Dhaka topi losing appeal among younger Nepalis

A woman smiles wearing a Dhaka Topi (traditional Nepali cap) in a programme organised by the Jagaruk Youth Campaign Nepal to mark the National Costume Day in Maitighar Mandala

Every now and then, on festive occasions, the topis do come out and even then only men from the older generation can be seen donning the traditional head gear.

And because the current generation does not seem to find much appeal in the topi, it has inadvertently affected the production levels.

According to a local in Bhaktapur, Ram Maya Manandhar, in the days of old, almost every household in Bhaktapur used to sew the topi for livelihood; however, the already dwindling business has been further affected by the earthquake of 2015.

She laments, “ Some have left the business while others have disappeared overnight as many of the houses in Bhaktapur were destroyed, causing people to move away.

“Actually the topi signifies not only our national identity but also an ecological importance,” said cultural expert Tejeswor Babu Gongah. “The topi which is round at the base, with a height of 3 to 4 inches, indicates the mountains and the Himalayas of the country. The Dhaka topi is said to represent the mountain after the melting of the ice. The melted ice enables the growth of greenery and vibrantly coloured flowers in the lower regions of the mountain. Thus, the Dhaka topi was made colourful to represent the ecological system.”

Tejeswor is saddened that the new generation does not seem to feel a sense of pride wearing their national head gear or costume; and while the older generation may still wear the topi, it is rather out of habit above anything else.

“Even the guardians of our nation and various political leaders only wear the topi for formal functions. If I were the prime minister or in the governmental body, I would wear the topi and encourage it to be worn by both males and females.”

Sundar Shrestha, a topi producer suggests, “The people of Bhaktapur were not very savvy in their business and thus all the final products of topi were exported to Kathmandu with the profit margin not being very large. The business of topi which requires a huge labour force can potentially provide employment to the locals of Bhaktapur.”

Formerly, the topis were exported to Dharan, Dhankuta, Darjeeling and other parts of the country from Bhaktapur. “Large orders were placed by the people from distant places but in recent times, there has been a decrease,” said Buddha Ram Shrestha (72).

As with any other cultural loss, the waning trend of wearing the national topi seems to be causing panic amongst certain circles.

Source: thehimalayantimes.com/

Laugh with Bir Bikram

Fun-filled rhythmic dialogues, action and the acting make Bir Bikram a worthy watch. The story of friendship and love is not a new one, but this story has been presented in a humorous, comical and emotional way that is refreshing. Dialogues that have a punch and the touching acting of the characters make the movie real fun.

It is the story of two childhood friends — Bir (Tenzing Sherpa) and Bikram (Sanjeev Karki).  Bikram, an orphan, moves to Kathmandu from his village Shivalaya. But before he leaves the village, he proposes to his classmate Joon (Sanskriti Sherpa). She reciprocates his love. However, Aaite Kaji (Kailash Khadka) is also in love with Joon.

Though Bikram loves the girl, he moves to Kathmandu. As time passes, the children then grow up leading their own lives. Now grown up, Joon (Diya Pun) deeply loves Bir (Dayahang Rai). Aaite Kaji (Arpan Thapa), who has been loving Joon since his childhood, still has a strong desire to possess her.

As the battle between Bir and Aaite for Joon goes on, enter Bikram (Anoop Bikram Shahi). The plot then revolves around this circular love-hate story making the audience laugh out loud while making them emotional too. The battle between the characters to get Joon is much appreciated.

Child artiste Khadka makes one laugh out loud for his act to show his love towards Joon in the very beginning of the movie. And the laughing bomb explodes several times in the movies when Sanskriti reciprocates Karki’s love, Thapa’s dialogues, among others.

Rai, Thapa and Shahi are the best. Thapa makes the audience laugh with his act and dress-up, body languages and rhythmic dialogues. Rai and Shahi are brilliant in the fighting scenes and are also able to make the audience feel emotional. However, Pun could have done better in her role — both in dialogue delivery and acting. Nazir Hussain makes the audience laugh in his role. But what is Hussain’s role in the movie?

Well, you know what you have to do … head to the cinemas.

