2018 – South Asia Time

Year: 2018

Over one million tourists visited Nepal in 2018: number to double by #VisitNepal2020 campaign

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Kathmandu : The tourism authority of Nepal said that over one million tourists visited Nepal in 2018 and the country aims to double the number by 2020.

Tourism Board of Nepal organised a special programme to mark the 20th anniversary of its establishment on Monday .

The board was set up in 1998, when Nepal observed ‘Visit Nepal Year’ in an effort to attract half a million foreign tourists.

Total 10,97,458 people visited Nepal in 2018 which is the cumulative increase by 17% compare to the same period last year 2017. Nepal aims to double the number by next year as the country is observing ‘Visit Nepal Year 2020’, the board said.

“It’s a matter of pleasure to announce that tourist inflow has crossed one million mark in 2018,” Tourism Minister Rabindra Adhikari said.

According to Deepak Raj Joshi, Chief Executive Officer of Nepal Tourism Board, image of Nepal as one of the most preferred tourist destinations has been reinforced as reflected in the extraordinary growth in the visitor arrivals to Nepal.

“The growth can be attributed to concerted efforts of Government of Nepal, Nepal Tourism Board, private sector travel trade and media towards promotion of overall tourism sector in the international tourism arena,” Joshi said.

Hasina won Bangladesh election despite the rejection of opponents

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Dhaka : Bangladesh  election commission has officially stated  that  that Hasina had won a third straight term, with the alliance dominated by her Awami League winning 287 of the 298 seats. The main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist party (BNP), which boycotted the last poll in 2014, won just six seats.

The leader of Bangladesh’s opposition alliance has described Sunday’s general election, which saw prime minister Sheikh Hasina win with a thumping majority, as farcical, saying any outcome would be rejected and demanding that a new vote be held.

Hasina, who has headed the AL since 1981, went into the polls on the back of a decade of impressive GDP growth and booming garment exports. Bangladesh is the world’s second-largest exporter of garments after China.

The 71-year-old leader is set for a record fourth term in office in the South Asian Muslim-majority nation of 160 million.

Veteran Indian actor Kadar Khan passed away

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Veteran actor-writer Kader Khan, who was hospitalized in Canada owing to breathing issue, is no more with us. The actor breathed his last on December 31, 2018. The 81-year-old actor’s has reportedly developed breathing issues and the doctors have transferred him from regular ventilator to BiPAP ventilator.

https://twitter.com/akashvaniair/status/1079453263605448704

The beloved actor was born in Afghanistan on 22 October 1937. Khan had worked in over 300 Bollywood movies after making his acting debut in 1973 film Daag.

Bangladesh election poll closed, despite opponents objection Sheikh Hasina expected to win

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DHAKA (AFP, REUTERS) – Polls closed in a Bangladesh general election on Sunday (Dec 30) that was marred by the deaths of at least 12 people in vote-related clashes.

Voting ended at 4pm (1000 GMT) in the election which Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is expected to win but has been overshadowed by a crackdown on opposition activists.

Meanwhile, the country’s Election Commission is investigating allegations of vote rigging coming from across the country, a spokesman told Reuters minutes before polling was to close.

“Allegations are coming from across the country and those are under investigation,” S.M. Asaduzzaman said. “If we get any confirmation from our own channels then measures will be taken as per rules”.

Polls opened at at 8am (10am Singapore) amid tight security following a campaign that was marred by violence and allegations of a government crackdown on opposition activists.

Some 600,000 security personnel are deployed across the South Asian nation, including at 40,000 polling stations where voters will cast their ballots in the country’s 11th parliamentary election since independence in 1971.

There was fresh violence on the eve of the vote. One man died when police opened fire on opposition activists who they say had attacked a polling station in the southern town of Bashkhali.

The deaths brought to six the number of people confirmed by police to have died in violence related to Sunday’s election. The main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) claims eight of its activists have died.

The 104 million eligible voters must choose between an alliance led by Hasina’s ruling Awami League party and a coalition headed by the BNP which was cobbled together only three months ago.

Opinion polls show Hasina, who has presided over impressive economic growth during an unbroken decade in power but who is also accused of growing authoritarianism, heading for a comfortable victory.

She needs 151 seats in the first-past-the-post system to win in the 300-seat Parliament but experts say any victory would be sullied by accusations that she hamstrung her opponents’ campaign.

