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Voting for the National Assembly elections concluded today in a peaceful and enthusiastic manner, according to the Election Commission (EC). 

The voting was held from 9 am to 3 pm across all seven provinces, recording an overall voter turnout of 95.68 percent, EC Spokesperson Narayan Prasad Bhattarai said.

The election was conducted for 17 among 18 seats that would fall vacant in the Upper House of the federal parliament from March 4. It is noted that one seat had already been filled unopposed. 

According to the Offices of the Election Officers, 345 out of 360 voters cast their votes in Koshi Province, followed by 341 out of 364 in Madhesh, 318 out of 338 in Bagmati, 286 out of 299 in Lumbini, 223 out of 228 in Gandaki, 191 out of 198 in Karnali, and 220 out of 224 in Sudurpaschim provinces.

In total, 1,924 votes were cast out of 2,011 voters across the country, the EC said.

Meanwhile, the Election Commission has expressed gratitude to political parties, candidates, and all concerned stakeholders for contributing to the successful conduct of the elections. Vote counting will take place at the respective Offices of the Election Commission after collecting the ballot boxes.

Out of the 18 posts, one seat under the Khas Arya category in Koshi Province was already filled unopposed. 

Sunil Bahadur Thapa of the Nepali Congress was elected to this post.

Home Minister Om Prakash Aryal has said that the Cyber Bureau does not need approval from senior officials or any other bodies to take action against those spreading misleading information on social sites. 

During a visit to the Cyber Bureau of the Nepal Police at Bhotahiti, the minister made it clear that the Bureau’s personnel are free to bring anyone violating the law under investigation. 

He urged the Bureau to closely monitor the spread of indecent, baseless, and legally prohibited content, as well as misinformation and disinformation on social media, in view of the upcoming election to the House of Representatives. 

The minister also called for prompt action against cases involving fake information and emphasized that the Bureau should remain more active in view of the election.

Prime Minister Sushila Karki has expressed the view that evils, aberrations, and corruption should be ended through mutual cooperation and collaboration.

At the first convocation ceremony of the Nepal Open University organized today, PM Karki, also the Chancellor of the University, stressed the need of resolving existing problems by creating employment opportunities in the country through excellence in higher education. 

"We should build our country by ending anomalies and corruption. I urge the graduated students to collaborate in the campaign of nation building. The university should impart productive-oriented education in order to stop brain drain of students, address the changing scenario of today's youth as well as create an environment where produced human resources can contribute to the nation," she mentioned. 

Similarly, educationist and former Vice Chancellor of the Tribhuvan University, Kedar Bhakta Mathema, argued that it is the responsibility of the students of Open University to engage in lifelong learning and give continuity to the learning even in difficult situations. 

Likewise, Vice Chancellor of the Open University, Dr Shilu Bajracharya, shared that the Open University has been imparting higher education to the people, who have been spending their busy lives through the medium of distance learning, in a convenient manner. 

A total of 545 students from various faculties graduated from the Open University.

The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) gained 57. 55 points to close at 2, 772. 17 points on Sunday. 

Similarly, the sensitive index surged by 8. 05 points to close at 472. 48 points.

A total of 30,915,183-unit shares of 331 companies were traded for Rs 1. 58 billion.

Meanwhile, SY Panel Nepal Limited (SYPNL), Shreenagar Agritech Industries Limited (SAIL), Nepal Micro Insurance Company Limited (NMIC), Bandipur Cablecar and Tourism Limited (BANDIPUR) and Him Star Urja Company Limited (HIMSTAR) were the top gainers today, with their price surging by 10. 00 percent. 

Likewise, 10.50% Everest Bank Limited Debenture 2085 (EBLD85) was the top loser as its price fell by 5. 80 percent.

At the end of the day, total market capitalization stood at Rs 4. 65 trillion.

Russia launched another vast attack on ​Ukraine’s energy system, rocking Kyiv with explosions overnight and into Saturday morning, leaving 1.2 million properties without power countrywide during sub-zero winter cold, Reuters reported. 

