Sher Deuba was previously criticized by many for not lending a complete operational state to the incumbent government. The Prime Minister was previously holding the external affairs ministry since he was sworn in. The secretary of the Prime Minister informed the Presidential Office about this appointment.

The President of Nepal, Bidya Devi Bhandari, is expected to officialize the appointment this afternoon by making Narayan undertake the oath of office and secrecy.

The incumbent coalition government had earlier reached a consensus that the foreign affairs minister would be appointed immediately.

Prime Minister was keen on appointing the Minister immediately as the ministry was in a dilemma as to whom to send for the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).

Sources stated that the new Minister would represent Nepal, and he will fly to the UNGA tonight itself.

Stay Tuned to NepaliSansar for Latest Nepal Govt News Updates!

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The post Nepal Gets a New Foreign Affairs Minister appeared first on Nepali Sansar.

“President Bhandari ratified the ordinance at 1:10 pm today on the recommendation of the Council of Ministers in accordance with Article 114 (1) of the Constitution of Nepal,” said the president’s personal secretary Dr. Bhesh Raj Adhikari.

The Political Parties Act 2017 Amendment Ordinance enables political parties to split if 20% of the Central Committee members or the Parliamentary Party members agreed so.

Prior to this ordinance, the political party could only split if at least 40% of members opted for it.

Even the former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli attempted to pass similar ordinance in April 2020. However, at that time, Nepali Congress and other political parties of the ruling alliance had apposed it.

Ironically, as soon as the ordinance was issued, the Mahanta Thakur faction of the Janata Samajwadi Party (JSP) has initiated preparations for the registration of a new party.

After losing the legal battle to claim the JSP party, the Thakur’s faction was waiting for the ordinance to register a new party.

According to leader Laxman Lal Karna, Thakur faction is set to reach Election Commission today for party registration. Janata Samajwadi Party (Democratic) is the new party name and bicycle is the election symbol.

Stay Tuned to NepaliSansar for Latest Nepal Political News!

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The bench of five judges led by Chief Justice Cholendra Shumsher had concluded hearings on the petition filed by 146 lawmakers, including Deuba.

Reacting to the SC’s verdict, CPN-UML spokesperson and former foreign minister Pradeep Gyawali claimed that the move is unexpected and contrary to the Constitution.

“Wrong and unjustifiable, but will abide by it,” said Gyawali.

On Tuesday, President Bidya Devi Bhandari has appointed Deuba as the Prime Minister of Nepal, as per Article 76(5) of the Constitution of Nepal.

By the evening, the incoming PM Deuba has taken Oath of Office and Secrecy amid a special ceremony at the Office of President, Shital Niwas. President Bhandari administered the oath.

Earlier, Deuba had rejected the oath as the statement issued by President’s Office failed to mention anything about Article 76(5). Instead, the statement mentioned only the mandamus of the SC to appoint Deuba as the new PM.

Meanwhile, PM Deuba picked four ministerial candidates.

NC Chief Whip Bal Krishna Khand has been appointed as Home Minister and former finance minister Gyanendra Bahadur Karki as Law Minister. Likewise, Maoist Center party leader Janardan Sharma has been appointed as Finance Minister and Pampha Bhusal as Energy Minister.

President Bhandari also administered an oath of office and secrecy to these four ministers.

The Himalayan nation nosedived into a political crisis on December 20, 2020, after President Bhandari dissolved HoR and announced fresh elections at the recommendation of the then Prime Minister KP Oli.

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The post Deuba Becomes New PM of Nepal, PM KP Oli Ousted! appeared first on Nepali Sansar.

The ordinance strong-arms the act with the clause that whosoever attacks an on-duty healthcare professional is liable to be imprisoned for three years or may face a fine up to NPR 300,000. The perpetrator may face both the fines, as per the ordinance.

The ordinance goes on to propose the same punishments for offenses which include perpetrators picketing or vandalizing any health institution.

The ordinance sought to address the healthcare professional’s demand for the imprisonment of the perpetrators who violate the act. Various conditions have been carved into the ordinance to deny bail.

The council of ministers recommended this ordinance as people are often attacking healthcare professionals citing healthcare failures due to purported negligence. The Presidential sign-off is aimed at putting a check on these wanton acts.

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Fulpati is marked on the seventh day of the auspicious Dashain festival. In the Nepali language, ‘Ful’ means flowers and ‘pati’ means leaves and plants. So, on this occasion, Nepalis bring nine types of Fulpati into their homes.

It is believed that Fupati represents nine Goddesses, who bring wealth, health, and prosperity to the homes.

