Submit your Article

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has directed the Kathmandu University (KU) and Dhulikhel Hospital to maintain collaboration between them for the next five years.

At the 97th Senate meeting of the university held today at the Prime Minister's Residence, Baluwatar, PM Oli, also Chancellor of the university, gave instructions to discuss and resolve the misunderstandings and problems between the university and the hospital.

"Since the university cannot immediately open a new hospital and the government cannot invest for it, the relationship and cooperation with Dhulikhel Hospital should be continued for at least five years," Prime Minister Oli said, adding that within that period, the university will prepare to establish its own hospital.

Another meeting of the university within the next month will take appropriate decisions to this end and the same meeting will also discuss other challenges and difficulties, PM Oli said.

Dhulikhel Municipality Mayor Ashok Byanju expressed the opinion that the university should not suddenly break its relations with the hospital.

Prime Minister Oli, who is also the chancellor, took the opinion of the former vice-chancellor Dr Suresh Raj Sharma and instructed KU to continue the cooperation as it is considered necessary to maintain the relationship between the two institutions.

Prime Minister Oli also suggested creating a situation where students are admitted to the university according to the capacity of the seats.

He made it clear that in the last fiscal year, the revenue was 24 percent less than the estimate and the government could not give more subsidies to the university even if it wanted to.

In the meeting held in the presence of the Minister for Education, Science and Technology, Bidya Bhattarai, the budget of Rs 4.30 billion presented by university registrar Dr Achyut Wagle was endorsed.  The education minister is the Pro-Chancellor of the University.

Similarly, the Senate has passed the 'grace list' of 2,314 students who will be graduated from various colleges affiliated to KU for the upcoming 29th convocation ceremony.

Police have apprehended two foreign nationals in possession of 1.40 kg cocaine.

A team from the Narcotics Control Bureau of Nepal Police held Tanzanian national Zuma Abdulla Maji and Indian national K Juchobeni Tasopoi on the charge of their involvement in trafficking the narcotics substance.

Police made them public today.

The Bureau's team confiscated 80 capsules of cocaine concealed inside a bag belonging to the Tanzanian national Zuma who has been staying in a hotel at New Baneshwar, Kathmandu Metropolitan City-10.

The Indian citizen has also been arrested when Zuma was selling the cocaine to him, said Deputy Inspector General Dan Bahadur Karki, the spokesperson at the Police Headquarters.

According to the Bureau, the price of the confiscated cocaine is around Rs 38.7 million in the black market.

Police said investigation is under way against the two arrested persons on narcotics drugs trafficking case, extending their custody remand by taking permission from the Kathmandu District Court.

Australian Ambassador to Nepal, Felicity Volk, had a farewell meeting with CPN (Maoist Center) Chair and former Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal on Wednesday.

In the meeting at Dahal's residence in Khumaltar today, Ambassador Volk congratulated Nepal on the completion of the remaining works of the peace process as well as transitional justice, according to Dahal's private secretariat.

Ambassador Volk said that the dignity of Nepal in the international arena has increased due to this initiative.

Former Prime Minister Dahal praised Ambassador Volk's role in strengthening Nepal-Australia relations and wished her success in her further diplomatic career.

A barely two percent population growth in the country and a huge outmigration of the country’s youth has sections of the Nepali society deeply worried.

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli shared this worry at the concluding session of the Nepal Youth Summit 2024 while acknowledging, at least partially, that a not-so-conducive environment for jobs was also to blame for the exodus.

Nepal’s population growth rate is quite low, he said, offering the youth an idea for a ‘beautiful future’: Get married in your 20s and procreate without delay. Otherwise, Nepal may become a country of senior citizens with the youths leaving the country in large numbers citing a lack of job opportunities.

If one were to read Nepal’s Marriage Registration Act, the minimum legal age for marriage in Nepal is 20 years for girls and boys. However, they can marry at 18 years with parental consent.

The onus is on our young people to think about this alarming scenario (a low population growth and a high rate of youth out migration), he said, striking a chord with sections of the Nepali society that often express concerns about the youth exodus and a low population growth rate in a country with a population of around 29m.

