With increased mobility and many Nepali parents working overseas, there has been a spurt in unaccompanied minors as passengers on domestic flights.
Most international airlines have special protocols to guide children travelling alone to their destinations, and in Nepal <a href="https://www.buddhaair.com/" target="_blank">Buddha Air</a> has announced similar provisions. The carrier provides the service to children from 5 to 12, and children below five must be accompanied by parents or an adult guardian.
It can be both exciting and intimidating for children flying alone, on their way to boarding school or to join relatives in the city. This anxiety is shared by their parents and guardians as well.&nbsp;
Travelling alone, however, can also be an enriching experience for children who learn to develop independence and confidence as well as broaden their exposure. &nbsp;
Buddha Air is Nepal’s largest domestic carrier, and has <a href="https://www.buddhaair.com/special-assistance/um-below-12-years" target="_blank">three categories for unaccompanied minors:</a>
Children under 5 are not permitted to travel alone and they must be accompanied by a trusted adult or at least one parent. An accompanying adult must be of 18 years or older.&nbsp;
Children between 5-12 must be accompanied by a passenger who is of 18 years or older. However, if they are traveling alone, prior information must be provided to the airline and the procedures for unaccompanied minor travel must be fulfilled.&nbsp;
From 12 years and above the child is allowed to travel alone, but if they require assistance guardians will have to follow the same procedure as for unaccompanied minors. &nbsp;
Prior information must be provided at the time of booking that unaccompanied minor service is required. A child younger than 12 years of age will be considered an unaccompanied minor even if he or she is accompanied by a passenger who is 13 to 18 years of age.
Buddha Air’s procedures only apply to domestic flights, and the carrier will not handle the transfer of an unaccompanied minor from the domestic terminal to the international terminal in Kathmandu for connecting flights. &nbsp;
The parent or guardian is required to fill in three copies of the “Unaccompanied Minor Form”. If the minor is travelling to two destinations, two sets of forms need to be filled in.&nbsp;
On the aircraft, minors will not be allocated seats next to emergency exits. The child will be seated next to an adult who is 18 years or older. An unaccompanied minor is usually pre-boarded if possible and handed over to cabin crew who signs and returns a copy of the form.&nbsp;
Before disembarking, the crew hands over the minor along with the necessary travel documents to ground staff, who signs another copy of the form.&nbsp;
In case of diversion due to weather or other issues, a female staff of Buddha Air will stay with the unaccompanied minor in the hotel until the departure. Parents or guardians are required to be duly informed.&nbsp;
At the destination, a customer service agent hands over the child to the guardian or parent after thorough verification with photo ID. They will then sign the final copy of the form.&nbsp;
Airlines advise parents and guardians to brief minors before flights with basic tips on security check, on board behaviour, and staying in touch. Parents are also required to keep all identification and contact information in the person of the unaccompanied minor. &nbsp;

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Business

Making flying child’s play

Sipradi Trading has launched the new TATA AceEV, a zero-emission, four-wheel Small Commercial Vehicle (SCV) that offers a range of 154km, an advanced battery cooling system and regenerative braking system, and is powered by a 27kW motor with 130Nm of peak torque. The Ace EV is customised for Nepal’s road and transport requirements.
Tata Motors last week also launched its new showroom in Bharatpur, beginning the sale and distribution of the recently-launched Tiago EV and TATA from the outlet. Additionally, the entire range of Tata Motors cars will be available at the showroom.

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TATA Ace EV

NMB Bank and Buddha Air announced the launch of the NMB Buddha VISA Debit Card, which will allow card holders to get 10% discounts on airfares. Cardholders can also bring an extra five kg of baggage over the standard weight allowance when flying Nepal’s largest domestic carrier. Cardholders can also &nbsp;receive refunds of up to 100% on ticket cancellations.&nbsp;

NMB Buddha Debit

Standard Chartered Bank signed an agreement with the Central Renewable Energy Fund (CREF), the financial mechanism of Alternative Energy Promotion Centre (AEPC), for Loan Loss Guarantee under the Sustainable Energy Challenge Fund to finance renewable energy.

Renewable StanChart

Global IME Bank, Bottlers Nepal and Bottlers Nepal Tarai signed an MoU to provide channel financing facility to distributors to purchase products of Bottlers Nepal and Bottlers Nepal Tarai. Distributors can also get loans from any branch of the Bank under the financing program.
Meanwhile, Global IME Bank announced its credit card holders will get a 25% cashback on the first transaction with its card. Offer is valid until 20 October. &nbsp;

Global IME + Bottlers

Ncell has planted 200 trees along both sides of the Bagmati Corridor Road in Ward 1 of Lalitpur Metropolitan City to mark its 18th anniversary. The service provider also hosted four friendly football matches titled Purple Kickoff at the Lainchaur Ground, featuring Nepali celebrities, veteran football players, and representatives from the Nepalese Young Entrepreneurs Forum (NYEF), Nepal Sports Journalists’ Forum (NSJF), and Lainchaur Youth Club.

Green Ncell

The Royal Norwegian Embassy in Kathmandu in cooperation with Norwegian Customs, the Government of Nepal, and the International Trade Centre held a Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) seminar for Nepali exporters with representatives from the Nepal Trade and Export Promotion Center, the International Trade Centre, and the Delegation of the European Union.

GSP Seminar

Syakar Trading Company, distributor of Honda two-wheelers in Nepal, launched its Dashain Ma 10 Lakh holiday scheme under which customers will receive a scratch coupon upon the purchase of any Honda two-wheeler through which lucky winners can receive Rs1 million. The scheme also offers up to Rs10,000 in cash prizes or a five-year Annual Maintenance Contract (AMC) package worth Rs12,500.

Honda holiday

British Council’s recently-launched One Skill Retake will ensure that IELTS test takers from the Council who do not achieve their desired results on their first try will no longer have to resit the full test. One Skill Retake offers test-takers retake just one section of the IELTS test, whether it’s Listening, Reading, Writing, or Speaking. &nbsp;

Retake IELTS

Galli Maps has debuted its new Indra Jatra feature that enables precise tracking of the ongoing events during the eight-day chariot festival in Kathmandu. Galli app users can pinpoint the exact location of the chariot and take part in the festivities.