Civil servants should be impartial in elections: Oli
CPN-UML Chairman KP Sharma Oli has suggested that civil servants should be impartial and independent for the local level elections scheduled for May 13.
The former Prime Minister made this statement at the 11th national convention of the Nepal Civil Service Employees Association here today.
"Government employees as country's citizens should be independent and impartial in elections. They should not favour any political party."
They should provide support and help for the government, he said.
He also pledged to extend his support and assistance when relevant demands relating to the rights of democracy and trade unions are neglected.
In another context, stating that the country's economy has been at risk of a collapse, he claimed that his party would get at the helm of the government again through elections. RSS
India accidentally fires missile into Pakistan
India says it accidentally fired a missile into Pakistan on Wednesday, blaming the incident on a "technical malfunction" during routine maintenance, BBC reported.
Delhi said it was "deeply regrettable" and expressed relief no one was killed.
Pakistan's military said a "high-speed flying object" had crashed near the eastern city of Mian Channu and its flight path had endangered passenger flights.
Both countries have nuclear weapons.
In a statement, India's defence ministry said: "On 9 March 2022, in the course of routine maintenance, a technical malfunction led to the accidental firing of a missile. The Government of India has taken a serious view and ordered a high-level Court of Enquiry."
Islamabad warned Delhi to "be mindful of the unpleasant consequences of such negligence" and to avoid a repeat. The object had been launched from Sirsa in Haryana state, it said, according to BBC.
Pakistan's air force said the missile travelled at Mach 3 - three times the speed of sound - at an altitude of 12,000m (40,000ft) and flew 124km (77 miles) in Pakistani airspace before crashing.
"The flight path of this object endangered many national and international passenger flights both in Indian and Pakistani airspace, as well as human life and property of ground," said Pakistani military spokesman Major-General Babar Iftikharon Thursday, BBC reported.
Pakistan also urged India to share the findings of its investigation into what happened.
Russian strikes hit western Ukraine as offensive widens
Russia widened its military offensive in Ukraine on Friday, striking near airports in the west of the country for the first time, as observers and satellite photos indicated that its troops, long stalled in a convoy outside the capital Kyiv, were trying to maneuver to encircle the city, Associated Press reported.
With the invasion now in its third week, the U.S. and its allies prepared to step up their efforts to isolate and sanction Russia by revoking its most favored trading status. The move comes amid mounting outrage after a deadly airstrike hit a maternity hospital in the key Ukrainian port city of Mariupol, under an increasingly constricting 10-day-old siege.
The new airstrikes in western Ukraine were likely a message from Russia that no area was safe, Western and Ukrainian officials say Russian forces have struggled in the face of heavier-than-expected resistance and supply and morale problems. So far, they have made the most advances on cities in the south and east while stalling in the north and around Kyiv, according to the Associated Press.
Strikes on the western Lutsk airfield killed two Ukrainian servicemen and wounded six people, according to the head of the surrounding Volyn region, Yuriy Pohulyayko. In Ivano-Frankivsk, residents were ordered to shelters after an air raid alert, Mayor Ruslan Martsinkiv said.
Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said Russia used high-precision long-range weapons Friday to put military airfields in Lutsk and Ivano-Frankivsk “out of action.” He did not provide details.
New satellite photos, meanwhile, appeared to show a massive Russian convoy outside the Ukrainian capital had fanned out into towns and forests near Kyiv, with artillery pieces raised for firing in another potentially ominous movement.
The 40-mile (64-kilometer) line of vehicles, tanks and artillery had massed outside the city early last week, but its advance appeared to stall as reports of food and fuel shortages circulated. U.S. officials said Ukrainian troops also targeted the convoy with anti-tank missiles, Associated Press reported.
The satellite imagery, from Maxar Technologies, showed the 40-mile (64-kilometer) line of vehicles, tanks and artillery outside Kyiv had been redeployed, the company said. Armored units were seen in towns near the Antonov Airport north of the city. Some vehicles moved into forests, Maxar reported, with towed howitzers nearby in position to open fire.
Pakistan warns arch-rival India over mystery flying object
Pakistan on Friday warned New Delhi of “unpleasant consequences” over what it said was an Indian-originated, but unidentified high-altitude supersonic object that crashed in Pakistani territory, Reuters reported.
Pakistan foreign office said in a statement it summoned on Friday India’s charge d’affaires in Islamabad to lodge a protest over what it said was the unprovoked violation of its airspace. Pakistan called for an investigation of the incident, which it said could have endangered passenger flights and civilian lives.
Pakistan warned India in the statement “to be mindful of the unpleasant consequences of such negligence and take effective measures to avoid the recurrence off such violations in future.”
The two nuclear-armed neighbours have fought three wars and have engaged in numerous military clashes, most recently in 2019 which saw the air forces of the two engage in combat, Reuters reported.
In a hurriedly called news conference late on Thursday night, Pakistan military spokesman Major-General Babar Iftikhar said, “On 9 March a high-speed flying object was picked up inside Indian territory by air defence operations centre of the Pakistan air force.”
He said the military was not sure of the nature of the object, which he said crashed near the eastern Pakistani city of Mian Channu and originated from the Indian city of Sirsa, in India’s western Haryana province, according to Reuters.
Pakistan also called on India to share outcome of the investigation into the incident.
There was no immediate response from India’s Ministry of External Affairs to a Reuters’ query on the matter.
“The flight path of this object endangered many national and international passenger flights both in Indian and Pakistani airspace as well as human life and property of ground,” said military spokesman Iftikhar.
A Pakistan air force official at the news conference said the object was being analysed forensically and initial studies suggested it was a surface-to-surface supersonic missile, but was unarmed, Reuters reported.
He said it travelled at an altitude of 40,000 feet, at Mach 3, and flew 124 kilometres (77 miles) in Pakistani airspace before crashing.
Iftikhar said the military would not jump to conclusions until they got an explanation from India, but said that Pakistan strongly protested against a “flagrant violation” of its airspace.
“Whatever caused this incident to happen, it is for the Indians to explain,” Iftikhar said.