Though the movie is interesting and makes one laugh, one feels the first-half was comparatively better than the second-half. Watching Bir Bikramreminds one of the Bollywood classic Sholay and a few scenes also remind one of Nepali movie Kabaddi, yet the movie doesn’t disappoint the audience as it has the essence and is able to hold the audience to their seats for two hours and 20 minutes.

Source: thehimalayantimes.com/

Building back better: Strengthen local efforts

Earthquakes, floods and landslides will continue to occur in Nepal, but there is much more we can do before, during and after such events to ensure these natural hazards do not become natural disasters
Today we are witnessing human suffering on a scale that has not been seen since the end of the Second World War.

More than 130 million people around the world need humanitarian assistance. Together they would form the tenth most populous country in the world.

It is against this staggering and sobering backdrop that we commemorate this year’s World Humanitarian Day, calling for global solidarity and standing together with everyone affected by crisis.

On this day we unite as ‘one humanity’ with others across the world affected by conflict and disaster, while recognizing the hard work and dedication of humanitarians working in this country, across this region and around the world to alleviate suffering wherever and whenever it is found.

As we have seen over the past 16 months in Nepal, one of the most disaster-prone countries in the world’s most disaster prone region, the Asia-Pacific, the role that humanitarians play is of critical importance.

An estimated 84% of people affected by natural disasters globally live in Asia-Pacific, and 60% of disaster related deaths occur in the region. Every year there are on average 12 serious earthquakes and 43 tropical cyclones in the region.

In this incredibly challenging context, local people are always first to respond, and the last to leave.

This was particularly evident in the response to the 2015 Gorkha earthquake, in which local efforts were a critical part of the response to the earthquake – as they are in all natural disasters.

Families, friends, neighbours, business owners, students and others already on the ground were vital in saving lives and providing support including rescuing people from collapsed buildings, providing food, shelter and clean water, and setting up temporary clinics and classrooms.

Communities and local authorities had a leading role in responding to the crisis and Nepal is globally recognized as an example for other countries.

This approach of ‘local as possible; international as necessary’ was one of the rallying cries from the first-ever World Humanitarian Summit held this year in May in Istanbul, Turkey.

In order to turn this into a reality across all regions in the world, there was a strong commitment made to support national and local response systems, including providing more support and funding tools for local and national responders on the frontlines of humanitarian action including Government, communities and Red Cross and Red Crescent societies.

This support is intended for preparedness, response and coordination capacities, especially in vulnerable communities.

Floods, droughts, earthquakes and other natural hazards continue to cause massive destruction in Nepal, and to reverse years and even decades of development progress. But there is nothing natural or inevitable about some of the damage that is caused.

Reducing the need for humanitarian assistance means investment in preparedness, governance and sustainable development. It is not enough for communities to simply get back on their feet after disasters or conflict.

We must help communities to emerge from crises with greater resilience and less vulnerability, so that they can withstand future shocks. We have to continue to act preventively as much as possible and, after the disasters, always try to build back better.

This is particularly urgent and important in the context of the significant recovery and rebuilding activities currently underway in Nepal.

In the last month and a half since my arrival in the country, I have been struck by the amount of work already underway to increase resilience of communities and mitigate disaster risk in Nepal.

There have been huge investments and efforts made to ensure that preparedness within communities – and all the way up to the national government– is strengthened, with a greater understanding amongst all partners of how they can and should work together to ensure a more efficient and effective response.

We must continue to support and strengthen these investments in disaster risk reduction, while also not forgetting to focus on the root causes for people being vulnerable and the coping strategies they have.

So when the unexpected happens, it doesn’t cancel out development gains.

Those most vulnerable are often those hardest hit by unforeseen events. We need to increase resilience and ensure that the humanitarian responses do not reinforce already existing inequities. But we all know that despite all of our best efforts, disasters will still happen.

Source: thehimalayantimes.com/

Nepali taekwondo player Nisha Rawal put up an improved performance before going down

Nepali taekwondo player Nisha Rawal put up an improved performance before going down to France’s Gwladys Epangue in the first bout of the Repechage during the above-67kg bout of the Rio Olympic Games here at the Arena Carioca today.
Rawal conceded a late point as she faced a 4-3 defeat at the hands of former world champion and 2008 Beijing Olympics bronze medal winner Epangue. Epangue took an early lead with a three-pointer after she kicked Rawal’s head. Rawal charged back in the second round with a similar shot to tie the match. At a time when the match was heading towards the draw, Epangue scored the winning points to make it to the next round.