The country has problems, but it is not the sole reason behind this exodus, he said in reference to a grim reality in which senior citizens, women and children have been left to fend for themselves.

“There is also a wave and a youthful desire to go abroad,” he said. 

A large number of youths have gone abroad and there’s a need to stop this outflow, PM Oli said at a time when successive governments have drawn flak for their failure to create a conducive environment for employment and retain the youths within the country, and reap the demographic dividend amid talk of Nepal’s graduation to a developing country status from the club of least developed countries. 

The government is making plans to promote entrepreneurship, PM Oli sought to assure, adding that his administration was thinking of bringing about a wave of development by introducing micro-entrepreneurship programs that provide jobs to a significant number of youths. 

Twenty percent of the national population lives below the poverty line, he said, stressing the need to reduce poverty by two percent each year for 10 consecutive years. 

Will these concerns be followed by some concrete action, making way for a great future every Nepali has been dreaming about, which goes well beyond marriage at a certain age? Who knows it better than the PM himself? 

The price of gold has dropped by Rs 300 per tola in the domestic market on Wednesday.

According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association, the yellow metal is being traded at Rs 150, 500 per tola today. It was traded at Rs 150, 800 per tola on Tuesday.

Similarly, the price of silver has dropped by Rs 5 and is being traded at Rs 1,735 per tola today.

The Narayangadh-Butwal road section along the East-West Highway has been obstructed.

Nawalparasi (Bardaghat Susta East) road has been obstructed again following a landslide at Daunne in Binayi Triveni Rural Municipality-2.

Deputy Superintendent of Police at the District Police Office, Bardaghat-Susta East, Bed Bahadur Poudel said the road that came into partial operation since Tuesday evening has been disrupted following torrential rain last night.

Efforts are underway to operate the road, he added.

If you want to be fit but don’t have time to head to the gym, there is help available in the form of workout apps. While many apps come with costly subscriptions, there are plenty of free ones that provide you just the tools you need to start your fitness journey. Here are our top three favorite ones to get you started.

Caliber

The group and individual workouts come at a price but Caliber’s free version has a vast library of more than 500 exercises. There are additional resources and tools to aid your fitness journey that are completely free. Each has a demo video, detailed instructions, pictures showing you which body parts are involved in which exercise. Also, the app allows you to track your progress by recording and charting strength and body metrics like your weight, waist size, and body fat percentage.

Fiit

Available in both paid and free versions, this app is a treasure trove. The app has over 2,000 workouts ranging from strength training to cardio to yoga. The good thing is that the free version gives you unlimited access to all group classes. You can also invite family and friends to join. The workouts are of different lengths. Some are as short as 10 minutes while others, like the full body workout, last for an hour or longer. Most of the workouts are designed in a way that requires no equipment, just your body weight will do. 

Nike Training Club

This is a free exercise app that features a clean interface and a large library of individual workouts and on-demand classes. It will be helpful for users of all fitness levels. But you will need some basic equipment like dumbbells, kettlebells, and some gym equipment to take part in many of the workouts available here. Even if you are going to the gym, this app can be a handy tool to guide you through the workouts. Nike Training Club will help you develop strength and endurance.

British Ambassador to Nepal, Rob Fenn, paid a courtesy call on Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli at the latter’s office in Singha Durbar on Tuesday.

On the occasion, they discussed matters of mutual relations and interest between the two countries, according to the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers.

PM Oli said that the government has kept development, increased participation of youths in policy-making and meeting the sustainable development goals in priority while strengthening Nepal's federalism and democracy.

The Prime Minister asserted that the government is working to fulfill the national aspiration of 'Prosperous Nepal, Happy Nepali'. He added that the government is committed to fulfill the expectation of the people towards it, as the government is formed in collaboration of two large parties.

The British Ambassador expressed happiness for finalizing the legal topics related to transitional justice based on political agreement. He assured of continued assistance of the UK government in Nepal's development, good governance and federalism strengthening, among others.

He also expressed commitment to assist the Nepali traders in exporting their goods to the UK.