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Himalayan Airlines to begin Kathmandu-Dhaka flight

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BSS, Dhaka— Himalayan Airlines, one of the private carriers of Nepal is going to commence Kathmandu-Dhaka-Kathmandu direct flight from Monday.

The airline will operate three weekly flights by its A320-214 narrow bodied aircraft, configured with 150 economy class and eight premium economy class seats, a press release said here today.

On the occasion, acting Nepalese Ambassador to Bangladesh Dhan Bahadur Oli emphasized strengthening connectivity between the two countries on all fronts saying that there is huge potential to promote Bangladesh-Nepal bilateral relations.

“When we talk about connectivity, we don’t talk about one-way connectivity,” he said at a function at the Nepal embassy here on Thursday last.

Himalaya Airlines Bangladesh Country Manager Sushil Kumar Basnet said the ticket price will be cheaper compare to other airlines.

With the airlines’ regular flights to Middle East destinations like Doha, Dubai and Dammam, the new sector shall also significantly project Kathmandu as a transit hub for Bangladeshi passengers.

This connectivity will boost new business opportunities between Nepal and Bangladesh and shall also serve as a bridge between the Middle East countries and Bangladesh, the release said quoted the airlines vice president Vijay Shrestha.

The thrice weekly schedules have convenient timings, where flight will depart from Kathmandu at 11:10 am (local time) and land at 1:10 pm (local time) in Dhaka while the return flight depart Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at 2:10 pm hours (local time) and arrive at Tribhuvan International Airport at 3:20 pm.

The airline has appointed SAir Air BD Ltd as its general sales agents.

A little-known story of Nepal’s Sikh connection

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By Manjeev Puri
Nepal has a small but a vibrant Sikh community that is best known for its role as transporters, who opened Nepal to the modern world. Not many, though, know that Nepal’s Sikh heritage dates to Guru Nanak Dev, who travelled through Nepal during his third udasi.

Marking his sojourn in Kathmandu is Nanak Math, which has a peepul tree marking the exact spot where Guru Saheb meditated. The math, like a few other shrines in Kathmandu, is linked to the Udasi tradition and has a mahant presiding over it. The shrine is not well-known and remains neglected; this prompted author Desmond Doig to call it the “forgotten shrine of the Sikhs”. Nepal also boasts several handwritten copies of the Guru Granth Sahib, including a couple in the Pashupatinath Temple complex.

The Sikh connection with Nepal developed during the reign of Maharaja Ranjit Singh when the armies of the Sikh and Gorkha courts fought inconclusively in the Kangra region. The valour of the Gorkhas led the Lahore Court to recruit them. Even today, Nepalese serving in the Indian Army are colloquially referred to as “Lahureys”.

Later, when Maharani Jind Kaur escaped from the British, she came to Nepal and lived in the country for several years. Accompanying her was a large body of Sikhs. When she left Nepal, many of them settled down in the area around Nepalgunj, bordering Uttar Pradesh. Retaining their Sikh identity, including wearing unshorn hair and maintaining gurudwaras in the villages of their concentration, they are a community largely missing in the annals of the Sikh diaspora.

Later, when Maharani Jind Kaur escaped from the British, she came to Nepal and lived in the country for several years. Accompanying her was a large body of Sikhs. When she left Nepal, many of them settled down in the area around Nepalgunj, bordering Uttar Pradesh. Retaining their Sikh identity, including wearing unshorn hair and maintaining gurudwaras in the villages of their concentration, they are a community largely missing in the annals of the Sikh diaspora.

In modern times, Sikhs have played pioneering roles in Nepal not only as transporters but also as engineers, doctors, police officers, teachers, educationists, pilots, and even as fashion designers. Indeed, the person credited with laying the first drinking water pipes in Kathmandu was a Sikh, Manohar Singh. And, of course, by setting up the first restaurants, they paved the way for popularising Punjabi cuisine in Nepal.

The story of Sikh transporters is legendary in Nepal. In the early 1950s, hailing from the Jammu region, many of them personally navigated the newly laid tracks of the Tribhuvan Highway, and crossed rivers to haul their trucks to Kathmandu. They also started the first public bus service in the country, and have been active in the setting up of modern schools in the country.