The Repechage match was between the two players who lost to China’s Zheng Shuyin. While Rawal faced a 2-0 loss against the Chinese opponent in the round of 16 bout, Epangue had lost 4-1 against Shuyin in the quarter-final match. They earned the second chance after Shuyin advanced to the final.

The 21-year-old Rawal had a dream of winning at least one bout in Olympics and that was shattered ever since she was drawn against the world champion Chinese player.

Rawal, who started playing taekwondo since she was in school 11 years ago, won gold medal in her first international appearance in the Mt Everest Taekwondo Championship in 2014. She also took part in the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon and Universiad Games in Korea the next year.

She won silver medal in Zenzu Open in Korean in 2015 and bagged gold in Hong Kong Asia Cities Open earlier this year. She also represented the country in the Asian Qualifiers for the Olympic Games earlier this year in Manila.

Source: thehimalayantimes.com/

Neymar hands Brazil precious soccer gold medal

Neymar shed tears of joy after delivering Brazil’s first men’s soccer gold medal with the winning penalty in a 5-4 shootout triumph over Germany after a thrilling final ended in a draw following extra-time on Saturday.

Brazil had lost the Olympic final three times – in 1984, 1988 and 2012 – but they finally got the gold they craved on a dramatic night at the Maracana stadium in which they outplayed the Germans but were saved three times by the woodwork.

Neymar had put the hosts ahead with a superb free kick after 27 minutes but Germany captain Maximilian Meyer equalized just before the hour to take the game into the extra period at 1-1.

There were no more goals so the match went to penalties with Nils Petersen missing Germany’s fifth spot kick leaving Neymar, who appeared to injure himself late in the game, to limp up and coolly score from the spot to send the capacity crowd wild.

The victory gave Brazil a measure of revenge for their humiliating 7-1 defeat by eventual World Cup winners Germany in the semi-finals on home soil in 2014 – a game the frustrated Neymar had to watch from the sidelines due to injury.

“Yesterday we were criticized,” the 24-year-old Barcelona forward said in reference to Brazil’s poor start to the Olympic tournament in which the home side drew 0-0 with South Africa and Iraq. “We have replied with good football.”

Brazil coach Rogerio Micale added: “We had players who were extremely dedicated, professional and with great technical skill. I’ll leave here with the sensation of having done my duty.”

The win means a unified Germany are now the only World Cup winners never to have won the Olympic gold medal and the loss robbed them of a chance to complete the male and female double after their women’s team beat Sweden 2-1 on Friday.

With a passionate crowd behind them, Brazil took the game to their opponents and dominated possession and territory.

However, they struggled to make chances and it was the Germans who almost opened the scoring after 10 minutes when Julian Brandt smacked the bar with a lovely curling shot from outside the box.

Brazil kept pushing forward and just before the half-hour mark they got the goal that their play deserved.

Neymar was brought down almost 25 meters from goal and, although the angle was tight, he curled a spectacular strike into the net off the underside of Timo Horn’s bar.

The goal shook Germany into action and they pushed forward more and hit the bar twice more before the half was out.

Brazil still looked the hungrier side but it was Germany who got the next goal with an hour gone. Jeremy Toljan sent in a low cross from the right and captain Maximilian Meyer swept home a lovely finish from about 10 meters.

Gabriel Jesus almost put Brazil ahead when he touched a Renato Augusto cross wide after 64 minutes and Felipe Anderson should have given the hosts the lead 13 minutes later but he was caught in possession with only the keeper to beat.

Anderson then almost scored 16 minutes into extra time but Horn got down superbly to block his shot as he raced in on goal.

With the sides still level after extra time, the stage was set for Neymar to step up and strike the winning spot kick to send the whole of Brazil into raptures as the country finally captured the Olympic title they had so desperately craved.

Source: thehimalayantimes.com/

NC to finalise names for ministers by Sunday, claims Khatiwada

Nepali Congress leader Ramhari Khatiwada said the party would finalise the names of leaders to represent the party in the government as ministers by coming Sunday.

