Submit your Article

Health Minister Pradip Paudel has directed all federal hospitals under its subordination to ensure free treatment to those injured in the course of today's demonstration in Kathmandu.

The circular to this regard asks for prompt treatment of the injured in the protests waged by the 'Gen Z' group.

The Ministry directs bodies concerned for making the ambulance services further effective and its timely reach in the needy areas.

Ambulance service network in the Kathmandu Valley has been called to facilitate the transport of referral cases from the hospitals.

Likewise, the entire health professionals including doctors have been urged to get united in the handling of the injured cases ensuring access to treatment.

Three photojournalists were injured during Gen Z’s protest in New Baneshwor on Monday.

The injured have been identified as Naya Patrika photo journalist Dipendra Dhungana, Nepal Press photo journalist Umesh Karki, and Kantipur Television journalist Shyam Shrestha.

They are undergoing treatment at the Civil Hospital in New Baneshwor.

Earlier, police had opened fire to disperse the mob.

Journalists Dhungana and Karki were injured by bullet shrapnel. Journalist Shrestha was hit by a rubber bullet in the arm.

Thousands of Australians joined anti-immigration rallies across the country on Sunday that the centre-left government condemned, saying they sought to spread hate and were linked to neo-Nazis, Reuters reported.

March for Australia rallies against immigration were held in Sydney and other state capitals and regional centres, according to the group's website.

"Mass migration has torn at the bonds that held our communities together," the website says. The group posted on X on Saturday that the rallies aimed to do "what the mainstream politicians never have the courage to do: demand an end to mass immigration".

Mass protests have erupted across Indonesia after 21-year-old ride-sharing driver Affan Kurniawan was killed by a police vehicle during a demonstration. Clashes have left at least three dead and several injured, including in Makassar, where the regional parliament was set on fire, BBC reported.

Protesters, many from Kurniawan’s employer Gojek, demand justice, higher wages, lower taxes, and stronger anti-corruption measures. Frustration over lawmakers’ new allowance, nearly 10 times Jakarta’s minimum wage, has fueled unrest.

President Prabowo Subianto, Jakarta officials, and police have expressed condolences and issued apologies. Seven police officers were found to have violated professional ethics. Despite this, demonstrations continued, with some protesters blocking police convoys and throwing projectiles, according to BBC.

Thousands attended Kurniawan’s funeral, highlighting the human cost of the tragedy. Gojek pledged support to his family, calling his death a profound loss.

Indonesian students said they will protest at Jakarta's police headquarters on Friday (Aug 29) after a motorcycle rider died when he was hit by a police vehicle during violent clashes following a demonstration outside the parliament the day before, Reuters reported.

Muzammil Ihsan, head of Indonesia's largest student union, told Reuters that students will protest against police violence on Friday afternoon, and he expected other student groups to attend.

On Thursday, demonstrators were protesting a number of issues including lawmakers' pay, education funding and the government's school meals programme. As the protest persisted into the night, local media reported that riot police fired tear gas and used water cannons to try to disperse people, according to Reuters.

More than 1,000 supporters of Sri Lanka’s former president Ranil Wickremesinghe protested his arrest in Colombo on Tuesday ahead of a crucial hearing to decide whether to grant bail to the senior opposition politician accused of misusing public funds during his presidency, Associated Press reported.

Wickremesinghe, who was president from 2022 to 2024, was arrested last Friday over accusations of using public funds to attend his wife’s graduation ceremony in London after an official visit to the United States in 2023. The court ordered him to be detained until Tuesday’s hearing. 

Wickremesinghe’s arrest has caused uproar with opposition lawmakers and politicians claiming it is a political witch hunt that undermines the country’s democracy.

On Tuesday, supporters and opposition activists gathered on the main streets leading to the Magistrates’ Court in protest, according to Associated Press.

Thousands of Australians joined pro-Palestinian rallies on Sunday, organisers said, amid strained relations between Israel and Australia following the centre-left government's decision to recognise a Palestinian state, Reuters reported.

More than 40 protests took place across Australia on Sunday, Palestine Action Group said, including large turnouts in state capitals Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne. The group said around 350,000 attended the rallies nationwide, including around 50,000 in Brisbane, though police estimated the numbers there at closer to 10,000. Police did not have estimates for crowd sizes in Sydney and Melbourne, according to Reuters.

