<img width="2500" height="1500" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121120/636b8d4b9c7e80680e06b340jpeg.jpg" alt=""/>It is that time of the year when many children would be gearing up to join a new pre-school, and their parents, shopping for new school bags and uniforms for the new school year.But 2077 is different. Teachers are busy at Zoom meetings with  principals are struggling with their IT teams to set up digital classrooms before fresh batches begin classes this week.Zoom, Skype, Google Hangouts and good old Gmail are all useful in communicating simply and effectively via video and/or text.  Teachers can always send assignments for the week or instruct live on video using an array of newly-essential tools for remote communication.However, simulating a real classroom environment requires more complex channels built for teachers and students to interact and enjoy a virtual school.There are dozens of ecosystems and learning management platforms, but which is the one best suited to K-12 schools in Nepal? Let’s find out.<a style="font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/who-is-up-for-a-quarantine-cooking-challenge/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Who is up for a Quarantine Cooking Challenge?</a>, Saniaa Shah <img width="305" height="464" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121120/636b8d4f9c7e80680e06b341jpeg.jpg" alt=""><img width="288" height="464" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121120/636b8d509c7e80680e06b342jpeg.jpg" alt="">GOOGLE CLASSROOMGoogle Classroom doubled its user numbers globally during the quarantine, which says a lot about how popular it is with schools across the globe.Available as an app for phones and tablets, as well as a web app on Google Chrome, Google Classroom is the go-to online space for schools in Nepal for two solid reasons:<ol><li>Google’s product is completely free, while other virtual learning places charge per institution or per student</li><li> It is intuitive and easy to learn, especially for teachers who are new to remote learning, who can upload assignments, get into virtual video-based lessons, and mark submitted homework  without technical training.</li></ol>Google Classroom’s biggest advantage is that Google has a wide set of productivity products that work in sync to help teachers lead and facilitatevirtual classrooms. With Hangouts for video delivery of lessons and Google Forms to help create simple quizzes to test learners, Classroom seamlessly connects with other Google products to help get tasks done efficiently.There are other unique features: teachers can create a Google Doc assignment just once, and each student gets own file to fill in and even click a ‘Turn In’ button to submit.Classroom comes with challenges. When multiple teachers upload multiple assignments, it can get really overwhelming for students because Math, Science, Language and Social Studies are all subjects that have been activated simultaneously out of one digital classroom and into their brains.One teacher sharing a list of weekly assignments at once, makes the work flow easier to manage for parents and kids alike. Schools will have to arrive at solutions on their own – something no tutorial will teach them. Overall, Google Classroom is an excellent product that is already being adopted by Nepali institutions. <img width="344" height="464" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121120/636b8d529c7e80680e06b343jpeg.jpg" alt=""><img width="310" height="464" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121120/636b8d549c7e80680e06b344jpeg.jpg" alt="">EDMODOIdeal for kindergarten and primary schools, Edmodo is a user-friendly, attractive platform, easy for both Windows and Mac users. The design and interface remind people of social media platforms that they are already familiar with, but the functionality is tailor-made for online learning purposes.Keeping in mind that schools are increasingly shifting online to kickstart new academic sessions, Edmodo offers a Distance Learning Toolkit that works as a set of free resources to give educators a place to start and help them make better decisions. This initiative welcomes traditional schools with older schoolteachers to the new normal of online classrooms and a constantly evolving teach-from-home system.Edmodo is already popular with prominent elementary schools in America, primarily because it equips teachers with a super organised space, stores all their data on cloud and offers real-time updates that help maintain quick interaction, much like in real life. Edmodo has partnered with JumpStart Academy Activity Studio to help launch activities that help young kids learn in a fun, interactive manner.The platform calls itself a ‘social learning network’ where teachers can share notes, assign homework, interact with their students, launch class discussions, administer online tests, measure student progress, and much more. It allows both recorded screencasts as well as live streaming, so that teachers can choose to pre-plan and prepare classwork for students to complete at their own pace, or deliver live video lessons. Google apps and MS Office are also integrated into the platform, so that teachers can use the tools they have been using for years.Like everything with Edmodo, the assessment method is limited and simplistic, which makes it difficult for secondary level teachers to grade assignments completed by middle or high school students. Also, Edmodo is not ad-free. But these are minor complaints.Students get a personal planner that helps them keep track of their school work and systematically tackle their task list. Moreover, schools willing to pay for the premium version of the platform are privy to a unique gamification tactic that introduces badges as a way of motivating students to stay on top.Edmodo gets brownie points for involving parents in the learning process.Teachers communicate with parents through Edmodo itself to keep them clued into their children’s virtual school life and support them through this difficult change of academic lifestyle. <img width="652" height="498" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121120/636b8d559c7e80680e06b345jpeg.jpg" alt="">SCHOOLOGYMy top recommendation for a proper learning management system is Schoology, a super secure and safe platform available as an app on both iOS and Android, and also accessible on the web.Schoology comes with an in-built classroom management suite that offers tools like online attendance, a grade book, a digital space for teachers to post assignments, quiz and test creation and publishing capabilities and various virtual tools to supplement or replace a physical classroom environment.To help schools suddenly forced to go remote, Schoology offers free course-specific and public resources that assist teachers in lesson planning. Teacher groups can also be formed so that teachers can support each other and deliver content smoothly across departments.A solid platform harnesses the power of automation, and Schoology is no different: assignments graded by the teacher automatically feeds into the grade book roster, thus reducing the extra workload for the teacher.Schoology’s layout imitates Facebook to some extent, so, like Edmodo, it’s easy for users of all ages to navigate. Schoology has partnered with complementary apps, such as Remind (helps educators send messages to students and parents), Turnitin (checks for originality and prevents plagiarism amongst students) and Nearpod (uses dynamic media and helps deliver interactive lessons to increase student engagement levels),that make Schoology the one-stop-shop that schools can depend on. Google Drive, Facebook and Twitter can also be used with stay seamlessly connected.Some schools in Nepal still perpetuate the teaching approach applied in pre-industrial revolution era, where there was a clear demarcation of students vs faculty, and where peer-to-peer interaction was discouraged.Schoology gives traditional schools a fresh opportunity to transform the way they teach, not just in terms of channel but also approach, with an open and engaging online learning atmosphere where dialogue is encouraged.Schoology adopts modern ways of the West, fostering asynchronous learning so that individual students can log in at their own convenience and still be totally on track along with their classmates. The secret to running successful virtual classrooms seems to be flexibility, and Schoology checks the box fairly well.Teachers can create an access code for parents to monitor the progress of their children as well as check out what they are currently learning in school. The only issue parents face with this platform is that if two siblings are studying at the same school in different grades, they cannot both sign into their respective Schoology accounts simultaneously from the same device.Other than this, Schoology is professional and effective.Other apps that schools and colleges may explore: Blackboard Learn, Seesaw, Canvas, MoodleRead also:<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/home-work-during-the-lockdown/">Home work during the lockdown</a>, Saniaa Shah <a style="font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/unlocking-yourself-during-the-lockdown/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Unlocking yourself during the lockdown</a>, Saniaa Shah

