Today's Chatpat: October 14th, 2023

1. A Manang Air helicopter has crashed in Lobuche, while flowing towards Lukla this morning. The Civil Aviation authorities have said that the helicopter was on its way to pick up passengers when it crashed. The pilot has been airlifted to Kathmandu for medical treatment.

Although the Western media tells the world that Nepal's aviation track record is sketchy, we must also be aware that the geographic locations do play a part as wind, sudden drop in temperature and other factors play a role in such accidents and is not always the error of the pilots. 

2. The US-funded MCA-Nepal has canceled the bids it received for the construction of transmission lines in the country. MCA-Nepal was set up to implement the funds received from the Millennium Challenge Corporation Programme.

The bidding process had started almost a year ago and MCA-Nepal had estimated a budget of US$ 220 million. Among the bids received, the lowest bid was for US$ 365 million, nearly 66% more than what MCA-Nepal had estimated. 

3. According to media reports, the health of consumers is at serious risk as poultry farmers are using even banned antibiotics in chicken feed. The Health Ministry is not interested to monitor or take action against businesses selling adulterated products in the country.

A few years ago, the government had tried to ban vegetables from India due to use of excessive pesticide but the Indian government was reported to have threatened our politicians with dire consequences which led the government to backtrack on the decision. Even fishes and other meat products imported from India are reported to contain high level of hazardous chemicals, putting the lives of Nepali citizens at great risk.

4. India faces its arch rival Pakistan in today's fixture of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 held in India. Pakistan will play against India at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. So far, both India and Pakistan have two straight wins under their belt.

Ten teams are participating in this year's World Cup, facing each other in the league tournament. The top four teams will then advance to the semifinals. The final will be held at the same stadium on November 19th, 2023.

5. According to economists, Taylor Swift is set to earn more than a billion dollars from her musical tour while also contributing billions of dollars to the US economy, as hotels, transportation and other sectors benefit from her events.

She will be playing in Asia next year and will continue her US tour from October 18th.She will be visiting South America in November, Japan in February, Singapore in March and will wrap up the tour by November, 2024.

For more daily briefings, do visit www.nepalcares.com/guff