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The Karnali provincial government has been providing interest subsidies to support local farmers, a program that has benefitted more than 800 individuals in the fiscal year 2024/25.

According to Parshuram Rawat, Secretary at the Ministry of Land Management, Agriculture and Cooperatives, 535 agricultural entrepreneurs and 350 farmers affiliated with 10 cooperatives received the subsidies through six banks. Rawat added that banks and cooperatives in Karnali have mobilized around Rs 1.44bn in agricultural investment.

As part of this progress, Karnali now exports 365 tons of dried ginger and turmeric to Germany annually. Currently, 2,000 farmers in the province are involved in organic certification programs.

Last year, the ministry implemented 747 small irrigation schemes, extending irrigation to an additional 2,142 hectares of land. Secretary Rawat stated that irrigation has now been expanded to cover 900 more hectares. These efforts have benefitted 16,200 households and generated 125,000 employment days.

Through its Agriculture and Business Promotion Program, the ministry planted 20,100 orange, 15,400 lemon, 5,000 walnut, and 1,000 apple saplings, benefitting 2,800 households. As a result, cultivation areas have expanded by 70 hectares for oranges, 24 hectares for lemons, 40 hectares for walnuts, and five hectares for apples.

The ministry has also distributed seeds—16 quintals of improved rice, 35 quintals of corn, 60 quintals of wheat, and 245 quintals of ginger and turmeric. Additionally, 8,000 mellifera and 436 serena bee hives, along with beekeeping equipment, have been provided to farmers.

In support of livestock development, over 50 sheep farmers received incentive grants for veterinary treatment. However, infrastructure for the planned liquid nitrogen production plant is still under development, with machinery yet to be delivered. Under the Natural Disaster Relief Distribution Program, the ministry has provided Rs 8.2m to 1,624 farmers for hailstorm-related damage to 300 hectares of crops.

To enhance soil quality, 15,204 soil samples were tested at the local level, followed by technical consultations for farmers. “To maintain seed quality, we inspected 89 hectares of seed farms and certified 31.51 tons of foundation-level seeds,” said Secretary Rawat.

In the past year, 50,018 animals were artificially inseminated across the province. Moreover, 2,507 farmers have been encouraged to pursue dairy farming, and 741 farmers have been supported under the small livestock program.

Of the Rs 1.86bn allocated to the ministry, Rs 1.29bn—or 69.25 percent—was utilized, marking a one percent increase compared to the previous fiscal year. In 2024/25, the ministry executed Rs 949m out of Rs 1.37bn in current expenditure, and Rs 343m out of Rs 495m in capital expenditure. The Agricultural Development Office in Kalikot had the highest budget implementation rate, utilizing 96.69 percent of its allocation.

Minister Binod Kumar Shah acknowledged the ministry’s progress despite the mismatch between sectoral needs and available resources. However, he noted that a lack of funding has prevented the ministry from undertaking research-based initiatives.

Chief Minister Yamalal Kandel emphasized the importance of meaningful implementation. “Spending the budget is not the real achievement. We must evaluate the social impact of our investments,” he said. Kandel added that while many returnees from abroad are entering agriculture, those trained by the ministry and its affiliated offices should be leading the way in transforming Karnali’s agricultural sector.

The price of gold has dropped by Rs 500 per tola in the domestic market on Friday.

According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association, the yellow metal is being traded at Rs 193, 100 per tola today. It was traded at Rs 193, 600 per tola on Thursday.

Similarly, the silver is being traded at Rs 2, 235 per tola today.

As the global telecommunications industry accelerates toward 6G and 5G becomes standard in many countries, Nepal is witnessing an unexpected surge in 2G network users, especially in rural areas.

According to data released by the Nepal Telecommunications Authority (NTA), the telecom sector regulator, the number of 2G subscribers in the country more than doubled in the fiscal year 2024/25. Within the period, 2G users increased from 1.46m in mid-July 2024 to over 3.15m in mid-July this year—a jump of more than 1.7m users in just one year.

This rise stands in stark contrast to global trends and highlights the persistent digital divide within the country. While urban populations have largely moved on to faster networks like 4G, rural areas continue to depend heavily on basic 2G connectivity. This is not due to a lack of awareness about advanced technology, but rather to infrastructural limitations and the challenging geography of Nepal’s remote regions, say officials of NTA. 

In many rural areas, newer-generation networks are either unavailable or unreliable. This leaves local people with little choice but to rely on the aging 2G network.

Even as 2G sees renewed growth, Nepal Telecom, the state-owned telecom operator, announced plans to phase out its 2G services on the 1800 MHz band within this fiscal year to repurpose the spectrum for more advanced technologies and push for wider adoption of 4G and 5G.

Private player Ncell has also announced plans to discontinue 2G services in 2027. It plans to shut down 3G this year.

Progress on 5G, however, has been slow. Although NTA permitted Nepal Telcom to start 5G testing five years ago, the state-owned telco has not been able to roll out the service. Officials of Nepal Telecom, however, say that 5G testing will begin later this year with initial launches planned in Kathmandu and other major cities.    

Ncell, another major GSM operator, has temporarily put its 5G rollout plans on hold. CEO Jabbor Kayumov recently indicated that launching 5G is challenging under current conditions, pointing to a steady decline in telecom revenues over the past five years.

The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) plunged by 38. 40 points to close at 2, 915. 73 points on Thursday.

Similarly, the sensitive index dropped by 7. 68 points to close at 500. 16 points.

A total of 36,871,244-unit shares of 318 companies were traded for Rs 15. 98 billion.

Meanwhile, Trade Tower Limited (TTL) and Nepal Finance Ltd. (NFS) were the top gainers today with their price surging by 9. 99 percent. Likewise, Bhugol Energy Development Company Limited (BEDC) was the top loser as its price fell by 7. 10 percent.

At the end of the day, the total market capitalization stood at Rs 1. 65 trillion.