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Indian farmer protest against Nepali sugar mill

Posted on by SAT News Desk

Lahan, Jan 29: Indian sugarcane farmers have protested by staging a sit-in against the Choharba-based Himalaya Sugar Mills today.

The farmers have staged the sit-in at Kamala Bridge near the Indian border in Jayanagar affecting people’s mobility and transport service.

The protesting farmers have stated that they were compelled to protest as they were distributed the sugar plant saplings with a promise from the mills later to buy the produce later.

However, the mill has denied purchasing the sugarcane, citing government directives.

Meanwhile, the mill administration said that sugarcane from Indian sides was not purchased due to legal hindrances.

Italy slides into recession again after four years, alarm to Europe

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By COLLEEN BARRY and PAN PYLAS, MILAN, Jan 31 (AP) — Italy has slipped back into recession just four years after its last one, official figures showed Thursday, in a development that’s likely to renew concerns about the outlook for the 19-country eurozone economy.

The Italian statistics agency said that the country’s economy, the third-largest in the eurozone, contracted by a quarterly rate of 0.2 percent in the fourth quarter. Following a 0.1 percent drop in GDP in the previous three-month period that means Italy is in a technical recession, defined as two straight quarters of economic contraction.

Italy’s recession is one reason why the wider eurozone slowed in 2018. Statistics agency Eurostat said Thursday that the eurozone grew by a meager 0.2 percent in the final quarter, the same as in the previous quarter.

As a result, the eurozone economy expanded by 1.8 percent in 2018 overall. That’s lower than had been anticipated a year ago, when the bloc was expected to slow only slightly from 2017′s strong 2.3 percent rate.

The Italian economy has become an acute source of concern over the past few months, partly as a result of the new populist government’s spat with the European Union’s executive Commission over its budget plans. The government wants to ramp up spending to get the Italian economy going by providing more social security payments and rolling back a pension reform.

Ahead of the confirmation of the recession, Italian Premier Giuseppe Conte had said Wednesday that even if the contraction continues into the first months of 2019 “there are elements to hope for redemption in the second half.”

The EU Commission, worried about a renewed flare-up of the region’s dormant debt crisis, has insisted that the Italian government rein back on its spending plans because they have the potential to further swell the country’s high debt levels.

Italy hasn’t been the only reason why the eurozone slowed in 2019. Germany, Europe’s biggest economy, suffered an unexpected contraction in the third quarter largely due to changes in emissions standards that hurt auto sales. And uncertainty over Britain’s exit from the EU has weighed on sentiment, as has the fear of a global trade war stoked largely by growing tensions between the United States and China.

Separate economic indicators point to further weakness at the start of 2019 and most economists expect a difficult period ahead if the main causes of uncertainty are not addressed soon.

“The continued decline in sentiment indicates that the underlying pace of growth has slowed even further,” said Christoph Weil, an economist at Commerzbank. “Uncertainty about economic developments in China, the unresolved trade conflict between the U.S. and China and Brexit continue to weigh on the economic outlook for 2019.”

The European Parliament recognized Venezuela’s self-declared interim president Juan Guaido

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BRUSSELS, Jan 31:  The European Parliament recognized Venezuela’s self-declared interim president Juan Guaido as de facto head of state on Thursday, heightening international pressure on the OPEC member’s socialist President Nicolas Maduro.

MEPs voted 439 in favour to 104 against, with 88 abstentions, at a special session in Brussels to recognise Venezuelan congress head Guaidó as interim leader. In a statement the parliament urged the bloc’s 28 governments to follow suit and declare Guaidó “the only legitimate interim president” until there were “new free, transparent and credible presidential elections”.

As Venezuela has sunk into economic and political crisis that has brought mass emigration and hyperinflation, the EU imposed an arms embargo and sanctions on officials to decry what it views as rights violations and the rupture of democracy.

On Thursday, the Brussels-based International Federation of Journalists said seven foreign journalists were detained in Venezuela, including French and Spanish reporters.

EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini called for their release. Foreign ministers were due to discuss the crisis in Venezuela at a two-day meeting in Bucharest from Thursday.

British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who spoke to Guaido by telephone on Wednesday, said the bloc should consider more asset freezes and travel bans on Venezuelan officials.

“Targeted sanctions against the kleptocrats who have enriched themselves on the back of the rest of the population who are very poor, that is something I think can be effective,” Hunt said in a Foreign and Commonwealth Office statement.

Sundeep Jora from Nepal became youngest man to hit fifty in T20 International

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Nepal’s Sundeep Jora became the youngest man to score a fifty in T20 Internationals. Aged 17 years and 103, days Jora scored 53 not out off 46 balls in a T20I match against UAE in Dubai. However, Jora’s heroics could not stop UAE from winning the match by 21 runs.

Chasing 154, Nepal were never really in the hunt but Sundeep Jora’s knock laced with three boundaries and one six gave the team some hope.

Skipper Paras Khadka scored 25 off 25 but Nepal fell short.

This has turned out to be a great month for Nepal cricket.

On January 26, Rohit Paudel, at 16 years and 146 days, scored 55 off 58 in an ODI against UAE to become the youngest half-centurion in international cricket in any format.

The record was previously held by Sachin Tendulkar, who had scored 59 in a Test against Pakistan at the age of 16 years and 213 days.

On January 28, Paras Khadka became the first Nepal batsman to score a hundred in international century. Thanks to his 109-ball 115, Nepal went on to win their first ever ODI series.

South Korean steelmaker POSCO’s profit rose by 10 percent

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By Jane Chung

SEOUL, Jan 30 (Reuters) – South Korean steelmaker POSCO’s core fourth-quarter profit rose 10 percent on higher sales and profit margins, meeting analysts’ forecasts, and the firm lifted its 2019 sales outlook citing firm demand from India and Southeast Asia.

The world’s fifth-biggest steelmaker released 2018 earnings in a filing on Wednesday without disclosing fourth-quarter figures. But Reuters’ calculations showed consolidated operating profit for October-December was 1.3 trillion won ($1.16 billion), up from 1.2 trillion won a year ago.

Analysts had forecast an average estimate of 1.3 trillion won according to a I/B/E/S Refinitiv poll.

Revenue for the quarter climbed 6.4 percent to 16.6 trillion won, according to the calculations. For 2019, POSCO said revenue is expected to rise 2 percent to 66.3 trillion won, from 65.0 trillion won in 2018.

POSCO said it expected steady global steel demand growth in 2019. While India and Southeast Asia demand should grow, Chinese demand may remain flat as economic growth cools.

Steel prices in China, the world’s biggest consumer and producer of the construction material, have fallen about 27 percent since October, dragged down by concerns over oversupply and the Sino-U.S. trade dispute.

Meanwhile, POSCO said it expected to increase capital expenditure and other investments to 6.1 trillion won this year from 2.7 trillion won in 2018.

POSCO shares ended up 6.2 percent before the earnings announcement, lifted by investor expectations that steel prices will rise following the deadly collapse of a dam operated by Brazilian iron ore miner Vale. The Seoul stock market’s KOSPI benchmark was 1.1 percent higher. ($1 = 1,117.0900 won) (Reporting by Jane Chung and Ju-min Park Editing by Kenneth Maxwell)

Protest saying “No Beer only Water” for alcohol ban in Karnataka, India

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Karnataka : Around 2000 women from rural areas of Karnataka marched to Vidhana Soudha in the state capital on Wednesday, January 30 demanding a state-wide liquor ban.

The march was started in the Chitradurga district of the state on January 19 and covered more than 200kms to reach Bengaluru in just ten days. According to The News Minute, the march stopped in as many as nine villages where they formally interacted with the villagers to make them aware of the dangers of alcohol use. The march has women from as many as 23 districts of the state and every day, the women covered about 20 kilometers.

