November 5, 2024: Snapshot of today's main news

Kathmandu, November 5 — In this section, we present the key headlines of the day. If you have been busy and missed the news, we have got you covered. Here are the highlights.

Voting begins on election day in U.S. amid razor-thin competition

Election day voting has begun in the United States, with Donald Trump and Kamala Harris vying to become the next president.

Polls have been opened in more states.

Voters in Connecticut, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, New Jersey, New York and Virginia can all cast their ballots since 6 AM.

New York has the most electoral college votes, with 28 up for grabs there. The state with the fewest is Maine, with four.

Harris has advocated for abortion rights and pledged to lower food and housing costs for working families whereas Trump has vowed to seal the border and has proposed tax cuts worth trillions.

Americans aren't just choosing the president - they're also picking members of the US Congress, and some states are voting on abortion rights.

More than 82 million people voted before election day.

Supreme Court convicts Deepak Manange for attempted murder

The Supreme Court has found Gandaki Province Assembly member and former Minister Deepak Manange guilty of attempted murder. A bench of Justices Nahakul Subedi and Tek Prasad Dhungana upheld the previous verdict from the Patan High Court regarding the case of attempted murder.

The Patan High Court had sentenced him to 5 years of imprisonment for attempted murder, and the Supreme Court has confirmed the same sentence.

Manange had also spent time in jail in December 2018. His case at the Supreme Court began on February 15, 2019. After filing an appeal from jail, the Supreme Court had issued a letter on December 21, 2018, allowing him to be released on bail. Since then, Manange had been fighting the case from outside jail.

Court grants 10 more days of custody for Lamichhane

The Kaski District Court has granted permission to keep Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) President Rabi Lamichhane in custody for an additional 10 days.

Kaski District Court's information officer, Suraj Adhikari, informed that the court has granted additional time for the police to conduct their investigation, effective from October 31. 

This marks the third extension of custody for Lamichhane. Previously, his custody was extended for 6 days, then 7 days, and now for another 10 days.

PM Oli falls ill, undergoes blood test

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has fallen ill. According to his secretariat, he developed a fever on Monday evening, and was sent for a blood test on Tuesday.

Prime Minister's press advisor, Ramsharan Bajgain, informed that due to mild fever and illness, the Prime Minister did not attend any meetings on Tuesday.

According to Bajgain, Prime Minister Oli is receiving treatment at his residence in Baluwatar.

Former Queen Mother Ratna's health showing gradual improvement

Family sources have reported, citing doctors, that the health of former Queen Mother Ratna Rajya Lakshmi Shah is gradually improving.

After facing health issues, Ratna has been receiving treatment at Norvic Hospital in Thapathali, Kathmandu, for the past two days.

Shambhu Adhikari, a member of Ratna’s secretariat, confirmed that her health is showing gradual improvement. "Her health is gradually improving, but there is no information yet on when she will be discharged," he said.

Ratna was admitted to the hospital on Monday night after problems such as congestion in her throat. It is also reported that she has a chest infection.

Kartik Shukala Chaturthi: Chhath festival main fasting rituals commence

The Chhath festival observed as common cultural symbol of the Tarai is being celebrated as per religious tradition and much fanfare starting from today. 

The festival is dedicated to the sun God, with offerings made to the rising and setting sun. It is observed for four days, from Kartik Shukala Chaturthi to Kartik Shukla Saptami as per the lunar calendar. 

It usually falls between Mid-October and Mid-November in the Gregorian calendar. The Sun, considered as the god of energy and of the life-force, is worshiped during the Chhath festival to promote well-being, prosperity and progress.

Kamalpokhari decorated for Chhath festival

Kamalpokhari has been decorated for the Chhath festival.

The decorations were made starting on Tuesday with the beginning of the Chhath festival.

This year, the main day of the Chhath festival falls on Thursday, November 7 (Kartik 22).

