Mahendra Singh Limbu was retracing his steps up the Mewa Khola in 2018 when he and fellow lepidopterist Karen Conniff saw what looked like a new species of dragonfly sunning itself on a leaf. It was a female, but to ensure that it was indeed a new species they also had to find a male. So, they returned a few months later to the same spot with a scenic waterfall in the middle of a forest alive with songbirds and an orchestra of crickets.&nbsp; They took separate tracks along the brook, minutely inspecting leaves and pools. Limbu spotted a dragonfly and quickly took a photo, and gestured to Conniff to come over. They both examined the distinctive stripes on the dragonfly’s back: it was the same species, but more importantly, it was a male. &nbsp; Conniff submitted her paper to the German scientific journal, <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=19301#.XAj3DdszaUk">Odonatologica</a>, where after peer review it was published and the Microgomphus phewataali was <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/project-dragonfly">officially recognised as a new dragonfly species</a> endemic to Nepal. Its scientific Latin name is derived from Pokhara’s famous lake near where the dragonfly with the distinctive green and black patterns on its back was found. There are more than 5,000 species of dragonflies and damselflies, of which 140 have been recorded in Nepal -- some of them found nowhere else in the world. Like Microgomphus phewataali there could be many more dragonflies in Nepal which have not even been classified yet. Conniff has now returned to the United States, and Limbu continues to research butterflies, moths and dragonflies in Shivapuri, Pulchoki and other forests around Kathmandu Valley. He often comes to Pokhara to exchange notes with <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/and-the-metaphor-of-metamorphosis">another butterfly expert, Colin Smith</a> who has made Nepal his home and is known by his friendly nickname <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/and-the-metaphor-of-metamorphosis">Putali Baje</a>.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230811200820_9627c56f3d4875df0db6fbe0ffaee4f2e21676d273651622d88a1fe1635d225d.jpg" data-media-id="editor_4" data-image-id="20230811200820_9627c56f3d4875df0db6fbe0ffaee4f2e21676d273651622d88a1fe1635d225d" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1500" loading="lazy" alt="Dragonfly NT"> </figure>  In his last trip to Pokhara, Limbu returned to Mewa Khola to see how the dragonfly habitat was surviving against the city’s rapid urbanisation. What he found was worrisome. “It was much dirtier than five years ago,” Limbu said. “There was no water tumbling over boulders. The waterfall in the middle of the jungle had gone dry.” The slope was a tangle of pipes extracting water from further upstream to supply houses and lodges below, and Mewa Khola was dead. He made a desperate and futile search, but not only could he not spot the Microgomphus phewataali, but there were very few other butterflies and dragonflies in the undergrowth. In an interview with Nepali Times in 2018, Karen Conniff had already predicted: “The habitat of the dragonfly faces extreme stress from water overdraft for Pokhara’s rapidly growing tourism centre. The habitat could vanish in a few years if people do not stop drawing water from there.” For Limbu, the elation over the discovery of their new species is now overshadowed by a sense of dread about what lies ahead for Nepal’s endangered, and yet undiscovered, butterflies and dragonflies.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230811200820_b22d4e9c2e7ec7d9917af39fc5c57fba112a232961dfe58fc85a4f9a77d0e333.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="20230811200820_b22d4e9c2e7ec7d9917af39fc5c57fba112a232961dfe58fc85a4f9a77d0e333" data-rendition-name="original" width="2500" height="1875" loading="lazy" alt="Dragonfly NT"> <figcaption>Phewa Lake  in Pokhara. Photo: YUVARAJ SHRESTHA</figcaption> </figure>  Much of the dragonfly’s life cycle is spent underwater as larvae after hatching from eggs that are laid in clear still water near streams. Some larvae live for up to seven years underwater before maturing into winged adults. They live only a few weeks during which time they fly around to mate and procreate.