Overview
- Nepal's cabinet, which met Sunday in Kathmandu, approved Saturday–Sunday closures for government offices and schools starting Monday, April 6.
- Public offices will run 9am to 5pm on weekdays under the new plan, while the hours change does not apply to educational institutions.
- The state oil firm last week increased aviation fuel for international flights by 84.7% from Kathmandu, 116.2% from Pokhara, and 117.4% from Bhairahawa to keep paying Indian Oil Corporation, a move that raises airfares.
- Officials tied the squeeze to the US-Israel war on Iran, a shock that hits Nepal hard because it relies almost entirely on India for fuel.
- Rationing now includes selling half-filled cooking gas cylinders and recent hikes in petrol and diesel, and the government is studying legal steps to shift petrol and diesel vehicles to electric power.