Deputy Prime Minister Oleksiy Kuleba said more than 3,200 buildings in the capital remained without heating in the late evening, down from 6,000 in the morning. Night-time temperatures were hovering around -10 degrees Celsius .

More than 160 emergency crews were operating in the capital to restore heating, he said. Crews were also at work in other affected areas, mainly in western and southern Ukraine, according to Reuters. 

Indonesian rescuers have resumed searching for some 80 people still missing in a deadly landslide, after the mission coordinator said operations had to be suspended overnight due to harsh weather, Aljazeera reported. 

The death toll from Saturday’s landslide in a residential area of West Java province rose to 10 on Sunday, according to state-run media, announcing three more deaths.

Triggered by heavy rain, the landslide barrelled into villages in West Java’s West Bandung early on Saturday morning, burying residential areas and forcing dozens of people to evacuate their homes, according to Aljazeera. 

Eighteen female candidates including two independents are in the electoral fray from Sudurpashchim Province in the upcoming elections to the House of Representatives.

There are 16 House of Representatives electoral constituencies in the nine districts of this province. 

Although women's candidacy is low in the seven hilly districts of the province, there is significant participation of women candidates in Kailali and Kanchanpur among the Tarai districts.

According to Dilip Bhat, spokesperson of the Provincial Election Office, the highest number of female candidates is in Kailali where 11 female candidates are contesting, followed by Kanchanpur, and one woman in Doti is preparing for the upcoming elections.

Out of a total of 210 candidates in Sudurpaschim Province, one person's candidacy has been cancelled, and he mentioned that three people have withdrawn their candidacy.

Among the female candidates in Kanchanpur constituency-1, Bina Magar from the Nepali Communist Party, Sita BK from the Aam Janata Party, and Manjudevi Sunar and Rupadevi Bista as independents have filed their candidacy, spokesperson Bhat added.

Similarly, Premwati Rana from Nagarik Unmukti Party Nepal in Kanchanpur Constituency- 2 and Lakshmi Kumari Bista (Bhatta) from the Janata Party in Constituency-3 are in the electoral race. 

Likewise, Rupakumari Chaudhary from the Janata Party, Komal Gyawali from the Rastriya Swatantra Party and Sunita Bhandari from the Nepal Workers and Peasants Party are contesting the election in Kailali Constituency-1.

In constituency-2, Samjhana Bista Thapa of Miteri Party Nepal and Laxmi Pun Magar of Nepal Workers and Peasants Party have filed their candidacy. In Kailali constituency-3, Sushila Thapa Magar of Miteri Party Nepal and Junu Mahtara Shahi of Nepal Workers and Peasants Party are busy campaigning as candidates.

In the Kailali Electoral Constituency-4, Amrita Bhul of the Nepal Workers and Peasants Party, in Constituency-5, Radhika Kumari Karki from the Miteri Party Nepal, Shobhamani Joshi from the National People's Front and Trishna Punmagar from the Nepal Workers and Peasants Party are contesting.

There is only one female candidate in Doti, one of the seven hill districts of the Sudurpaschim Province. Saraswati Kumari Pal (Malla) of the Miteri Party Nepal has filed her candidacy from here.

The Provincial Election Office has stated that there are a total of 1,716,660 voters in Sudurpaschim Province.

More than 4,000 flights were canceled in the US on Saturday ahead of a monster winter storm that has already cut power to more than 160,000 electricity customers as far west as Texas, and threatened to paralyze eastern states with heavy snowfall, Reuters reported. 

Forecasters said snow, sleet and freezing rain, accompanied by dangerously frigid temperatures, would sweep the eastern two-thirds of the nation on Sunday and into next week.

Calling the storms "historic," President Donald Trump on Saturday approved federal emergency disaster declarations in South Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia, North Carolina, Maryland, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Indiana, and West Virginia, according to Reuters.