Nepal
Bangladesh participates in Nepal Trade Fair
A five-day trade fair, organized by Nepal Chamber of Commerce, was inaugurated at the Nepalese capital on Thursday.
Prime Minister of Nepal Sher Bahadur Deuba inaugurated the event at the national exhibition hall of Kathmandu, according to Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Friday.
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Around 50 Bangladeshi traders - mostly women entrepreneurs - representing various sectors - such as garments, ceramics, handicrafts,
jute and leather products are participating in the fair.
Bangladesh has been designated as the country partner in this event, which is the first-ever international fair being organized in Nepal after the Covid pandemic, said the ministry.
Bangladesh's participation is coordinated by the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) and Bangladesh Embassy in Nepal in association with
the SME Foundation of Bangladesh.
Presided over by President of Nepal Chamber of
Commerce Rajendra Malla, the inaugural ceremony was attended by Ambassador of Bangladesh to Nepal Salahuddin Noman Chowdhury as special guest.
Rescuers close to plane that crashed in Nepal with 22 aboard
Rescuers zeroed in on a possible location of a passenger plane with 22 people aboard that is feared to have crashed Sunday in cloudy weather in Nepal's mountains, officials said.
The Tara Air plane was on a 20-minute scheduled flight from the resort town of Pokhara, 200 kilometers (125 miles) west of Kathmandu, to the mountain town of Jomsom. The turboprop Twin Otter aircraft lost contact with the airport tower close to landing in an area of deep river gorges and mountaintops.
Also read: Plane with 22 people on board missing in Nepal’s mountains
An army helicopter and private choppers were taking part in the search, the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal said in a statement.
Army troops and rescue teams were headed to the possible site of the crash, believed to be around Lete, a village in Mustang district, Narayan Silwal, the army spokesman, said on Twitter.
But bad weather and nightfall caused the search to be suspended until Monday morning, Silwal said.
“Poor visibility due to bad weather is hindering the efforts. The plane has not yet been located,” he said. Rescuers were trying to reach an area where locals allegedly saw a fire, although it is still unclear what was burning, Silwal added. He said that officials can only verify the information once the troops reached the location.
Sudarshan Bartaula, spokesman for Tara Air, said that rescuers had narrowed down a possible location of the plane.
According to plane tracking data from flightradar24.com, the 43-year-old aircraft took off from Pokhara at 9:55 a.m. (04:10 GMT) and transmitted its last signal at 10:07 a.m. (04:22 GMT) at an altitude of 12,825 feet (3,900 meters).
There were six foreigners on board the plane, including four Indians and two Germans, according to a police official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to talk to the media.
The plane was carrying 19 passengers and three crew, Bartaula said.
It has been raining in the area for the past few days but flights have been operating normally. Planes on that route fly between mountains before landing in a valley.
It is a popular route with foreign hikers who trek on the mountain trails and also with Indian and Nepalese pilgrims who visit the revered Muktinath temple.
Nepal has had a spotty air safety record.
In 2016, a Tara Air Twin Otter flying the same route crashed after takeoff, killing all 23 people aboard. In 2012, an Agni Air plane also flying from Pokhara to Jomsom crashed, killing 15 people. Six people survived. In 2014, a Nepal Airlines plane flying from Pokhara to Jumla crashed, killing all 18 on board.
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In 2018, a US-Bangla passenger plane from Bangladesh crashed on landing in Kathmandu, killing 49 of the 71 people aboard.
The Twin Otter, a rugged plane originally built by Canadian aircraft manufacturer De Havilland, has been in service in Nepal for about 50 years, during which it has been involved in about 21 accidents, according to aviationnepal.com.
The plane, with its top-mounted wing and fixed landing gear, is prized for its durability and its ability to take off and land on short runways.
Production of the planes originally ended in the 1980s. Another Canadian company, Viking Air, brought the model back into production in 2010.
Bangladesh offers to export electricity to Nepal during winter and import in summer
Bangladesh has offered to export its electricity to Nepal during winter while importing it during the summer.
The proposal was placed during the bilateral meeting between the two countries at the conference room of the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources on Tuesday.
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State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid made this offer in the meeting.
