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Selena Gomez has married music producer and songwriter Benny Blanco, announcing the news in an Instagram post showing the couple kissing and embracing on a lawn.

“My wife in real life,” Blanco responded to the post Saturday by the Grammy- and Emmy-nominated performer. Gomez wore a white halter bridal dress with floral flourishes, and Blanco wore a tuxedo and bow tie, both custom-made by Ralph Lauren.

Paparazzi had snapped photos of a massive outdoor tent and other preparations in the Santa Barbara area.

Friends in the entertainment industry and brands she’s linked to responded with heart emoji and congratulations. “Our Mabel is MARRIED,” said the account of her “Only Murders in the Building” series, and her Rare Beauty line of cosmetics posted: “so happy for you two.” Best wishes were also sent by Camila Cabello, Amy Schumer and others.

Blanco, 37, and Gomez, 33, met about a decade ago and got engaged at the end of last year. They worked together on the 2019 song “I Can’t Get Enough,” which also featured J Balvin and Tainy.

Among the songs he’s credited on as a writer and producer: Katy Perry’s “Teenage Dream,” “Circus” by Britney Spears and Maroon 5’s “Moves Like Jagger.”

Gomez, whose hits include “Calm Down,” “Good for You,” ’’Same Old Love” and “Come & Get It,” has been in the spotlight since she was a child. She appeared on “Barney and Friends” before breaking through as a teen star on the Disney Channel’s “Wizards of Waverly Place.”

She earned awards nominations in recent years for her ongoing role alongside Martin Short and Steve Martin in Hulu’s “Only Murders in the Building.” Gomez has a massive audience on social media with 417m Instagram followers, the most for any woman on the platform.

AP

After a landslide, the Muglin-Narayangadh section has become one-way once more.

In Chitwan’s Tuin Khola area, a dry landslide had earlier blocked the road, which was cleared, allowing traffic to resume.

However, on Sunday morning, another landslide occurred near Dasdhunga.

The authorities stated that the new landslide is not large and is expected to be cleared within about an hour, after which the highway will reopen for two-way traffic. 

Nepal Police has kept the prisoners escaped from various jails across the country under constant surveillance. The prisoners had escaped from the jails during Gen Z protest on Sept 9.

Deputy Inspector General of the Nepal Police, Binod Ghimire, said out of the total escaped prisoners, only 8,000 had returned to the jails.​​​​​​​ Six thousands are still on the run, so even the public need to be aware of safety situation.

Security alertness is further important also because of the festival time. “Some of the inmates are notorious thieves and dacoits. They could commit revenge in the respective places against the cases they are filed. So, all sides need high alertness,” he reminded.

If anyone finds such wrongdoers, they can contact the nearest police office or phone at the contact numbers provided by the Nepal Police.

All District Police Offices were written about the inmates and their criminal records, reminding further alertness over the untoward incidents to be triggered by the inmates.​​​​​​​ Meanwhile, the Prison Management Department has asked the inmates to return to the respective jails within Oct 6, otherwise face action.

‘Kanchhiko Chulbule Bani’ was released on Tuesday, gaining traction with over 15,000 views online.

The song features vocals by Manish Bishwokarma, with lyrics and composition jointly created by Prashant Koirala and Bishwokarma. The arrangement is also by Bishwokarma, accompanied by contributions from noted instrumentalists including Shanish Bishwokarma (guitar), Ayush Tuladhar (accordion/piano), Gautam Rai (flute), Pritam Rai and Nikhil Bist (dholak and tabla), and Sanjeev Subba (bass guitar). The recording, mixing, and mastering were handled by Deepak Raj Bishwokarma at Audio Lab.

The video, directed and choreographed by Safal Basnet, stars Bishwokarma alongside Bibhusha Basnet and the music team, with a special appearance by Pramisha Dulal. Cinematography is by Utsav Dahal, with editing and color grading by Suroj Adhikari, Jitu Tamang, and Dinson Shah. Sapana Lamsal served as the make-up artist, while Gyanu Ghimire of Harmony Events managed production.

Nepal’s private sector has said that the violent GenZ protests of Sept 8 and 9, which left government offices and private establishments vandalized and torched, have inflicted losses running into billions of rupees, setting the economy back by years.

Speaking at a discussion organized Tuesday by the Nepal Economic Journalists’ Association on the theme “The Road Ahead for Economic Recovery,” business leaders said the destruction has undermined investor confidence, shaken the foundations of industries, and halted incoming investments.

Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) president Birendra Raj Pandey estimated that the protests cost the economy around five percent of gross domestic product (GDP). “For investors, security of capital is fundamental. But the violent destruction of public and private structures has eroded confidence. The government must now step in with supportive fiscal and monetary policies to help businesses recover,” Pandey said.

