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The weather is partly to generally cloudy in Koshi, Madhes, Bagmati, Gandaki and Lumbini Provinces.

Some places of Koshi, Madhes, Bagmati, Gandaki and Lumbini are experiencing light to moderate rain with thunder, storm and lightning.

This is due to the effect of the westerly and local winds as well as the low-pressure system formed around Bihar in India, says the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology.

The weather will remain partly to generally cloudy across the country this afternoon, with light to moderate rain accompanied by thunder and lightning in some parts of the country. There is a possibility of heavy rain at one or two places in Koshi, Bagmati, Gandaki and Lumbini.

Late tonight, the weather will remain partly to general cloudy across the country. There is a possibility of light to moderate rain with thunder and lightning at some places of Koshi, Madhes, Bagmati, Gandaki and Lumbini provinces as well as at one or two places of the remaining provinces.

In the next 24 hours, there is a possibility of light to moderate rain with lightning in some parts of the country, according to the weather bulletin issued by the department this morning.

A total of 105 crocodiles of the Gharial species have been released into the Rapti river. The crocodiles were raised at the crocodile breeding center of Chitwan National Park.

Crocodiles were raised in the breeding center with an aim of helping in the conservation of Gharial crocodiles, since the rate of survival and growth in the natural habitat is low, said information officer of the park, Ganesh Prasad Tiwari.

Established in the year 2035 BS, the Gharial Crocodile Breeding Center has so far released 1,957 crocodiles in different rivers of the country.  So far, 1,222 crocodiles were released in the Rapti River, 419 in Narayani River, 110 in Babai, 115 in Saptakoshi, 35 in Kaligandaki, 41 in Karnali, 10 in West Rapti River of Banke National Park, and 25 in Chaudhar river of Shuklaphanta National Park.

According to information officer Tiwari there are currently 622 crocodiles in Gharial breeding center.

Gharial Crocodile (Gavialis gangeticus) belongs to the Crocodylia Order and Crocodylidae Family. The reptile is native to Nepal, India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Myanmar and Pakistan. It is listed as a critically endangered species in the IUCN Red List category and Appendix I of CITES, according to the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation.

However, the number of crocodiles has not increased even though they are raised in the breeding center and released into the river. Conservation has become a challenge due to human activities and the crocodiles flowing across the border into India.  

Singer Arjun Sapkota and lyricist Santosh Sapkota have released a new music video titled ‘Baseu Alakkai’. The song features female singer Shanti Shree Pariyar alongside Arjun Sapkota, Garima Sharma, and Biraj Banskota in the cast. 

The music is composed by Arjun Sapkota, with arrangement, mixing, and mastering handled by HBN Kismat. Recordist Raj Khadka contributes to the production. Additionally, instrumentalists include Madan Regmi on Madal, Hemanta Kanchha Rasaily on Sarangi, and Gopal Dev on Flute. The music video has featured Shibu Pandey and Badal Ghimire as guest artists. 

With the song, Santosh Sapkota has debuted as a songwriter. Santosh, now 26, has also been working as a social media manager for several well-known faces in Nepal and India.

Born in Parbat, Santosh completed his schooling in Rupandehi and moved to Bangalore, India, to receive a diploma in mechanical engineering in 2013. Little did he know that his career would totally change. Completing the diploma in 2015, Santosh worked for two years in Bangalore as a service supervisor in Sri Manjunatha Pipes and returned to Nepal in 2018. In Nepal, he got his hands on a job as a service advisor in one of the companies of Agni Group, namely Agni Motoinc Pvt Ltd. But things took a different route in 2017 when he became an admin of the Facebook fan page for Arujn Sapkota, his cousin who had started his journey as a Nepali folk singer. He was unable to complete his engineering studies due to some family and financial issues. Nevertheless, he had not lost his hope.

Santosh’s journey showcases the unpredictable paths life can take. Despite facing challenges and detours, he found a new passion in songwriting. 

Gauri Singh Rawal, Mayor, Patan Municipality and Shri Avinash Kumar Singh, First Secretary, Embassy of India, Kathmandu laid the foundation stone for the construction of Shree Bhumeshwor Secondary School Building at Patan Municipality-4, Baitadi District, Nepal.

It is being built with Government of India’s financial assistance at the tendered cost of Rs 31.05 million under ‘Nepal-India Development Cooperation’.