&nbsp; In its brief life, the dragonfly eats mosquito eggs and larvae, but does not survive if there is no water, or if it is polluted. Researchers have also found that dragonflies found in Nepal migrate over unbelievable distances to and from Japan and Africa, riding prevailing winds. &nbsp; “Dragonflies are indicator species,” explained Limbu. “If you see fewer of them you know that the ecosystem is in danger.” Worldwide, insect populations have dropped drastically due to pesticide use, habitat destruction and the impact of the climate emergency.&nbsp; Pokhara Valley is an example of how unmanaged urban expansion can harm delicate ecosystems. The city is now repeating all the mistakes that Kathmandu made with similar consequences. In fact, Pokhara has even more biodiversity than Kathmandu because of its higher annual rainfall and greater elevation range from tropical valleys to alpine meadows below Annapurna. <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/pokhara-s-shrinking-lakes">Pokhara’s numerous lakes</a>, water bodies and wetlands also make it an ideal habitat for various insects, including dragonflies. Mewa Khola and its waterfall are flowing again after recent monsoon rains, but dragonflies need the stream to flow also in the dry season. On his recent trip, Limbu saw butterflies, dragonflies and damselflies, but they were common varieties found around Nepal. But on the recent trip, while stepping carefully through the undergrowth he could not stop himself from exclaiming excitedly: “Watson bush brown.” This was the new species he had discovered in Pokhara’s Banpale Danda in 2017, and he was happy to make its acquaintance again.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230811200820_736d4ec79d958c0a5da6146806c41eb6193c9420b08083727c75f2a4a0846a0b.jpg" data-media-id="editor_7" data-image-id="20230811200820_736d4ec79d958c0a5da6146806c41eb6193c9420b08083727c75f2a4a0846a0b" data-rendition-name="original" width="1250" height="941" loading="lazy" alt="Dragonfly NT"> <figcaption>Mahendra Limbu with moth expert Toshiro Haruta in Godavari in 1992.</figcaption> </figure>  Besides the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/pokhara-s-shrinking-lakes">140 species of dragonflies</a> so far classified in Nepal, there are 660 species of butterflies and moths. Limbu worries that many more unknown species will be extinct even before they can be classified because of the destruction of their fragile ecosystems.Limbu has been interested in insects since his school days in Godavari, and pursued entomology during higher studies in the UK.&nbsp; In 1992, he worked with Japanese biologist <a href="http://www.moth.jp/wp/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Moths-of-Nepal-part-2.pdf">Toshiro Haruta</a> to collect Nepal’s moths and publish five books on the subject. Haruta was working on his next moth book, when he died in 1996. After that Limbu worked with Colin Smith ‘पुतली बाजे’, and is working on a book on the butterflies of Nepal. Meanwhile, he still visits Phewa Tal in search of the elusive Microgomphus phewataali, but the trail is getting cold. After a fruitless search last month, Limbu was sitting dejected on a boat to be ferried to the other side of the lake. Just then, a dragonfly fluttered by and sat on his companion’s shoulder. He told his friend not to move, and took out his camera to take a series of photos.&nbsp; Immediately, he recognised the insect. It was none other than the Microgomphus phewataali that had flown over to say, “Looking for me?” Limbu broke into a wide smile, feeling that all was not lost. But he is still worried about dry streams and unregulated destruction of the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/pokhara-s-shrinking-lakes">natural habitat surrounding Pokhara</a>. In a voice trembling with relief and trepidation, he said: "There is not much time left.”

