It’s already time. It’s now or never. We have been deprived of a proper extensive research centre for a very long time now, and we are already late to catch-up with the rest of the world.

On June 12, 2017, International Cricket Council (ICC) wrote a letter to its Associate members stating: “This (ACPL-Asian Club Premier League) is a Disapproved Cricket and Members should not issue any No Objection Certificate (NOC)’s for this event.”

Banks, corporate houses and government offices, among other organizations, are undergoing Information Systems Audit (IS Audit) in Nepal, which is a good sign that our society is moving towards information management and data security. But many are still unaware about the idea and evidently, fail to understand why they need it.

Sometimes, unforgettable incidents occur in our lives. Some incidents even spoil people’s lives. For example, there is nobody to support a child if his/her parents die. Street kids can be seen indulging in substance abuse to escape life’s harshness. This happens because there is no one to guide or support such kids.

If ICC World Cup is reading a science-fiction story written by a world renowned writer, ICC World Cricket League Championship is a novel written by little known writer which mostly nerds and peoples who belong to the writer’s home country know about.

Despite geopolitical complexities riveting the Asian region, Nepal, as an immediate neighbor, has formally joined the China-led belt and road initiative (BRI), with an anticipation to promote mutual beneficial cooperation in various fields including infrastructural up-gradation, economic development, and enhancement of the capacity in the service sector, technology transfer, cultural collaboration and above all growth of tourism sector. Because of the connectivity, millions of people visit or go through Nepal.

Government change is a normal practice in a parliamentary system. Recently Britain and France have witnessed the change in government after elections for parliament and president. However, core principles of foreign policies still remain intact. As is evidenced by historical facts, Nepal does not have a consistent foreign policy. With the change in government, foreign policy also gets affected.  Now, people in Nepal are worried about the possibility of the same history repeating itself again with the change of government and Sher Bahadur Deuba becoming the new Prime Minister. Such skepticism is generated because of past records, which show change in core policy of Nepal after the change of government. Whether the replacement of Prachanda-led government by Deuwa-led one will uphold the previous agreements reached with China, is a question frequently raised in Nepali intelligentsia.

For those hoping that India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi would more perceptibly shift towards the development plank rather than the religio-doctrinal 'Hindutva' plank, the New Year came with an encouragement. With the five states including Uttar Pradesh (UP), the most populous one in the country, going to provincial polls, the analysts were eagerly watching for any sign of such a shift.

Recently I had an opportunity to be present at a program in Israel where seasoned female diplomats from Israel and abroad were the key speakers. Drawing on their experiences, they spoke about the challenges of being a professional in the field historically classified as a man’s job.

I still remember my initial days when my husband and daughter used to discourage me. They let me feel that what I was doing was a low profile job. I had clearly told them that I was proud of my job as I have to deal with educated people.