering the Dignified Workplace Program in Nepal, including Kathmandu Marriott, Fairfield by Marriott, Shikhar General Insurance, Hotel Tibet in Lazimpat, The Wonderland, ECOORB, Hulas Remittance, Om Gold House, Sunita Foundation, and Simrik Air.

The event saw the presence of several other distinguished Nepali business leaders, including Tsering Dolkar Lama and Tsewang Sadutshang from Hotel Tibet, Sashikant Agarwal from MS Group and Reliance Spinning, Saurav Jyoti from the Jyoti Group, Ram Sharan Ji Bhandari from Hams Hospital, Shikhar Garg from Om Gold House and The Wonderland, and Sahara Joshi from NYEF, among others.

Menstruation often brings shame, embarrassment, and physical discomfort for women in Nepal and globally. The Dignified Workplace program in Nepal, a two-year incubation action research project by USAID Nepal and USAID WASHPaLS#2, aims to improve menstrual health and hygiene (MHH) and sexual and reproductive health (SRH) for women workers. It supports the local Dignified Workplace Network in Nepal to deliver integrated workplace-based advisory services.

USAID/WASHPaLS #2, a five-year (2021–2026) task order funded by the Bureau for Global Health, identifies and shares best practices for achieving sustainability, scale, and impact of evidence-based environmental health and WASH interventions. 

Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal is preparing to reshuffle the Cabinet.

Prime Minister Dahal is to reshuffle the Cabinet by roping in the Nagarik Unmukti Party.

Nagarik Unmukti Party Chairperson Ranjita Shrestha said that she will be appointed as the minister within a week.

She said that the Prime Minister has promised her to give the responsibility of Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation within a week.

Prime Minister Dahal is preparing to appoint Shrestha as the minister by recalling Hit Bahadur Tamang.

Party founder Resham Chaudhary and Ranjita Shrestha still have differences within the party.

There is still a dispute between them about whether to support the government or not.

The Lumbini Province government has presented its policies and programs for the upcoming fiscal year 2024/25  in  the Province Assembly on Monday.

Province Chief Amik Sherchan presented the policies and programs of the government in the Assembly today. 

The government has pledged a feasibility study to establish a community childcare center at four locations: Ghorahi, Lumbini, Butwal, and Nepalgunj within the province. 

On the occasion, the Province Chief said the concept aims to retain working women who are likely to quit their jobs after having a baby due to their prescribed roles of taking care of the child. 

The province government assures of coming up with a 10-year strategy to combat early marriage and make the province free from child marriage by 2030 AD.  It has announced plans to provide self-defense training for girls, establish a province-level child protection home, and so on.

Subsidy in agriculture based on production, modernization of agriculture with the use of technology, feasibility study for the Buddha Touristic Circuit: Lumbini-Dhorpatan-Dunai-Jumla-Khalanga-Rara-Kankrebihar-Kohalpur-Lumbini', promotion of trans-province cooperation, construction of disabled-friendly roadways and the launch of a special drinking water programme at Koilabas point of Dang are among the announcements incorporated in the government plans and policies.

The government has pursued policies of discouraging migration from the hill to Terai by establishing model settlements within the villages, building an herb processing industry within the province, launching awareness programmes to minimize human-wildlife conflict, operating special classes for autistic children, and ensuring an internet facility for higher education students.

Similarly, it had pledged to recognize the mother tongue as an official language and manage air ambulance facilities for the rescue of expectant mothers.

Lawmakers speaking in the 'zero hour' in the House of Representatives today drew the attention of the government towards the problem of power outage (load-shedding) in various districts.

They drew the government's attention towards Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) resorting to power cuts or 'load-shedding' amidst the increasing temperature in the Tarai districts.

Lawmaker Dhawal Shumsher Janga Bahadur Rana urged the government to make arrangements for the regular power supply as the power cuts amidst the excessive heat has made the life of people further difficult.

Dr Toshima Karki drew the government's attention, saying the election constituency number 3 of Lalitpur district was facing shortage of water despite the location in the area of the Melamchi Water Supply Project's water tank with a storage capacity of 18 million liters.

Deepak Bahadur Singh called attention of the government towards the Republic Markers located in the precincts of Narayanhiti Palace not being opened for viewing for the general public despite five years since they were constructed.

Dilendra Prasad Badoo expressed his objection, saying the present government has reduced the grant amount to the local levels in contravention of the main spirit of federalism.

Deepa Sharma said that the people of Banke district and the Karnali Province have not got to experience that the 'load-shedding' has come to an end.

Durga Rai drew the government's attention towards the urgent need of road construction in Bhojpur district while Dev Prasad Timilsina urged the government to conduct an assessment of the damage caused by storm and hailstone in various places of the country and provide compensation and relief to the affected people.

Nagina Yadav demanded that the problems faced by the farmers such as shortage of fertilizer, irrigation facilities and drinking water should be addressed.

Pratima Gautam stressed on the need of resolving the problem related to the management of solid waste and road footpath through discussions while Pratikshya Tiwari called for finding a sustainable solution to the problem of shortage of drinking water and irrigation in the Madhes province.

Prem Suwal inquired about the works being carried out by the Ministry of Land Management, Cooperatives and Poverty Alleviation. "What has the Ministry of Poverty Alleviation been doing," he questioned.

Similarly, Narayani Rana, Prem Bahadur Maharjan, Basudev Ghimire, Bindabasini Kansakar, Binita Kathayat, Dhruba Bahadur Pradhan, Nirmala Koirala, Naina Kala Thapa, Nisha Dangi, Narayan Prasad Acharya and Deepak Giri called attention of the government towards the damage caused by the storm, the sky-rocketing market prices of essentials and the problem of load-shedding seen in various districts.

Likewise, lawmakers Dilli Raj Panta, Tara Lama Tamang and Teju Lal Chaudhay drew the government's attention towards the problem of overcrowding at the Kailali District Prison, around 447 sugarcane farmers in Kanchanpur district not getting the subsidy amount provided by the government, and the frequent power outages in the districts of the Tarai/Madhes, respectively, and urged the government to urgently address the problems.

The Road Division Office blacktopped the road of New Road dug for footpath expansion.

The Kathmandu Metropolitan City had dug the road from Juddha Salik to Indra Chowk of Road on both sides saying that it was not in accordance with standards.

The Road Division blacktopped the road saying that the Kathmandu metropolis’ move was against the law.

There was a dispute for a while when the city tried to stop the works of blacktopping.

The city police stepped back after the locals said that the road should be blacktopped.

Locals said that the problems had arisen due to the lack of coordination between the Kathmandu metropolis and Road Division.

The Kathmandu metropolis had dug the road in front of Bishal Bazaar of New Road to expand the footpath.