Nepalinews

TOKYO:  At a studio in the Japanese capital, director Taro Kambe peers into a black headset to check a scene from his first video to make use of virtual reality technology. “I have directed hundreds of adult videos but it was my first virtual reality movie,” said the 39-year-old.Japan is the world’s second biggest virtual reality market after the United States and the adult entertainment industry and gaming sector are turning to VR as a new way to distribute content. Virtual romantic liaisons for men and women were on display at the Tokyo Game Show on Thursday. Voltage, a developer which creates gaming apps aimed at women, showcased its virtual reality game “Wedding VR”, in which players don a headset and tie the knot with an animated male character. The company hopes to roll out the game in Japan’s ubiquitous game centers. Voltage had success last year with a game in which the seated player is approached by a handsome virtual man who reaches in, potentially for a kiss...

NEW YORK:  Demi Lovato was named a Global Citizen ambassador at the organization’s annual music festival Saturday, championing the mental health of thousands of children displaced within Iraq and other vulnerable communities. The singer and Global Citizen will fund the expansion of a Save the Children pilot program, Healing and Education through the Arts, to violence-scarred young people living in Iraq’s Kirkuk and Salah al Din areas.“Ending the stigma around mental health conditions and supporting internally displaced children to build physical and mental resilience through education and access to justice is not a choice, it needs to happen, and it needs to happen now,” the singer said onstage in Central Park. Since 2014, more than 3 million people in Iraq have been displaced within the country due to war and conflict. Carolyn Miles, president and CEO of Save the Children, told the festival crowd the organization’s HEART program will allow displaced children scarred by the...

Manchester  United  ground out a 1-0 Premier League win at Southampton as striker Romelu Lukaku scored his eighth goal of the season in all competitions and manager Jose Mourinho was sent off for dissent on Saturday. The result ensured  United  equalled their best start to a Premier League campaign but left them second on 16 points from five games, behind leaders  Manchester  City on goal difference after their arch rivals thrashed Crystal Palace 5-0.Mourinho, who was sent to the stands in the last minute of stoppage time as Southampton piled on the pressure in the closing stages, was glad to come away from St Mary’s Stadium with three points after an unimpressive performance. “It is not always possible to operate at high quality but we fought hard,” Mourinho told Sky Sports. “I felt some of the boys were not sharp. I didn’t feel like we could score three or four goals, like we sometimes do, so the option was to make sure we got the points. “Ro...

Betting on the surplus power in the system by the end of next year along with completion of the 456-megawatt Upper Tamakoshi Hydroelectric Project (UTHEP), Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) is taking the initiative to promote electric vehicles for competent management of the surplus power.The power utility has called a tender to instal charging stations in different places of major cities to encourage people to shift to electric vehicles. According to the power utility, a charging station in the NEA office premises will be installed shortly and the authority is also mulling over making electric vehicles mandatory for top posts from director level to spread the message that electric vehicles should be given due priority. According to Prabal Adhikari, spokesperson for NEA, the power utility is planning to first instal charging stations in Kathmandu Valley and major cities and gradually expand to other areas after the flow of electric vehicles increases. Moreover, the power utility ...

JANAKPURDAHAM:  Rastriya Janata Party Nepal has clinced the deputy and mayoral posts of Janakpur Sub-Metropolitan City in the third phase of local level elections in province number 2. RJPN candidate Lal Kishor Sah has been elected as the mayor of the Metropolis as he collected 21,277 votes while his closest competitor Nepali Congress Manoj Sah mustered 10,639 votes.Similarly, RJPN dupty mayoral candidate Rita Jha was elected as the deputy mayor of the Sub Metropolitan city. She collected 16,617 votes while her competitor received 10,109 votes. Out of 25 wards in the Sub-Metropolitan City, RJPN has won in 12 wards, NC clinched 7 victories in ward, FSFN in 3 wards, the main opposition UML has won in 2 followed by one win for independent candidate. After being newly elected as the Mayor of the City, Sah pleaded to make the historical and cultural city to make it clean and managed city as his first priority. He also said Janakpurdham would be developed as the multi-cultura...

UNITED NATIONS/WASHINGTON:  North Korea said on Saturday targeting the US mainland with its rockets was inevitable after “Mr Evil President” Donald Trump called Pyongyang’s leader “rocket man”, further escalating rhetoric over the North’s nuclear weapons and missile programs. North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho’s remarks to the United Nations General Assembly came hours after US Air Force B-1B Lancer bombers escorted by fighters flew in international airspace over waters east of North Korea in a show of force the Pentagon said showed the range of military options available to Trump. Ri’s speech capped a week of rising tensions between Washington and Pyongyang, with Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un trading insults. Trump called Kim a “madman” on Friday, a day after Kim dubbed him a “mentally deranged US dotard.” On Saturday, the mudslinging continued with Ri calling Trump “a mentally deranged person full of megalomania and complacency” who is trying to tu...

