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A person died and 13 others sustained injuries in a Scorpio jeep accident at Adhabhar Jungle in Bara along the East-West Highway on Thursday.

The deceased has been identified as jeep driver Loknath Sedhai (25) of Jitpur Simara Sub-Metropolitan City-11, Bara.

The jeep (Ba 19 Cha 4377) was heading towards Hetauda from Simara when the incident occurred this morning, DSP Rajesh Thapa, spokesperson at the District Police Office, Bara said.

Prem Sah (22) of Bindabasini Rural Municipality-2, Parsa, Raju Gupta (12) of the same place and Nirmala Devi Sah of Jitpur Simara-7, who were critically injured in the incident, are undergoing treatment at the Birgunj-based Bayodha Hospital.

Others are receiving treatment in Simara-based Alpine Hospital and Birgunj-based Bayodha Hospital, DSP Thapa said.

Nepal Panchanga Nirnayak Samiti (Calendar Determination Committee) has decided to seek clarification from 12 calendar publishers for publishing without permission from the committee.

Publishing calendars without approval from the committee is subject to punishment as per the directive approved by the Cabinet meeting on 4 January 2021.

The committee's first meeting decided to seek clarifications orally from the calendar makers in question in the first phase, said committee Executive Director Surya Prasad Dhungel.

The calendars that have been published without the committee's approval include three paatros - Nepal, Muktinath and Jwala - and nine wall calendars - Gorkha Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Helping Society Saving and Credit Cooperatives Limited, Kathmandu Metropolitan City, Tengal, Artha Bridhi Multipurpose Cooperatives Limited, New Road, Kathmandu, Satya Devi Sound System Service, Nilkantha Municipality, Dhading, Timalsina Samaj Central Office, Kathmandu, Dhanprapti Multipurpose Cooperatives Limited, New Road, Kathmandu, Swornim Bhabishya Saving and Credit Cooperatives Limited, Tokha Municipality-7, Kathmandu, Nokpin House, New Road, Kathmandu and Krishna Mohana, Gaushala, Sudurpaschim Province.

At least six people were charred to death and 10 to 12 others were injured after a fire broke out at a chemical factory in the Eluru district of Andhra Pradesh, the police said Thursday, The Indian Express reported.

Superintendent of police Rahul Sharma said the fire in the factory at Akkireddygudem was possibly caused by a nitric acid leak. The state government has announced ex-gratia of Rs 25 lakh to the families of the deceased and Rs 5 lakh to those injured in the fire.

Andhra Pradesh Governor Biswabhusan Harichandan expressed anguish over the fire accident and extended condolences to the bereaved families, according to The Indian Express.

India is willing to commit up to another $2 billion in financial assistance to Sri Lanka while also supporting the island nation with food and fuel, five sources told Reuters, as New Delhi tries to regain ground lost to China in recent years, The Indian Express reported.

“We are definitely looking to help them out and are willing to offer more swap lines and loans,” said an Indian source aware of various discussions with Sri Lanka.

A senior government source in New Delhi said Sri Lanka’s warning on Tuesday of defaulting on debt payments was a worry, but that “we can still give them up to $2 billion in swaps and support”.

Sri Lanka’s prime minister offered talks on Wednesday with protesters calling for the government to step down over its handing of an economic crisis as the opposition threatened to bring a no-confidence motion against it in parliament, according to The Indian Express.

However, Sri Lankans protesting outside the President’s Office in Colombo on Wednesday rejected Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapksa’s offer for talks and demanded the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and all members of his family from the government.

S&P Global Ratings on Wednesday lowered Sri Lanka’s foreign currency rating to “CC” from “CCC”, citing the economic crisis in the country and rising external funding pressures. “Sri Lanka’s debt restructuring process is likely to be complicated and may take months to complete”, the ratings agency said in a statement.

While protests seeking the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa is continuing in various parts of the country, the working-class in Sri Lanka is struggling to make both ends meet as the nation continues to battle economic crisis, The Indian Express reported.