Private firms started registering for social security in Nepal

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Kathmandu : According to the Social Security Fund (SSF), 625 firms have registered their details at the fund till Friday while other firms have been registering themselves every day via the fund’s website.

At a programme organised by the Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security (MoLESS) in the capital today, Labour Minister Gokarna Bista handed over certificate of association to 272 firms. “SSF will verify the remaining 353 employers in the next phase,” he added.

Under this scheme, firms must register themselves at SSF within mid-March while they need to register the details of their workers by mid-June.

“About 15-20 business firms are registering themselves online at the SSF every day and we have called on all the business firms to submit their details as soon as possible,” Bista said.

According to the labour ministry, most of the companies that are registering their details at SSF are liquor companies, hydropower firms, banks and financial institutions and different corporate houses, among others.

Different firms including Jawalakhel Group of Industries, MAW Enterprises, Park Village Hotel, Panchakanya Group, SJVN Arun III Hydropower, Asian Distillery, Chaudhary Group, Himalayan Distillery, Sanima Mai Hydropower and Everest Insurance Company, among others have registered their details at SSF.

Shyamraj Adhikari, executive director of the SSF, mentioned that it will require the combined efforts of the government, employers and the employees to make the Social Security Scheme a success.

Under the contribution-based Social Security Scheme, private sector employees will have to contribute 11 per cent of their basic salary to the fund, while employers or firms will have to contribute another 20 per cent of the employees’ basic salary to the fund.

Earlier, the government had unveiled the plan to collect the monthly instalments for the SSF from June 22.

According to the scheme, of the total fund collected, SSF will allocate 3.22 per cent for medical treatment, health and maternity security and 4.52 per cent for
accident and disability security. It will allot 0.87 per cent for dependent family security and 91.39 per cent for old age security.

EU nudge Google , Twitter and Facebook and Mozilla to work against fake news

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The Commission called on Facebook to provide more clarity on how it uses its tools to fight fake news and told Google to expand its actions to more EU countries. Google, Facebook, Twitter and Mozilla must do more to combat fake news as Europeans head towards an election or the companies will face the threat of regulatory action, the European Commission said on Tuesday.

Companies and trade bodies representing the advertising industry signed up to a voluntary code of conduct in October to ward off more heavy-handed legislation. Critics say not enough has been done since they signed up.

The European Union’s executive said signatories to the code of practice had taken steps to remove fake accounts and limit sites promoting fake news but said more was needed.

“Now they should make sure these tools are available to everyone across the EU, monitor their efficiency, and continuously adapt to new means used by those spreading disinformation. There is no time to waste,” EU Commissioner for the Digital Single Market Andrus Ansip said.

European Parliament will hold elections in May while Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Poland, Portugal and Ukraine all go to the polls in coming months.

Russia has faced allegations – which it denies – of spreading false information to influence the US presidential election and Britain’s referendum on European Union membership in 2016, as well as Germany’s national election in 2017.

The Commission called on Facebook to provide more clarity on how it uses its tools to fight fake news and told Google to expand its actions to more EU countries.

It said Twitter should provide more details on its measures while it said Mozilla’s online browser should have more information on how it would limit details about users’ browsing activities.

The Commission also lamented the absence of advertisers signing up to the pact.

Google said it had announced several measures such as disclosing whether political organisations or political issue advocacy groups were paying for European parliamentary election advertisements and setting up a library with these details.

Google’s Project Shield would help protect campaign groups and journalists from cyber-attacks, it said.

Facebook said: “The battle against false news is an ongoing one, and we need to work together with others in the technology industry, public authorities and governments to make continued progress.”

Twitter said in a statement it had made several changes “including enhanced safety policies, better tools and resources for detecting and stopping malicious activity, tighter advertising standards, and increased transparency to promote better public understanding of all of these areas.”

Mozilla had no immediate comment.

