<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110121148/636ce5579c7e80680e096700jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="427"/><figcaption>Photo: ICC</figcaption></figure>It was the final of the 2018 ICC World Cricket League in Windhoek, and Nepal was in dire straits. Needing 195 runs to win, the team was down to its last wicket at 144.Sandeep Lamichhane and Karan KC then pulled off a heroic and historic last stand of 51 runs to snatch <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/Nepal-Canada-cricket-victory-miracle%20,4187" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">victory from the jaws of defeat</a> (pictured above). They won the coveted One Day International (ODI) status,  and Nepal was in the same league as cricketing heavyweights England and India.“I was a proud coach witnessing history unfold,” recalls Jagat Tamata, who now coaches the Nepali women’s team. “I will never forget those incredible moments.”But three years after the miraculous win, <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nepali-cricket-comes-of-age/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Nepali cricket’s meteoric progress</a> has hit a snag.Nepal is competing internationally in April after a 13-month pandemic-induced pause. Coaches and players alike have bemoaned the lack of international exposure, and its impacts on the game’s development.To be sure, there are age-old problems plaguing Nepali cricket. The International Cricket Council (ICC) suspended the country's cricketing body Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) from 2016 to 2019 for politicising the sport.Corruption and infighting is rampant within governing bodies but crumbling sports infrastructure has not been able to support local talent either.“Unnecessary meddling is an obvious problem, but we are taking small steps to rectify that,” assures CAN President Chatur Bahadur Chand. “With the backing of fans, media and sponsors, we hope to continue important tournaments and increase exposure.”One such tournament, the Everest Premier League, is due to resume in September 2021. Headlined by marquee players like <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/i-am-not-leaving-cricket-i-will-still-play-for-nepal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">former national captain Paras Khadka</a> and New Zealand pinch-hitter Corey Anderson, the tournament is expected to usher in a new era of fast, exciting and competitive cricket to the country.The sudden rise of cricket in Nepal has transformed the game from an elite pastime to a beloved sport of millions of fans. Imported from Britain in the late 1940s, cricket was first played on four pitches across Tundikhel. CAN was set up in 1946, and soon tournaments under Rana patronage (pictured below) attracted established players from India.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110121148/636ce5599c7e80680e096701jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="939"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>“We first started out at Tundikhel, then fanned out to every empty space available,” recalls former cricketer Raju Basnyat. “Cricket really took off once the Tribhuvan University turf ground was completed.”Towards the end of Panchayat, the Royal Nepal Army restricted access to the grounds. Tournaments were cancelled and cricketers started fading into obscurity as international exposure decreased.Cricket made a comeback with Nepal’s first-ever international tournament, the 1996 ACC (Asian Cricket Council) Trophy in Malaysia.  Captain Uttam Karmacharya recalls: “We were excited and nervous, and unsure if we could compete. But as a whole we performed well, as we beat Brunei and Japan and narrowly lost out to Bangladesh, Fiji and Hong Kong.”Nepal’s increasing potential was rewarded with hosting rights for the 1998 ACC Trophy. With no proper cricket ground available, the ACC aided the construction of ground in Pulchok Engineering Campus, St Xaviers’ School and Tribhuvan University, which was soon leased by CAN. This helped raise professionalism in the sport.But while the team performance improved, the system and infrastructure remained primitive. Players had no multi-day match experience, the domestic season was not long enough, and junior cricket had no school tournaments.Despite failings, youth teams propelled Nepal onto the international cricket scene. The country progressed to the second round of the Under-19 World Cup in 2000 and qualified for four successive editions, beating star-studded teams along the way.“Defeating established teams like New Zealand and South Africa are moments I will always cherish,” says current national team Captain Gyanendra Malla. However, Nepal’s performance over the 2012 and 2014 editions were disappointing.“While Test cricket-playing nations get better, we remain static," explains Malla. "We have to make the base strong before expecting results at the senior level."<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110121148/636ce55c9c7e80680e096702jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1265"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Nevertheless, Nepali cricket has improved significantly over the last decade. Under the tutelage of noted Sri Lankan coaches Pubudu Dassanayake and Roy Dias, Nepal jumped from lowly minnows to just missing out on the Twenty-20 World Cup knockouts in 2014. Another celebrated coach, Aussie Dav Whatmore, has recently been appointed head coach, much to the delight of fans and team members.The next logical goal is achieving Test-cricket status--the most revered format of the game.Nepali cricket has all the ingredients to get there. A conveyor belt of young talent, a wealth of experience and passionate fans must now be supported by a system focused on rebuilding infrastructure and keeping politics and corruption off the cricketing pitch.Says Jagat Tamata: “Coaches cannot perform miracles. The fans have their hearts in the right place, but a supportive cricketing system must be in place.”Watch Saglo Samaj tv magazine program every Monday at 8:30pm on DishHome Channel 130.

