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The Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) has clarified that there is no shortage of cooking gas in the market and the supply remains sufficient to meet the demand. 

Issuing a press statement today, the state-owned trading enterprises responsible for importing and selling petroleum products in Nepal, instructed the gas industries to ensure smooth and regular supply of the LP Gas cylinders to the market thereby normalizing the market.

The NOC informed that the gas-related industries in the country imported 47,304 metric tons of gas from Indian Oil Corporation in January this year. 

Previously, 47,264 metric tons  of gas were imported in November, 2025 and 48, 531 metric tons in December the same year. 

The Corporation stated that these volumes are adequate to meet the winter demand across the country. 

Manoj Kumar Thakur, Spokesperson of the Corporation, shared that minor supply issues have been reported by few industries and thus those concerned ones have been instructed to promptly facilitate the distribution of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) cylinders to normalize the situation. 

Taking into account the current market condition and the upcoming March 5 elections in the country, Spokesperson Thakur said that the Corporation has placed a requisition for an additional 2,000 metric tons of LP Gas under the regular quota for this month. 

The Corporation has urged the consumers to purchase gas cylinders only as needed and made it clear that the unnecessary stockpiling of gas cylinders should be avoided.

92,573 tourists visited Nepal by air in Jan 2026 whereas 81,273 tourists visited Nepal in 2019. Despite the government that received an electoral mandate after the GenZ movement and unstable politics, there has been an encouraging increase in tourist arrivals. The Tourism Board stated that this number is 14 percent higher than Jan 2019. This number is 15.7 percent higher than Jan 2025. 79,991 tourists visited Nepal in the review month.

Nepal Tourism Board Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Deepak Raj Joshi said that the data for the first month of 2026 indicates that confidence in Nepal is gradually strengthening in the international tourism market. According to him, the main reasons for the increase in arrivals are the destination promotion carried out in recent years, expansion of air connectivity, attraction towards adventure and cultural tourism, and improvement of Nepal’s image in the international market. CEO Joshi said that these positive figures are establishing Nepal as a ‘Lifetime Experience Destination’.

According to the data for the first month of 2026, India is at the top in tourist arrivals. In January, 26,624 tourists from India came to Nepal, which is 28.8 percent of the total arrivals. On the other hand, there is no exact data on Indian tourists entering Nepal by land.

According to a study conducted by the board in 2018, about 1.3m Indian tourists came to Nepal by land. This is the data of large commercial tourist buses and private vehicles that came to Nepal and spent one night here. This does not include the data of Indian tourists who came to Nepal by motorcycle, bicycle, truck, etc., said Deepak Raj Joshi, CEO of the board.

9,101 (9.8 percent) tourists entered Nepal from China, 8,406 (9.1 percent) from the United States, 5,814 (6.3 percent) from Bangladesh, and 4,957 (5.4 percent) from Australia. Regionally, 39.3 percent of tourists came to Nepal from South Asian countries (SAARC).

This is followed by 26.1 percent from other Asian countries, 12.3 percent from Europe, 10.8 percent from America, and 5.7 percent from Oceania. 1 percent and 0.4 percent of tourists have come to Nepal from the Middle East and Africa, while the share of other regions is 4.5 percent.

From ASEAN Tourism Year to Strategic Plan Nepal’s tourism sector is in the process of reviving in the post-pandemic situation. The board has formally announced the celebration of ‘Nepal-ASEAN Tourism Year 2026’ on the occasion of its 27th founding anniversary.

The board also released seven major travel trends that will define 2026. These include peace over noise, Gen-AI in governance, trust over choice, roads over air, highly personalized experiences over uniform formats, off-grid destinations over tested ones, and culture will be prioritized.

The board said that the 2026-2035 strategic action plan will focus on participatory approaches, digital-inspired professionalism, coordination of innovative policies and practices, a mix of local and global experiences, eliminating unproductive programs, and focusing on high-value tourism. In this context, the board had taken a new strategy for tourism promotion in collaboration with TikTok last August.