Every year, the main celebrations of the festival will be held at the Basantpur Durbar Square in Kathmandu, where Fulpati will be brought to Dashainghar from Jamal in a traditional procession with vedic rituals.

President Bhandari, Prime Minister Oli, representatives of diplomatic missions, army personnel, and other government officers will attend a special parade being held at the Army Pavilion on this occasion.

However, this year, all the celebrations and programs were being conducted following health protocols due to the pandemic.

Also Read | Famous Durga Temples To Visit During Navaratri (Dashain) Festival 2020!

Even though the Dashain festival starts on the first day of Navaratri, the day of Fatpati marks the start of the main celebrations. All the government and private offices have been closed from today to celebrate the festival.

NepaliSansar Wishes All Nepalis A Happy Fulpati Festival!

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The post Nepal Celebrates Fulpati Festival Today! appeared first on Nepali Sansar.

Celebrated in honor of Goddess Gauri, the wife of Lord Shiva, the festival attracts devotees from Province 5, Sudurpaschim Province, and Karnali Province.

According to the Nepali calendar, the festival, also called Durgaastami, falls in the month of Bhadra. It starts on Krishna Janmashtami (birth of Lord Krishna) and lasts for three days.

• On the first day of the festival (Panchami), the Nepali women collect a mixture of five seeds of crops called Biruda for worshipping Goddess Gauri.

• On the second day (Sasthi), the mixture is washed, and water is replaced amid prayers.
• On the third day (Saptami), the married women take a holy bath and offer their prayers to Gauri’s idol, made from paddy, sesamum, saun, balballu, and opamarga plants.

The women fast the whole day for the happiness and prosperity of their family members.

Besides this, the women and men celebrate the festival with deuda dance in which participants hold their hands and form a circle as they dance to traditional music.

However, the festival celebrations this year are restricted due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The Nepali Government has urged people to celebrate Gaura Parva by maintaining COVID-19 health safety protocols.

President Bidya Devi Bhandari extended her greetings on Gaura Parva to all the Nepalis and called for social distancing and celebrations at home.

“The festival would play a role in further augmenting mutual trust, goodwill, and emotional unity among the Nepalis from different caste, communities, and ethnicities with their specific cultures and festivities,” said President Bhandari.

NepaliSansar wishes all Nepalis at home and abroad on the occasion of Gaura Parva!

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Gyalpo Lhosar is the celebration of New Year that falls on Shukla Pratipada in the Nepali month of Falgun as per the lunar calendar.

The new year festival is observed for almost 2 weeks.

The main attractions include:

• Changkol, a beverage made from chhaang, is prepared on the first day
• People visit the monasteries, chant mantras and exchange gifts on the second day which is the main New Year Day
• People come together and have feasts on the third day

On this occasion, people prepare various delicacies including a special soup made from meat, wheat, rice, sweet potato, cheese, peas, green pepper, vermicelli noodles and radish.

The festival is divided into 12 years, namely Mouse, Cow, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Bird, Dog and Pig.

Yesterday was the end of the Pig Year and Mouse Year has started from today.

Meanwhile, President Bidya Devi Bhandari has extended her best wishes of happiness, prosperity and peace to Sherpas on the occasion of Gyalpo Lhosar.

The post Nepal Celebrates 2147th Gyalpo Lhosar appeared first on Nepali Sansar.

Nepal welcomes new year based on its Vedic calendar i.e. Bikram Sambat. Also celebrated as ‘Mesh Sankranti’ or ‘Baisakh Sankranti’, the Nepal New Year is marked when the Sun enters into Aries from Pisces as per the Vedic astrology.

Top government officials, diplomats and other higher officials extended their warm wishes to the citizens, while the public celebrated in their own way through exchange of greetings and sweets.

Like every year, 2076 BS also presents a list of important festivals like Dashain, Tihar, Teej, Chhath, Lhosar, Eid, among others celebrated round the year.

‘Prosperous Nepal, Happy Nepali’

In a special address to the nation, President Bidya Devi Bhandari wished peace and prosperity to all Nepalis around the world.

“I am hopeful that international communities who love Nepal will cooperate to help us realize the motto of ‘Prosperous Nepal, Happy Nepali’,” President Bidya Devi Bhandari said calling on the global Nepali community.

The President reiterated the government’s strong commitment to achieving the goal of ‘Prosperous Nepal, Happy Nepali’.

Stating that 2075 BS has been successful for the nation in formulating new laws and strengthening working institutions, she said 2076 BS will help further in achieving sustainable peace and prosperity.