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Saving Dragonflies to save Pokhara

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107171144/636936a29c7e80680e03fdefjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1090"/><figcaption>GOING GOING GONE: A female of the new dragonfly species Microgomphus phewataali discovered last year in Pokhara by naturalists Karen Conniff and Mahendra Singh Limbu. But the species may not survive at the current rate of habitat destruction. Photo: KAREN CONNIFF</figcaption></figure>The morning was warming up in late spring last year when entomologist Karen Conniff took a boat across Phewa Lake in <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=19301#.XAj3DdszaUk" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Pokhara </a>for one of her regular walks to look for rare dragonflies. She was in search of a rare damselfly species called Philoganga montana which had been spotted in the same location before. After reaching the far shore of the lake, Conniff tied her boat and climbed through the humid forest, paying special attention to springs in the undergrowth. But no sign of the elusive insect.Just then, crossing a small stream she spotted a black-green dragonfly sitting on a leaf spotlit by a ray of sunlight filtering through the forest canopy. She managed to take a few photographs before the dragonfly flew off, and she headed back down to the boat.Back in her room in Pokhara later that day, she downloaded the images in her computer and noticed that the dragonfly had peculiar-looking anal appendages, quite different from the ones previously found in 11 other known Microgomphus dragonflies found throughout Asia. Immediately, she knew it was a species not recorded in Nepal before.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/pokharas-shrinking-lakes/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Pokhara's shrinking lakes</a>, Yuvaraj Shrestha<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107171144/636936a59c7e80680e03fdf0jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>The process of publishing any new finding of a new species is a labourious one. It has to go through peer reviews and strict scientific scrutiny. Finally last week, Conniff’s paper was published in the German journal, <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=19301#.XAj3DdszaUk" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Odonatologica</a>. It is now official: Microgomphus phewataali is a new species of dragonfly endemic to Nepal.Although she should be elated, Conniff is worried that the new dragonfly species and others may not survive at the current rate of destruction and pollution of Nepal’s springs and rivers.“The habitat of the dragonfly faces extreme stress from water overdraft for Pokhara’s rapidly growing tourism centre,” Conniff told Nepali Times. “The habitat could vanish in few years if people do not stop drawing water from there.”Dragonflies have survived for 325 million years on Earth, and the early ones used to have wingspans of up to 2 metres. But never have these creatures faced a threat to their survival as serious as they do today <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=19301#.XAj3DdszaUk" target="_blank" rel="noopener">from human-induced habitat destruction</a> pesticide use and <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=19301#.XAj3DdszaUk" target="_blank" rel="noopener">climate change</a>. These agile and brightly coloured living fossils are now hovering on the brink of extinction.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107171144/636936a89c7e80680e03fdf1jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="385" height="400"><figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107171144/636936aa9c7e80680e03fdf2jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="534" height="500"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Scientists call dragonflies ‘bio-indicator species’, meaning their very presence is proof of a healthy ecosystem. But when dragonflies start disappearing, it also shows that streams and ponds are going dry or polluted with toxins.