Speaking at an interaction organised by the Reporters’ Club Nepal here today, the NC lawmaker said although there was delay in giving the list of names for appointment as ministers due to the general convention of the Nepal Students Union, the issue would be finalised by Sunday.

The largest partner in the incumbent coalition government, the Nepali Congress has so far only sent two leaders in the government while it is expected to take charge of 12 to 13 ministries.

Khatiwada stated that the politics of power sharing among the different factions within the party has ended with the conclusion of the party’s 13th general convention.

He suggested that the CPN-UML should not make any obstruction to nation building.

He added that the agreements yet to be implemented from the three-point pact reached among the Nepali Congress, the CPN Maoist Centre and the United Democratic Madhesi Front before formation of the present government would be implemented soon.

Source: thehimalayantimes.com/

Government set to reconstruct 1,500 classrooms within this fiscal

Project Implementation Unit under the Ministry of Education is all set to fast-track construction of around 1,500 classrooms in 14 districts worst affected by the earthquakes last year.

Ima Narayan Shrestha, chief, PIU, said they have already prepared work procedure to fast-track school reconstruction this year.

“We have already prepared work procedure to fast-track school reconstruction and sent it to National Reconstruction Authority for approval. We have also sought Rs 5 billion for the purpose,” he added.

Shrestha informed that they will be preparing two-classroom, three classroom, four-classroom, six-classroom and eight-classroom buildings through fast-track process. While the two and three-classroom buildings will be built within this fiscal, six and eight-classroom buildings will be constructed within two years.

As per the work procedure, the PIU will ask the school principals to submit proposal for school reconstruction. Respective district education offices will verify the proposals with the help of engineers. “We will give priority to schools on the basis of number of students and the enormity of the damage,” he added.

As per the proposal, the budget will be directly handed over to school management committees. PIU has also decided to give priority to schools that are running classes up to Grade VIII. The PIU was established last year but it has not been able to expedite reconstruction of schools due to budget crunch.

Till date, PIU has announced tender for reconstruction of 64 schools while some schools in Lalitpur district have begun reconstruction works.

Asian Development Bank and Japan International Cooperation Agency have also offered to reconstruct around 450 schools.

The devastating earthquakes last year damaged 9,353 schools in 59 districts across the country.

Similarly, around 1,200 students and 68 teachers died in the quakes.

Source: thehimalayantimes.com/

Traffic offences on decline

Though traffic rule violations decreased to some extent in 2015/16 compared to the previous fiscal, statistics made public by the Metropolitan Traffic Police Division show that it still has a long way to go to maintain road discipline in the Kathmandu Valley.

The MTPD registered 569,809 traffic rule violations in 2014/15 compared to 548,470 in 2015/16, showing a fall of 3.71 per cent. The total instances of traffic rule violation stand at 11,18,279 in the two fiscals.

According to statistics, the Valley has witnessed a remarkable fall in reported cases of driving under the influence.

In 2014/15, traffic police recorded 36,500 cases of driving under the influence against 36,065 in the current fiscal, a decrease of 11 per cent.

Common forms of traffic rule violations are disregard for lane discipline and traffic signals, use of mobile phone while driving, parking vehicles in the no-parking zone, seat belt infraction, mechanical modification of bikes, overloading vehicles, overtaking from the left side of the road, violation of one-way traffic rule and reckless driving, among others.

Violation of lane discipline tops the chart of offences and bikers are mostly ignorant about traffic rules.

SP Lokendra Malla, MTPD spokesperson, said stiffer fine and increased awareness among the drivers coupled with proactive law enforcement seem to have acted as a deterrent to traffic rule violations. New penalty structure for breach of traffic rules had come into force across the country from May 15.

Rule violations have come down by more than 50 per cent since the hike in fine. Any person caught violating traffic rules is punished with a fine of minimum Rs 500 and maximum Rs 1,500. Earlier, the fine for traffic rule violation was Rs 25 to Rs 200.

A traffic police official claimed that it was rare to find a motorist or a biker, who had not been punished by the law enforcement agency for violating traffic rules in the Valley.

“We do not have exact data of offenders and their repeated offences, but all motorists and bikers must have been booked at least once in their lifetime for violating traffic rules,” he said.

