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An event--Salute--organized by Annapurna Express to honor the contribution of 100 outstanding personalities has commenced at Hotel Yak & Yeti on Monday.

The 50 visionaries were presented with medals of honor while a new roster of 50 pioneers were also welcomed today.

The Annapurna Express picked 50 eminent personalities from different walks of life as a part of ‘My Vision for Nepal’, the signature initiative of The Annapurna Express. The list of 50 visions has now been compiled in a coffee-table book.

In keeping with the spirit of constant innovation ApEx has championed over the years, it now brings to you ‘ApEx Pioneers’. This feature honors another 50 personalities—one each week—who have revolutionized their fields and helped change Nepal for the better.

Who are our pioneers in business, bureaucracy, entertainment and politics? And who has done pioneering work in agriculture, linguistics and aviation? We try to cover a broad swath of national life. What, really, makes these pioneers tick and what can we learn from them?  

Lawmakers have demanded that the government remove the provision of statute of limitation for rape, especially in the case of minors.

Saying that the incidents of heinous crimes have increased in the society, National Assembly lawmaker Bimala Rai Paudel has demanded removal of such provision.

She said that though government has formulated women-friendly laws, the cases of violence against women have not been decreased in the society.

"The provision of statute limitation was brought to get justice. This provision should be removed in the case of minors, rape and violence against women," Paudel said.

She demanded that the provision of statute limitation should be removed through an ordinance.

Similarly, Binda Pandey urged the government to amend the law to remove the provision of statute limitation.

The lawmakers have demanded the removal of such provision after a girl last week girl came out with a series of videos on TikTok claiming that she was drugged and raped in 2014 when she was16-year-old.

A shortage of medicine caused by an economic crisis in Sri Lanka could soon cause deaths, doctors said, as hospitals are forced to postpone life-saving procedures for their patients because they do not have the necessary drugs, Reuters reported.

Sri Lanka imports more than 80 per cent of its medical supplies but with foreign currency reserves running out because of the crisis, essential medications are disappearing from shelves and the healthcare system is close to collapse.

At the 950-bed Apeksha cancer hospital on the outskirts of the commercial capital, Colombo, patients, their loved ones and doctors feel increasingly helpless in the face of the shortages which are forcing the suspension of tests and postponement of procedures including critical surgery.

"It is very bad for cancer patients," said Dr Roshan Amaratunga.

"Sometimes, in the morning we plan for some surgeries (but) we may not be able to do on that particular day ... as (supplies) are not there."

If the situation does not improve quickly, several patients would be facing a virtual death sentence, he said.

Sri Lanka is grappling with its most devastating economic crisis since independence in 1948, brought about by COVID-19 battering the tourism-reliant economy, rising oil prices, populist tax cuts and a ban on the import of chemical fertilisers, which devastated agriculture, according to Reuters.

A government official working on procuring medical supplies, said about 180 items were running out, including injections for dialysis patients, medicine for patients who have undergone transplants and certain cancer drugs.

The official, Saman Rathnayake, told Reuters that India, Japan and multilateral donors were helping to provide supplies, but it could take up to four months for items to arrive.

In the meantime, Sri Lanka has called on private donors, both at home and abroad, for help, he said, Reuters reported.

The National Women Commission has called for justice for the victim of rape incident that occurred eight years ago and has sought action against the culprit.

Issuing a press statement today, the Commission made the request to the concerned authority after a contestant of a beauty pageant made public the incident of rape and sexual abuse against her by the pageant organiser. The statement read, "The security agency has already arrested the alleged rapist.

The National Women Commission would like to draw attention to the need of impartial investigation into the incident to ensure justice to the victim and action against the perpetrator as per the prevailing law."

Furthermore, the constitutional body has demanded health care and security arrangement for rape survivors.

The Commission said it had adopted zero-tolerance policy against the heinous crime of rape.

A probe committee has been formed by the government to look into the case.

The Commission further said it had been coordinating efforts with the victim, government and security agencies and called for cooperation from all sides to ensure fair investigation into the case.