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Nepal Finance Limited (NFS) this opened a new branch at Bhurjungkhola in Machhapuchre Rural Municipality-2, Kaski. The branch became operational from April 4.

NFS, which is the first finance in Nepal to open through private sectors, was established in 1992. With its head office at Kamaladi, Kathmandu, NFS currently has branch offices in Pulchowk, Lalitpur; Banepa, Kavrepalanchowk; Murgiya, Rupandehi and Nawalpur, Gaindakot.

After the opening of the new branch in Kaski, NFS plans to expand its services with new branch offices at Dahnushadham, Janakpur and Hetuada, Makwanpur within this fiscal year. The finance company also plans to open services counter at Kantipath and Kalimati in Kathmandu within the same period.

Presiding over the eveng was NFS Chairman Prof. Hirendra Man Pradhan, along with Promoter/director Diprash Shakya, Chandra Kumar Rai, Rajan Prajapati, Laxmi Maharjan,  CEO Uddhab Raj Thapalia and Assistant CEO Bishnu Prasad Gautam. 

Radisson Hotel Kathmandu organizes “Jyoti Ko Paila”

Radisson Hotel Kathmandu recently organized “Jyoti Ko Paila”, an initiative to educate students of Shree Jyoti Secondary School, Jalapa, Khotang as a part of its corporate social responsibility with themes “Think Planet”, “Think Community” and “Think People.”  

In the initiative organized in this week, 40 students of grade IX and X of Shree Jyoti Secondary School were hosted for an educational day tour at the hotel. The event started off with welcome greetings, brief introduction about hotel industry, career opportunities and hiring procedures which provided an insight to the students regarding the career possibilities in one of the largest industries of Nepal. The students, 95% of whom had never left their district before, were oriented with the operations of the 5-star hotel and were delighted by the experience, press release issued by the hotel reads. 

Radisson Hotel Group is known globally for their responsible business practices. Likewise, Radisson Hotel Kathmandu has put up continuous effort by showing that they care about the lives of people outside the walls of their businesses by conducting numerous CSR activities every year. The company encourages and advocates on sharing resources with need-based entities to unite for common causes, the press release read. 

Nepal Finance Limited opens new branch

Nepal Finance Limited (NFS) this opened a new branch at Bhurjungkhola in Machhapuchre Rural Municipality-2, Kaski. The branch became operational from April 4.

NFS, which is the first finance in Nepal to open through private sectors, was established in 1992. With its head office at Kamaladi, Kathmandu, NFS currently has branch offices in Pulchowk, Lalitpur; Banepa, Kavrepalanchowk; Murgiya, Rupandehi and Nawalpur, Gaindakot.

After the opening of the new branch in Kaski, NFS plans to expand its services with new branch offices at Dahnushadham, Janakpur and Hetuada, Makwanpur within this fiscal year. The finance company also plans to open services counter at Kantipath and Kalimati in Kathmandu within the same period.

The branch opening event was chaired by NFS’s Assistant CEO Bishnu Prasad Gautam, promoter/director Diprash Shakya and Chairman Prof. Hirendra Man Pradhan.

NIBL Ace Capital appointed registrar for NCC

NIBL Ace Capital Ltd has been appointed debenture registrar of Nepal Credit and Commerce Bank Ltd (NCC Bank). NCC Bank, formally registered as Nepal-Bank of Ceylon Ltd (NBOC), commenced its operation on October 14, 1996 as a joint venture with Bank of Ceylon, Sri Lanka.

 The name of the bank was changed to NCC Bank on September 10, 2002, after transfer of shares and management of the bank from Bank of Ceylon to Nepali promoters.

The Debenture Registrar Service Agreement was signed recently between Rajesh Raj Dhungel, senior manager of NCC Bank, and Sachindra Dhungana, assistant general manager of NIBL Ace Capital Ltd.

Since Covid-19 took the world by storm, virtual learning has evolved from a vague concept to a hard reality for the global education enterprises. Schools in Nepal have banked on international platforms like Zoom and Google Classroom to conduct daily lessons. At the same time, the year 2020 also shed light on some Nepali eLearning apps—one of being Neema Academy.

It’s an online portal with user-friendly interface that gives students and teachers access to countless study materials including course plans, syllabuses, chapter explanations in text and video formats, tests, quizzes, live classes and pre-made worksheets. The goal is to establish trust in eLearning by bringing quality and affordable education to all.

It all started when Neema Publication, a popular publishing house in Kathmandu, sought to digitize its products. Nischal Pradhan, the son of the publication’s owner, reached out to Neha Joshi who had experience in the digital field. The initial idea was to publish ebooks. But they soon realized digital learning provided an even bigger market, and the Neema Academy was born.