In his address, Vice-president Pun also expressed a strong hope that the country is making positive strides under the ‘Prosperous Nepal: Happy Nepali’ campaign.

Stating that 2075 BS formed a strong foundation for development, Pun said the country will see a further economic and social transformation in 2076 BS.

“We all should be faithful and work for the greater good of the country and national unity by introspecting our weakness of the past,” said the former Nepali King Gyanendra Shah wishing the public on New Year 2076 BS.

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli

Marking the occasion, Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli launched a special program to ensure social security for all senior Nepali citizens through health and insurance coverage.

“This government is sincere for the well-being of the senior citizens. I assure that the government would increase the social security allowances to senior citizens through the upcoming fiscal year budget,” said Oli, speaking at the program held to launch a national campaign for health insurance cover and opening of bank accounts for all Nepalis.

Stating that the government is committed to health insurance to all senior citizens, Oli added, “in the next couple of years, entire Nepal will be completely healthy. We are working towards this end.”

As part of the event, Oli distributed health insurance cards to some senior citizens.

Nepal New Year At a Glance

New Year is a public holiday in Nepal and holds high religious significance.

The country has 60 different ethnic groups and celebrates 9 different New Year days. But the Bikram Sambat New Year is officially considered as the ‘National New Year’ as a symbol of unity among the different linguistic, cultural and historically diverse communities of the country.

On the New Year Day, public visit temples to observe special prayers and make special offerings to the god.

Special processions are usually held across Kathmandu and other major cities with decorated arches and banners, public dressed in traditional clothing and some playing drums and cultural musical instruments.

A special program at Bhaktapur stands as the highlight of New Year Celebrations, where the chariot of Lord Bhairab is pulled by dozens of public as a tug of war among the pulling sides. Similar events can be seen in Timi or Bode.

Nepal New Year 2076 BS Celebrations

Arrival of the new year brought a joyful environment across the nation with a wide variety of programs held across the nation and hundreds flocking to tourism destinations to celebrate the holiday time.

Besides, there were also notable rush in business and sales across the country.

Here are some highlights of Nepali New Year 2076 Day:

Hundreds Visit Chitwan

Chitwan witnessed the delight of the Nepal 2076 New Year celebrations with hundreds of public, from different parts of the nation, arriving at the tourism destination.

With the New Year falling on the weekend, Chitwan’s special attraction i.e. elephant rides took the center stage for hundreds of tourists.

April 13, 2019 alone saw more than 500 elephant ride bookings.

“Normally, we get around 150 people a day but the number surges drastically during Dashain and Tihar as well as the New Year,” says Ruman Chaudhary, a staff of United Elephant Cooperatives.

Besides elephant rides, many took their short trips to the Chitwan National Park, nearby community forest, boat rides alongside the Rapti River and jeep ride around the conservation area.

“Both the weekend and New Year occurred at same time which also contributed to the surge in number of tourists,” said Ram Mani Khanal, General Secretary of the association.

Hotels around the area were fully booked and due to sudden rise in tourists, “some hotel owners had to turn back guests, citing the lack of rooms,” said Suman Ghimire, president of Regional Hotel Association, Sauraha.

Rush in Stock Market

The arrival of 2076 BS brought a new rush in the country’s stock market, pushing the Nepal Stock Exchange (NSE) 18.82 points further.

With the reported rise in investor buying, NSE closed at 1,184.02 points last week. Investor confidence cited the possibility of further market expansion in Q4 of the current fiscal year.

The rise also reflected in average daily turnover hitting the NPR 598.58 million mark from previous’ NPR 417.92 million.

“Most of the investors believe that there will be an ease in liquidity with the banks as the government offices typically speed up public spending with the arriving fiscal year end. Similarly, the investors might have been lured by the possibility that listed companies will announce fresh dividend at the start of the new fiscal year,” says a local stock broker.

A Grand Way in Colorado

The local Nepali community of Boulder City (northern Colorado) celebrated Nepali New Year in their unique way.

Boulder has been observing the Nepal New Year day as a ‘holiday’ or ‘Nepal Day’ every year since 2004.

On the arrival day of 2076 BS, Nepalis in the city organized a parade through downtown Boulder.

“We’re welcoming the whole year,” said Binaya Dhakal, General Secretary of the Rocky Mountain Friends of Nepal, the event sponsor.

Marking the day, the local Nepali community gathered at bandshell in Central Park in different attires to celebrate the joy.

“We like to remember our culture and teach our kids our culture,” said Dol Bhattarai, a resident of Arvada.

We want to show our pride to be Nepali. We’re all connected. It’s peace and love,” says another Nepali Sarita Shrestha, who left the country in 1988 for education in Boulder.

