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Flowers worth Rs 500 million have been sold during the Tihar festival this year with the highest transaction recorded in the Kathmandu Valley.     

President of the Floriculture Association of Nepal (FAN), Dilip Bade said that transaction of flowers this year is close to the last year's transaction.     

The consumer price of a normal flower garland this year was Rs 100 on average.     

FAN president Bade said that this year the flower trade became easier during Tihar festival as the Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) had fixed the venues for selling flowers. KMC had allocated 46 places from where the farmers could sell their flowers.     

It is said that the market for flowers increases from 15 to 20 percent every year, but the production growth is only 10 percent. Although the domestic production is enough to meet the market demand for 'makhamali' (globe amaranth) and 'godavari' (chrysanthemum), marigold and red rose have to be imported from India, Bade said.     

Cultivation of flower for commercial purposes has expanded to 52 districts including Kaski, Chitwan, Makawanpur, Kavrepalalnchowk, Gulmi, Palpa, Dhading, Morang and in the three districts of the Kathmandu Valley.     

According to Bade, the FAN president, flowers of 450 species are cultivated for commercial purpose. More than 44,000 people have been benefited through flower cultivation. One thousand one hundred and eighty-four farmers have done commercial flower cultivation on 221 hectares of land.

Kathmandu: “We have learned what it means to be a woman, and more importantly, what it means to be a woman who holds the power to redefine traditional definitions of equality and feminism tainted by patriarchal imprints in our society.”

When Priyanjali Karn, 22, from Janakpur, spoke these words from the podium to a packed hall, her parents beamed with pride. Eight months ago, she was quite different, they said. Karn’s mother, Subha Suhasini, 52, noted that her daughter was progressing and improving day by day. Her father, Satyandralal Karn, head teacher at the Kalimati-based Jana Prabhat Secondary School, observed that Priyanjali had become “more social, expressive, and extra confident in public speaking.” 

Although the family initially hoped Priyanjali would pursue a career in the technical field, they now fully support her dream of becoming a teacher. She is determined to advance the cause of women in her community and catalyze social change. “Now her choice is ours,” her father affirmed.

Priyanjali Karn, a proud daughter of Madhes, was among 18 girls from diverse castes and communities who graduated from the Young Women’s Political Leadership Course (YWPLC) 2023/24 program by Women LEAD Nepal. She received the ‘Most Growth Award’ for her batch. During her visit to Madhes Province as part of the course, she realized the significant challenges Madhesi women face, especially in education, and feels a personal responsibility to uplift them.

The graduation ceremony for participants of both the YWPLC and the year-long ‘Lead Course’ was held in the capital on Saturday. Reflecting on her journey, Priyanjali shared, “At the start of the YWPLC course, I was scared and nervous, unsure of what lay ahead. I felt helpless and disappointed at why women are still looked down upon. I was afraid to ask questions, fearing my lack of knowledge would be exposed.” She continued, “But these eight months have been a beautiful journey of learning, unlearning, understanding, internalizing, and searching for hope in where we stand and what we must question.”

Ranjana Ramtel, 18, from Sindhupalchowk, won the ‘Most Growth Award’ for the Lead Course 2023/24, which featured 27 Grade 12 young women in Nepal. “The Lead Course was a turning point in my life. It introduced me to women’s leadership and taught me skills I had missed out on for 18 years. I learned public speaking, leadership, active listening, time management, civic engagement, and more. I also learned to engage in social issues and work as a change-maker,” she explained.

A management student, Ramtel now aspires to become a societal leader over the next decade. Her mother, Maiya Ramtel, 41, traveled to the capital to attend the graduation ceremony. She marveled at the transformations in her daughter over the past year and expressed hope that her daughter would dedicate herself to fostering social transformation, combating discrimination, and standing firmly for her beliefs.

According to Women LEAD Nepal’s Executive Director, Hima Bista, the Lead Course is designed to empower Grade 12 young women with a deep understanding of leadership styles and personal strengths. It focuses on building confidence, communication skills, and resilience, equipping young women with the tools and support needed to become influential leaders and advocates for change in Nepal. The YWPLC, targeted at women aged 18-25, aims to provide foundational knowledge of Nepal’s democratic system and political processes, along with essential professional skills for political organization and an understanding of the importance of intersectionality and women in politics and leadership.

Lawmaker Dr Toshima Karki, who attended the graduation ceremony to inspire the graduates, emphasized the need for meaningful representation and leadership of women in all state apparatus. She asserted that women’s empowerment would remain incomplete until women were economically empowered. Dr Karki hoped that the graduates would significantly contribute to shaping the future of women’s leadership and urged them to continually enhance their skills to claim their roles and leadership in various sectors of society.

