Chuman Gharti Magar cannot remember the number of times he has been stung by bees. But he clearly remembers what his friends and family had said when he spent Rs4,000 on two frame hives from a furniture shop. Back then there were no buses to his village in Musikot, so he carried the two boxes on his back and walked all the way home. His fellow villagers were clearly curious, having never seen frame hives.&nbsp; “When they found out it was a modern hive, people called me crazy for spending money for bees that naturally live in logs,” remembers Magar. “But we have to move with the times otherwise we will be left behind.” Sixteen years down the line, the same people commend him for the respect and money he has earned. Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/multimedia/weaving-the-fabric-of-a-new-life">Weaving the fabric of a new life</a>, Sahina Shrestha  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023091905094_250426f884c15d8e2efa2bce5867dc1d9e89d0d5cc0adfeeca72bee127ff5136.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="2023091905094_250426f884c15d8e2efa2bce5867dc1d9e89d0d5cc0adfeeca72bee127ff5136" data-rendition-name="original" width="1640" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Beekeeping Musikot NT"> <figcaption>All photos: GOPEN RAI</figcaption> </figure>  Magar is now the proprietor of Malrani Mauripalan Kendra, where he keeps 150 hives of local Asian honeybees (Apis cerana) which produce 5-10 quintal of honey every season. He sells each kg of honey for Rs1,500 but says the price fluctuates. “I haven’t been able to fulfill the market demand. As honey is considered to have health benefits, the demand is quite high,” he says. Most of his clients are locals in Gulmi but his honey has made its way to Kathmandu, Pokhara, Butwal and even abroad. Much of his business is through word of mouth, and customers usually call him with orders.&nbsp; He also instructs other interested beekeepers, most of whom come to him for practical training. He also sells bees and beehives. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/multimedia/staying-home-to-create-jobs">Staying home to create jobs</a>, Sahina Shrestha  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023091905094_4c33b505ccce8034ab634fd124f62c4b2fd2e081fe034b02ddfc896d91c0c5a9.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="2023091905094_4c33b505ccce8034ab634fd124f62c4b2fd2e081fe034b02ddfc896d91c0c5a9" data-rendition-name="original" width="1497" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Beekeeping Musikot NT"> </figure>  “Most of the beekeepers here sell bees and not honey, maybe because they don’t know how. But my priority is honey,” says Magar. “Just like we keep buffaloes for milk, the bees are for honey.” Magar had passed his SLC and had tried his hand at farming for four years. But the weather and soil conditions in the mountains were not suitable. “In the plains, if you farm for a month, you get to eat for eight. Here, if you farm for eight months maybe you get to eat for one,” says Magar. Magar grew up with a mostly absent father who was a lahure. He knew that he wanted to be with his children while also providing a better life for them. So he gave up the idea of becoming a soldier like his father and neighbours and explored opportunities closer to home.&nbsp; Read Also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/milking-every-opportunity">Milking every opportunity</a>, Sahina Shrestha  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023091905094_76460693a287bebac3e2c0a8999a3e0a6267e6f057af1f274e574c219ff39326.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="2023091905094_76460693a287bebac3e2c0a8999a3e0a6267e6f057af1f274e574c219ff39326" data-rendition-name="original" width="1630" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Beekeeping Musikot NT"> </figure>  He first started with log hives but did not know how to handle bees, nor did he know what infrastructure was needed and where to get them.&nbsp; “I learned it all by playing with the bees,” he says. “Bees are technical creatures, they have their own system and habits. Once you figure that out, it is perhaps one of the easiest jobs to do.” Initially, it was even difficult for him to source frame hives. The local furniture shops did not make them and ferrying them from Butwal was too expensive.&nbsp; After three years of struggling to understand the bees, he not only understood the rules of the hives but also found someone who could make hives as per requirements. Read Also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/money-grows-on-trees-here/" target="_blank">Money grows on trees here</a>, Sahina Shrestha  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023091905094_0bac4a0b044912d58d2fe4b457ef4c43b8f760b508e33ca5fa1adb6ec2f908cf.jpg" data-media-id="editor_7" data-image-id="2023091905094_0bac4a0b044912d58d2fe4b457ef4c43b8f760b508e33ca5fa1adb6ec2f908cf" data-rendition-name="original" width="1507" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Beekeeping Musikot NT"> </figure>  Beekeeping is both “art and science”, he says, and once mastered can yield benefits without much investment. “One of the more important things to learn is hive management because if one is not careful during the seasons when bees procreate, there may be nothing left of the old hive,” says Magar.