“Dragonflies are very sensitive, most of them require an absolute pristine habitat and as soon as humans mess that up, they are gone,” explains Conniff, who has been living in Nepal for more than a decade.Conniff co-authored the paper on the new dragonfly with noted Nepali butterfly expert Mahendra Singh Limbu, and the two often go exploring for butterflies and dragonflies on Pulchoki Hill, or in other parts of Nepal. They decided to name the new species Microgomphus phewataali after Pokhara’s Phewa Lake.Says Limbu, “With the disappearance of every dragonfly, you know that nature is being disturbed. We humans cannot afford to disturb the ecosystem balance.”Besides toxins, the other looming threat to insects is climate change. Europe has lost nearly 90% of its insects in the last 30 years, and in America, the population of migrating monarch butterflies has dropped by 90% in 20 years. Climate models estimate a loss of 45-99% of the suitable habitat for various species of dragonflies and damselflies by 2080 in north-eastern US. When Britain found that one-third of its dragonfly species were endangered, it opened the first ever dragonfly centre to protect what was left.Of more than 5,000 species of dragonflies found worldwide, 140 species are found in Nepal of which a few are found nowhere else. Pulchoki on Kathmandu Valley’s southeastern rim is a hotspot for dragonflies and there has been a steady decline in butterfly and dragonfly populations there. The reason is mainly due to the pumping out of water by tankers to meet the city’s needs, the damming of the Nagmati in Shivapuri and pollution at picnic spots and riverside garbage dumps.Rare species like the Epiophelebia, an intermediate between the dragonflies and the damselflies that used to be found only in Shivapuri National Park have probably disappeared after its stream habitat was tapped for water supply downstream.Dragonflies begin their lifecycle as eggs and spend much of their life underwater as larvae, some for as many as seven years. Once they mature into winged adults, time is limited. Most live only up to few weeks, and since water is their primary location for eating and mating, they do not survive if ponds and springs dry up or are polluted. Dragonflies are even known to control <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=19301#.XAj3DdszaUk" target="_blank" rel="noopener">malaria </a>and <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=19301#.XAj3DdszaUk" target="_blank" rel="noopener">dengue</a>, since they feed on mosquitoes.“In addition to cleaning up mosquitoes, dragonfly also preys on other insects that infect paddy fields, effectively increasing agricultural productivity,” explains Conniff.Dragonflies also undertake astounding migrations: some species found in Nepal have travelled across the Himalaya from Japan and Taiwan. Others fly on, riding prevailing winds across the Indian Ocean from India to Africa. But climate change has thrown off their migratory patterns and disturbed their natural lifecycles.Nepal has been internationally recognised for its conservation efforts. It is all set to be the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/its-a-jungle-out-there/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">first country to double its tiger population by 2022</a>, and <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/2017/01/29/1000-days-of-the-rhino/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">rhino poaching has been stopped</a>. But while the focus is on charismatic mammals, Nepal is losing the battle to protect its valuable trove of insect species. Dragonflies are in direct peril because of the destruction of aquatic habitats.Says Conniff: “It is important to educate people about wetland conservation and watershed management. Getting more people interested in nature and finding innovative ways to manage water is an effective approach.”Read also:<a href="https://nepalitimes.atavist.com/whats-the-buzz" target="_blank" rel="noopener">What's the buzz</a>, Sonia Awale<a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=18976#.XAj1ltszaUk" target="_blank" rel="noopener">"Wetlands are not wastelands"</a>, Bhrikuti Rai<a style="background-color: #ffffff; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/page/decline-in-birds-of-migration-nepal" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kathmandu's silent spring</a>, Sonia Awale

