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Police have arrested a teacher after he along with his fellow teachers hurled stones at police and attempted to breach the prohibited area in New Baneshwor.

In response, police used a water cannon to stop the teachers from entering the the restricted area.

Around 15 teachers were injured in the incident, police said.

Police intercepted them after they tried to break through the prohibited area and enter the Parliament building.

The Nepal Teachers’ Federation gave continuation to the pretest after a meeting with the government ended inconclusively on Saturday.

The teachers have been staging protests in Kathmanud for the past 26 days, demanding immeidate enactment of the School Education Bill.

Over five billion budget from various bodies has been returned to the state treasury, citing the funds remained unspent.

The majority of the refunded budget falls under capital expenditures. Among the agencies returning the highest amounts are the Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, and the Millennium Challenge Account Nepal Development Committee (MCA-Nepal).

According to Ambika Prasad Khanal, the Ministry's Information Officer, Rs 53.4 million was refunded under general expenditures, while a significant Rs 5.03 billion was returned under capital expenditures.

Towards the capital expenditures, those bodies refunding the budget are the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (Rs 9.5 million), the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation (Rs 3.9 million), the Election Commission (Rs 24.02 million) and the Ministry of Land Management, Cooperatives and Poverty Alleviation (Rs 15.8 million).

Towards the capital expenditures, the Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation refunded Rs 2.35 billion while the MCA-Nepal refunded the budget around Rs two billion.

Other bodies sending the capital expenditures budget back are the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies (Rs 367.08 million), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Rs 300 million) and the Office of the Auditor General (Rs 16.01 million). 

According to the provisions of the Economic Procedure and Financial Responsibility Act and Regulations, if the budget allocated for any plan or program is not spent by mid-March and if it is not able to spend it even during the remaining period of the fiscal year, then it should be returned to the Ministry of Finance by third week of April. The MCA-Nepal has returned about 58 percent of the budget this year as it had returned 70 per cent of the budget last year.

There is uncertainty over whether US assistance will continue in this project or not, while the budget allocated by the government for this project will not be spent. For the current fiscal year, MCA-Nepal had received a budget of Rs 13.36 billion. Of this amount, Rs 9.9 billion would be funded by the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) and the remaining Rs 3.45 billion would be borne from internal sources.

However, after MCA-Nepal did not spend the budget, about 58 percent of the budget has been returned to the Ministry of Finance. Not only in the current fiscal year but also in the last fiscal year, MCA-Nepal's expenditure was very weak. MCA-Nepal had spent only about 30 percent of the total budget for the last fiscal year and returned the remaining 70 percent of the budget.

The government had allocated Rs 10.84 billion for the last fiscal year to spend on projects under MCA-Nepal, out of which Rs 7.60 billion was returned. The budget could not be spent as per the target as the compensation distribution and acquisition of land required for the construction of the power transmission line has slowed down.

For nearly 60 days, no food, fuel, medicine or other item has entered the Gaza Strip, blocked by Israel. Aid groups are running out of food to distribute. Markets are nearly bare. Palestinian families are left struggling to feed their children, Associated Press reported.

In the sprawling tent camp outside the southern city of Khan Younis, Mariam al-Najjar and her mother-in-law emptied four cans of peas and carrots into a pot and boiled it over a wood fire. They added a little bouillon and spices.

That, with a plate of rice, was the sole meal on Friday for the 11 members of their family, including six children.

Among Palestinians, “Fridays are sacred,” a day for large family meals of meat, stuffed vegetables or other rich traditional dishes, al-Najjar said, according to Associated Press.

“Now we eat peas and rice,” she said. “We never ate canned peas before the war. Only in this war that has destroyed our lives.”

The around 2.3 million Palestinians in Gaza are now mainly living off canned vegetables, rice, pasta and lentils. Meat, milk, cheese and fruit have disappeared. Bread and eggs are scarce. The few vegetables or other items in the market have skyrocketed in price, unaffordable for most.

A clash broke out between police personnel and agitating teachers in New Baneshwor on Sunday.

The clash ensued after the protestors tried to enter the prohibited zone.

The Nepal Teachers’ Federation gave continuation to the protest after a meeting with the government on Saturday ended without making a concrete decision.

The teachers hurled stones at police while attempting to breach the prohibited area, prompting security personnel to respond with a water cannon.

Earlier on Saturday, the teachers had announced that they would breach the prohibited area on Sunday.

During the protest in Maitighar today, they chanted various slogans like the government address the demands of teachers and promulgate a progressive School Education Act among others.

The teachers have been staging protests in Kathmandu for the past 26 days.