Nepali films have in the past often portrayed women in limited, one-dimensional roles: selfless mothers, obedient wives, or victims of abuse.&nbsp; Nepal’s very first feature film, Ama was a pioneering drama portraying the socio-political landscape of the 1960s <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/mob-movement-and-mayhem">Panchayat era Nepal</a>. But it reinforced traditional <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/hop-over-the-gender-gap">gender roles</a> where women are caregivers, who silently bear emotional labour, while men are protectors and providers. The mother’s strength is portrayed in her endurance in separation from her soldier son, but she still exists largely just there to support the male protagonist’s journey. “A man was always the hero, that was the norm. Women are either victimised or their struggles are over sensitised,” says<a href="https://www.shantanepaliproductions.com/"> Shanta Nepali</a>, director and cinematographer. “Many have raised awareness through their films, but when it comes to true representation of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/quality-of-equality-for-women">women’s issues</a>, we are still far behind.” Plan International Nepal in a <a href="https://plan-international.org/uploads/sites/79/2022/02/womenincinema_3.pdf">research paper </a>breaks down Matighar directed by BS Thapa and starring Bollywood star Mala Sinha into three acts: first where Maya is a romantic lead who is soon widowed and abandoned, she is then forced to flee with her young son and work in a brothel, and finally she seeks a better future for her son.&nbsp; In the end, Maya is accepted back into society but essentially through mercy, highlighting the film’s theme of domesticity as a woman’s rightful place. Not much has changed since the early days of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-s-qfx-cinema-needs-a-happy-ending">Nepali cinema</a>, although there have been some recent attempts to alter the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/uncategorized/stereotyping-women-as-victims">stereotype</a>. “Women are still largely seen as eye candy, sidekicks, or an element of glamour rather than a central character driving the story. Their portrayal remains superficial, lacking depth and complexity,” says theatre director and actor Akanchha Karki of <a href="http://kathaghera.com//">Katha Ghera</a>. “There has been some progress in recent years, but not nearly enough.” More recent movies like Shambhala and Rajagunj have tried to break through the mould. <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/min-bahadur-bham-s-cinematic-quest">Min Bahadur Bham</a>’s Shambhala is centred around a complex female character defined not just by men around her but her own ambitions and struggles. Pema played by <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-s-star-shines-in-locarno">Thinley Lhamo </a>is an active agent of her own story of self-discovery in the face of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/perpetuating-patriarchy-in-nepal">patriarchy</a>. Rajagunj directed by Deepak Rauniyar follows inspector Pooja Thapa who is sent to a Madhes town to investigate the kidnapping of two boys amidst <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/Comment/southern-nepal-in-middle-of-a-humanitarian-crisis,579">political unrest and violent protests</a>.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250329140320_22bd4b6cb901014afb3d166dc4d9e56217f049f3a024d6cd11025fc9c981986f.jpg" data-media-id="editor_12" data-image-id="20250329140320_22bd4b6cb901014afb3d166dc4d9e56217f049f3a024d6cd11025fc9c981986f" data-rendition-name="original" width="5796" height="3870" loading="lazy" alt="Rajagunj"> <figcaption>Still from Rajagunj </figcaption> </figure>  Read also:<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/review/powerful-movie-upacks-questions-of-identity"> Powerful movie upacks questions of identity</a>, Sophia L. Pandé Even the 2001 film Numafung by Nabin Subba stands out for an empowering portrayal of women, and a rare glimpse of Limbu customs. After being widowed early, Numafung is expected to marry her late husband’s younger brother but defies tradition in the pursuit of her own independence.&nbsp; Although the 2019 film Xira directed by Ashutosh Raj Shrestha was critically panned, it did introduce an action-oriented, assertive, revenge-driven female protagonist played by Namrata Sharma. Nepali cinema often takes<a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/Lights-camera-copy-paste,1146"> inspiration from Bollywood</a> which has also seen a shift in how women are portrayed. Older films like Pink directed by Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury critiqued societal prejudices against independent women as well as emphasised the importance of consent. Last year’s Laapata Ladies directed by Kiran Rao was a critical and commercial success. Through slice-of-life storytelling, the satirical drama set in rural India advocates <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-goal-is-empowerment-and-independence-of-women">women’s empowerment</a>, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/latest/sisterhoods-empowering-education-in-nepal?fb_comment_id=4994256443922836_5028381260510354">education</a>, and <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/placing-nepali-women-first-past-the-post">equality</a>. Meanwhile, Mrs, a Hindi adaptation of The Great Indian Kitchen, follows a young woman after an arranged marriage in which she finds her aspirations suppressed. A big part of the reason behind often stereotypical portrayals of women on screen is the lack of female filmmakers, directors, writers, and producers. “Many women who started alongside me are no longer in the field, people try to break you mentally,” says Shanta Nepali. “I also faced caste discrimination, so it is even more difficult for women from marginalised communities.” Nepali is creating platforms such as the Nepali Female Filmmakers’ Community for women to actively engage in the field. She adds: “Even men struggle in this industry but when a woman says she wants to direct, the discouragement outweighs the support. It feels like going to war.” Anjila is a recent biopic based on the real-life journey of Anjila Tumbapo Subba, the captain and goalkeeper of national women’s football team. Subba plays herself, and the movie depicts her struggles and achievements in a male-dominated field.&nbsp; Akanchha Karki says that women-centric films often struggle at the box office. Audience preference for action-packed, masala drama discourages <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/taking-nepali-literature-to-the-world">nuanced narrative</a> as well as reinforces the traditional beauty standards, perpetuating unrealistic ideals.&nbsp; “Producers and directors don’t invest in them because they don’t do as well, making it harder to break the cycle,” explains Karki. “Even current women filmmakers in the field often feel compelled to prioritise commercial viability over authentic <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/they-have-stories-to-yell">storytelling</a>.”

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Here & Now

She is the story

The <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/rescuing-kathmandus-from-its-future-public-transport-and-traffic-challenges,1877">former Bogota mayor Enrique Peñalosa</a> who implemented a successful bus rapid transit system for his city once said: “Democracy can be measured by the width of a country’s sidewalks.” To this, we could add that the state of democracy in a country can also be measured by the quality of its public transport system. Going by that criteria, Nepal is not doing very well. “We forget that the first word in public transport is public,” says urban planner <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/guest-editorial/public-transport-is-equal-to-public-health,844">Bhushan Tuladhar</a>. “Public transport in Nepal needs a complete reform from route structuring and information management to building an ecosystem for electric mobility.” In Kathmandu the government does not support or subsidise public transport, which are run by over 55 private operators and the semi-government Sajha Yatayat. &nbsp; The government does regulate bus fares, and the Department of Transport Management (DoTM) issues driving licenses and route permits, but it is regarded as <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/green-sticker-green-light-to-pollute">a snake pit of corruption</a>. The Department of Roads is more interested in building roads than managing public transport.&nbsp; Since the 1990s there have been over 15 studies on public transport in Kathmandu Valley, but zero results. The proposals range from a fanciful underground metro, impractical overhead cable cars, or trams and light rail transit. But experts at a regional symposium on public transport this week organised by Sajha Yatayat point to Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) modelled after Bogota’s transformative TransMilenio as the best mass mobility strategy for Kathmandu and other cities. A BRT uses high-capacity articulated buses on dedicated lanes and elevated subway-style stations with priority passage at intersections for uninterrupted commutes in traffic-clogged cities. The main advantage of BRT systems is that they are more reliable and convenient than current bus routes, they are cheaper than trains to build, and help reduce traffic and air pollution, especially if the buses are electric. Besides Bogota, BRT serves cities like Jakarta and Istanbul. According to former senior superintendent of Police Jagatman Shrestha there are 163 public transport routes in Kathmandu Valley while there are 495 big buses plying just on the 27.2km Ring Road.&nbsp; Of the 1.8 million registered vehicles in Kathmandu Valley, only 3% of them are public vehicles. Most of them are two-wheelers, and they are a major contributor to odourless and toxic gases like carbon monoxide and ozone. A high frequency and reliable rapid bus transit system in Kathmandu would encourage commuters to use public transport and <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/cleaner-air-longer-lives-0z0okfeu?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR1JZUEgX9b2uisUuzw6u9APT1Pq7E8zupyJA13VJuq01nKe3sWdFTkeL5M_aem_2Fz7QRnCnd8mOX3kADDC9Q">improve air quality and public health</a>. Tax incentives to convert diesel buses to electric would make public transport even cleaner and greener. The government has proven that it can be done with the tax rebates on smaller electric vehicles, and similar incentives could transform public transport in Kathmandu and other cities. ---  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250328090336_d21eb7c0325aa90b6c473393050bb21cb60ee3205055f5e46b5b51e84d5b2c5f.jpg" data-media-id="editor_4" data-image-id="20250328090336_d21eb7c0325aa90b6c473393050bb21cb60ee3205055f5e46b5b51e84d5b2c5f" data-rendition-name="original" width="1520" height="2500" loading="lazy" alt="energy and climate crisis"> <figcaption>HIGH TENSION: Transmission line in Tehrathum that will evacuate electricity from several new hydropower plants in the Arun basin in eastern Nepal. Photo: KUNDA DIXIT</figcaption> </figure>  Prominent signs along the BP Highway from Kathmandu to eastern Nepal announce electric vehicle fast-charging stations every few kilometres on some stretches. On routes like Kathmandu-Dharan, or Kathmandu-Bardibas, there were as many electric public vans as there were petrol ones. Every few private car was a battery-powered BYD or Nexon.&nbsp; Indeed, 75% of new car sales last year in Nepal were electric, and the country was only behind Norway where EVs now make up 90% of total sales. The encouraging part of this is that it is not just private cars that have gone electric, but also public vehicles like vans and three wheelers. But instead of building on this trend by announcing tax rebates for <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/potholes-on-the-highway-to-nepal-s-ev-future">bigger battery-powered buses</a>, Nepal Rastra Bank last month increased the ‘Loan-to-Value (LTV) Ratio’ for electric vehicle financing to 40%, up from 20%. Insiders see this as a calculated move to appease the diesel and petrol vehicle lobby.&nbsp; The history of electric transportation in Nepal has often been one step forward and two steps back as <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/1-step-forward-2-steps-back-in-nepal">governments have flip-flopped on incentives</a>. Nepal was making progress to achieve its own target of making 20% of all vehicles on the roads electric by this year, but heftier down payments on car loans is not going to help. The government works at cross purposes with itself, undermining its own authority and with no clear strategy to implement its own green transport goal of ensure that 90% of all private vehicles and 60% of public transport will be battery powered by 2030. “This is a regressive move which will have people reverting to diesel and petrol vehicles, it will especially hurt electric e-buses and e-vans,” says urban planner Bhushan Tuladhar of the Rastra Bank down payment policy revision. “Electric buses are already much more expensive than similar size diesel ones, but increased down payment means some private operators who were planning to bring electric buses are rethinking their decision.” Meanwhile, Thee Go SriBiT which is behind Nepal’s best-selling electric micro van ‘TheeGo’ has a rental solution for both passenger and cargo vehicles for short trips and long-term leases which can help potential businesses bypass Rastra Bank’s revised loan down payment ratio. It also provides vehicles under a leasehold model for low-income customers. The sale of private electric cars has soared in Nepal, and this has reduced <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/cleaner-air-with-greener-buses">air pollution</a> and petroleum imports to some extent, but there would be much bigger advantage to encouraging diesel bus operators to go electric while benefiting more people. Fewer people can afford electric cars, and their increase has added to traffic congestion in Kathmandu’s city core. &nbsp; Nepal’s installed capacity for electricity has now crossed 3,000MW, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/hydrocarbon-to-hydropower">although the generation is nearly a third of that at present</a> due to low water level in rivers. During the monsoon, however, there is surplus electricity even after exporting to India and some of the energy is wasted due to low domestic consumption. Energy experts have recommended increasing domestic demand, starting with more rapid electrification of public transport so that it reduces petroleum imports from India, and improve Nepal’s balance of trade. The added benefit would be better air quality that will increase the average lifespan of Kathmandu’s residents. One 42-seater bus can replace about 19 private cars or 35 motorcycles on the road. And if that bus is electric, the benefit is multiplied. There are operators running electric buses and vans on 16 routes: 40 buses, and 258 micro vans, with 355 more on the way. There are 10 EV inter-city routes in which 62 buses and vans are electric-powered. &nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250328090340_916c254bba5237f366bc5c9859298a6b5128752c06b1c2454c4aad151c804a7a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_9" data-image-id="20250328090340_916c254bba5237f366bc5c9859298a6b5128752c06b1c2454c4aad151c804a7a" data-rendition-name="original" width="1017" height="902" loading="lazy" alt="proposed bus routes for Kathmandu"> </figure>  Lack of state investment or subsidy is the main reason behind the limited growth of electric public transport. That makes it much cheaper to buy diesel buses. In China, all the city buses are already electric while India adopted the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric Vehicles (FAME) in 2015 and is now in its second phase.&nbsp; In 2024, there were 3,616 electric buses in India, with the government planning to add 50,000 more by 2027. “The initial cost of electric buses is very high, and not all governments have that kind of money,” said Alok Jain, international Nepali export on public transport (see profile, right). “But those that have done the transition know that the total cost of ownership of EV is actually cheaper, whatever you pay upfront you recover quickly and you make a profit because operating and maintenance costs are much lower.” Most young people in Kathmandu have no memory of the Chinese-donated <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/kathmandu-bhaktapur-trolley-bus">Kathmandu-Bhaktapur trolley bus service</a> which was way ahead of its time when it started in 1975. There were 22 electric buses covering the 13km distance one way, and carried up to 10,000 passengers daily. The line was operated by the Nepal Trolley Bus Service, a branch of the Nepal Transportation Corporation (NTC). However, government bureaucracy, overstaffing and cronyism led to deteriorating service. Private bus operators were rumoured to have a hand in wrecking the electric trolley bus service.&nbsp; NTC was dissolved in 2001, and the trolley bus operations were halted in 2009. The rusting hulks of the buses can still be seen at the trolley terminal in New Baneswar which is now occupied by a government agency. After Sajha Yatayat was revived, it started plying trunk routes in Kathmandu Valley and 40 buses in its fleet are battery powered. The company is planning to add 100 new electric buses with a government-to-government grant from China.&nbsp; The Chinese company CHTC KINWIN in Nanjing <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-s-journey-to-electric-public-transport">supplied the first 40 buses during the pandemic</a>, and will also be bidding for the new lot. Since the manufacturers had not seen Kathmandu’s road conditions which are different from ones in China, the buses had low clearance and could not be used on certain routes.&nbsp; “Since the first buses were sent here two years ago, we now have a lot of experience with Kathmandu’s road conditions, and we have also seen that the EV market is booming in Nepal,” says Zhu Xiansong, Director of Overseas Sales at CHTC KINWIN. &nbsp;&nbsp; Zhu adds: “Nepal was the biggest buyer of electric vehicles from China last year, and this country is definitely a viable market for China. We plan to hire Nepali technicians to work for us so that they can further promote our business as well as bring back to Nepal technical know-how to maintain electric vehicles.”&nbsp; The public transport symposium also heard that even if long range buses convert to battery power, the condition of national highways at present is so poor and road travel is so dangerous that most travellers are forced to gamble with their lives.&nbsp; This week alone, at least 12 people have died on Nepal’s highways. There is a spike in fatalities during the monsoon due to landslides and floods. Three buses were buried by a mudslide in <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/when-it-rains-it-pours-ksqprbu3">Dhading last year</a> during September floods killing at least 35 people. Two intercity buses were swept down to the Trisuli River at <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/100-101-102-hh5uvzf9">Simaltal</a> killing at least 60 people. The buses were never found.&nbsp; Haphazard engineering on steep slopes combined with reckless driving and poor vehicle maintenance are to blame. Highway accidents are now the major cause of death of young Nepalis — more than natural disasters and other diseases. Brett R C Molesworth, Professor at the School of Aviation in the University of New South Wales Sydney says that air transport safety practices should be seen as an exemplar when improving road safety. He says: “Over the past decade Nepal has made strides to improve its air safety, it is near the world average, it is just that plane crashes get so much more news coverage than road accidents ever do.”

