The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has agreed to provide an assistance of US$ 56.8 million (equivalent to Rs 4.8 billion) to the government of Nepal for the implementation of Integrated Urban Development Project (IUDP).

The agreement to this effect was signed between the government and ADB at the Ministry of Finance on Tuesday.

The ADB is going to provide 44.8 million US Dollars in loan and 12 million US Dollars in grant for the development of physical infrastructures in Dharan, Janakpur, Nepalgunj and Siddharthanagar Municipalities.

Dawa Steven Sherpa, 28-year-old mountain guide and adventure pioneer from Nepal, has been awarded the first ever WWF International President’s Award during a special ceremony at global conservation organization WWF’s Annual Conference in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

An avalanche in Annapurna mountain range has triggered massive flood in Seti River in Kaski on Saturday, killing at least eight people and destroying human settlements along the riverbanks along with bridges and crops in a vast area.

Eight dead bodies have been recovered so far, according to District Police Office Kaski. At least two dozen people are missing in the floods and three persons were rescued alive. The death toll is expected to rise given the extent of the floods.

Not even 25 per cent of the brick kilns in the Kathmandu Valley are environment-friendly, pointed out the participants in a programme in the capital on Thursday.

According to RSS, the programme participants said this is because the brick kiln entrepreneurs are not environmentally conscious and they lack the environment-friendly technology as well as the appropriate know-how.

The government is likely to expedite the construction works of the much awaited West Seti Hydropower Project after the approval of the legislature-parliament committee on natural resources to forward the construction of the project.

Minister for Energy Posta Bahadur Bogati told RSS Monday, "We will expedite the construction works of the project at the earliest based on public private concept."

Chanda Rana, an environmental activist, founder of 'Save the Environment Foundation', has launched a pilot project at a community forest in Mukundapur VDC, Nawalparasi, to study the possibility of manual method adoption to control infestation of Mikania [Mile a Minute].

As part of the pilot project, which was launched marking the 'Earth Day', her team has turned a plantation of Sisau trees and surrounding areas of the community forest free of the weed which is threatening the growth of the community forest.

Shree Ganesh community forest in Lubhu has reached the state of nowhere owing to the sheer ignorance by locals, RSS reports.

Community people are showing disinterest to the community forest after they are obliged to go to the neighboring forest for firewood and fodder.

Though some saplings of bamboo have been planted in the community forest stretched over 5.45 hectares of land, it has not brought any changes in the face of forest.

The forest is almost denuded.

They do not get any other benefits rather than grazing cattle in the forest, said locals.

More than 200,000 Nepalis will receive help to address food insecurity and support for life-saving response to children under five, thanks to a US$ 5 million allocation this week from the United National Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF).

“This timely allocation from the CERF will help address some of the most urgent humanitarian needs of the most vulnerable communities in Nepal. Overall the projects supported will benefit more than 75,000 food insecure people and 125,000 children” said Robert Piper, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Nepal.

With the rise in forest encroachment in Kailali, a taskforce has been formed for its prevention and management.

The taskforce formed under the leadership of Chief District Officer (CDO) Kailash Kumar Bajimaya comprises Local Development Officer (LDO), District Police Chief and chiefs of district-based offices of forest, survey and land revenue and representatives of political parties, according to RSS.

The fifth South Asian Conference on Sanitation (SACOSAN) is to be held for the first time Nepal with an objective of formulating policies and programmes by the governments of concerned countries by discussing and consulting with stakeholders on the sanitation of South Asia, RSS reports.

The NGO Fresh Water Action Nepal will organize the conference which will be participated in by representatives of all the countries including Nepal, India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka and stakeholders of all countries.