KATHMANDU: Prithvi Jayanti is being marked today throughout the country.

The government has announced a public holiday today on the occasion of the 301st Prithvi Jayanti after a gap of several years.

Even though the government had canceled the holiday on the occasion of Prithvi Jayanti, the incumbent government led by Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda announced a public holiday.

It may be noted that the Rastriya Prajatantra Party, which has been demanding the reinstatement of the institution of monarchy and a Hindu state, succeeded in convincing the government to announce a holiday on the occasion of Prithvi Jayanti.

A section of the Nepali society has been adamant to its position that Prithvi Jayanti being the unifier of Nepal, he has to be remembered by generations.

Meanwhile, the Nepal Army (NA) is marking the 301st birth anniversary of its founder Prithvi Narayan Shah across the country by organizing several programs on Wednesday.

In this connection, Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Prabhuram Sharma is unveiling the full-body-size statue of nation builder Shah in the premises of the Gorkha Palace, according to Nepal Army Spokesperson Krishna Prasad Bhandari.

The Gorkha municipality and the NA are jointly hosting the program. As informed, the NA has been offering a guard of honor to the nation-builder Prithvi Narayan Shah by sounding the bugle in the Gorkha Palace in the morning and evening every day since Wednesday.