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Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has directed the Ministry of Health and Population to develop an action plan based on the submissions from the Task Force on Health Insurance Reform.

After a briefing on the report and recommendations by the Task Force at the Prime Minister's official residence in Baluwatar today, the Prime Minister stressed that no one should be deprived of healthcare services due to lack of money during illness.

He also highlighted the importance of working towards building a disease-free society.

Stating the Task Force’s recommendations on the health insurance programme as objective, the Prime Minister directed the Ministry to present an action plan for reform within a week.

Minister for Health and Population, Pradip Paudel, Task Force coordinator Dr Shambhu Acharya, members Dr Bhagawan Koirala, Dr Raghuram Kafle, and member secretary Dr Saroj Sharma briefed the Prime Minister on the need for policy, legal, and structural changes in the health insurance program.

Currently, the payment of around Rs 11 billion is awaited under the programme. Of the total population, 27 per cent is enrolled and 48 percent of them are receiving services.

The Task Force recommended that the government make participation in the programme mandatory for all citizens, ensuring free services for those living below the absolute poverty line.

More, the Task Force suggested integrating basic health services with other social security programmes.

The Task Force submitted its report to the Ministry on December 29, 2024.

The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) gained 12. 58 points to close at 2, 601. 21 points on Sunday.

Similarly, the sensitive index surged by 2. 41 points to close at 439. 04 points.

A total of 12,982,619-unit shares of 325 companies were traded for Rs 6. 25 billion.

Meanwhile, Bottlers Nepal (Balaju) Limited (BNL) was the top gainer today, with its price surging by 10. 00 percent. Likewise, Super Madi Hydropower Limited (SMHL) was the top loser as its price fell by 10.00 percent.

At the end of the day, total market capitalization stood at Rs 4. 31 trillion.

Art gives your home a personal touch. It makes any space come alive. A home without art is pretty soulless. But how do you decide where to put up a painting or what kind of art to bring into your house? It can be pretty confusing. You don’t want something run-of-the-mill but you also don’t want to invest a lot in something you might still be unsure about. So what do you do? You can actually get inexpensive pieces of art if you get a little creative. Here are six tips that can help. 

Commission a friend to make something

Have a friend who is good with a paintbrush or someone who likes to paint? Ask her to make something for you. If you can, tell her what you want. You could pay her to make a special piece for you. That way, both of you benefit from it. You will have something personal and she will have done something with her skills. Alternatively, you can also get a friend or an artist to help you make something by yourself. 

Get free prints off the internet 

This has to be done with caution and you have to be willing to browse through the hundreds, if not thousands, of free photos online. Decide on a theme—it could be rain, sunshine, water or anything you want. Choose three photos to fit the theme, get them printed on A4 size paper, frame them, and then hang them together. Don’t choose the first thing you see. Chances are many have already picked those. Dig around a little. 

Black and white photographs

Go through your grandparent’s or parent’s photo albums and pick out some black and white photographs to display on your walls. These could be photos of your grandparents, your parent’s wedding, or those of the extended family. It’s a neat little way to give your home an artistic touch while displaying your history as well. Buy inexpensive frames, sand them a little to give them a rustic touch, and get decorating. 

Frame fabric

Fabrics with beautiful patterns, motifs, and embroidery make stunning displays especially when framed and hung as a focal piece in a room. Do you have a beloved scarf or a sari that your mother used to wear that you really loved? Cutting a sizable piece from one of these and mounting it on a wooden frame works really well. The good thing about this is that it’s an inexpensive idea and you can easily change things up when you are bored with the decor. 

Hang memorabilia

Pretty greeting cards, handwritten notes, pressed flowers, ticket stubs, and anything else that you might have saved over the years because they remind you of happy times works for this idea. Someone we know framed their daughter’s baby clothes and it made for an eye-catching display. You could create a gallery wall of sorts with the things you want to display. Just be creative with how you choose to frame them or put them up on the wall. Postcards from your travels could also be a nice thing to display. It will remind you of the past while inspiring you to travel more and create new memories.

The written word

You might have a favorite poem, a song, or a recipe that has been passed down through generations. Type it out, choose a fun font, get creative with the margins and designs of the layout, print and frame it and voila, you have just made a neat piece that is uniquely you. You can also print quotes you resonate with. Try not to stick to cliches though. The same goes for some good advice you might have received that you want to be reminded of time and again. Print the blurb of your favorite book and hang that.