He said, "We can import surplus electricity from Nepal during the summer and monsoon seasons and both of them will benefit if they take electricity from our country when their power generation decreases in the winter season."
A nine-member delegation led by Nepal’s Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Pampa Vusal took part in the meeting while Nasrul Hamid led an eight-member Bangladesh delegation, said a ministry release.
The meeting discussed issues of mutual interest. It may be mentioned that Nepal has a potential to generate 43,000 MW of electricity during the summer-monsoon season.
At the meeting, Nasrul said it is possible to increase the production of renewable energy through regional cooperation.
Referring to Bangladesh’s target to increase its renewable and clean energy’s share to 50 per cent in power generation by 2040, he said cooperation from Nepal and Bhutan can play a major role in achieving the goal.
Pampa Vusal urged Bangladesh to invest in Nepal to harness its hydropower potentials.
He also appreciated the steps taken by the Bangladesh government to develop the power sector.
Bangladesh has been importing electricity from neighbouring India while the process for import of hydropower from Nepal is in its final stage and a signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for importing hydropower from Bhutan is under process.
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Power Secretary Md. Habibur Rahman, Chairman of Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) Mahbubur Rahman and Director General of Power Cell Mohammad Hossain were present at the bilateral meeting.
Members of the Nepalese delegation include Nepal’s National Planning Commission Member Dr Surendra Lab Karna, Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Secretary of Nepal Devendra Karki.
India's envoy in Nepal named foreign secretary
India on Monday named its envoy in Nepal as the country's next foreign secretary.
Ambassador Vinay Mohan Kwatra, a career diplomat with over 32 years of experience, will succeed Harsh Vardhan Shringla who is due to retire this month-end, according to an Indian government notification.
Also read: Nepal-India cross-border railway to resume service
Kwatra joined the country's coveted Indian Foreign Service way back in 1988. Before his Nepal assignment, he served as India's ambassador to France from August 2017 to February 2020.
The 59-year-old also worked in India's diplomatic missions in the US and China, and also served in the Prime Minister's Office, touted as a prestigious posting.
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Shringla was appointed the Indian Foreign Secretary in January 2020.
Nepal-India cross-border railway to resume service
Passengers can travel again on a cross-border railway line linking Kurtha in eastern Nepal and the Indian border town of Jogbani on Sunday after a gap of eight years, a Nepal Railway Company official said Saturday.
Nepali Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, who is in India for a visit, and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi jointly inaugurated the railway service on Saturday via video link.
"Though the inauguration of the railway service took place on Saturday, passenger movement on the railway line will start from Sunday," Tul Bahadur Dangi, administrative officer with the Nepal Railway Company, told Xinhua.
"People will be able to travel on the railway in Nepal after a gap of eight years," he added.
First built as a cargo line in 1937 to carry timber from Nepal to India, the Janakpur-Jaynagar railway was a lifeline for people in Nepal's Janakpur region. It ran under poor conditions until January 2014 when the railway service was halted to develop a broad-gauge railway line on the existing narrow gauge.
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Originally 29-km long, the railway line now runs 35 km. It is the only railway network for passengers and also the first broad-gauge one in Nepal.
The Nepal Railway Company has been operating its two rail sets on the line since Feb. 13 without passengers aboard. The company has hired 26 Indians for a year to run the railway service until its Nepali staff are trained enough to operate by themselves.
"Our two rail sets can accommodate over 2,600 passengers including those who occupy seats and those who have to travel standing," Dangi said. "The improved railway service will provide the shortest route for cross-border movement for people of the border region. It will also help boost local economy along with increasing economic activities in the areas around the railway stations."
Symphony exports smartphones to Nepal
Local mobile handset maker Symphony has started exporting "Made in Bangladesh" smartphones to Nepal.
The company is also planning to expand its exports to Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Nigeria, and Sudan by this year.
The announcements were made Saturday at the Symphony factory in Ashulia on the outskirts of the capital.
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Posts and Telecommunications Minister Mostafa Jabbar attended the inauguration programme as the chief guest.
Symphony first exported 15,000 phones to Nepal on 26 October last year.
"We will send 10,000 Symphony phones to Nepal every month,'' said Jakaria Shahid, managing director of Edison Group, the parent company of Symphony.
