In May 2020, India inaugurated a strategic link road connecting a disputed part of Nepal’s Kalapani region to Tibet via Lipu Lek Pass. This triggered protests in Nepal, and Parliament passed Nepal’s new map. India has since fast tracked the project and is looking at completing the link road by 2024 allowing Indian pilgrims easier access to the holy <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=16604#.ZEjoi3ZByJA">Kailas-Mansarovar</a> pilgrimage route, completely bypassing Nepal. Even so, the link through Hilsa is more convenient if Nepal can get its act together. Nepal is one of the primary gateways for Indian tourists on the pilgrimage to Mansarovar Lake and Mt Kailas in Tibet. Until Covid ended the route, tens of thousands of Indian pilgrims transited Nepal to either fly to Lhasa, or fly to<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/faith-to-reality"> Hilsa</a>. Each pilgrim paid anything between $2,500 to $3,500. But even as China plans to reopen the Hilsa border post in Humla starting 1 May, there is an alternative: the Lapcha Bhanjyang. The Indian yogi Sadhguru in 2021 visited Limi-Lapcha in northern Humla two times with his followers to pay his respects to Kailash-Mansarovar, the only accessible point in Nepal from which the holy lake and mountain are visible.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230426120456_a075abad4a4f09ffe9da0f7f4c69ff71aede6b7d304c3d995859e2342aa681a2.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20230426120456_a075abad4a4f09ffe9da0f7f4c69ff71aede6b7d304c3d995859e2342aa681a2" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="mansarovar nt 2"> <figcaption>Local Tibetans and visitors circumbulating the outer kora of Mt Kailas</figcaption> </figure>  It takes four days on foot to reach Limi-Lapcha valley from Simkot, the district headquarters of Humla. During the first leg of the trip, unofficial homestay services are available but after that pilgrims manage their own tents and food.&nbsp; On top of the direct economic benefit to the travel companies, hotels, transport services and tour guide en route to Humla, the pilgrims also benefit the locals in Pashupati, Boudha, Swayambhu or Budhanilkantha which they visit in Kathmandu before departing for Kailas-Mansarovar. But the biggest draw for <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepalganj-gets-moving">the Nepal route</a> is that, unlike Indian tour companies, their Nepali counterparts are exempt from the Indian quota system. Any number of pilgrims of any nationality can visit Mount Kailas and Lake Mansarovar through Nepal if they can acquire Chinese visas and permits.&nbsp; By contrast, the agreement between the governments of India and China had stipulated that only 1,080 Indian pilgrims in 18 groups of 60 each could visit the sacred site in Tibet Autonomous Region through Lipu Lek every year before the road was built.&nbsp; This was before 2015 when a new route to Tibet via the Nathu La in Sikkim was opened, making the journey significantly safer and more comfortable, although longer. The Lipulek route at 5,500m meant pilgrims had to trek at high altitude, cross over to the Chinese side to take buses to the circumambulation. When the border road is finished next year, things could be easier.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230426110420_be521d653e54b38389ba90f7db0df01e77df3977bb075a4e5d67543bb1d3f9bf.jpg" data-media-id="editor_4" data-image-id="20230426110420_be521d653e54b38389ba90f7db0df01e77df3977bb075a4e5d67543bb1d3f9bf" data-rendition-name="original" width="1769" height="973" loading="lazy" alt="kailas-mansarovar map"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230426120456_24d19a700526da31a590668b9d23e7954f738ad36199dc506857473f6e829655.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="20230426120456_24d19a700526da31a590668b9d23e7954f738ad36199dc506857473f6e829655" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="mansarovar nt 3"> <figcaption>Stone near Dolma La pass where the picture of the dead are kept in remembrance and reverence</figcaption> </figure>  The new agreement to open the Nathu La pass allowed at first for 250 pilgrims in five groups of 50 each to visit <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/north-of-the-border">Mount Kailas and Mansarova</a>r, and then 500 people in 10 groups of 50 each soon after.&nbsp; Many Indian pilgrims, however, say that they find it preferable to travel to the sacred site through Nepal. And if Nepal can improve roads and facilities, it could get much more of the pilgrim traffic. Then the quota system set by the Chinese government means that there is a lucky draw and they must also pass the various health-related criteria at each stage of the selection. If a family wishes to visit Kailas-Mansarovar together, the chances of everyone passing and winning the lottery are slim. However, private companies operate the tour on Nepal and China sides for all pilgrim groups. &nbsp; &nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230426120456_0b0625268aa018973bb2b4291bd13b3b9630124bc4803cd41555e1c13f49153c.jpg" data-media-id="editor_7" data-image-id="20230426120456_0b0625268aa018973bb2b4291bd13b3b9630124bc4803cd41555e1c13f49153c" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="mansarovar nt 4"> <figcaption>Mt Kailas from the south face</figcaption> </figure>  &nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230426120456_c9ebfe48c38eb4419a1939ee141a4fbe28d44c89855be7069c42174b9db3abbc.jpg" data-media-id="editor_8" data-image-id="20230426120456_c9ebfe48c38eb4419a1939ee141a4fbe28d44c89855be7069c42174b9db3abbc" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="mansarovar nt 5"> <figcaption>A view of Mt Kailas from Lake Mansarovar</figcaption> </figure>  Nepal can use its geographical location and geopolitics with long historical and cultural relationships with both countries to its advantage. India and China have had border disputes for a long time, with violent skirmishes at the border. However, the two countries depend on each other for trade.&nbsp; Nepal stands in a unique position to perform facilitative roles between the world’s two biggest economies. Connecting the followers of Hindu, Buddhist, Jain and Bön faiths to the spiritually sacred Mount Kailas and Lake Mansarovar is one such opportunity, which Nepal is yet to tap adequately. &nbsp; The Department of Immigration in Kathmandu does not even keep a record of Indian pilgrims visiting Tibet through Nepal because ‘Kailas-Mansarovar does not fall within Nepali borders’ — even though these visitors were bringing in millions of dollars every year. Nepal will not always have this advantage. After the Indian and Chinese governments signed an agreement in 2015 to develop trade and pilgrimage to Kailas-Mansarovar through <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/territorialism">Lipu Lek</a>, the Indian authorities inaugurated a link road in the disputed region in May 2020. If China relaxes quota restrictions on Indian pilgrims, New Delhi may also impose restrictions on its citizens going via Nepal. It is urgent that Nepal think how best it can reap economic and geopolitical benefits of the Hilsa route with better connectivity and facilities.&nbsp; Nabraj Lama is a research scholar and his work focuses on geopolitics, indigenism, international affairs. <a href="mailto:mail@nabrajlama.com" target="_blank">mail@nabrajlama.com</a> Read also:&nbsp; <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/northwestern-tip-of-nepal-Humla,3430">Remote corner of Nepal’s remotest district</a>, Bharat Bandhu Thapa <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/setis-gorgeous-gorges">Seti's gorgeous gorges</a>, Hermann Warth <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/trails-less-travelled/" target="_blank">Trails less travelled</a>, Joy Stephens <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/review/a-survival-strategy-for-nepal">A survival strategy for Nepal</a>, Kunda Dixit