Sonia Awale

Project Dragonfly

Samsung Nepal has opened pre-orders for the Galaxy A57 5G and A37 5G. Both phones run Samsung’s One UI 8.5, featuring AI capabilities like voice transcription, Circle to Search, and photo editing. They feature a 50MP triple-camera system, a Super AMOLED display, and six years of OS and security updates.

Galaxy A series

Know your Ministers

‘One early morning, we heard the ambassador’s wife cry out, “Ram, Ram, Ram!” A disaster has befallen Nepal!” She had heard on the radio that a fire had consumed Singha Durbar." This is not about the arson attack on 9 September 2025, but the one on 8 July, 1973. It started in the South Wing of the then single-largest building in all of Nepal. It took two days to bring the blaze under control, requiring the use of explosives to demolish one wing to protect the imposing western facade. As Bhekh Bahadur Thapa recalls in the English translation of his memoir A Life in Public Service: Nepal from Autocracy to Democracy, he was then on leave from the Nepal government serving with the IDRC in Ottawa.&nbsp; He had already served as Nepal’s Finance Secretary at age 25, went on to be Finance Minister and Governor of Nepal Rastra Bank. He was already younger than some of the GenZ ministers in Nepal’s present RSP government. Thapa, now 89, was at the launch of the book in February which was attended by former diplomats and bureaucrats. After speeches by panelists, there was a question from the audience about how Thapa had managed to be the diplomat he was, managing Nepal’s international relations on the world stage.&nbsp; Writer and journalist Akhilesh Upadhyay, who was moderating the panel, responded by going into the section of the book where we see Thapa as an ambassador to the US, playing tennis with White House officials, cultivating a network of contacts to project the identity and welfare of Nepal, and making it possible for a state visit by King Birendra to Ronald Reagan’s America. The book is full of anecdotes that suggest Thapa was a clever and strategic diplomat, always calm and unruffled, easily making friends in high places with his maturity and engaging sense of humour. Thapa’s memoir is heavy on details about Nepal’s administrative history during the years he was active in public service, serving as minister and ambassador under three kings: Mahendra, Birendra and Gyanendra, and alongside five prime ministers.&nbsp; Aside from an insider look on how certain treaties, development deals and research projects in Nepal came into fruition, Thapa goes into great detail about his personal and professional relationships with the kings, ministers, ambassadors, foreign leaders and politicians.&nbsp; As a reader, one is struck by the level of detail around the events that unfolded in Nepal over the years during Thapa’s tenure. Was Thapa recording a journal over the years of the events and the conversations that transpired, or were they committed to his phenomenal memory? Either way, the reader gets a glimpse of Nepal’s recent history from the early days of the Panchayat, through the People’s Movement and the democracy period, the Maoist insurgency, Royal Palace massacre of 2001, and Gyanendra’s coup of 2005.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2026041204048_125dc8ae300a1e33124f394abe724d42727f83e067b0201d2008b58d60c459a4.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="2026041204048_125dc8ae300a1e33124f394abe724d42727f83e067b0201d2008b58d60c459a4" data-rendition-name="original" width="1584" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="How to win friends and influence nations NT"> </figure>  Not enough is said about the political parties of the time whose presence led to the way Nepal’s multiparty democracy came to be shaped. The book keeps its focus on the administration and the key figures around it, mostly those in the Panchayat era. Towards the second half of the book, we do start to hear about political parties, but not in great depth. Another figure whose presence in the book is conspicuously less prominent is that of his wife, Rita Thapa — the person who seems to have rescued him every time financial quandary or family care became a challenge. Yet, we do not see her as a full person. Perhaps because of the personal tragedies in his life, the children are also barely mentioned.&nbsp; The book is therefore less personal and more technical. Throughout, we learn about Thapa’s thinking as he navigated the world of diplomacy to win him the trust of those who mattered. There are tips here for a new generation of Nepali officials and diplomats about how much commitment and focus is needed to be good at one’s job and serve the national interest. This book adds to tomes that have been written on Nepal’s fragile relationship with India. ‘India has always wished for Nepal to remain dependent on it,’ writes Thapa, who served as Nepal’s ambassador to India and later in the Eminent Persons Group &nbsp;on Indo-Nepal relations that has been allowed to languish. The book has several insights into the Indo-Nepal trysts with diplomacy and agency.&nbsp; China’s role is also recorded, viewed through conversations during a visit to Beijing, but all that was before Nepal’s neighbour to the north emerged as a world economic and military power. The book also has such sudden instances of quirkiness and humour. For instance, we see a young Thapa in America explaining to a government official why he would like to return to Nepal instead of settling down in the US. “Because, Nepal is beautiful,” he said. The text is immaculate and does not read much like a translation, credit for which clearly goes to the team that put the edition together: translator Prawin Adhikari, &nbsp;Anagha Neelakanthan and Bhekh Thapa’s daughter, Manjushree. As Nepal enters a new era of governance and diplomacy, A Life in Public Service: Nepal from Autocracy to Democracy should be essential reading for students of political science, economics and foreign affairs who can gain a fresh perspective on the country’s trajectory.&nbsp; There are dozens of forgotten state secrets recorded in the book, but the reader must also remember this is a story told from one person’s perspective and there may be others.&nbsp; So, what really made Thapa the diplomat he was? I met him in 2004 at the Kantipur TV studio when he was serving as king Gyanendra’s foreign minister. He was there for a studio interview, and I was just done with my English newscast.&nbsp; He surprised me at the door: “Pratibha! I’ve been reading your articles in The Kathmandu Post. You must keep writing.” I thanked him, glad to have been noticed for my work by a stranger. That was perhaps one of the things that set Thapa apart — he excelled at staying close to those in power, while also noticing those who were not.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260412040412_213e706136a038ec9f5e2b8c6d7f7c1e9ceed9479e22fe2884872ad7bd20955f.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20260412040412_213e706136a038ec9f5e2b8c6d7f7c1e9ceed9479e22fe2884872ad7bd20955f" data-rendition-name="original" width="1136" height="702" loading="lazy" alt="Book details"> </figure>