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Back-to-School season goes remote

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110911110/636b7a659c7e80680e06475bjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"/><figcaption>Photos: MONIKA DEUPALA</figcaption></figure>Spring is the season for Kathmandu Valley’s traditional festivals like Bhaktapur’s Bisket Jatra, Machhindranath in Kathmandu and Patan, as well as Ram Nawami and Chaite Dasain which this year falls on Wednesday and Thursday.But the coronavirus lockdown means many of the celebrations will be muted, or cancelled.Every year in April, head priest Naike Krishna Bhakta Chhunka in Bhaktapur would be very busy preparing for the Bisket Jatra organising the  construction of a three storey pagoda-style chariot.His room is surrounded by prayer paraphernalia required for performing the rituals for the festival whose highlight is a chariot procession attended by tens of thousands of people.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110911110/636b7a689c7e80680e06475cjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1050" height="709"><figcaption>Photo: ARCHIVE</figcaption></figure>This year, it is all quiet. Chunk will not be needed any of it. Due to the COVID-19 lockdown and fears of an outbreak, all festivals in Kathmandu Valley in which large numbers of people gather, have either been cancelled or scaled down.However, with no need to prepare for the festival, head priest Chhunka has more time to attend to devotees who worship at the temple, and he has extended the closing time from 8pm to 10pm.“This year, there will only be prayers and offerings performed by the priests at the shrine, and there will be no chariot,” says Ananda Karmacharya, of Guthi Sansthan, the government organisation that supports festivals.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110911110/636b7a6b9c7e80680e06475djpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000">Sunil Prajapati, the Mayor of Bhaktapur, says that to abide by the government’s lockdown rule, the municipality has cancelled all other festivals as well. “To protect everyone from the pandemic, citizens need to be well-informed and alert,” says Prajapati. “We can always celebrate our festivals next year.”Even so, some cultural experts fear that the centuries-old Bisket Jatra and other festivals which date back even before the Lichhavi period could be irreversibly altered or even stopped.“Due to the outbreak, we should not limit ourselves to the incomplete version of the Jatra, but should also try to come up with alternative solutions,” notes cultural expert Binod Raj Sharma, who suggests a truncated version of the chariot festival in which selected people bring out the Bhairavnath figure and place it on a smaller chariot to be pulled by just four people and carry out a symbolic ceremony without bystanders and devotees.“There could be the traditional musicians performing Bhajans in front of the chariot while wearing surgical masks,” Sharma suggests.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110911110/636b7a6e9c7e80680e06475ejpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000">Another cultural expert, Lochan Shrestha, disagrees, saying Bhaktapur cannot risk spreading the pandemic by allowing large congregations of people. He says, “It is true that the jatra’s true essence comes from the crowd that comes together to celebrate it, and we cannot risk that right now.”Festivals in Patan, Kathmandu, Kirtipur, Bungamati, Khan and Sankhu are also going to be affected, including the Machhendranath festival next month, according to Hari Subedi, of the Guthi Sansthan for Kathmandu.In Bhaktapur itself, other local and smaller jatra like Tipwa, Kha: Lwakegu and Dhyo Swanga Biyagu have already been cancelled for this year.“To give continuity to our tradition in a safe way, our panel of organisers have decided to just carry out private rituals at the temples and not have large gatherings,” says Bhaktapur’s Chief District Officer Humkala Pandey.