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Anna Hazare began a hunger strike for Lokpal, Lokayukta Implementation

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Maharashtra: Social activist Anna Hazare began a hunger strike today over the “non-fulfilment” of assurances by the Centre and the Maharashtra government on the appointment of Lokpal and passage of the Lokayukta Act in the state. Anna Hazareoffered prayers at the Padmavati Temple in his village, Ralegan Siddhi, in Maharashtra’s Ahmednagar district this morning. He then went in a procession, accompanied by students, youths and farmers, to the Yadavbaba Temple and sat near it to begin his hunger strike.

The anti-corruption crusader told news agency Press Trust of India that he welcomed the Maharashtra Cabinet’s decision to bring the office of state chief minister under the jurisdiction of Lokayukta.

“However, the strike will continue till the government fulfils the promises they made before coming to power about passage of Lokayukta Act, appointment of Lokpal, and to tackle farmers’ issues,” he said.

As a routine procedure, doctors conducted a basic health check-up of Anna Hazare, a close aide of the activist said.

“Anna Hazare has now begun his fast as he is disappointed with the state government for not appointing the Lokayukta,” the aide said. Mr Hazare had written a letter to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday, saying he would launch the agitation in his village from today.

5,000 garment workers sacked over Bangladesh strikes

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DHAKA (AFP) – Nearly 5,000 low-paid Bangladeshi garment workers stitching clothes for global brands have been sacked by factory bosses for joining strikes over wages this month that turned violent, police said on Tuesday (Jan 29).

Thousands of labourers walked out of factory floors across the country in days-long protests that disrupted the US$30 billion (S$40.58 billion) industry – and saw police fire rubber bullets and tear gas at demonstrators.

One worker was killed and more than 50 injured in clashes in Ashulia, a key industrial town outside Dhaka where clothes are sewn for retail giants H&M, Walmart and many others.

Police say thousands of factory workers accused of looting and vandalism during the protests have been fired, but unions have accused the industry of intimidation and a crackdown.

“So far the factories have dismissed 4,899 workers due to the unrest,” a senior police officer told AFP on condition of anonymity.

More than 1,200 garment workers – whose wages start at US$95 a month – were dismissed from a single factory.

Unions say the real number of people fired is much higher, closer to 7,000, and that nearly a hundred more have been arrested in roundups.

Mr Salauddin Shapon, general secretary of industry body IndustriAll Bangladesh Council, said many workers were afraid to return to work.

“Cases have been filed against 3,000 unidentified workers, which has created panic. Many have opted to stop going to factories,” he told AFP.

Police would not comment on allegations of widespread arrests.

Bangladesh is home to 4,500 clothing factories employing 4.1 million workers, and is the second-largest exporter of garments worldwide after China.

Roughly 80 per cent of Bangladesh’s export earnings come from clothing sales abroad, and the industry wields considerable power.

Police were deployed in a bid to break the strikes, which only ended when the government agreed to a paltry pay rise – as little as a few cents a month for some workers.

“The fact remains that, even after recent amendments, workers in Bangladesh still earn poverty wages,” said Mr Ben Vanpeperstraete, from the Amsterdam-based activist movement Clean Clothes Campaign, on Monday.

“The government of Bangladesh is undertaking to intimidate workers and squelch any attempt of workers to organise.”

The strikes spurred demonstrations outside Bangladeshi embassies and consulates around the world, and came just weeks after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was re-elected.

Ms Hasina – who won a landslide victory disputed by the opposition – has been accused of increasing authoritarianism in the South Asian nation of 165 million.

Corruption has been increased even after elected local and federal government in Nepal

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The CPI 2019 report—which ranks 180 countries across the globe based on their levels of corruption—was compiled by Transparency International, and unveiled by TIB around 11am at Dhanmondi’s Midas Centre on Tuesday.