“It was great to experience the culture in Nepal, and the people are amazing. I’m just happy to be here to support the people here in the Colorado community,” says another participant part of celebrations.

The history of Nepali settlers in Colorado dates back to 1970s, the year that marked the arrival of Nepali immigrants to the region. Adding to that, the US Government called for resettlement of Nepali-speaking Bhutanese from refugee camps starting 2008.

The US 2010 Census recorded around 2,751 Nepali immigrants in Colorado.

List not exhaustive, the Nepal New Year 2076 BS has seen a wide range of celebrations all across locally and globally.

Nepali Sansar Wishes You the Prosperous New Year 2076 BS!

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The meeting was represented by Nepali Foreign Minister Pradeep Gyawali and Japan Foreign Minister Kano

Listed below are some of the key discussions held between Nepal and Japan:

• Under the Nepal-Japan air service agreement, both countries have decided to review and re-establish direct air service between Nepal and Japan. After this, Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) will be able to send flights to Osaka and Narita airports in Japan

The national airlines carrier has decided to resume its operation in Japan by the end of February 2019, after nearly a decade

• The two sides also agreed to construct the secretariat-level mechanism to lay emphasis on Nepal’s economic development with Japan’s contribution in areas of agriculture, energy, infrastructure, human resource development, and tourism
• Facilitating the entry of Nepali workers employment in Japan, both sides agreed to negotiate further on the subject
• At the delegation level, Nepal has sought Japan’s aid to complete the housing project and build an earthquake museum among other reconstruction projects
• The Nepali side has asked Japan for assistance in the construction of its East-West Railway and establishing a Public Service Broadcasting setup

During Kano’s Nepal visit, he will also be meeting President Bidya Devi Bhandari and Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli.

Japan Foreign Minister Meets Nepal Prime Minister

As part of the two-day visit, Japan Foreign Minister Taro Kano met Nepal Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli at the PM’s official residence in Baluwatar on January 11, 2019.

During the meeting, PM Oli thanked Japan for its continued support in Nepal’s social and economic development fields. According to PM Oli’s Foreign Affairs Advisor Rajan Bhattarai, Oli also urged Minister Kano to extend support in Nepal’s priority development areas including modernization of agriculture, energy generation, infrastructure development, and other sectors.

In return, the Japanese Minister pledged his country’s continued support to Nepal, Bhattarai added.

Kano also stressed the need for the development of regional institutions like SAARC and BIMSTEC, expressing Japan’s readiness to support such initiatives.

Bhattarai also said that the following additional areas were discussed by both countries’ representatives:

• Expansion of Suryabinayak-Dhulikhel road stretch
• Nagdhunga-Naubise tunnel works
• Employment opportunity for Nepali workers in Japan and several other areas of mutual cooperation

Looks like Nepal and Japan have headed for a strengthened bilateral tie-up!

The post Nepal, Japan Sign New MoUs, Discuss Other Bilateral Issues appeared first on Nepali Sansar.

The President said this while addressing the 14th Anniversary of Lumbini Buddhist University in Butwal on December 09, 2018.

Bhandari called for completion of GBIA at the earliest possible so as to promote Lumbini’s tourism potential and also for overall development of Nepal tourism industry.

“I request the government to work in cooperation with the local community and the private sector for the development of tourism industry in the country,” reads the President’s statement.

She also urged for the early development of Ramagram & Devdaha of Nawalparasi and Tilaurakot of Kapilvastu as key to the tourism development under master plan for Lumbini.

Bhandari said linking of Lumbini with other tourism destinations and forming a Buddhist tourist circuit are very important for the country.

On the occasion, the President also highlighted the need for development of LBU into a world-class academic institution for spreading the message of peace and harmony.

“This university should not be limited on investigation and promotion of knowledge created during the Buddhist era. But this university also needs to bring new knowledge and information in the world,” said Bhandari.

In his address, Tourism Minister Rabindra Adhikari urged the University should expand its academic portfolio to cover subjects like Hotel Management, Travel & Tourism and Buddhist education.

“The cabinet has taken a decision of providing five percent income of Lumbini Development Fund to the university. Government will introduce major plans for the development of the university in coming days,” said Adhikari.

“Construction of the Buddhist circuit will surely contribute toward broader development of Lumbini,” said Adhikari, informing that the remaining 30 percent task under Lumbini master plan will be completed in three years.

With regard to GBIA, the Minister said that the airport will come into full operation within the coming nine months, within which the upgradation of Lumbini roads are also expected to be completed.

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