Annapurna Media Network Chairman and Captain Rameshwar Thapa has successfully completed a Tandem Skydiving Jump from an altitude of 13000 feet.

With this, he displayed exceptional courage and adventure spirit.

Tandem Skydive Jump is a skydiving experience where two people jump out of an airplane together, strapped to one another during the entire descent.

The census of water birds has started from the Rapti River in Kusum of Rapti Sonari Rural Municipality-1.

Birendra Kandel, Chief Conservation Officer of Banke National Park, shared that the census has been started from the Rapti River in Banke. “Like every year, this year too we have started the census of water birds from the Rapti River,” he said.

During the bird census this year, various species of birds have been captured on camera on the first day itself.

Ornithologist Ram Shahi, who has reached Rapti for the bird census, said that the bird habitats have been disappearing in recent times.

He said that the bird habitats have been disappearing due to human activities in the river, wetlands and water bodies.

Likewise, Conservationist Ashish Chaudhary said that bird censuses have been conducted every winter for the past three years.

The number of water birds is found to be decreasing due to the construction work being done in the bird habitats, the indiscriminate use of pesticides, and the increasing movement of people, he said.

A team including ornithologists, conservationists, park officials, security personnel and others has been mobilized to count birds in the Rapti River since Saturday.

The team will visit Banke National Park, Rapti River, wetlands and watershed to count birds during their stay in Banke, according to Banke National Park authorities.

During the count, the team will visit Kanti Lake in Nepalgunj, Sutaiya Lake in Baijnath, and Mankhola on the border of Bardiya, among other places, shared ornithologist Shahi. 

The Daai or traditional way of threshing paddy is be marked as a festival in Pokhara starting today.

The festival has been organized with the aim of introducing the traditional way of threshing the paddy to the new generation and visiting tourists.

Host, Pokhara Tourism Council, also believes that the festival would help attract tourists even during the current off-season.

The traditional Daai Festival is being held at the Fewa ground in Pokhara Municipal Corporation-23 and aims to preserve the tradition by involving tourists and local youth, said the Council Chair Taranath Pahari.

The tourists in Pokhara will be given a first-hand experience of Nepal's traditional agricultural system.

Furthermore, this festival will be established to pass down the traditional farming system from generation to generation, he said.

The Pokhara Tourism Council has been organizing a paddy transplantation festival every year in the month of Asar in the Lunar calendar to promote tourism by preserving cultivable land, keeping alive the traditional farming system, and the tradition of enjoying Asare Bhaka or songs and Dahi Chiura (yoghurt mixed with curd).

The first Daai Festival is expected to be successful in preserving the productivity of cultivable land within Pokhara Metropolis, currently on the decline due to the fragmentation of the land, said General Secretary of the Council, Jeevan Raj Sapkota. –––

KATHMANDU: Ambassador of Israel to Nepal, Shmulik Arie Bass, paid a courtesy call on Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli at his office in Singha Durbar today.

During the meeting, discussions were held on various issues of bilateral relations and mutual interest as well as on mutual cooperation including information technology, investment, tourism, employment, modernization of agriculture, education and culture, according to the Prime Minister's Private Secretariat.

National Assembly member and former Ambassador of Nepal to Israel, Dr Anjan Shakya, and high officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs were present on the occasion. 

Have you received a call from new number or a message of enticement from any new email id? Do not trust the messages received from such phone numbers and email id. Such messages can also make you homeless.

Spokesperson of the Cyber Bureau of the Nepal Police, Superintendent of Police, Deepak Raj Awasthi, urged all not to answer such calls and not to believe such emails, and respond to them.

He requested to adopt special caution towards such calls and emails as people have been cheated after believing in and responding to such emails sent from unknown persons.

SP Awasthi drew serious attention towards the complaints received at Nepal Police Headquarters, Cyber Bureau, about the warning emails sent to various individuals using the name and post of high-ranking officials of the Nepal Police and Cyber Bureau and other offices related to Nepal Police.

Necessary investigation regarding such fake emails is underway, he added.

Similarly, the Cyber Bureau requested all to inform the Bureau by making call at phone numbers mentioned in the authorized website of the Bureau--cyberbureau.nepalpolice.gov.np and writing emails if any suspicious message is received. Issuing a notice, the Cyber Bureau also urged all to be aware about suspicious activities and inform nearby police station.