A comparison between the vehicle registration data of Bagmati Zone where the Valley is located and statistics maintained by the traffic police corroborates the MTPD claim about offenders to a large extent.

While as many as 828,179 vehicles, both two-wheelers and four-wheelers, were registered in Bagmati zone until the fiscal 2015/16, the number of bikers and motorists facing police action has reached 11,18,279 in the last two fiscals alone.

The use of CCTVs and go-pro cameras to catch the offenders have also helped curb the violations, said SP Malla.

Source: thehimalayantimes.com/

10,000 visit Gosainkunda this year on Janai Purnimal festival

The Gosainkunda religious fair held annually on the occasion of Janai Purnima has concluded with travellers facing less hardship due to a sudden lull in the monsoon intensity.

The Gosainkunda Area Development Committee Chairman, Sanjeet DM, said all the pilgrims returned to their respective destinations. A total of 10,000 pilgrims visited the alpine lake to mark the annual Hindu festival this year.

Among the total number of visitors, 2,700 suffered altitude sickness and were treated by teams stationed from the District Health Office (DHO), Nepal Army’s Narayandal Battalion, Himalayan Rescue Association and Sai Baba Hospital, the DHO said.

A Nepal Police Head Constable and a pilgrim fell seriously ill due to altitude sickness and were rushed to Kathmandu on an ambulance. They are receiving treatment in Kathmandu, District Police Office Chief, Phanindra Prasai, said, adding that the Head Constable was being treated in ICU.

The travellers, meanwhile, have complained of being charged exorbitant prices by hotel entrepreneurs in Gosainkunda, Chandanbari and Lauri Binayak and also by Dhunche-Kathmandu transport entrepreneurs.

The bhetis in both cash and kind offered by the devotees are being counted at Dhunche-based police office. The cash offered by pilgrims were transported to Dhunche on Friday amidst tight security, Committee said.

Source: thehimalayantimes.com/

Dr Govinda KC supporters demonstrate outside Baluwatar

Dr Govinda KC supporters on Saturday organised a protest outside the Prime Minister’s residence in Baluwatar, demanding that the government immediately implement the agreement signed with the veteran orthopaedic surgeon of the Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital.

Dr KC himself had also joined the protests attended by hundreds of youth including artists, students, activists, writers, journalists and members of the public.

Demanding reforms in Nepal’s medical education sector, Dr KC had launched a fast-unto-death last month.

He had broken the 16-day fast on July 25 after signing a four-point agreement.

The government, however, has not implemented the agreement yet.

Source: thehimalayantimes.com/

Changunarayan Temple at high landslide risk

The Changunarayan Temple, enlisted in the list of World Heritage Sites, is at a high risk of being destroyed in a landslide.

The Temple is at the high risk after landslides occurred in both east and west sides of the Temple. Locals are worried as no any initiative was not taken to control the landslides for a long term.

Priest Chakradharanand Rajopadhyay said that the landslip on the western side of the temple has reached up to the Chandrasurya shrine, one of the nine such shrines located to the west of the temple.

He complained that nobody paid attention to protect the Temple even when it was in such dire straits.

Locals said that the rampant quarrying of sands from rivers also put the Temple at added risk and informed that the landslip had been taking place there for the past six years.

They also blamed the District Development Committee, the Department of Archaeology and the District Administration Office for not taking any measures to control the landslips.

Source: thehimalayantimes.com/

DPM Krishna Bahadur Mahara says China visit successful

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Krishna Bahadur Mahara said his China visit was successful in meeting the set objectives.

Upon his arrival at the Tribhuvan International Airport on Saturday noon, Mahara said he updated the Chinese leadership about the new government’s plans and policies.

Mahara said the Chinese government said it was committed to implementing all previous agreements signed with Nepal despite the change in government.

Mahara, during his Beijing stay, had met Chinese Premier Li Keqiang andMinister for Foreign Affairs Wang Yi among others.

He had extended Nepal visit invitations to Li and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Mahara at the Airport today said the both would visit Nepal soon, though the dates were not fixed yet.

Following a Cabinet decision to send two Deputy Prime Ministers to each of the neighbours with the message about the new government’s priorities, Mahara had left for Beijing on August 15.

