Two die in Pharping bus accident
Two persons died when a school bus met an accident at Bhanjyang in Pharping of Dakshinkali Municipality-3, Kathmandu district on Sunday.
The ill-fated bus was carrying 50 students of the Junkiri English School.
The identities of the deceased are yet to be ascertained, according to the District Police Range, Kathmandu.
SP Apilraj Bohora shared that the students injured in the accident have been sent to various hospitals for treatment while the rescue operation was underway.
The details of the accident are awaited, SP Bohora added.
Manang wildfire not brought under control even after 10 days
The fire that broke out in Timang forest of Chame Rural Municipality-1 in Manang district has not been brought under control even after 10 days. The forest fire had started in the evening of January 31.
The District Administration Office said they have not been able to douse the fire due to the difficult topography of the area.
Chief District Officer Matrika Acharya said that all the security agencies in the district have been mobilized to contain the wildfire.
"All the security agencies of the district have been mobilized to control the fire. Locals are also actively engaged in this task. However, we have not been able to bring the fire under control yet,” CDO Acharya said.
He said that the grazing areas of sheep, goats, yaks and cattle in the forest have been destroyed as the fire could not be brought under control on time.
"The fire has started in a difficult location far away from the settlement. There is also the risk of spread of forest fire as the place is also windy," CDO Acharya said, adding that the inferno has so far destroyed the habitat of the national bird, the lophophorous, and the young rhododendron plants in the forest.
According to him, the security personnel and locals are trying their best to contain the fire wherever possible.
Chief District Officer Acharya shared that they were facing problems containing the wildfire as it is raging in a patch of forest on a cliff which is inaccessible.
He said there was no risk of fire in the settlement, adding necessary measures are being adopted so that the fire does not spread elsewhere.
Chief of Annapurna Conservation Area Project (ACAP) Area Office, Dhak Bahadur Bhujel, said that the fire could not be brought under control due to excessive dryness of the area since there was not much snowfall this winter.
Construction of three motorable bridges completed in Mustang
Three motorable bridges have been constructed along the Kaligandaki Corridor, a national pride project connecting China and India, on the Benighat–Jomsom–Korala road in Mustang.
The Benighat–Jomsom–Korala Road Project Office, Mustang, has built motorable bridges over the Marphakhola in ward 2 of the Gharapjhong Rural Municipality, Nursingkhola in Baragung Muktikshetra Rural Municipality-6, and over the Charangkhol in the Damaodar Kunda Rural Municipality, at a cost of Rs 310.78 million.
Project Chief Dhruba Kumar Jha informed that the construction of the three bridges and access roads has been completed, allowing vehicles to operate. According to him, a contract worth Rs 210.6 million was signed six years ago with Himadung&Thokar Immortal Construction for the construction of a 120-meter-long motorable bridge over the Marphakhola.
After the permanent bridge was brought into operation, the problem of having to cross the river using a temporary wooden bridge and risking safety has been resolved, said Lomshang Chomphel Bista (Raju), Chairman of the Lhoghekar-Damodarkund Rural Municipality.
Bista further shared that the road extension and bridge construction bids were underway along the road sections.
Tourist police to be stationed in Rara now
The government has decided to deploy tourist police for the security of domestic and foreign tourists visiting the Rara area.
The Department of Tourism and Chhayanath Rara Municipality have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to deploy tourist police in Rara for the safety of tourists visiting Nepal's largest and deepest lake, Rara.
Director of the Department of Tourism Liladhar Awasthi and Chief Administrative Officer of the municipality Pashupati Shahi signed the MoU on Friday.
As per the MoU, the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, The Department of Tourism will manage the human resources, the number of positions and police posts of tourist police and will deploy the tourist police in collaboration and coordination with the municipality.
Similarly, Chhayanath Rara Municipality shall manage necessary infrastructure including houses, drinking water and electricity, and create a suitable environment for the tourist police in Rara.
Besides the lake, there are religious places, mountains and caves in the Rara area. Tourists, who come here to see around these places in the middle of the forest, are afraid to visit alone. It is believed that after the mobilization of tourist police in the area, tourists will feel safe and visit these tourist places independently and the stay of tourists in Rara will also be extended.
Shahi, the acting chief administrative officer of the municipality, said, "The economic condition of the local people will also improve as soon as the stay of tourists is extended.”
Mayor Bishnu Kumar Bham said that they are working to deploy tourist police in Rara soon by selecting the place to accommodate the tourist police, arranging barracks, drinking water, electricity and other necessary infrastructures.
