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Chhath festival is being observed today by worshipping and making offerings to the setting sun. The festive fanfare has been seen in different parts including Ranipokhari, Gaurighat, Kupondole of the Kathmandu Valley as well. The festival is dedicated to the sun God, with offerings made to the rising and setting sun. It is observed for four days, from Kartik Shukala Chaturthi to Kartik Shukla Saptami as per the lunar calendar. It usually falls between October and November in the Gregorian calendar. The Sun considered as the god of energy and of the life-force, is worshiped during the Chhath festival to promote well-being, prosperity and progress. The ritual of Chhath Parba includes taking holy bath, fasting, standing and worshiping the sun for a long time and offering Prasad and Argha to the ‘Rising and setting Sun”. Chhath is a festival of bathing and worshipping that follows a period of abstinence and segregation of the worshiper from the main household for four days. During this period, the worshiper observes purity and sleeps on the floor on a single blanket. This is the only holy festival which has no involvement of any pandit (priest). The devotees offer their prayers to the setting sun and then the rising sun in celebrating its glory as the cycle of birth starts with death. It is seen as the most glorious form of Sun worship.

The death toll in the horrific Seoul Halloween stampede rose to 151, with 19 of them identified as foreigners, South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reported citing fire authorities, ANI reported.

The agency also reported that the victims in their 20s accounted for the age group most affected by the horrific Seoul Halloween stampede. Moreover, the agency, citing the Seoul metropolitan government, said Sunday it has received about 270 reports of missing persons related to the deadly stampede during Halloween parties in the Itaewon district. At least 151 people were killed and 76 others were injured after a deadly stampede during Halloween celebrations in Seoul’s Itaewon district on Saturday at 10:20 pm (13:20 GMT), Al Jazeera reported citing the officials. The incident reportedly occurred after a large group of people rushed to an Itaewon bar after hearing an unidentified celebrity visited there, Al Jazeera reported citing the local media. Social media footage showed several people being assisted by rescue officials and private citizens at the scene, and numerous ones performing CPR on people lying in poor condition on the streets. A large crowd pushed forward on a narrow street during Halloween festivities, resulting in dozens needing first aid. South Korea’s President Yoon Suk-yeol ordered the dispatch of the emergency medical team to the area and said hospital beds should be prepared to minimize casualties, his office said. Numerous people had trouble breathing when the chaotic stampede occurred as dozens were seen giving CPR to people lying lifeless on streets post-incident. South Korean President Yoon Suk-Yeol presided over an emergency response meeting Sunday over the deadly stampede, as per the officials. “Shortly after the accident, Yoon came to the presidential office in Yongsan and presided over a response meeting related to the Seoul Itaewon Halloween accident,” the presidential office said, according to ANI. “The top priority is transporting and rescuing the patients and providing prompt medical treatment for the affected people,” local media reported quoting Yoon as saying. Authorities are still looking into the exact cause of the accident as the investigation is underway. Emergency forces were dispatched following the crowd surge which resulted in fatalities. Firefighters and police officers also reached the Itaewon neighbourhood in Seoul to bring the situation under control, ANI reported.

German Ambassador Dr. Thomas Prinz inaugurated Nepal-German Mart 22 at the German Embassy in Gyaneshwor, Kathmandu on Saturday. The main objective of the exhibition is to promote business between Nepal and Germany, read a statement issued by the German Embassy in Kathmandu. It showcases products as well as food and culture of Nepal and Germany. The exhibition is organized by the Nepal German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NGCCI) in cooperation with the German Embassy Kathmandu. On the occasion,  German Ambassador Dr. Prinz said, “Our aim is to continue the positive development in bilateral trade which was interrupted by 2 years of Covid.” As many as 40 companies from Nepal and Germany are going to participate in the exhibition. There are stalls from companies representing hydropower, automobile and tourism sector along with stalls showcasing carpets, felts, handicrafts etc. Nepali and German culinary stalls are also present in the exhibition. There will be a cultural dance program on Sunday. The goal of the exhibition is to create a networking platform between Nepal and Germany and contribute to the bilateral economic relations. It is also showcased in the virtual form at the www.nepal-germanmart22.com from 29th October 29th to November 4th, 2022. Around 800 people are expected to participate in the physical exhibition

There’s “no credible pathway to 1.5C in place” today, the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) insisted in a new report, despite legally binding promises made at the 2015 Paris Climate Conference to prevent average temperatures rising by more than 1.5C above pre-industrial levels.

Uncomfortable truth

“This report tells us in cold scientific terms what nature has been telling us all year, through deadly floods, storms and raging fires: we have to stop filling our atmosphere with greenhouse gases, and stop doing it fast,” said Inger Andersen, Executive Director of UNEP. “We had our chance to make incremental changes, but that time is over. Only a root-and-branch transformation of our economies and societies can save us from accelerating climate disaster.” Despite Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) promises made by governments in favour of reducing their carbon footprint, pledges made since the last climate summit in Glasgow in 2021 will lead to cuts of less than one per cent of projected 2030 greenhouse gas emissions, according to UNEP.

Paltry reductions

This is the equivalent of just 0.5 gigatonnes of CO2, UNEP calculated, adding that only a 45 per cent emissions reduction will limit global warming to 1.5C. As it stands today, latest data indicates that the world is on track for a temperature rise of between 2.4C and 2.6C by the end of this century. “In the best-case scenario, full implementation of unconditional NDCs and additional net-zero emissions commitments point to only a 1.8C increase, so there is hope. However, this scenario is not currently credible based on the discrepancy between current emissions, short-term NDC targets and long-term net-zero targets,” UNEP said.

Fossil fuel-free solution

For the situation to improve, a “large-scale, rapid” and fossil fuel-free shake-up is needed of our “electricity supply, industry, transport and buildings sectors, and the food and financial systems” to cut emissions by 45 per cent to limit global warming to 1.5C, and by 30 per cent to keep average temperature rise to 2C, the UN agency explained. And although the transformation towards net-zero greenhouse gas emissions is underway in electricity supply, industry, transportation and buildings, it needs to move “much faster”, the report concludes.