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The Rasuwa Customs Office has raised Rs 585.5 million in fines from traders who tried to evade customs duty by reporting less quantity of goods imported from China.

Chief Customs Officer Ram Prasad Pathak said this amount was collected in fines in the last 11 months of the current fiscal year.

According to him, goods worth Rs 59.78 billion have been imported from China and goods worth Rs 1.84 billion exported to China through Rasuwa customs from July 17, 2023 to June 14, 2024 in the current Fiscal Year 2023/24.

Customs Officer Pathak said the revenue collection has increased by 165 percent as against the annual target.

He said that Rs 19.17 billion has been collected as revenue during that period.

The10th International Yoga Day is being marked today with the theme “Yoga for Self and Society.”

The government has formed the Yoga Day Main Celebration Committee chaired by Minister for Education, Science and Technology Sumana Shrestha.

The Committee is organizing a special program at the SOS Children's Village at Sanothimi in Bhaktapur to mark the occasion.

Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal will attend the program as the Chief Guest, according to the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology.

Government high officials, representatives of diplomatic missions and yoga practitioners will participate in the program.

Prior to the main program, a morning procession will be organized and it will go through Pepsicola, Gaththaghar, Lokanthali and Madhyapur Thimi Chowk and converge at the Children's Village, said Keshav Dahal, the spokesperson for the Ministry.

A meeting of the Main Committee on June 12 selected the theme 'Yoga for Women Empowerment' for Nepal. The same meeting had decided to dispatch letters to the province and local levels for celebrating the Yoga Day and through all the Education Development and Coordination Units request the schools for the same.

The United Nations General Assembly on December 11, 2014 passed a resolution to celebrate the International Day of Yoga on June 21 every year.

International Day of Yoga started to be marked since June 21, 2015.

The Government of India had presented a proposal on this in the UN General Assembly.

The International Day of Yoga aims to raise awareness worldwide of the many benefits of practicing yoga.

Yoga, a transformative practice, represents the harmony of mind and body, the balance between thought and action, and the unity of restraint and fulfillment. It integrates the body, mind, spirit, and soul, offering a holistic approach to health and well-being that brings peace to our hectic lives. Its power to transform is what we celebrate on this special day.

Press freedom fighters and journalists on Wednesday said that the government should not have any kind of control over media in any pretext in a democracy.

They said so during a dialogue held on The Media Council Bill in Kathmandu on Wednesday.

“The Media Council Bill must give due space for an independent media industry,” they said.

They pitched that the proposed Media Council (that will be replacing the existing Press Council) should be independent, accountable to citizens and liable to the Parliament, expressing concerns over the ‘likelihood’ of its establishment as a government entity.

Sharing his assessment about the Bill before the gathering, advocate Santosh Sigdel urged the government to deal with the Bill through the perspective of press freedom, which is vital for the effective implementation of the Constitution. He sought clear space in the Bill for the establishment and promotion of an independent media industry.

Giving his view against the concept of ‘decent journalism’ envisaged by the Bill, he said that it is not the job of the government to set limitations for media in the name of decent journalism. It will promote moral policing against media and it is up to media to practice and promote responsible journalism.

Senior journalist and press freedom fighter Taranath Dahal said “The Bill sees the proposed Media Council as a part of the government. However, it must be established as an independent media regulatory body with its liability towards the parliament.”

Expressing his reservation to the special provision about the appointment of the Council Chairperson (Clause 15), he said seeking the role of bureaucrats (secretary) in the hiring and firing procedures, is not something desired by the media industry and the media persons. This role should be shared with the legislature as well, proposing the involvement of the National Assembly Chairperson and a House of Representative member in the appointment. Some provisions in the Bill are regressive, he added.

Another senior journalist Suresh Acharya cautioned that the media sector will not be accepting the Bill if it is passed in its current form. The Council should remain under the regulation of the Parliament, not the government. State’s control over media contents can’t be entertained under any circumstances.

Senior journalist Nirmala Sharma argued that inclusion in each state structure is the agenda of the State, as envisaged in the Constitution. The proposed Media Council should address the issues in the same spirit. Any Bill either it is the Media Council or others, is constitutionally bound to strengthen democracy and press freedom, she added.