&nbsp; Another thing to consider, he says, is making sure there is sufficient pollen for the bees to forage. To ensure that all his bees have an ample amount of pollen, he takes a decentralised approach. Magar does not keep all his hives in one place, spreading them in the neighbourhood. Read Also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/pigs-fly-and-fish-climb-trees">Pigs fly and fish climb trees</a>, Sahina Shrestha  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023091905094_baafd322cf49e702495b11c6e8ba2616b768611b9adcf99c17efb6b6002da681.jpg" data-media-id="editor_9" data-image-id="2023091905094_baafd322cf49e702495b11c6e8ba2616b768611b9adcf99c17efb6b6002da681" data-rendition-name="original" width="1455" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Beekeeping Musikot NT"> </figure>  Professional beekeeping is an undertapped business idea, says Magar: “If every village had 50-100 hives, we could probably export honey,” he adds. One of the major challenges for beekeeping is weather extremes due to climate change. Last year, when it rained for seven days straight, half of Magar’s hive was wiped out.&nbsp; “There is either too much rain or not enough, which has affected the productivity of the bees,” he says. “The weather patterns these days are unpredictable, which makes it difficult.” Magar, however, is happy to be where he is today and credits it all to the bees: “If it wasn’t for the bees, I would probably be working under the hot Gulf sun.” &nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/life-in-a-pickle/">Life in a pickle</a>, Sahina Shrestha <h2>Busy bee</h2> Why a declining bee population should concern us  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023091905094_3d26239faee533da09e6d9fef4241f6959347ebd7ca5cd0a3c65cdbd75d74e14.jpg" data-media-id="editor_11" data-image-id="2023091905094_3d26239faee533da09e6d9fef4241f6959347ebd7ca5cd0a3c65cdbd75d74e14" data-rendition-name="original" width="1564" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Beekeeping Musikot NT"> </figure>  When we talk about bees, most of us in Nepal immediately think of honey. Indeed, it is an example of a thriving eco-business with some 16,500 beekeepers across the country producing over 4,000 tonnes of honey every year. The rest of the demand is met by imported produce, mostly from India. While domesticated honeybees are important pollinators, much more important for the ecosystem are the 20,000 or more species of wild bees. Wild bees mostly gather pollen from native plants to feed their young in hives, while domesticated honeybees tend to pollinate crops, flowers and invasive species. Together with other insects, the more important wild bees are in decline worldwide.&nbsp; Nepal’s hallucinogenic ‘mad honey’ is popular because of a series of documentaries made about their collection. An ancient but risky honey hunting culture has Nepal's indigenous people venture up cliffs on flimsy rope ladders twice a year in autumn and spring to extract the Himalayan giant honeybee (Apis laboriosa) honeycomb, a 3cm bee species that forages at up to 4,100m. Of the five honeybee species found in Nepal Apis laboriosa, Apis cerana, Apis dorsata, and Apis florea are indigenous to the Himalaya. Meanwhile, Apis mellifera is a European bee species introduced in Nepal for commercial purposes in 1990. Only Apis cerana and Apis mellifera are used for commercial honey production. Read also: <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/bee-population-in-decline,3613">What's the buzz</a>, Sonia Awale  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023091905094_6745452799ee2e99b04d465433007bfe62bb1bb9da2fc8e274ff0386acf705fe.jpg" data-media-id="editor_13" data-image-id="2023091905094_6745452799ee2e99b04d465433007bfe62bb1bb9da2fc8e274ff0386acf705fe" data-rendition-name="original" width="1523" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Beekeeping Musikot NT"> </figure>  These bees graze on a variety of flowering plants determining their flavour including herbal rudilo, Indian butter tree, mustard, buckwheat, litchi and fixed flower honey among others. But more importantly, bees are responsible for one of every three bites of food we take. Bee pollination can increase food productivity by up to 30%, but wild bees and honeybees are disappearing all over the world due to the use of pesticides, spread of parasites by humans, as well as new diseases. Urbanisation and unplanned infrastructure have reduced grazing areas and caused farmers to switch to monoculture, leading to decreasing abundance and diversity of flowers. This has also affected bee populations. The climate crisis, with cloudbursts and unprecedented wildfires, are destroying habitats and beekeepers report a sharp decline in honey collection in Nepal.&nbsp; A beehive in itself has a well-organised and complex social life. There are worker bees that find pollen, drones whose main job is to mate with the queen, and the queen bee who lays up to 1,500 eggs a day and controls the worker bees. &nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/to-bee-or-not-to-bee">To bee or not to bee</a>, Nabin Baral