Officially launched in February 2020, courses are available from Grade I to X for now on the Play Store app. Upon its installation, users need to create an account and specify whether they’re a learner or a student.

If you’re a student, you must pick a grade and the eLearning app offers you guides on different subjects based on your year. You’ll also have access to chapter revisions, practice questions, quizzes and tests on the completion of each chapter.

If you sign up as an instructor, the app will first need to approve you. That done, aside from the same access as students, you will also be allowed to create your own syllabus and work schedules. You can invite your students into a live classroom, share your screen with them and add presentations, videos and worksheets of your own to the lessons that are already available in the app. If you don’t want to add on any pre-made lessons, a separate space will be made available to start your lessons from scratch. While this is targeted mostly at schoolteachers, it’s as useful for tutors who haven’t been able to continue their jobs during the pandemic.

Neha Joshi (co-founder, Neema Academy)

In fact, it was during the 2020 lockdown that Neema Academy achieved its biggest success, with schools signing up for the courses and independent students looking for free revision classes.

As the company plans its expansion the app will no longer be free. Starting Nepali New Year, Neema Academy will charge fees from all users across the board.

“Every content uploaded on the app is cross-checked,” says Neha Joshi, the company co-founder. “Study materials are true to the original books. And the quizzes, worksheets and video lessons that come with the purchase are made by teachers and experts in our office.” The offerings don’t end there. On the app, independent students can leave queries on subjects they’re confused about and available teachers at head office will answer them.

The courses aren’t limited to quizzes or theoretical videos. Many lessons and revision sections include image sequences, 3D and 2D cartoon videos, educational games and practice modes. “It isn’t just about establishing a good eLearning place,” Joshi shares. “We also want to make learning fun for children. Our education system relies mostly on theory memorization rather than its practice. By contrast, students of all age groups enjoy our practical methods of teaching.”

If you’re an instructor teaching many children at the same time, you can allow them to play these games or complete a worksheet and check their scores at the end to see how each is faring in the online class. The analytics section allows instructors to tailor their class according to student performances.

Joshi says most of their resources are dedicated to building a thorough guide for students appearing for SEE . “But we’re also brainstorming kindergarten courses,” she says. For +2 students, courses have been made only for Accounts and Mass Communication. As other subjects are comparatively more technical and require greater resources, Neema Academy is waiting for the right time to launch them.

In terms of prices, there are three packages on offer: a three-month package, a six-month package, and a one-year package. The prices are cheapest for students of Grade I, and increase higher up the grade level . Even though the app is no longer free, Joshi assures that it will be affordable for all.

“The content you subscribe to once will be available to you even offline,” she says. “So even if you take that phone to a rural place, you will carry our lessons with you.”

As our education will rely more and more on eLearning, our educators and publishers can be expected to create more and more learning products catered to local needs.

Kathmandu Metropolitan Round Table 4 (KMRT 4) is hosting a fundraising art exhibition at the Windhorse Gallery, Lalitpur from March 13 to April 3.

The art fundraiser is being headlined by the world-renowned artist Tsherin Sherpa and is adorned by the work of various upcoming local artists including Tulku Jamyang, Manish Lal Shrestha, Kapil Mani Dixit, Bharat Rai, Tashi Sangpo, Dawa Thulong, Sodhon, Dorje Karmarong, Diki Yuthok, and NB Gurung.

“As these artists take their path of intrinsic creative redemption, Round Table Nepal has come to aid in the process through their communal approach,” a press statement issued by KMRT reads. With the funds raised, Round Table Nepal aims at engaging in community service, with their major focus on building a greenhouse project at Cunina School in Sekha, providing physiotherapy equipment for Muscular Dystrophy Foundation Nepal, and supporting children’s education and school infrastructure.

Earth Hour Nepal held

The annual event of Earth Hour Nepal 2021, a global environment movement, was held digitally on March 27 due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. The event aimed at inspiring and empowering individuals, businesses, civil society organizations, and governments to take tangible actions for the planet.

The event had participation from a record-breaking 190 countries and territories marking Earth Hour online, generating over 3 billion social media impressions with #EarthHour and related hashtags trending across 37 countries on Twitter and Google search.

This year, Earth Hour Nepal focused on providing a key moment for people to unite and speak up for nature, showing how small acts can power big changes. During the event, Ani Choying Drolma was announced as WWF Nepal’s Goodwill Ambassador.

During the event, Shree Terse Secondary School from Sindhupalchowk was announced as the winner of the “Earth Hour School Innovation Challenge” for its work on renewable energy.