For domestic carriage in Nepal, current minimum compensation for death of a passenger is $20,000.

According to the new rule issued on Thursday, passengers and cabin crew have to use double masks and tickets should be issued only to those with vaccination proof.

On Tuesday, a meeting at the Home Ministry concluded that rapid antigen tests for travellers boarding domestic airlines doesn’t look practical.

The announcement for the mandatory requirement of vaccination cards has increased the number of people coming for vaccines. On Saturday, a record 435,000 people were vaccinated in a single day.

Nepal’s economy has been estimated to grow 3.9 percent this fiscal year, unchanged from its June 2021 outlook, the World Bank says in its Global Economic Prospects report.

According to Tribhuvan International Airport, 1.44 million international travellers passed through the airport in 2021, which is a loss of 2.69 million passengers compared to 2019.

Cheap air tickets and Nepali travellers sick of bumpy roads contributed to the surge in air travel, insiders say.

According to the Nepal Tourism Board, the number of foreign visitors entering the country last year totalled 150,962.

Nepal’s paddy harvest is expected to shrink to a five-year low to 5.13 million tonnes. Experts say reduced output may cause inflation and prompt more imports.

Nepal’s tourism industry is staring at another year of suspended animation, insiders say.

The delay in the passage of the budget could set back infrastructure development, as funds that need to be spent on projects will be held up, officials at the authority said.

The minister has been busy pursuing his controversial pet projects while pressing issues under his jurisdiction lie unattended.

China CMC Engineering, Northwest Civil Aviation Airport Construction Group and China Harbour Engineering have been blacklisted for violating integrity rules, barring them from participating in Nepal’s key airport infrastructure development project, officials said.

According to the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal, airlines—not the passengers—have to pay for the proposed insurance policy.

The power supply reliability at Bhairahawa airport should reach 99.99 percent, which is equivalent to less than 30 seconds of power outage 24/7.