On the other hand, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs Bimalendra Nidhi has gone to India with the same mission now.

Nidhi is currently busy with political meetings in New Delhi. He had justcalled on Indian PM Narendra Modi today.

Source: thehimalayantimes.com/

One-horned rhino found injured in Rautahat forest

A one-horned rhino was found injured at a forest of Chure region in Rautahat district on Saturday morning.

Locals of Chandrapur Municipality, who heard cries of the rhino, had immediately called police and forest officials to rescue the animal.

According to Chandrapur Area Police Office, the rhino had got severe injuries, apparently from bullets fired by poachers who attacked the wild animal to take out its horn.

Poachers had shot eight bullets onto the rhino’s head and thigh to take out its horn, said Deputy Superintendent of Police Manoj Yadav. After shooting, they might have chased the mammal to the forest, but had fled after seeing the locals, he added.

Yadav also informed that the area, crowded by locals to watch the injured rhino, had been taken under the control of police for further investigation.

Medical and technical teams from the Chitwan National Park and the Parsa Wildlife Reserve are on the way for the rhino’s treatment, said Yadav.

Meanwhile, police have launched an investigation into the incident.

Source: thehimalayantimes.com/

Jorgensen of US the fave in women’s triathlon

American Gwen Jorgensen is the gold medal favorite in the women’s Olympic triathlon at Copacabana Beach on Saturday.

Jorgensen was an All-American track star at the University of Wisconsin, where she also was on the swim team. She was recruited to try triathlon seven years ago and is now the top woman in the sport.

She’s won back-to-back ITU world championships but cut back on her schedule this year so she could focus on the Rio de Janeiro Olympics.

Her 2012 London Games didn’t go well as a flat tire on her bike relegated her to 38th place in Hyde Park.

The triathlon at the Rio Olympics consists of a one-loop ocean swim, a steep 24-mile bike ride and a 6.2-mile run.

Source: thehimalayantimes.com/

Missing French woman ‘found dead’ in west Nepal?

Police suspected that a body found in Syangja district of Nepal was of a French national who was missing in the western region of Nepal, around Pokhara.

The French news agency AFP reported quoting DSP Bir Bahadur Pulami that police, however, were awaiting autopsy report to confirm her identity.

Earlier, it was reported that Mélanie Guérin (around 35) was last seen on August 7 at a point along the Siddhartha Highway, which connects Lumbini, the birthplace of Lord Buddha, to Nepal’s tourism capital, Pokhara.

Her belongings including passport, identity card and clothes were found at a point along the Highway in Syangja district. Her phone, however, was missing and police were searching for it to locate her along with the help of sniffer dogs.

But, on Thursday, police officers found a decomposed body at a point around 153 kilometres west of Kathmandu after locals alerted the police of a foul smell in the area, according to the report.

The body has been taken to Kathmandu for postmortem.

Source: thehimalayantimes.com/

DPM Krishna Bahadur Mahara calls on Chinese premier

Nepal’s Deputy Prime Minister and special emissary of PM Pushpa Kamal Dahal on Wednesday morning called on Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang.

It has been learnt that the duo discussed issues of mutual cooperation and strengthening bilateral ties.

The Chinese leader told Mahara that China was willing to extend all possible cooperation to Nepal, according to a statement issued by Beijing-based Embassy of Nepal.

Mahara was accompanied by officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Beijing mission of Nepal.

Earlier on Tuesday, Mahara had met China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi and handed over Nepal visit invitations to Chinese President and Prime Minister Xi Jinping and Li Keqiang respectively.

In response to the invitations, the Premier said the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of two nations would stay in touch for necessary coordination for the visits, the statement informed.

The Chinese leader told Mahara that China was willing to extend all possible cooperation to Nepal, according to a statement issued by Beijing-based Embassy of Nepal.

Mahara was accompanied by officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Beijing mission of Nepal.

Earlier on Tuesday, Mahara had met China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi and handed over Nepal visit invitations to Chinese President and Prime Minister Xi Jinping and Li Keqiang respectively.

In response to the invitations, the Premier said the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of two nations would stay in touch for necessary coordination for the visits, the statement informed.

