Submit your Article

Several U.S. allies rebuffed Donald Trump's call on Monday to ​send warships to escort tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, drawing criticism from the U.S. president, who accused Western partners of ingratitude after decades of support, Reuters reported. 

The U.S.-Israeli war on Iran is in its third week with no end in ‌sight. The critical Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas flow, remains largely closed off, raising energy prices and fears of inflation.

The conflict has already imposed economic costs on U.S. allies, who were not consulted before the airstrikes on Iran and who have endured months of harsh criticism and bellicose threats from Trump since he returned to office, according to Reuters. 

US President Donald Trump said on Monday that he is planning to delay a high stakes visit to China later in March by about a month because of the Iran war, BBC reported. 

"We've requested that we delay it a month or so," he told reporters at the White House, adding that it was important that he remained available to oversee the war.

The meeting between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping is currently set to take place between 31 March to 2 April, following their last face to face talks in October last year, according to BBC. 

Dozens of people are feared dead or injured at a drug treatment centre in Kabul, Afghanistan after an air strike that the Taliban government blamed on Pakistan, BBC reported. 

The hospital was hit on Monday evening, killing some people and injuring others, the government's spokesman said on X.

Pakistan's information ministry denied targeting the centre, saying it had struck military installations and what it called "terrorist support infrastructure" in Kabul and the eastern Afghan province of Nangahar, according to BBC. 

The Department of Commerce, Supplies, and Consumer Protection has confiscated 6,377 cooking gas cylinders that were improperly stored in the Harisiddhi-based warehouse of Shriram Gas Industry in Lalitpur. 

The Department’s monitoring team seized the huge quantity of filled gas cylinders, each with 14.2-kilogram gas, to curb the artificial shortage of cooking gas.

The industry has been fined Rs 300,000 by the Department. 

It has been instructed that arrangements be made for the sale and distribution of these gas cylinders under the coordination and supervision of the Nepal Oil Corporation. 

The Department has urged for facilitation of the distribution system to avoid creating artificial shortages that could impact supply.

The Corporation has indicated that concerns over potential disruptions in gas supply due to tensions in West Asia have led consumers to hoard more gas, resulting in complications in the supply chain. 

The Election Commission (EC) has disclosed a list of 110 Members of Parliament (MP) who have been elected in accordance with the law under the proportional representation electoral system, following the designated 'cluster'. 

The published list reveals that 57 MPs were elected from the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) under this system. 

Additionally, 20 MPs were elected from the Nepali Congress (NC), 16 from the  CPN-UML,  nine from the Nepali Communist Party (NCP), and four each from the Shram Sanskriti Party and the  Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP). 

It was shared in a statement issued today by Krishna Bahadur Raut, Commission's Secretary and Returning Officer for Proportional Representation system. 

In the election held on March 5, a total of 11,280,617 votes were cast for proportional representation with 10,835,025 deemed valid.

Health insurance services are to be provided based on the national identity card from now onward. 

A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between Dr Krishna Prasad Paudel, Executive Director of the Health Insurance Board, and Namraj Ghimire, Director General of the Department of National ID and Civil Registration, on providing health insurance services based on the national identity card. 

Bikesha Malla, Information Officer at the Board, said citizens' identities will be digitally verified through the national identity card number, making the health insurance system safer, faster, and more reliable. 

"As per the current agreement, we will integrate the data of the Board and the Department," he said, adding "We will provide health insurance services based on the national identity card."

He also mentioned that registration and renewal based on the national identity card will begin from April 8. 

Currently, 10.2 million insured individuals are affiliated with the Health Insurance Board. 

The Federation of Nepalese National Transport Entrepreneurs (FNTTE), an umbrella organization of transport entrepreneurs across the country, has demanded adjustment in public transport fares following a significant rise in petroleum prices.

In a press statement issued today, the federation said its attention was drawn to the recent increase in the prices of petroleum products by the Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC), which came into effect last night.

The sudden and significant rise of petroleum prices without considering the concerns of transport entrepreneurs and passengers has directly affected the transport sector, said Federation General Secretary Deknath Gautam in the statement. 

The federation has also called for controlling internal leakage and consumption of petroleum products within the NOC and implementing a scientific system in the supply chain to ensure smooth distribution.

It said that public vehicles run on diesel and petrol, and any increase in petrol prices directly affects the operation of public transport providers. 

The NOC increased the price of diesel by Rs 10 per liter and petrol by Rs 15 per liter starting Sunday night.

Deputy Commanding General of the US Army Pacific (USARPAC) Command, Lieutenant General Joel Vowell, paid a courtesy call on Chief of Army Staff, Ashok Raj Sigdel, today.

During the meeting held at Army Headquarters, Bhadrakali, they discussed the matters of bilateral welfare. 

A team led by Vowell arrived in Nepal on Sunday as part of a regular visit. 

The delegation would also visit Panchkhal-based Birendra Peace Operations Training Centre (BPOTC) of the Nepali Army.

The team will leave for Thailand on Tuesday.

It is believed that this visit would further strengthen Nepal-US relations and contribute to humanitarian support, disaster management and international peacekeeping efforts.