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The supply of drinking water from the Melamchi project, obstructed due to monsoon rains, has resumed in the Kathmandu Valley.

The drinking water supply has been closed since June 24, citing the flood in the Melamchi River and landslide that could further damage the project during the rainy season. The water supply is now regularized in the Kathmandu Valley after necessary repair. 

More than 170 million litres of water is being supplied at the Water Treatment Plant, Sundarijal daily, said Executive Director of Melamchi Drinking Water Development Committee, Jagar Nath Das.  

There is a daily demand of 430 million litres of water in the Kathmandu Valley. However, only 130-140 million litres of water was supplied daily here from different sources during the closure of the Melamchi project. 

Executive Director of Kathmandu Upathyaka Khanepani Limited, Ashok Kumar Poudel, shared that they started distributing water in the valley. The Melamchi water will be supplied twice a week from today.

Water supply from the project was not possible throughout the year in the Kathmandu Valley after the floods on Indrawati and Melamchi Rivers damaged the project three years back.

The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) gained 44. 25 points to close at 2, 547. 60 points on Monday.

Similarly, the sensitive index surged by 5. 14 points to close at 444. 54 points.

A total of 9,904,874-unit shares of 330 companies were traded for Rs 4. 97 billion.

Meanwhile, Nepal Micro Insurance Company Limited (NMIC), Nepal Reinsurance Company Limited (NRIC) and Crest Micro Life Insurance Limited were the top gainers today, with their price surging by 10. 00 percent. 

Likewise, Corporate Development Bank Limited (CORBL)was the top loser as its price fell by 5. 26 percent.

At the end of the day, total market capitalization stood at Rs 1. 44 trillion.

Police have arrested three Indian nationals with 11 kg marijuana from the customs area of the Tribhuvan International Airport.

The arrestees have been identified as Salim Ibrahim Ansari (50), Rehan Mohammad Ajaj Sheikh (24) and Jainab Wasir (32), central police spokesperson DIG Binod Ghimire said.

They arrived in Kathmandu from Bangkok on an Air Asia flight.

Police said that they have been sent to Narcotics Control Bureau for necessary investigation and action.

Gold prices scaled to another record high on Monday as investors revved up their safe-haven bets after U.S. President Donald Trumprenewed tariff threats against China, while expectations of U.S. interest rate cuts added to the metal's allure, Reuters reported.

Silver also jumped to an all-time peak, tracking gold's rally.

Spot gold was up 1.4% to $4,074.02 per ounce, as of 0825 GMT, after hitting a record $4,078.05/oz, according to Reuters.

Global warming is crossing dangerous thresholds sooner than expected with the world’s coral reefs now in an almost irreversible die-off, marking what scientists on Monday described as the first “tipping point” in climate-driven ecosystem collapse, Reuters reported.

The warning in the Global Tipping Points report by 160 researchers worldwide, which synthesizes groundbreaking science to estimate points of no return, comes just weeks ahead of this year's COP30 climate summit being held at the edge of the Amazon rainforest in Brazil.

That same rainforest system is now at risk of collapsing once the average global temperature warms beyond just 1.5 degrees Celsius based on deforestation rates, the report said, revising down the estimated threshold for the Amazon, according to Reuters.

Hamas handed over all 20 surviving hostages to Israel on Monday, a major step towards ending two years of devastating war in Gaza as U.S. President Donald Trump, who helped broker the truce, proclaimed it was "a great day," Reuters reported.

The Israeli military said it had received the remaining 13 hostages after a first batch of seven arrived earlier on Monday, announcements that prompted cheering, hugging and weeping among thousands waiting at Hostage Square in Tel Aviv.

"This is a great day. This is a new beginning," Trump said after arriving to a hero's welcome in Israel where he was addressing the Knesset before flying on to Egypt for a summit aimed at building conditions for a lasting peace in Gaza.

Three children drowned in flood water at Gaur Municipality-3, Rautahat.

The deceased have been identified as Astha Kumari Baitha (13), Ragani Yadav (15) and Mausami Baitha of Rajdevi Municipality-8.

The incident occurred when seven children were heading towards Gaur to fetch fodder for cattle.

Locals rescued four of the drowned children while they retrieved the bodies of three children from the water.

A joint team of the Nepali Police and Armed Police Force recovered the bodies while carrying out a search operation.

All the bodies have been kept at the provincial hospital, police said.

Seventy-five companies across various sectors are awaiting the approval of the Securities Board of Nepal (Sebon) to go public. These companies are awaiting the stock market regulator’s nod to float 375.4m units of ordinary shares to raise Rs 54.15bn from the market.

Hydropower sector companies account for nearly half of the pending applications. According to data provided by the Sebon, 37 hydropower companies have applied to raise around Rs 18.26bn from the market by floating 178.5m units of ordinary shares.

IPO proposals of hydropower companies have stalled at the Sebon for a long time amid conflicting instructions and regulatory concerns. The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of the House of Representatives had earlier directed Sebon to reject IPO applications from companies with a net worth below Rs 90 per share. The Finance Committee later advised the stock market regulator not to consider net worth as the sole basis for approval. Concerns over project viability further delayed the process. The Sebon leadership was also accused of mobilizing middlemen to collect kickbacks from hydropower promoters for IPO approval.   

In terms of the amount to be raised, however, the Manufacturing & Processing sector leads the chart. Companies under this category plan are awaiting the regulator's nod to float 126.9m units of ordinary shares worth approximately Rs 27.04bn.

Similarly, three companies from the Hotels & Tourism sector are preparing to raise Rs 1.42bn through 14.2m units of shares. Meanwhile, four investment companies have applied to float 18.6m shares worth Rs 3.14bn to the general public.

Three microinsurance companies—Protective Microinsurance, Star Microinsurance and Liberty Micro Life Insurance—have also sought Sebon’s nod to issue 6.75m units of shares to raise Rs 675m.

Out of seven microinsurance companies licensed by the Nepal Insurance Authority (NIA) , four three have already issued their ordinary shares to the general public.

Additionally, 10 companies from other sectors have submitted proposals to issue 27.6m shares worth Rs 3.43bn. Once approved, the upcoming listings are expected to inject fresh momentum into the market market, particularly in energy and manufacturing sectors that continue to draw strong investor interest.