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Hitendra Dev Shakya has been appointed as the Managing Director of Nepal Electricity Authority.

A Cabinet meeting held Monday decided to appoint Shakya to the top post of NEA.

Shakya was appointed as the Managing Director of the power utility on the recommendation of the Energy Ministry.

The meeting held this evening had decided to remove Kulman Ghising from the post of Managing Director of NEA.

Ghising's four-year tenure is expiring on August 9.

Nepal Electricity Authority Managing Director Kulman Ghising has been removed from his post on Monday.

A Cabinet meeting held this evening decided to remove Ghising from the top post of NEA, a minister said.

Ghising was appointed as the Managing Director of the electricity authority on August 11, 2021. He was appointed as the Managing Director to the power utility for the second term.

His four-year tenure is expiring on August 9.

There has been a tug-of-war between the government and Ghising over the issue of cutting off power supply of industries.

Minister for Water Supply Pradeep Yadav has said that women's leadership in drinking water and sanitation users' organizations is still challenging.

Speaking at an interaction on 'Women's Leadership in Drinking Water Users' Organizations: Status, Opportunities and Challenges' organized by the Federation of Drinking Water and Sanitation Users Nepal (FEDWASUN), Nepal here today, he said the role of women in the field of drinking water, sanitation and hygiene was important.

"Drinking water and sanitation are not only basic needs but also related to the health, prosperity and development of the society as a whole. The role of women in this field is even more important. Women often have the primary responsibility of managing water in the household, practising sanitation and maintaining health security,” he said.

Stating that women are capable in every field, Minister Yadav said that they can do any kind of work if given the opportunity.

He said: "Less number of women is seen in leadership roles in consumer organizations. Moreover, women's effective participation from policy making to implementation levels is still challenging.”

The Water Supply Minister also said that the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the field of drinking water and sanitation could not be achieved without women empowerment.

He expressed his commitment to strictly implement the legal provisions to ensure the participation of women in consumer organizations.

Minister Yadav said that the legal provisions to ensure mandatory representation of women in organizations related to drinking water and sanitation would be implemented and special quotas, capacity building programmes and financial assistance would be provided to promote women's leadership.

Training, skill development and empowerment programs would be conducted to enhance the leadership role of women, he added.

Stating that community participation was necessary for sustainable management of water resources, Minister Yadav urged the consumers to stop misuse of water, conserve sources and adopt proper sanitation practices.

He appreciated the role played by the FEDWASUN in bringing women into leadership roles and said that the government has given high priority to the initiative of the Federation.

All the three stations of the Makawanpur-based Kulekhani Hydropower Project have come into cooperation at their full capacity. 

As the Project said, they were operated at the full capacity with the commencement of the dry season.  The Khulekhani I Station now generates 60 megawatts of electricity followed by 32 and 14 by the second and third respectively, the Kulekhani I Station Chief Taradatta Bhatta said. The Project is a run-off –river type. 

Currently, power generation occurs for 14 to 16 hours daily, but the project is capable of producing power 24 hours a day, depending on demand.

During the first eight months of the current fiscal year (July 16, 2024 – March 13, 2025), Kulekhani I has generated 81,209 megawatt-hours of electricity, compared to just 34,388 megawatt-hours during the same period last year.

President Ram Chandra Paudel has stated that the federal democratic republic is the system Nepali citizens gained through great sacrifices, ensuring that they would no longer remain ruled but become sovereign citizens. This system, he emphasized, provides citizens the right to hold those in power accountable.

In his address at the inauguration ceremony of a newly constructed administrative building in Nechasalyan Rural Municipality, Solukhumbu, the President remarked, "Each citizen is sovereign in the federal democratic republic."

He stressed that it is the collective responsibility of the government and political parties to make citizens feel that this system guarantees their future and destiny. 

"No absolutism or anarchy is acceptable for citizens. History bears witness to the fact that Nepali citizens have abhorred autocracy and anarchy, whether during the 104-year-old Rana regime, the 30-year-long Panchayat system, or under the monarchy. The federal democratic republic was not an easy gain, but the result of significant struggles, dedication, and sacrifices by the citizens," he said.

Recalling his experiences trekking through the eastern hills during his tenure as the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the President became emotional as he remembered his visit to a cave at Timburbote, weighed down by rain. Timburbote is the site where, in 2041 BS, the Panchayat government killed more than a dozen democratic fighters.

The President also underscored the importance of preventing the plight of the country's youth and highlighted the need for citizen-centered policies, programs, and budgets to ensure access to quality education, better healthcare, industrial development, job opportunities in villages, and income-generating activities.

Stating that the three-tier government is functioning to implement federalism, he argued this system has decentralized power from Singha Durbar to the villages. He urged local governments to be more proactive.

President Paudel further emphasized that the expansion of agriculture, water resources, tourism, infrastructure, and industry is the foundation of the country's development. He expressed hope that the small and large hydropower projects under construction in the Solu and Dudhkoshi rivers in the region will contribute to the nation’s economic development.

The Head of State also acknowledged the significant contribution of the Sagarmatha region to tourism development through expeditions and adventurous activities. He added that he is delighted to see that Mount Everest is now more accessible by road connectivity from the federal capital and the Madhesh. The President also recalled his role in initiating the construction of the Upper Sagarmatha Route.

The President highlighted the increased road connectivity from Dunai in Dolpa to eastern Nepal, which has liberated people from the need to trek for days while carrying daily essentials like salt. "Such transformations, made possible by democracy, should not be forgotten," he concluded.

South Korea’s Constitutional Court on Monday overturned the impeachment of Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, reinstating the nation’s No. 2 official as acting leader, while not yet ruling on the separate impeachment of President Yoon Suk Yeol.

Many observers said Monday’s ruling doesn’t signal much on the upcoming verdict on Yoon, as Han wasn’t a key figure in Yoon’s martial law imposition. But it could still embolden Yoon’s staunch supporters and ramp up their political offensive on the opposition, Associated Press reported.

Han became acting president after Yoon, a conservative, was impeached by the liberal opposition-controlled National Assembly over his Dec. 3 imposition of martial law that triggered a massive political crisis. But Han was impeached by the assembly as well in late December following political strife with opposition lawmakers.

The main rival to Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been formally arrested and charged with corruption, BBC reported.

Ekrem Imamoglu, the mayor of Istanbul, wasdue to be selected as the Republican People's Party's (CHP) 2028 presidential nominee in a vote on Sunday. 

He has denied the allegations and said they are politically motivated. "I will never bow," he wrote on X before he was remanded in custody.

His detention sparked some of Turkey's largest protests in more than a decade. Erdogan has condemned the demonstrations and accused the CHP of trying to "disturb the peace and polarise our people".

The weather today will remain partly cloudy to clear across the country today. This is due to the partial influence of westerly winds and local winds, says the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology.

This afternoon, the weather will be partly cloudy in the hilly areas of Koshi, Bagmati and Gandaki provinces and partly cloudy to clear in the rest of the country. There is a possibility of light rain with thunder and lightning in one or two places in the hilly areas and light snowfall in one or two places in the high hilly and mountainous areas of Koshi Province. 

Tonight, the weather will be partly cloudy to clear across the country.

In the next 24 hours, there is a possibility of light rain with thunder and lightning in one or two places in the hilly areas as well as light snowfall in one or two places in the high hilly and mountainous areas of Koshi Province.