Mahendranagar: At the age of 19, Kalawati Panta, hailing from Pariphanta in Shuklaphanta Municipality-8, Kanchanpur district, embarked on her journey into the world of kabaddi when she was a ninth-grader at the local Dharma Janata Secondary School. Ganesh Dhami, the school’s sports teacher, served as her mentor and encouraged Kalawati to pursue kabaddi as her profession. Within three years of taking up kabaddi at school, Kalawati had already risen to prominence in the sport.

She played a pivotal role in the Nepali Women’s Kabaddi team during the recent Asian Games held in China, where the team secured a bronze medal. Out of the 12 players on the team, seven were from the Sudurpaschim province. In contrast, all other players, except for Kalawati, represented different departmental teams back home. She was the lone player selected from the Sudurpaschim province to participate in the Asian Games.

Kalawati shared her perspective, saying, “Players affiliated with departmental teams receive regular training and various facilities. However, for me, it is an exceptional achievement to have the opportunity to play in the Asian Games while simultaneously pursuing my college studies and managing household responsibilities.”

During her time in school, Kalawati served as the captain of the girls’ kabaddi team and took part in numerous school-level competitions, where her team often emerged victorious. Her debut in national competition occurred in Janakpur a few years ago, and she also led the Sudurpaschim women’s kabaddi team in the Ninth National Games held in Pokhara.

Currently pursuing her Bachelor’s degree, Kalawati expressed her desire to continue her sporting career by joining a departmental team while also working for one of the country’s three security forces: Nepal Police, the Armed Police Force Nepal, or the Nepali Army. These sports clubs associated with the security agencies are referred to as departmental teams.

Reflecting on the recent Asian Games in China, Kalawati said, “It has shown us that significant progress in sports is possible when the government invests in it and provides consistent training to athletes.”

Before participating in the Ninth National Games, Kalawati underwent a three-month intensive training program at the Kabaddi Training Centre in Mahendranagar.

Hailing from a modest-income family, Kalawati’s father, Bikram Panta, serves as the sole breadwinner for his family, working as a daily wage laborer in India. As the youngest of three sisters among five siblings, Kalawati emphasized the importance of the government’s support for talented players from economically disadvantaged backgrounds.

Kailali: While the Dashain festival is being celebrated with great enthusiasm throughout the nation, this morning in Nimbukheda, Bhimdutta Municipality-15 of Kanchanpur district, a scene of sorrow unfolded. Nimbukheda was overwhelmed with grief as the lifeless body of Deepesh Bista, one of the 10 victims of the Hamas militant group’s attack in Israel on Oct 7, arrived at his family’s doorstep in a coffin. Bista had been in Israel as part of the 11-month ‘Learn and Earn’ training program, representing the Agriculture Campus under Sudurpaschim University in Tikapur, Kailali.

Deepesh’s mother, Parbati, lost consciousness upon hearing the devastating news of her son’s passing. She had come from her ancestral home in Lekam rural municipality-5 in Darchaula district to receive her son’s body. A grieving neighbor, Suresh Pal, reminisced, “Deepesh excelled academically from a young age. When he lost his father at a tender age, he displayed great determination to become the sole provider for the family. He was the unwavering support for his widowed mother.”

“He maintained a fearless attitude and was determined to improve the family’s living conditions. It’s heartbreaking that he returned home in a coffin,” he lamented. Deepesh’s mortal remains, which had been kept at Seti Provincial Hospital in Dhangadhi, were brought home this morning. He received a scholarship for his outstanding academic performance and attended the Global Academy in Mahendranagar from grade one to grade 10, according to Surendra Raj Ojha, the school’s principal.

Ojha, who attended Deepesh’s final rites on the banks of the Mahakali River, expressed, “This unimaginable incident has plunged all of us into a sea of sorrow.” Deepesh, who pursued a science education in his higher secondary school, had a dream of seeing his younger brother become a doctor. Since losing his father to cancer at the age of four, he had shouldered the responsibilities of the household.

His mother is a teacher at the Latinath Secondary School in Darchula, while his younger brother, Basanta Raj Bista, is pursuing an MBBS degree at the BP Koirala Institute of Health Sciences in Dharan, Sunsari district. The bodies of four out of the ten Nepali students killed in Israel were repatriated to Nepal on the previous Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. All the deceased were returned to their respective families in Sudurpaschim Province at Dhangadhi Airport on Sunday evening.

Kathmandu: Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA), the country's first international airport, is now operating at full capacity for the first time in its 73-year history.