Kathmandu festivals muted amidst coronavirus lockdown

<img width="640" height="275" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110911110/636b7a569c7e80680e064755jpeg.jpg" alt=""/>Nepal’s Coronavirus Control High-level Task Force decided to extend the lockdown by another week, and allow rescue flights to take tourists stranded in Nepal back to their countries, but only if requested by the concerned embassies. So far, the French and German embassies have brought their nationals as well as other Europeans to Kathmandu for flights out on Qatar Airways via Doha. The Australian embassy is taking its nationals out on a direct flight to Sydney on 1 April by chartering a Nepali Airlines Airbus A330. The British Embassy is also arranging flights to Doha after collecting Britons trapped in Lukla, Pokhara and other areas. Nepal Airlines will also be taking stranded Sri Lankan tourists on a direct flight from Kathmandu to Colombo on 7 April.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/lockdown-likely-to-be-extended/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lockdown likely to be extended</a><a style="font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/lockdown-fallout/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lockdown fallout</a>, Editorial <img width="640" height="535" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110911110/636b7a599c7e80680e064756jpeg.jpg" alt="">So far, 1,255 tourists have been brought to Kathmandu either by air or road since the lockdown began, nearly half of them from the Mt Everest area alone. Most of them have already taken flights back to their home countries. Of them, more than 900 were Europeans.“We are trying to locate other nationalities like Japanese, Canadians, and Sri Lankans and find ways to send them to their home countries,” Nepal Tourism Board’s Dhanjaya Regmi said. <figure><img width="640" height="360" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110911110/636b7a5c9c7e80680e064757jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption>This Tara Air Viking Twin Otter made five shuttle ferries between Lukla and Kathmandu on Sunday to rescue 30 foreign trekkers and 28 Nepali guides.</figcaption></figure>2020 had been declared Visit Nepal Year, and the pandemic hit at the peak spring trekking season in the Himalaya. For example, there are believed to be 600 Canadians still in Nepal and there have been efforts to bring them back.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/lockdown-likely-to-be-extended/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lockdown likely to be extended</a><a style="font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/lockdown-fallout/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lockdown fallout</a>, Editorial <figure><img width="640" height="314" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110911110/636b7a5e9c7e80680e064758jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption>Tourists flown back from Pokhara being taken to hotels in Kathmandu before flights out to their home countries this week.</figcaption></figure>On Sunday alone, there were 10 flights by Tara Air, Sita Air, Nepal Airlines and Summit Air to Lukla to bring back trekkers, some of them American and British, and their Nepali guides still stranded there. There were a dozen flights on Saturday to Kathmandu from Lukla. However, as wind picked up by mid morning some of the scheduled rescue flights had to be cancelled and 158 remaining trekkers and 70 Nepali guides will be flown back to Kathmandu on Monday.Meanwhile, a Nepal Airlines Airbus A330 flew back to Kathmandu from Guangzhou early Sunday morning with 13 tons of medical equipment and supplies procured by the private sector. They include COVID-19 test kits, personal protective equipment (PPE) for health workers, masks, hoods, boots and other medical equipment.  <img width="640" height="520" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110911110/636b7a609c7e80680e064759jpeg.jpg" alt="">Also on Sunday morning, a Sichuan Air flight flew in medical equipment and supplies donated by Alibaba CEO Jack Ma and Sichuan Provincial Government to Nepal. The boxes were handed over by Chinese Ambassador to Nepal Hou Yanqi at the Ministry of Health. The supplies include N-95 makes, PPE and digital thermal guns.