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The ball is in Nepal’s cricket court

<img width="1042" height="750" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108141156/636a60389c7e80680e056e6ajpeg.jpg" alt=""/>Paras Khadka has stepped down as the captain of Nepal’s national cricket team, making the announcement via a Twitter post on 15 October. The resignation comes a day after the International Cricket Council (ICC) restored Nepal's membership by provisionally lifting a ban on Nepal Cricket Council (CAN)."Great to know that the suspension of Nepal cricket has been lifted and would like to wish the new committee to work for the betterment of Nepal cricket, players and its stake holders," wrote Khadka in his social media post.    <img width="624" height="509" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108141156/636a603b9c7e80680e056e6bjpeg.jpg" alt="">However, Khadka seems to have made the announcement without consulting CAN officials, raising suspicion that all was not well in his relationship with the cricket governing body. The newly-elected chairperson of CAN Chatur Bahadur Chand and General Secretary Ashok Nath Pyakurel  said they had no information of Khadka's decision prior to the public tweet."There was no consultation. In fact I'm finding about it through media," said Chand.Added Pyakurel: "I heard he resigned via social media. We do not know if it is official or not. Once there is an official resignation then there would be further steps."Read also:<a style="background-color: #ffffff; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nepali-cricket-comes-of-age/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nepali cricket comes of age</a>, Santa Gaha Magar<a style="background-color: #ffffff; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/miracles-happen/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Miracles happen</a>, Marty LoganKhadka debuted in the senior team in the year 2004 and was appointed captain in 2009 when he was just 22. Immediately under his captainship, Nepal won ICC World Cricket League Division 5 for the first time. Since getting ODI status in 2018, Nepal has played 6 matches, win-loss record of 3-3. Of the 28 international T20 matches, he was captained 27 with win and loss record at 12-14.Khadka is the most celebrated and the most successful player in the history of cricket in Nepal.

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Paras resigns as cricket captain