Sonia Awale

The public in public transport

This is the 61st episode of Diaspora Diaries, a Nepali Times series in collaboration with Migration Lab providing a platform to share experiences of living, working, studying abroad. I interrupted my Grade 11 education to go to <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-malaysia-nepal-migrant-scam-nexus">Malaysia</a> to work as a security guard. During <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/uproar-over-maoist-war-anniversary-holiday">the Maoist era </a>the environment in my college was not conducive to studies. I stayed on in Malaysia for eight years.&nbsp; <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/high-risk-remittance?wptouch_preview_theme=enabled">Overseas earnings</a> helped me support my family and buy land, and more importantly, to spend on the treatment of my father’s heart condition. Our duty was 12 hours and we were on our feet all day checking in visitors and employees at the gate. Nights were slow and all we did was walk around with our <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/kathmandu-s-street-smart-dogs">dogs</a> and check every hour on our radios. Sometimes, the boys also sang <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/nepali-folk-songs-move-beyond-love-and-loss">dohori </a>over the radio as we passed the long nights.&nbsp; One memorable part of my security job was that we were each assigned a dog, and were also evaluated on how well we trained them. My dog’s name was Amy and I grew very fond of her over the years. Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/comment/must-love-dogs?fbclid=IwAR1WFHDdcYJoe29GVP03I9ojdftlNqmYiGU5RDfk9ytBxNo8oC35kutToy8_aem_AeAxkQFtD1IKZSXPX6eijBytfPIihI2PVfhxDqyfbN3ZlnybtV5e82Va9-Or_rSCXbk">Must love dogs</a>, Eliza Sthapit During drills, we wore protective clothes that prevented us from getting hurt if we were bitten, and as a lightweight, I was easily attacked and trampled. But I was sent home unexpectedly because I had encouraged new <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepali-overseas-workers-who-remain-behind">Nepali workers </a>to demand <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepal-welcomes-qatar-labour-reform">higher wages</a> since they were paid less than me for similar work. That felt unfair, but no one wants a foreign rabble rouser.&nbsp; For some time after being sent back abruptly, I felt bad because I was not mentally prepared to come home. I had planned to stay for another two years, and had made earning plans accordingly.&nbsp; For a year in Nepal, I studied for the EPS which was started in 2008. Going to Korea had not picked up strongly then. I saw my friends and villagers <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/long-wait-over-nepalis-return-to-korea">migrating to Korea</a> one by one, and decided to give it a try. In Korean language class, the teacher used to say “Anyhow कोरिया जौँ”, and all we wanted to do was get to Korea. We had to study hard and I gave it my all. I used to write the Korean names for every object so it was etched in my memory. Whether it was a phone or bucket or plate, it would have the Korean word for it and my walls and ceiling were full of Korean words. I passed.&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/bringing-korea-s-prosperity-to-nepal?amp=1">Bringing Korea’s prosperity to Nepal</a> My migration to Korea was a bit dramatic. It was two days after <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/reviewing-lessons-of-the-2015-nepal-earthquake">the earthquake</a>, and we were at the EPS office in Gwarko for our documents and caps and tshirts. I did not get to properly shop for Korea. Even though I was unprepared for the trip, the frequent aftershocks and the closeness of death made me desperate to leave. I was relieved to get on the plane and escape. In Korea, I grew capsicum. The work was easy, except for a couple of months. Night duty as a security guard in Malaysia made it difficult to pass time, but in Korea, I was working around the clock and lost track of the hours. My wife and I studied in the same <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/languages-are-both-software-and-hardware">language school</a> in Nepal. She was assigned to a strawberry farm. We got married in Nepal a few years later, and wanted to work together.&nbsp; I found a new job in a <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/pigs-fly-and-fish-climb-trees">pig farm</a>, where I asked my employer about the possibility of bringing my wife to the same company and he said that if he was happy with my work, he would hire her.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250321040312_24a4996cf7e2654637b707a52e1fe3e17932fb44991587b04a736b0328e43404.jpg" data-media-id="editor_13" data-image-id="20250321040312_24a4996cf7e2654637b707a52e1fe3e17932fb44991587b04a736b0328e43404" data-rendition-name="original" width="1280" height="960" loading="lazy" alt="The meat of the story NT"> </figure>  That was enough incentive for me to work extra hard and I picked things up fast which made my employer happy. That’s <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/making-overseas-migration-better">how it is overseas</a>: things are easier if you win the confidence of your employer. They eventually hired my wife, with whom I worked together for two-and-a-half years. My employer increasingly relied on me while also investing heavily in our knowledge and growth.&nbsp; Every morning, he used to teach us about pig farming for an hour or two, which has been invaluable for us till today, covering a range of topics including raising piglets, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/why-is-there-vaccine-hesitancy-in-nepal">vaccination</a>, artificial insemination and how to breed them on rotation. He was full of good life advice, too, including for our post-return plans. In 2020, we decided to <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/now-what">come back to Nepal</a>. By this point, I felt like I had learnt everything that I needed to know about pig farming. My wife and I wanted to run a pig farm in Nepal on a rotational system, something that is not practiced widely here which puts <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/farm-subsidies-money-down-the-drain">farmers at a financial disadvantage</a>. We returned to Nepal during<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/nepal-goes-into-lockdown-for-a-week"> the early stages of Covid</a>. It is strange how I left during an <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/earthquake-vacates-villages-in-nepal">earthquake</a> and returned five years later to another crisis. After eight months we started our Unnati Bangur Hamro Bangur Farm in Panauti. Just as things were picking up, we had to go through a devastating loss when the African swine fever hit Nepal. Back then, I was spending all my time in the hospital because my newborn had a heart condition, and four months after his birth, he passed.&nbsp; There was African swine flu detected in my farm, after which we had to shut it down for almost a year. These multiple losses took my wife and me to a dark place for months, before we had to gather ourselves up and restart work. Thankfully, things are going better now. This is the nature of business, you need to exercise patience. Things are not constant. Profit, loss. Supply, demand.&nbsp; Rates of meat have gone up now because many farmers exited the market after the swine fever. We were patient, and now get significantly better rates which has helped us recover. Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/meat-money-and-the-middle-class">Meat, money, and the middle class</a> The meat available in regular meat shops is very different from what we offer because our pigs are fed quality feed, not waste, and are given proper vaccinations. We have good buyers like <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/bringing-korea-s-prosperity-to-nepal?amp=1">Hankook Meat Shop run by fellow Korean returnees</a> who look for quality produce.&nbsp; The challenge of working in Nepal is that there is no proper differentiation by quality of meat, and no traceability to the farms producing the meat which makes farmers less accountable for consumers’ health. It harms those &nbsp;practicing ethical farming. Manufacturing is more popular in Korea among Nepali EPS workers, but it is work in <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/aid-rarely-aids-agriculture-in-nepal">the agriculture sector </a>that is more useful after return. I brought most of my equipment from Korea along with me.&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/social-remittance">Social remittance</a>, Upasana Khadka&nbsp; When we returned for good, our suitcases had no personal items like chocolates or electronics, they were full of farming equipment like vaccine guns and pig tooth nippers. &nbsp; Even now, I tell my friends in Korea to bring me farm equipment when they come home on breaks, and that I will buy them the usual blankets and chocolates to gift to their families in Nepal itself. &nbsp;&nbsp;

The meat of the story

Generative <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/artificial-censorship">AI models</a> such as <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/chatgpt-news-about-nepal">ChatGPT</a> and Sonnet are trained on massive amounts of data that have over time enabled them to answer general questions. But they do not perform as well on narrower domains, even hallucinating or making things up.
Now here comes <a href="https://www.anthromind.com/">Anthromind</a>, a startup developed by a 28-year-old Nepali engineer Pratik Karki in the tech-womb at <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-in-the-decade-of-ai">Silicon Valley</a>, which develops datasets to improve the performance of AI models in specific areas.
Large<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-bhasa-on-google-translate"> language models </a>are ‘distilled’ by running them on smaller, higher-quality data. AI is first used to assist with labelling or generating data. After that, human experts look at the responses and explain how they are wrong, helping tune the model just right.
Karki got the idea while working at Google, where he saw that while companies were trying to create their own models, they failed because the data was of low quality. In 2024, he left his lucrative job and took a risk by <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-can-create-a-business-friendly-environment?fb_comment_id=2995148037177314_6370548419637242">setting up a business </a>that could make real impact.
It has not been easy. At Google he was one of over 100,000 employees, but after launching Anthromind, Karki has had to do sales, <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=4323">marketing</a>, and recruiting, as well as leading a whole new team.
“At some point in your career, everything turns into sales,” Karki told us by phone. “You need to sell <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/why-invest-in-nepal">potential investors</a> on your vision, and you get a million no’s before a yes.” The connections he made at Google helped, and he even managed to poach a few and others became <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-has-to-curb-corruption-before-wooing-investors">investors</a>.
Karki studied in Biratnagar before moving to Kathmandu to do his A-levels where he did business courses. He remembers those formative years and credits his teachers in Nepal for encouraging him to put himself out there and to speak up when needed.
He then went to Grinnell College in Iowa where he studied computer science and statistics, and realised that he liked to code: “I especially got a high debugging a program until it worked.”&nbsp;
He went on to pursue a Master’s in Computer Science and describes the course as a pure program with some very difficult machine learning courses.
Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/comment/tech-and-transition-in-nepal">Tech and transition in Nepal</a>, Ashutosh Mani Dixit
Karki was recruited to Google from a highly selective early career program and got to work closely with the companies that were then building the generative Large Language Models that have since taken the world by storm. He worked on essential training infrastructure, including data warehousing and <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=9825">computing </a>needs.
“Internally, we all knew about this<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/makeshift/addressing-nepals-digital-divide"> technology </a>and how disruptive they would be,” says Karki. “But I also saw its limitations.”
Karki took a calculated risk in setting up his own company, knowing fully well that for Anthromind to succeed he would need a very obsessive and disciplined mindset.&nbsp;
“Every Friday evening I look at weekly data, and what worked and what didn’t, especially in terms of getting customers,” he says. “I had to be very deliberate with everything I did.”
Karki attributes this discipline and frugality to growing up in Nepal, which he misses dearly, especially his family and the community. His best friends in California are Nepalis, they meet often and have already made plans to celebrate the approaching <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/new-year-same-difference">Nepali New Year</a> with home-made <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/adventures-of-a-little-dumpling-named-momo-and-other-books">momos</a>.&nbsp;
Karki sees a lot more potential in the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/it-is-it">IT industry in Nepal</a>, at the moment saturated with service-based companies when ideally new businesses should focus on products.&nbsp;
He explains how companies that provide offshore <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/tech-away/nepal-s-health-tech-industry-is-here-to-stay">tech services </a>operate in a ‘default:alive’ state, where they can carry on even if they only have one client.
The alternative is a company whose success depends entirely on the quality of the product it puts out, a ‘default:dead’ state. This forces programmers to adopt an urgent, disciplined mindset. While a lot harder and riskier, it also has higher returns.
Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/people-power/nepal-as-an-ai-power-bank">Nepal as an AI power bank</a>, Bikash Pandey
Karki is in a cohort of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/12-full-opinion/let-s-listen-to-nepal-s-young-changemakers">young Nepalis</a> in the <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/it-is-all-about-it-in-nepal,3887">IT industry</a> who have proven that serious tech innovation can come out of Nepal. Pukar Hamal of SecurityPal was recently featured in Forbes, while Sameer Maskey’s FuseMachines has been listed on NASDAQ.
Financially independent since 18, Karki says <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/1-in-5-nepal-families-lack-food">Nepali families</a> should encourage their children to make such moves. Nepal’s education system should reward curiosity, instead of quelling it, to promote <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/business/kesha-kumari-damini-awarded-by-norwegian-business-for-peace-foundation,1356">entrepreneurship</a>.&nbsp;
He says, “Students should be rewarded for thinking individually and speaking out, like I was.”