Nepal Airlines to fly stranded Australian tourists to Sydney

<figure><img width="3600" height="2400" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109101156/636b7a0f9c7e80680e06473bjpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>Photo: RSS</figcaption></figure>Nepal’s <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nepal-goes-into-lockdown-for-a-week/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nepal-goes-into-lockdown-for-a-week/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1585288027108000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGBOO6fdVYDFD5e3Wnptm9tyX6YWA">one week lockdown</a> is supposed to go on till 31 March, but that appears to be an attempt by the government to convey the bad news to the public in small doses. It is likely to be extended at least till the Nepali New Year on 13 April, to match the duration of the Indian curfew.Such a prolonged shutdown forces us to look beyond the present need for containment to plan for the crises that are sure to manifest themselves in the near future — food shortages, economic hardship, social unrest and political instability. The virus and its response have exposed and exacerbated existing socio-economic inequities in Nepali society, exclusion and injustice. A post this week by an Indian doctor about the class dimension of physical distancing is as applicable to Nepal: ‘Social distancing is a privilege. It means you live in a house large enough to practise it. Hand washing is a privilege too. It means you have access to running water. Hand sanitisers are a privilege. It means you have money to buy them. Lockdowns are a privilege. It means you can afford to be at home. A disease spread by the rich as they flew around the globe will now kill millions of the poor.’ As has been underlined by Nepal’s civil society, a caring government will not just lock down the whole country to defeat the virus, but also lay down a <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/nepal-locked-down-now-what/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">social safety net for those most affected by the economic standstill</a>  Businesses and factories may need a stimulus package so jobs are not lost, but it is those who depend on day-to-day earnings who need urgent assistance. Developing countries are not known for efficient service delivery and good governance at the best of times. But this crisis demands that they step up to the challenge of quickly finding a mechanism to rescue the most vulnerable with cash grants if necessary.Even Europe and North America have been caught unprepared to deal with the scope and spread of this pandemic. It is now the urban poor in the Global South where new COVID-19 infection clusters will hit hardest, exposing pre-existing disparities in access to medical care and food.The global nature of this pandemic has hit Nepal’s economy hard because of our overwhelming reliance on foreign worker remittances and tourism. Many <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepalis-quarantined-in-qatar/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepalis-quarantined-in-qatar/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1585288027108000&amp;usg=AFQjCNF2C1eR8lFlajr8lavY2n7GELTl2A">Nepali workers are stranded</a> in Malaysia, the Gulf, or in Indian cities, and need to be rescued, Citizens cannot be prevented from entering their own country. With the curfew likely to be extended by two more weeks at least, the High-level Task Force must now turn its attention to ensuring adequate supply of food and other essentials. Kathmandu cannot micromanage all ground level problems, local governments must be given the authority and the resources to act. Medical care workers need <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/protecting-those-who-protect-us-from-the-epidemic/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/protecting-those-who-protect-us-from-the-epidemic/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1585288027108000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFWbAJJAHz83hStB-54Mp8vYHLKCg">personal protective equipment (PPE),</a> we need more ventilators and isolation wards so that they do not have to risk their lives while saving the lives of the sick.It is just four days into the curfew, and for a lot of people it is finally sinking in that the world as we knew it has been turned upside down. One-third of the world’s population is in lockdown, the global economy is shattered, and even though the virus afflicts rich and poor alike, it is the poorest in the poor countries who are most vulnerable to the economic aftershocks of the pandemic.It feels like a nightmare, and it is hard to remember the pre-Corona days when all we had to worry about was <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-climate-connection-to-covid-19/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-climate-connection-to-covid-19/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1585288027108000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHViUDV7mR5rozFrP3sY7BaScggMw">climate change</a>. Maybe one day when this virus is vanquished, there will be a new way of thinking and living. Let us hope that we mitigate the cause of the climate emergency with the same global resolve as we did this crisis. The projected number of deaths just from heat stress due to global heating in the next decades is going to run into tens of millions. The COVID-19 lockdowns confine people to their homes, but as sea levels rise many will not have homes. And the climate crisis itself will unleash new kinds of pestilence.   And just like with the climate, there are countries which are still in denial about the pandemic, or leaders who have acted too late and let their citizens pay the price with their lives. A teleconference of G-7 foreign ministers was deadlocked on Wednesday over the United States passing all the blame of the pandemic on China. Yet, we have also seen unprecedented international resolve. The World Health Organisation has coordinated national responses so that most countries are in shutdown at least till mid-April. It now needs to pay special attention to poorer countries, and the poorest who live in them.		
			<h2>10 years ago this week</h2>		
		10 years ago this week <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/issue/495" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/issue/495&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1585288027108000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGV3NKmG6nDjGkiiV6bNiEWgJDYqQ">Nepali Times #495 of 26 March-1 April 2010</a> examined the fallout of the death of Nepali Congress leader and Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala who was responsible for bringing a dramatic political shift in Nepal was often termed as a ‘National Guardian’. An excerpt: Throughout the last week, the media has been abuzz with the passing of former prime minister and president of the Nepali Congress. The weight of commentary has now shifted from the late Koirala’s achievements and failings to the political vacuum that has been created at this critical juncture in Nepali politics.               But it is not just about who is going to succeed to the NC presidency: Sher Bahadur Deuba, Ram Chandra Paudel or Sushil Koirala.

Lockdown Fallout

Fenerbahçe Beko won the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague finals in Abu Dhabi, held 23-25 May, defeating Monaco 81-70 in the final. Olympiacos, who defeated Panathinaikos 97-93, finished the series in third place. The Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the final match, Nigel Hayes-Davis from Fenerbahçe Beko, received a prize of 1,000,000 Miles&amp;Smiles from Turkish Airlines’ Chief Commercial Officer Ahmet Olmuştur. The carrier has been the title sponsor of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague, a top tier tournament, since 2010.