<h2>Despite government interference and neglect, Nepal's cricketers are going places</h2><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107101152/6368d6049c7e80680e03145djpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1265"/>After a string of <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/Nepal-Canada-cricket-victory-miracle%20,4187" target="_blank" rel="noopener">nail-biting performances</a> and <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/nepali-cricket-crosses-boundaries,2090" target="_blank" rel="noopener">momentous achievements</a> the past few years, Nepali cricketers expected more encouragement and support from the government.But they were in for a rude shock: <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/image/Open-defecation-free,276" target="_blank" rel="noopener">heavy government interference in the cricket</a> governing body prompted International Cricket Council (ICC) to suspend Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) in 2016.The ICC ban meant that CAN did not have the legitimacy and financial resources to organise domestic leagues and tournaments, which are vital for scouting new talent for the national team. The ban also delayed several sports infrastructure projects.CAN’s General Secretary Ashok Nath Pyakurel says: “The ban pushed Nepal’s cricket back by at least five years.”Despite that and a difficult two years in which skipper Paras Khadka and his team pulled off even more thrilling victories, ICC has finally hinted at lifting the suspension.After CAN agreed to endorse a statute approved by the ICC advisory board, the world cricket body has promised to revoke its decision under one condition: that CAN hold fresh elections under its new statute, effectively ensuring that the government will have no say in its functioning anymore.If the ICC recognises CAN again, Nepali cricket could enter what could be its golden age free from political interference. CAN’s former CEO Bhawana Ghimire says: “The time is ripe for Nepali cricket to strike it big, and it is up to us to remake its future.”Despite all odds, Nepali cricketers have in the last two years <a href="http://www.espncricinfo.com/story/_/id/22777050/biggest-day-nepal-cricket-history-khadka" target="_blank" rel="noopener">earned One Day International (ODI) status</a> with stellar performances, like in Namibia in February, which made headlines not just in Nepal but around the world.To help promote Nepal in the ICC Division 1 status, all-rounder Karan KC played an inning no cricketer had ever played before: as the last batsman standing, KC smashed 42 runs unbeaten off 36 deliveries, securing a one-wicket victory against Canada. ESPN described it as ‘one of the most miraculous endings to an ICC tournament at any level’.<a href="http://www.espncricinfo.com/story/_/id/22450512/cardiac-kids-nepal" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Cardiac Kids from Nepal</a>, as Nepali cricketers were referred to by ESPN after the Namibia tour, travelled to Zimbabwe in March, hoping to qualify for the ICC World Cup. They failed after narrowly falling behind Afghanistan in the run-rate. But they did achieve ODI status till 2022.This international success and support seems to have put moral pressure on CAN’s political appointees to rethink and back off, paving the way for free and fair elections -- a prerequisite for lifting the ICC suspension.The success of Nepali cricketers has in fact spotlighted just how little the government had done to develop the sport. This bolstered the position of those in favour of amending the CAN statute and loosening the government’s grip.CAN General Secretary Pyakurel says: “Even those sabotaging CAN have now understood how important it is to have a strong governing body.”With CAN out of the picture, the private sector had come forward to organise successful domestic tournaments like Dhangadi Premier League (DPL) and Everest Premier League (EPL). Tv channels now pay more than Rs10 million for broadcast rights for each tournament.And for the first time, <a href="http://www.espn.in/cricket/story/_/id/22649032/meet-sandeep-lamichhane-nepal-17-year-old-legspin-prodigy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Indian Premier League (IPL) has bought a Nepali spinner Sandeep Lamichhane</a>. He is still struggling to make it to the playing set of the Delhi Daredevils, but he could open the door for other Nepali players in the world’s biggest cricket league.National cricket team coach Jagat Tamata, however, warns that Nepal could easily lose it all again: “We have a tendency to be overconfident and complacent after every major success. We have many more challenges to overcome.”Tamata thinks Nepali cricketers are still not experienced enough for international cricket due to the lack of strong opponents in domestic games.He adds: “If we want good results, there must be more tournaments so there is more choice. I am now mostly selecting the best from among the worst.”