How to win friends and influence nations

Prime Minister Balendra Shah on Wednesday broke tradition and met with 17 foreign envoys collectively, a move that was a notable departure from how his predecessors operated.&nbsp;
Shah had already set himself apart by talking less, listening more, and delegating to trusted friends. But by meeting all ambassadors at one go in the presence of the Foreign Ministry, he signalled a paradigm shift in how he wants Nepal to be seen: no longer just balancing India and China, but as a country confident about its <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/guest-editorial/tripolar-contestation-over-nepal">strategic importance and place in the world</a>.
In just two weeks, the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/rsp-dos-and-don-ts">RSP has sprung into action </a>on multiple fronts to implement its ambitious 100-point, 100-days action plan. It has taken short-term measures to mitigate the impact of the Gulf war, as well as medium- and long- term measures to streamline the bureaucracy. A few high-profile figures have been made examples of to drive the message home.
Earlier this week, the government recalled six politically appointed ambassadors, the most notable being long-serving Shankar Sharma from New Delhi. The Kathmandu District Court issued arrest warrants against former prime minister Sher Bahadur Deuba and his former foreign minister wife Arzu Rana on charges of money laundering and corruption.
Each ministry has been trying to clean up the accumulated rot from the past three decades: regulatory overhaul of microfinance, education, health and service delivery.&nbsp;
These actions widely disseminated campaign-style on YouTube and TikTok have made most Nepalis hopeful that the party they installed in power means business.
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BACKLASH
But such attempts to overhaul a long-entrenched political culture were bound to face backlash. In their impatience and enthusiasm to get things done, some of Prime Minister Shah’s ministers have over-reached.
It was common knowledge that government-paid advertising in the mainstream press was kickback-driven, but the PMO’s directive that official notices be published or broadcast only on state-run media has been denounced — especially as the media industry struggles to stay afloat.
More serious are some recent appointments by ministers of relatives and figures closely associated with the RSP to key positions. This has rankled because this party built its political plank on ending nepotism and graft.&nbsp;
News that Home Minister Sudan Gurung allegedly had not paid rent on leased land, which illegally encroached on the lake in Pokhara did not help. &nbsp;
Prime Minister Shah himself has come under scrutiny for appointing a kitchen cabinet full of male buddies from his time as Kathmandu mayor. To douse criticism he brought in as adviser investigative journalist Deepa Dahal, who has exposed corruption in high places of the previous coalitions.&nbsp;
Shah’s appointment of another political adviser Asim Shah to the head Constitution Amendment Task Force, is also seen as problematic. He is a filmmaker and former lawmaker, but does not have a background in constitutional law.&nbsp;
Even more controversial is the Cabinet’s decision to appoint RSP Chair Rabi Lamichhane’s legal counsel, Narayan Kandel, as Attorney General. Kandel used to be a UK permanent resident, and does not have as much experience practicing law in Nepal.&nbsp;
Kandel’s appointment drew flak and raised eyebrows, and with the pending legal cases against Lamichhane this appointment represents a flagrant conflict of interest.
Health Minister Nisha Mehta was also accused of favouritism after reappointing Junu Shrestha, wife of Labour Minister Dipak Kumar Shah, as member of the Health Insurance Board which had earlier suspended her. The Labour Minister’s rambling rant at the Board’s meeting on Tuesday has not helped the RSP’s image.&nbsp;
(UPDATE: On Thursday, Prime Minister Shah sacked the Labour Minister after the RSP found him in breach of the party's code of conduct and discipline. He served 14 days in the Cabinet, one of the shortest tenures for a minister in Nepal )
It is hard to know what <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/ball-in-balen-s-court">Balendra Shah is thinking</a>, and how Rabi Lamichhane is going to justify some of these moves. After all, making politics, governance, and bureaucracy a meritocracy has been the core tenet of the RSP, and it risks alienating its mainly youth base if these missteps persist.
But at least for now, most RSP supporters seem to be giving the party the benefit of doubt.

dragonfly

Saving Dragonflies to save Pokhara

Project Dragonfly

Galaxy A series

Know your Ministers

How to win friends and influence nations

Nepal’s new government springs into action