BERLIN:  Chancellor Angela Merkel is widely expected to win a fourth term in office as Germans go to the polls — and this election is also likely to see the farthest right-wing party in 60 years, the anti-migrant Alternative for Germany, win seats in parliament. Merkel has campaigned on her record as chancellor for 12 years, emphasizing the country’s record-low unemployment, strong economic growth, balanced budget and growing international importance.That’s helped keep her conservative bloc well atop the polls ahead of Sunday’s election over the center-left Social Democrats of challenger Martin Schulz. The latest polls have Merkel’s bloc at 34 to 37 percent support, the Social Democrats with 21 to 22 percent and the Alternative for Germany, or AfD, with 10 to 13 percent support.

MADRID:  Atletico Madrid warmed up for next week’s Champions League clash with Chelsea by brushing aside Sevilla 2-0 at home on Saturday thanks to second-half strikes from Yannick Carrasco and Antoine Griezmann. New Atletico striker Diego Costa, whose transfer from Chelsea was agreed this week, watched on from the stands as both sides hit the woodwork in the opening 20 minutes of an even first period. It was all Atletico, however, after the break. Carrasco raced onto former Sevilla striker Luciano Vietto’s through ball to round the onrushing goalkeeper and slot home minutes after the restart, before Griezmann then put the result beyond doubt from close range with just over 20 minutes to play. Diego Simeone’s Atletico side, who face Chelsea at home on Wednesday, leapfrog Sevilla into second place on 14 points, one behind league leaders Barcelona, who face Catalan rivals Girona in Saturday’s late kick off.

DUBAI:  Iran has successfully tested a new ballistic missile with a range of 2,000 km (1,200 miles) which it displayed at a military parade on Friday, state media reported on Saturday. The test-firing of the Khorramshahr missile, which Iran said could carry several warheads, is likely to raise concerns in Washington. State broadcaster IRIB carried footage of the missile test without giving its time and location, including video from an on-board camera which it said showed the detachment of the cone that carries multiple warheads. “You are seeing images of the successful test of the Khorramshahr ballistic missile with a range of 2,000 km, the latest missile of our country,” state television said. “This is the third Iranian missile with a range of 2,000 km,” it added. The Khorramshahr missile was first displayed at a military parade on Friday, where President Hassan Rouhani said Iran would strengthen its missile capabilities without seeking any country’s permission....

PARIS:  Tens of thousands of supporters of French far-left opposition party leader Jean-Luc Melenchon gathered on Paris’s Bastille Square on Saturday to march against President Emmanuel Macron’s labour reforms. Trade union protests against Macron’s plan to make hiring and firing easier and give companies more power over working conditions seem to be losing steam, but Melenchon’s “France Unbowed” party was hoping for a show of force to reinforce its credentials as Macron’s strongest political opponent. Some recalled a campaign rally in March, weeks before the presidential election, that drew some 130,000 people. “There is the same gaiety, the same enthusiasm as during the presidential campaign. When it starts like this, it’s already a win,” said Chantal Quillot, a 64-year-old pensioner who had come by bus from Agen in southwest France. Macron campaigned for the presidency as someone who could bridge the divide between left and right. But since his election, he has ...

NEW YORK:  “Saturday Night Live” says it’s kicking off its 43rd season September 30 with guest host Ryan Gosling and musical guest Jay-Z. For Gosling’s encore host appearance he’ll be on hand to promote his new film, “Blade Runner 2049.” Jay-Z will be plugging a world tour that starts next month. On October 7, “Wonder Woman” star Gal Gadot will be guest host, with musical guest Sam Smith. Kumail Nanjiani will host the season’s third show on October 14. He stars in the HBO comedy “Silicon Valley” and recently wrote and starred in the acclaimed film “The Big Sick.” Pink will be musical guest. This season NBC’s “Saturday Night Live” will air live simultaneously across the US

KATHMANDU:  Love is powerful enough to transform a bad guy into a gentleman.  Johnny Gentleman  tells you how, and promises a full dose of entertainment from beginning till the end. Johnny’s (Paul Shah) profession is to break into jails and help criminals escape. Then the bad guy falls in love with Shree (Aanchal Sharma), a handicraft teacher, at first sight. Shree reciprocates his feeling, and Johnny leaves his profession. But their sweet love story gets a difficult turn as some unfortunate incidents unravel. This twist makes the movie more interesting as the film develops in the direction that is beyond expectation. Shah has shed his earlier image of a lean and thin chocolate hero. With a well-built physique and matching get up — leather jacket, grunge pants and shades — he gives that irresistible aura of manliness. Performance wise, he is at his best as he transforms into different moods through his facial expressions, be it romantic or serious scenes. ...

