With the Covid-19 pandemic bringing the economy to a standstill, many businesses are in immediate need for financial support. The finance committee of the Parliament has recommended the government include a NPR 188 billion financial package in FY2021 budget to mitigate the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the economy. The need is urgent, but the economy is in a tight squeeze and a fiscal stimulus may be easier said than done.

Indians often pursue the legacy of the British Raj while executing their foreign policy. The maritime security has become a matter of concern to India very recently and thus Indians have less to learn from its colonial history in this regard. However, its engagement with immediate neighbors including Nepal is closely in line with the legacy of British colonialism.

Dear Sarita Giri, recently you said that Nepal should have consulted India before publishing the new map showing Limpiyadhura, Lipulek and Kalapani of Nepal. You seem to think Nepal’s sovereignty—internally (at domestic level) and externally (at international stages)—is subject to approval or disapproval by neighbouring countries. What a pity!

Prior to COVID-19 pandemic, the now popular online education system had rarely become a priority for Nepali academic institutions. Now the nationwide lockdown has compelled the majority of the institutions and their teachers to run their classes online, mostly by using Zoom software. The evolving trend in the Nepali education system has thus made Nepali teachers, students, and parents familiar with the online classes. Thus COVID-19 has made virtual teaching and learning a new normal. But without proper plans, sufficient technological tools, and much-needed awareness among all stakeholders, it won’t be possible to achieve positive outcomes from ongoing online education. The past experiences have shown that poorly designed technologies rather discourage the teachers and students from adopting it.

WASHINGTON, DC – COVID-19 has confronted the world with a horrific crisis. Because developing a vaccine will likely take at least a year, governments need to buy time to keep health-care facilities from being overwhelmed and to minimize the number of people who fall ill and die, not least by reducing the rate of new infections.

The COVID-19 pandemic is a deep and lasting shock at global level; we all know that returning to “business as usual” is not an option. It is imperative that we perceive the crisis as an opportunity to rebuild—and even improve—livelihoods in a sustainable way. High on the agenda is restoring harmony to humanity’s relationship with nature, and particularly with biodiversity.

Advantage nature. This is one thing that has happened by default amid the scourge of Covid-19 pandemic. It took us to be in global lockdown to allow the natural world we have degraded so much to heal itself to some extent. And the visuals of wild animals roaming our streets, vegetation reclaiming their spaces, skies clearing up offering spectacular views of mountains have been feast for our eyes as we shield ourselves indoors. Satellites have shown Carbon Dioxide emissions dropping deep even in major polluters like China and India.

It’s a bare fact that our hydropower projects are spilling during off-peak hours from May to November and it is triggered by either snowmelt runoff or monsoon precipitation. The situation of having electric power or energy to generate more than the domestic demand of the country, as of now, may be of two types: daily surplus or seasonal surplus. As per the simulation results based on certain assumptions of commissioning hydropower projects, Nepal will be in the state of seasonal surplus till the year 2027 from which Nepal will be a pure exporter of power on RoY (Round-the-Year) basis.

The message to be spread is predetermined. Panelists seem to have been invited only to get it reinforced. The host begins by saying China is using Nepal. China is nobody’s friend. China is alone in the world. Nepal has released the new political map on China’s behest. Nepal’s claim on Lipulekh-Kalapani-Limpiyadhura region is groundless.  The host shouts out loud, almost shrieks. When Nepali panelists start speaking, the host reiterates the same position. The Nepali panelists are literally given no time to make their points.

LONDON – Decades of privatization, outsourcing, and budget cuts in the name of “efficiency” have significantly hampered many governments’ responses to the COVID-19 crisis. At the same time, successful responses by other governments have shown that investments in core public-sector capabilities make all the difference in times of emergency. The countries that have handled the crisis well are those where the state maintains a productive relationship with value creators in society, by investing in critical capacities and designing private-sector contracts to serve the public interest.