Four people died of snakebites in Mahottari district on Monday. Manish Raut, 11, and Sushil Singh, 36, of Gaushala Municipality-12 died while being rushed to Bardibas Snakebite Treatment Centre, according to the Area Police Office in Gaushala.

Yet another district adjoining Nepal-India border point has reported cases of smuggling of petroleum products to India, where petrol and diesel are expensive than in Nepal.

Sugarcane farmers in Sarlahi district called off their two-week long protests on Tuesday after farmers and mill operators reached a 6-point agreement to settle outstanding payment to farmers.

A fast unto death by Shesh Mahabubh Reja to protest against nonpayment of dues to sugarcane farmers by sugar mills entered its third day on Monday.

Sugarcane farms in Province 2 may have been negatively affected by the lack of labour, aging farmers, payment disputes, unfavourable climate and a delay of mechanisation, but sugarcane output has been on increasing trend.

Tomato farmers have been rejoicing as favorable climatic conditions have led to a bumper harvest. Every day, farmers are supplying more than 50 tonnes of tomato to different parts of the country and pocketing over Rs1 million per day. Sarlahi is famous in the country for tomato cultivation.

Sugar mills in Sarlahi have started purchasing sugarcane from farmers without fixing the price of the crop.

The district administration is geared to foil security threats on December 7, the polling day for the second phase of federal parliamentary and provincial assembly elections.

Locals of Jutpani along the Malangawa-Nawalpur road section in Saralhi on Wednesday blocked off vehicles for hours to protest the bad road and dust that they say was suffocating their community.

Independent candidates outnumber the official nominees of political parties for the upcoming provincial and federal elections in Sarlahi.

A group of three unidentified persons shot dead a bullion trader at Kabilasi Municipality-2 in Sarlahi district on Tuesday evening.

Many voters in remote areas of Sarlahi do not know how to cast their votes in the September 18 local level election, though the District Election Office has claimed that it has mobilised 501 people for voter education programme.

Province 2 will not see much development activities in the next few months as it will not be able to utilise a big chunk of the budget provided by the central government due to postponement of local level elections and upcoming festive season.

Sanghiya Samajswadi Forum Nepal (SSFN) Chairman Upendra Yadav, who was regarded as an architect in Madhes for waging campaigns for rights of Madhes and Madhesis ten years ago, has faced backlash in the southern belt on Sunday.

The Rastriya Janata Party-Nepal, a new force formed after the merger of six Madhes-based parties, has yet to decide to participate in the June 28 elections but it already appears to be a powerful contender.