Vishad Raj Onta

Kathmandu Valley to Silicon Valley

Twenty-year-old Girendra had just completed high school when he was forced to step up to support his family. His father’s contracting business went under, and his mother lost her private sector job.&nbsp; Like many Nepalis, Girendra’s parents decided that an <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/making-overseas-migration-better">overseas job</a> would be the best option for their son. Girendra was offered a security guard position <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/a-woman-s-drive-to-push-boundaries">in Dubai </a>by an acquaintance of his mother’s, but he refused the job.&nbsp; He then met a woman named Sunita in Kathmandu who identified herself as an agent for a <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/recruiters-of-nepalis-into-russian-army-identified">recruiting agency</a>, and offered him a marketing job in <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/borderlines/burmese-of-nepali-descent-flee-to-thailand">Thailand</a> that would pay him Rs150,000 monthly.&nbsp; All he needed, Sunita told him, was typing and data entry skills, and Rs400,000 to get to Thailand. Girendra went back to his village in Udaypur to get the money, dreaming of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/the-worldliness-of-an-overtime-worker">earning enough to then fulfil his end goal</a> of joining the <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=4129">French Foreign Legion</a>.&nbsp; In September last year, Girendra arrived at Kathmandu airport to fly to Bangkok accompanied by Sunita’s brother Naresh. But both men were stopped because they did not have proper <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/life-time/having-a-nepali-passport-is-no-fun">travel documents</a>.&nbsp; Sunita then <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/from-the-nepali-press/corruption-deep-rooted-in-government">bribed the officials</a> who let the two through to catch their Nepal Airlines flight to Bangkok two days later.&nbsp; The pair were met at the Suvarnabhumi Airport by their contact, Marku, a heavy-set, tattooed man who held a placard bearing their names. They were put inside a black Toyota Fortuner, and driven seven hours through four security checkpoints to the city of Mae Sot on the border with Burma.&nbsp; Marku took their photos, and set them up in a hotel. Girendra and Naresh were met the next morning by a tall Chinese man who again took their photos and loaded them up at the back of a red Ford pickup. Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-malaysia-nepal-migrant-scam-nexus">The Malaysia-Nepal migrant scam nexus</a>, Ramu Sapkota and S Vinothaa They drove past a sign for the Thai–Myanmar Friendship Bridge, but instead of going across, the truck took a route through the jungle to the Moei River, where their belongings were confiscated by men in motorbikes. The two were then put on a boat to cross over into Burma. &nbsp; “It was a whirlwind of activity, we barely had any time to think,” recalls Girendra. “But a chill ran down my spine when I heard the Chinese men on the boat laughing like monsters.”  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250321040340_1270bb5bddad6f9c23688f7295a7c2e6c4e09679b8bd9e008b5d40986a807490.jpg" data-media-id="editor_9" data-image-id="20250321040340_1270bb5bddad6f9c23688f7295a7c2e6c4e09679b8bd9e008b5d40986a807490" data-rendition-name="original" width="548" height="729" loading="lazy" alt="Nepalis in ‘scam camps’ escape to tell the tale NT"> <figcaption>Screenshot of a clendestine video smuggled out last year by a rescued Nepali of a call centre in Shan state in Burma.</figcaption> </figure>  On the other side, they were loaded into another truck, which passed <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/life-and-livelihood-in-remote-nepal">remote villages</a>, encountering teenagers in bulletproof vests carrying AK47s, and soldiers having lunch or smoking <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/why-nepal-must-legalise-cannabis">cannabis</a>. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The truck finally stopped at a big compound, where Girendra and Naresh had their passports and phones confiscated. They were made to sign a document that read ‘Human trafficking, drugs and mobile phones are prohibited.’ As grand as the compound looked from the outside, its interior was dark, marble walls crumbling. There was sound of weeping from a group of young African women huddled in a corner with bruises all over their bodies.&nbsp; Girendra’s worst fears were confirmed: they had been sold to Burma. The pair were led into a conference room where a group of men of various nationalities were at work stations. A Malaysian man on a sofa informed them bluntly that they had been sold into an online scam ring.&nbsp; “You are trapped here now,” Girendra recalls the man telling him. “After hearing this I went to the restroom and wept.”&nbsp; Soon after, the two were led to an ‘interview’ by men who tested them on their <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/angrezi/english-is-not-the-be-all-and-end-all">English language</a> skills, travel experience and typing speed, then given laptops. The first thing Girendra did was to find out where he was via <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/comment/finding-your-way-in-nepal">Google Maps</a>. They had ended up in the Burmese border town of Myawaddy in Kayin State, that has been ruled for 15 years by the Karen State Border Guard Force (KGBF), one of the most powerful among the self-governing armies that separated from the Burmese military in 2024, and is now known as the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/latest/beyond-civilian-armed-struggle-in-burma">Karen National Army</a>. Cyber scam rings began to thrive along the Burma-Thailand border in the years after its control was ceded to the ethnic army, particularly in the Kayin State. The Kokang region located in northeastern Shan State that borders <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/china-syndrome">China</a> is just as notorious for cyber scam centres.&nbsp; Chinese gangs have been recruiting youth from across the world into their scam networks. They are made to pose as women and lure men under the guise of lucrative jobs in Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia. But Burma has become fertile ground ever since its <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/nepalis-show-solidarity-with-burma-protesters">2021 military coup</a>. &nbsp;&nbsp; A 2024 study on transnational crime in East Asia published by the United States Institute of Peace found that cyber scams in Burma are defrauding people of $64 billion annually. The UN estimates that at least 100,000 people have been trafficked and forced to work in cyber scam centres in Burma, terming it ‘modern-day slavery’. Read also:<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/crossborder-cybercrime-and-punishment"> Crossborder cybercrime and punishment</a>, Sabina Devkota  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250321040340_692fb4e7034a14556f8221c3a1dde8210c8256e8e468607eb0a9e1a036ddecc5.jpg" data-media-id="editor_18" data-image-id="20250321040340_692fb4e7034a14556f8221c3a1dde8210c8256e8e468607eb0a9e1a036ddecc5" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Nepalis in ‘scam camps’ escape to tell the tale NT"> <figcaption>Rescued workers in a safehouse after crossing into Thailand.</figcaption> </figure>  In Myawaddy, the two Nepalis were asked to change their names. Girendra chose 'Netra', hoping that the light would one day guide him away from the darkness of his circumstance. Naresh chose the name 'Ram'.&nbsp; There were 11 Nepalis in the compound, including two <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/trafficked-nepali-woman-s-testimony">women who had also been trafficked</a>. They warned the newcomers of the extremes that their Chinese bosses would go to force them to meet extortion targets.&nbsp; Girendra soon witnessed the punishment, which included electrocution, beatings, isolation without food or water, and exposure to extreme outdoor heat.&nbsp; His routine involved him posing online everyday from 3PM to 9AM as ‘Alicia Farooq’, the persona of a wealthy 30-year-old fashion designer based in Singapore. Armed with a list of phone numbers everyday, ‘Alicia’ would gain trust and establish relationships with unsuspecting individuals, often sending intimate videos to tempt young men to engage.&nbsp; They would then be tricked into ordering goods from the scamming platform Bitubi Binance in exchange for a $30 commission deposited into the spender’s account. The final ‘killing’ entailed Alicia asking the target individual to deposit a larger amount on the platform in exchange for a bigger commission. By the time the person at the other end realised the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/makeshift/decrypting-nepal-s-ban-on-crypto">cryptocurrency </a>and binance accounts are a sham, ‘Alicia’ would have vanished with the money.&nbsp; Girendra was given the goal of collecting at least $10,000 every month. The entire scam network in Mywaddy had 20,000 people, a town unto itself. The compound had its own casinos, clubs, restaurants, bars, markets, even money exchange centres. “If you had money, you had everything except your freedom,” says Girendra. “I would see new people arrive, and was helpless to do anything but watch as they fell into the same trap that I did in front of my eyes.” Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/multimedia/kleptocrats-of-kathmandu-and-kuala-lumpur">Kleptocrats of Kathmandu and Kuala Lumpur</a>, Ramu Sapkota and Alya Aldajri Two months after Girendra and Naresh arrived in Burma, five fellow Nepalis were somehow rescued. Girendra secretly contacted <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/preparing-for-nepal-s-returnees">the returnees</a>, who over the next two months put him in touch with a man named Bibek Rai in Nepal. In exchange for Rs150,000, Rai said he could get them out, but Girendra did not have that kind of money.&nbsp; Bibek Rai visited the Burmese Embassy in Kathmandu to appeal for the release of Nepalis trapped in Burma. Girendra then got the contact of Sanjay Pradhan, a Burmese citizen of Nepali origin, and sent him the information of the remaining Nepalis at the compound who wanted to get out.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250321040340_226017b54e7122b91f7c1e396284236c11ccd49a942f19454d51df22ba935350.jpg" data-media-id="editor_23" data-image-id="20250321040340_226017b54e7122b91f7c1e396284236c11ccd49a942f19454d51df22ba935350" data-rendition-name="original" width="1204" height="1600" loading="lazy" alt="Nepalis in ‘scam camps’ escape to tell the tale NT"> </figure>  By now, Girendra had failed to meet his target extortion amount, and was subject to harsh physical punishment which hurt his neck. &nbsp; Pradhan messaged Girendra that they were working on their release from the compound, but their first round of negotiations for ransom with the KGBF to enter its jurisdiction fell through. &nbsp; Two weeks later, armed KGBF militia suddenly came to collect the Nepalis, calling them by their passport numbers.&nbsp; “I cried uncontrollably when I came out of that cage,” Girendra recalls. Over the next few days, Pakistani, Indian, and Philippine nationals were also released from the compound.&nbsp; One Nepali, who had been appointed ‘leader’ by the Chinese bosses at the compound, refused to return because it was more profitable for him to stay back. &nbsp; An NGO then took charge, paying for their return from <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/lost-village-of-nepalis-in-thailand">Burma to Thailand</a> in a convoy of 20 military vehicles. Each person was given 10,000 Thai baht ($300) for further <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/high-cost-lays-aviation-low-in-nepal">travel expenses</a>.&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/borderlines/burmese-of-nepali-descent-flee-to-thailand">Burmese of Nepali descent flee to Thailand</a>, Chandra Kishore The Nepalis then got in touch with the Nepal Embassy in Bangkok asking for tickets home, but Girendra says they were treated like <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/i-speak-nothing-but-the-truth-your-honour">criminals</a>. “Embassy staff told us that they were not our parents,” he adds. Finally, the rescued Nepalis found other ways to pay for their flights back to Kathmandu and returned last month. <h2>Bob's Story</h2>  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250321040344_7597be4427b4b1b8090f0bff517b9f9c1ef0179c19148516d96d2612975ecce2.jpg" data-media-id="editor_28" data-image-id="20250321040344_7597be4427b4b1b8090f0bff517b9f9c1ef0179c19148516d96d2612975ecce2" data-rendition-name="original" width="2256" height="3700" loading="lazy" alt="Nepalis in ‘scam camps’ escape to tell the tale NT"> <figcaption>Samir Thapa Magar was punished by the Chinese gang for being unable to meet his extortion target.</figcaption> </figure>  In Chitwan, Bob’s family farm never recovered after being hit hard by <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepal-covid-19-impact-worse-than-official-figures">the Covid-19 pandemic</a>. So, when he saw an ad on Telegram about a sales and marketing job opportunity in Thailand that promised zero recruitment fees and a $1,500 salary, Bob immediately messaged the Telegram account to apply for the job. He heard back from someone named Barsha that candidates would be selected through a video interview. Bob’s interviewers kept their video on mute during the meeting.&nbsp; Finally, he was called to Kathmandu, where he was asked by Barsha to pay Rs150,000 that would be returned to him once he reached Thailand.&nbsp; Bob reached Kathmandu airport on the day before the Phulpati festival last year, where he met Samir Thapa Magar, an IT student from Gorkha who had also responded to the ad in Telegram. He had been offered a job as a cleaner in Thailand. Samir paid Barsha Rs105,000 in cash and Rs25,000 in cryptocurrency.&nbsp; Bob and Samir landed at Rangoon airport three days after they left Kathmandu, and were told that they would be taken from there to Thailand.&nbsp; Their passports were taken by their employers, after which they were driven for a whole day, changing vehicles 20 times before finally reaching Myawaddy.&nbsp; “It was only there that we realised that we had been scammed,” remembers Bob.&nbsp; The two men were coerced into working as online scammers disguised as women. They would have to extort $10,000 a month, failing which they were tortured by armed militia. Samir now regrets scamming people out of up to $22,000 in a month.&nbsp; Last year, a Chinese gang was apprehended in Kathmandu working under the cover of a beauty salon named YYP Services to recruit Nepalis into ‘scam camps’ in Burma.&nbsp; In July 2023, Chinese national Liang Jun was arrested by Nepal Police after a woman who had been forced into a scamming ring in Burma since July 2022 returned to Nepal and filed a complaint at the Anti-Human Trafficking Bureau.&nbsp; The woman had been promised a monthly salary of $1,000, and had paid Rs100,000 in recruitment fees, but had been sent back to Nepal after she fell ill due to exhaustion while working in a scam network in Burma.&nbsp; The Kathmandu District Court sentenced Liang to two years in prison, the minimum punishment for <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/human-trafficking-patterns-changing-in-south-asia">human trafficking</a>. Since then, some other Nepalis who have returned from scam rings in Burma have filed complaints with the Bureau, but no one else has been arrested. <h2>The Dubai connection</h2>  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250321040340_24b1b75831e1c8f60a485965e7f5bd2633e3ae35c5d5366c0a9d42b97da33041.jpg" data-media-id="editor_31" data-image-id="20250321040340_24b1b75831e1c8f60a485965e7f5bd2633e3ae35c5d5366c0a9d42b97da33041" data-rendition-name="original" width="1201" height="653" loading="lazy" alt="Nepalis in ‘scam camps’ escape to tell the tale NT"> <figcaption>Human traffickers take various routes to take recruits from Nepak to Burma.</figcaption> </figure>  Traffickers have not just targeted desperate <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepali-women-flee-abuse-for-overseas-work?utm_source=etahernus.com&amp;amp%3Butm_medium=referral&amp;amp%3Butm_campaign=the-government-bans-everything">Nepalis seeking foreign employment</a>, but also <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-on-my-mind?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR2IAf90rgfF7kBhJaHoH_N0eHadKV8UDt6gpZoLCtwoTCOqBigvopAhzgM_aem_RgmcfwotY89YwGuwc2aRuQ">Nepali migrant workers already employed in the Gulf</a>. Agents also use Dubai as a transit point, taking unsuspecting Nepalis on visit visas, setting them up in apartments before dispatching them to scam rings across Southeast Asia. Of the 11 people in Burma sent back to Nepal by the Karen State Border Guard Force, half had arrived in Burma from Dubai. One of them, Yograj Liwang from Jhapa, had been working in Dubai on a visit visa, and had reached Burma in October 2022, initially receiving information on<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/facebook-nation"> Facebook</a>.&nbsp; Last August, Nepal’s Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) arrested 36 individuals including two Chinese nationals after raiding a cryptocurrency trading ring in Lalitpur which had been trafficking Nepalis in Dubai. That syndicate with tentacles in the UAE, Nepal, and China had defrauded people of more than Rs105 million.&nbsp; “The Chinese had contacts in Burma, Thailand, Laos and Cambodia,” says a Deputy Superintendent of Police involved in the investigation. “Although there is no evidence that this group sent Nepalis to those countries, we have reason to suspect that they are responsible.” There is no way to know how many Nepalis have been scammed into working as scammers across the other three <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/asia-s-new-cold-war">Southeast Asian nations</a>. Returnees estimate that around 2,000 Nepalis have been forced into working for online scam rings. &nbsp;&nbsp; Some names have been changed.