The Sikh community in Nepal in the 1980s totaled more than a few thousand and built a grand gurudwara in Kathmandu’s Kupondole neighbourhood, apart from smaller gurudwaras in Birgunj, Nepalgunj and Krishnanagar. It is further enriched by Nepalis like Sardar Gurbaksh Singh embracing Sikhism.

India’s diplomatic ties with Nepal also have a strong Sikh connection with Sardar Surjit Singh Majithia being the first ambassador and establishing the embassy in 1947. His arrival and departure, by air, saw the first uses of the landing strip that is now the runway at Tribhuvan International Airport.

As we celebrate the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev, the Sikh connection of Nepal will be further strengthened as Nepal has started minting three commemorative coins – two in silver with denomination of Nepali Rupees 2,500 and 1,000 and a cupronickel coin with a face value of Nepali Rupees 100 – to be launched on this auspicious occasion. Nepal is one of few countries issuing legal tender featuring a Sikh connection.
This story was originally published in Hindustantimes.

Manjeev Singh Puri is India’s ambassador to Nepal

Monsoon flooding death toll rises to 152 in South Asia

Posted on by SAT News Desk

AP — The death toll in monsoon flooding in South Asia has risen to 152 as millions of people and animals continue to face the brunt in three countries, officials said Saturday.

At least 90 people have died in Nepal and 50 in northeastern India’s Assam state over the past week. A dozen have been killed in Bangladesh.

Shiv Kumar, a government official in Assam, said 10 rare one-horned rhinos have died in Kaziranga National Park since the Brahmaputra River burst its banks, flooding the reserve.
Some 4.8 million people spread over 3,700 villages across the state are still affected by the floods, though the frequency of rains has decreased in the past 24 hours, the Assam Disaster Response Authority said. More than 2.5 million have also been hit by flooding in India’s Bihar state.

Amid the flooding, 20-year-old Imrana Khatoon delivered her first baby on a boat in floodwaters early Friday while on her way to a hospital in Assam’s flooded Gagalmari village, locals said. The woman and the newborn were brought back to their home without getting to the hospital.

Community health official Parag Jyoti Das, who visited the family, said there were no post-delivery health complications. However, the mother and the child were moved to a hospital on a boat to the nearby town of Jhargaon because of unhygienic conditions due to floodwaters, Das said. The health center in Khatoon’s village was flooded and closed.

“I would have felt happier if the baby’s father was here,” said Khatoon, whose husband works in a hotel in the southern state of Kerala.

More than 147,000 people have taken shelter in 755 government-run camps across Assam, officials said.

Authorities warned they would take action against suppliers who were reported to be distributing poor quality rice and other essentials to marooned people and inmates of temporary shelters at some places.

“We have ordered the arrest of those unscrupulous elements supplying substandard materials and playing with the lives of the affected people,” said Himanta Biswa Sarma, Assam’s finance minister.

In Nepal, the Home Ministry said about 36,728 families were affected by the monsoon rains. The flooding and mudslides forced some 13,000 families to flee their homes.

In at least two of Nepal’s districts, helicopters were used to transport emergency food supplies, while other transport means were being used to move tents and other supplies to the victims.

South Asia’s monsoon rains, which hit the region from June to September, are crucial for the rain-fed crops planted during the season.

Wolverhampton Council of UK establishes friendship ties with Arjundhara Municipality of Nepal

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Jagan Karki, London– A formal city relationship has been established between UK’s one of the historic industrial Councils, the home of Great Western Railway and one of the beautiful municipalities of the Himalayan nation with natural beauty and cultural diversity.

The sister city relationship between  the Wolverhampton Council and the Arjundhara Municipality of Jhapa District, Nepal,  was formally signed on 17th of July by Civic leaders of both of the Cities, Mayor of Arjundhara Municipality, Hari Kumar Rana and Mayor of Wolverhampton Council, Claire Darke.

Mr. Rana who was welcomed in the Heathrow International Airport by the Ambassador of Nepal to the UK, Dr. Durga Bahadur Subedi on 16th of July,was invited to the UK for signing the friendly agreement.

This friendly ties between two diverse and multicultural cities has been designed to support and forge educational,commercial and cultural ties..

Proposals for the link-up was made by the Ambassador of Nepal to the UK,Dr.Subedi to the former Wolverhampton Mayor, Councillor Phil Page (Lab. Bilston North), while the Mayor was attending a special ceremony at the Embassy of Nepal hosted by  the Nepalese Ambassador.