Political representatives, government officials, social workers, representatives of the school management, teachers, parents and students were also present on this occasion, reads a statement issued by the Embassy of India in Kathmandu.

The Government of India grant under ‘Nepal-India Development Cooperation’ is being utilized for the construction of double storied school building Block-A and Block-C with other facilities for this school.  

The project is taken up as a High Impact Community Development Project (HICDP), under an Agreement between Government of India and Government of Nepal.

This project is being implemented through Patan Municipality, Baitadi. 

The project is an important example of the robust development partnership between India and Nepal.

Mayor Rawal in his remarks appreciated the continued developmental support of the Government of India in upliftment of the people of Nepal in priority sectors.       

The new school buildings would be useful in providing better education facilities to students of Shree Bhumeshwor Secondary School in Patan Municipality, Baitadi and would create an improved environment for learning as well as contribute to the development of the education in this area. 

Since 2003, Government of India has taken up over 551 HICDPs in Nepal in various sectors and has completed 490 projects.

Amongst these, 40 projects are in Sudurpashchim Province in various sectors, including 2 projects in Baitadi.

In addition to these, the Government of India has gifted 1009 ambulances and 300 school buses to various hospitals, health posts and educational institutions in Nepal on the occasion of Independence Day and Republic Day of India.

Amongst these, 68 ambulances and 29 school buses have been gifted in Sudurpashchim Province, including 5 ambulances provided in Baitadi District.

As close neighbors, India and Nepal share wide-ranging and multi-sectoral cooperation.                  

The implementation of HICDPs reflects the continued support of the Government of India in bolstering the efforts of the Government of Nepal in upliftment of its people, augmenting infrastructure in the field of priority sectors, especially in the education sector in Nepal.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Health and Population Upendra Yadav has said that the split of Janata Samajwadi Party Nepal will not affect the government.

"We are in favor of a stable government and we have always sought stability. We will not back down from that responsibility realized by us,” he said in an interaction organized by the Rafat Sanchar Club here today.

Stating that the JSP Nepal's support to the government continues and the government will not fall because of them, Deputy Prime Minister Yadav, who is also the chairman of Janata Samajwadi Party Nepal, said, "We will not play the game of toppling down the government. Since our party seeks political stability, good governance, development, prosperity and stability of the federal republic, it will not engage in the game of overthrowing the government."

He said that he will go to the Supreme Court for justice regarding the split of the party. The JSP Nepal Chair expressed his dissatisfaction, saying, "When I went abroad to represent the government, the party was split through a conspiracy here."

DPM Yadav said that he believed that the court would overturn the party split, stating that the party split was an unnatural, unprincipled, unethical and unconstitutional move as well.

He alleged that the name, flag and logo of the new party were the same, but the application was made the previous evening and the party was registered the next day. "It was seen that they are trying to weaken democracy and bring instability to the country by splitting the party," alleged Deputy Prime Minister Yadav.

India and Nepal on Wednesday concluded their first-ever bilateral meeting between their probe agencies tasked to combat money laundering and discussed ways to check the crime taking place through the porous border between the two neighbors. A visiting delegation of Nepal's department of money laundering investigation (DMLI), led by its Director General Pushpa Raj Shahi, attended the two-day meet with the officials from the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

"This was the first head of the agency level meeting between the two anti-money laundering agencies of India and Nepal. The meeting was aimed at developing mutual cooperation and strengthening capacity building in the areas of money laundering and asset recovery between India and Nepal," an official statement issued by the ED said. The Indian side was led by ED Director (in-charge) Rahul Navin and both the sides had officials from their respective embassies in Delhi and Kathmandu apart from the Indian external affairs ministry.

During the meeting, both sides presented an overview of their respective anti-money laundering legislations and exchanged ideas for combating the menace of money laundering, it said. Both the sides also presented case studies and discussed common modus of money laundering schemes, as per the statement.

The ED, it said, explained in detail about various tools of investigation, analytical software and forensic tools/equipment used during the money laundering investigations. "Emphasis was placed upon on the fact that money laundering is a global problem that not only threatens security, but also compromises the stability, transparency and efficiency of financial systems, thus undermining economic prosperity.

"Therefore, both the sides expressed their concern towards money laundering risks through the porous border between India and Nepal," the statement said. The two agencies also "agreed" to continue strengthening cooperation in anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism efforts, through increased information sharing and coordination, including expeditious sharing of evidence and information for money laundering and terrorism financing investigations, as and when necessary, it said.

