Nepal has been conferred with the 2012 Resolve Award in recognition of its achievements in health, in particular maternal and neonatal health.

Ambassador/Permanent Representative of Nepal to the United Nations Office and the leader of the Nepali delegation to the 65 World Health Assembly, Shanker D. Bairagi, on Tuesday received the award on behalf of the Government of Nepal.

In a nation where a civil war and years of political deadlock have stunted prosperity and development, the burgeoning rhino population is one of Nepal's rare success stories.

The Himalayan country's endangered one-horned rhinoceros has increased its numbers significantly over recent years thanks to tightened security against poachers and community conservation programmes.

Wildlife experts spent a month last year conducting an exhaustive survey and counted 534 rhinos in Nepal's southern forests -- 99 more than when the last such census was carried out in 2008.

The local administration in Gorkha has banned import of poultry in the district after more than 200 chickens died in Jaubari and Gokhu VDCs recently. Authorities suspect that bird flu may have killed the chickens.

Samples of the dead fowl have been sent to the Capital for tests. As a preemptive measure, the remaining fowls at the two farms were also slaughtered recently. A meeting held at the District Administration Office has decided to inspect the coops for possible infection.

Three people were killed and five missing Wednesday after floods carrying volcanic debris swept through a town in eastern Indonesia, a government official said.

"Following heavy rains during the night, volcanic floods hit early morning at 2:00 am (1700 GMT)," national disaster mitigation agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said.

Two people were also injured as the floodwaters rampaged, damaging at least 20 homes in Ternate City in North Maluku province and forcing evacuations to government offices and schools, he added.

Nobody can say for sure when Kathmandu denizens’ wish to get adequate drinking water supply from the Melamchi River will materialise. There are no solid grounds for predicting that the project will complete anytime soon.

The much hyped project has been mired in controversy ever since its inception in 2002. The deadline of the project has been revised several times, which increased the project cost as well as verification claims by contractors.

Forest fires have broken out in 225 places across Nepal, officials say, with some communities in remote areas struggling to control the flames.

Officials say that the fires - some of which have been burning since March - are caused by a long dry spell, discarded cigarettes and windy weather.

One such blaze in the mid-west of the country has destroyed 600 hectares (1,482 acres) of forest, officials say.

Forest fires in Nepal peak during the pre-monsoon dry months.

These usually last from late March to early May.

There is no convincing evidence that the use of mobile phones damages human health, a "comprehensive" review of scientific evidence said on Thursday.

Studies have not demonstrated that the use of mobiles causes brain tumours or any other cancer, according to the review by the Health Protection Agency (HPA)'s independent advisory group on non-ionising radiation.

But it said it was important to monitor evidence as the use of mobile phones has become widespread only recently.

The HPA also recommends that excessive use of mobile phones by children be discouraged.

Nine coal miners were killed and 16 injured in a blast at a colliery in northern China on Monday, state media said, the latest accident to hit the notoriously dangerous industry in the country.

Four people were killed on the spot when the explosion rocked the mine in Bayannur city, in Inner Mongolia, and five more bodies were found hours later by rescuers, the Xinhua news agency said.

An earthquake with a magnitude of 6.6 struck eastern Indonesia on Saturday off Irian Jaya, the United States Geological Survey said, and the Indonesian disaster mitigation agency said the quake has no tsunami potential.

The USGS said the quake was recorded offshore, 51 miles south-southeast of the town of Manokwari, at a depth of 18.5 miles. It had initially estimated the magnitude of the tremor at 6.9 and 7.0. At least one major aftershock was recorded.

The Global Leaders' Council for Reproductive Health has nominated Nepal for the Resolve Award in recognition of its efforts towards achieving the universal access to reproductive health as sought by the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

The Council is a group of sixteen "sitting and former heads of state, high-level policymakers and other leaders committed to advancing reproductive health for lasting development and prosperity".

According to the Council's website, the award is given in three interventions of health--financing, policy development and service delivery.