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Hydropower promoter and climate change activist Krishna Prasad Bhandari has taken an initiative to set up Climate Impact and Evaluation Fund (CIEF).

According to Bhandari, the main aim of the fund is to conduct study and research on the impact of climate change in hydropower projects and suggest ways for possible mitigation.

The main areas of research will be environmental balance and impact of climate change in hydropower projects and electricity centers. Bhandari has submitted an application to the Independent Power Producers’ Association (IPPAN), providing Rs 51,000 as seed money for the establishment of the fund. In his proposal, Bhandari has said preventive measures are necessary that the hydropower sector could face in the coming days due to climate change related disasters.

The clean energy that Nepal produces is a main source of green energy, and through such green energy we can produce green hydrogen that could power electric vehicles as well as contribute to the production of chemical fertilizers, Bhandari has proposed.

He has also drawn the attention of IPPN to play a vital role on how to maximize the benefit from carbon tax and carbon credit. As Nepal has already announced its plan to l achieve carbon neutrality by 2045, Bhandari said the government needs to promote clean energy policies. To implement such a policy, there is a need for strong and productive collaboration between government and private sector for the management of catchment and maintaining a status quo of watershed Management Conservation.

Adverse impacts of climate change are already seen in the Himalayas which are the sources of many rivers. The government and IPPN should take the environmental issues without any delay and with a sense of urgency, Bhandari said.

Police have arrested eight persons including actors Marichman Shrestha aka Balchhi Dhurbe and Raju Paudel alias Raju Master on the charge of promoting illegal online gambling. A team of Crime Investigation Office apprehended Shrestha and Paudel among eight persons today, Office spokesperson Rabindra Regmi said. They are accused of doing illegal transactions through a banned online betting app called 1XBet, an online betting platform prohibited by the law of Nepal. Earlier on Wednesday, police had rounded up five persons involved in organizing illegal gambling and transacting over Rs 7.4 million. While carrying out an investigation into the same case, police found the involvement of the actors. They were found hosting online gambling and advertising it on YouTube. They are accused of attracting youth through advertisements to play online gambling, which is illegal in Nepal.  

Continuous rainfall since the past few days has caused damages to the temporary dam of the under-construction 900- Megawatt Arun III Hydropower Project in Sankhuwasabha district. The northern parts of the district are receiving continuous rainfall for a couple of days. The erosion along the project's temporary structure poses a threat to nearby settlements. Following the development, people residing in areas near the river have been alerted to possible consequences and urged to stay safe, according to District Police Office's Deputy Superintendent of Police Birendra Godar. On April 30, the landslide blocked the river at its 429-meter-long diversion tunnel, causing water to fill the 26-meter-high dam.

This year's monsoon has entered the country since Wednesday. Though monsoon generally remains active in the country since June 13, this year it entered one day later, the Weather Forecasting Division at the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology said. Meteorologist Raju Pradhananga said the monsoon that entered into the country on Wednesday has reached Koshi, eastern Madhes, most of the areas of Bagmati and eastern territory of Gandaki Province. According to him, the monsoon will gradually remain active in other areas in some days. The Department has predicted below average rainfall in most of the places of the country this year. However, predictability of rainfall will vary in the territories. It may be noted that the Department had predicted above the average rainfall in the last two years. Rainfall was average last year. Meteorologist Pradhananga said four months from June to September is considered the monsoon period in Nepal. As many as 1.25 million people are predicted to be affected by monsoon-induced disasters in the country this year. This year monsoon will affect over 286,000 households, it is forecasted. In the past 24 hours, Khadibazaar of Lanjung saw the highest amount of rain (135.2 mm), the Weather Forecasting Division informed. Likewise, Kathmandu saw 39.5 mm rain on Wednesday, the division-issued bulletin said.