He urged the government to design both short- and long-term recovery strategies, including special facilities for large industries. He also highlighted the need for reforms in education and improvements to laws that remain complicated and difficult to implement. According to him, the unrest has already stalled major joint-venture investments that were in the pipeline.

Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) vice president Hemraj Dhakal described the protests as a “massive setback.” The destruction of large public and private infrastructures, he said, has crippled the economy. “We are ready to rise from the ashes, but what is the guarantee that such destruction won’t happen again? The government must provide a security guarantee,” Dhakal said.

Former president of Nepal Chamber of Commerce Rajendra Malla said the unrest has created an atmosphere of fear across the business community. He stressed that peace and security must be the government’s immediate priority and urged authorities to assure entrepreneurs that they need not fear operating in Nepal.

Malla also called for policies that would encourage youth to stay and work in Nepal rather than leaving for foreign employment. He identified startups, IT, artificial intelligence, and rural technology programs as areas where the government could foster growth. “Tourism has taken a severe hit, but Nepal can still brand itself as a safe destination if the government acts quickly,” he added.

Business leaders further warned that widespread informal transactions and the misuse of remittances have aggravated Nepal’s economic vulnerabilities. Unless structural reforms and effective utilization of resources are ensured, they cautioned, the country risks being pushed five to six years behind its development trajectory.

Insurance claims for damages incurred during the Gen Z movement have reached Rs 22.25 billion.

According to the Nepal Insurance Authority, the highest number of insurance claims is in Bagmati Province, with claims worth Rs 17.97 billion.

A total of 2,478 insurance claims have been filed in 18 insurance companies, including micro insurance companies. The number of claims may increase further due to the large amount of physical property damage. The claims for compensation for the damage, however, come only from the private sector, as government structures were not insured.

According to the details provided by the Authority, claims worth Rs 5.22 billion have been filed in Oriental Insurance Company alone. Similarly, Siddhartha Insurance has received applications seeking claims for damage worth Rs 5.08 billion.

Among the total applications seeking insurance claims, 538 applications were received for property insurance, 1,778 for vehicle insurance, 132 for engineering and contractor risk, 11 for transportation insurance, and 19 for other kinds insurance.

There is a possibility of heavy rainfall at one or two places of the hilly regions of Koshi, Bagmati and Gandaki Provinces today.

With the weather remaining generally cloudy throughout the country, moderate rainfall is likely at some places of Koshi, Madhesh, Bagmati, and Gandaki Provinces; at a few places of Lumbini Province and other hilly regions; and at one or two places of the remaining Tarai regions of the country, says the Meteorological Forecasting Division.

Tonight, the weather will remain generally cloudy in the hilly areas and mainly fair in the rest of the country. There is a possibility of moderate rainfall at a few places of the hilly regions of Gandaki, Lumbini, and Karnali Provinces, and at one or two places of the remaining Tarai regions of the country.

Non-banking assets of the banks and financial institutions have surged past Rs 50bn as bad loans rise and banks fail to offload collateralized properties. According to Nepal Rastra Bank, BFIs collectively held Rs 50.56bn worth of NBAs as of the first month of the current fiscal year i.e. mid-August. Commercial banks, development banks and financial institutions held Rs 7.69bn worth of such assets in mid-July 2021. It increased to Rs 10.52bn in 2022 and further to Rs 18.68bn in mid-July 2023.

NBAs nearly doubled to Rs 35.5bn in mid-July 2024 as the central bank withdrew facilities provided to borrowers as a relief during the Covid-19 pandemic. It increased further to Rs 50.55bn in mid-July this year.   Most of these collateralized properties are in the form of land and houses. 

Banking experts say non-banking assets are piling up as banks have not been able to auction off properties due to a lack of buyers amid slowdown in land and housing transactions. “Since there is a lack of liquidity in the market since the cooperative sector ran into trouble, banks have been unable to find buyers for land and houses under their ownership,” a banker said. “In such a situation, banks have no option but to keep collateralized properties under their books.”

As per the existing laws, banks must issue successive auction notices of 35 days, 21 days and seven days before starting the process of disposing off collateral. Banks can proceed with auction notices only if borrowers remain unresponsive to banks. Even after going through this lengthy process, banks are finding few buyers for land and houses under their books. 

Compounding the woes for BFIs is a provision in the Land Act, 2021, which requires banks, financial institutions and cooperatives to sell off foreclosed land within three years. With non-banking assets piling up, banks have been lobbying to relax this provision.

Bankers have long been calling for the formation of a ‘bad bank’ to take over their distressed assets. The High-level Economic Reforms Advisory Commission led by Former Finance Secretary Rameshore Prasad Khanal suggested to the government to form an agency to manage non-banking assets in the banking system.

Khanal has now been appointed as the Minister for Finance in the interim government led by Sushila Karki. The central bank has already drafted legislation to facilitate such a body and forwarded it to the finance ministry for approval.