"The manufacturing unit in Ashulia can produce 10 lakh handsets a month. Around 1,500 people work here," he added.
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In 2018, Symphony started to produce smart and feature phones at its factory, which can manufacture 10.2 million devices annually.
U-19 Asia Cup: Nabil's ton sets up big win for Cubs versus Nepal
Prantik Nawrose Nabil hit a century in the U-19 Asia Cup in the UAE as Bangladesh beat Nepal by a big margin of 154 runs on Friday.
Bangladesh won the toss and batted first in this match.
Nabil came to bat at number three and posted 127 off 112 deliveries with 11 fours and one six. Along with him, wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Fahim also did well— scoring 58.
Bangladesh ended up on 297 for four in 50 overs, with Nepal’s Gulsan Jha, Tilak Bhandari, and Mohammad Aadil Alam bagged a wicket each.
In reply, Nepal were scrambled for 143 all wickets in 42.3 overs.
Gulsan Jha was the top scorer with his 35 while Bibek Magar scored 33.
For Bangladesh, Tanzim Hasan Sakib, captain Rakibul Hasan, SM Meherob, and Naimur Rohman bagged two wickets each.
In the next two matches, Bangladesh will take on Sri Lanka and Kuwait on December 25 and 28 respectively.
Bangabandhu Volleyball: Nepal, Kyrgyzstan arrive in capital
Two foreign teams -- Nepal and Kyrgyzstan --arrived here on Monday to join the six-nation Bangabandhu Asian Central Zone Challenge Cup Volleyball Championship, beginning on Thursday.
Six participating countries -- Nepal, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Sri Lanka, the Maldives and host Bangladesh — will compete in the six-day meet in men’s and women’s sections at Shaheed Suhrawardy Indoor Stadium in Mirpur.
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All the six teams will compete in the women’s section while five teams, except Kyrgyzstan, will participate in the men’s section of the meet.
Bangladesh Men’s team finished runners-up in the championship held in Dhaka in 2018 while Bangladesh Women’s team was placed 4th in the next year’s meet.
SAFF U-19 Women’s: India beat Bhutan; Nepal crush Sri Lanka 6-0
India took a joint lead in the five-nation SAFF U-19 Women’s Championship’21 with an all-win run beating Bhutan by 3-0 goals in their 2nd match at the Bir Shrestha Shaheed Shipahi Mohammad Mostafa Kamal Stadium in Kamalapur on Wednesday evening.
In the day’s other match, Nepal crushed Sri Lanka by 6-0 goals, also in their 2nd match at the same venue in the afternoon.
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After the day’s match, India dominated the meet securing full six points from straight two matches while Bangladesh and Nepal followed the leader also with uneaten run securing four points each from two matches.
Earlier, Bangladesh played goalless draw with Nepal and they outplayed Bhutan 6-0, while India beat Sri Lanka 5-0.
In the day’s first match, Rashimi struck twice in the 5th and 85th minutes, while Sabita, Menuka Rajana and Saloni scored one each in the 6th, 43rd, 48th and 53rd minutes respectively for the Himalayan nation.
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In the next match, India will play hosts Bangladesh at 3 pm on Friday while Nepal will encounter Bhutan at 7 pm on the same day.
Nepal reports first cases of omicron variant
Nepalese authorities on Monday reported the first cases of the omicron variant in the Himalayan nation.
A Health Ministry statement said a 66-year-old foreign national who arrived by air on Nov. 19 tested positive for the variant along with another 71-year-old person who was in contact with the tourist. Both are being kept in isolation under the supervision of a medical team.
Authorities said 66 other people who had contact with the two confirmed cases tested negative.
Also read: India's Omicron cases rise to 21
The tourist had both negative PCR test report and was fully vaccinated on arrival in Nepal.
The government laboratory had confirmed the testing result of an omicron variant only on Sunday.
No other details were given.
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Nepal has been encouraging foreign tourists to visit the country to climb and hike its famed mountain peaks in an attempt to revive its adventure tourism industry.
Nepal has reported 918,084 coronavirus cases and 11,541 deaths since the pandemic began last year. Only 28.6% of the population has been fully vaccinated against COVID-19.