The opposition says nearly 15,000 of its activists have been arrested since the timetable for the election was announced on Nov 8, crippling its ability to mobilise its grassroots support.

Human Rights Watch and other international groups have decried the crackdown, saying it has created a climate of fear which could prevent supporters of opposition parties from casting their ballots.

The United States has also raised concerns about the credibility of the Muslim-majority country’s election while the United Nations has called for greater efforts to make the vote fair

British Asians included in Queen’s honours list 2018

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London : The 2018 New Year’s Queen’s honours list has been published.  This  prestigious  honour list is given in every two years to the people contributing Britain in extra ordinary manner.

The list features numerous British Asians who are individuals that have delivered immense services in areas of Business, Technology, Art and Sports and will be honoured with the British Empire medal and title in the coming months.

The titles they receive include Commanders of the Order of the British Empire (CBE), Officers of the Order of the British Empire (OBE), and Medallist of the Order of the British Empire (BEM) among others.

A total of 1123 will receive awards and 9.2% candidates are from a BAME background, 551 women are recognised in the list representing 49% of the total.

The British Asians who have been recognised in the 2018 New Year’s Honours List include:

Dames Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE)

  • Professor Pratibha Laxman GAI Professor and Chair of Electron Microscopy, University of York. For services to Chemical Sciences and Technology.

Commanders of the Order of the British Empire (CBE)

  • Ms Nuzhat SALEH Assistant Director, Directorate of Legal (Mrs Gould) Services, Metropolitan Police Service. For services to Policing.

Officers of the Order of the British Empire (OBE)

  • Raja Mohammed ADIL Chairman, The Adil Group. For services to Business, Job Creation and charity.
  • Jarnail Singh ATHWAL Founder and Managing Director, Premier Decorations Ltd. For services to Business and charity.
  • Professor Charanjit BOUNTRA Professor of Translational Medicine, University of Oxford. For services to Translational Medical Research.
  • Suranga CHANDRATILLAKE, FREng General Partner, Balderton Capital. For services
    to Engineering and Technology.
  • Ranjit Lal DHEER For services to Local Government and to charity.
  • Dr Shabana Rounak HAQUE Head, Government Science and Engineering Profession Team, Government Office for Science. For services to Civil Service Science and the Engineering Profession.
  • Rilesh Kumar JADEJA National Access to Work Delivery Manager, Department for Work and Pensions. For services to People with Disabilities.
  • Ms Aina KHAN For services to the Protection of Women and Children in Unregistered Marriages.
  • Ms Paromita KONAR-THAKKAR Deputy Director, Energy Economics and Analysis, Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. For services to Energy Analysis.
  • Dr Rajan MADHOK Trustee, Darlinda’s Charity for Renal Research. For services to Renal Research and Tackling Health Inequalities in Scotland.
  • Ms Vinodka MURRIA For services to the UK Digital Economy and Advancing Women in the Software Sector.
  • Jaswant, Mrs RAMEWAL Grade 6, Ministry of Defence. For services to Defence.
  • Naymitkumar SHAH Manager, International Liaison Officer, National Crime Agency. For services to Law Enforcement and Diversity.

Members of the Order of the British Empire (MBE)