Wolverhampton Council’s Deputy Managing Director Mark Taylor told Birmingham mail, “The purpose of this agreement is to create a framework for collaborations between both parties with a view to establishing friendships and promoting social, cultural, educational, commercial tourism and technical co-operation.”

“We are hoping to promote co-operation in various areas such as infrastructure, service delivery, planning, and governance. We will be arranging exchange visits between the elected representatives of both cities as well as community groups.”

“It is generally about strengthening ties between both our jurisdictions. The Ambassador for Nepal has already formally submitted the proposal to his Government and it has been approved.”

A number of events were proposed to mark the official agreement, including the Council hosting a dinner for a Nepali delegation on Wednesday, which has been commenced and formally signed by both the Mayors on the eve.

The Nepali Embassy in London is set to host a celebratory ceremony along with traditional Nepalese cultural performances and a typical Nepalese dinner  which will be attended by the Leader of Wolverhampton Council, Councillor Ian Brookfield (Lab. Fallings Park), Mayor Cllr Claire Darke (Lab. Park Ward) and Deputy Mayor Cllr Greg Brackenridge (Lab. Wednesfield South).

Nepal and Britain have maintaining close,cordial and mutually rewarding friendship which spanned more than 200 years and the Gurkhas are contributing to Britain since long. We already have a special ties with Britain however this kind of sister city relationship among local entities will help promote tourism,trade,education and culture as well as to enhance people to people ties.. This will also help in strengthening the bilateral relations of both countries at  the local government levels. I am hoping to have such friendly relationship among other more cities of the UK and Nepal in the days to come, Ambassador Dr. Subedi told South Asia Time.

Monsoon rains turn millions of children’s lives ‘upside down’ across South Asia: UNICEF

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Heavy rainfall, severe flooding and landslides across Nepal, India and Bangladesh have killed at least 93 children, and put the lives of millions more at risk, according to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), which is “responding urgently”.

UN News — “Millions of children have seen their lives turned upside down by the torrential rainfall, flooding and landslides,” Jean Gough, UNICEF Regional Director for South Asia, said on Thursday.

UNICEF/Thomas Nybo A young boy in Bangladesh navigates a river swollen from days of monsoon rain. He is collecting plastic bottles washed into the river to sell to recyclers to help his family purchase food. (July 2019)

Estimates reveal that more than 12 million people have been affected so far. “As the rains continue, these numbers are only likely to grow,” she added.

Damage to roads, bridges and railways has rendered many areas inaccessible, and children are in urgent need of clean water, hygiene supplies, food and safe play spaces in evacuation centres.

 

On the ground, UNICEF is working in close coordination with respective governments and humanitarian partners from the three countries to scale up its responses for affected children and their families.

“UNICEF is responding urgently, working with local authorities and partners to ensure children are kept safe, and provided the support needed”, Ms. Gough assured.

Country-by-country toll

In India, more than 10 million people have been affected in north-eastern states, including more than 4.3 million children. As the situation develops, these numbers are only likely to increase. While parts of the country have been suffering from heavy rainfall and flooding, other parts are still reeling from the aftermath of severe heat and water deficit, affecting almost half of the country.

Turning to Nepal, of an estimated 68,650 temporarily displaced people, 28,702 are children. Some 88 people have died so far, including 47 children. At least 31 people are missing, and 41 others have been injured, according to the latest Government reports. Moreover, in central and eastern Nepal, nearly 12,000 households have been temporarily displaced.

In Bangladesh, monsoon rains continue to impact most of the country, particularly the central-northern and south-east regions, where more than two million people have been affected by flooding, including over 700,500 children. Estimates reveal that 367,340 houses have been damaged or destroyed and 1,865 schools affected by flood waters. Cox’s Bazar in the south-east of the country, home to more than a million Rohingya refugees, has also been heavily hit.

Children pay ‘the heaviest price’

While individual extreme weather events cannot specifically be attributed to climate change, said UNICEF, the increasing frequency and severity of extreme weather – including recent high temperatures, intense rains and slow-moving fronts – are in line with predictions of how human activity is influencing the global climate.

In addition to death and devastation, such events contribute to the increased spread of malnutrition, malaria and diarrhea, among other major killers.