Two dead as car submerges in pond in Sarlahi

The bodies of two people who went missing along with a car have been found in a pond at Miyakhor, located in the Ishworpur Municipality-2 of Sarlahi. The bodies were discovered by Armed Police Force (APF) divers.

The car, with the registration number Lu 2 Cha 6758, was heading from Bayalbas in Sarlahi to Gausala in Mahottari when it lost control and plunged into the pond at Miyakhor early this morning.

The bodies recovered belong to 37-38-year-old Suresh Mahto from Gausala Municipality-10 and 37-year-old Ramakanta Thakur from Sonama Rural Municipality-8 of Mahottari district.

Country witnesses surge in foreign tourists' number

The country has witnessed a significant surge in the number of foreign tourists visiting Nepal in 2024, with a total of 940,732 foreign tourists over the first 10 months of the current fiscal year 2024/25.     

According to the statistics of the Nepal Tourism Board, altogether 124,393 tourists arrived in Nepal in October alone, marking a 6.4 per cent increase compared to the same month last fiscal year when 117,306 tourists had visited.     

Likewise, Nepal received 134,096 foreign tourists in the corresponding month of fiscal year 2019/20 (prior to the COVID-19 pandemic).     

The Board shared that the rise in the tourists' number reflects the trend of recovery in the country's tourism sector after the pandemic.   

SC dismisses writ petition against Nepal-India electricity trade agreement

The writ petition filed against the long-term electricity trade agreement between Nepal and India has been dismissed. The Supreme Court ruled to dismiss the writ petition on Tuesday.

The bench, consisting of Chief Justice Prakashman Singh Raut and Justices Sapana Pradhan Malla and Mahesh Sharma Paudel, dismissed the petition while issuing directive orders on certain points.

Supreme Court spokesperson Achyut Kuinkel stated that while the full bench of the Supreme Court decided to reject the writ petition, they issued certain directive orders on specific issues, which have not yet been made public.

Previously, the bench had scheduled the decision for October 29, but it was postponed to November 5.

NEPSE sees slight decline after Tihar holiday

The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) index saw a slight decline on Tuesday. After the Tihar holiday, the market opened for the first time with significant volatility, falling by 0.21 points.

As a result, the market dropped to 26,677.40 points on Tuesday. The total transaction value for the day amounted to NPR 4.2 billion.

The market reached a high of 2,697 points and a low of 2,670 points on Tuesday.

Gold prices drop by NPR 2,800 after Tihar

In the first transaction after Tihar, the price of gold has decreased.

According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers' Association, the price of hallmark gold on Tuesday was set at NPR 168,200 per tola (11.66 grams).

Before Tihar, on October 31, the price of gold had reached NPR 171,000 per tola, marking the highest price recorded so far. However, in the first transaction after the Tihar festival, the price dropped by NPR 2,800 per tola.

Currencies jumpy, stocks stable with all eyes on US election

Stocks were steady on Tuesday but implied volatility ratcheted up in currency markets in an early indication of the market frenzy to come, as the world awaits the outcome of a knife-edge U.S. election.

Overnight implied volatility options for euro/dollar spiked to the highest since November 2016, as did those for the dollar-Mexican peso pair , in recognition that the latter could be hard hit by protectionist policies if Republican Donald Trump defeats Democrat candidate Kamala Harris.

Europe's benchmark STOXX index edged down 0.2% while MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS), opens new tab inched 0.7% higher, as stock markets held their breath ahead of Wednesday's open.

TIA to close for 10 hours daily starting November 8

Tribhuvan International Airport will be closed for 10 hours daily starting November 8 for runway expansion work. The closure is necessary to construct a taxiway parallel to the runway to increase the airport's operational capacity.

According to the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), the work will take approximately five months at a rate of 10 hours per day. Since it is not possible to carry out the work during the summer season due to the monsoon, the current period is the only feasible time, explained CAAN's Director General, Engineer Pradeep Adhikari.

