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The Ministry of Health and Population has taken efforts to prevent and control cholera and dengue after the infections started spreading at different parts of the country.

With the increasing number of dengue and cholera patients, Minister for Health and Population, Pradip Paudel, instructed the bodies concerned to launch effective steps immediately. Soon after Minister Paudel’s instruction, the Ministry forwarded short-term and long-term steps to that end.

According to the Ministry, Rapid Response Teams have been carrying out activities at dengue and cholera hit areas collaborating with province and local levels under leadership of Epidemiology and Disease Control Division to bring cholera under control.

The teams have been searching for the people who were in direct contact with patients and observing the symptoms. It would help to bring cholera under control, added the Ministry.

According to Minister Paudel’s Secretariat, activities were initiated immediately by holding discussions with bodies concerned of respective places to improve quality of drinking water to bring water-borne diseases under control.

The Ministry has made a plan of making food quality monitoring tasks effective at the center, provinces and local levels to prevent further problems in coming days. It has also been making preparations for carrying out necessary activities, formulating the National Cholera Control/Prevention Plan 2024-2030. 

Three children of Naresh Ram in Jhawani Tole, Simraungadh Municipality-7, Bara, have died of food poisoning.

According to Bara Police, the deceased have been identified as Lalima Ram (7), Pushpa Ram (7) and Ramnandan Ram (5).

The entire family on Sunday night consumed the same meal, which included rice and curry made from fish harvested from a local pond.

Despite this, only the children were affected. The children's mother and grandparents, who also ate the same food, did not experience any symptoms, said Deputy Superintendent of Police Prakash Sapkota of the District Police Office.

The preliminary investigation has not suggested any toxic substances in the home, and police are looking into whether the children might have consumed something else before their evening meal.

According to Area Police Office's inspector Nabin Rai, the children were initially taken to a local polyclinic after they complained of health complications, and then to the Provincial Hospital in Kalaiya, Bara.

One child died on the way to the hospital. The remaining two children were referred to the National Medical College in Birgunj, where they also passed away during the course of treatment.

Autopsies have been completed, and the bodies have been handed to the family. Their father, Naresh Ram, is said to be in Punjab, India in the course of employment, it has been said.

Nepali students are rapidly becoming a significant presence in the international education landscape, according to a new report by ApplyBoard, an international student mobility platform. The study reveals that Nepali students have shown impressive growth across key study destinations, including Canada, the US, the UK, and Australia. The report highlights that Nepal is emerging as a major player in the international education sector, joining countries like India, Nigeria and the Philippines.

In 2023, nearly 45,000 Nepali students received post-secondary student visas to these four English-speaking countries, marking a 15 percent increase from the previous year and a 121 percent rise since 2018. This growth underscores Nepal’s increasing prominence as a source of international students and indicates that the country is poised to play a significant role in global education in the coming decade, says ApplyBoard.

Nepali students have shown a strong desire to study abroad, with 19 percent of tertiary-level students studying internationally in 2021. This is notably higher compared to India and China, which had ratios of 1.3 percent and 1.9 percent, respectively. Over the past five years, Nepal has had one of the highest outbound mobility ratios globally, with many students in the 18 to 25 age group. The country’s growing economy, projected to expand at an average rate of 5 percent in 2025 and 2026, could further drive this trend.

In 2023, nearly 16,000 Nepali students received Canadian student visas, representing over three percent of all Canadian study permits that year, a significant increase from 0.2 percent in 2018. The number of study permits for Nepali college students tripled from 2022 to 2023, with strong growth observed at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels. Nepali applicants using ApplyBoard had a 75 percent approval rate for Canadian student visas for Winter 2024.

From Oct 2023 to June 2024, 9,200 Nepali students were issued US student visas, a 61 percent increase from the total number issued in 2023. Data from the Institute of International Education indicate that 70 percent of Nepali students in the US during the 2022-23 academic year pursued STEM programs.

Over 8,500 Nepali students received UK student visas in 2023. Despite a 22 percent decrease in overall student visa issuance in the UK for international students in the first quarter of 2024, Nepali student visas increased by 27 percent. Nepal has traditionally had a lower ratio of dependents to main applicants for student visas compared to countries like India and Nigeria. The median age of Nepali students approved for UK student visas in 2024 was 21, with younger students less affected by recent UK policy changes regarding dependents, says ApplyBoard.

Australia experienced a record number of visas granted to Nepali students in 2022 following a two-year border closure. However, the high demand in 2022 resulted in a 33 percent decline in visas in 2023. Vocational education and training (VET) studies saw the most significant decrease, partly due to restrictions imposed by the Nepali government on non-degree programs and changes in Australian policy, as per the ApplyBoard report. From January to June 2024, 55 percent of student visas granted to Nepali students in Australia were for New South Wales, compared to 34 percent for the overall international student population.

Eight persons have taken ill after consuming wild mushrooms in Gulmi on Sunday.

Seven members of a family and a relative have fallen sick after consuming toxic mushrooms.

The District Police Office, Gulmi informed that a total of eight persons—seven members of a family of Top Bahadur Thapa of Khanigaun, Resunga Municipality-8, and his relative have taken ill.

Top Bahadur Thapa (65), his wife Dil Kumari (62), son Bikash Thapa (29), grand-daughters Dipadika Thapa (10), Binisha Thapa (12), daughter Srijana Kaucha (42) and Gita Thapa (39) have fallen sick, Inspector Ram Kumar KC of the District Police Office, Gulmi said.

Tom Bahadur Thapa's elder son-in-law, Osan Kaucha, had brought the mushroom from Resunga Community Forest on Sunday afternoon.

They fell sick soon after eating the mushroom, police informed.

They have been taken to the Lumbini Medical College for further treatment following primary treatment at the Gulmi Hospital.

Police said that their condition is normal.