Turkish Basketball

Thousands of Nepali students dreaming of an American education have been forced to look elsewhere as the Trump administration’s visa restrictions make their future uncertain.
The US was long considered a top destination for higher studies, making Nepal the 10th biggest country of origin for international students in America.&nbsp;
However, that number has seen a significant decline with the total for Nepali students now at 16,482. Some 8,000 Nepali students obtained no-objection certificates to study in the US from the Ministry of Education in the past year.&nbsp;
India, Australia, Canada, South Korea, United Kingdom and Japan are the other popular destinations for Nepali students. There are no clear numbers for Nepalis going to India, but a slight decline was noted this year after the deaths of two female students.
The US State Department has issued a circular to its embassies not to issue new visas to applicants until further notice. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in the directive stated that the department planned to expand the screening of applicants' social media.&nbsp;
While new applicants are barred including those applying for visitor visas, students with scheduled interviews are allowed to proceed.
“Many of our students are affected by the new restrictions, but those who had applied for student visas earlier have got interview dates,” one Kathmandu-based college counsellor told us.
Meanwhile, even foreign students with spotless records already in the US have not been spared, as visa scrutiny intensifies under the new policy. In a move that underscores the growing sense of insecurity, many US colleges advised international students to carry their passports and documents at all times, even when traveling locally.
“Me and my friends did not go home this summer because we were not sure we would be allowed back, so we just went to Niagara Falls,” said a Nepali undergrad in Ohio, who like many interviewed for this report did not want her name used for fear of repercussion.
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Nepali students have adopted a cautious stance, with many choosing not to return home during summer vacation due to fear of visa revocations as well as travel bans. Meanwhile, over 7,000 Nepalis with Temporary Protected Status (TPS) will have to come back to Nepal by 5 August or face deportation. Thirty-seven were flown back to Kathmandu on Omni Air last week.
“The US is one of the most sought-after destinations for higher education, and the ban will definitely impact bright students,” says Narottam Aryal of the King’s College in Kathmandu.
Indeed, Nepali undergraduates admitted into Ivy League colleges for the 2025 academic year have been asked to look for alternatives. The entire Fulbright Foreign Scholarships Board resigned on Wednesday citing interference from the Trump administration on the selection of this year’s cohort. Some Nepali students already on Fulbright scholarships have noted disruptions, delays and even cancellation of stipends.&nbsp;
The student visa restrictions were initially just for foreign students admitted to Harvard University, but it was later extended to all Chinese students and now to all students. Universities like Columbia which actively recruit foreign students, face sharp enrolment declines, threatening their financial stability and diversity.
An Indian female PhD candidate at Columbia University had her visa revoked by the US State Department, and said she was targeted on the basis of her social media posts on Israeli military attacks in Gaza. Social media vetting of political activism has raised concerns about privacy and freedom of expression in a country where such rights were a given.
Many students have been informed via email that their visas have been revoked for getting speeding or parking tickets, but even others with no criminal record have been affected. The fear of deportation looms large amongst international students, including those from Nepal.&nbsp;
For most Nepalis who migrate to the US for education, the journey is a high-stakes investment. They come largely from middle-class families, often rely on a patchwork of scholarships, work-study programs, loans, or even the sale of family assets to afford fees.
Most Nepali students pursue STEM subjects which offer extended Optional Practical Training (OPT) periods that help fund their education. But with the US backsliding on education and humanitarian matters, countries like the UK and Canada are becoming more attractive despite their own recent stricter controls on student visas.&nbsp;
The UK universities saw a 63% rise in Nepali students’ admissions in 2024. Japan is another popular destination with 64,816 Nepali students enrolled as of 2024.
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Already, China, Hong Kong and Malaysia are poised to benefit from the increased scrutiny of US student visas. Several Hong Kong universities are offering unconditional admission to affected students, while Malaysian institutions are targeting previously US-bound Asian students. China and India have 330,000 and 280,000 students respectively in America, but the numbers for China have seen a sharp drop in the past year.
Elsewhere, branch campuses of American institutions such as NYU in Abu Dhabi, Georgetown in Dubai and Northwestern in Doha are getting more admission applications, and universities in the Gulf region are expanding infrastructure to accommodate those who would otherwise have gone to the US.&nbsp;
Even educational institutions in Nepal are hopeful that the US visa restrictions can be an opportunity to at least keep Nepali undergrads in Nepal, and also attract foreign students from the region.&nbsp;
“Many students might choose to complete their undergraduate degree here in Nepal and then move abroad for their Master’s degree later,” says Aryal of King’s College. “There was a need for quality higher education in Nepal anyway in terms of innovation and opportunities, so this could be the time to reduce our dependence on other countries.”
Nepal’s strategic position between India and China makes it sensitive to US policy shifts. India, a key ally, is also under US scrutiny for potential student travel restrictions. Chinese universities are already offering more scholarships to Nepali talent to capitalise on the US retreat.
American universities have challenged student visa restrictions in the courts. A federal court in Boston revoked the blanket ban on Harvard, and the State Department has ordered the resumption of processing student and exchange visitor visas.&nbsp;
Some are still hoping that President Trump will backtrack on the student visa restrictions, just like he has done with many of his more drastic executive orders.
Even so, the visa see-saw and longer-term uncertainties about living in the United States and its education system means students across the world are making alternative plans.
Says Aryal: “Policies of foreign countries change according to their needs, so excessive dependence was never a good idea. We should work to create different opportunities and choices of higher education within Nepal, so students are retained.” &nbsp;