  • Dr Anwara ALI General Practitioner, The Spitalfields Practice, East London. For services to Community Healthcare.
  • Afrasiab ANWAR For services to Community Cohesion in Burnley.
  • Onkardeep Singh BHATIA For services to the community particularly Young People.
  • Councillor Balwant Singh CHADHA Lately Councillor, North Lanarkshire Council. For services to Local Government and Community Cohesion in the West of Scotland.
  • Bobby Gurbhej Singh DEV For services to Young People in Sheffield, South Yorkshire.
  • Ms Neelam FARZANA Co-founder and Managing Director, The Listening Service. For services to Mental Health in the Community.
  • Mohammad Yaqub JOYA For services to the Army and the Muslim community in Northern Ireland.
  • Alexander KHAN Chief Executive Officer, Lifetime Training. For services to Apprenticeships.
  • Ms Sadi KHAN (SAJDAH MEHMOOD) For services to Cultural and Religious Training and voluntary service to Vulnerable Women.
  • Sajda, Mrs MAJEED For services to the community in Burnley.
  • Atulkumar Bhogilal PATEL For services to Heritage and the community in the East Midlands.
  • Mubeen Yunus PATEL Administrative Officer, Personal Tax Operations, HM Revenue and Customs. For services to Public Sector Digital Transformation Programme.
  • Naeem Rabbani QURESHI For services to the community in Sparkbrook, Birmingham.
  • Gurmit Singh RANDHAWA For services to Community Cohesion in the Vale of Glamorgan.
  • Dr Mehool Harshadray SANGHRAJKA For services to the Jain Faith and Education.
  • Shyamal Kanti SENGUPTA For services to Interfaith Relations in Renfrewshire.
  • Vikas Sagar SHAH Member, Industrial Development Advisory Board and Chief Executive Officer, Swiscot Group. For services to Business and the Economy.
  • Ms Summera Naheed SHAHEEN Owner, The Diamond Studio. For services to Business and the community in Glasgow.
  • Dr Rohit SHANKAR Consultant in Adult Developmental Psychiatry, Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust. For services to People with Learning Disabilities in Cornwall.
  • Dr Sanjiv Kumar SHRIDHAR General Practitioner, Nantwich, Cheshire. For services to Primary Care.
  • Dr Seema SRIVASTAVA Safety Programme and Falls Lead, North Bristol NHS Trust. For services to Improving Quality and Patient Safety

Medallist of the Order of the British Empire (BEM)

  • Kulbir Singh BRAR Community and Diversity Officer, Thames Valley Police. For services to Community Cohesion.
  • Ms Buldev Kaur Angela KANDOLA Founder, AWAAZ charity. For services to Vulnerable People with Mental Health Issues.
  • Subhash Chander MAHAJAN For services to the community in Hounslow.
  • Manju, Mrs RAJAWAT Higher Officer, Border Force, Home Office. For services to Border Security.
  • Dr Suryadevara Yadu Porna Chandra Prasad RAO Lately Chair, Stoke on Trent Clinical Commissioning Group. For services to Health and Care.
  • Asish Jaidev SONI For voluntary and charitable services to Homeless People in London.
  • Deviesh TANKARIA International Youth Chairman, Sathya Sai International Organisation. For voluntary service.

Twice a year the Queen’s special Honours List celebrates men and women across the UK.

Energy banking agreement between Nepal and India

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Kathmandu : Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA), the state-owned power utility, and Central Electricity Authority (CEA) of India on Wednesday agreed to the draft of the guidelines on power exchange and energy banking mechanism. The draft will be presented for approval before the energy secretary-level joint steering committee (JSC) meeting scheduled to be held in January.

Energy banking involves exchanging electricity for electricity instead of cash. Under this mechanism, one country exports electricity to the other when it has a surplus, and imports back the same amount of energy when it has a deficit.

“This agreement is a milestone in the country’s energy sector as it will secure the market for the surplus energy we are on track to produce within a few years,” said NEA Managing Director Kulman Ghising, without sharing the details of the draft.

“We will supply electricity to India during the wet season when the domestic output is high and import it back during the winter when domestic production is much lower than the demand.”

 

CG to start 4G mobile service in Nepal as supreme court permits

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Kathmandu : Nepal’s Supreme Court told the Nepal Telecommunications Authority (NTA) to give CG telecom permission to set up mobile service operations. The court decision resolved issues surrounding spectrum and deployment issues. CG telecom is a unit of Nepalese multinational Chaudhary Group lead by the Forbes listed billionaire  Mr. Binod Chaudhari.
Nepal’s CG telecom wants to start rolling out 4G services in the country next year, Nepali Telecom reported.  NCell from private sector and NTC from the government are the key mobile service provider in Nepal.  Most importantly after the SC decision it is great news for Nepali telecome user to have additional mobile service provider for the perfect market competition, Mr. Birendra Shrestha, a telecom engineer said.

Nepal investment summit 2019: opportunity for foreign investors

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Kathmandu : Government of Nepal is going to organise  “Nepal Investment Summit- 2019” on coming 29th and 30th March . According to the Finance minister Mr. Yubaraj Khatiwada, the aim of the event is to focus on transforming the political and policy stability into trust among the domestic and international business fraternity.

This two-day conference is said to be focused  on investment potential in basically five sectors — agriculture commercialisation, infrastructure (road, rail and aviation), manufacturing, energy and information technology.