According to TI, Nepal is among the most corrupt countries in the world as it is ranked 124th based on its corruption index. Last year, Nepal was ranked 122 on the list. Nepal scored 31 points out of 100 in the 2018 index released on Tuesday. The report has shown that Nepal’s public sector continues to be more corrupted even after people’s representatives are running the affairs of the state at different levels of government.

Denmark achieved the number one spot on the CPI scale, making it the most corruption-free country in the world. Somalia ranked as the most corruption-riddled country among 180 candidates.

Among Nepal’s neighbors: Bhutan placed 25th, India 78th, Pakistan 117th, Bangladesh  149th , Sri Lanka 89th and Myanmar 132th. Nepal and the Maldives jointly ranked at the 124th position.

In a Twitter post on Monday, Transparency International mentioned: “Being at the top of the #CPI2018 doesn’t mean a country is #corruption free. High ranked countries also have corruption that the CPI doesn’t measure.”

The CPI scale data was compiled from November, 2016 to September 2018.

Rs 15 million worth rose stems being imported for Valentine’s Day in Nepal

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Kathmandu, Jan 25: One hundred sixty thousand units of rose stems worth Rs 15 million are to be imported for the Valentine’s Day and these are going to cost higher this year, Floriculture Association Nepal (FAN) said.

The association stated that the cost of roses is going to be higher this year compared to last year as the demand for rose has risen.

FAN stated that the volume of import rose this year due to the surge in demand. It said that out of the 200 thousand rose stems that are sold on Valentine’s Day, 160 thousand rose stems were being imported from India.

Nepal imported rose worth Rs 12.5 million last year.

Association president Kumar Kasajoo Shrestha said rose is going to cost much this year as the price of rose flower has gone up in the international market.

Rose worth Rs 200 million is traded in the country annually. Shrestha said domestic production meets 20 per cent of the market demand and the rest is imported. Of the total rose imported, more than 60 per cent is consumed in Kathmandu Valley.

The price of rose was in the range of Rs 40 to 80 per unit last year. It is expected to reach in the range of Rs 50 to 100 this year, a rise of 15 per cent.

Although a Western culture, celebration of Valentine’s Day has become a fad in the country in recent years. The Day falls on February 14 but generally the youths start celebrating it one week ahead.

The floriculture business which started from 2007 BS in Nepal has been flourishing with the growing urbanization. Floriculture business and nurseries have been growing with the growing demand for flowers. There are around 675 floriculture nurseries in 41 districts including especially Kathmandu, Lalitpur, Bhaktapur, Kaski, Chitwan, Makwanpur, Kavrepalanchok, Gulmi, Palpa, Dhading, Morang among other districts. (RSS)

141 persons and companies combined got the the permission for mining in Nepal

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Kathmandu: The Department of Mine and Geology has granted permission to 141 persons and companies combined for the mining across the country.

The Mine and Heritage Division under the Department provided the permit to excavate the minerals in different parts of the country in the current fiscal year.

The excavation list includes limestone 141, sphatik 32, stone dust used to make glass 23, iron 4, dolomite 8, ruby 3, zinc 2, copper, stone and coal 3 each, and gone one.

Division Chief Ram Prasad Ghimire informed that although the Division had conducted study in more than 500 places, the permission was given for the excavation in only 241 places. “It is not sure all areas with study have the minerals, so only the areas with traces of minerals are dug up,” he said, adding that most of the mining would be conducted on domestic investment.

The minerals are categorized into three groups- most important, important and common. The most important are gold, silver, diamond and other precious metals.

According to him, owing to high price and lack of technology, the minerals produced in the country as kyanite, quartz and tourmaline have not been exported for two years.

CAN Info-tech 2019 kicks off in Kathmandu

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Kathmandu : Federation of Computer Association Nepal (CAN-Federation) is organizing Subisu CAN Infotech 2019 in Kathmandu.

This will be the 25th edition of the annual information technology (IT) show. This event is being organized at Bhrikuti Mandap Exhibition Hall from January 29 to February 3,2019.