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Honey = Money

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114131120/637232d69c7e80680e0c48b4jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"/><figcaption>Himalayan giant honey bee hives are tucked under an overhang in the Ngadi River gorge in central Nepal. Honey hunters dangle on flimsy rope ladders to prise the honeycombs into buckets which are then lowered to the base of the cliff. The smoke is meant to confuse the bees. All photos: NABIN BARAL/THE THIRD POLE</figcaption></figure>This article was originally published on <a href="https://www.thethirdpole.net/en/culture/nepal-honey-hunters-cling-to-traditions-as-bee-numbers-fall/">The Third Pole</a> under the Creative Commons BY NC ND licence.Ganga Bahadur Gurung is chanting prayers to the Water God, Earth God, Fire God, Wind God and Snake God for their blessings with the day’s risky honey hunt.Members of his group are about to climb down the 50m Kamcho cliff on a swaying handmade rope ladder to prise honeycombs, as the world’s largest bees swarm all around.“Wild honey bees make hives only on safe cliffs where the gods reside,” explains Gurung, as he waves incense sticks at the sky. The Himalayan giant honeybee (Apis laboriosa) can be up to 3cm long, build large hives on south-facing cliffs, and forage up to 4,100m in upland meadows.Harvesting wild honey is an ancient tradition among Nepal’s Indigenous people who venture up twice a year in autumn and spring. The activity is deeply woven into their cultures.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114131120/637232d99c7e80680e0c48b5jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Gurung is the leader of the 15-strong honey hunting group from Naiche, a village in Gandaki Province on the lap of Mt Himalchuli and near canyons created by the Ngadi River.Ganga comes to the end of his puja, and the 48-year-old begs the bees for forgiveness for destroying their nests, and asks the gods to keep his companions safe.With this, Ganga Gurung accompanies Bicche Man Gurung and Prabin Gurung, clambering down the Kamcho cliff to reach the nests, while the team below lights a smoky fire to drive the bees away.Despite Gurung’s prayers, the hunt is unsuccessful. Most of the honeycombs lowered down in the bucket are dry. In the past villagers here used to harvest up to 15 litres of honey from big hives on this cliff. Today, there is just a trickle.This is the third time in the past 10 years that the group has had such a poor collection. At the end of the hunt, Gurung thanks the bees and blesses the colony so that they may flourish and spread to create 100 new colonies by next year.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/chepang-and-their-chiuri/">Chepang and their Chiuri,</a> Bhadra Sharma<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114131120/637232dd9c7e80680e0c48b6jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Gurung says: “Nature is our god, we have to respect and harvest carefully as our ancestors did so that the bees can keep producing honey for centuries more.”Ratna Thapa, a senior bee scientist at Tribhuvan University in Kathmandu, estimates that there is <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/325491378_Beekeeping_and_Honey_Hunting_in_Nepal_Current_Status_and_Future_Perspectives">a 70% decline</a> in the Himalayan cliff honey bee population every year.Surendra Raj Joshi, a livelihoods specialist at the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) has a similar finding. He says, “The data from Kaski and Lamjung districts suggest that there is a decrease both in the number of colonies per cliff and the total number of cliffs nested by bees.”Thapa and Joshi attribute this <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/bee-population-in-decline,3613">rapid decline</a> to a range of factors: pesticide use, loss of habitat and food sources for bees, infrastructure development, and attacks by pests and predators.Another important driver <a href="https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-981-10-8222-1_5">they identify</a> is destructive and unsustainable honey hunting practices driven by international demand for its psychotropic properties.Twenty years ago, the honey harvested by the villagers of Naiche sold for around Rs500 per litre. Today, it can fetch up to Rs2,500, but the <a href="https://bestmadhoney.com/buy-mad-honey-nepal/">price is much higher</a> in Kathmandu and higher still in the international market.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114131120/637232e19c7e80680e0c48b7jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Gurung says: “Two decades ago, the wax used to be more valuable than honey, so we used to harvest it after the bees had left the hive.”At that time, the wax was used for candles and the honey was turned into local alcohol or was mixed with tobacco, and there was little demand for the actual honey itself.Here in Lamjung, indigenous methods of wild honey collection were sustainable and were a part of the native culture. But with commercialisation, over-extraction is leading to a decline in bees and hives. Nevertheless, Arjun Gurung is chair of Marsyangdi Rural Municipality where Naiche is located, and refutes claims that wild bees are in decline: “We practice honey hunting in the traditional way, we do not want to disturb the local culture and practices. We have not seen a decline in cliff honeycombs.”ICIMOD’s Surendra Raj Joshi recommends a range of measures to make wild honey collection more sustainable: harvesting only a portion of the comb, raising awareness of the importance of forests and nesting sites, giving honey hunters ownership and management responsibilities of cliffs to incentivise their protection, and generating eco-tourism income from  bee-watching.Read also: <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/bee-population-in-decline,3613">What's the buzz</a>, Sonia Awale<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114131120/637232e59c7e80680e0c48b8jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure><figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114131120/637232e99c7e80680e0c48b9jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure><figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114131120/637232ed9c7e80680e0c48bajpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Dam the BeesOver-harvesting is not the only threat to the Himalayan giant honeybee. Across the Nepal Himalaya, the use of dynamite to build highways and dams are disturbing the fragile mountain ecosystem.There are five hydropower projects in operation or under construction along the Nyadi and its tributaries. Most cliff hives are located near rivers since the bees need water and minerals, but the dams have disturbed these water sources.One of the main wild honeycomb sites near Naiche village is on a cliff face downstream of the 30MW Nyadi Khola hydropower project, work on which <a href="https://www.bpc.com.np/projects/nyadi">started</a> in 2017.Wild honey harvester Ganga Gurung recalls that there used to be 22 nests on cliffs near the project site. Fewer than half remain. After the project is completed, water from the river will be diverted through a tunnel to generate electricity.“When the river has no more water, wild bees find the location unsuitable for making hives,” says Gurung.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114131120/637232f19c7e80680e0c48bbjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Mad honeySanjay Kafle is chief executive and founder of Best Mad Honey, a Nepali company that exports 4 tonnes of cliff honey a year to countries around the world, and business is growing.The rise in demand is driven by enthusiasm for its psychotropic effects. Known as 'mad honey', in small amounts it can cause lightheadedness and euphoria, and hallucination in larger doses.It is believed to have medicinal properties, such as reducing cholesterol and helping against arthritis, but it can also be highly toxic, as an increasing number of people in Kathmandu are being hospitalised after taking it — especially in combination with alcohol.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/life-in-a-pickle/">Life in a pickle</a>, Sahina Shrestha<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114131120/637232f59c7e80680e0c48bcjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>“People have realised the medicinal value of this honey, and scientists may have proven it, that is why the price of wild honey has gone up,” explains Ganga Gurung, a harvester in Lamjung.A 250 gram bottle of Himalayan cliff bee ‘mad honey’ sells for up to $135 on Amazon.But bee expert Ratna Thapa says there is no scientific evidence to prove that wild honey has medicinal value. He warns, “Instead, what I can say is that it has a chemical called grayanotoxin that affects our nervous system.”Grayanotoxin is found in the nectar of the rhododendron flower, of which Himalayan giant honeybees are major pollinators. Wild honey bees forage on flowers up to 4,100m altitude where there are no other bees, and many Himalayan flowering plants depend on them for pollination.“The value of the honey collected from these bees is nothing in comparison to the ecosystem services that they provide to us in high-altitude biodiversity conservation,” says Thapa. “If Himalayan cliff honey bees go, all species of the rhododendron will likely follow.”<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114131120/637232f89c7e80680e0c48bdjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Chasing honey huntersThe death-defying exploits of Nepal’s cliff honey collectors was first made internationally famous by Éric Valli’s 1988 book and video, Honey Hunters of Nepal, in which the French photographer and documentary film-maker depicted the villages in Lamjung.In recent years, there have been many more international film-makers venturing to other parts of Nepal including Dolakha and Sankhuwasabha to hunt for honey hunters as the practice dwindles.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/getting-high-on-high-mountain-tea/">Getting high on High Mountain Tea</a>, Sonia Awale