Engineer Adhikari clarified that the airport's operational capacity will be increased by building the parallel taxiway to the runway. He also emphasized that the plan for this project has been in place for nearly eight months and should not be associated with the operations of Bhairahawa International Airport.

Climate finance, mountain agenda Nepal's top priorities at COP29

As the stage is all set in Azerbaijan for the annual world climate conference, COP29, Nepal has finalized its agenda to be raised in the event.

President Ram Chandra Paudel is scheduled to attend the UN climate conference being held in Baku, capital city of Azerbaijan, from November 11 to 22. 

Chief of climate change division at Ministry of Forest and Environment, Dr Sindhu Prasad Dhungana, has informed that Nepal had finalized the agenda to be presented in the COP29.  According to him, loss and damage, mountain region and climate finance would be top agenda which were underlined in the national status paper after collecting suggestions with the formation of various groups focusing on carbon trade, climate finance, mitigation, adaptation, capacity building, gender equality, transparency and good governance. 

Elon Musk can keep giving $1m to voters, judge rules

Elon Musk's political group can keep awarding $1m (£722,000) to voters in swing states, a judge has ruled.

The giveaway by Mr Musk's America PAC is set to end on Tuesday, and the final recipient has already been determined, a lawyer for the billionaire said in a court hearing on Monday.

In a surprising turn, the lawyer revealed that people receiving the money have not been chosen randomly in a lottery-style contest, as many believed, but were selected by the group.

Philadelphia District Attorney Lawrence Krasner had sued to stop what he called an "an illegal lottery" after Musk announced he would give the money to one voter in a swing state each day until Election Day.

North Korea fires a barrage of ballistic missiles toward the sea ahead of US election

North Korea fired a barrage of short-range ballistic missiles into the sea on Tuesday, its neighbors said, as it continued its weapons demonstrations hours before the U.S. presidential election.

Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani said at least seven North Korean missiles flew as far as 400 kilometers (250 miles) with a maximum altitude of 100 kilometers (60 miles). He said they landed in the waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan.

“North Korea’s actions, including a series of repeated missile launches, threaten the peace and safety of Japan, the region and the international community,” Nakatani said.

Mario Balotelli makes first Serie A appearance in 4 years

Mario Balotelli made his first Serie A appearance in four years when he came on as a late substitute in Genoa’s 1-0 win over Parma on Monday and earned a yellow card within five minutes.

Balotelli came on in the 86th minute and was booked in injury time for a foul.

The former Italy international signed with relegation-threatened Genoa last week, having last played in Italy’s top division with hometown club Brescia in 2019-20.

Parma’s winless streak reached nine games with the loss, even though the host had the best of the first half with Valentin Mihaila and Anas Haj Mohamed coming close to opening the scoring.

Pig's head thrown on pitch during derby in Brazil

A pig's head was thrown on to the pitch during a game between Sao Paulo rivals Corinthians and Palmeiras in the Brazilian championship.

The incident occurred as Palmeiras prepared to take a corner in the first half and Corinthians forward Yuri Alberto ran from the penalty box to kick it off the pitch before play continued.

Alberto went on to score as Corinthians won the game 2-0.

"I almost broke my foot, I thought it was a cushion, I went to take it off with my foot, I kind of kicked it. It was a pig's head, I almost hurt my foot," Alberto told O Globo's SporTV., external

Djokovic pulls out of ATP Finals

Defending champion Novak Djokovic has pulled out of the ATP Finals because of an "ongoing injury".

The 37-year-old Serb, who has won a record seven titles at the event, had already qualified as the sixth best player on the ATP Tour this season.

"I was really looking forward to being there, but due to ongoing injury I won't be playing next week," Djokovic wrote on social media.

"Apologies to those who were planning to see me. Wishing all the players a great tournament. See you soon."

Djokovic, who has won a record 24 Grand Slam men's singles titles, indicated last month that competing in the tour's year-end finals was not a priority.