According to the federation, the event will have numerous stalls displaying various information, communication and technology products and services. Computer hardware sales and maintenance, dealers and distributors of power solutions and mobile accessories, Internet service providers, telecommunication firms, ICT colleges and training institutes, and software solution providers will participate in the annual ICT event.

The federation has priced the entry ticket at Rs 50 for students and Rs 100 for general visitors from morning 10 AM till 5 PM.

Beijing GDP growth to 3 trillion yuan(446.6 billion U.S. dollars) in 2018

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RSS / BEIJING- Beijing reported GDP of over 3 trillion yuan (446.6 billion U.S. dollars) in 2018, authorities said Wednesday.
According to the municipal statistics bureau, Beijing attained GDP of 3.03 trillion yuan last year, up 6.6 percent.
“Beijing spent a lot of efforts on moving the non-capital functions out of the city and attained a stable economic growth with its quality improved last year,” said Pang Jiangqian, deputy director of the bureau.
The city’s new economy grew 9.3 percent to over 1 trillion yuan, accounting for 33.2 percent of the city’s GDP.
The city’s per capita disposable income also rose 9 percent to 62,361 yuan last year.
The city saw a total consumption of 2.54 trillion yuan, up 7.4 percent thanks to the growing income.
Consumption in the service sector reached 1.37 trillion yuan, up 11.8 percent, contributing 82.6 percent to the city’s total consumption growth.
According to the city’s market regulation bureau, the number of enterprises in science and technology, service, culture, sports and entertainment established last year reached 88,716, accounting for nearly 50 percent of new enterprises in Beijing last year.
“Our company invested in a number of science and technology companies in areas such as artificial intelligence,” said Wu Haiyan with China Growth Capital, a venture capital firm.
The technical income of science and technology companies above a designated scale in Zhongguan science park accounted for 17.2 percent of the companies’ total income in the first 11 months of 2018, up 2.2 percent year on year.
The culture industry in Beijing also developed fast, with companies above a designated scale and public institutions in the industry reporting revenues of 925 billion yuan last year.

Historic ODI series victory of Nepal against UAE followed by a century of captain Khadka

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Kathmandu : Paras Khadka said Nepal cricket had enjoyed “one of its brightest days” after clinching a first ever one-day international series win.

Khadka, the Nepal captain, scored a century to set his side on the way to a four-wicket win over the UAE at the ICC Academy in Dubai, and set the seal on a 2-1 series win.

It was just their second official ODI series, after a draw in the Netherlands last summer, which followed them being granted that status in March.

Khadka ranked the achievement alongside qualifying to play at the World Twenty20 in Bangladesh in 2014, as well as earning ODI status via the World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe last year.

“It is one of our brightest days,” Khadka said. “Greatest? It’s difficult to say, because every time you get the chance to play for your country, it’s fabulous.

“[Alongside] getting into the [T20] World Cup, it was in Abu Dhabi, getting ODI status, and then today getting our first series win, it would have to be one of our brightest days.

“Having said that, I still remember days when results could have gone either way. In Division 2 [in Namibia last February], we had three matches that went down to the 100th over.

“A result here or there could have seen us down to World Cricket League Division 3 or 2. But we have fought through, we have come through, and we are here now.

“For the next two to three years we have this status, and we want more results like this and to be noticed around the cricketing world.”

The victory was sealed in fine style, when Sompal Kami hit CP Rizwan for six. The Nepalese players raced onto the field to celebrate, some grabbing stumps for souvenirs in the process.

After completing the post-match formalities of handshakes with their opposition, the players made their way to thank the hundreds of supporters who had come to watch, despite it being the first day of the working week.

Khadka’s century had been the first by a Nepal player in ODIs. Despite its significance, his response upon reaching three figures was understated.

“I knew that I had to win the game,” said Khadka, who subsequently fell for 115 when he was trapped lbw by Qadeer Ahmed.