Nepalis in ‘scam camps’ escape to tell the tale

This is the 60th episode of Diaspora Diaries, a Nepali Times series in collaboration with Migration Lab providing a platform to share experiences of living, working, studying abroad. <h2>Dil Bahadur Tamang</h2> I come from a <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepal-s-class-divide-widens">middle-class family</a>, and my father did all he could to make sure we had a <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/after-quantity-nepals-education-needs-quality">proper education</a>. I really wanted to be an engineer, but was not that good in studies and my father could not afford to pay for college. So I joined Korean language classes instead. <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/long-wait-over-nepalis-return-to-korea">In Korea</a>, I was blown away by the infrastructure and <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/development-destruction-yt3t1yhu">development</a>. But once I entered my company premises, it was a different story. It was a smelly place with piles of trash.&nbsp; This was not the standard ‘foreign company’ of my imagination. I had been placed with a <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/everest-garbage-caravan">plastic recycling</a> company, and worked three years there before it went bankrupt. I switched to a welding company. Korea taught me the value of work and time, and more importantly, just how much of a difference being within a system can make. &nbsp; <h2>Prabin Shrestha</h2> I randomly came across an acquaintance who was a Korea returnee and jokingly told him that I also wanted to go. He talked about a new Government-to-Government (G2G) scheme called EPS, and told me I should give it a shot. It would be cheaper and more rewarding, but I had to pass a language test. My first <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/speaking-the-language-of-overseas-work">job in Korea</a> was drying animal leather, but a year later I moved to a plastic company before returning to Nepal to start my own <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/biodegradable-plastic-launched-in-nepal">plastic manufacturing </a>venture with Shahadev.&nbsp; Despite having skills and experience, I quickly realised that it was difficult to remain competitive with 18 hours of daily power cuts. We were afraid of losing our <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/from-retail-to-selling-chiya?fbclid=IwAR3lAnpyoOKTvyb9ekXulEcPzzZCfBmLYLZq950Bv6ElccPHVPM2175ABeI">hard earned money</a>.&nbsp; So Shahadev and I decided to remigrate and joined our previous company in Korea. This time, the thought of “नेपाल गएर के गर्ने?” kept gnawing at me. The skills and experience I acquired in Korea were not usable back home, where my heart was. &nbsp; I used to go to a <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/not-easy-for-nepal-to-buffalo-meat-to-china">meat</a> shop nearby, where the shopkeeper, an elderly woman, was nice to me. We used to chat, and I wondered if I could start something similar in Nepal: a well-organised meat shop.&nbsp; My friend and I started <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-qatar-job-mirage">applying for jobs</a> in the meat sector. We wanted to work at a <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/pigs-fly-and-fish-climb-trees">pig farm</a>, but got jobs in a meat processing plant. <h2>Shahadev Gurung</h2> We were the first lot that went to Korea under the EPS scheme. Korea had a good image in our community, a place where <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/12-full-opinion/let-s-listen-to-nepal-s-young-changemakers">young Nepalis</a> could make something of themselves.&nbsp; Prabin and I went on the same flight, we worked in the same plastic company, and changed to the same meat processing company. We thought it would be easy, and would be simply cutting meat like we did back home. But there everything had to be cut just right. It was a new experience and initially felt complicated. Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/meat-money-and-the-middle-class">Meat, money, and the middle class</a>  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250321040328_c7da4ee896e7fb140795e60e9b1b60a7e13446d9cd2914ed980071c4d5addcce.jpg" data-media-id="editor_13" data-image-id="20250321040328_c7da4ee896e7fb140795e60e9b1b60a7e13446d9cd2914ed980071c4d5addcce" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Bringing Korea's prosperity to Nepal NT"> <figcaption>BACK HOME: (Left to right) Dil Bahadur Tamang making a pitch at the RIN program. Prabin Shrestha at his shop in Nepal. Sahadev Gurung cutting meat surgically.</figcaption> </figure>  <h2>Prabin Shrestha</h2> Our employer told us that he had started with nothing, and made a lot of money selling meat. With just a knife and focus on hygiene, you can do a lot if you put your mind to it, he used to tell us.&nbsp; It was like surgery. Every part mattered. Knowing that these skills could be an <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/the-new-equaliser">investment back home</a>, we were keen to learn everything about cutting meat perfectly.&nbsp; After work, we used to take home the bones to assemble a skeleton so we could learn about all the parts. We would memorise the names and familiarise ourselves with the right angle of the knife to slice them with. We were so obsessed we learnt in 2.5 months what took others six months. Our employer gave us raises. <h2>Dil Bahadur Tamang</h2> After we <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/returning-to-nepal-has-its-rewards">returned to Nepal</a>, we started Hankook Meat Mart. I have known my co-founder Prabin Shrestha for 25 years, he is like family to me. We studied together, went to Korea together. Even before we left Nepal, we knew that we would one day run a business together. Returning from Korea, we studied the market for months before launching the business, visiting meat shops and talking to people.&nbsp; We learnt that oversupply of meat reduced the price and put quality farmers at a disadvantage. Even when we found cheaper suppliers, we set a floor price for our meat suppliers who were picked based on whether they fed the pigs proper feed and not waste, and if the animals were 6-8 months old.&nbsp; We also realised that pork meat parts are not separated but mashed together. Hygiene and quality also fluctuated. Consumers get good meat one day and the next day the same shop sold meat that was difficult even to chew.&nbsp; Imported meat was available, but costly. Our niche was going to be quality, premium meat.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250321040328_90757fa0c57e4e8254e764f556f528d382a0b4e8cb75caa3fe0a2cb52c8e77ce.jpg" data-media-id="editor_16" data-image-id="20250321040328_90757fa0c57e4e8254e764f556f528d382a0b4e8cb75caa3fe0a2cb52c8e77ce" data-rendition-name="original" width="1600" height="900" loading="lazy" alt="Bringing Korea's prosperity to Nepal NT"> <figcaption>Hankook Meat Mart stood second in the Returnee Innovators Showcase that was organised by The Bridge International and funded by KOICA.</figcaption> </figure>  <h2>Shahadev Gurung</h2> The three of us work well together even after all these years. There is a strong trust between us. Each of us individually carry out our duties well. That I think is what has worked for us to help us endure this long partnership. The skills we learnt in Korea have stayed with us, and we are still reaping the benefits. Current EPS workers engaged in the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/aid-rarely-aids-agriculture-in-nepal">agriculture sector </a>can benefit here as the skills can be used, but you have to be willing to work hard in Nepal just like you do <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/grass-is-greener-overseas-for-nepals-doctors">overseas</a>.&nbsp; You cannot slow down just because you are in Nepal. It is also helpful to think about your return while overseas, that makes transitioning to Nepal much easier. <h2>Prabin Shrestha</h2> Korea for me was like a university where I learnt a lot. When I came home, my suitcase was full of knives, aprons for meat processing.&nbsp; There are so many things that we can learn <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-s-hard-working-students-overseas">overseas</a>, small things that would make our lives easier here. All I learnt was to cut meat. But we have created jobs for 30-40 people, while being close to family. We don’t have to dream very big. I enjoy working in Nepal. I saw many cottage industries that started small in Korea that I found inspiring so we bring machines from Korea and run shops that &nbsp;make rice cakes and kimchi. We are opening a new branch, and a small Korean restaurant. My former boss who visited us in Nepal is thrilled with our progress and even gifted us a meat slicer. Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/overseas-job-seeker-now-creates-jobs-in-nepal">Overseas job-seeker now creates jobs in Nepal</a>, Mahesh Sah Working in Nepal is not always easy, of course, the trick is to try to find happiness even in those tough moments. That makes life easier. This kind of hustle can scare some people and dissuade many but we have to build the appetite for it because one day, these experiences will become part of our story, our journey. &nbsp;

Bringing Korea’s prosperity to Nepal

If visitors to the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/its-a-jungle-out-there">Bardia National Park </a>are lucky, they can sometimes spot a bevy of otters frolicking with their pups along <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/the-karnali">the Karnali River.</a> Or they might be out fishing, brown fur gleaming in the sun as they emerge from the water with a fish in the mouth. But on a recent daytime visit to the national park in Kailali, there was no such luck. All that pointed to their presence were tracks on the sand by the banks of the Karnali (pictured, below).&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250314030320_9c5ba49b740896453946aedc632f1cb8df8e886cda7107996f5a40893d99f016.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20250314030320_9c5ba49b740896453946aedc632f1cb8df8e886cda7107996f5a40893d99f016" data-rendition-name="original" width="1200" height="1600" loading="lazy" alt="Otters footprint "> <figcaption>Photo: SUDIKSHA TULADHAR</figcaption> </figure>  When it comes to <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/human-animal-interface-in-nepal-wildlife-corridor">wildlife</a>, the news cycle in Nepal is dominated by <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/in-conservation-nepal-is-not-out-of-the-woods-yet">tigers and rhinos</a>, and their <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/is-wildlife-conservation-a-victim-of-its-own-success-in-nepal">conservation success stories</a>. This means other <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/lesser-known-endangered-species">endangered mammals </a>like pangolins and otters remain in the shadows.&nbsp; Many Nepalis are not even aware that otters exist in Nepal. There are three species found here: the Eurasian Otter (Lutra lutra), Smooth-coated Otter (Lutrogale perspicillata), and Asian Small-clawed Otter (Aonyx cinereus). All are usually nocturnal, or most active at dawn or dusk to avoid predators like <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/crocodile-chronicle">crocodiles</a>, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/does-nepal-really-have-too-many-tigers">tigers</a>, and <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/clouded-future-for-the-clouded-leopard">leopards</a>. Otter species found in Nepal prefer freshwater <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/importance-of-ecosystems-for-people-and-the-planet">ecosystems </a>along fast flowing <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/saving-what-is-left-of-himalayan-rivers">Himalayan rivers</a> and the <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=18976">wetlands</a> that they feed. The Asian Small-clawed Otter feeds on crabs and mollusks, the Smooth-coated otter, primarily found in rivers of Karnali and Narayani, preys on fish, playing a crucial role in maintaining balance in the aquatic ecosystem.&nbsp; Their dependence on <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/solution-to-kathmandu-s-water-crisis">clean water</a> makes otters bioindicators, which means their abundance shows a healthy ecosystem and unpolluted water bodies.&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/people-tigers-trees-and-rivers">People, tigers, trees and rivers</a>, Shashank Poudel “Otters hunt in the water, but they spend most of their time on land, often along the boulders and sand on the banks,” explains Arun Sonaha, otter conservation expert from the indigenous Sonaha community. Otter scat contributes to nutrient cycling as well as the fertilisation of riverbanks and wetlands, indirectly promoting vegetation. Smooth-coated Otters and Asian small-clawed Otters prefer lowland habitats. The former have adapted to survive in human-altered landscapes, and have been found to reside in <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/pouring-concrete-on-rice-fields">rice fields</a> and <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/latest/infrastructure-for-wildlife-in-nepal">irrigation canals</a>.&nbsp; However, Eurasian Otters adapt to <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/nepal-must-prepare-for-climate-migration">seasonal changes</a> by moving up to 3,660m during the summer, and migrating to lower elevations in the winter. The presence of Eurasian Otters has been recorded in 24 districts across Nepal, while the Smooth-coated and Asian Small-clawed species have been documented in 12 districts. Otters have been spotted in the Karnali, Narayani, Kosi, and Mahakali <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/india-nepal-ignore-climate-crisis-in-river-talks">river systems</a>. The smallest of the 13 known otter species, Asian Small-clawed otters, were recorded in Nepal for the first time in 185 years earlier this year in February in Dadeldhura.&nbsp; “We track the movement of Smooth-coated Otters using 18 camera traps in Bardia,” explains Aashish Kapali from the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/world-lost-2-3-of-its-animals-in-50-years-wwf-report">World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Nepal</a>. Smooth-coated otters have still been observed in healthy numbers along the Karnali, but the otter population is in decline. The smooth-coated otter and Asian small-clawed are currently listed as ‘vulnerable’ in the IUCN Red List, while the Eurasian Otter is ‘near endangered’.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250314030324_f20e9290f9e92401be7a5c8c53d080c80e8c0583fa991def89bb3081329255dd.png" data-media-id="editor_20" data-image-id="20250314030324_f20e9290f9e92401be7a5c8c53d080c80e8c0583fa991def89bb3081329255dd" data-rendition-name="original" width="2048" height="1521" loading="lazy" alt="Otters 2"> <figcaption>PHOTO: SAGAR GIRI/ WWF NEPAL</figcaption> </figure>  <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/multimedia/rivers-be-dammed">River damming</a>, indiscriminate and illegal fishing, changing rainfall patterns and <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/decarbonisation-needs-to-begin-today">extreme weather</a>, rapid urbanisation in Nepal’s lowlands have contributed to loss of otter habitats and depletion of food sources. Pollution from <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/20-years-ago-this-week/clearing-the-air-ha86ztz4">raw sewage and industrial waste </a>has also added to<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/between-existence-and-extinction-in-nepal"> habitat degradation</a> while <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/from-the-nepali-press/banned-pesticides-are-widely-used-in-nepal">pesticides </a>have directly impacted their prey population. “The pesticides sprayed on fields drain into the rivers, affecting the fish population,” says Kapali. “This reverberates across the food chain and affects otter numbers.”&nbsp; Until a few years ago, otter poaching also ran rampant. Between 1989 and 2017, 755 otter pelts were confiscated in Nepal but <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=18566">communities living along the Karnali </a>have since stepped up efforts to protect the mammals. “Our continuous conservation efforts have meant that we currently do not have issues with poaching,” says Sonaha. Read also:<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/protecting-pangolins-from-being-eaten-to-extinction"> Protecting pangolins from being eaten to extinction</a>, Sonia Awale Community members are also working to revive the indigenous knowledge about over-fishing, and they also get skills training for alternative livelihoods.&nbsp; “The training not only enables us to earn a living but also helps us conserve otters,” says Buddhi Singh Tharu, chair of Himal Samuha community group for otter conservation. Fishing in the river is still allowed, but it must be done in a way that ensures smaller fish and tadpoles, the primary prey for otters, are not caught. “We use fishing nets that allow smaller fish to escape so that numbers in the river are balanced and under control,” explains Tharu. Across <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/multimedia/nepal-villages-cope-with-climate-induced-floods">Kailali and Bardia</a>, 15 Community River Stretch Management Groups have been established to conserve Smooth-coated otters. Women have been significantly more active in otter <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/women-conserve-men-still-conservative">conservation efforts</a>, with a 68% participation rate. Sudha Chaudhary, 45, was once a fisher, but now has transitioned to <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/the-superfoods-of-the-andes-and-the-himalaya">chili and tomato farming</a> with support from WWF Nepal and believes that conserving otters is essential for maintaining and sustaining the Karnali ecosystem. Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/conversation-with-mr-conservation">Conversation with Mr Conservation</a>, Sonia Awale Meanwhile, despite constant monitoring, sand mining and inadequate <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/managing-everest-s-waste-problem">waste management</a> continue in the Karnali, including by local officials, destroying otter habitats. <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/conservation-at-the-crossroads">Community conservation groups</a> here have expressed concerns about municipal authorities dumping waste near <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/the-karnali">the Karnali River</a>. However, experts also point to a lack of policies when it comes to otter conservation. While the Aquatic Animal Protection Act of 1961 and the National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act of 1973 exist, they are inadequate for the conservation of these vulnerable semi-aquatic animals. Talks are underway for the government to approve a new action plan for otter conservation. For now, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/remembering-nepal-s-conservation-heroes">conservationists</a> emphasise the need for <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/wildlife-people-coexistence-in-nepal-national-park">human-wildlife coexistence</a> to foster sustainable ecosystems that protect <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/the-great-trans-himalayan-bird-migration">Nepal’s biodiversity</a>, to achieve which continued <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/comment/villagers-step-up-to-protect-nepal-s-tigers">community conservation</a>, education and awareness efforts are crucial. Says Tharu: “It is our responsibility to conserve otters to ensure their survival for generations to come.”