In Sydney, organiser Josh Lees said Australians were out in force to "demand an end to this genocide in Gaza and to demand that our government sanction Israel" as rallygoers, many with Palestinian flags, chanted "free, free Palestine".

Alex Ryvchin, co-CEO of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, the umbrella group for Australia's Jews, told Sky New television that the rallies created "an unsafe environment and shouldn't be happening".

A new political party formed by the students who spearheaded an anti-government movement ousting former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Sunday rallied in Bangladesh’s capital and pledged to build a new Bangladesh amid political uncertainty over the next election, Associated Press reported.

Separately, supporters of the student wing of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, or BNP, also held a rally in the capital, Dhaka, where party leaders also vowed to work to establish democracy following the fall of Hasina.

The rallies took place two days before the country’s interim government headed by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus is marking the anniversary of Hasina’s fall, according to Associated Press.

Ukraine’s parliament has voted 331-0 to restore the independence of two key anti-corruption bodies, reversing a controversial move that sparked mass protests and international concern, Al Jazeera reported.

The bill, submitted by President Volodymyr Zelensky, rolls back changes that had allowed the prosecutor general to sideline the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO).

The reversal comes after intense pressure from citizens, opposition lawmakers, and European officials, who warned it could threaten Ukraine’s EU bid. Protesters outside parliament cheered as the bill passed, marking a significant win for democratic accountability, according to Al Jazeera.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has signed a bill that critics say weakens the independence of the country's anti-corruption bodies, sparking protests and drawing international criticism, BBC reported.

Critics say the new law undermines the authority of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (Nabu) and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (Sapo) - placing them under the control of the prosecutor general.

In an address on Wednesday, Zelensky said both agencies would still "work", but needed to be cleared of "Russian influence". 

After the bill passed, hundreds of people gathered in Kyiv for the biggest anti-government protest since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, according to BBC.

Police used tear gas to disperse angry students in Bangladesh on Tuesday who demanded answers from the interim government after an air force fighter jet crashed into a Dhaka school and killed 31 people, at least 25 of them children, Reuters reported.

The children, many aged under 12, were about to return home from class on Monday when the Chinese-manufactured F-7 BGI Bangladesh Air Force jet ploughed into their school and burst into flames, trapping pupils in the fire and debris.

The military said it had suffered mechanical failure, according to Reuters.

Students from the school and others from nearby colleges protested as two government officials visited the crash site, demanding an accurate death toll and shouting, "Why did our brothers die? We demand answers!"

At least 31 people have been killed and over 100 injured in Kenya following nationwide anti-government protests, according to the National Commission on Human Rights. Over 500 arrests and two forced disappearances were also reported.

The demonstrations, held on Saba Saba Day, turned violent in cities including Nairobi and Eldoret. The commission accused police of excessive force and collusion with armed gangs, according to Al Jazeera.

Protests, largely youth-led, have continued since 2024 over tax hikes, economic hardship, and corruption. Rights groups condemned police for defying court orders and using military-grade weapons. The total death toll since the unrest began now exceeds 100.

Protesting doctors have put off their protest after the government and Nepal Medical Association reached a three-point agreement. 

Minister for Health and Population Pradeep Paudel, Minister for Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Ajay Kumar Chaurasiya, Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supplies Damodar Bhandari and representatives from the Ministry of Health and Population and the Nepal Medical Council, the umbrella organization of the medical doctors, were present in the agreement signing ceremony.

Doctors across the country had been staging protests over the Consumer Court's verdict that imposed hefty penalties on the doctors found guilty of gross negligence that led to serious complications and patients' death. 

The healthcare providers had been shutting down all services except for emergencies in the private and public healthcare facilities across the country.

As per the newly inked agreement, a task force would be formed to furnish recommendations on the amendment on the existing legal and policy provisions. The team has been tasked to submit a report within seven days.

Similarly, it has been agreed that the report received from the task force will be submitted to the dialogue team and implemented accordingly. 

It has also been agreed that the concerned ministry will seek in-principle consent from the Council of Ministers within 11 days for the necessary amendments to the existing legal and policy provisions, including the Consumer Protection Act, 2075 BS, and that the process for amending the law through the fast-track method will be taken forward.

As a result, the Nepal Medical Association has agreed to suspend all types of protests with effect from today and resume regular services.

It may be noted that the doctors had launched the protest demanding amendments to the Consumer Protection Act, 2075 BS, after the Consumer Court imposed hefty penalties including financial compensation to some hospitals and doctors for negligence in the treatment of patients.

