Luna Luitel Crowned Miss Nepal 2025
Luna Luitel has been crowned Miss Nepal World 2025, succeeding Ashma Kumari KC at the 31st edition of the pageant held in Godavari on Saturday.
The 26-year-old, a nursing graduate from Australia now pursuing a master’s in Public Health at the University of Sydney, stood out among 26 contestants. Luitel, who previously placed first runner-up in Miss Teen Nepal 2015, said she wishes to live by the motto “Learn, Earn and Return” and use her platform to support social causes.
Other titleholders include Dipshikha Nepal (Miss Nepal Cosmo), Urusha Bhandari (Miss Nepal International), and Sony Ghale (Miss Nepal Earth).
The event concluded with a final Q&A, where the top four addressed changing perceptions of beauty pageants. The judging panel featured figures from the arts, media and former Miss Nepal winners.
Doctor dies in a car accident
A doctor died when his car crashed into a tree after losing its control.
The deceased has been identified as Dr Biplab Bhatta. Dr Bhatta was driving the car when the accident took place.
The car (BA 15 Cha 4693) en route to Bishalchowk from Bharatpur Metropolitan City-10, Ramailochowk lost its control and crashed into a tree at 1:30 am this morning.
Deputy Superintendent of Police at the Chitwan District Police Office, Govinda Puri informed that car driver Bhatta, a resident of Bharatpur -2, sustained injuries when the car hit the tree.
Bhatta succumbed to his injuries during treatment at the Old Medical College this morning. (RSS)
Authorization to issue license for Lower Arun Hydropower Project
The 66th meeting of Investment Board Nepal has approved the draft of the project license for the 669 MW-capacity Lower Arun Hydropower Project and decided to authorize the Chief Executive Officer of IBN to issue the license for the project.
The meeting held on Friday under the chairmanship of Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli took the decision, shared Pradyumna Prasad Upadhyay, spokesperson of IBN office.
The draft related to direct investment in the Arun-3 Hydropower Project under construction in Sankhuwasabha was approved and a decision made to recommend submitting the proposal to the Council of Ministers for necessary decision.
Similarly, the IBN has decided to authorize its Chief Executive Officer to issue a survey license for reaching an agreement with the company that has proposed the 'Auto Service Eco-Industrial Park' project. The project proposal was received as an unsolicited proposal at the IBN office. (RSS)
Call to correct draft bill to regulate organizations
The Nepal Bar Association and NGO Federation along with the civil society representatives have called for corrections in the draft of a new bill prepared by the government to regulate and supervise social organizations.
At a discussion jointly organized by the Nepal Bar Association and the NGO Federation in the capital on Friday, speakers emphasized the need to make revisions in the draft bill arguing it would breach the rights and shrink the spaces of civil society organizations.
It may be noted that the government has recently made public a draft bill, 2082 outlined to consolidate laws related to the registration, regulation, and management of organizations by integrating the National Directive Act, 2018, Organization Act, 2034, and Social Welfare Act, 2049.
On the occasion, NGO Federation President Arjun Bhattarai demanded rewriting of the draft bill by mending flaws to ensure democratic values, constitutional rights, civil liberties, and meaningful participation of stakeholders.
'Soliciting inputs and recommendations to fulfill only the formality for the purpose of Clause 6 (2) of the Legislative Act, 2081 without consulting relevant stakeholders undermine civil society.' he said.
General Secretary of the NGO Federation, Devi Khadka said the draft underestimates the spirit of civil society by limiting its scope.
Senior advocate Tikaram Bhattarai also mentioned that the draft bill is more about control than regulation, and discourage social workers who want to engage social and NGO sectors in Nepal.
He stressed that the draft should be passed only after comprehensive reforms and the removal of control-oriented provisions.
Similarly, advocate and theme expert Sanjeeb Ghimire stated that the draft legislation has based organization registration and regulation excessively on administrative and discretionary powers, and proposed legal frameworks that cannot promote civil rights.
“The classification based on the geographical working area of the organization, resources, and the nature of work is fundamentally a violation of rights and impractical,” Ghimire said. (RSS)