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Nepali cricket comes of age

‘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

This is the 91st episode of Diaspora Diaries, a Nepali Times series in collaboration with Migration Lab providing a platform to share experiences of living, working and studying abroad. I have still not come to terms with the reality that my daughter Ruby Thakur is now the Deputy Speaker of Nepal’s Parliament. Sometimes, when I am walking, the thought hits me, and I cannot believe it.&nbsp; Things changed for my daughter in a very short time. I had dreamt that the best my daughter could achieve was a good engineering job. Fate had bigger plans for her. She is no longer just my daughter, she is the nation’s daughter. Nepal’s daughter.&nbsp; My children’s education was always my foremost priority. That is the main reason I went overseas for employment. I realised the value of education while working in Saudi Arabia. In my office, colleagues with good education earn $8,000 per month working on computers. Those with low education toil outdoors in the heat for much lower wages. A good education or skills can change everything. I am in Nepal on vacation and will soon return to my job. Ruby is all set now. But I still have to take care of my other children's education. As the eldest son, I myself never got a chance to prioritise my own education. I dropped out in Grade 7 because I had to take care of my ageing parents and younger siblings. I have done all kinds of jobs. I worked in a landlord’s field for a share of the harvest. Even now my wife and I farm for the land owner and have to give away half of what we grow.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260413120444_051b61e01a5189af538aa1e011acd3e2b38d5f42825116b2afd325d93d0c519b.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20260413120444_051b61e01a5189af538aa1e011acd3e2b38d5f42825116b2afd325d93d0c519b" data-rendition-name="original" width="4032" height="2268" loading="lazy" alt="DD"> <figcaption>Sogarath Thakur during a break in Nepal with wife tending to his farm.</figcaption> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260413120448_8a1c3ac3fd559026bc6f981cc8dc82cb8ad09a3a4f55fb9f6f7fd5f49c3d5571.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20260413120448_8a1c3ac3fd559026bc6f981cc8dc82cb8ad09a3a4f55fb9f6f7fd5f49c3d5571" data-rendition-name="original" width="4032" height="2268" loading="lazy" alt="DD"> </figure>  Then I worked as a barber, my family’s line of occupation. I went door to door cutting people’s hair and later worked in a relative’s saloon. Hairstyles were simple back then, and I got to keep half the fee. I also worked in a brick factory where I was paid weekly. &nbsp; I married when I was 16, and my wife was a year younger. As my family and responsibilities grew, I had to migrate leaving behind my three children including Ruby who was just three months old.&nbsp; I went to Qatar where I continued working as a barber. It was a large saloon and the standards for cleanliness and professionalism were higher. I had to hand over 70% of my daily earnings to the employer. I had to rely on my colleague to translate what the customer wanted. But I slowly became fluent in Arabic. I used to jot down words in Nepali and Arabic and memorise them. In Qatar, customers even came at night for haircuts, and people stayed up late. I would work till 3AM.&nbsp; Communicating with my family was one-way. I would go to Bismillah and ask someone to type out questions to my family about their whereabouts, how the harvest was that season. I would offer very little information about my life in Qatar because it was not easy. What was the point of getting them all worried? What could they do? I never received a letter in return, so throughout my time in Qatar, I never knew how my family was faring. When I appeared in the village after five years without any advance notice, it was a bittersweet reunion, and I had no gifts. I still remember how unfamiliar my village felt when I came home after so many years. I had to ask for directions. When I came home, Ruby was already in school. I had left her in my wife’s arms five years prior. I missed her growing up, and did not even see her pictures. My wife had to introduce her to me as her father. But it took just 15 minutes for her to warm up to me.&nbsp; The Arabic skills I had picked up in Qatar came in handy when I remigrated two years later to Saudi Arabia. I worked as a labourer in the desert heat, but once my company found out I spoke Arabic, I was hired for an indoor job as an office boy. The struggle in Qatar had paid off. I worked in an air conditioned office serving tea or coffee, doing bank runs or getting documents signed and photocopied. I have worked in the same company for the past 20 years, sending money home.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260413120448_f083fa873a6d77b19c8b0bdde623415c643a151fb550c57ff4e52b3c2431355f.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20260413120448_f083fa873a6d77b19c8b0bdde623415c643a151fb550c57ff4e52b3c2431355f" data-rendition-name="original" width="5712" height="3213" loading="lazy" alt="DD"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260413120452_5ccd9a01ee05ce26b71381725108215d0f0d3806508b0cb482aabcfea09bbaef.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20260413120452_5ccd9a01ee05ce26b71381725108215d0f0d3806508b0cb482aabcfea09bbaef" data-rendition-name="original" width="4032" height="3024" loading="lazy" alt="DD"> </figure>  My wife is not just my children’s guardian, but also mine throughout the two decades I was away. I trust her with all my earnings, and she manages our household finances well. She makes sure that the children’s school fees and other expenses are paid on time. These days, with video calls, things have become much easier for me to stay in touch with home.&nbsp; When Ruby told me she wanted to do an engineering diploma, I was happy. Later, her friends inspired her to join politics so she started getting involved with Shram Sanskriti Party. I first found out she got the proportional representation nomination through social media while on my work duty in Saudi Arabia. I was so excited, but even more so when she was elected Deputy Speaker. I was back home in Dhanusha on my vacation at the time.&nbsp; We are overjoyed and waiting for her to come back to the village for a visit when she gets a chance so we can celebrate properly with everyone. I plan to go back to Saudi Arabia as originally planned, I have a good job and will work for maybe five more years. Ruby has taken 75% of the load off my back. She can help take care of her siblings.&nbsp; I sleep at 8PM every day and wake up at 5AM to exercise before my day in Saudi Arabia begins – I have stuck to the same routine for the last two decades and it has worked well for me and my health. I have a good rapport with my boss who is an Egyptian. My requests to resign have often been met with counter-offers to stay on. My honesty and hard work have won me the company's trust. I will go back and resume working as I have, despite my daughter’s huge achievements. I am still a farmer’s son, a simple man who has to fulfil his family responsibilities. My colleagues in Saudi Arabia are aware that Ruby is Deputy Speaker in Nepal’s Parliament, they are all happy for me and have congratulated me. This time, when I go back, I have promised them that I will throw a bakhri party to celebrate my daughter’s achievement.