According to the TIA office, Nepal’s busiest airport has experienced a significant increase in flight operations in recent days. Previously, the airport handled around 90 two-way flights daily, but that number has now risen to 110-114.

TIA’s General Manager, Pratab Babu Tiwari, reported that the airport has been serving 16,000-17,000 passengers daily since Ghatasthapana, the first day of Dashain, which commenced on Oct 15. On Oct 16, the airport witnessed a record-breaking 114 international flights, marking the highest number of daily operations in its history. The following day, this number remained high at 110 flights.

At present, TIA is reporting the highest number of flight operations in its history, thanks to the festive season and the beginning of the tourist season.

In terms of domestic service, there are 370 two-way flights operating daily to serve around 14,000 passengers.

As General Manager Tiwari mentioned, the airport is currently handling around 500 flights, both domestic and international, each day. There has been a significant increase in the number of daily flights recently, with the number of flights and passengers at an all-time high in the airport's history.

On Oct 18, the airport served over 15,000 domestic passengers. Flights of the national flag-carrier Nepal Airlines Corporation are in high demand, but they are struggling to meet the demand due to a limited number of aircraft. NAC Spokesperson Ramesh Poudel stated that NAC currently serves 16 destinations within the country through 22 flights, assisted by its two twin-otters, and flights to remote areas are limited.

Gyanendra Bhul, the information officer of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), mentioned that TIA has the capacity to handle 1,500 international passengers and 500 domestic passengers per hour, with an annual capacity of 9.2m passengers. In 2018, it served 7.2m passengers. After the Covid-19 pandemic, there has been a gradual increase in the number of flights and passengers at TIA.

TIA, as the country’s first international airport, witnessed the first-ever arrival flight by the Beechcraft Bonanza, an American general aviation aircraft. The process of converting the then Gauchar Ground into an airstrip began in 1949. On 20 Feb 1950, a Dakota aircraft departed from TIA to Kolkata, formerly Calcutta, marking the airport’s first take-off flight, launched by Himalayan Aviation.

The airport was officially inaugurated in 1955 by the then King Mahendra and was named Tribhuvan International Airport in 1964. In 1967, the airport recorded its first arrival of a jet flight, a Boeing 707 from Lufthansa Airlines, and it began commercial flight operations in 1972.

Kidney problems are more common in Nepali people working in Malaysia and Gulf countries, according to a study conducted at two local levels in Dhanusha district.

A study carried out in Laxminiya Rural Municipality and Kshireshwornath Municipality in Dhanusha district under the leadership of the Bournemouth University in the United Kingdom shows that kidney problem is more common among the Nepali people who returned home from works in the Gulf countries and Malaysia than those living in Nepal. 

During the study, a comparison was made between those who have returned from jobs in five Gulf countries (Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Oman, UAE, Bahrain) and Malaysia, but have not completed one year after returning to Nepal and those who have not recently gone to the Gulf countries, said Dr Nirmal Aryal, a member of the research team.

According to him, the study was carried out in 718 people (all men), who have returned from employment in foreign countries and 720 people (370 men and 341 women) who have not recently gone for foreign jobs. When the ability of the 'glomerular filtration rate' considered the most important test to indicate the condition of kidneys was checked, there was a 5.8 percent decrease in the migrants and 3.6 percent in non-migrants, said Dr Aryal.

"Even among the non-migrants, more problems were found in former migrants than men and women who have never been abroad. Likewise, the average creatinine in the blood was also higher in the migrants than non-migrants. The test examines the amount of creatinine in the blood and calculates how much blood kidneys filter in one minute. A decreasing rate is considered to be deterioration in the functioning of the kidneys. This also indicates increasing kidney problems among immigrants," he said.

However, another examination for kidney problems shows that the amount of protein in the urine is higher in non-migrants than in migrants. The study concludes that since kidney problems were more common among non-migrant women, a separate study is required to find its cause.

Likewise, the study found that the migrants who returned home from the Gulf countries and Malaysia are at high risks of suffering from blood pressure, diabetes and overweight or obesity as compared to non-migrants. Migrants are at 38 percent risk to suffer from blood pressure as compared to non-migrants who are at 19.4 percent risk. In case of diabetes, the migrants are at 74 percent risk as opposed to non-migrants who are at 4.7 percent risk, and migrants have 674 percent risk of overweight or obesity than non-migrants who have 49 percent risk.

Dr Aryal said that those workers who work sitting at the same place for long hours, security guards and drivers and workers carrying out work under direct exposure to sun, outdoors and amidst dust and smoke are at high risk of renal diseases. Blood and urine samples were collected for this study and questionnaires were administered later.

