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At least 79 people have been killed and more than 150 injured after a roof collapsed at a nightclub in the Dominican Republic's capital Santo Domingo, officials have said, BBC reported.

A provincial governor and former Major League Baseball pitcher Octavio Dotel were among the victims. Dotel, 51, died on the way to hospital after being pulled from the debris.

The incident happened in the early hours of Tuesday at a concert by popular merengue singer Rubby Perez at the Jet Set nightclub. He was reported among those trapped in the rubble.

Hundreds of people were inside the venue and some 400 rescuers are still searching for survivors. There are fears the death toll will rise further, according to BBC.

The Narayangadh-Butwal road project has decided to halt vehicular traffic for four hours daily from today. 

Information Officer at Narayangadh-Butwal Road Construction Project, Shiva Khanal informed that the Daunne section will remain closed from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm today. 

The timetable will be effective till April 13. The road will remain closed from 11.00 pm to 5.00 am from April 14. 

Ambassador of Nepal to Denmark, Sumnima Tuladhar, presented her Letters of Credence to the King of Denmark Frederik Andre Henrik Christian. 

Ambassador Tuladhar presented the letters of credence amid a special ceremony held at Christiansborg Palace, Copenhagen on Tuesday. 

During her courtesy call on the Danish King following the presentation of credentials, Ambassador Tuladhar conveyed warm greetings and best wishes on behalf of President Ram Chandra Paudel, and Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli for the King's continued good health and happiness as well as for the sustained prosperity and well-being of the people of Denmark, the Nepali Embassy informed. 

Also on the occasion, various dimensions of the Nepal-Denmark bilateral relationship were discussed. 

The King fondly recalled his visit to Nepal in 2015, following the devastating earthquake, during which he oversaw humanitarian relief efforts in the western regions of the country. 

His Majesty also expressed concern regarding climate change and its detrimental effects on the Himalayan region. 

In response, Ambassador Tuladhar briefed the King on the forthcoming ‘Sagarmatha Sambaad – Everest Dialogue,’ an international forum to be held in Nepal aimed at addressing the alarming rate of glacial melting and its consequences for mountain communities.

The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) Agriculture minister-level meeting is to take place in Kathmandu on Wednesday. Ministers related to Agriculture Affairs of the member states are arriving in Kathmandu to participate in the meeting. 

Earlier, the secretary-level meeting was held in Kathmandu, shared by the secretariat of Minister for Agriculture and Livestock Ramnath Adhikari. The meeting was attended by the secretaries of the ministries related to agriculture. 

It is stated that the secretary-level meeting had prepared the agenda of the ministerial-level meeting. 

Ministers for Agriculture of three among seven member states of BIMSTEC will participate in the meeting in person while ministers of remaining countries will join the meeting virtually, according to the Ministry of Agriculture of Nepal. 

Minister Adhikari will preside over the minister-level meeting scheduled to take place on Wednesday. Ministers for Agriculture of India and Bhutan are arriving in Kathmandu this evening to attend the meeting. 

The meeting will discuss matters related to the status and challenge of agriculture, and collaboration among the member countries, Ministry sources informed.

The government has invited the agitating school teachers for talks.

The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology has invited representatives of the Nepal Teachers Federation to the ministry for talks on Wednesday.

Ministry Spokesperson and Joint Secretary Shiva Kumar Sapkota issued a press statement today, calling on the agitating teachers for talks.. The time for the talks will be decided based on mutual consultation, adds the statement.

At the call of Nepal Teachers Federation, school teachers have been staging street protests demanding that the Bill designed to amend and integrate the School Education Laws, 2080, be passed into a law as soon as possible. 

The ministry had earlier invited the agitating teachers for discussions and consultations on April 3 and 4 to build a common understanding. However, the discussions could not take place after the teachers ignored the invitation.

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has said the Constitution would be amended at an appropriate time by taking into account its enforcement so far and aiming at strengthening the present system. A political committee would be formed to forward the amendment process, he shared.

PM Oli informed that a political committee would be formed by the present coalition government of the NC and the UML, mandating the committee for study and recommendation which would be helpful to keep intact social harmony and national unity.

“We are aware that it would not be like opening the Pandora's Box, " he reiterated while addressing the Madhes Province Assembly today.

"The amendment of the Constitution would be carried out at a right time to contribute to development and good governance and strengthen the present system," he stressed, adding that the constitution amendment would not be for regression.

He further said some were advocating for restoration of monarchy and even spreading misleading information to the new generation, which has not tolerated how autocratic the monarchy was. 

"The new generation must be made aware. Present society can not tolerate feudal systems. We have the republic system now and it will continue in future," PM Oli underlined.

It is a matter of happiness that even the opposition party is for the present republic system, the PM said.

The Head of the Government further viewed it is the duty of all of us to strengthen the present federal democratic republic founded on people's struggles and sacrifice. "It is the supreme system, we need to protect it," he said, however admitting that there may be some weaknesses in it because it has not been long since we adopted the present system. We have no option but to correct the weaknesses and move forward.

The PM argued it is illogical to take an oath as a lawmaker under this constitution/system and stop being adherent to it. 

On a different note, Oli informed the lawmakers of the Madhes Province that unlike the rumour spread unnecessarily, Nepal has cordial relations with India and China. 

China said Tuesday it would “fight to the end” and take countermeasures against the United States to safeguard its own interests after President Donald Trump threatened an additional 50% tariff on Chinese imports, Associated Press reported.

The Commerce Ministry said the U.S.‘s imposition of “so-called ‘reciprocal tariffs’” on China is “completely groundless and is a typical unilateral bullying practice.” 

China has taken retaliatory tariffs and the ministry hinted in its latest statement that more many be coming. 

“The countermeasures China has taken are aimed at safeguarding its sovereignty, security and development interests, and maintaining the normal international trade order. They are completely legitimate,” the ministry said. “The U.S. threat to escalate tariffs on China is a mistake on top of a mistake and once again exposes the blackmailing nature of the US. China will never accept this. If the US insists on its own way, China will fight to the end," according to Associated Press.

The US Supreme Court has cleared the way for President Donald Trump to use a rarely-invoked wartime powers law to rapidly deport alleged gang members - for now, BBC reported.

A lower court had temporarily blocked the deportation of alleged Venezuelan gang members to El Salvador on 15 March, ruling that the actions under the 1798 Alien Enemies Act needed further scrutiny. 

Trump has alleged that the migrants were members of the Tren de Aragua gang "conducting irregular warfare" against the US and could therefore be removed under the Act.

While the administration is claiming the ruling as a win, the justices mandated that deportees must be given a chance to challenge their removal, according to BBC.