“The show  will also  focus on insights and opinions from experts and potential investors on capitalising on Nepal’s plans and initiatives for long-term sustainable development,” mentioned Khatiwada.

The finance minister also informed that a number of policy reforms have been made in the last few years in a bid to facilitate businesses while more than a dozen business related policies will be amended in the next few months.

He further informed all pending business related policies of the government and amendments of existing policies will be completed before the investment summit.

Chief executive officer of Investment Board Nepal (IBN) Mr. Maha Prasad Adhikari, informed that the board has been seeking different investment viable projects from all seven provinces. “Along with the project bank that IBN has already prepared”

The conference is expected to have participation of potential foreign investors, non-resident Nepalis, development partners, international financial firms, diplomats, high-level government officials from Nepal and neighbouring nations and diplomats, among others.

There will be a plenary session on various  issues such as  investment opportunities in Nepal, investing in Nepal and experience sharing, among others. Similarly, parallel sessions at the conference will have discussions and deliberations on subjects including energy, industry, ICT, tourism, infrastructure, agriculture,  forestry etc.

The summit  will  provide all the necessary information and on the spot  assistance to the potential investors from national and international level, stated by CEO of IBN Mr Maha Adhikari.

Some of the potential investment opportunities can be seen in the following info-graphics prepared by “Nepal Investment Summit 2019”

Nepali young cricket star is shining in BBL Australia

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Sydney : 18-year-old  youngster Nepalese  leg spinner Sandeep Lamichhane’s stunning impact on the Big Bash League is continuously going on, taking two wickets to help the Melbourne Stars keep the Sydney Sixers to 9-130. Besides he has shown his capabilities this summer, claiming seven wickets in his first three games for the Melbourne Stars.

The Nepalese young gun has shown his capabilities this summer, claiming seven wickets in his first three games for the Melbourne Stars.

In his first  game at Australia’s home of spin at the South Sydney Cricket Ground, Lamichhane trapped both Moises Henriques and Tom Curran lbw to finish with figures of 2-18.

His dismissal of Curran may have been fortunate as replays showed it was headed down leg, but the ball to get rid of Henriques was a big turning wrong’un that the Sixers’ captain didn’t even go close to getting bat to.

Lamichhane, who has shined in the Australian leg, had recorded two debut wickets and three in the second match in his eight over spell. However, Stars were unable to produce a favorable result in both of the previous matches.

Rushmoor council from U.K. agrees to set up link with Gorkha municipality, Nepal

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London : Rushmoor Borough Council has agreed to set up new cultural and business links with cities and regions in the USA, Poland and Nepal with strong ties to both the army and aviation. 

In a press note released by the council states that It has agreed moves to establish links with Dayton, Ohio in the USA, Rzeszow in Poland and Gorkha Municipality in Nepal.

The links with Dayton and Rzeszow are driven by the shared development of aerospace industries they have with Farnborough. The city of Dayton is the birthplace of aviation pioneer Orville Wright, a designated aerospace innovation hub and home to the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base; Rzeszow forms a south east part of an area of Poland known as Aviation Valley which has been a centre for aviation that has developed rapidly since the Second World War. A link-up would provide mutual support and shared knowledge between businesses.

The Nepali community has a strong presence in the borough because of the strong Gurkha connection with the Aldershot Garrison and local area. Many Gurkha soldiers who have served in the British Army have originated from Gorkha.

The links will be supported by the existing twinning association set up to encourage and develop such links. The move to strengthen the ties recognises existing cultural and business links. They are different to traditional town twinning and represent a new form of relationship.

The existing link with Meudon in France was set up nearly 45 years ago, back in 1974, and Oberursel (Germany) became a twin town in 1989.  Since then, strong relationships with educational, cultural, business and voluntary groups have been built between the towns.

At present, there are no direct cost implications for the council and no visits are planned. Any future costs would need to be agreed and provide economic, educational or a community benefit.

Councillor, David Clifford, Leader of Rushmoor Borough Council, explained: “I welcome the Cabinet’s commitment to setting up these links. It’s a fantastic opportunity for businesses, schools, churches, clubs and societies to develop, trade, engage, correspond and link with like-minded people around the world. It’s not just about us as a council, it is about the whole community learning from others and experiencing the joy of experiencing different cultures.”