Another member of the research team and Chief of the Provincial Public Health Laboratory, Janakpur, Dr Shrawan Kumar Mishra said about 90 percent of those who participated in the study were working in Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Malaysia, while more than two-thirds worked in construction and industry sectors.

Similarly, the participating migrants worked for 10.7 hours daily on an average and 30.9 percent of them did not stay on leave even for a day in a month on an average.

Likewise, 24.8 percent of the respondents said they had to do physically heavy work and almost half the respondents (44.4 percent) stated that they had to work in heat while approximately 97 percent of the migrant respondents said they had drinking water and toilet facilities at the workplace, Dr Mishra said.

"Not only the migrants, but the members of their families (specially their spouses) also had many health issues due to various sorts of stress Hypertension, diabetes and obesity is mostly seen among the migrants and therefore it is necessary to raise awareness about this in the destination countries itself. The Nepali Embassy and organizations working for the rights and welfare of the migrants should take special initiatives for this," he reiterated.

The study was conducted by Bournemouth University and Green Tara Nepal, an NGO, with financial support from The Colt Foundation. The Madhes Province Public Health Laboratory, the UN IOM and the University College London (UCL) had also assisted in the study.

It has been claimed that this study is the first kind of study conducted among the migrant Nepali workers and the non-migrants at the community level.

Dr Pramod Raj Regmi (Bournemouth University, UK) was the lead researcher and his team comprised of researchers Dr Nirmal Aryal, Prof Dr Edwin Van Teijlingen, Prof Dr Arun Sedhai, Dr Radheshyam KC and Dr Shrawan Kumar Mishra, according to Green Tara Nepal.

The Department of Hydrology and Meteorology has urged farmers to postpone the schedule for rice harvesting and ensure the prompt storage of already harvested rice as the duration of monsoon is getting prolonged this year.

Tentatively, the process for monsoon exit commences on October 2 and this year, it still remains active.

Senior meteorologist Barun Poudel said the duration of monsoon is getting prolonged as it is likely to take around one week for its departure.

According to the Meteorological Forecasting Division under the Department, at present the axis of the monsoon trough remains at an average location and Nepal experiences impacts of the low-pressure system based in surroundings of the Bihar and West Bengal states in India.

Cloudy sky is expected for the next few days and rainfall is likely to take place at several places and in this prediction, farmers need to be especially careful for protecting their crops.

This is the rice harvesting season, if there is a plan to cut rice plants, it is advised to postpone it by a week and if already collected, it requires prompt storage.  He urged farmers to wait until monsoon ends to harvest crops.  

Tonight, partly to generally cloudy weather is expected throughout the country. Light to moderate rain with thunder and lightning is likely to occur at some places of Koshi Province, Madesh Province, Bagmati Province and Lumbini Province and at one or two places in the rest of the provinces.

Two years ago, the Department had revised the tentative timeline for an entry and exit of monsoon setting it from June 13 to October 2. Prior to this, this timeline was fixed at June 10- September 23.

The tentative period for the monsoon is revised based on the analysis of each 10 years.

In recent years, the exit of the monsoon is getting delayed.

This year, the monsoon began on June 14 and it spread nationwide after nine days of arrival. It firstly arrived in the eastern part of Koshi, Madhesh and Gandaki Provinces and almost all part of the Bagmati Provinces. When it was in its initial phase, it caused significant losses of lives in eastern Nepal.

Citizenship certificates would be distributed to Non-Resident Nepalis with the publication of Nepal Citizenship (Third Amendment) Regulation, 2080, in the Nepal Gazette.

At a program organized by Forum for Women, Law and Development here today, Chief of Citizenship and Identity Card Management Section at the Home Ministry, Krishna Bahadur Katuwal, said that this provision has come into implementation after the Regulations were published in Nepal Gazette on September 21.

An arrangement has been made where non-resident Nepali citizenship certificates will be mentioned in the citizenship provided to non-resident Nepalis. He clarified that those acquiring such a type of citizenship certificate would have no political rights.

As per the Regulations, those acquiring non-resident Nepali citizenship certificates would have social, cultural and financial rights but arrangement of oath has also been made for them, mentioned Katuwal.

The Regulations have also provisioned that citizenship could be granted to the citizens above 16 years on the basis of the signature of the people's representative if the applicants' father or family refuse to sign for the citizenship certificate.

Similarly, citizenship certificates could be provided to children brought up at government certified orphanages based on the recommendation of local governments.

Likewise, the Regulations have a provision that citizenship certificates could be granted to those who have already acquired citizenship but willing to change their gender status in the citizenship certificate after making decision from Cabinet on the basis of certificate from the Health and Population of Ministry.