“Across the region, we are seeing the devastating impact of extreme weather events on children and families,” warned Ms. Gough. “As weather events become more extreme, unpredictable and erratic, it is children who are paying the heaviest price.”

xtreme weather consequences:

Floods

  • Threaten children’s survival and development, including by drowning deaths and injuries.
  • Compromise children’s access to education and safe water supplies
  • Damage sanitation facilities, which increases risks of diarrhea and other disease outbreaks.

Damage

  • To housing, which endangers children’s well-being, particularly with scarce or inadequate emergency shelter.
  • To infrastructure makes lifesaving assistance delivery difficult.

India-Nepal oil pipeline to open in August

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IANS, Kathmandu — The Motihari-Amlekhgunj oil pipeline project will start commercial operation by August following virtual inauguration of the Nepal-India bilateral project by executive heads of the two countries, the Himalayan Times reported on Friday.

According to the report, Nepal will officially start fuel trade with India via the pipeline after its virtual launch by Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) and Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) confirmed that groundwork on for the inauguration in the first week of August, said the Himalayan Times report.

The MoFA sources said there was also the possibility of the project being inaugurated by the heads of state of the two nations as President Bidhya Devi Bhandari, during her recent visit to India, had invited her Indian counterpart

Ram Nath Kovind for an official visit to Nepal. Although the exact date has not been fixed, preparations are under way for Kovind’s Nepal visit, the source said.

“While the first option is more likely, the two governments are also exploring the possibility of the second option,” said a MoFA source, who did not want to be named.

The Motihari-Amlekhgunj oil pipeline was first proposed in 1996. However, the project finally edged closer to reality during Indian PM Modi’s visit to Kathmandu in 2014.

The two governments inked an agreement to execute the project in August 2015. However, project construction was delayed following the 2015 earthquake and supply obstruction along the southern border. The project construction works finally began in April last year with the mandate to complete the project within 30 months.

Interestingly, the project has been completed much ahead of its deadline and is ready for commercial operation.

Though the initial cost of the project was estimated to be INR 2.75 billion, where the Indian government would inject INR 2 billion, the NOC stated that total project cost escalated to almost INR 3.25 billion.

Along with reducing huge transportation cost for the NOC, commercial operation of the oil project will also ensure reduction in fuel price in the domestic market.

“Commercial operation of the cross-border fuel project will bring down fuel price by at least one rupee per litre,” said Sushil Bhattarai, deputy executive director at the NOC.

British charities working in Nepal discuss better coordination and collaboration

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Bhagirath Yogi , London– British charities working in Nepal have had a day of networking and collaboration thanks to an event hosted by the Nepali Embassy in London on Thursday. Continue reading “British charities working in Nepal discuss better coordination and collaboration”

OBR warns no-deal Brexit could push UK economy into recession

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The financial watchdog quantified the impact on public finances of a no-deal, no-transition Brexit scenario and concluded that debt would rise relative to GDP over the next three years.

But it said the stress test used in the fiscal risks report was “not the most disruptive one we could have chosen”.

The OBR warned that a no-deal Brexit could lead to a 2% fall in real GDP by the end of 2020 and a sharp fall in the pound.

The report came just six days before Boris Johnson or Jeremy Hunt are sworn in as prime minister, with both candidates pledging a no-deal exit if necessary.

Wage stagnation would stretch for 13 years since the last financial crisis, house prices would slump by nearly 10% between the start of 2019 and 18 months later, and the exchange rate would immediately depreciate by 10%, the report assumes.

The report states: “Heightened uncertainty and declining confidence deter investment, while higher trade barriers with the EU weigh on exports.

“Together, these push the economy into recession, with asset prices and the pound falling sharply. Real GDP falls by 2% by the end of 2020 and is 4% below our March forecast by that point.

“Higher trade barriers also slow growth in potential productivity, while lower net inward migration reduces labour force growth, so potential output is lower than the baseline throughout the scenario (and beyond )

“You are looking here at something that could increase borrowing by £30 billion-a-year, so most people would say that’s a significant sum of money,” OBR chairman Robert Chote said.

And he had a message to Brexit-backers who may argue the borrowing hit would be worthwhile if the UK refused to pay the £39 billion divorce bill.

“There’s a world of difference between a hit to the economy and to the public finances that is an ongoing one over time versus a relatively large but one-off sum,” he said.

Shadow chancellor John McDonnell said the report shows the Tories are a “clear and present danger to the economy and the wellbeing of everyone in the UK”.