President of the Greater Rushmoor Nepali Community (GRNC), Jib Belbase, said: “We are delighted to hear plans to set up these new cultural and friendship links with the Gorkha region are progressing, and the GRNC are proud to have played a role in helping to bring this about. Gorkha is an area of Nepal that many of our former and current Gurkha soldiers have a strong affinity with. Anything which encourages a better understanding, and strengthens ties within the different communities amongst the people of Rushmoor, is very much to be encouraged.”

Elephant festival of Nepal condemn by right groups

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CHITWAN :   15th edition of the Elephant Festival has been kicked off in Chitwan on Wednesday with the participation of around 100 elephants. Chitwan is considered as on of the popular tourist destination of Nepal.

The event is organised  by the Regional Hotel Association of Sauraha based in Chitwan National Park.

Nepali President Vidaya Bhandari  inaugurated and highlighted the importance of the elephants in tourism, mentioning that elephants have religious and cultural value in Nepali society.

Similarly , Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Rabindra Adhikari also said that the festival is instrumental to boost tourism of the Himalayan nation.

The annual fiesta aims to bring humans closer with elephants, encourage wildlife protection and conservation and promote tourism, particularly in Chitwan.

The festival has been condemn by a elephant  right group called Elephant watch.

The group has written an open letter to President Bhandari staying the cruelty and commercial use of elephant .

Copy of  letter From Elephant watch :

Dear Honorable President,

Elephant Watch Nepal (EWN) was surprised to read that you promote elephant polo as a means to generate tourism income.

Elephant polo and other ‘games’ involving elephants is an outdated practice in most parts of the world. Science has shown that elephants are not built to play games. Also, in order to force elephants to carry out such a sport, they are trained in a cruel manner and disciplined with the help of an ankush, a tool that has been outlawed in many countries.

Across the world it has been recognised that elephants are highly intelligent, social animals, whose welfare is severely compromised when kept on chains or being made to perform. This is why domesticating elephants is discouraged and humane alternatives for the existing captive ones are found.

Recently, GoN has led the way by building chain free corralsfor government-owned elephants. Tiger Tops recently became the first tourism outfit to unchain its elephants and to stop elephant polo and safaris. Instead they promote walking with elephants, elephant behaviour observation, etc.

“We too are concerned about tourism revenues but since many Western travel companies have removed elephant safaris and games from their itineraries traditional elephant activities will not yield much income in the long run. Humane alternatives like walking with elephants, elephant watching, kuchi making, etc. have much more potential as sustainable business models.”

We hope you will stop promoting elephant tourism and instead speak out for more humane alternatives to sustainable tourism.

Sincerely,
The EWN Team

 

Religious freedom is being scrutinise in South Asia: USCIRF

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Washington : The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has released a special report on anti-conversion laws in South Asia. This report examines laws in Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, that limit the ability of religious groups to proselytize and the freedom of individuals to convert to a different religion.
The report has stated numerous problems with these laws.

For example, in India and Pakistan, vague and discriminatorily enforced anti-conversion and blasphemy laws have contributed to rising numbers of hate crimes and false accusations against members of minority religion groups. Also, despite persistent allegations of coerced conversions by international and domestic religious groups, supporters of these restrictive laws have not presented credible data supporting these claims.
Full report can be found in the link here  :

Nepal to regulate e-commerce properly

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In a move curbing fraudulent activity surrounding online transactions, the Government of Nepal is preparing new guidelines that regulate online shopping platforms.

Joint Secretary at the Consumer Affairs Ministry Nawaraj Dhakal informed this in a statement, where he said they were holding discussions with related stakeholders to prepare guidelines.

“As the ministry lacks information technology equipment and manpower to keep track of e-commerce platforms, we are seeking the help of other government agencies,” said Dhakal.

This decision is coming in the backdrop of growing eCommerce portals and raising concerns over business misconduct by some of them.

Nepal currently has many eCommerce players selling wide range of products, but the government lacks a monitoring mechanism that can track eCommerce activity in the country. Nepali eCommerce sector is generating a USD 25 million business annually.

Along with the sector’s growth, there is also a rise is the cases of business misconduct deceiving customers, say the consumer rights activists of Nepal.

According to them, late product delivery, exchange and refund, selling of substandard and second-hand products and overcharging continue to be some of the serious issues in the Nepali eCommerce sector.