America no longer prime destination for Nepali students

That winter day in January 1664 marked an exceptional event in the reign of King Pratap Malla of Kathmandu. It was 15 Paush 784 of the Nepal Sambat and for the first time, a historical event was being immortalised on canvas for generations to come.&nbsp; The occasion was the grand Tuladaan ceremony of the King’s youngest son Chakrabartendra Malla from his wife Anantapriya, an Indian princess from Cooch Behar in present-day Assam.&nbsp; During the ritual, the prince was weighed against gold, silver, pearls, and other precious stones, which were then offered to Goddess Taleju Bhavani, the guardian deity of the Malla dynasty.&nbsp; The 170 x120cm painting captures the time of King Pratap Malla in all its splendour and is more than a personal tribute to his son: it is a significant visual historical document. It was evidently completed five years later in 1669, and could be considered a photographic record, with retrospective recreation of the event by the unknown artist. A Tuladaan ceremony is performed to purify one’s karma, quell impending bad luck, or as an act of charity and devotion. Chakrabartendra Malla was not well, and the ritual was performed in hopes of restoring his health. King Pratap Malla had arranged for each of his sons to take turns ruling Kathmandu so they got administrative experience. But Chakrabartendra died just two days after assuming power in 1670 (790 NS). This painting is considered the earliest known example in which the composition is dominated by an architectural landscape: the Taleju Temple. Given the stylistic features such as side-profile facial depictions and the rendering of human forms, it is believed that the Nepali artist was trained by a Rajput master.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250615040624_ddad3bc27a327e3f9926c8473287e4f14b53081296c295049009f327a4d97051.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20250615040624_ddad3bc27a327e3f9926c8473287e4f14b53081296c295049009f327a4d97051" data-rendition-name="original" width="3248" height="4395" loading="lazy" alt="Tuladaan NT"> </figure>  During that era, there were regular exchanges of artists between Northern India and Kathmandu Valley. The painting is also a melding of Nepali, Tibetan, Mughal, and Rajput art styles of the time. Pratap Malla could have been inspired by a painting of Mughal Emperor Jahangir’s Tuladaan ceremony for his son Khurram in 1607. The Mallas and Mughals shared cordial relations, which is reflected in the cultural influences seen in the art and attire of the period.&nbsp; The clothing of the Malla ruling class, in particular, features colourful tunics, turbans, and jewelry that display strong Rajput and Mughal stylistic elements. The musicians in the upper tier are also dressed in Indian-style clothing, while the ensemble on the lower steps wear local attire, notably without turbans. Their hairstyles also differ, with the lower group wearing their hair tied in a bun at the front. This national treasure is currently in storage at the Collège de France in Paris, and has never been publicly displayed. Nepal’s art scholars like Gautam Vajracharya, Pratap Aditya Pal and Anne Vergati have written about this iconic paubha in the past, but the only detailed study is from the perspective of music history by researcher Richard Widdess who had access to high resolution copies of the original.&nbsp; Widdess from the Department of Music at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London describes the paubha as the most significant and richly detailed documentation of music in Nepali art. He identifies distinct musical ensembles on the terraces of the temple, and remarkably most of them are actively used today. One of them reflects the Mughal naqqārakhāna model — a loud outdoor ensemble typically composed of kettledrums, trumpets, and cymbals, traditionally performed from the gateway of the emperor’s palace to announce his entrances and exits. The depiction of such an ensemble in the tulādāna painting is likely the earliest known representation of a complete naqqārakhāna in Nepal — considered the forerunner of the panche baja, the traditional Nepali ensemble. On the stepped pyramid base of the temple are two groups of musicians playing local instruments: dhimey, bhushya, and dha. They are unmistakably Newar musicians, wearing short skirts and short-sleeved tops, with bare heads and legs—clearly distinguished as local performers.&nbsp; Higher still on the temple pyramid are musicians of apparently higher status, positioned close to the king, and his courtiers, possibly professional court musicians from India, well-versed in rāga and tāla. A dāphā group is also clearly depicted, identifiable by their characteristic instruments.&nbsp; Dāphā bhajan is likely the oldest surviving tradition of Newar devotional singing, and this paubha is the oldest visual record of it. Pratap Malla himself is believed to have composed songs that continue to be performed by dāphā groups throughout Kathmandu till today.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025061211064_d67636730cdc0ec778c02494817aca0b99654f2950d0fae4b95499a61faf7ef3.