Fatalism and fatalities

Last month was a tragic reminder of just how unsafe travel in Nepal is, leading some experts to question if there is a mismatch between modern technology and a fatalistic culture.

Dor Bahadur Bista tried to get to the bottom of this conundrum in 1991 in his seminal book, Fatalism and Development. It was an early attempt to see how an ‘everything goes’ attitude hindered Nepal's socio-economic progress. 

Since then, others have struggled to explain why Nepalis do not adhere to mandatory safety standards in technologies ranging from electricity to gas cylinders, and in road and aviation safety. 

It has been 30 years since author Kedar Sharma published his book आधुनिकतासँग सावधान (Beware of Modernity) in which he warned that Nepalis had not kept pace with advanced technology.

“It gives me no pleasure to say that, tragically, this is still the case,” says Sharma, referring to the loss of life in recurring highway and aviation disasters. 

“We are careless about following rules in all spheres of life,” adds Sharma. “And this is made worse by our faith in fate which lends to our tendency to be reckless. Roads were supposed to be synonymous with development, but are now synonymous with death. The quality of roads plays a big role in accidents, but we are culturally, administratively and legally negligent about safety.”

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There has been much debate about regulatory failure in aviation that underlies frequent air crashes, and this was brought to the fore in last week’s Saurya Airlines crash at Kathmandu airport in which 18 people lost their lives.

That crash got much more attention than the disaster on the Mugling highway in which two buses were swept into the Trisuli River by a mudslide, killing 59. An investigation showed the flood was caused by debris from a poorly engineered road up the mountain that was washed down by a torrential downpour at night.

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It is easy to blame accidents on Nepal’s terrain and weather, but there are deeper socio-cultural underpinnings that magnify these dangers. And the buck stops at the gate of government. There are other soft states like Nepal that also have harsh conditions, but do not suffer such frequent disasters. 

The interface between technology and safety is not properly understood by most Nepalis: electric shocks and cooking gas disasters kill hundreds every year. There were 2,267 reported electrical accidents in the past five years, 60% of them fatal. 

More than 2,000 people died on Nepal’s roads and highways in the past year, many times more than all natural disasters combined.

“Accidents aren’t just accidents, they are linked to the governance of the country and reflect political failure,” says Vijay Lama, an A330 captain with Nepal Airlines. “We need serious, open and prolonged discussion between regulatory bodies, service providers, airline operators and pilots that look deep into the crux of the problem to come up with solutions.” 

Lama has been flying for nearly 40 years, logging 30,000 hours on various aircraft from Twin Otters and Boeing 757s to Airbuses. 

He says, “If flying is unsafe, I would be the first one to say so, but it is still the safest and most efficient mode of travel. Air crashes just get more media attention but after the news fades, we go back to doing what we did before.”

The international community has taken note, mainly because their nationals are often involved. The European Commission (EC) has put all Nepal-based airlines on its Air Safety List, and the Saurya crash will surely hurt the chance of being taken off the list. 

One of the measures the EC has pushed is to separate the regulatory and operational functions of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN). Successive governments have not shown the political will to do so, and some doubt bifurcating CAAN will help since political interference will persist. 

Indeed, after every crash, CAAN sets up an investigation committee that issues recommendations. There is strict compliance, but only for a while.  

Read also: Keeps happening 

Blame for making travel dangerous ultimately has to do with a political culture that has failed to prioritise safety even when the country’s international image is tarnished, affecting the tourism industry.  

“We should look at each crash as a systemic failure,” explains Ajaya Dixit, whose physician father perished in a Pilatus PC-6 crash in 1962 sent to investigate a previous crash in Dhorpatan of a DC-3 flying to New Delhi from Kathmandu. Nepal’s ambassador to India and two high ranking US officials were among the 10 victims.   

He adds: “Modern technologies are all imported, they didn’t evolve in our society. We lack a larger technological ethos in their operation, management, maintenance. Our commitment to technological discipline is low, cutting corners is accepted.” 

Indeed, travel safety cannot be an island of efficiency when the entire political machinery of the country is dysfunctional. And like other sectors, there is a culture of impunity here too.

Human rights campaigner Sushil Pyakurel sums it up: “No one is suspended after crashes. The bus accident is no one’s responsibility because a landslide caused it. Unless those responsible are held to account, accidents will keep happening, people will continue to die.”