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At least six people were killed and around 80 others injured in a crowd crush at the Sree Lairai Devi temple in Shirgao village, Goa, during the annual Shri Lairai Zatra festival on Friday night, Al Jazeera reported.

The tragedy occurred as tens of thousands of devotees gathered for the widely recognized event, which is famed for its firewalking ceremonies. Chaos broke out in a tiny, steep path near the temple, leading some to tumble and triggering a stampede, according to Director General of Police Alok Kumar.

Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant expressed great grief and pledged his full support to the victims and their families. According to State Health Minister Vishwajit Rane, five of the injured are still critically ill and on ventilator support, while others are receiving treatment in an emergency unit, according to Al Jazeera.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered condolences and said the local administration is assisting those affected.

The season for collecting Yarsagumba, the prized Himalayan herb, has officially begun, with locals from Chhekampar heading towards the highlands. Former ward chairperson Pasang Funjo Lama informed that villagers have started moving toward the Chheke and Baju pastures since the beginning of the Nepali month of Baisakh. “This year’s Yarsagumba collection season has started, and about half of the village has already left for the highlands,” Lama said. “In the first phase, mostly young people go to clear the snow. Afterward, children and elderly villagers also join. In the third phase, the focus shifts mainly to searching for remaining Yarsagumba.”

He added that during the second phase, villagers take their domesticated animals along with them to the highlands.

Local resident Chhiring Funjo Lama shared that preparations are underway to leave the village entirely by next week. “We are planning to lock our homes and move to the highlands with our yak and cattle. For the next month, the village will remain almost empty,” he said. Only households with elderly or disabled members will leave someone behind to look after them and monitor the vacant homes.

During the Yarsagumba collection period, villagers set up temporary shelters using stone walls and tarpaulin roofs or tents in the highlands.

This year’s harvest looks promising. “Last year’s yield was good, and early reports suggest that those who have already gone this season have found a good amount,” Lama said. “The second phase usually offers the best yield, while the third phase tends to produce less.”

Yarsagumba is collected mainly from the pastures of Chhekampar and Samagaun in Gorkha district. In Samagaun, however, collection typically starts later, around the month of Jestha. Yarsagumba remains a major source of income for locals in the region. According to the Manaslu Conservation Area Project (MCAP), after Dolpa and Manang, Chhekampar and Samagaun produce some of the highest quality Yarsagumba.

Local committees collect fees for access during the collection season, while MCAP collects revenues during the sale of Yarsagumba.

As part of a series of events leading up to the Sagarmatha Sambaad, popularly known as the Everest Dialogue, Press Council Nepal organized a discussion program with media persons on Wednesday to gather suggestions on how the media can help ensure its success and attract international attention.

Scheduled for May 16 to 18, 2025, the Sambaad, on the theme ‘Climate Change, Mountains and the Future of Human Life’, is a global dialogue initiated by the government to address key issues of global, regional and national importance.

Speaking at a program titled “Climate Change, Sagarmatha Sambaad, and the Role of Media” held at the Council’s meeting hall, Chairperson of Press Council Nepal Bal Krishna Basnet said that strategic suggestions would be collected from journalists who regularly report on environmental and climate issues. These suggestions would be submitted to the government to support the global outreach of the Sambaad.

Basnet expressed confidence that Nepal’s efforts could succeed if journalists effectively communicated the message. The Sambaad is being organized to address the causes and impacts of, and human responsibility related to climate change.

“The Council will act as a bridge to bring the government, media and journalists together to work on climate change issues,” he said. The problems of the Himalayas to sea-level rise are not just Nepal’s concerns, they are global issues and must be raised in the Sambaad, he added.

Senior journalists made presentations in the program. In their presentations, Editor of the Annapurna Express English Daily Kamal Dev Bhattarai, Ramesh Bhushal and Shriram Subedi stressed that Nepali media must be able to deliver issue-based information effectively to the public.

“Government should ramp up its efforts to make the program a global dialogue in a true sense,” Bhattarai said.

They suggested that the government should involve international media and journalists to elevate the Sagarmatha Sambaad to the global stage.

Responding to the media persons, Secretary of the Ministry of Forests and Environment, Rajendra Prasad Mishra, said that the issues and suggestions raised in the program would be forwarded to the Sambaad Secretariat for immediate action.

Urging journalists and media outlets to communicate dialogue-related content in a series, he said that the event is an opportunity to place Nepal prominently on the world map.

The Asian Institute of Diplomacy and International Affairs (AIDIA) organized the second edition of the AIDIA Distinguished Lecture series in Kathmandu on Friday.  

The event featured Elnur Mammadov, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan, as the keynote speaker, addressing the theme "Foreign Policy of Azerbaijan: Challenges and Opportunities."

Addressing the program, Sunil KC, Founder of AIDIA, emphasized the importance of deepening bilateral ties between Nepal and Azerbaijan. He highlighted potential areas of cooperation in energy infrastructure, hydropower, and tourism.

Similarly, Anjan Shakya, Member of National Assembly and the Coordinator of the Nepal-Azerbaijan Parliamentary Working Group, spoke of the historic resilience shared by the two nations despite their geographical distance.

Elchin Huseynli, Non-Resident Ambassador of Azerbaijan to Nepal, reiterated Azerbaijan’s commitment to advancing relations with Nepal through a multi-pronged approach across political, economic, and cultural domains.

On the occasion, Elnur Mammadov outlined Azerbaijan’s current foreign policy priorities, focusing on three key tracks: finalizing a peace agreement, border delimitation, and reopening communication links

Highlighting Azerbaijan’s domestic green transition, the Deputy Minister shared the country’s target to generate 30–33% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2027.

Deputy Minister Mammadov is currently on an official visit to Nepal, accompanied by a high-level Azerbaijani delegation.