Saving the Karnali otters

The lush forest of Godavari-Phulchoki along the southern rim of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/bringing-silicon-valley-to-kathmandu-valley">Kathmandu Valley</a> has double the annual <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/when-it-rains-it-pours-ksqprbu3">rainfall</a> compared to the city, and is known for the great diversity of plants, birds, butterflies and other insects. Soaring steeply from Godavari at 1,500m, Phulchoki Peak at 2,750m is the highest point on the Valley rim. The altitude range is also what gives this temperate broadleaf forest such <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/a-karnali-portrait?nSVg6Zb1%27))%20OR%20314=(SELECT%20314%20FROM%20PG_SLEEP(15))--%3D">rich biodiversity</a> with an interlocking <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/people-tigers-trees-and-rivers">mosaic of habitats</a>, allowing a <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/conserving-mountains-for-people-and-nature-6761w34s">diverse range of species</a> to thrive – especially orchids.&nbsp; There is a breathtaking array of orchids, some common, many rare, and others so elusive they have only just been discovered and classified. Even the name Phulchoki means ‘Hill of Flowers’. The orchid plant has long captivated houseplant owners and botanists alike due to its natural beauty and unique form. But it also serves a vital function in maintaining the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/nepal-must-save-nijgad-forest-to-receive-climate-funds">forest’s ecosystem</a>.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025031513030_b54386422e9f9a3e99d0ccab767a8c3f747e08bd7d7602343fa30717f58e01c6.jpg" data-media-id="editor_6" data-image-id="2025031513030_b54386422e9f9a3e99d0ccab767a8c3f747e08bd7d7602343fa30717f58e01c6" data-rendition-name="original" width="1418" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Orchid 7"> <figcaption>Dendrobium bicameratum</figcaption> </figure>  The small paradise of Godavari-Phulchoki harbours <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/new-turmeric-species-in-nepal">plant species</a> that face mounting threats despite the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/comment/unsung-heroes-of-nepal-s-tiger-recovery">conservation successes</a> in the watershed. The hill is home to the highest diversity-to-area ratio for orchid species, making it a hotspot because of the threats from increased <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/missing-out-on-nepal-s-tourism-potential">tourism</a>, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/what-drives-wildlife-poaching">poaching</a>, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/climate-breakdown-linked-to-thame-flood">climate breakdown</a> and <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/not-out-of-the-woods-yet-in-nepal">habitat disturbance</a>.&nbsp; The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) has been running the Living Mountain Lab in Godavari as a demonstration site for biodiversity conservation and appropriate technology. The Lab alone has recorded 54 orchid species, and the Godavari-Phulchoki landscape has over 80 species. &nbsp; Uniquely, the orchid’s survival depends even more on very specific ecological conditions, requiring the right balance of moisture, humidity and host plants to flourish – conditions that the Godavari-Phulchoki landscape is ideal for. Orchids mostly grow with support from other plants or on rocks, and are called epiphytes. Orchids have a sophisticated flower that is androgynous with a modified petal, and produces seeds that germinate symbiotically with fungi.&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/between-existence-and-extinction-in-nepal">Between existence and extinction in Nepal</a>, Sonia Awale&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025031513038_0415681c7e4e0e7932388d65d2488d4a444e1588bd29a30a90846dc8ece5a242.jpg" data-media-id="editor_14" data-image-id="2025031513038_0415681c7e4e0e7932388d65d2488d4a444e1588bd29a30a90846dc8ece5a242" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Habenaria"> <figcaption>Habenaria intermedia</figcaption> </figure>  This means the flowers need their own insect pollinators that are attracted by specialised scents and designs of the labellum that serve as landing pads for insects. In this <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/eastern-nepal-s-mundum-landscape">ecologically diverse landscape</a>, the orchids stand as a testament to the health of the region’s <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/economic-benefits-of-saving-the-ecology">ecosystem</a>. Healthy orchids indicate a happy <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/who-now-owns-nepals-forests">forest</a>.&nbsp; Hiking through the Phulchoki forest, visitors can easily spot many of the 80 <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/first-of-its-kind-raspberry-in-nepal">indigenous species i</a>n their natural habitat. Others are more difficult to see.&nbsp; One of the most common orchids on Phulchoki is the Coelogyne nitida that has white petals and a sun-gold centre.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025031513034_7c067b74cb8340c119792a81a198381f127782ce8a78e2de99fc9821d0e43c00.jpg" data-media-id="editor_19" data-image-id="2025031513034_7c067b74cb8340c119792a81a198381f127782ce8a78e2de99fc9821d0e43c00" data-rendition-name="original" width="1394" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Nitida"> <figcaption>Coelogyne nitida</figcaption> </figure>  The orchid has prominent green pseudobulbs that store water and has abundant seed production, which is what makes it one of the more common species. &nbsp;&nbsp; Abu Hang Samuel is a botany student who has independently documented orchids for the past eight years. Last year, while looking into the dark undergrowth on Phulchoki, he discovered the Lecanorchis japonica, a rare species previously found only in China, Japan, and Korea (pictured, below).&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250315120352_5e6584b2e7cf41fecb5858ff93d98914eba1eb781768fb0a951ee7e896625bc8.jpg" data-media-id="editor_20" data-image-id="20250315120352_5e6584b2e7cf41fecb5858ff93d98914eba1eb781768fb0a951ee7e896625bc8" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Orchid 2 "> <figcaption> Lecanorchis japonica</figcaption> </figure>  “This rare orchid does not have leaves and mostly stays underground, living off fungi in the soil, which is why it is difficult to find,” Samuel explains. “When the season is right, slender flowers emerge from the forest floor for a few days before disappearing again. I was lucky to be at the right palce at the right time.”&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/biodynamic-agripreneurs">Biodynamic agripreneurs</a>, Sanjib Chaudhary Orchids and other native plants in the Godavari-Phulchoki landscape face significant threats, including illegal collection and <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/what-drives-wildlife-poaching">poaching</a>, despite laws prohibiting their extraction from <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/saving-nepal-s-last-wild-dogs">the wild</a>.&nbsp; However, the bigger challenge comes from<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/protecting-protected-areas-from-infrastructure?fbclid=IwAR1wK0MDFlFST_2EYb3f54LS4-fPt6rYfLG1DJ1JaQsU3w8-ezyXIxGOqzk"> urban expansion and infrastructure projects</a>, which lead to habitat destruction.&nbsp; “The Godavari bus park once had many trees covered in orchids,” Samuel notes, “but they were cleared to expand the parking area to accommodate growing numbers of picnickers.”&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250315120352_272e39bb7dbd1107f0f6e73384a938206901d29df0f1a27dad20d9fbdeb0e5a9.jpg" data-media-id="editor_25" data-image-id="20250315120352_272e39bb7dbd1107f0f6e73384a938206901d29df0f1a27dad20d9fbdeb0e5a9" data-rendition-name="original" width="1394" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Orchid 3 "> <figcaption>Phalaenopsis taenialis</figcaption> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025031514030_bf32140eaf73bc72cdb5f0053c94776f7877b3e686e2c36ea2d9e4e36c1adabf.jpg" data-media-id="editor_26" data-image-id="2025031514030_bf32140eaf73bc72cdb5f0053c94776f7877b3e686e2c36ea2d9e4e36c1adabf" data-rendition-name="original" width="1404" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Orchid"> <figcaption>Rhynchostylis retusa</figcaption> </figure>  Similarly, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-building-a-highway-to-everest">road construction</a> and <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/Nepal-development-black-hole,3111">development projects</a> have led to the destruction of trees, boulders and slopes where orchids naturally grow, disrupting delicate <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/republic-of-nepal-s-animal-kingdom">ecological networks</a>. &nbsp; Ecosystems function as intricate webs, with each species playing a role in maintaining balance. When habitat destruction disrupts this balance, this natural network of symbiotic relationships among plants and animals unravels.&nbsp; This sets off a domino effect with hazardous and sometimes unexpected consequences that ultimately threaten the survival of orchids and other interdependent species.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250315120356_5751088a8cdb03cdcf067192914ca70ad176fc34249304ef8906d8654192e627.jpg" data-media-id="editor_30" data-image-id="20250315120356_5751088a8cdb03cdcf067192914ca70ad176fc34249304ef8906d8654192e627" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Orchid 5"> <figcaption>Coelogyne cristata</figcaption> </figure>  Amidst rapid <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/cost-of-living-in-a-big-city">urban development</a>, the primary goal of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/remembering-nepal-s-conservation-heroes">conservation </a>is to protect plants, their habitats and the broader ecosystem they rely on.&nbsp; ICIMOD’s Living Mountain Lab, for instance, does a botanical tour called an ‘Orchid Walk’ to spread awareness about the strengths and struggles of this plant, all the while showing visitors the up-close<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/review/the-anatomy-of-a-flower"> beauty of the flowers</a>. “The goal is to enhance the visitors’ experience and raise awareness about the incredible orchid biodiversity of the Godavari-Phulchoki landscape,” says Yufang Su, who heads the Lab. “We hope to inspire a deeper appreciation for these delicate blooms and the need for their conservation.”&nbsp;

