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The 304th Prithvi Jayanti was celebrated across the country by organizing various programs on Sunday.  

On the occasion of Prithvi Jayanti National Unity Day, President Ram Chandra Paudel, Prime Minister Sushila Karki, ministers and other dignitaries paid homage at the statue of Prithvi Narayan Shah in front of Singha Durbar.

Digital Rights Nepal (DRN) has raised concerns over provisions related to voter information included in the “House of Representatives Member Election Directive, 2082” issued by the Election Commission.

In a statement, DRN said the directive’s Chapter 4, Clauses 10 and 12, which allow political parties and independent candidates to receive digital copies of the voter register, are inconsistent with constitutional provisions and the Right to Privacy Act, 2075. According to DRN, the voter register contains sensitive personal details such as voter ID numbers, gender or gender identity, age, and parents’ names, which could make individuals easily identifiable and pose risks to personal privacy.

DRN also expressed concern that personal details including voter numbers, age, gender, and names of spouses and parents are already publicly accessible on the Election Commission’s website. It warned that distributing digital copies of voter lists containing such information to private devices could further increase the risk of misuse, not only during the election period but also afterward.

Citing the Right to Privacy Act, DRN noted that voter identification details are defined as personal information and that gender identity is classified as sensitive personal data protected from publication or dissemination in ways that could affect an individual’s private life. The organisation stated that the exceptions allowing limited disclosure under the law—such as explicit consent of the individual, self-disclosure, court orders, or criminal investigations—do not apply to the provisions in the election directive.

DRN said the protection of voter data is directly linked to fundamental rights, public trust, and the credibility of democracy. It added that the inclusion of details such as gender identity, age, and parents’ names in a single dataset could enable the creation of detailed personal profiles, raising additional concerns, particularly for gender minorities.

The organisation has called on the Election Commission to immediately suspend the digital distribution of voter data, review and limit the scope of personal information made public on its website, amend the directive in line with constitutional principles and the Right to Privacy Act, and consult with civil society, legal experts, and human rights organisations before finalising any revisions.

The Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) has strengthened engagement with key stakeholders from India’s travel, corporate, MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions), and wedding tourism sectors by participating in MTM and LLTM 2026 held in New Delhi.

The event took place at Pullman New Delhi Aerocity on Jan 8–9, where the board participated as a focus partner. During the programme, NTB presented Nepal’s potential as a destination for corporate events, incentive travel, conferences, and wedding tourism, with India positioned as a priority source market.

According to the organisers, the Jan 9 program functioned as a decision-focused and targeted networking platform, bringing together selected corporate buyers, established brands, and senior industry leaders. Discussions focused on evolving priorities in tourism and the MICE sector through structured and forward-looking interactions.

A key feature of the event was the “reverse marketplace” format, which facilitated one-on-one meetings between buyers and sellers. NTB stated that this platform enabled direct engagement with Indian corporate and MICE decision-makers, helping to expand business linkages and strengthen confidence in Nepal as a destination.

Through destination presentations, the board promoted Nepal as an attractive option for incentive travel, conferences, experiential travel, and festival- and celebration-focused tourism. Citing India as Nepal’s leading tourist source market, NTB Chief Executive Officer Deepak Raj Joshi said such strategic participation is expected to support long-term tourism growth.

On the second day, the “MTM Star Awards for Wedding Planners” recognised organisations for excellence in India’s wedding and celebration economy. On this occasion, Nepal highlighted its growing presence in wedding and destination celebration tourism and expressed optimism about further expansion in this segment.

According to the Nepal Tourism Board, participation in targeted international platforms such as MTM and LLTM 2026 is expected to further strengthen tourism cooperation with India and contribute to positioning Nepal as an emerging destination for corporate, MICE, and wedding tourism.

The National Heritage Conservation Foundation Nepal has honoured taekwondo athlete and international referee Dipendra Dhakal at a special ceremony held in Kathmandu.

The honour was conferred during the “National Heritage Outstanding Athlete Award–2082” programme organised by the foundation at the Nepal Tourism Board auditorium in Bhrikutimandap. Minister for Information and Communication Jagdish Kharel presented the award to Dhakal, recognising his contribution as an international taekwondo referee and athlete.