To bee or not to bee

Nepal won the first two matches, clinching the T20 series in the UAE, making history: this is the country’s first ever win, and series win, against a Test-playing country.&nbsp; On Tuesday night, Nepal lost the last game by 10 wickets. The West Indies easily met Nepal’s 122 runs in 19.5 overs. Despite that, Nepal had beaten the two-time T20 World Champions which is currently number 6 in T20 rankings. It is important to note that the West Indies are fielding a significantly weaker and younger team than they could. Caribbean heavy hitters Nicholas Pooran, Andre Russell and Shimron Hetmyer are currently resting or playing in domestic leagues. But that does not take away from the fact that, after two narrow misses against South Africa and Bangladesh at the 2024 T20 World Cup, Nepal has now beaten a Test-Playing nation, and done so convincingly.&nbsp; Nepal won the first match of the series on 27 September by 19 runs. Batting first after winning the toss, Nepal put up 148 for 8 after losing openers Kushal Bhurtel and Aasif Sheikh early.&nbsp; Rohit Paudel’s 38 and Kushal Malla’s 30 steadied the innings, and 148 was a reasonable target to defend on the tricky Sharjah pitch. The young Windies dropped a series of catches.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20251001031052_5f24273f6da2f52f6414b7ecc485938a4c726431bfa7c2ba435bded3debe9f5a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20251001031052_5f24273f6da2f52f6414b7ecc485938a4c726431bfa7c2ba435bded3debe9f5a" data-rendition-name="original" width="1440" height="960" loading="lazy" alt="Nepal defeats West Indies NT 1"> </figure>  Nepal’s fielding, in contrast, was excellent as it held the West Indies to 129 for 8. Dipendra Singh Airee and Kushal Bhurtel both had run outs, and the team held on to tricky catches throughout.&nbsp; The last ball of the match, with it already won, saw Bhurtel catch Fabian Allen off of Airee’s bowling, throw the ball in the air before stepping outside the boundary, before jumping back in to complete the catch legally.&nbsp; Head coach Stuart Law, former Australian Cricketer, was pleased with the performance. “We deserved it, we played a really good game of cricket. I thought our fielding in the first 15-17 overs was outstanding,” he said, predicting, “the West Indies will be hurt, they’re a proud nation. They’ll come out red-hot on Monday, so we got to be better than tonight.”&nbsp; Bhurtel was ecstatic at having beaten the two-time T20 World Champions. He pointed to the team’s versatility as a big strength. “We have a lot of players who can both bat and bowl. Gulsan (Jha) and Kushal Malla did not bowl at all, and Lalit (Rajbhansi) did not bowl out all of his overs.” And the team still used seven bowlers.&nbsp; If the first match was a surprise, then the second match was a shock. Nepal put up 173 for 6, with Aasif Sheikh hitting 68 not out and Sundeep Jora 63, the two putting up a hundred run fourth wicket partnership.&nbsp; They then bowled out the West Indies for a humiliating 83, with Mohammad Aadil Alam taking 4 for 24 and Kushal Bhurtel 3 for 16.&nbsp; There was more excellence in the field, with the Nepali team taking seven catches, many of them very tricky ones right on the edge of the ropes. This second win sealed the series victory, also a first for Nepali cricket. The margin of victory and the team’s overall dominance were both very obvious.&nbsp; Nepalis in the UAE showed up at the Sharjah Stadium in full support for the Rhinos, wearing jerseys, flags, and dhaka topis, raucously cheering on the team’s performance.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20251001031052_217ceb7078e9c253f8db6fec57911eb8e56822e3fc20d520d39e06f475fd6d65.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20251001031052_217ceb7078e9c253f8db6fec57911eb8e56822e3fc20d520d39e06f475fd6d65" data-rendition-name="original" width="1440" height="960" loading="lazy" alt="Nepal defeats West Indies NT 1"> </figure>  Fresh on their minds must have been recent protests back home. The Cricket Association of Nepal dedicated the series to those who lost their lives. Captain Rohit Paudel also dedicated his man of the match award from the first T20 to the 74 people killed last month in Nepal.&nbsp; “Since last one month has not been that great for us, so slowly we are getting better. It is great to give a little happiness to the people of Nepal,” said Paudel.&nbsp; Leg-spinner Sandeep Lamichhane was notably absent from both matches, having excused himself from the squad for personal reasons.&nbsp; “It is what it is,” said coach Law. “we are a very competitive team and someone has to stand up in his place.”&nbsp; The wins also open the possibilities for further series, with countries such as Bangladesh, Pakistan or Zimbabwe.&nbsp; CHASING TESTS  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20251001031048_70fed823c34d91dfefc078cb5786c2ea04ad70387fbf09424a5304b926cc3e3c.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20251001031048_70fed823c34d91dfefc078cb5786c2ea04ad70387fbf09424a5304b926cc3e3c" data-rendition-name="original" width="1600" height="995" loading="lazy" alt="Nepal defeats West Indies"> </figure>  In international cricket, a ‘Test-playing nation’ is a country that is authorised to play Test Matches by the central governing body, the International Cricket Council (ICC). Test Matches are the longest format of the sport, lasting up to five days, and are the most prestigious.&nbsp; Currently, this exclusive group is made up of Australia, Bangladesh, England, India, Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, West Indies, Zimbabwe, and Afghanistan.&nbsp; Nepal has a ways to go. To become a Test-playing nation, it must first become a full member of the ICC. To do this, they must consistently qualify for ODI and T20 world cups over eight years, and have at least two ICC-accredited venues for hosting matches — currently only the Tribhuvan University Cricket Ground qualifies.&nbsp; Nepal must also have significant youth development infrastructure, a good domestic setup, and a recognised governing body that is financially stable and not corrupt.&nbsp; With the current development of stadiums across Nepal and innovations such as the Nepal Premier League, and performances such as these, Nepal seems firmly on the way.&nbsp;