“This warning makes it even more imperative MPs from across Parliament back today’s amendments to try and block the next Prime Minister from shutting down Parliament to force through a no-deal Brexit,” he added.

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman she has “repeatedly said that it is better to leave with a deal and that it is up to her successor to take forward the Brexit process”.

Press Association

Former Pakistani PM Abbasi arrested on corruption charges

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Islamabad– Former Pakistani Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has been arrested on corruption charges, according to an official from his Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) party.

Abbasi was taken into police custody after his vehicle was stopped on entry to the eastern city of Lahore on Thursday, PML-N Secretary-General Ahsan Iqbal said, with officials presenting a copy of a warrant of arrest signed by the chairman of the National Accountability Bureau, Pakistan‘s anti-corruption watchdog, Aljazeera reported.

Abbasi is the latest high-profile member of the opposition PML-N party to be arrested in Prime Minister Imran Khan’s “accountability” drive.

The former leader is accused of corrupt practices in the signing of Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) contracts during his year in office as prime minister between 2017 and 2018.

He took office after PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif, a three-time former prime minister, was dismissed from office by the Supreme Court. He was convicted and sentenced to 10 years in prison on corruption charges a year later.

Sharif’s brother, Shehbaz Sharif, the former chief minister of Punjab province, was also arrested in October on corruption charges, and other family members have been held on similar charges.

Other party leaders, including Iqbal, have been charged with corrupt practices in the so-called accountability drive. PML-N and other officials claim the campaign was being selectively applied to political opponents.

In June, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) officials arrested former President Asif Ali Zardari, the chief of the opposition Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), on charges of taking bribes through a network of fake bank accounts.

Last week, Khan’s cabinet directed the country’s media regulator to ban coverage of opposition politicians accused of corruption, after an explosive press conference by Sharif’s daughter, Maryam Nawaz.

Nawaz shared a video that she claimed showed the anti-corruption judge who convicted her father, confessing to being “blackmailed” into the verdict.

The judge has denied the authenticity of the video and was suspended from his post shortly after.

Five Buddha statues have been vandalised by unknown people near the birth place of Lord Buddha Nepal

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PTI, Kathmandu — Five Buddha statues have been vandalised by unknown people near Lumbini, the birth place of Lord Buddha in southwest Nepal, police said.

The incident occurred on Wednesday in Tilottama Municipality of Rupandehi district near Lumbini, 265 km from Kathmandu.

Some unknown people vandalised the statues along the road section adjoining Naya Mill near Shankar Chok, the police said.

The statues in sitting posture were constructed with cement, limestone and sand. Each of the statues weighed over 120 kg, they added.

The act of destruction was an attempt to damage the social and religious harmony in the area, according to local residents.

https://twitter.com/Helloprem2/status/1151715260920819712?s=20

Meanwhile, Nepali Congress leader Balkrishna Khand has demanded strong action against them.

According to the mayor of the municipality, Bashudev Ghimire, authorities are probing the incident.

Earlier, Tilottama Municipality had placed 22 Buddha statues along the road section.

Lumbini is the Buddha’s birthplace, one of the world’s most important spiritual sites and attracts Buddhist pilgrims from around the world.

Nepal launches Visit Nepal campaign in London

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London—In order to promote its ambitious ‘Visit Nepal Year 2020’ campaign, Embassy of Nepal in London jointly with Nepal Tourism Board has launched bus branding Campaign in London.

Around 50 Routemaster buses with the slogan #Nepal LIfetime Experiences will be running through the major spots like Parliament Square, Westminster, Trafalgar Square, Kensington High Street, Oxford Street and St Paul’s as well as along other 18 routes.

The campaign has been started in  bus number 3,8, 9, 11,12, 15 16 , 21, 24, 27, 38, 48, 55, 59, 68, 73,  76, 87, 88, 91, 137, 148, 149, 159, 168, 189, 211, 253, 254, 267, 390 numbers which has started from 16th July and will last 2 weeks.

The Campaign will be for two weeks and is expected to reach out to nearly nearly 4.5 million public across London.

“Thank you Marie Ange Sylvain for the design. Friends in London, do watch out to spot the buses and please share the pics when you do,” said Shraddha Shrestha, Brand Manager of the NTB.

Earlier this week Visit Nepal 2020 secretariat promoted their campaign in London Underground stations targeting  the Cricket World Cup venues and cricket lovers tourists  around the world.