Press Council Nepal’s Chairperson Balkrishna Basnet said no state structure could be established going against the Constitution. He also proposed that the Bill should address the issue of digital journalism.

The Bill is presently under discussion in the National Assembly’s Legislation Committee, after it was tabled before the upper house by the government on April 18 earlier this year.

During the discussion, lawmakers along with the Chairman of the Legislation Committee of the National Assembly Jayanti Devi Rai said that the mistakes and weaknesses in the bill would be amended.

Rai assured that the Committee will take feedback of the participants over the Bill seriously and try to adjust them thereby, ensuring its wider acceptability.

Kamala Devi Pant, a member of the National Assembly, promised not to allow the bill to be passed beyond the questions raised by the concerned parties in the bill. He promised to proceed with the discussion based on the suggestions and study papers.

Member of the Legislative Committee and Chief Whip of the National Assembly from UML, Bhagwati Neupane promised to make the expert's suggestions the main topic of the committee's discussion.

Member of the Legislative Committee, Narayan Datta Mishra said that the Media Council Bill is being discussed by their interests and expression. He said that it should be debated keeping in mind freedom.

In the program, members of the National Assembly, Rajendra Lakshmi Gayre, MPs, Sushila Shrestha, Nar Bahadur Bista, former members of the Legislative Committee, Anita Devkota and others expressed their views on the Bill.

A total of 29 people including parliamentarians, experts, journalists and lawyers participated in the program.

The dialogue was organized by the Nepal FM Network with the support of UNDP Parliamentary Support Project.

The number of people infected with dengue is rising across Nepal. According to a report published by the Epidemiology and Disease Control Division (EDCD) on June 18, a total of 1,241 people have contracted dengue since January this year. The division reports that dengue has been detected in 72 districts countrywide, while no cases have been reported in Mustang, Dolpa, Mugu, Humla, and Jumla. Despite this, the fear of the disease spreading persists.

Dengue is a vector-borne disease carried by female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes and, to a lesser extent, Aedes albopictus. These mosquitoes also transmit chikungunya, yellow fever, and Zika virus.

The EDCD data shows 141 cases in Kathmandu, 112 in Jhapa, 75 in Chitwan, 59 in Makwanpur, 47 in Doti, 46 in Tanahu, 44 in Sindhupalchok, 41 in Okhaldhunga, 28 in Rupandehi, 27 in Bhaktapur, and 18 in Lalitpur since January. These are the top 10 districts with the highest number of dengue cases. The Bagmati province has reported 428 cases, the highest cases this year.

Garbage in the city provides perfect breeding spots for mosquitoes to lay their eggs, with discarded plastic cups, bottles, and bottle caps being prime locations. The EDCD report reveals that dengue is spreading faster than last year, primarily due to the increasing mosquito population. Warm temperatures and rainfall create ideal breeding conditions, and mosquitoes bite multiple individuals, thus increasing the number of infections, said Dr. Sher Bahadur Pun, chief of the Clinical Research Unit at Sukraraj Tropical and Infectious Disease Hospital at Teku, Kathmandu.

Dengue symptoms usually begin 4–10 days after infection and last for 2–7 days. Symptoms may include high fever (40°C/104°F), severe headache, pain behind the eyes, muscle and joint pains, nausea, vomiting, swollen glands, and rash.

August, September, and October have historically seen the highest number of dengue cases in the country. Last year, 14,534 cases were reported in August, 13,912 in September, and 12,699 in October. As cases begin to rise again, we are likely witnessing a pre-outbreak, which could lead to widespread infection, said Dr Pun.

According to the World Health Organization, urbanization, especially unplanned, is associated with dengue transmission through various social and environmental factors, including population density, human mobility, access to reliable water sources, and water storage practices. Community risk is also influenced by a population's knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding dengue, including behaviors related to water storage, plant keeping, and self-protection against mosquito bites.

The Ministry of Health and Population recommends three ways to control dengue: search and destroy possible mosquito breeding sites, protect yourself from mosquito bites, and seek immediate medical attention if you exhibit any symptoms of dengue.

The government must act immediately to curb the infection. Immediate health plans are necessary to reduce the number of infections. Last year, 52,790 people were affected, with 20 deaths. Without timely action, the number of infections could increase significantly.