Although most of the construction work on the Kathmandu-Tarai-Madhes Expressway is progressing at a rapid pace, the work on the departure point has not begun yet. The dispute over the departure point of Khokana-Bungmati, mentioned in the initial Detailed Project Report (DPR), continues. The Nepali Army has not yet decided whether to settle the dispute over Khokana or start from a new location for the expressway being built.

The issue of heritage in Khokana Bungmati is also being raised by locals and heritage workers. The Khokana-Bungmati dispute is the one that comes to mind when the question of the expressway comes up. There is a dilemma over whether the departure point of this expressway, which is said to be 70.9 kilometers long, with 4.6 kilometers in Kathmandu, 9 kilometers in Lalitpur, 49.77 kilometers in Makawanpur and 7.6 kilometers in Bara district, will be Khokana-Bungmati or not. Locals are protesting against the construction of the expressway, saying that the natural beauty of Khokana will be destroyed if this road is built. Amidst the protests, the construction of the expressway in the area has not been able to move forward. The military officials involved in the construction seem to be worried about this issue.

The Nepali Army is preparing to amend the DPR prepared through this road. If the state itself cannot resolve the Khokana-Bungmati dispute, building the road from another location will increase both the length and time of the expressway. Even the locals are confused about whether the road will be built from the Khokana area or not. The Nepali Army, on the other hand, emphasizes that the problem should be resolved from the government level since politics is involved in the Khokana-Bungmati land dispute.

Nepali Army spokesperson Rajaram Basnet said, “Repeated talks and discussions are being held to reach an agreement in the disputed Khokana area. Construction work is underway in other places besides this area. During the construction of the expressway, a bridge is being built 82 meters above the Dharahara. 89 state-of-the-art bridges and 6 tunnels are being built. Many of the construction works that needed to be started have been completed.”

Prime Minister Sushila Karki, who visited the expressway on-site a few days ago, had also taken the Khokana dispute seriously and directed that it be resolved quickly. Prime Minister Karki emphasized that religious beliefs and cultural heritage should not be affected while moving forward with road infrastructure and development projects, and that if necessary, the delineation and zero point should be changed while building the expressway. She said that the concerns of the locals should be taken seriously and a solution should be found. 

In 2018, the government of Nepal handed over the responsibility of constructing this project to the Nepali Army. After only 45 percent of the work was completed in the eight years since it took over, questions have been raised about the Nepali Army itself. The army said, “Even though we took responsibility, the previous DPR did not work, it took 4 years to prepare the documents, prepare the DPR and get it approved. We started building the expressway in 2022.

During the construction of this road, the Nepali Army had cut down more than 54,000 trees. In return, more than 150,000 trees have been planted. During the construction of the road, work is being done to plant trees by installing modern technology on the walls of the mountains.

Nepali Army Project Chief Dharmendra Jha said, “The work of constructing the initial structures to be done in the first phase is almost complete. Out of 89 bridges, 85 bridges have been contracted and implemented. There are problems related to land acquisition in 4 bridges on the Khokana-Bungmati road section. Of the bridges under construction, the base structure of 54 bridges has been completed. Some structures of 34 bridges have been completed. Construction work of special nature bridges up to 82 meters high has been completed at 13 places.

According to the project, the work has progressed slowly due to DPR revisions, geographical complexity, land acquisition and delays in the contract process. As the problem has not been resolved yet in the Khokana-Bungmati section, the chances of the project being completed on time seem slim. However, Nepal Army spokesperson Basnet is confident that the expressway will be built on time

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) government has forgiven 267 Nepali prisoners on the occasion of the 54th National Day (Eid Al Etihad).

The government of Nepal has welcomed this as a humanitarian and friendly step and expressed its gratitude to the UAE government. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the decision to pardon was taken following the initiative of the Nepali Embassy in Abu Dhabi and a request made as per the instructions of the Ministry.

If there are no other legal cases or restrictions, the Nepali citizens will be able to return home after completing the necessary legal procedures.