2-1 for Nepal against The Windies

Nepal is still reeling from the short but violent GenZ moment, and the reverberations are being felt around the world.&nbsp;
As news from the killings and rampage from Nepal on 8-9 September spread through the wire services and social media, in the Philippines, East Timor and even faraway Peru, banners on the streets last week referred to ‘learning lessons from Nepal’. In Ladakh last week, <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/9/25/bloodiest-day-how-gen-z-protest-wave-hit-indias-ladakh-killing-four">protesters set fire to the ruling BJP party office</a> and four people were killed in police firing.&nbsp;
Nepal’s GenZ was praised by <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/19/opinion/asia-protest-youth-nepal-bangladesh.html">international commentators</a> for rising up against chronic corruption and impunity, and for achieving the fastest regime change in history. But the youth were also blamed for the arson and vandalism even though the groups said they had no part in it — most &nbsp;foreign media also did not highlight enough the infiltration by radical groups.
“We were not expecting the protests to turn so violent and deadly. On the second day, things escalated so quickly it became difficult to keep track. We were rushing on the groud and making calls to confirm what was happening,” recalls Paavan Mathema of Agence France-Presse (AFP) in Nepal.
The GenZ protest this month was a lesson on the mechanics of social media. Hashtags like #youthagainstcorruption and #nepobaby from Indonesia inspired Nepal’s youth to take to the streets, but events here in turn triggered protests elsewhere. The international news agencies and mainstream global tv channels were not as important in this information cross-pollination.
The movement was organised online and spread quickly in no time, but it was disinformation and fake news that spread faster than facts. The over-simplification by international media was because it had to explain 30 years of political evolution in a country that they mostly ignored in the past, this sometimes tended to be misleading.&nbsp;
While the Oli government’s social media ban of 26 platforms starting 5 September poured oil on the fire that had already been lit by a disparate group of desperate youth, their outrage over decades of corruption and impunity was reaching a breaking point. There was extreme disenchantment with serial politicians recycling themselves in power.&nbsp;
“The ban on social media definitely triggered the protest, but we put a high priority on accuracy and speed during reporting in such times,” explains the Nepal correspondent for Associated Press (AP) news agency in Nepal Binaj Gurubacharya. “Our own safety also becomes a prime concern in times like these, but should not be at an expense of accuracy.”
CRISIS REPORTING
But headlines everywhere including in The New York Times, The Guardian and others that used wire service content initially highlighted the social media ban as the main reason for the protest. They were soon called out by protesters, while <a href="https://institute.aljazeera.net/en/ajr/article/3358" target="_blank">Al Jazeera</a> and its <a href="https://institute.aljazeera.net/en" target="_blank">Media Institute </a>were applauded for more nuanced coverage.
Another positive example of international media supplementing the stories by local journalists was <a href="https://www.france24.com/en/" target="_blank">France 24’</a>s detailed <a href="https://www.france24.com/en/asia-pacific/20250915-nepal-police-protests-violence-kathmandu" target="_blank">forensic analysis</a> of the security forces firing live ammunition at protesters at Parliament on 8 September.&nbsp;
What really went far and wide around the world were dramatic YouTube videos about the violence, and memes on social media. <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-accidental-journalist" target="_blank">A British tourist</a> who filmed street protests did the work of an on-the-ground journalist and got millions of views globally for some of <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Slq6zWu9o9w" target="_blank">his YouTube videos</a>.&nbsp;
But some of the misinformation or fake news on social media was also picked up by the mainstream press, like the <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/south-asia/nepal-violence-ex-pm-khanals-wife-dies-after-house-torched-president-urges-calm-dialogue/articleshow/123791004.cms">wrongly reported death of former Prime Minister Jhalanath Khanal’s wife</a> in an arson attack on their home. A video of the Finance Minister Bishnu Poudel being <a href="https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/video-nepal-finance-minister-chased-through-street-kicked-attacked-9243749">chased and beaten</a> by protesters also turned out to be someone else.&nbsp;
Some international outlets, mainly in India, also fell prey to a fake video that K P Oli had fled to Dubai. Even this newspaper’s online edition had to correct it after wrongly reporting it without verification.&nbsp;
Indian tv channels which did &nbsp;extensive coverage of events in Nepal, with many Nepalis relying on them and believing their content — especially during the protests when Nepal’s main channels went off air as they were being attacked.
All this got out of hand, and protesters in the week after the violence started ridiculing and harassing Indian tv correspondents as they tried to interview talking heads outside the charred Parliament building, or on the streets.
<a href="https://www.newslaundry.com/2025/09/09/foreign-hand-gen-z-data-addiction-5-ways-indian-media-missed-the-nepal-story">Indian media</a> were also the first to accuse US involvement in sparking a ‘colour revolution’ in Nepal. They later claimed that former Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) chief and now Energy Minister Kulman Ghising and even Kathmandu Mayor Balen Shah have been appointed interim prime minister in Nepal. These were rumours in Nepal, but were reported as news.&nbsp;
“Fact checking is crucial while covering such movements, and since we are telling an important story about Nepal to the world, double checking becomes important as it sets the international narrative,” says Mathema.
“We were constantly double checking numbers and information with concerned authorities and parties to make sure we were accurate, especially as misinformation was rampant,” she adds.
Apart from Indian media, international news agencies got reinforcements of reporters, photojournalists and editors from the region, and other foreign correspondents also flew in when Kathmandu airport was opened after 48 hours.
Adds Mathema: “Sometimes foreign reporters can give a fresh perspective or an angle which we could not see or cover. So their inputs are always helpful.”
In the aftermath of the violence, there were plenty of jokes and memes, clips of protesters dancing, in weird poses and performing martial arts, showcasing the light hearted side of the protests while also <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-s-meme-revolution">reaffirming the resilience</a> of people able to bounce back from something so traumatic.
The GenZ clean-up campaigns, neighbourhoods helping restore burnt out police stations and local people’s emotional reaction to the burnt out hulks of government buildings at the city centre also <a href="https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3325635/nepals-gen-z-protesters-lead-clean-campaign-after-violent-clashes">made news</a>.
“After the protests, people were quick to gather and clean up public spaces and paint police stations. This is a scene which may not be so common in other countries with similar violence,” adds Gurubacharya. “So it became an important story to also tell the world.”&nbsp;
In less than two days, the world saw a dramatic toppling of a democratic government. With the interim government led by former chief justice Sushila Karki, there is much hope. She has expanded her ministerial cabinet, and the election has been announced for 5 March 2026 but between then and now, a lot remains uncertain.&nbsp;
And Nepal will continue to be watched by national and international media alike until then and after. AP’s Gurubacharya sums it up: “For now, we are taking it one day at a time.”