LONDON:  Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Neymar are the contenders for FIFA’s top player award for the third straight year. The nominations were announced in London on Friday, with Ronaldo favored to join Messi as a five-time winner. The prizes will be handed out at the London Palladium theater on Oct. 23. While Ronaldo won the Spanish league and Champions League at Real Madrid, Messi and Neymar collected only the Copa del Rey title with Barcelona. Off the field, the three players have all been embroiled in tax cases in Spain over the last year. Carli Lloyd is in contention to sweep a hat trick of women’s player awards. The American midfielder is being challenged by Lieke Martens, whose goals powered the Netherlands to the European Championship, and 18-year-old Deyna Castellanos, who won the South American Under-17 Championship 2016. In the coach of the year categories, most are being recognized for their achievements at club level. The nominees for the men’s pr...

In a major setback to the government’s reconstruction drive, Nepal Telecom has pulled out of reconstruction of Dharahara — one of Kathmandu’s iconic landmarks that collapsed during the devastating earthquake of April 25, 2015. According to National Reconstruction Authority, it received a letter from NT on Tuesday stating the company’s unwillingness to rebuild the monument in Sundhara that had come to symbolise the havoc created by the deadly temblors over two years ago. “NT has stated in its letter that it is unable to rebuild Dharahara as per the design of the government,” informed Yam Lal Bhoosal, spokesperson for NRA. As per Bhoosal, NT has cited two main reasons for pulling out of Dharahara reconstruction — the government’s refusal to let NT rebuild the monument as per a design that ensures sustainable operation of Dharahara after it is erected, and the local cultural communities being opposed to rebuilding Dharahara according to the design proposed by Department of Archaeolo...

SEOUL/NEW YORK:  North Korean leader Kim Jong Un blasted US President Donald Trump as “mentally deranged” on Friday and vowed to make him pay dearly for threatening to destroy his country, hours after Trump ordered fresh sanctions over Pyongyang’s weapons programmes. Tensions have risen as North Korea has resisted intense international pressure to halt its nuclear and missile programmes, with Trump and Kim exchanging ever-more threatening rhetoric. The US president said in his first address to the United Nations on Tuesday he would “totally destroy” the country of 26 million people if the North threatened the United States and its allies, and called Kim a “rocket man” on a suicide mission. Kim said the North would consider the “highest level of hard-line countermeasure in history” against the United States and that Trump’s comments had confirmed his nuclear programme was “the correct path”. Pyongyang conducted its sixth and largest nuclear test on Sept. 3 and has la...

LONDON:  Iran will strengthen its missile capabilities and will not seek permission from any country to do so, President Hassan Rouhani said on Friday in an undisguised snub to demands by US President Donald Trump. Tasnim news agency reported that Iran had announced a new ballistic missile with range of 2,000 km (1,200 miles), capable of carrying several warheads. The report, which gave few other details, quoted the head of the Revolutionary Guards’ aerospace division, Amirali Hajizadeh, speaking on the sidelines of a military parade in Tehran. At the annual United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, Trump accused Iran of building “dangerous” missiles and exporting violence to Yemen, Syria and other parts of the region. Addressing an armed forces parade in Tehran, Rouhani said Iran would not stop building up its military forces. “We will increase our military power as a deterrent. We will strengthen our missile capabilities … We will not seek permission from anyone...

BIRGUNJ:  Nepali Congress mayoral candidate Ajaya Kumar Dribedi is maintaining a lead over other candidates in the vote counting of Birgunj Metropolitan City, according to Election Commission. NC Dribedi has garnered 4,949 votes, while, NC deputy mayoral candidate Shanti Karki has bagged 5, 774 votes. They both are leading for the top position of the Metropolis.However, Rastriya Janata Party Nepal who was following the NC in the mayoral election has slid further down to third after the Federal Socialist Forum Nepal leapfrogged with slim vote margin. Federal Socialist Forum Nepal mayoral candidate Bijaya Kumar Sarawagi has collected 4,344 votes and leads RJPN candidate Rajeshman Singh by 43 votes margin. Meanwhile, CPN-Maoist Centre leader Rahambar Ansari has mustered 2,743 votes. As of now, altogether 22,498 votes of the Metropolis has been counted and results of 8 wards have been published. NC Manoj Sah Kanu was elected as ward chairman of Birgunj-1, Federal Socialis...

The government has given the responsibility of the executive director of Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) to Joint Secretary at Ministry of Supplies (MoS), Prem Prasad Acharya.A ministerial-level meeting at MoS today decided to give the responsibility of NOC’s top post to Acharya until further notice, according to Urmila KC, undersecretary at MoS. The post of executive director at NOC had become vacant after the government, on Monday, sacked the then executive director of the corporation Gopal Bahadur Khadka for his alleged involvement in financial irregularities while procuring land for the development of petroleum infrastructure.