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="2025061211064_d67636730cdc0ec778c02494817aca0b99654f2950d0fae4b95499a61faf7ef3" data-rendition-name="original" width="596" height="768" loading="lazy" alt="Priceless paubha in Paris NT"> </figure>  The artist’s thorough attention to musical detail may be attributed to King Pratap Malla’s own deep interest in music. His inscriptions on this painting and elsewhere proclaim his mastery of all branches of knowledge, including music. He is also known as the author of dance dramas and poems, penning his name as Kavindra (king of poets). Some noteworthy elements of new art techniques stand out: for example, the roof of the temple is filled with realistically rendered white doves, pigeons, and crows. This is a rare feature in paubha, where animals and birds are stylised, mythological forms. This remarkably talented unknown artist has managed to also render an orthographic projection: the front and side view of Nepal’s first architectural paubha. The Taleju Temple, with its staggering multi-tiered structure and numerous steps and platforms, is masterfully translated into layers within the painting. This represents a significant artistic achievement of the time, especially considering that dimensional perspectives had not started in deity-based paubha.&nbsp; The artist has also made a meticulous effort to capture architectural details such as the toran (ornamental arch) and temple struts with impressive precision. There are flickering lamps along the steps and some people carrying what appear to be oil pots.&nbsp; It is a full moon night and the dark sky is adorned with all the gods and goddesses, who are depicted as blessing the ceremony while seated on stylised thangka clouds. There is a lot happening in this painting, with people engaged in various activities. The artist has also rendered a forest backdrop behind the temple, complete with deer, trees, and flowers. Could there have once been a royal garden behind the Taleju Temple?&nbsp; More details and clarity can only be achieved if we are able to view the original or a high-resolution scanned version of the artwork. Many countries proudly display art depicting historical events in their national museums with great reverence. France, for example, has The Coronation of Emperor Napoleon and Empress Joséphine by Jacques-Louis David (1808–1822), along with numerous paintings of the Napoleonic Wars. Many were commissioned by Napoleon himself for future generations to remember.&nbsp; For Nepal, the equivalent is the Tuladaan paubha which is a visual record capturing a historic moment involving one of Kathmandu’s greatest kings, on the very day the event took place. Sadly, we await the day when this masterpiece is displayed, shared in high resolution for detailed study, or more rightfully — repatriated to its homeland, where it truly belongs. &nbsp; Shaguni Singh Sakya is the Director of the Museum of Nepali Arts (MoNA) at Kathmandu Guest House in Thamel. <h2>Gods homeward bound</h2> The Nepal Heritage Recovery Campaign and Nepal’s Department of Archaeology are convening the first international conference on the Recovery of Cultural Heritage from 16-18 June in Patan. The conference will address urgent issues of theft, illicit trafficking, the campaign to repatriate looted cultural artifacts, and explore how the return of sacred antiquities contributes to justice, healing, and reconciliation for communities and nations affected by cultural loss. American art crime professor Erin L Thompson and Saubhagya Pradhananga of the Department of Archaeology will deliver the keynote. Meanwhile, author and Nepali Times publisher Kunda Dixit will lead a conversation on Illicit Trafficking: Public Opinion and Role of Media with Erin Thompson, Amr Al Azm, associate professor of Middle East History and Anthropology at Shawnee State University in Ohio, as well as Bradley J Gordon, a lawyer based in Phnom Penh. There will be sessions looking at repatriation perspectives from Cambodia, India, Vietnam, China and Poland, international frameworks for repatriation, emerging digital technologies in the repatriation of cultural heritage, cultural property agreements, museums as well as trends in the art market, and heritage diplomacy and the role of media.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025061211068_59cfccfa8f5d73bfe8b4c5811a7f53abc09ea04e8cb7c638933d62e5283efdf6.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="2025061211068_59cfccfa8f5d73bfe8b4c5811a7f53abc09ea04e8cb7c638933d62e5283efdf6" data-rendition-name="original" width="1080" height="1350" loading="lazy" alt="Heritage recovery NT"> </figure>  <h2> </h2> Some of the other highlights include James K. Reap, a professor in the Master of Historic Preservation Program at the University of Georgia who has a session on the US response to illicit trafficking. Art historian Lea Saint-Raymond is taking on “Gods at Auction: The Market for Himalayan Artefacts”, while lecturer of criminology at the University of Glasgow Emiline Smith is delving into transformative approaches to heritage ownership and repatriation. Helena Arose of Antiquities Coalition and Melina Antoniadis of NOSTOS Strategies that specialise on the return home of cultural heritage as well as Hao Liu of International Cultural Heritage Law at the School of Law at Shandong University are some of the others attending. The Nepal Heritage Recovery Campaign was set up in 2020 to develop a coordinated movement to reclaim Nepal’s stolen gods and goddesses, with an aim to ensure that recovered items are returned to their original shrines, niches or sanctums. Ahead of the conference opening organisers have arranged for a film screening of Loot &amp; Return: 4 Documentaries at YalaMaya Kendra in Patan Dhoka between 14-15 June. Following the conference is a multimedia exhibition titled Absent Gods: Nepal’s Lost Heritage from 31 July to 4 August at Patan Museum.