Source: thehimalayantimes.com/

Man kills estranged wife, commits suicide in Pokhara

A man murdered his estranged wife, who had filed for divorce from him, and committed suicide in Simalchaur, Pokhara of Kaski district on Wednesday, police said.

Sanjeev Nepali (24) of Kichnas-3, Syangja, had married Sonam Regmi (22) of Pauwaigaude-2, Syangja, four years ago. But the couple witnessed sourness in their conjugal life.

They had been living separately for some time and Regmi had filed for divorce, according to the Spokesperson at Kaski District Police Office, DSP Gajusiddhi Bajracharya.

With an apparent plan for murder-suicide, Nepali barged into Regmi’s rented room this afternoon and dragged her to verandah of  house. He then used a khukuri to stab on the woman’s throat and belly repeatedly at around 5:30 pm. He subsequently consumed poison.

“I can’t live without you. If I’m not living, I will not let you live,” an apparent suicide note found in Nepali’s pocket read, according to police.

After hearing a woman yelling, locals went to see what was wrong — only to discover a body lying in a pool of blood in the verandah of the house and a man left incapacitated and struggling to breathe,  Parvati Giri, a witness, said.

Regmi was already dead while Nepali was rushed to Gandaki Medical College, where he died during the course of treatment.

Both the bodies have been sent to the Western Regional Hospital for postmortem, according to police.

Source: thehimalayantimes.com/

Chitwan bus collision: Death toll reaches 4

The death toll in the head-on collision between two passenger buses at Darechok of Chitwan along the Prithivi Highway on Tuesday evening has reached four as two persons succumbed to injuries during the course of treatment.

Those who died in Chitwan Medical College have been identified as Manju Gautam (22) and her 10-month-old son Samyog Gautam of Jugum VDC-8 in Gulmi district.

Two critically injured persons had died while being rushed to Kathmandu yesterday evening. They are yet to be identified.

Eighteen of the injured are undergoing treatment at the Bharatpur-based Chitwan Medical college, one at Narayani Community Hospital and 11 others in Kathmandu, said police.

The fatal accident occurred when the passenger bus (Lu 1 Kha 9361) heading to Kathmandu from Bhairahawa collided with another bus (Na 4 Kha 4516) heading to Dharan from Kathmandu at Fisling in Darechok-9 in Chitwan district at about 7 pm, according to the District Police Office.

Preliminary investigation pointed to high speed as the cause of the fatal accident, said police.

Three passengers were killed and 15 others injured in a head-on collision between two passenger buses at Fisling along the Prithivi Highway on Tuesday evening.

The deceased include a woman, a man and a child. Their identity is yet to be established.

The accident occurred when the passenger bus (Lu 1 Kha 9361) heading to Kathmandu from Bhairahawa collided with another bus (Na 4 Kha 4516) heading to Dharan from Kathmandu, according to the District Police Office.

The injured were sent to Kathmandu and Bharatpur for treatment.

Source: thehimalayantimes.com/

Malaria cases still high in Kailali

Despite continuous efforts from the government to control malaria, 195 cases of the mosquito-borne infectious disease were found in Kailali district in the western Tarai this year.

The infection was found in 195 people in the last one year, according to District Public Health Office (DPHO), Kailali.

Nepali migrant workers returned from India are found to be the most vulnerable group with the infection of malaria, the DPHO Malaria Section chief Uday Shanker Sah said.

Likewise, lack of public awareness on the prevention and control of the disease is the main cause of  increasing cases in the district.

In the fiscal year 2014/15, malaria was found in 179 people and this number rose to 255 in the fiscal year 2015/16.

The Office records show that in the past one month, 15 new malaria patients were found in the district. Kanchanpur and Kailali remain prone to malaria in Nepal.

Source: thehimalayantimes.com/

Jhapa fire guts property worth Rs 20 million

Property worth around Rs 20 million was destroyed in a fire that broke out this morning at Agriculture Wholesale Market in Birtamod, Jhapa.

Ten shops were completely destroyed in the fire that started at around 5:30 am.

Police said preliminary investigations suggested that a short circuit caused the blaze.

The fire was doused with the help of locals, police and firefighters from the Birtamod Municipality.

The loss could further go up, the Area Police Office, Birtamod informed.