International spotlight on Nepal

From the echo chambers of social media to neighborhood tea shops, the hot topic two weeks after the GenZ revolt toppled Nepal’s government is whether the country should now have a directly elected prime minister. Although this has been proposed before as a way to end the instability in heads of government chosen by the biggest party or coalition in Parliament, it has found supporters and critics in the aftermath of the protests. As democratic as it sounds, a directly elected executive is not that simple.&nbsp; Nepal’s 2015 Constitution does not allow it, but for a young generation impatient for change, this demand raises critical social, political and constitutional questions. Nepal has seen a multiplicity of systems in the past 45 years: from a partyless absolute monarchy to a constitutional one, a parliamentary democracy and then a federal republic. But they have repeatedly failed to bring stability, good governance or an end to corruption in Nepal. But even though lately they have ensured civil liberties, the public was losing hope for the future, especially the young who could air and amplify their outrage on social media. Unbridled corruption and ideologically mismatched fragile coalitions acting with impunity, led many to conclude that a directly elected prime minister would ensure stability and accountability. ‘We have repeatedly trusted the same political parties, but they have repeatedly broken that trust, so it is no longer possible to trust that system anymore,’ says Miraj Dhungana, popular for the TikTok videos asking young people to go out into the streets to rally against corruption, and seen by many as the ‘original’ representative of Gen Z.&nbsp; In interviews he has stated that it has become necessary for Nepal to have a directly elected executive head through constitutional amendment. Dhungana himself did not participate in the protests after his meeting with pro-monarchist businessman Durga Prasai on 7 September sparked controversy that he as a lackey. Binod Deuba Thakuri of the Nepal Student Union who also participated in the GenZ protests thinks Nepal is institutionally not ready for directly elected prime minister: “Our democracy is not mature yet, our institutions are not strong, and we are vulnerable to social media induced populism.”&nbsp; CONSTITUTION AMENDMENT Amending the Constitution would also open a pandora’s box, with other demands, and should be left to the next legislative body, he adds. In her address to the nation on Friday, Prime Minister Sushila Karki who is a former chief justice also clarified that her interim government does not have the mandate to amend the Constitution to make way for a directly elected head of government, and it should be up to the new legislature and government after the 5 March election.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250919130956_799b2d43dccca73b3bff96e435efc0752203117b2cb219d0073994c0e6f2ee25.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20250919130956_799b2d43dccca73b3bff96e435efc0752203117b2cb219d0073994c0e6f2ee25" data-rendition-name="original" width="4160" height="2774" loading="lazy" alt="Constitution Day NT"> <figcaption>Constitution Day address by Prime Minister Sushila Karki on 19th September earlier this month.</figcaption> </figure>  The demand for a directly elected executive head was first raised by Maoist leader Pushpa Kamal Dahal after the 2006 ceasefire. He proposed himself as Nepal’s first executive president ahead of the 2008 Constituent Assembly elections. While the UML did not strongly oppose the idea, the Nepali Congress (NC) stuck to a parliamentary framework. The 2015 Constitution ultimately clinched it for the current parliamentary system. The Constitution stipulates that the process of selecting a prime minister is based on parliamentary strength: the President appoints the leader of the party with a majority in the House of Representatives, or, in the absence of such a majority, a member who can demonstrate majority support. If these efforts fail, provisions exist for coalition or minority governments, and ultimately for the dissolution of the House and fresh elections. The Constitution currently makes no provision for a directly elected prime minister, which means that any attempt to introduce a directly elected executive would first require the careful design of a democratic mechanism to amend the Constitution and set out the procedures for such an election.&nbsp; “There is no legal legitimacy to have the directly elected executive head of the country in the March election, except if political legitimacy surpasses legality but that would mean a new constitution,” explains senior advocate Surendra Kumar Mahato. “Many other institutional arrangements like the appointment of the judiciary, the role of the president, and other check and balance mechanisms would need to be restructured.” Mahato says: “Nepal’s Constitution itself is not at fault — it is the political actors, who have failed to uphold good governance within its framework. Changing systems does not ensure better governance.”