Orchids of Godavari-Phulchoki

Last month, Finance Minister Bishnu Paudel and Pokhara Mayor Dhanraj Acharya were burned when hydrogen-filled balloons exploded at the launch of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/pokhara-s-tourism-woes">Pokhara Visit Year 2025</a>. Both were flown to Kathmandu for treatment. In 2023, Nepali Congress Member of Parliament (MP) Chandra Bhandari was severely burned in a kitchen fire. He was taken to India for treatment. His Rs5.6 million medevac and treatment bill was paid by the government. It took the<a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/burning-in-the-aftermath,3757"> burn injuries </a>of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/what-nepal-s-vip-prisoners-do-in-jail">high-profile figures </a>in Nepal to finally spark action on an issue that affects mainly the country’s poorest. “We call this the burns paradox,” says Kiran Nakarmi at the Nepal Cleft and Burn Centre at Kirtipur Hospital, where the Pokhara patients received care. “Treatment is costly and <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=19400">most victims are poor</a>."&nbsp; About 60,000 people suffer <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/removing-scars?fbclid=IwAR2MiX-ZhGNSsqUwgDYfvLWE3a7ZeLaHncz66MMKLQGtSSraTjr9cF5mIWo">burn injuries</a> in Nepal each year and 2,200 of them die. The demand for care in Kirtipur is growing.&nbsp; In 2014, it treated 90 <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/A-burning-desire-to-help,881">burn patients</a> and this more than doubled to 194 in 2015, reached 373 in 2016, and peaked at 790 in 2023. Last year the Centre treated 753 patients, and in January alone this year it was 111. Ninety-two percent of cases come from outside Kathmandu from 75 districts,” says Nakarmi. “When we started it was 42%.”&nbsp; Ideally, burns treatment should be decentralised so that local levels have primary <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/altruistic-healthcare-models-in-nepal">burn care centres</a> no more than two hours away, where patients can get initial treatment like cooling and dressing of wounds, and fluid replacement. Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/removing-scars?fbclid=IwAR3YJaMAa7AekbmwWYy3UlNnJkDj8XZk8qRxcagXd7Sl0M4m4SzolGs_0ow">Removing Scars</a>, Yugeshwor Koirala If necessary, they could be transferred to regional centres to handle surgery for minor burns. The government has already designated six such facilities across the country, and Nakarmi says the Centre could train their staff. He clicks forward on a slide to show a female patient brought in two months ago with her buttocks and thighs burned. “The wound was deep, it was not going to heal on its own. She needed some kind of graft.” If surgeons at a regional facility were properly trained, they could have done the graft. Instead, the patient waited for one month before coming to Kirtipur.&nbsp; Nakarmi is looking for funding for a 70-bed national burn care centre at Kirtipur Hospital, where patients can be isolated from the risk of infection that comes with sharing space in general wards. Another MP, Bindabasini Kansakar, is herself a<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-s-acid-attack-survivors-find-a-saviour"> survivor of an acid attack </a>by a spurned suitor in 2013. She registered a Bill in Parliament last year that includes specialised burn units in all <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/devolution-for-development">government hospitals </a>with 100+ beds, and in some private hospitals and medical colleges in Kathmandu. She is also calling on the government to create a fund to give immediate <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/justice-delayed-justice-denied-byrx8a1c">financial support to victims </a>and their families, discounts for women and children, especially from poorer communities, as well as training for health staff, twice yearly awareness programmes at local levels, and strong penalties to deter acid attacks and intentional burn injuries. Parliament’s delay in passing the Bill is ‘deeply frustrating, especially given my personal experience,’ Kansakar wrote to us.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250314110312_8d1a63b9d63d2ee0c116ffa1bc46e9a3aa5e63e7cdeeceb5a67fd7e772fbe957.jpg" data-media-id="editor_11" data-image-id="20250314110312_8d1a63b9d63d2ee0c116ffa1bc46e9a3aa5e63e7cdeeceb5a67fd7e772fbe957" data-rendition-name="original" width="1446" height="717" loading="lazy" alt="burn incidents in Nepal"> <figcaption>Member of Parliament Bindabasini Kansakar before an acid attack by a spurred suitor in 2013 (left), after, and now. </figcaption> </figure>  ‘I know first-hand the physical, emotional, and financial struggles<a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=18771"> burn victims </a>endure. Delays mean more victims are left without proper care, financial support, or legal protection,’ she added. ‘If burns affected wealthier or more influential communities, the response might have been swifter. This inequality is precisely why the Bill is so crucial — to ensure<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/justice-delayed-justice-denied-byrx8a1c"> justice and support for all victims</a>, regardless of their social standing.’ Burn incidents are the second most common injury in rural Nepal, according to the World Health Organization, and researcher Kamal Phuyal says that making just a handful of simple adjustments to everyday life could prevent most major burns. Before <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/ways-nepal-can-rebound-from-covid-19-2966ixvu">Covid-19</a>, he ran a research project in three municipalities in the mountains, hills and Tarai. After six months gathering data, the team told locals to make changes in their communities to prevent burns. For the next two and a half years, Phuyal worked with health staff, female community <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/enlisting-female-health-volunteers-to-fight-covid-19-b4qlgy1e">health volunteers</a> and other locals. In that time, the number of major burns in the three districts dropped from 21 to zero for two years running. The most effective change was to stop people from cooking on the ground. “If you can put the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/what-s-cooking-in-nepal-besides-politics">cooking stoves</a> just three feet (1m) off the ground, 50% of burns can be eliminated,” explains Phuyal.&nbsp; Nakarmi says that 70% of patients at Kirtipur Hospital, too, got burn injuries in the kitchen. “It should be the safest place to be, but it is the most unsafe,” she adds. Phuyal says<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/deputies-drive-development-in-rural-nepal"> local representatives</a> were convinced by his findings and, especially in Makwanpur, eager to make changes. He expected them to adopt a policy to approve construction of a house only if the plans included putting the cooking space 1m off the ground, to reduce burn incidents, Phuyal explained at a training session at Sushma Koirala Memorial Hospital (SKMH) last October. But <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepal-s-uneven-covid-19-deaths">Covid-19</a> hit, the project ended, the officials were replaced after elections, and the work lost momentum. Today, no <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/local-government-by-the-people-for-the-people-of-the-people">local government</a> seems to have moved forward on <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=18770">burn prevention</a>. During the training session at SKMH, the hospital’s deputy director, Rojina Shilpakar, described some of the burn cases at the facility in recent months. In Dailekh district, two boys were severely burned while collecting fodder. “The parents all thought that they would die so they didn’t take them for medical help. But after two weeks they survived and the story was posted on <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-social-media-contagion">social media</a>.” The hospital reached out and arranged for both boys to be brought to Kathmandu, one to Kirtipur Hospital and the other to SKMH, with burns on 40% of his body. “He was emaciated, just flesh and bones, covered in <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/medicine-goes-back-to-its-roots?fbclid=IwAR31DMkL6vtx8KFvX3KG79Jf6omKN8H8VZ0Dr9G-1UWtIBlFHNphMJi8mrY">herbal medicine </a>that looked like mud,” recalls Shilpakar. If he had been brought for treatment quickly, he could have recovered sooner, she adds. But he was <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/nearly-half-of-nepali-children-still-malnourished">malnourished,</a> and contractures had developed where one part of the body sticks to another, preventing movement. “We couldn’t take him to the operating room right away because of his malnourished condition. He had to gain some weight, increase his haemoglobin levels. Even skin grafts were not taken properly, so it affected the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/the-art-of-healing">healing,</a>” explains Shilpakar. <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/pandemic-of-poverty">Poverty</a> prevents many families from<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/it-s-an-emergency-nepal-needs-to-improve-trauma-care"> seeking care</a>, although both facilities will not turn away burn cases for <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/poor-cash-rich-nepal">lack of money</a>. SKMH paid the bills for the Dailekh boys' treatment, including an eight-month hospital stay. Now seven, the youngster has already had a follow-up surgery and is likely to need more operations as he grows. Smaller <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/healthcare-moving-from-hospitals-to-homes">hospitals</a> outside Kathmandu often do not not accept severe burn cases, and instead send them immediately to a larger facility. “If the patient dies within a few hours, they will be blamed, So they just try to push them away,” adds Shilpakar. SKMH has been <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=16801">training health workers</a> from across the country to treat burns since 2012. This includes countering the prevalent belief at the time that burn victims should not be given fluids. Patients would reach the centre <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/multimedia/dirty-dangerous-difficult-and-dehydrating">dehydrated</a>, and then go into acute <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/comment/saving-kidneys-to-save-nepal">kidney failure</a>. Some with a high percentage of burns die. Those cases have decreased in the last few years because <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/comment/nepal-health-workers-at-risk-of-workplace-hazards">health workers </a>have been trained, including to give fluids to patients. The treatment at the Cleft and Burn Centre has become much more effective since it opened in 2014. Says Nakarmi: “Back then we could not save anyone who had 40% burns or greater. Now we can save half of victims with 40% burns, and if someone has 60% burns, they have a 15% chance of survival. We aim to save half of patients with 60% burns.” The centre developed a six-day training for health staff on burns care for workers from facilities country-wide, but funding was provided by <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/how-usaid-cut-affects-nepal">USAID</a> and has been cut. There is no replacement in sight. Recent increase in government support for burns treatment seems to have been sparked by the case of MP Bhandari. In October, the government announced free treatment for patients from the<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/why-nepal-s-poverty-rate-is-stuck"> poorest families</a>.&nbsp; “But there is a little catch,” says Nakarmi. “The treatment of destitute burn victims, are supposed to be covered right? But everyone else also wants to get support. A lot of Nepali people are not destitute, but they are poor. We just try to cover their costs as much as possible.”

Marty Logan

A burning problem that needs solutions

Last week was <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/maha-shivaratri">Shivaratri</a>, and this week it is <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/everyday-as-if-it-is-women-s-day">International Women’s Day</a> on 8 March. What better way to marry the two than to investigate Shakti, the feminine creative aspect of the universe.&nbsp; Shiva’s consort has many names: Parvati, Shakti, Durga, Uma, Gauri. She is the embodiment of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/midwives-to-the-rescue-in-nepal">motherhood</a>, love and <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/future-proofing-nepal-s-population-strategy?s=04">fertility</a>, and she balances Shiva’s destructive attributes with creation.&nbsp; Alongside the triumvirate of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/the-hindu-gods-of-buddhist-thailand">Brahma the creator and Vishnu the preserver</a>, is <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=6983">Shiva the destroyer-creator</a>. He is the Lord of making things end so that the new can take their place.&nbsp; Hinduism may be perceived and practised as a multitheistic religion, but in its tenets, all is one, the gods and their many avatar are but different names given to the one truth of existence and reality. And in this, Shiva can be referred to as the Supreme Being. Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/tolerating-nepal-s-religious-tolerance">Tolerating Nepal’s religious tolerance</a>, Shekhar Kharel Shiva is considered masculine, and conceptualised as <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/review/communicating-existence-through-art">pure consciousness</a> -- call it soul, transcendent spirit, whatever that exists beyond the material. Shakti is feminine energy and is a dynamic reality. The union of Shiva-Shakti symbolises creation and the coming together of male and female energy.&nbsp; One of the most sacred texts in <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=11957">Hinduism </a>is the Shiva Purana, and it describes Shakti as having a ‘parturient’ trait. Parturient is used to describe a woman in labour, so Shakti is thought of as fertile, and always on the verge of creation if the pure consciousness of Shiva wills something. This may seem to suggest that the feminine aspect is submissive and waiting for the masculine form to act and uphold the need for creation. But we have to see this as a human conceptualisation to make sense of our own existence and the need to explain reality.&nbsp; Another way to interpret the gendering could be that the masculine is not of much use if the feminine does not exist. In other words, what good would it be if there was nothing to be conscious of, and there was only a destroyer. It is the feminine form that holds the power of creation.&nbsp; Parvati may have been regarded as feminine because she creates, gives birth. And consciousness as masculine because of its association with Shiva, the yogi-ascetic.&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/a-thousand-sadhus-and-a-hanuman">A thousand Sadhus and a Hanuman</a>  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025030813038_5393d1feffb9952b8c3df26d0cd6142ffaef9cf503b163b0e866c478e64e0625.jpg" data-media-id="editor_10" data-image-id="2025030813038_5393d1feffb9952b8c3df26d0cd6142ffaef9cf503b163b0e866c478e64e0625" data-rendition-name="original" width="800" height="980" loading="lazy" alt="Shiva"> <figcaption>This 12th century stele of Uma Maheswar depicting Shiva and Parvati was stolen from Tangal Hiti in Patan 45 years ago and returned to Nepal in 2018 from The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.</figcaption> </figure>  The Shiva Purana perspective is that both are balanced and the same, and neither can exist without the other.&nbsp; ‘Just as Shiva, so also the goddess. Just as the goddess so also Shiva. No difference shall be thought of between the two as between the moon and the moonlight’, says the text, which is part of the Shaivite literature corpus. In fact, the composite deity of &nbsp;‘Ardhanarishvara’ expresses precisely this union and can be translated as ‘the Lord who is half woman’. Ardhanarishvara is a depiction of a being that is split straight down the middle: the right half is traditionally Shiva with his masculine features and Nandi the bull consort, and the left side is <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/review/swasthani-lecture">Parvati or Durga </a>with feminine traits and a tiger consort.&nbsp; “The paintings and statues of Ardhanarishvara show that Shiva and Shakti are both inseparable and the same,” explains historian and author Govinda Tandon.&nbsp; “This is all the Hindu concept of ekam sat vipra bahudha vadanti, that truth is one, but called by many names,” Tandon adds, pointing out that the the bull and tiger consorts co-exist in the divine pair, although they would be prey and predator, further reinforcing the concept that opposing characteristics can prevail in the same being.&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/comment/giving-a-face-to-a-deity">Giving faces to a deity</a>, Shaguni Singh Sakya The Shiva-Shakti postulation of the coexistence of opposites exists in other faiths as darkness giving way to light. It is an attempt to understand the universal truth that what appears to be antithetical are essential to reality, and meaningless without the opposite aspect.&nbsp; Other philosophies also share this understanding of dual oneness. Ancient Chinese belief systems came up with <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=14536">Yin-Yang</a>, where Yin is receptive and dark, and Yang is active and bright, each containing a seed of the other.&nbsp; The message is not to rank one better than the other, but that maintaining a balance between the two is key to living in Tao, or the natural path of the universe.&nbsp; Western thinkers have also described the two as Chaos and Order, or Nature and Culture. Too much chaos, and nothing sustains itself (think <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-geopolitics-of-nepal-s-politics">Nepal’s politics</a>). Too much order, and everything stagnates, like <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/a-creeping-coup">in a dictatorship</a> where anything that deviates from the strict command is punished, and nothing truly new and revolutionary is allowed to foster. All of these ways to see the duality somewhat echo each other, although they may not be exactly the same. But what is common to all these ideas of Shiva-Shakti, Creation-Destruction, Ying-Yang, Light-Darkness, is the same overarching message: that both forces are inseparable and must exist in a cosmic dance for it to be optimal.&nbsp; Nataraja is another manifestation of Shiva, where he dances with wild abandon (Tandava), symbolising the creation and destruction of the universe. In Tantricism, creation follows destruction as Shiva and Shakti join in this union.&nbsp; This notion also aligns with the latest discoveries in<a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=17254"> astrophysics </a>of matter and antimatter, and the singularity in a black hole where time and space merge. The Shiva-Shakti duality can also be regarded as a singularity. A photon, for example, is a quantum of light and can be both a particle and a wave. In the ‘wave-particle’ duality, light can behave as a particle when hitting something, but act as a wave when travelling through space.&nbsp; Or, take the Observer Effect in <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/review/the-destroyer-of-worlds">quantum physics</a>. Electrons fired at a card with two slits will behave like waves, creating ripple patterns beyond the slits. But introduce a detector, and the electron behaves like a particle, the ripples disappear.&nbsp; Shiva is tangible reality, Shakti is pure energy. Some physicists who study sub-atomic particles say that the deeper they investigate, the more they begin to see the hand of a Supreme Being.&nbsp; The <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/the-script-of-the-scriptures">scriptures</a> and their depictions of the divine transcend and exist in the everyday world around us. Evolution, for example, is possible because of natural selection through the act of reproduction, the fusion of gametes from two parents that creates the genetic variation so they can ‘be fruitful and multiply’.&nbsp; Govinda Tandon used to be the chair of the Pashupati Area Development Trust committed &nbsp;to <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/remembering-nepal-s-conservation-heroes">managing and conserving</a> the temple dedicated to the benign manifestation of Shiva, one of the holiest Hindu shrines in the world.&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-healer-of-pashupati">The healer of Pashupati</a> The temple itself is regarded as the site where Shiva and Parvati once took the form of antelopes on the forested banks of the Bagmati. For Tandon, there is a strong message from the divine union of Shiva-Shakti, Uma-Maheswar, Gauri-Shankar, Shiva-Parvati: “The masculine and feminine principles existing in the same form as equals should inspire us. Societies, families work best when men and women respect each other as equals. One complements the other.”