“It took me three months to get a refund from the company,” says one of the local sellers named Adish Prasain. This raises questions over rules put forth by the Consumer Protection Act 2018, which mandates every seller to ensure refund is done within seven days of the order return.

In contrast, Yogendra Gauchan, Director General of the Department of Supply Management and Protection of Consumers Interest said that they haven’t received any complaint against sellers.

Nepal’s biggest shopping mall Chhaya Centre opened

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Nepal’s biggest shopping mall Chhaya Centre formally opened on Tuesday.

Built in the tourist hotspot of Thamel, the luxurious mall is spread over an area of 86,000 sq ft with a built-up area of 350,000 sq ft. It houses more than 200 retail stores representing various international and local brands.

It is also home to a five-star hotel Aloft Kathmandu managed under the Marriott brand that is expected to open by March next year.

In the 15-storey building, the hotel will be occupying the top 10 floors. The complex will also house a casino operated by a Chinese group, according to the centre.

Thailand to legalise the medical use of cannabis

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Thailand’s parliament has voted to approve cannabis for medical use, with a key lawmaker calling it a “New Year’s gift” to the Thai people. Recreational use will remain illegal.

Marijuana was used in Thailand as a traditional medicine, until it was banned in the 1930s.
Consumers will be able to carry specified amounts necessary for medicinal purposes, if they have a prescription or recognised certificate, the Bangkok Post said.

Licences for production and sale of the product will be strictly controlled, media report stated.

BBC has mentioned the Medical use of cannabis stating the various research findings:

Conclusive or substantial evidence that it helps:

as treatment for chronic pain in adults
as treatment for chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting
for improving patient-reported multiple sclerosis spasticity symptoms
Moderate evidence that it helps:

improving sleep in individuals with specific conditions including fibromyalgia and obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome
Epilepsy

Recent studies have found that cannabidiol (CBD – an active ingredient in cannabis) reduced seizures in individuals with rare childhood epilepsy disorders – Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and Dravet syndrome.

Nepali works to get easy access in Japanese labour market

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Japan has amended its foreign employment policy in a bid to fulfill the need of its manpower crisis, a Japanese news source Asian Nikki has mentioned. Among the list of the countries, Nepal has been listed on it from South Asia.

The ministers of Japan has adopted 126 measures in total, including steps to promote coexistence among local Japanese and newcomers and assistance for foreign nationals already residing in Japan. To achieve all this, the government posted a supplementary budget of 6.1 billion yen ($55.3 million) for fiscal 2018 and a budget of 16.3 billion yen for fiscal 2019.

Under the new plans one-stop facilities, tentatively named Centers for Multicultural Information and Assistance, will be established at about 100 locations nationwide. These centers will provide consultations on administrative procedures and everyday life in 11 languages — Japanese, English, Chinese, Korean, Spanish, Vietnamese, Thai, Portuguese, Indonesian, Nepalese and Tagalog — using translation apps and other means.

The government will also seek to ensure all regions have Japanese-language schools, and new qualifications will be given to Japanese-language teachers.

Other measures will include providing information in multiple languages to make it easier for non-Japanese families with small children to use medical institutions and child care facilities.

According to the new rule steps will be taken to prevent exploitation of non-Japanese workers under the technical intern system, which is based on an existing visa status, as the government expects technical interns to shift to new visa statuses.

The new “category 1 specified skills” visa covers 14 job types, including nursing care, restaurants and construction.

The government estimates up to 60,000 people will use the new visa to find nursing care jobs in Japan in the first five years, making it the biggest job category in terms of the number of foreign workers. Restaurant work is likely to be next, with 53,000 foreign workers expected to be employed over the same period.

The government anticipates a total of 345,150 foreign nationals will find jobs using the visa status.

Initially, in April, the government plans to start conducting skills examinations for applicants in the nursing care, lodging and restaurant industries. Exams for the remaining 11 job types will start by the end of March 2020.

To prevent the new visa status from affecting the employment of Japanese nationals, issuances are to stop once worker shortages are resolved. The program assumes direct employment, although it makes exceptions for temporary hiring in farming and fishing.

And to avoid a heavy concentration of foreign workers in big cities, the program specifies that the government will “take necessary measures” for these workers not “to excessively concentrate in limited regions, including large urban areas.”