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Former King Gyanendra Shah has extended best wishes for the happiness and peace to all Nepali within the country and abroad.

In a video message on the occasion of the New Year 2082 BS today, Shah stated that he was always conscious and sensitive that let there be no conflict among the Nepalis.

Likewise, the former king also expressed sadness over the human and physical losses that occurred in the course of the violence, arson, vandalism and demonstrations in Tinkune of Kathmandu some days back.

Social media companies have defied the Nepal government’s request to get registered in Nepal if they want to operate in Nepali territory. Nepal’s Ministry of Communication and Information Technology had issued a notice asking them either to get registered or face a ban in the country. However, till date, social media giants such as Meta and X have not approached the ministry.

Companies, institutions or persons who are operating or plan to operate social media platforms in Nepal were asked to get enlisted. In addition, platforms must establish a point of contact, name a resident grievance handling officer and an officer for monitoring compliance.

Till date, only Viber, TikTok and Weetok have registered with the ministry. It has been two months since we notified Meta about the registration, but we have not received any response, Minister for Communication and Information Technology Prithvi Subba Gurung said. 

Addressing a program in Rupandehi recently, the minister had said the government would ban the platforms by Chaitra-end (April 13) if they did not register with the government by then. Apart from issuing a public notice, the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology had sent separate letters to Facebook and X asking them to come with necessary documents for the registration but there was no response from them.

Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp operate under the Meta and all three apps are very popular in Nepal. Mainly, Facebook is doing a big business in Nepal but it is not paying any taxes to Nepal, violating Nepal’s law. If they are registered in Nepal, officials say, they will be under government scrutiny.

Similarly, government officials say, if they establish an office or contact person in Kathmandu, it will be helpful to fight misinformation and disinformation that is happening through these platforms. Last year, the government banned TikTok for one year which ultimately forced the social media giant to register with Nepal authority and work under Nepal’s rule. 

The directive issued by the government makes a distinction on social network platforms based on the number of users, classifying those with fewer than 100,000 users as “small” platforms and those with more than 100,000 users as “large” platforms. This classification has significant implications, particularly for the larger platforms. Specifically, large-scale social network platforms are mandated to establish a residential “point of contact” and officials inspect compliance of self-regulation.

Two people were killed in an excavator accident at Chankheli Rural Municipality-2, Humla on Sunday.

The deceased have been identified as Parbal Kami (45) and Arjun Kami (31) of Chankheli Rural Municipality-2.

DSP Shankar Pokharel of the District Police Office, Humla, said that the incident occurred when the excavator (Province 2-03-001 Ka 975) fell some 100 meters down the road last night.

He informed that Parbal and Arjun, who were critically injured in the incident, breathed their last during the course of treatment.

Police have impounded the excavator and arrested its driver for investigation.

The excavator belongs to one Nandalal Baduwal of Chhayanath Municipality-14, Mugu.

Wildlife Week is being celebrated starting today by organizing community-centered awareness programs for the conservation of wildlife. 

The Chitwan National Park and Buffer Zone Management Committee are going to organize a variety of events and activities throughout the week to generate awareness among the community about wildlife and the importance of their conservation.

The Wildlife Week starts today by hoisting a flag in the Park office and different community awareness raising activities will be carried for the next seven days, said Information Officer of Chitwan National Park, Abinash Thapa Magar. 

”If we can explain the importance of wildlife at the community level, conservation work will be effective,” he said. Poaching will be reduced and conflict between wildlife and humans will be mitigated.

As the community plays an important role in conservation of wildlife, flora and fauna, the Wildlife Awareness Week has been instrumental in guiding the community towards conservation.