Priceless paubha in Paris

While Nepal was hosting the Sagarmatha Sambaad international climate conference in Kathmandu this month, on Mt Everest it was pretty much business as usual.&nbsp; The signs of climate breakdown are all there: a river now runs through Base Camp in summer, the Khumbu Icefall is more unstable, and there are more &nbsp;frequent avalanches. When expeditions arrived in March, the mountains were bare: it had not snowed since September, but then blizzards dumped unseasonal snow in May. And despite climate worries, such is the pull of Himalayan mountaineering that the Everest Industry showed no signs of slowdown. More than 600 international climbers and their Nepali guides had made it to the summit of the world’s highest mountain. At one point there were an estimated 2,000 people in the tent city on the Khumbu Glacier. All the ropes and ladders on the Icefall came down on Thursday, marking the official end of the spring climbing season, and just in time to avoid a monsoon cyclone approaching from the Bay of Bengal. It has been an action-packed season. One factor could be that Everest fees will go up from September: each foreign climber needs to pay a $15,000 royalty, up from the present $11,000. The cost for a Nepali climber on the South Col route will also go up: from Rs75,000 to Rs150,000.&nbsp; The fee to climb Everest in autumn is $7,500 (up from $5,500), but most climbers still prefer spring. Winter permit fee (December-February) is only $3,750 per person and the mountain is now also open for monsoon (June-August) climbs, when the fee is ever lower at $2,750. The revised rule also makes it mandatory for every two climbers on an 8,000m peak to hire one Nepali mountain guide.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025053004050_67f856fe52714e4bdcf21ae7d45c6f18c82117b9d0a5f73ed1efa04c96de1046.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="2025053004050_67f856fe52714e4bdcf21ae7d45c6f18c82117b9d0a5f73ed1efa04c96de1046" data-rendition-name="original" width="931" height="732" loading="lazy" alt="The Everest Industry graph 1"> </figure>  In addition, climbers also have to pay for porters and guides, equipment, Base Camp costs, Ice Fall and fixed rope team fees, so climbing Everest does not come cheap. But such is the draw of climbing the world’s highest peak that some say the increased fees will not diminish the crowds next year. The government has tried to spread expeditions out to other seasons and other 8,000ers, but with not much success. Earlier this year, Nepal unilaterally increased the number of 8,000m peaks to 14 by adding six more sub-summits to broaden the choice for climbers. Added were: Yalung Kang (8,505m), Yalung Kang West (8,077m) &nbsp;Kangchenjunga Central (8,473m), Kangchenjunga South (8,476m), Lhotse Middle (8,410m) and Lhotse Shar (8,400m).&nbsp; The announcement could go against the accepted topographic criteria that a stand alone peak has to be at least 300m higher than an adjoining prominence, and at more than 3km isolation from it. The UIAA (Union Internationale des Associations d'Alpinisme) still recognises only 14 mountains as eight-thousanders, and only eight of those are in Nepal, or on the border with China. Nepal’s revised mountaineering regulations also increased the insurance coverage of high-altitude workers to protect porters and high altitude guides who usually take more risks on the mountains. Rescue teams and clean-up campaigners to collect trash and remove bodies of dead climbers up to Camp IV of Mt Everest do not need permits.&nbsp; The Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee is now using drones to fly down trash in 20kg sacks. Each climber is also required to bring down at least 6kg of waste and not just their own, but this rule is erratically enforced. With five fatalities on Everest and Lhotse, Spring 2025 had a historically low death toll. Another five climbers died on Annapurna, Kangchenjunga and Makalu.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025053004050_38681de22f0fefb6faa12b01755566d09c5064d0ff84e12ccc7b5d68ea9ba38a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="2025053004050_38681de22f0fefb6faa12b01755566d09c5064d0ff84e12ccc7b5d68ea9ba38a" data-rendition-name="original" width="665" height="740" loading="lazy" alt="The Everest industry graph 2"> </figure>  Journalist Ben Ayers who ran the Everest Live social media channel from Everest Base Camp with daily updates credited the low death rate to dramatic rescues of climbers from the ‘Death Zone’ by their Nepali guides and longline helievacs — the visuals all uploaded on YouTube.&nbsp; “Ironically, this perception of safety is bringing more and more inexperienced climbers to the mountain, and they need more rescues,” Ayers said in one of his dispatches.&nbsp; American expedition chronicler and summiteer Alan Arnette suspects there is a lot of under-reporting given that the jet stream and storms were lashing Everest even till late in the season. He told us: “I heard a lot about frostbite and rescues that were not made public. It’s become practically impossible to cover the details on Everest. All the teams report nice news, and they don’t talk about bad stuff to avoid hurting businesses.” Although trash on Nepal’s mountains makes headlines, what does not receive as much attention is the climate impact of so many expeditions. The Sagarmatha Sambaad conference sidestepped this issue, which is ironic given that the impact of climate breakdown is most evident on Himalayan peaks and their glaciers.&nbsp; <h2>Need for Speed</h2> The big stories this year have been about speed-running from their home cities to the top of Everest. Ukrainian entrepreneur Andrew Ushakov flew out of JFK on 15 May at 10:15AM Nepal time, and was on the summit 3 days, 23 hours, and 7 minutes later on 19 May at 9:22AM.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250601080640_1c5cc6fc991307861768f07037ed9d30930fb20f35dbb57dc31c9a92a9e1a885.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20250601080640_1c5cc6fc991307861768f07037ed9d30930fb20f35dbb57dc31c9a92a9e1a885" data-rendition-name="original" width="1440" height="1800" loading="lazy" alt="The Everest Industry"> <figcaption>Andrew Ushakov at the summt. Photo: ELITE EXPED</figcaption> </figure>  “I could never find the time for the traditional 40-50 days of acclimatisation,” Ushakov explained matter-of-factly. His ‘Everest Sea-to-Summit’ climb was possible because he spent 400 hours in hypoxic sleep tents over the past four years in New York. However, Ushakov did use ropes already fixed, hired four Nepali guides, helicoptered to Base Camp, and used much more oxygen than an average climber. And after the climb, Ushakov was arrested at Kathmandu airport for being in possession of $20,000 of undeclared cash and spent a night in jail and fined $60,000.&nbsp; The other speedsters were Garth Miller, Alastair Cairns, Anthony Stazicker, and Kev Godlington, all former British Army commandos. They left London and summited five days later on 21 May, and flew right back. They also used hypoxic tents to simulate the thin air high on Everest.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250601080644_90c8dd5cc07b4b43f2989b1dc0c0650ab80f10ebb06680c25a6909c519957bd8.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20250601080644_90c8dd5cc07b4b43f2989b1dc0c0650ab80f10ebb06680c25a6909c519957bd8" data-rendition-name="original" width="810" height="668" loading="lazy" alt="The Everest Industry "> <figcaption>All four members of the Furtenbach team at the summit. Photo: Sandro Gromen-Hayes</figcaption> </figure>  But more controversial was their use of xenon gas therapy in a German hospital to ramp up the production of oxygen-carrying haemoglobins in their blood. Xenon is banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency for being performance enhancing in sports. Expedition leader Lukas Furtenbach said this rule does not apply to mountaineering, as it is not a regulated sport like swimming. Nepal has no rules about xenon, but the Department of Tourism said it was launching an ‘investigation’ to decide on future policy since it is difficult to ban xenon, but allow oxygen. The controversy has also divided the mountaineering community, with some climbers saying they just want to maximise their chances of survival. Spending less time on the mountain could make climbing safer by reducing avalanche risk. It would also mean less trash on the mountains, but it would reduce the income of Nepal’s expedition industry. It is also unclear how much of the success was due to xenon therapy and whether the ex-special forces were already in good physical shape.&nbsp; The need for speed hides the fact that climbing in the Himalaya is dangerous business, and climbers cannot sprint to the top just by huffing xenon. But ultra-fast climbs could be charged more, and the revenue generated can be used to establish state-of-the-art rescue operations, and increase pay and insurance for guides. Two other speed chasers this season were Swiss-Ecuadorian Karl Egloff and American Tyler Andrews, both on Everest without oxygen. Andrews choppered to Base Camp to catch a weather window, but turned back from 8,500m due to high winds. Heavy snow and wind also forced Egloff to descend from 7,000m. Slow and steady climbers like Anja Blacha from Germany did make it to the summit without oxygen, while Kami Rita Sherpa broke his own record with his 31st Everest summit as he led a 26-strong Indian Army group. There were 468 permits issued for foreign climbers from 48 expeditions to Everest this spring. Nepal’s other eight-thousanders together had only 17 expeditions. Nepal has more than 1,000 peaks above 6,000m, and has opened only 476 of them for climbing.&nbsp;

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