The importance of fighting financial crimes and on the effective implementation of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) standards to protect abuse of financial systems was agreed upon, as per the ED. The Nepalese delegation "requested assistance" to set up forensic labs like the one ED has, and to arrange capacity building and training for DMLI officers.

ED expressed its "willingness" on this request and to strengthen agency-to-agency cooperation through informal channels in the areas of money laundering and asset recovery. "As a step closer, a draft MoU between ED and DMLI for enhancing mutual cooperation in the investigation of money laundering offenses was discussed and the same would be signed in due course after obtaining the necessary approvals from their respective competent authorities," the statement said.

 In a milestone achievement, MCA-Nepal has awarded and signed a contract with Linxon India Pvt. Ltd. for the construction of the 400 KV New Butwal Substation in Nawalparasi (Bardaghat Susta West) in Lumbini Province. The 400 KV Gas Insulated Switchgear (GIS) substation will be constructed within the contract duration of 39 months.

Kul Man Ghising, the managing director for Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA), and Dean R. Thompson, the US ambassador to Nepal, local authorities and elected representatives were also present at the signing ceremony in Bhumahi, Nawalparasi (Bardaghat Susta West), said a press release issued by MCA-Nepal office. 

“The US government is committed to working with the government of Nepal to ensure that the compact delivers on Nepal’s energy needs. The 400 kV New Butwal Substation will improve Nepal’s transmission capacity contributing to reliable and affordable electricity for household consumption, expanded commercial and industrial enterprises and cross-border electricity trading,” said US Ambassador Thompson.  

NEA Managing Director Ghising said the 400 kV substation has been a priority for NEA and will supplement the existing 220 kV substation to significantly increase cross-border energy trade in the region. MCA-Nepal Executive Director  Khadga Bahadur Bisht highlighted the overall progress being made in the implementation of the MCC Nepal Compact. “MCA-Nepal is expediting all works for the construction of the transmission lines and substations under the Electricity Transmission Project. We are at the final stages of the procurement process to sign the contract for the construction of the remaining two substations as well,” he said.

Along with this substation, MCA-Nepal is constructing two other substations in Ratmate, Nuwakot district and Damauli, Tanahun under the Electricity Transmission Project funded by the US government’s Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) and the government of Nepal.  The MCA-Nepal Board, chaired by the secretary at the Ministry of Finance, decided in its March board meeting to advance the 18 km Nepal portion of the new Butwal-Gorakhpur power transmission line to facilitate timely initiation of cross-border power trade as outlined in the agreement with India. 

Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal has said that the government is committed to give an impetus to the country's economic transformation by keeping the morale of investors, including the industrialists and business community, high.

Inaugurating the Hyundai Motor Assembling Plant of Laxmi Motor Corporation in Nawalparasi today, PM Dahal stated that the country would be taken ahead on the journey of prosperity through economic development.

He said the economy would be strengthened by taking the private sector into confidence, asserting that the government is committed to facilitating the investment.

"The country's economy cannot be made robust without the investment of the private sector and the collaboration between the state and the private sector. The productivity cannot be increased and employment opportunities also cannot be created without this," PM Dahal said, adding that the government is always in support of creating a climate conducive to investment, promoting the private sector and security and facilitation in the investment areas.

Expressing the belief that the domestic and foreign investors would be attracted more towards the industry-friendly environment in Nepal with the operation of this new industry, he said import would be substituted and hundreds of skilled and semi-skilled laborers will get jobs along with industrialization.

The Prime Minister viewed that the consumers can buy vehicles at a fair price and a positive contribution would be there in consumption of domestic resource and electricity, a partnership in the local development and on the GDP as well when the motor assembling is done within the country itself.

"Our fiscal and monetary policies should be promotional, rather than restrictive. These policies and laws should contribute to the production and employment promotion," he said. The PM further said the domestic and external indicators of the economy are in the positive due to the consistent efforts of the government.

"The Third Investment Summit has concluded recently. The government has amended important Acts, bringing an ordinance on the eve of the Summit. This will play a key role in addressing the problems seen in the investment sector and also in encouraging and promoting the internal and external investment," he added.

The Prime Minister believed that the enthusiasm seen in the investment summit, the common viewpoint and commitment witnessed in the political parties of Nepal and the attraction of the investors have indicated towards Nepal soon becoming an attractive destination for investment.