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The Gandaki Province government has begun pre-budget discussions for the upcoming fiscal year, 2083/84. 

The principles and priorities of the budget are dwelt on during the deliberations. 

The provincial government is obliged to announce the annual budget on Ashar 1 as per Nepali calendar.

Minister for Economic Affairs Jit Bahadur Sherchan said that the principles and priorities of the budget and programs would be presented in the Province Assembly before introducing the annual budget. 

"Pre-budget discussions are going on now. The government is planning to incorporate suggestions from local levels on the budget," he said.

According to him, homework is on for introducing mega projects to contribute to the province's journey to prosperity. However, enforceability of budget would be taken into account while formulating it, he shared.

Chief of Budget Division at the Ministry Dilli Ram Rijal said that the pre-budget discussions were organized in all districts of the province except Kaski. 

"Discussions are also being held with the local levels, private sector and other stakeholders on budget formulation," he said. Thematic ministries are coordinated in this bid. 

It has been informed that the budget size this year would see slight decline. 

Last year, the Gandaki Province government had announced a budget of Rs 31.98 billion. 

As the province government has not been able to increase internal resources, it is facing stress during budget formulation.

The revenue collection has not met the target either.

In the wake of rising incidents of animal injuries, the Parsa National Park has set up a ‘Wildlife Rescue Team’ so that the injured animals could be rescued on time.

With this squad in place, the Parsa National Park's compulsion of seeking help from the neighbouring Chitwan National Park has ended. The emergency team is standby since mid April.

Information Officer at the Parsa National Park, Santosh Kumar Bhagat, said that it had been easy to prevent further risk and treat the injured animals from the park after the formation of the rescue team. 

The team attending the rescue includes veterinarians, technicians and drivers. In case of need, we reach Parsa, Rautahat and Makawanpur and provide essential service, he added. 

Till mid April of the current fiscal year, the authority provided emergency safety to a tiger, six spotted deer and 100 cobras.

The park treated 25 king cobras, 15 pythons, one pangolin and three other animals and released to their natural habitats.

A Parliament meeting has been scheduled for 1 pm today.

The meeting will hold deliberation on the government policies and programs. 

The lawmakers representing the respective parties would put forth their views.

President Ram Chandra Paudel had presented the government's policies and programs in the joint meeting of the federalParliament yesterday. 

The budget for the fiscal year, 2083/84 will be announced in this session of the Parliament.

Few places in hilly regions of Koshi, Bagmati and Gandaki Provinces are predicted to have light to moderate rainfall later today.

One to two places in the Tarai region are also likely to have moderate rainfall coupled with lightning and thunder. 

The Weather Forecasting Division said that it would be generally cloudy in Koshi Province and in the hilly and mountainous belts across the country.

Partly cloudy weather is predicted in southern plains. 

Currently, the country is witnessing the impact of westerly wind and local wind. There is also a partial effect of the low pressure belt which is near the eastern region of Nepal. 

The Beni-Jomsom-Korala road, which links Mustang to the national highway, has been obstructed since this morning due to a landslide at Mahabhir of Annapurna Rural Municipality-7 in Myagdi district.

With this, vehicles have stranded on the 76-km-long Beni-Jomsom section, one of the busiest stretches in the region. 

Vehicles heading to Mustang from Beni and from Jomsom stopped midway, creating sheer inconvenience, especially to the tourists and pilgrims visiting Mustang and the Muktinath Temple.

Information Officer at the District Police Office Sagar Timilsina, however, said that efforts were afoot to clear the debris by using heavy equipment of the Road Department.

Mahabhir has a steep topography, and poses risks frequently on Beni-Jomsom road with recurring land and rock falls. Once it is rainy, the debris is deposited on the road, disrupting vehicular movement. 

The U.S. government on Monday announced sanctions against three people and ​nine companies, including four based in Hong Kong and four in the United Arab Emirates, for aiding Iran's shipment of oil to China.The ninth company is based in Oman, Reuters reported. 

The U.S. Treasury move follows sanctions announced on Friday on individuals and companies aiding Iranian purchases of weapons and components used to make drones and ballistic missiles.

The twenty-seven foreign ministers of the European Union approved new sanctions on Monday on Israeli settlers over rising violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, BBC reported.

There has been a surge in attacks by settlers since the start of the Gaza war in October 2023, the UN has recorded.

Settlements - illegal under international law - are built on Israeli-occupied land in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, areas Palestinians claim for a future state.

The last passengers have left the hantavirus-hit cruise ship, as authorities confirmed three new positive cases linked to the deadly outbreak, BBC reported. 

The MV Hondius departed Tenerife for the Netherlands on Monday after its final six passengers - four Australians, one Briton and one New Zealander - and some crew members disembarked.

Three passengers have died after travelling on the ship, two of whom were confirmed to have had the virus.