According to the organisers, Dhakal has played a significant role in representing Nepali taekwondo at the international level through his participation as a referee and athlete in various global competitions. He has served as a referee in tournaments held in South Asia, Canada, Australia, Germany, France, Belgium, and Spain. He also officiated at the Seventh World Military Games held in Wuhan, China, in 2019.

Singer and composer Arjun Sapkota has been named the most popular Nepali music artist of the past month, according to the December ranking released by music data platform “Viberate.”

Sapkota topped the list with a score of 492.4K. The platform publishes the popularity ranking on a monthly basis. His song Jhaliko, composed by Sapkota, has gained wide attention on social media. The song has received more than 19.5m views on YouTube, while thousands of users have also created videos using the track on TikTok.

The folk-style song features vocals by Melina Rai and Samikshya Adhikari alongside Sapkota, with lyrics written by Santosh Sapkota.

Maithili and Bhojpuri singer Sannu Kumar from Rajbiraj ranked second on the list with 444.7K points. Kumar enjoys significant popularity in Nepal’s Tarai and Madhesh regions.

Singer Sushant KC ranked third, followed by Tanka Budathoki in fourth place and Balen in fifth. The remaining artists in the top 10 are Sajjan Raj Vaidya, Trishna Gurung, Vten, Prakash Dutraj, and Melina Rai.

Viberate compiles its rankings using real-time data collected from major streaming platforms, social media, and radio, aimed at tracking artist popularity for musicians, managers, and record labels.

The CPN-UML has finalized its candidates for the National Assembly elections.

The UML has decided to field Roshni Meche, Prem Dangal, Samjhana Devkota, Ramkumari Jhankri, Mina Rakhal, Leela Bhandari and Som Portel as National Assembly candidates for the elections to be held on January 25.

Jhakri, who left the CPN (Unified Socialist) and joined the UML shortly before its 11^th General Convention, was elected as a central member at the convention.

A UML official said that any change in the agreement between the parties could lead to a revision of the candidate list.

The Nepali Congress, UML, and Nepali Communist Party have formally decided to forge an alliance in the National Assembly elections which will fill 18 seats.

The Congress and UML have also reached an agreement on the number of seats. They have divided seven seats each.

The Nepali Communist Party has been given three seats and the Janata Samajbadi Party Nepal has been given one seat.

However, Pushpa Kamal Dahal of Nepali Communist Party has expressed his dissatisfaction with the number of seats.

A wild elephant was found dead at Dandagaun in Buddhashanti Rural Municipality-3, Jhapa district on Tuesday.

A male elephant was found dead at a farm of a local Lal Bahadur Rasaili, said Deputy Superintendent of Police at the District Police Office, Jhapa, Khagendra Bahadur Khadka.

Teams from the Area Police Office, Budhabare and the Division Forest Office, Jhapa, have reached the incident site.

Further investigation into the incident is underway, added police.

With this, two elephants were found dead in the current fiscal year so far, said Forest Officer at the Division Forest Office, Jhapa, Himal Pathak.

Similarly, four persons were killed in elephant attacks in the district in the current fiscal year so far.

The Election Commission (EC) has stressed the need for an effective mechanism to regulate the challenges surfaced in the implementation of the election code of conduct in the wake of massive use of the information technology.

The first meeting of the Central Code of Conduct Monitoring Committee held on Monday underscored the need to devise a special mechanism to control issues such as misinformation, hate speech and fake information circulated through social media and digital platforms during elections.

The Central Code of Conduct Monitoring Committee is formed as per Clause 26 of Election Code of Conduct, 2082 BS. 

The meeting was presided over by EC Commissioner Sagun Shumsher JBR in the presence of Officiating Chief Election Commissioner Ram Prasad Bhandari and Commissioner Dr Janaki Kumari Tuladhar, the EC Spokesperson Narayan Prasad Bhattarai said. 

The meeting discussed the coordination among the agencies, role of regulatory bodies and challenges in implementation, and various other issues relating to the effective implementation of the election code of conduct. 

On the occasion, the officials viewed that awareness-based, promotional, and punitive programs should be initiated simultaneously for effective implementation of the code of conduct.

Officiating Chief Election Commissioner Bhandari said that regulation of the social sites was imperative and the Commissioner should effectively mobilize all its mechanisms.