The sacred female energy of Shakti

Nepal’s former king Gyanendra was greeted by flag-waving supporters as he arrived at Kathmandu Airport on Sunday afternoon from Pokhara after attending pro-monarchy rallies in various parts of the country. Gyanendra and his family were escorted from the airport by supporters to his residence at Nirmal Niwas, where his family has been living since 2008 when the Constituent Assembly abolished the monarchy. The 2015 Constitution then turned Nepal into a federal democratic republic. The deposed monarch had been on a two-month long tour of religious sites and local communities across western Nepal, ending in a two-week stay in Pokhara. After staying out of controversy, Gyanendra made a statement on Nepal’s Democracy Day last month in which he said he was willing to play a role in “saving the country”. There has been a surge of pro-monarchy posts and videos on social media, where the country’s previous kings have been glorified as being nationalists who were respected by the international community.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250309120340_07b324fee8d082ed3f8566544e24d45fcd600bbb122374fc39c7a94ce3d044f2.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20250309120340_07b324fee8d082ed3f8566544e24d45fcd600bbb122374fc39c7a94ce3d044f2" data-rendition-name="original" width="1914" height="1276" loading="lazy" alt="The ghost of monarchy returns to haunt Nepal NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250309120340_769f688f3a5eb3602f4c24c350ba1caa6965a171c079d783e28db0f746b810d0.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20250309120340_769f688f3a5eb3602f4c24c350ba1caa6965a171c079d783e28db0f746b810d0" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1333" loading="lazy" alt="The ghost of monarchy returns to haunt Nepal NT"> </figure>  Nepal’s monarchists, which include Gyanendra’s backers, several pro-monarchist parties and other anti-government figures, think <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/new-year-same-difference">public disillusionment </a>with the country’s ageing and ineffective leaders and institutions is at breaking point.&nbsp; There is also disappointment with elected leaders and technocrats from new parties like the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), with its <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/rabi-s-detention-churns-nepali-politics">leader Rabi Lamichhane under investigation</a> for his alleged involvement in a scandal involving diverting funds from cooperatives. One of the staunchest backers of Gyanendra’s comeback as king is former BBC journalist Rabindra Mishra, who has been active on social media platforms posting videos and text extolling the monarchy. He has referenced recent street uprisings in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Syria, cautioning Nepal’s mainstream leaders not to dismiss support for the monarchy. ‘Support for a return to monarchy is increasing even though the mainstream parties may dismiss it,’ wrote Mishra. ‘Like the leaders of Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, they should not try to suppress the voices on the streets.’  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250309120340_d8758f6b7474c9f3aea3661ccd60955d8553971cb0d799039bbfd232aa1a0691.jpg" data-media-id="editor_4" data-image-id="20250309120340_d8758f6b7474c9f3aea3661ccd60955d8553971cb0d799039bbfd232aa1a0691" data-rendition-name="original" width="1890" height="1260" loading="lazy" alt="The ghost of monarchy returns to haunt Nepal NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250309120340_63613759744c0fac33ff3eabc298079c3e525063882f4b3760954bbc0833b5cd.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="20250309120340_63613759744c0fac33ff3eabc298079c3e525063882f4b3760954bbc0833b5cd" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1333" loading="lazy" alt="The ghost of monarchy returns to haunt Nepal NT"> </figure>  But for all their bluster, Nepal’s mainstream politicians who have rotated leadership of the country between themselves, seem worried about the crowds on the streets in support of the monarchy. The TikTok ban last year, which the government said was to ‘maintain social harmony’ was put into effect to prevent pro-monarchy groups from organising on the platform. The ban on TikTok has now been lifted, and supporters of the monarchy have mobilised platforms to fan nostalgia of the golden age of royalty, and to brand former kings Mahendra and Birendra as <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/review/a-past-foretold">nationalists who upheld Nepal’s sovereignty during the Cold War</a> and commanded respect worldwide. Archival video clips of Mahendra being received by President Eisenhower in 1960 and <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/if-birendra-was-alive-nepal-could-still-be-a-monarchy">Birendra </a>by President Reagan in 1983 have been liked by thousands. Comments contrast this to the incompetence and poor standing of Nepal’s current prime ministers.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250309120340_7dab05f5703e17a82da73277f0b39bf178c1005e0758aa50077ffe1a037f4af6.jpg" data-media-id="editor_8" data-image-id="20250309120340_7dab05f5703e17a82da73277f0b39bf178c1005e0758aa50077ffe1a037f4af6" data-rendition-name="original" width="1810" height="1206" loading="lazy" alt="The ghost of monarchy returns to haunt Nepal NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250309120340_1ab38cdccfd076babd78579fa345520a7b2fa9c838322226a259540c8c290437.jpg" data-media-id="editor_9" data-image-id="20250309120340_1ab38cdccfd076babd78579fa345520a7b2fa9c838322226a259540c8c290437" data-rendition-name="original" width="1812" height="1206" loading="lazy" alt="The ghost of monarchy returns to haunt Nepal NT"> </figure>  While most of the people present at the demonstration included the older demographic, younger people have especially used social media to express their support for the monarchy. Young Nepalis, disillusioned with leaders who have been prime minister multiple times since the mid-1990s, are attracted to the idea of reinstating the monarchy as a form of anti-incumbent protest, but also because they have little to no memory of living under an authoritarian absolute monarchy. ‘Those who say the monarchy is paramount today are the ones who did not live through it in the past, and are dissatisfied with the current state of affairs,’ wrote Guna Raj Luitel, Chief Editor of Nagarik Daily, in an op-ed in the newspaper on Sunday.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250309120340_720d0059207b9918def39e983d9b5c114b6afb4e7ac0ed1dadd2cba2f20f9aa6.jpg" data-media-id="editor_10" data-image-id="20250309120340_720d0059207b9918def39e983d9b5c114b6afb4e7ac0ed1dadd2cba2f20f9aa6" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1333" loading="lazy" alt="The ghost of monarchy returns to haunt Nepal NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250309120340_bfe50ebd413d1b177ebd02df5f837038d8a04c9d343afe39be1ebcde36db893a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_11" data-image-id="20250309120340_bfe50ebd413d1b177ebd02df5f837038d8a04c9d343afe39be1ebcde36db893a" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1333" loading="lazy" alt="The ghost of monarchy returns to haunt Nepal NT"> </figure>  He added: ‘For those of us who have spent parts of our lives under the rule of the king… we have not yet forgotten those days, when the institution was unable to do any useful work, a disheartening period characterised by Nepalis being unable to speak freely.’ Commentators have especially been pointing to Gyanendra’s military coup in 2005 when he dissolved parliament, and tried to take the country back to the time of absolute monarchy, just like his father Mahendra did in 1960. Gyanendra became king after his brother and most of his family were killed in the royal palace massacre in 2001. Many Nepalis still seem to believe that Gyanendra was responsible, and some of this is reflected in comments on monarchist social media posts. As the monarchist rallies spread, Prime Minister K P Oli said last week that if Gyanendra really wanted power, he should form a political party and run in the next elections in 2027. Other leaders have urged the former king to honour the 2008 Constitutional Assembly decision to abolish the monarchy, as well as Nepal’s 2015 Constitution.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250309120340_978ef979c7774312ac00d3192803d974ea57ec45d704f89663b301f4f0cc9704.jpg" data-media-id="editor_12" data-image-id="20250309120340_978ef979c7774312ac00d3192803d974ea57ec45d704f89663b301f4f0cc9704" data-rendition-name="original" width="1832" height="1221" loading="lazy" alt="The ghost of monarchy returns to haunt Nepal NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250309120340_d11276de0161d258f135e8fba4d3eb37d0a9e579b06a4819c6609b4ecdbbe51e.jpg" data-media-id="editor_13" data-image-id="20250309120340_d11276de0161d258f135e8fba4d3eb37d0a9e579b06a4819c6609b4ecdbbe51e" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1333" loading="lazy" alt="The ghost of monarchy returns to haunt Nepal NT"> </figure>  &nbsp;In response, royalist leaders including Kamal Thapa, Rajendra Lingden, and Rabindra Mishra have responded that the monarchy is above the electoral system, calling for the reinstatement of a constitutional monarchy in which Gyanendra would be a figurehead. “There is no question of the king contesting an election, that is our job,” said RPP-Nepal chair Kamal Thapa in a tv interview. “The monarchy is a custodian of the nation, it is an institution above electoral politics.” However, there does seem to be a disagreement between hardline royalists who want a return to absolute monarchy in which Gyanendra would actually hold executive powers, and those who favour a ceremonial one. Gyanendra recently visited Bhutan, where he was given a royal welcome, and has made several trips to India where there is some support for reinstating Nepal as the world’s only Hindu kingdom.

The ghost of monarchy returns to haunt Nepal

Kathmandu was once a lake inhabited by <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/snakes-on-plains">serpents</a>, until Manjushree visiting from present-day China saw a fluorescent lotus in the water. To reach it, the sage used his flaming sword to cut a gorge <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/from-the-nepali-press/dry-port-at-chobhar-faces-resistance">at Chobhar</a>, draining the lake and turning it into a fertile valley. The Manjushree Trail Race (MTR) is inspired by this legend. There are five categories along a near-circular route around the rim of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/bringing-silicon-valley-to-kathmandu-valley">Kathmandu Valley</a>: 10k, 30k, 50k, 100k, and one that is 100 miles that is 157.7km (map, right). The 100 miles category starts at 8AM on 14 March, and runners have 52 hours until noon on 16 March to complete it. Arjun Kulung Rai’s 26:52:56 is the current record, set in 2024. “<a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=17327">The Manjushree legend</a> and the perfect loop make the race very meaningful, and I wanted to do it,” says participant Dong Sheng from the northern Chinese city of Harbin who started running in 2016 with 5k until he accomplished a 100 miler in 2022. “<a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/first-edition-ultra-trail-kathmandu,1050">Running </a>is spiritual, as you are always trying to overcome what you could previously do.” Sheng is one of 131 international runners who have signed up for the Manjushree race, where there are a total of 502 participants this year, 94 of them women. The first edition of the race only had 7 runners total. Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepali-trail-running-champions">Nepali trail running champions</a>, Preeti Khattri “A reason this race is popular is because it is a good mix of rural and accessible,” says Jimmy Oostrom, a Dutch runner. “Often, 100-milers are way out of the way. Here, the start is only a short drive after landing in Kathmandu.”&nbsp; The 100 mile and 50km are now qualifier races for the Asia Trail Masters, an international series of trail races based in Hong Kong. Last year, a Nepali team competed and won in the Asia Trail Master Championship series in Borneo. The 100-mile category starts and finishes at Single Tree on Nagarjun, other distances have different start and end points. On the winning team was Rashila Tamang, who is part of Trailmandu that implements logistics for the race, such as recruiting and training volunteers, and marking the route. “Nepal has great <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=9938">geography</a> for <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/mira-rai-racing-to-help-other-runners">trail running</a>, but it is still very hard to make it your career,” says Tamang.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025031219034_98b83aa3d42c7d5e8a2ef2f80dc03512374413e31eb55441234cd075bea7e113.jpg" data-media-id="editor_8" data-image-id="2025031219034_98b83aa3d42c7d5e8a2ef2f80dc03512374413e31eb55441234cd075bea7e113" data-rendition-name="original" width="1244" height="598" loading="lazy" alt="Manjushree Trail map "> </figure>  The MTR has a guidebook detailing the categories, route, checkpoints, rules and what is available at each stop.&nbsp; “If we say we’re going to start at 8, we’re going to start at 8,” says Narayan Acharya, the man behind naming the race ‘Manjushree’. “People tried to sign up after the deadline, we had to tell them no.” Acharya who builds <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/foundations-for-sustainable-buildings-in-nepal">traditional rammed earth houses</a> through his company Sustainable Future Nepal, has been long involved with promoting trail running in Nepal, and hailing from Jumla himself, mentored <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/run-sunmaya-run">Sunmaya Budha</a> also from Jumla, now a trail running star in and outside Nepal. Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/sunmaya-budha-stays-in-the-running">Sunmaya Budha stays in the running</a>, Vishad Raj Onta&nbsp; The organisers are sponsoring up to 50 runners from <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/portrait-of-a-photographer-in-rural-nepal">rural Nepal</a> who may not afford the Rs6,000 entry fee to participate. “It is hard to get sponsors to give us money because Nepal is still a pretty small market,” says Oostrom, currently on crutches due to an ACL injury. “We also have to take the necessary precautions to make sure we can quickly help a runner in trouble.” The logistics of an ultra trail race are more complicated than a <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=1223">marathon</a>. Marking and maintaining the trail requires careful work, especially as signs often get lost. The <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/multimedia/the-steadfastness-of-a-long-distance-runner">long distances </a>also require runners to run through the night.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025031219030_19111e03939541b8980007437c89966dc7a8fd6246b8407440694503bf7890a3.jpg" data-media-id="editor_15" data-image-id="2025031219030_19111e03939541b8980007437c89966dc7a8fd6246b8407440694503bf7890a3" data-rendition-name="original" width="2250" height="1501" loading="lazy" alt="Manjushree Trail "> </figure>  A <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/business/buddha-air-gets-state-of-the-art-flight-tracking-system">live tracking system </a>would ensure a runner’s safety as well as prevent cheating, but for now organisers are relying on vigilant volunteers and fellow runners to find runners needing help. There are strict rules for the race, and breaking them can result in significant time penalties or even disqualification. Get food or drink assistance outside of the checkpoints and you get a penalty of 15 minutes. Miss any pieces of mandatory gear and an hour is added to your time. Take some sort of shortcut or cheat using a vehicle, and you are disqualified. There are dangers like cliffs <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/page/cantilever-trail-nepal">along the trail</a>, lightning on exposed ridges, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/disasters-in-nepal-come-in-waves">landslides caused by earthquakes</a>, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/trekking-to-save-nepals-snow-leopards">leopards</a>, and hornet swarms. Ultra running takes a massive toll on the body. The brain may shut off certain areas to be able to keep going, so volunteers watch runners carefully.&nbsp; “After mile 50, your body starts digesting itself,” says Oostrom.&nbsp; Alongside Acharya and Oostrom, the organising crew is made up of race director Ashish Mishra, and Jeevan Lama and Rashila Tamang from Trailmandu. “We can execute this race well because we are all passionate runners ourselves,” says Acharya. The team has taken measures to make the race safe and comfortable for female participants. ‘Run freely, speak openly, and wear what makes you feel comfortable in our races,’ says the guidebook. Prize money is the same for male and female winners, across categories.&nbsp; Lately, Nepal has been steadily building itself as a destination for<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/taking-the-high-line"> adventure sports </a>such as <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-pushes-mountain-bike-tourism">mountain biking</a> and trail running. And with the Manjushree race, enthusiasts have hopes to set the standard for other trail races in the country. Sheng has been part of big races in China. “The better the economy, and more money people have, the more they can get involved in such pursuits,” he says. “But I have to say, for the scale of this race, everything has been done very professionally.”&nbsp;