The number of tourists has  gone up from the UK. A total of  63,086 British tourists visited Nepal in 2018 which was 18 percent increase than in 2017.

“We are expecting further increase in the number of British tourists visiting Nepal this year also,” spokesperson of the Embassy in London, Sharad Raj Aran, told South Asia Time.

Nepal aims to bring in around two million tourists next year.

A Nepali political party bans its members from meeting foreign intelligence agents

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London—In what is seen as one of the first decisions by a political party in South Asia, a Nepali political party has banned its members from meeting foreign intelligence operatives.

A new political party led by a former BBC journalist, Rabindra Mishra, has brought a policy  prohibiting its leaders and members from holding talks and meetings with foreign intelligence operatives.

Sajha  party, which describes itself as an alternative political force in the country, said it had to introduce the 13-point directive “due to an open and rampant interference by foreign intelligence agents (into the country’s politics) as well as the negligence of old ruling party leaders.”

“Leaders from old parties including Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli have openly met foreign secret agents. Even many MPs and leaders have allegedly sold government’s secret plans and documents to foreign agents” Rabindra Mishra , Convener of party told the AP1 TV.

In his book “Prayogshala,” journalist Sudheer Sharma has written about a meeting between an operative of Indian intelligence agency, RAW, and then leader of the CPN (UML) K P Sharma Oli. Oli has never refuted about that meeting.

“This is not merely a policy for Sajha Party cadres but also an alarm of embarrassment to  conventional political forces who believe in throwing stones , burning tyres and imposing their party politics on schools, colleges , universities and even among public servants. This is how Sajha Party wants to lead by example,” Dr Surya Raj Acharya, spokesperson of the party told reporters in Kathmandu.

The Directive has barred central member of the party to hold talks with operatives of foreign intelligence agencies. The directive states that party leaders as well as members should get prior permission from the Foreign Affairs department of the Party before meeting officials of foreign embassies as well as foreigners. “They should be accompanied by a leader assigned by the Party.”

The Directive further states that any meeting with foreign officials should take place either at the party office or at a ‘neutral’ venue.

Any event related to politics and finance will have to be cleared by party officials after which the party’s foreign affiars department will decide if it wants to send its members or not.

If the directives are not followed, the department will ask for a written explanation after which it will decide if the offence is punishable or not.

Kuwait to recruit Nepalese domestic workers

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KUWAIT CITY : The head of the Federation of Employers of Household Employment Agencies Khaled Al-Dekhanan said there is a possibility of the Nepalese workers arriving in Kuwait soon following a meeting with the Deputy Ambassador of the Kingdom of Nepal to Kuwait Prakash Mali and the labor attaché of Nepal, reports Al-Rai daily, Arab Times reported.

Al-Dekhanan told the daily this comes “within the framework of the efforts made by the federation to open outlets for the recruitment of domestic workers to increase supply and reduce cost of hiring, which allows the Kuwaiti family to choose the most suitable for them.”

“In this regard,” he said, ‘the federation has been meeting with officials to overcome the difficulties and agree on the possibility of bringing skilled Nepalese labor to work in Kuwait, and the response was quick due to the distinguished relations between the two countries.”

Engineering alone won’t solve South Asia flooding

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By Dr Phil Collins, Brunel University

The current extreme flooding in India, Nepal and Bangladesh is largely down to intense rainfall in the Himalayas and surrounding areas as a result of the South Asian Monsoon.

This is an annual event that brings moisture laden winds inland from the sea – in this case, the Indian Ocean. As this air moves north, the increase in the height of the land forces the air higher, which causes it to cool and the water it is carrying begins to condense. The rainfall it produces provides water for agriculture and feeds the region’s rivers, including the Ganges and Brahmaputra. In the high and cold Himalayan region, much of it falls as snow and is temporarily stored as ice in glaciers, and when it melts, the ice helps maintain river flow between monsoons.

The intensity of the monsoon and the areas most affected, varies from year-to-year. This summer’s monsoon has seen particularly heavy rainfall in the headwaters of the Ganges and Brahmaputra river catchments, leading to very high water levels. In the higher and steeper uplands, this has led to flash flooding and landslides. Further downstream, the water levels have exceeded the capacity of the main rivers, leading to extensive flooding.