&nbsp; Changing the Constitution also needs a broad political consensus, the institutional capacity of the state must be carefully considered to ensure such a new system can function effectively in practice and not simply in theory. Empowering an executive head through direct elections should not come at the expense of accountability or parliamentary oversight, and there should be checks and balances in place. LESSONS FROM ABROAD Sri Lanka’s 2022 Agralaya was fuelled by the anger that the directly executive head turned out to be an authoritarian who backslides on democracy. Under Sri Lanka’s 1978 Constitution, the country adopted a directly elected executive presidency with sweeping powers over the cabinet, appointments, dismissal of parliament, and control over key institutions.&nbsp; Over the years, President Mahinda Rajapaksa removed term limits via the 18th Amendment in 2010, centralised appointment powers, including judges and heads of independent commissions, and used constitutional changes such as the 20th Amendment (2020) to reverse safeguards that limited presidential authority, thereby subordinating the legislature, weakening oversight, and enabling authoritarian control.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250914060932_a96e1046d0b148982b33f2dcbe56f349dc0c20a087e358360eb2dddcfe0b5072.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20250914060932_a96e1046d0b148982b33f2dcbe56f349dc0c20a087e358360eb2dddcfe0b5072" data-rendition-name="original" width="4640" height="2610" loading="lazy" alt="GenZ and Aragalaya"> <figcaption>Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka on 13 April 2022 in front of the Presidential Secretariat. Photo: WIKIPEDIA</figcaption> </figure>  Nepal’s multiparty framework upholds an institutional balance where both the governing party and the opposition have defined roles. This parliamentary setup prevents power from being overly concentrated in one individual and ensures accountability through parliament and competing parties. Beyond the neighbourhood, the United States has a directly elected executive system. Donald Trump exemplifies how direct electoral mandate can fracture institutional check mechanisms. He has leveraged his power to attack judges, frame political opponents, turn legal defeats into rallying points for his supporters, often using pliant media platforms to reinforce the idea that institutional checks impeded the popular will. In Nepal, there is a risk that a directly elected prime minister could bring up a populist media savvy messiah who could use public grievances to get to power and consolidate it. Social media can be mobilised and easily saturated with posts to fuel a political narrative of choice.&nbsp; In the past, former prime minister K P Oli’s ‘digital army’ has been lobbied on his behalf on social media. Even without an ‘IT sena’, it is not unusual for governments to collaborate with social media platforms as seen in the US and India.&nbsp; In Nepal, a directly elected prime minister would raise the stakes, turning the battle for votes into a battle for attention online, where a leader who wins the algorithm also wins the elections, just as Kathmandu Mayor Balen Shah demonstrated in 2022 with support from groups like MRR and RONB. The Balen Phenomenon started in social media trickled to the ballot box.&nbsp; The digital space mas ensure that it is not trendy to dislike Balen. Comments that are critical of the Kathmandu Metropolitan City’s treatment of street vendors or of the mayor himself are met with backlash from supporters. Or, if the comments did not get any likes, the algorithms filtered them out as ‘not relevant’.&nbsp; The conversation of Shah often centred on his emotive responses and sentiments, generating strong engagement online. Meanwhile, policy debates received comparatively less attention.&nbsp; “Choosing a leader directly through an election means that we are vulnerable to populism and undermining of the democratic process, accountable institutions,” says Thaukri. Political activist Pradip Gyawali admits that the GenZ revolt was an example of how social media is a powerful tool to organise and disseminate information. But there are risks posed by disinformation and fake news online.&nbsp; “More media and political literacy among the people before the election in March is crucial to control the damage social media could do to influence voter behaviour,” he says.&nbsp; Beyond social media, online news increasingly relies on sensational, click-driven headlines to attract readers in a competitive digital market. A recent survey showed that 82.6% of GenZ (16- 24) rely on Facebook for news and 51.4% on YouTube.&nbsp; Nepali people with higher education seemed to engage with news more (99.1%) than illiterate individuals at 52.1%. Byte-sized headline-only journalism is leaving readers to their own devices, and vulnerable to media infiltration by IT cells.&nbsp; With social media actively shaping the course of elections, and news consumption, debates about changing the Constitution or the system of governance yet again may not ensure the demands for corruption free governance is met. Instead, strengthening media and political literacy among voters is key to prepare for the elections in March. Ayusha Chalise is a communication and development scholar specialising in how politics is experienced in the digital space.

