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The number of vultures has increased in Chaukune Rural Municipality, Surkhet after the  local government made efforts for biodiversity conservation by unveiling the Forest and Environment Act.

Chairman of the rural municipality, Khadak BK, said that a total of 124 vultures were spotted there in the recent time. 

According to Chairman BK, 12 groups have been formed and two officials have been assigned for vulture conservation as part of maintaining biodiversity.

"The rural municipality has run a Gaushala to shelter the old and abandoned cows and oxen. The vultures visit the site in search of prey as the dead animals are managed there," Chairman BK added.   

He stated that the dead animals are kept away from the human settlements instead of burying them. "So, the vultures arrive in the forest area in search of food. Now, the area has 124 vultures," he confirmed. 

The officials of the rural municipality stated that they are working to coordinate with the province and federal levels and the ornithologists for better conservation measures of vultures.

India and Pakistan have accused each other of "violations" hours after the two nations said they had agreed to a ceasefire following days of cross-border military strikes, BBC reported.

After sounds of explosions were heard in Indian-administered Kashmir, India's Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said there had been "repeated violations of the understanding we arrived at".

A short while later, Pakistan's foreign ministry said it remained "committed to faithful implementation of a ceasefire...notwithstanding the violations being committed by India in some areas". 

The fighting between India and Pakistan over the last four days has been the worst military confrontation between the two rivals in decades, according to BBC.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has called for "direct talks" with Ukraine, saying they should "start without delay, as early as 15 May", BBC reported.

"We seek serious talks... to remove the root causes of the conflict and start moving towards a lasting, strong peace", he said on Saturday, in a rare televised late-night address from the Kremlin.

It comes hours after European leaders - including UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron - visited Ukraine and urged Russia to agree to an unconditional 30-day ceasefire, according to BBC.

In response, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov had said Moscow would "have to think this through" - but warned that "trying to pressure us is quite useless".

Nuclear-armed neighbours India and Pakistan agreed to a ceasefire on Saturday after U.S. pressure and diplomacy, announcing a sudden stop to a conflict that had seemed to be spiralling alarmingly, Reuters reported.

But within hours, violations were reported from the main cities of Indian Kashmir, the territory that had borne the brunt of four days of fighting.

Blasts were heard in Srinagar and Jammu and projectiles and flashes were seen in the night sky over Jammu, similar to the events of the previous evening, according to authorities, residents and Reuters witnessed.

Military spokespeople in both countries did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The fighting had been the worst between the old South Asian enemies in nearly three decades and threatened to erupt into a full-scale war in one of the world's most volatile and densely populated regions, according to Reuters.

There were briefly fears that nuclear arsenals might come into play as Pakistan's military said a top body overseeing its nuclear weapons would meet.

Indian Ambassador to Nepal Naveen Srivastava called on Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli on Friday..

During the meeting held at the official residence of the Prime Minister at Baluwatar, Indian Ambassador Srivastava briefed Prime Minister Oli about recent tensions and scenarios developed between India and Pakistan due to the terrorist attack at Pahalgam of India on April 22.

The Indian Ambassador made it clear that India has only carried out retaliatory attacks but the propaganda that it carried out ‘jet attack’ was not the reality.

He thanked the government of Nepal for the statement made public on Thursday regarding the incident, according to PM Oli’s Secretariat.

Saying Nepal is always in favour of world peace, Prime Minister condemned the terrorist attack as per Nepal’s principle stance against all types of terrorism.

He clarified that Nepal would not allow its territory to be used against its neighbouring countries.

The CPN-UML on Friday issued a whip to its lawmakers to vote in favor of the policies and programs brought by the government for the coming fiscal year 2025/26.

Chief Whip of the CPN-UML Parliamentary Party Mahesh Kumar Bartaula issued such a whip this afternoon. 

"A whip has been issued to all the lawmakers of the party to be physically present in the meeting of the House of Representatives scheduled for May 11 and cast vote in favor of the government's policies and programs for next fiscal year, as it is to be put to a vote in the Parliament meeting," reads a notice Chief Whip Bartaula issued today.

The price of gold has dropped by Rs 1, 400 per tola in the domestic market on Friday.

According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association, the yellow metal is being traded at Rs 190, 800 per tola today. It was traded at Rs 193, 200 per tola on Thursday.

The price of silver, however, has increased by Rs 5 and is being traded at Rs 1,960 per tola today.

Minister for Agriculture and Livestock Development Ramnath Adhikari has said that Nepal was at high risk of disaster.  

Addressing the regional ministerial-level meeting on 'Integrated Early Warning and Early Action System' in Colombo of Sri Lanka on Thursday, Nepal was at high risk of different types of disasters given its geographic location.    

He mentioned that Nepal has recorded huge loss of infrastructures and has suffered economically due to flooding, drought, cold wave, lightning and glacial outbursts every year. 

On the occasion, Minister Adhikari said that Nepal has stressed the need for common understanding and cooperation among different nations for climate resilience and developing effective pre-warning systems, the Minister's Secretariat shared.  

Jointly organized by the Sri Lankan government and the Regional Integrated Multi-Hazard Early Warning System (RIMES), the meeting held discussions on risk, early warning systems, and coordinated efforts related to risk preparedness in African and Asian countries.