Source: thehimalayantimes.com/

NSU general convention polls begin

A voting under the Nepal Students Union’s 11th General Convention began from 8:00 am today, one hour late of the scheduled time.

The election has started at the Nepali Congress Central Office, Sanepa, according to General Convention election officer Krishna Prasad Paneru.

Seven candidates are in the race for the post of NSU President after Padam Raj Panta withdrew his nomination. They are Manojmani Acharya, Nain Singh Mahar, Shubharam Basnet, Ananda Raj Tripathi, Laxman Acharya, Nagendra Singh Thakuri and Bachan Karki.

Similarly,Six candidates are competing for the post of NSU General Secretary and five for treasurer.

Parmeshwor Saha has been unanimously elected the assistant- general secretary from the Madhesi quota.

Over 500 people have filed their candidacies for the posts of vice-president, assistant-general secretary and central member. Both e-voting and a ballot have been applied to conduct the election, Convention election officer Paneru said.

Source: thehimalayantimes.com/

Man injured in Dhanusha accident dies

A man, who had got serious injuries after the motorcycle he was riding on was hit by a jeep in Dhanusha district, died during treatment at the Norvic International Hospital in Kathmandu on Tuesday.

Chandeshwor Purbe (55), a local of Mithila Municipality in Dhanusha, was seriously injured after being hit by the Tata Sumo jeep (Ja 1 Cha 1171) while riding the motorcycle (Ja 6 Pa 8505) at around 4:45 pm yesterday.

According to the Lalgadh Police Post, Purbe had breathed his last on Tuesday midnight.

Police have impounded both the vehicles.

Police said that they are in search of the jeep driver who has fled the scene after the incident.

Source: thehimalayantimes.com/

Sunsari woman dies of snakebite

An elderly woman died after being bitten by a snake at Madhesa VDC-5 in Sunsari today.

The deceased has been identified as Ganga Ram Mehata (72) of the same locality.

Police said Mehata was bitten by the poisonous reptile while collecting fodders near her house.

Injured Mehata was rushed to the District Hospital, where she breathed her last in the course of treatment, police informed.

Source: thehimalayantimes.com/

Manpower crunch hits Narayani sub-regional hospital in Birgunj

Hundreds of service seekers have been deprived of quality and timely health services due to the manpower crunch in Narayani Sub-regional Hospital in Birgunj, Parsa.

As per the proposed 199 quotas at the hospital, the health facility should have at least 15 11th grade doctors. But the hospital has only three doctors of that level and one of them is on leave these days.

Similarly, there are only 13 doctors of 9th and 10th grades among the required 34 doctors in the hospital.

The Ministry of Health had recently sent 11 doctors to the hospital while the remaining doctors have been recruited on contract basis and their contract term is of maximum two years.

At least two account officers’ posts are lying vacant in the hospital besides pharmacists and housekeepers. The post of matron, junior matron and three nurses also have been lying vacant for long.

Many doctors and health staffers, who are transferred from other health facilities, do not stay in the hospital due to lack of attractive incentives and other facilities.

Similarly, nurses and other women staffers do not feel secure staying outside the hospital as hostels managed for them is being used by other non-nursing women. “Many of the women seem reluctant to stay and serve at the hospital owing to lack of safety,” said hospital sources.

A well-equipped residential building for nurses had been managed behind Arogya Building and Parturition Department. However, the building is occupied by non-nurses.

Though a hospital development committee was formed under the chairmanship of Sudeep Lama to evacuate the building, it has not been successful.

The hospital, which was once popular for its dialysis service, has seen its fame waning due to manpower crunch.

Though there are five dialysis machines granted by the state and other donor agencies, the health facility can provide service to only one patient on a daily basis.

A single person can’t handle all the machines. “If we ask freshers to use the machines, they can’t yield quality service,” said Dr Manoj Gupta of the hospital.

The hospital provides Intensive Care Unit, CT-scan, audiogram and physiotherapy, among other services. But these services have been adversely affected due to manpower crunch.

Ramesh Chaudhary, spokesperson of the hospital, said they were facing a hard time due to the lack of doctors, matrons, junior matrons and nurses for long.

“Though we wrote to the Ministry of Health about the problem, no substantial remedy has been given yet,” said Chaudhary.

Source: thehimalayantimes.com/