The extent of lowland flooding this year is not unexpected – much of the affected regions are on floodplains which have been laid down by rivers over thousands of years. There is, however, the human dimension. While it may seem that such large rivers as the Ganges and Brahmaputra are natural features, their flow is heavily influenced by what people have done to them. This includes constructed weirs and dams, as well as flood defences that may locally reduce the risk of flooding but act to allow more water to pass downstream and so increase the flood risk there. Right now it is unclear how much these structures have influenced the current flooding but evidence from elsewhere suggests they can have a role.

Finding a long term solution will be a massive challenge, not least because the affected area covers several countries with growing populations and economies. There is also uncertainty about how the monsoon will behave under future climate change scenarios. There is already evidence that many of the Himalayan glaciers are shrinking, which may affect their ability to act as temporary stores for monsoon water.

What is clear is that very large human populations, critical infrastructure, food production and important conservation parks have been impacted by the floods, with an already significant number of people tragically losing their lives, and many more directly affected. This means that a solution must be found that takes into account not only the way the climate and river systems might work at their extremes, but also the vulnerability of the people and communities in the way.

The answer is unlikely to be only found in extensive hard engineering projects.  Instead, a system that works to build the resilience of both the rivers to absorb change and the communities to adapt is needed.  And the scale of that challenge is enormous.

Nepal impacted by climate change despite minimum role in global crisis: PM Oli

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PTI, Kathmandu: Nepal is experiencing the impact of climate change although it has a negligible role in the global crisis, Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli said Tuesday, citing the first ever tornado that hit the Himalayan nation in March this year.

Nepal is considered one of the most vulnerable countries in the world for climate change effects.

Inaugurating a four-day meeting of the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) here, Oli said the rising temperature, retreating glaciers and erratic rainfall followed by extreme weather events are causing damages to the country’s people and the economy.

“Nepal is already experiencing the effects of climate change although it has minimum role in the global crisis. Despite its negligible role to greenhouse gas emissions Nepal is extremely vulnerable to the impacts of climate change,” Oli said.

“Some countries are well prepared to deal with them, but countries like Nepal are most vulnerable,” he said.

Oli said the climate in Nepal is becoming more vulnerable and unpredictable.

“Nepal witnessed a delayed monsoon. We also had first tornado in our recorded history,” said Oli.

A tornado hit Nepal on March 31 this year followed by massive rainstorm in various places in Nepal, killing at least 31 people and injuring 600 others.

Since last week, floods and landslides caused by incessant monsoon rains across Nepal have till now claimed 78 lives, left 40 people injured and displaced over 17,500 others.

The international conference on climate change that kicked off here on Tuesday is being attended by 250 climate scientists, bureau members of the IPCC hailing from more than 50 countries.

The conference is the second Lead Authors Meeting of the IPCC Working Group -II for deliberations as part of their preparation for the Sixth Assessment Report which is scheduled to be out in 2022.

Prime Minister Oli urged the scientists to consider the plight of small mountainous and small-island nations while preparing the report.

Policy makers and climate scientists said the timing of the gathering in Nepal is perfect for drawing global attention to Nepal and the whole region which is highly vulnerable and already witnessing adverse impacts of climate change.

“Meeting here in Kathmandu reminds us–in a very direct way–of the strong interdependence of human and natural systems, and how both are threatened by climate change,” Debra Roberts, the Working Group II Co-Chair, said.

She said Nepal is considered one of the most vulnerable countries in the world for climate change effects.

“The latest landmark study in the Hindu Kush Himalaya region, which covers 3,500 kilometres across Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal and Pakistan, has projected an alarming future for poor and geographically challenged countries like Nepal,” she said.

The region which is a critical resource for Asia is undergoing climatic changes which need both special attention and collective response, pointed out David Molden, Director General of the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD).

World Cup Football 2022 Asian Qualifiers draw, Nepal to face tough team

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Kathmandu —  Asia’s 40 countries have been divided into eight groups in their second-round qualification draw of the World Cup 2022, in Malaysia, on Wednesday. Group winners and four best runner-up teams will qualify for the final round of qualification.

Likewise, these twelve teams will secure their berth in the Asian Cup 2023. Nepal has been drawn alongside Australia and Kuwait.

According to Asian Football Federation, Nepal are drawn in Group B with Australia, Kuwait, Chinese Taipei and Jordan.

Courtesy: FIFA.com