Around Kathmandu in 100 miles

Throughout human history, civilisations have been named after the rivers along which they flourished: Indus Valley, Nile, Tigris-Euphrates. Many of these cultures later collapsed, partly because they could not manage their water needs properly. Three recent books about Himalayan rivers look at their history and geography, and how they nourished civilisations downstream. The rivers gave birth to the world’s major religions, their waters and the mountains from which they sprang were revered. Mythology and geology converge in High Asia. Mt Kailash is holy to the Hindu, Jain, Buddhist and Bon faiths as the centre of the world and the abode of the gods. Indeed, from its vicinity emerge Asia’s great rivers: the Indus and Sutlej, Ganga and the Yarlung Tsangpo (Brahmaputra) and Karnali (Mapcha Tsangpo).&nbsp; Legend has it that Kathmandu Valley was once a primordial lake drained by Manjushree who cut a mountain with his flaming sword. There is scientific evidence that the paleo lake was indeed emptied in stages starting 40,000 years ago after a tsunami unleashed by a major earthquake epicentred in Langtang. The Bon faith describes the Tibetan Plateau being pushed up from a roiling primeval sea, confirming current evidence about the orogenesis of the Himalaya. In local lore, supernatural lha (animal deities) and lu (serpents, naga) moved from sea to land, just as the theory of evolution explains the emergence of early amphibians and land creatures. In <a href="https://www.routledge.com/Rivers-of-the-Asian-Highlands-From-Deep-Time-to-the-Climate-Crisis/Gamble-Tan-Xu-Beavis-Maurer-Pittock-Powers-Wasson/p/book/9781032490595?srsltid=AfmBOopjkpgcN1_7t1jTI_Z1_27yRthBTbdHA15OWcE9Ge3S409jhUX3">Rivers of the Asian Highlands: From Deep Time to the Climate Crisis</a>, Himalayan historian <a href="https://scholars.latrobe.edu.au/rgamble">Ruth Gamble</a> and co-authors begin by tracing the genesis of the Himalaya, citing evidence that the Tibetan Plateau pre-dated the collision of the Indian and Eurasian plates 50 million years ago. Asia’s main rivers co-emerged with the mountains, their waters cutting canyons through rocks as they were uplifted. The gigantic pileup acted as a moisture trap for the proto-monsoon, the rain and ice sculpting peaks as they rose. But so strong were tectonic forces that the uplift outpaced erosion on the Tibetan Plateau. These dynamic processes are still at work, but in many places across High Asia there is a new factor at play: modern infrastructure (like haphazard road-building in Nepal) is increasing erosion faster than the uplift rate.&nbsp; ‘This is an example of human action overcoming tectonics,’ write the authors in Rivers of the Asian Highlands, in which the chapters look at Himalayan rivers from a planetary scale, their socio-cultural histories, to present-day engineering to regulate them. An ongoing dam-building spree and anthropogenic climate breakdown combine to bring about the most rapid change the Himalaya and their rivers have seen for millions of years. One example is the Medog Hydropower Station being built on the Yarlung Tsangpo at a bend on the Brahmaputra before it enters India. The river drops 2,000m within a 50km stretch, the gradient allowing it to generate 60,000MW — the biggest single hydroelectric plant in the world. Gamble and the authors of Rivers of the Asian Highlands highlight the Gravitational Potential Energy (GPE) of the Himalaya that allows falling water to be converted into electricity. But GPE also unleashes landslides, rockfalls, avalanches, Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs) and Landslide Lake Outburst Floods (LLOFs), the risks posed by them magnified by climate change and seismicity. <blockquote>The Asian Highlands’ abundance of Gravitational Potential Energy (GPE) can support the region’s energy transition, but it needs to be produced in much less hazardous and less environmentally and socially impactful ways. The best means of doing this is through off-river, pumped-storage hydropower stations that back up solar and wind energy generators. Smaller projects such as this would also involve less risky tunneling and displacement.</blockquote> Rivers of the Asian Highlands: From Deep Time to the Climate Crisis by Ruth Gamble, et al. There is geological evidence that megafloods on Himalayan rivers are more responsible than mass wasting in weathering down the mountains. One big LLOF, for example, could ‘move 1,000 times more sediment than would otherwise be transported over millions of years’. Permafrost melting in the Tibetan Plateau and inside moraines caused recent back-to-back GLOFs in Chamoli in the Indian Himalaya, Melamchi in Nepal, and the South Lhonak in Sikkim — all deadly disasters that together destroyed billions of dollars worth of infrastructure downstream. Rivers of the Asian Highlands travels from deep time to the present climate crisis, taking readers through neatly divided chapters titled Mountain Rivers, Climatic Rivers, Frozen Rivers, Living Rivers, Human Rivers, Territorializing Rivers, Agricultural and Pastoral Rivers, even NGOs and Rivers.&nbsp; Although the book’s title is about the ‘Asian highlands’, it <a href="https://www.himalmag.com/comment/eastern-himalaya-cradle-ethnogenesis">focuses mainly on the Dri Chu (Yangtse)</a> and Yarlung Tso (Brahmaputra). Readers looking for references to Nepal’s rivers will be disappointed, although there is quite a bit about Bhutan. This is surprising because 70% of the annual flow in the Ganga is from tributaries in Nepal, some of them rivers like Karnali, Arun or Bhote Kosi that traverse the Tibetan rimlands. As demand for water and energy grows in the large and increasingly affluent population of north India, and climate breakdown melts Himalayan glaciers, storing monsoon runoff on reservoirs in Nepal is going to be the geopolitical issue of the next decades.&nbsp; The chapter on NGOs and Rivers also fails to cite the work of Nepal’s civil society groups like the Alliance for Energy that built international solidarity in 1995 against the Arun III project on a river that starts in Tibet and flows into Nepal. Ultimately, the World Bank pulled out of the project and the Nepal government invested in smaller decentralised plants. Today, a cascade of power plants are being built by Indian companies on the Arun which do not seem to have taken into account the <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.ads2659">2023 Sikkim GLOF</a> that swept away the $1 billion dollar Teesta III and destroyed other infrastructure. The World Bank itself is back with the Upper Arun project located directly below expanding glacial lakes in Tibet.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250222020256_f2b33e60e6b386308bdf59b58b59e116e90e2e4466a06200faf76fd851f53505.jpg" data-media-id="editor_4" data-image-id="20250222020256_f2b33e60e6b386308bdf59b58b59e116e90e2e4466a06200faf76fd851f53505" data-rendition-name="original" width="5712" height="3213" loading="lazy" alt="Teesta"> <figcaption>The Super Trisuli project in Nepal has ruined the most scenic and ecologically sensitive part of the river to generate just 100MW of power. Photo: KUNDA DIXIT</figcaption> </figure>  Despite geographical gaps, Rivers of the Asian Highlands reads like an encyclopedia of Himalayan rivers. The authors look at them not in isolation but as interconnected systems which need a multidisciplinary approach to study the geological, religio-cultural, infrastructure, climate and ecosystem services aspects of catchments.&nbsp; Mt Kailash (Kang Rinpoche) is a case in point. It is fascinating to think that it was part of a mountain range even before the collision of the continents that formed the Himalaya, and was probably buried in ice 3km thick till 15,000 years ago during the Last Glacial Maximum.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025022203020_23c02ec4671f5c3c561fa6b450c1f209720a25794e067b9bb5db0f4649b1b6dc.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="2025022203020_23c02ec4671f5c3c561fa6b450c1f209720a25794e067b9bb5db0f4649b1b6dc" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Mt Kailash"> <figcaption>Mt Kailash. Photo: NABIN BARAL</figcaption> </figure>  Lake Mansarovar and Mt Kailash are also the subject of the new Nepali language book छालबाटो (Road by the Waves) by environmental journalist <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepal-and-china-to-study-trans-himalayan-railway">Ramesh Bhushal</a> in which he walked, rafted and drove from the source of the Karnali in Tibet, right through 500km of western Nepal, and on to India <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/dancing-with-the-river">where the river meets the Ganga</a>. In his entourage is activist, <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/Comment/rivers-fighting-back,993">Megh Ale</a>, who is on a campaign to stop dams and infrastructure on <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/dams-and-dreams-a-journey-down-the-karnali">Nepal’s longest and only free-flowing river</a>. The book profiles his lonely upstream struggle to conserve the country’s rivers. “We worship rivers, but we don’t love them,” laments Ale. Bhushal’s book is as much about the landscape of this transboundary river as it is about the people he meets along the way, and their relationship with <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/climate-denial-in-the-himalaya">a river that most regard as a curse </a>keeping them poor because they believe it flows out of Rakshas Tal (Lagngar Tso) in Tibet, regarded as a lake of demons, unlike the sacred Mansarovar nearby. The expedition is out to prove that the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/a-karnali-portrait">Karnali River</a> actually starts in the mountains 50km southwest of the Mansarovar (Mapamyu Tso) at the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jQ9Za5QDkvY">Peacock Falls (Mapchu Khambap)</a>. The Indus is called Sengge (Lion), Sutlej is Langchen (elephant) and the Brahmaputra is Tamchok (horse), all starting within 60km of Mansarovar but flowing out in different directions. <blockquote>“I have visited hundreds of rivers around the world, but for some reason I have never seen a river as beautiful as the Karnali. One day I would like to visit its source.”</blockquote> River conservation activist Megh Ale quoted in छालबाटो by Ramesh Bhusal. But all this reverence for the mountains and rivers may not be enough to save the region from the impact of climate breakdown. Heat stress in the Subcontinent will coincide with a shortage of water in the coming decades.&nbsp; <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/01/opinion/himalayas-mountains-dams.html">Sunil Amrith</a> in his 2019 book, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-monsoon-and-nature-s-arithmetic">Unruly Waters: How Mountain Rivers and Monsoons Have Shaped South Asia’s History</a> takes a broader look at how geotectonics, geopolitics, colonialism and nationalism have determined the relations between human beings and rivers. The Himalayan water cycle starts from monsoon moisture that precipitates with orographic uplift along the mountains, atmospheric rivers unleash cloudbursts, ground water emerges from springs that join up to flow down to rivers and the ocean. The Third Pole is the biggest repository of fresh water stored as ice after the polar regions. But it is a hotspot both because of the climate crisis and geopolitical tensions, which impacts on river basin cooperation, early warning data sharing, and ultimately in mitigation of greenhouse gas emission and planning for new risks faced by infrastructure. After independence, India adopted the colonial extraction model for rivers. Inaugurating the Bhakra-Nangal Dam in 1953, Jawaharlal Nehru called it “a temple of &nbsp;modern India … worthy of worship’. Gamble also alludes to this in her book about the European attitude about rivers as a resource to be ‘enclosed, extracted, scrutinised, commodified’. <a href="https://dialogue.earth/en/water/review-unrully-waters/" target="_blank">Amrith</a> profiles the work of Sir Arthur Cotton who was building canals linking rivers in British India at about the same time his contemporaries like botanist <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/republic-of-nepal-s-animal-kingdom" target="_blank">Joseph Dalton-Hooker </a>were exploring the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/saving-kangchenjunga" target="_blank">Teesta and other rivers</a> in the Himalaya to catalogue new plant species. India's current National River Linking Project that would join 37 rivers with 9,000km of canals builds on Cotton’s early work. <blockquote>If there is one consistent lesson in Unruly Waters, it is that water management never has been, and can never be, a purely technical or a scientific question; neither can it be addressed on a purely national scale … the battle continues to understand the monsoons and mountain rivers that shape Asia.</blockquote> Unruly Waters: How Mountain Rivers and Monsoons Have Shaped South Asia’s History by Sunil Amrith And in Nepal, hydropower has become the holy grail as the government unveiled an Energy Development Roadmap to generate 28,500MW by 2035 at a cumulative cost of nearly $50billion. This means no river in Nepal will be left free-flowing. The Trisuli along the Prithvi Highway is being dammed for only 100MW of power, destroying the most scenic part of a river that has rapids famous internationally for white water rafters. Even before it was completed, the dam site suffered Rs200 million in damage in last September’s flood.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025022203020_d9610a11bccb593d32bf4d214479caa17dfbdd6cdfe5e8c38fdcb8eb752fc0ec.jpg" data-media-id="editor_18" data-image-id="2025022203020_d9610a11bccb593d32bf4d214479caa17dfbdd6cdfe5e8c38fdcb8eb752fc0ec" data-rendition-name="original" width="4032" height="2268" loading="lazy" alt="Trisuli"> <figcaption>Boulders and sediment 80m deep were brought down by the Teesta after a GLOF destroyed the $1 billion Teesta III plant in Sikkim in 2023. Photo: KUNDA DIXIT</figcaption> </figure>  In Sikkim, there is strong <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2025/02/political-stir-follows-expert-panels-approval-to-rebuild-teesta-dam-in-sikkim/">local opposition to rebuild Teesta III</a> but investors are looking at the huge economic windfall from the river as it drops from 5,000m below Kangchenjunga to 300m within 80km — one of the highest Gravitational Potential Energy of any river in the world. Besides Nepal and Bhutan, the ‘watersheds’ of the Himalaya are turning into ‘powersheds’ as India and China compete for hydro-hegemony. India is said to be planning to dam the Brahmaputra to offset the disruption caused by China’s Medog Dam upstream (see map, below).&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025022203024_37c60bd2a45a32cd23928c900615b6c7045b2e0265050c4761c3749361181999.png" data-media-id="editor_20" data-image-id="2025022203024_37c60bd2a45a32cd23928c900615b6c7045b2e0265050c4761c3749361181999" data-rendition-name="original" width="1918" height="668" loading="lazy" alt="Himalayan rivers map"> </figure>  The thread running through all three books is the need to recognise the ecosystem services that the inhabitants of High Asia provide by protecting our rivers. Not all rivers need to be monetised, conserving rivers and the cultures they retain protects a nation’s natural wealth into the future as the humans of High Asia try to survive climate breakdown. The highlands will be under even more pressure in the coming decades as people in the plains migrate en masse to higher latitudes or higher altitudes to escape deadly heat and ocean expansion.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025022203028_524a74bf65111db3826bfd246576329c45cd4bd0a48b15024b6a520582bbf05a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_21" data-image-id="2025022203028_524a74bf65111db3826bfd246576329c45cd4bd0a48b15024b6a520582bbf05a" data-rendition-name="original" width="1136" height="702" loading="lazy" alt="River of Asian Highlands cover"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025022203028_20c17a9b92b11c8bb33df5f2fc2781498464288533c310ccd61e1245e709d99c.jpg" data-media-id="editor_22" data-image-id="2025022203028_20c17a9b92b11c8bb33df5f2fc2781498464288533c310ccd61e1245e709d99c" data-rendition-name="original" width="1136" height="702" loading="lazy" alt="Unruly waters cover"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250222030212_649cc2ba02e806da2b128fccaf5de2e5c830e10646ba0b43d56da39f65a70f9f.jpg" data-media-id="editor_23" data-image-id="20250222030212_649cc2ba02e806da2b128fccaf5de2e5c830e10646ba0b43d56da39f65a70f9f" data-rendition-name="original" width="1136" height="702" loading="lazy" alt="Chaalbato cover"> </figure>

She is the story

The public in public transport

The meat of the story

Kathmandu Valley to Silicon Valley

Nepalis in ‘scam camps’ escape to tell the tale

Bringing Korea’s prosperity to Nepal

Saving the Karnali otters

Orchids of Godavari-Phulchoki

A burning problem that needs solutions

The sacred female energy of Shakti

The ghost of monarchy returns to haunt Nepal

Around Kathmandu in 100 miles

Kathmandu Valley to Silicon Valley

Saving what is left of Himalayan rivers