These are some of the stories from The Kathmandu Post (January 28, 2020).

Thaw in Congress party allows for February 19-22 as dates for its general convention

Despite factionalism in the party leading to a fistfight between student leaders on Monday, a semblance of calm appears to have returned to the Nepali Congress.

The primary opposition Nepali Congress has long been battling internal feuds, with top leaders quarrelling over the date for the party’s general convention. These simmering resentments had trickled down to the party rank-and-file, leading to Monday afternoon’s fight over the formation of various party departments.

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Government plan to set up Ayurveda University concerns Nepal Sanskrit University

The government’s decision to add a new university focusing on Ayurveda studies is set to add to the troubles of Nepal Sanskrit University, which is also teaching Ayurveda after seeing a continuous decline in the enrolment of students to study Sanskrit.

Established in 1986, Nepal Sanskrit University is the second oldest university in the country. But after the number of students wanting to pursue Sanskirt declined, it started to struggle to sustain itself. Then it launched Ayurveda studies at its campuses.

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Ruling party attempts to court Janata Party, which has conditions of its own

When the Rastriya Janata Party Nepal withdrew its support to the Nepal Communist Party government in March last year, it appeared as if the party would take to Parliament and the streets to make its demands for constitutional amendments. The party had supported the government on condition of constitutional amendments, but had decided to withdraw after its lawmaker Resham Chaudhary was sentenced to life in prison by the Kailali District Court for his role in the 2015 Tikapur violence.

The Janata Party did not take to the streets, but it presented itself aggressively in Parliament. It even planned a merger with like-minded forces, including the Samajbadi Party which was in the KP Sharma Oli government until mid-December.

But days before the Samajbadi Party pulled out of government, the Janata Party reached an electoral alliance with the Nepal Communist Party for the National Assembly election. The alliance worked and both parties won two lawmakers each.

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Doctors released two more patients suspected of having coronavirus without waiting for test results

After releasing one Nepali who later tested positive for the new coronavirus, the Sukraraj Tropical and Infectious Disease Hospital in Teku on Monday morning discharged two others without waiting for their test results.

A 28-year-old Nepali patient, who returned from Shanghai on January 19, was admitted to the hospital on January 21 with respiratory complications. He was discharged despite being suspected of harbouring the new strain of coronavirus that is currently wreaking havoc across the world.

Another patient, a Nepali-American man, was also released on Monday, after being admitted on Sunday evening.

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Fuel economy improved, CO2 emission slightly down for light-duty vehicles: Study

Nepal is seeing a gradual improvement in fuel economy for Light-Duty Vehicles (LDVs) over the years, meaning an improved mileage for these vehicles, according to a new study.

The Baseline Fuel Economy of LDVs Study in Nepal, conducted among nearly 68,000 LDVs, which include car, jeep, pick-up trucks, vans, and microbuses, has recorded that the fuel economy for these vehicles has gone up at the rate of 1.9 percent per annum.

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