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The Supreme Court has made public the full text of the verdict it had announced earlier over a case involving the proposed construction of Nijgadh International Airport on Wednesday.

A full bench of Justices Harikrishna Karki, Bishwambhar Prasad Shrestha, Ishwar Prasad Khatiwada, Prakash Man Singh Raut and Dr Manoj Kumar Sharma has given different views in the full text of the verdict.

Judges Bishwambhar Prasad Shrestha, Ishwar Prasad Khatiwada and Prakash Man Singh Raut have ruled that the airport should not be built at the site, while Justices Harikrishna Karki and Dr Manoj Kumar Sharma have said that though the airport could not be built at the designated place an environmental evaluation could be carried out for an alternative.

In the opinion of the three judges, the work of construction of the airport has been annulled by a certiorari order as the government’s work on the airport in Nijgadh of Bara district so far was found to be flawed. “We should not ignore or underestimate the importance of protecting the environment while carrying such large construction,” reads the full text.

Although it is natural to have some environmental damage during development works, it is mentioned that adequate alternative measures should be taken to minimize such damage as much as possible.

Similarly, in the full text of the decision, it is stated that the airport could be constructed at an alternative place by carrying out the environmental impact assessment of the site objectively and logically with regard to the suitability of airport construction in accordance with the due legal procedures. The construction of the airport should be carried in a location that is technically suitable and with minimal environmental damage.

In the opinion of Justices Harikrishna Karki and Dr Manoj Kumar Sharma, the Nijgadh International Airport could be constructed in government-owned vacant land by adding private land adjacent to the proposed construction site south of Nijgadh in Bara district or elsewhere.

If it is not found suitable for the construction of the airport due to technical or other reasons, the proposed area should be re-assessed as per the law and the environmental impact assessment should be done.

Similarly, the full text says that forest area should not be used for the establishment and expansion of the proposed airport city during the construction of the airport.

Chief Election Commissioner Dinesh Kumar Thapaliya has said the Election Commission (EC) was holding preparations for the polls as its responsibility to conduct the Federal and Province Assembly elections by mid-December.

Marking the beginning of the central-level review of the recently held local level election here today, Thapaliya said it was EC's responsibility to conduct the polls but decision on the election date is yet to take.

Stating that fencing the vote counting sites was a compulsion and was done citing insecurity in the local level polls, the Chief Commissioner said, however, it is unfortunate in a democracy.

The EC has already concluded its review meetings of the local level polls in all seven provinces.

China has welcomed the new Nepali ambassador to China.

Responding to a question during a regular press briefing, Deputy Director of the Foreign Ministry Information Department Zhao Lijian said that China is looking forward to his assumption of the post at an early date.

He said that China and Nepal are connected by mountains and rivers and enjoy an ever-lasting friendship.

China is ready to work with Nepal to follow through on the important consensus of the leaders of the two countries, deepen political mutual trust, promote mutually beneficial cooperation and elevate the strategic partnership of cooperation featuring ever-lasting friendship for development and prosperity to new heights, he further said.

President Bidya Devi Bhandari had appointed Bishnu Pukar Shrestha as the new ambassador to China a week ago.

Doctors and bankers were among hundreds of Sri Lankans who marched on Wednesday to demand the government resolve a severe fuel shortage at the heart of the Indian Ocean island's worst economic crisis in decades or step down, BBC reported.

Weeks of street demonstrations against cascading woes such as power cuts and shortages of food and medicine brought a change in government last month after nine people were killed and about 300 injured in protests.

Left with just enough fuel for about a week and fresh shipments at least two weeks away, the government restricted supplies on Tuesday to essential services, such as trains, buses and the health sector, for two weeks.

The government-ordered petrol shipment would arrive on July 22, while Lanka IOC, a unit of Indian Oil Corporation, is expecting a shipment of petrol and diesel around July 13. 

"The government is also attempting to secure fuel shipments at an early date. However, until those are confirmed, the details would not be released," the statement said.

Doctors, nurses and medical staff say that despite being designated essential workers, they struggle to find enough fuel to get to work.

"This is an impossible situation, the government has to give us a solution," H.M. Mediwatta, secretary of one of Sri Lanka's largest nursing unions, the All Island Nurses Union, told reporters.

The South Asian nation's most serious economic crisis since independence from Britain in 1948 comes after COVID-19 battered the tourism-reliant economy and slashed remittances from overseas workers.

Rising oil prices, populist tax cuts and a seven-month ban on the import of chemical fertilisers last year that devastated agriculture have compounded the troubles, according to BBC.

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa said the World Bank had agreed to restructure 17 projects it is funding in Sri Lanka. Similar support extended earlier had been used to buy fuel and medicine.

"More World Bank assistance will follow after negotiations with the IMF are finalised," he said on Twitter.

An International Monetary Fund team is in Colombo for talks on a bailout package of as much as $3 billion. Sri Lanka hopes to reach a staff-level agreement by Thursday, but even so, it is unlikely to bring immediate funds, BBC reported.