The nation’s daughter

At 6 feet and one inch, Hira Bahadur Ghalan was exceptionally tall for a Nepali. In 1936, when people came to his Tamang village near Tistung looking for porters, they recruited him on the spot. This was no ordinary job, Hira Bahadur would lead gangs of 30 or more porters to carry cars bought by Rana rulers from Bhimphedi to Kathmandu.&nbsp; Those were the days when the only motorable roads in Nepal were in Kathmandu, but the capital was not connected to anywhere else by road. So, before cars could carry people, people had to carry cars. More Nepalis had carried cars than ridden in one. The porters were paid Rs5 for the job, and sometimes the Rana owners gave Hira Bahadur a Rs25 baksheesh. One of the cars his community helped carry was a 1939 Daimler Benz gifted by Adolf Hitler to King Tribhuvan to woo Nepal away from the British. The rusted dusty vehicle is now in the Narayanhiti Palace Museum.&nbsp; Hira Bahadur hauled cars for 25 years until his knees gave way, he died at age 90 eight years ago — the last surviving car porters of Nepal from Chitlang Valley.&nbsp; Hira Bahadur Ghalan had three sons and three daughters, one of them is Maila Kaji Lama, who at age 68, is a chauffeur in Kathmandu. His son, Manjil Lama is a pilot with Summit Air, flying to remote Himalayan airstrips. Three generations of one family worked in professions that followed a century of transportation history in Nepal. &nbsp; After the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/multimedia/the-long-and-winding-road-to-india">Tribhuvan Rajpath was finished in 1957</a> and the ropeway upgraded, Hira Bahadur was out of a job. He tilled the family farm, watching trucks and buses headed to and from Kathmandu on the hairpins.&nbsp; As a child, Maila Kaji was fascinated by cars and wished one day to be able to drive one. After he failed Grade 8, he came to Kathmandu in 1975 and got a Rs20/month job at a petrol station in Maiti Devi. “I watched King Birendra’s coronation and was impressed by the glamour of Kathmandu, and decided to stay here,” Maila Kaji says.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2026041816040_a1a41e47dec8500727702f700e43af625f059043cbcd283f13b247344b3a20aa.png" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="2026041816040_a1a41e47dec8500727702f700e43af625f059043cbcd283f13b247344b3a20aa" data-rendition-name="original" width="1974" height="1608" loading="lazy" alt="car carriers"> <figcaption>Maila Kaji</figcaption> </figure>  Former minister Ramesh Nath Pandey used to bring his Volkswagen Beetle to the station, and Maila Kaji started taking care of his car. Later, he drove a Russian Jeep for former minister and geographer Harka Gurung. Along the way, he fell in love with the daughter of a Brahmin colleague, and married her. “My father back in Tistung did not approve of our inter-ethnic marriage, and not speak to me for five years,” Maila Kaji recalls. Manjil Lama grew up in Kathmandu, and did well in science in school. He had wanted to go the US to become a pilot like his friends, but was denied a visa.&nbsp; “The visa officer told him I did not earn enough,” says Maila Kaji, “so I sold some property and sent Manjil to flying school in the Philippines.”  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2026041816040_e9091162840baa6d182de2d7cc6f09e43ec9cfd9a9b6e71e7e7b14bc72da3537.png" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="2026041816040_e9091162840baa6d182de2d7cc6f09e43ec9cfd9a9b6e71e7e7b14bc72da3537" data-rendition-name="original" width="1434" height="1754" loading="lazy" alt="car carriers"> <figcaption>Manjil Lama</figcaption> </figure>  After returning to Nepal, Manjil Lama now flies Let 410s of Summit Air to difficult air strips like Lukla and Simkot, and has logged over 2,000 hours. He has to go to the Czech Republic regularly for simulator training. Says Maila Kaji Lama: “My father worked hard carrying cars to raise us, I started from scratch to become a driver to support my family, and my son is now a pilot with experience in flying in the world’s toughest terrain.” &nbsp; Watch <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lvT3iTi8yw4" target="_blank">video clip from S Dillon Ripley here</a>.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260419020448_40f8b1bdaace08106ca5c24819b6e7a34fb2109a9a3ec5c6ac179b3309e686ed.png" data-media-id="editor_4" data-image-id="20260419020448_40f8b1bdaace08106ca5c24819b6e7a34fb2109a9a3ec5c6ac179b3309e686ed" data-rendition-name="original" width="900" height="1582" loading="lazy" alt="car carriers"> </figure>

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The nation’s daughter

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