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Minister for Communications and Information Technology Prithvi Subba Gurung has said that this year's budget allocation will be based on the classification and priorities of projects. He mentioned that there will be no 'populist' budget. 

During an interaction to collect feedback for the progress report of Dordi Rural Municipality in Lamjung and for the annual budget and programs for the upcoming fiscal year 2025/26, Minister Gurung said that budget for projects that can only be discussed but  not be implemented will be discouraged this time.

Also the government's spokesperson, Minister Gurung also stated, "Many projects have been left unfinished due to excessive spending, and the budget will prioritise completing such neglected projects."

He said that the projects made without any 'estimate' would not be in the priority of the budget. Minister Gurung said that the government would lay emphasis on making the national pride projects successful. He said the government was focused on completing national pride projects first. 

Lauding the good practices of Dordi Rural Municipality, he suggested the local levels to focus on plans to improve the living standard of the people, bring economic prosperity and alleviate poverty while making the budget.

The federal government will implement large projects like roads and highways,” he said, “local governments should prioritise plans to eliminate poverty and create jobs.” 

He mentioned that in the era of information technology, the ministry has emphasised expanding digital access at the local level to make e-governance more effective. 

On the occasion, the municipality released a progress report highlighting achievements in agriculture, employment, health, and education.

Ruling Party Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba has emphasised the need to make Nepal an education hub for foreign students by ensuring quality education in the country. 

During a discussion program on education policy organised by his party's Education Department today, he stated that since education is an important matter, efforts should be made to improve its quality, to keep domestic students in the country and even to attract foreign students.

Former Prime Minister Deuba expressed the view that arrangements should be made to fulfill the desire of all parents to provide good education to their children in the country. 

Department head Nain Singh Mahar stressed on the need for developing research-oriented policy in education. 

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has urged tourism authorities to ensure warm hospitality to tourists visiting Nepal, while avoiding legal and administrative hassles.

At the National Tourism Dialogue organised by the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation at Singha Durbar today, he directed for comprehensive reforms to remove obstacles, if any, and advance the pace of tourism infrastructure development.

Unnecessary hassles for visitors at the immigration, loss of luggage and harassing tourists entering through the land border checkpoints should be put to an end. "Let us take tourism ahead as a basis for prosperity without any shortcomings in the facilitation work required from the concerned authorities," the Prime Minister said.

Referring to the EU ban imposed on Nepali aviation service providers, the Prime Minister also directed the concerned authorities to work to address the terms and conditions and to fulfill other criteria towards that end, including by dividing the aviation regulation authority into licensing and regulatory agencies.

The dialogue emphasised the need for timely construction of major highways and roads including Kathmandu-Muglin-Pokhara, Butwal-Palpa-Pokhara, Kathmandu-Dhulikhel, ease of entry of tourists through border checkpoints, direct air connectivity to European countries, branding Nepal on the world stage, formulation of a master plan for tourism promotion, restructuring of Nepal Airlines Corporation, implementation of conclusions of the Sagarmatha Dialogue, quality investment, human resource management, ease of tax and currency exchange, cleaning of the Himalayas, expansion of digital efficiency and increased inter-agency coordination.

The event was attended by the concerned federal ministers, ministers in charge of tourism of the provincial governments, high-ranking officials, and representatives of the private sector. An action plan prepared on the basis of suggestions received from the private sector regarding the existing problems in the tourism sector and solutions was presented for deliberations at the dialogue.

A 4.3 magnitude earthquake shook Jajarkot district on Monday.

The tremor occurred at 2: 25 am today with its epicentre at Ramidanda,  Barekot Rural Municipality in Jajarkot, said Chintak Timsina, Head of the Earthquake Monitoring Centre in Surkhet.

Dr Dhundi Raj Bhattarai has been appointed as the Chairperson of Nepal Water Supply Corporation (NWSC). 

Bhattarai was appointed to the post for three years as per the ministerial decision, shared Secretary at the Ministry of Water Supply, Engineer Pramila Devi Shakya.

Dr Bhattarai is a resident of Bhumikasthan Municipality -9 in Arghakhanchi district.

Nepali Congress (NC) has denied any involvement of Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak in the visit visa scandal.

A meeting of both former and current office bearers of the party held at the private residence of Party President Sher Bahadur Deuba in Budhanilkantha today concluded that Minister Lekhak, who represents the party in the NC-UML coalition government, had no role in the scandal.

During the meeting, the Minister presented a detailed statement regarding his alleged involvement in the scam, according to NC Spokesperson Prakash Sharan Mahat. After reviewing his clarification, the party leadership decided there was no evidence linking him to the scandal.

The meeting also called for an impartial investigation into the matter, urging that those found responsible be brought to justice.

It is worth noting that on May 21, Tirtha Raj Bhattarai, the Chief of the Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) Immigration Office, was interrogated by the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) for allegedly facilitating illegal foreign travel of Nepali nationals on visit visas.

It was later discovered that he had been in regular contact with officials in the Ministry, raising suspicions about the Minister's involvement in the scandal.

Chairperson of the Commission of Investigation on Enforced Disappeared Persons Lila Devi Gadtaula has expressed her commitment to search the disappeared persons providing justice to families of those who were forcibly disappeared. 

During the meeting with armed conflict victim families, Chair Gadtaula shared, "We will conduct a thorough investigation making victim families satisfied and providing justice. We will recommend compensation to the victim after finding the facts—when, why, and by whom they disappeared?"

She mentioned that a preliminary draft has been prepared for the regulation as per 'Commission of Investigation on Enforced Disappeared Persons and Truth and Reconciliation Commission Act-2071'. 

Chair Gadtaula said the draft would be finalised after holding discussions with conflict victim families. "Transitional justice should be victim-centric and victim-friendly. Suggestions of victims on the regulation are necessary," she opined. 

The CIEDP Chair added that the Commission has also prepared an action plan in order to move ahead reviewing the activities carried out by it so far. 

An arrangement has been made to take the transitional justice to conclusion by making a third amendment to the Act in September 2024.

Similarly, Chairperson of Association of Conflict Affected Family of Security Forces Hem Kumari Gharti Magar urged the concerned authority to carry out activities ensuring justice to the victim families.

The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) plunged by 5. 21 points to close at 2, 674. 76 points on Monday.

Similarly, the sensitive index dropped by 0. 37 points to close at 456. 09 points.

A total of 17,160,625-unit shares of 337 companies were traded for Rs 7. 58 billion.

Meanwhile, Om Megashree Pharmaceuticals Limited (OMPL) was the top gainer today with its price surging by 9. 99 percent. Likewise, Gurans Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Limited (GLBSL) was the top loser as its price fell by 10. 00 percent.

At the end of the day, the total market capitalization stood at Rs 1. 50 trillion.