Nepal's democracy keeps doubting itself

Kathmandu: A Reader, the latest publication from Martin Chautari, is an anthology of anthropological essays exploring Kathmandu through various lenses across the 21st century. This compilation is edited by Benjamin Linder and attempts to bring modern discourses on Kathmandu and its urbanity together, in a single volume. The book is divided into three sections: the physical form of the city, the imprints it bears from past political upheavals, and the complexity in the lives of its people. The book examines these diverse aspects, leaving readers who have just witnessed the momentous events of September with anxiety, and perhaps a greater understanding of Kathmandu’s context. Urban planning expert Biresh Shah’s discourse on the Valley’s urban sprawl and its landmarks is insightful, but also prophetic when he warns about seismic risk.&nbsp; Jan Brunson’s chapter on female mobility in Kathmandu via scooters is more optimistic, suggesting small-scale, daily-life movements in Kathmandu transform the city for its various demographics — in this case young women.&nbsp; Linder himself contributes with a discourse on the toponymy of Thamel, close-reading Kathmandu’s tourist hub through the usage and understanding of its name over the ages. MYTHBUSTERS The book is a collage of pieces held together by a thread that runs through the chapters of a vibrant, bustling image of the Valley. One common theme is Linder’s attempt to expand on common understandings and urban myths about Kathmandu. Readers who have spent time in the city will relate to the many anecdotes. for example, Niels Gutschow bringing up the lack of open spaces, or Mark Liechty mentioning restaurants in Kathmandu being melting pots of cultures and castes.&nbsp; The essays here further extend these urban legends by giving historical and anthropological contexts. In-migration and the rise in land prices have led to shrinking open spaces, the creation of cosmopolitan food outlets, and even hubs for sex workers. The Bagmati cleanliness campaign extends to a past understanding of the Bagmati Civilisation. Urban myths become puzzles to be solved by connecting the various threads of discussion across the book. The sections in Kathmandu: A Reader are all by experts in their various fields and present a holistic, well-rounded picture. Yet, it is obvious there is still more ground to cover, more themes to explore — perhaps by more Nepali scholars.&nbsp; In his introduction, Linder admits that due to practical reasons, ‘many wonderful works were left on the cutting room floor’. That is a pity. Indeed, there could have been more discourse on the changing ethnic composition of Kathmandu. A close-read into the lives of people termed as ‘outsiders’ but forming a growing slice of the population would be important to also chart future trends. &nbsp; The religious importance of Kathmandu as a unique civilisational alloy forged by melding the Hindu and Buddhist faiths can be explored more too. One can imagine a future edition including an examination of the post-Covid era Kathmandu valley.&nbsp; This need to broaden the ethnographic literature on Kathmandu becomes more apparent because 11 out of the 15 essays here are written by non-Nepali scholars, including the entire section focusing on urban cultural politics. Linder explains in his introduction that this was largely due to the community of academics in Nepali urban studies being fairly small. Kathmandu: A Reader then becomes even more integral as a gateway for new authors looking to work in the space of urban research on the Valley — undergraduates in the humanities for future theses and research ideas.&nbsp; In a time when Kathmandu is littered with new exam coaching centres for medical and engineering students, an anthology like this helps remind young scholars that there is plenty of scope for qualitative research in the social sciences. Sabin Ninglekhu’s discourse on the sukumbasi and aesthetics in Kathmandu are reminders that stories and academic journeys can be inspired from one’s surroundings. Kathmandu: A Reader has a good balance between academic and lighter readings, and is almost encyclopaedic in nature. There is even content about Kathmandu’s gangsters and scooty girls — allowing readers to venture deeper into their milieu.&nbsp; Kshitiz Pratap Shah is a recent graduate in English from Ashoka University.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20251002051016_c8ce28ecfd0dde4986023822b3d40360ead97d29b7f186f6494d8da67021c5a5.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20251002051016_c8ce28ecfd0dde4986023822b3d40360ead97d29b7f186f6494d8da67021c5a5" data-rendition-name="original" width="1136" height="702" loading="lazy" alt="Kathmanu a reader"> </figure>

bees

Honey = Money

To bee or not to bee

2-1 for Nepal against The Windies

International spotlight on Nepal

Nepal's democracy keeps doubting itself

A reader for Kathmandu