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Despite the government’s policy of retaining youth within the country, the number of young people going abroad for employment has continued to increase.

A total of 393,067 youths left for foreign employment in the first six months of the current fiscal year alone - up 14.46 percent from 343,405 that left for foreign job destinations in the same period of the previous fiscal year. This number excludes an additional 4,814 that left for Israel and South Korea under government-to-government arrangements during the review period. According to the Department of Foreign Employment (DoFE), 225,625 obtained new labor permits, while 162,628 obtained re-entry approval. About 11 percent of these youths, or 7,105, are women.

Data provided by the DoFE shows an average of 360,000 youths have left for foreign job destinations in the first six months of the past fiscal years. This implies that more than 700,000 youths are leaving the country for foreign employment annually.

Data shows 59,575 youths left the country for employment in the first month of the current fiscal year i.e. mid-July to mid-August. Likewise, 57,493 left the country in mid-August to mid-Sept, 53,525 in mid-Sept to mid-Oct, 70,990 in mid-Oct to mid-Nov, 84,226 in mid-Nov to mid-Dec and 67,258 in mid-Dec to mid-Jan. An average of 65,500 youths are leaving the country in search of employment every month.

Surya Bahadur Khatri, the director general of DoFE, said youths are leaving the country primarily due to lack of employment opportunities and the prospect of better earnings in foreign job destinations. “Despite relatively good conditions in Nepal, many are leaving the country in search of even better opportunities,” Khatri said. “Migration is not just happening in Nepal but is a global phenomenon. People from the US are also moving to Japan, Canada and Australia. Similar migration trends can be seen globally.”

Khatri claimed that the workforce going abroad is gradually becoming more skilled compared to earlier. “Those going to good countries are learning languages and some skills. Particularly, they are gaining knowledge in hospitality, cooking, waiting and packing, and receiving training from various training centers,” he added. He claimed that remittances entering the country have increased due to the growth in the skilled workforce. 

UAE Most Preferred Employment Destination

DoFE’s data shows that UAE has remained the most popular destination for Nepali youths. In the month of mid-Dec to mid-Jan, 21,121 youths, including 2,412 women, obtained labor permits for the Gulf country. Saudi Arabia was next, receiving 13,642 Nepali workers, followed by Qatar (11,983), Kuwait (6,050), Malaysia (3,175), Japan (1,946), Romania (1,743) and Croatia (1,134).  According to DoFE, Nepali youths obtained labor permits for 100 countries between mid-Dec and mid-Jan.

The Westerly low-pressure system has its influence in the western region of the country at present. 

The weather is partly cloudy in the hilly region of Gandaki, Karnali and Sudurpaschim Provinces, and fair in the rest of the country with the occurrence of fog in most of the parts of Tarai region, according to the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology. 

Meteorologist Pratibha Manandhar said that foggy weather will continue in the Tarai region throughout the coming week and it will disappear gradually after that.

The temperature has also started to gradually increase in the Kathmandu Valley. The minimum temperature in the Valley was 6.1 degrees Celsius on Thursday morning and it is the same this morning as well. The Department has forecast the maximum temperature between 21 and 23 degrees Celsius in the Kathmandu Valley today. 

The weather will be partly cloudy in the hilly region of Koshi, Gandaki and Karnali Provinces, and mainly fair in the rest of the provinces this afternoon. There is a possibility of light snowfall at one or two places of the high hilly and mountainous region of Karnali Province today.

Similarly, the weather will be partly cloudy in the hilly regions of Koshi and Karnali Provinces tonight and mainly fair in the rest of the country.

In the next 24 hours, there is a possibility of light snowfall in one or two places of the high hilly and mountainous region of Karnali Province.

The Department has urged all concerned to remain alert as there is a possibility of fog in many places of the Tarai on Saturday morning, which may affect daily life, agriculture, health, transport and civil aviation.

One hundred and seventy-four out of 292 vehicles have failed the pollution test conducted by the Kathmandu Metropolitan City.

The number of vehicles failing in the pollution test is 60 percent of the total vehicles subjected to the test.

Of these, 14 failed when 71 petrol-powered vehicles were tested and 160 failed when 221 diesel-run vehicles were subjected to the test.

According to KMC, 160 of the 221 diesel-run vehicles have failed the pollution test.

KMC Assistant Spokesperson Dhurba Kumar Kafle said the vehicles have been checked as per the Environment and Natural Resources Act, 2077 BS, the Pollution Control Standards, 2081 BS and Waste Collection and Transportation Procedure, 2081 BS.

KMC has been checking vehicles lately to reduce the impact of vehicular pollution. Owners of vehicles failing the pollution test have been suggested to repair their vehicles within a certain time period and operate them as per the standards.

Preparations are being made to gradually bring the vehicles that do not meet the criteria under the purview of action and stop their operation after giving them an opportunity, through the awareness program started from January 13, to make improvements.

So far, petrol and diesel- run vehicles plying through Koteshwor, Durbarmarg, Chakrapath Balkhu, Babarmahal, Teku, Sukedhara, Sinamangal, Panipokhari and Jamal have been tested.

Among the vehicles found to have failed in the pollution test are buses operating for public transport services, school buses, jeeps operated by government offices, trucks, among others.

KMC's Department of Environment Management is carrying out the pollution checking of vehicles in collaboration with the Department of Environment, the Kathmandu Valley Traffic Police Office and the Metropolitan Police Force.

India has called a tender for the construction of a dry port at Dodhara Chandani Municipality-1 in Kanchanpur district.

The Indian side announced a tender after the agreement between the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation and Nepal Intermodal Transport Development Board (NITDB) to cut down trees at the dry port construction site.

India invited a tender at Rs 2.54 billion for the construction of the dry port.

Executive Director of the NITDB, Ashish Gajurel, said activities for the construction of dry port would be started soon.

"The Indian side has already announced a tender. Activities to count the trees last time in order to remove them are also underway from our side. The final report will be received by Sunday and then we will invite bids in this regard", he mentioned.

Activities for the construction of Integrated Check Post from India would begin once the activities of site clearance are completed.

The governments of Nepal and India had on June 1, 2023 signed an agreement for the construction of the dry port with the help of financial and technical support of the Indian government.

Various infrastructures including two go down buildings, customs checking building, quarantine building, immigration building, security building would be constructed on 42.36 hectares of land to be used for integrated check post, shared NITDB.