Doctors and health workers have continued their protest by closing all services except emergency care across the country today.

Nepal Medical Association had decided to shut all services except emergency from Monday onwards.

The private hospitals and clinics along with public hospitals have expressed their solidarity for the Association’s protest. 

The umbrella organization of doctors launched the protest pressing for amendment to the provision of Consumer Protection Act, 2075, reads a statement issued by the Association.

It decided to continue the protest after the government did not take concrete efforts to address their demands so far.

The doctors and health workers have expressed reservation on the Consumer Court's decision of action on the cases of medical practices.

The Consumer Court has recently issued a verdict against some hospitals directing them to provide compensation, citing negligence of the hospitals and doctors in the treatment of patients.

NMA General Secretary Dr Sanjeev Tiwari said the medical profession is a highly sensitive and science-based service, which should not be evaluated like other professions.

He demanded such matters be handled by the Nepal Medical Council.

Similarly, the NMA urged doctors and health workers within Kathmandu Valley to participate in the sit-in staged at Maitighar Mandala and doctors and health workers out of the Valley at the places as determined and informed.

Transport entrepreneurs, who have brought public transport service to a halt across the country, have called off their protest programs.. 

Following a directive from the federal government, the Gandaki Province government decided to suspend the ride-sharing regulations for a month. 

The transport entrepreneurs had shut down public transportation services in protest against the regulations introduced by the Gandaki Provincegovernment.

An agreement was reached between the federal government and the transport entrepreneurs at midnight on Monday itself. However, transport entrepreneurs waited for the Gandaki provincial government to withdraw the regulations before calling off the strike. 

As a result, despite the agreement, the general public had to suffer with no public transport available.

President of the National Federation of Nepal Transport Entrepreneurs Bijay Swar said that the protest programs have been withdrawn and public transport service resumed from today itself. 

An agreement was reached after repeated talks between high-ranking officials of the Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport Management and transport entrepreneurs on Monday. 

The agreement was forwarded to the Gandaki Province government through the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers. 

Based on the recommendation from the federal government, the Gandaki government suspended the regulations for a month.

A series of dialogue held between the government and the agitating teachers concluded in a nine-point agreement on Wednesday, thereby ending the 28-day-long Kathmandu centric agitation of the public school teachers. 

With this, the Nepal Teachers' Federation urged all agitating teachers to go back to the respective schools and begin academic session from Thursday.

Following the agreement between the government and the Teachers' Federation, Minister for Education, Science and Technology, Raghuji Pant, informed that all teachers and school employees would be provided discount during treatment at Civil Hospital, Kathmandu.

The teachers working in temporary category- relief quota, learning grant, technical stream, special education, among others- will be allowed sick leave reserves, which (remuneration) would be provided in lump sum upon retirement. 

The remuneration to the early child development facilitator and school employees will be provided as per government scheme, the grade system to the permanent teachers will be aligned with civil service's grade system.

Both permanent and temporary teachers of various categories will be provided remote allowance, and the teachers and employees at community schools will be linked to the Social Security Fund. The teachers will be included in the list of official hierarchical portfolio. Agreement was also made on managing grades of first class lower secondary and second class secondary school teachers. 

Moreover, the teachers, security persons, employees and journalists injured during the protest would be provided treatment for free of cost.

The agreement was endorsed by the meeting of the Council of Ministers held on Wednesday itself. 

Minister Pant thanked teachers for the agreement that they would call off protest and return schools from Thursday.  He also thanked all others cooperating to this end.

Following the agreement, Chairman of the Teachers' Federation, Laxmi Kishor Subedi, also urged all agitating teachers to return respective schools and begin teaching learning and conduct exams. He thanked government, political parties, media persons and others for extending support to the teacher's demands.

He reiterated on timely enforcement of the agreement. 

The new education bill will be passed by the federal Parliament before mid June as per agreement. The agreement relating to the new bill was also signed by the chief whips of the major political parties and the Parliament committee on education, health and IT.

Earlier, the teachers gathered in thousands from across the country consistently demonstrated in the New Baneshwor to Babarmahal section of the Kathmandu Valley, posing various demands including the introduction of a new National School Education Act.

The teachers who even adopted various artistic ways of posing demands and criticizing sheer delay in government's proper response to them clashed with security forces, causing injuries in the ultimate days.