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A group of journalists in Pokhara staged a protest today in front of the Gandaki Province Chief Minister’s Office, expressing dissatisfaction over the appointment of Bimala Bhandari as the new Press Registrar. The demonstrators claimed that the appointment was unjust to working journalists, citing Bhandari's controversial background.

Bhandari, who is also the Chairperson of the Federation of Nepali Journalists (FNJ) Kaski chapter, was sworn in as the Press Registrar, a position created under the Mass Communication Bill passed by the Gandaki Province Assembly last year. The role involves overseeing the press and media in the region.

While Chief Minister Surendra Pandey administered the oath to Bhandari, journalists outside the office held placards and chanted slogans. They demanded that unresolved issues of working journalists be addressed before appointing anyone to such a critical monitoring role. "How can someone who has ignored our concerns now monitor the press?" questioned Anup Poudel, a journalist with Samadhan National Daily.

Protesters accused the FNJ Kaski leadership of political bias and neglecting the concerns of active journalists, particularly regarding membership issues. "Despite repeated requests, she has turned a deaf ear to us," another journalist added.

Approximately two dozen journalists participated in the protest, questioning the government's decision to appoint someone they consider politically partial to such a sensitive position.

A national conference on ‘Contextualization of Socio-Economic Sensitivity’ was held on Friday in Pokhara, organized by Pokhara University in collaboration with the Pokhara University Research Center (PURC) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

With Nepal set to graduate from the Least Developed Countries (LDC) list by 2026, the conference aimed to address the critical importance of understanding socio-economic sensitivity in policy-making. Experts, policymakers, researchers, and stakeholders gathered to exchange scientific knowledge and experiences and identify effective solutions through open dialogue.

The event featured sessions on four key topics: economic inequality, social stratification, climate change, and food security. Each session included keynote presentations followed by panel discussions aimed at finding practical solutions to the challenges posed by these issues.

In the first session, focused on economic inequality, Assistant Professor Naveen Adhikari from Tribhuvan University presented insights on income, education, and resource access. Panelists included Pokhara University Registrar Dr Deepak Bahadur Bhandari, Senior Deputy Governor Dr Neelam Dhungana Timalsina from Nepal Rastra Bank, and Gandaki Province Policy and Planning Commission member Maya Timalsina.

The second session addressed social stratification, with Associate Professor Dr. Rishikesh Pandey from Pokhara University presenting on ethnicity, gender inequality, and social division. Panelists included independent researcher Dr. Meena Paudel, and experts from Tribhuvan University and GEDSI.

The third session focused on climate change, with Dr. Uttam Babu Shrestha from the Global Institute for Interdisciplinary Studies (GIIS) presenting the impacts of climate change on society. Panelists from ICIMOD, Tribhuvan University, and Pokhara University contributed to the discussion on the societal effects of natural disasters.

The final session examined food security, nutrition, and health, with public health expert Dr. Aruna Upreti leading the discussion. Panelists from Tribhuvan University’s School of Public Health, the Ministry of Agriculture, and the Agriculture and Forestry University addressed issues of child nutrition, sanitation, and agricultural policy.

The Inter-Generational Feminist Forum (IGFF) organized the Anupam Yatra on Saturday, with participants walking and cycling from Maitighar to Ratnapark. IGFF, a feminist NGO focused on women's empowerment, held the rally to unite leaders and raise awareness from diverse perspectives.

A key IGFF initiative, the Anupam Abhayyan (2023–2027), aims to promote women's equal participation to foster equitable and independent development in Nepal. Currently, the initiative has over 2,000 members across 76 regions.

Following the rally, women and representatives from various organizations gathered to amplify feminist voices in all sectors. The event included participants with disabilities and people of diverse genders.

“This is our 41st rally in Kathmandu, and I plan to complete at least 500 rallies by March 2025 across Nepal,” said IGFF Chairperson Rita Thapa. She added, “We must create more opportunities for women in politics. Although there's still much to be done, we are committed to supporting illiterate and impoverished women in rural areas.”

Executive Director of Mitini Nepal Sarita KC noted, “IGFF feels like home to us. With Mission 84 as the rally's motto, we aim to emphasize that LGBTQIA+ individuals deserve greater political, social, and economic rights.”

Stella Tamang, co-coordinator of IGFF’s Steering Committee, expressed gratitude to all participants, including the police, volunteers, and organizational representatives.

A one-day Talent Show was held in the capital recently. The event was organized by Association of Pre-school Educators Nepal (APEN) Gokarneshwar Municipal Committee in connection with the International Children’s Day. More than 250 students of different schools, teachers, principals and parents were present in the program.

Students aged below eight from 15 Montessori schools participated in the program. They gave group and individual performances during the talent show. The students performed dances, sang songs and played music. 

The Chairperson of the Parliamentary Finance Committee and Member of Parliament Santosh Chalise was the chief guest of the event. Meanwhile, the Deputy Chief of Gokarneshwar Municipality Sannani Lama, General Secretary of APEN Center Krishna Bohora, Central Member Nirmal Nepal, Praveen Jang Thapa and others were also present in the event.

The participants were given medals, letters of appreciation and tokens of love during the event. Congratulating APEN for organizing such a beautiful program, Chalise said that he is ready to cooperate with the organization in the future.

Lama said that the municipality was ready to coordinate with APEN to help students get education while learning with fun.