original

674x448

610x380

500x500

400x266

400x240

400x203

301x200

1250x600

1084x550

The geopolitics of pilgrimage

<figure><img width="1500" height="900" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181116/636be1049c7e80680e083e25jpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>Illustration: DIWAKAR CHETTRI</figcaption></figure>India is making calculated moves to rebuild relations with Nepal that were damaged by a border dispute earlier this year, while at the same time sending a subtle message to Kathmandu not to cosy up to China.After ignoring Nepal’s overtures for talks to resolve a thorny border dispute, New Delhi has been dispatching to Kathmandu a slew of <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/new-delhis-new-dealings-in-nepal/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/new-delhis-new-dealings-in-nepal/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1605254334289000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGiac1o5B1XOVTuOJ5F-jl99pneoA">intelligence</a>, military and diplomatic emissaries – in that order. First came the head of India’s external intelligence agency on 21 October, followed on 4 November by its army chief. Now, Indian foreign secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla is scheduled to arrive on 26 November.Nepal’s media commentators have said the choice of the first two interlocutors have actually been <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/new-delhis-new-dealings-in-nepal/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/new-delhis-new-dealings-in-nepal/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1605254334290000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHW67LjxEMbQ4Kn4FxTDOi0T1--0g">counterproductive to normalising relations</a>, and they raised even more suspicions in Kathmandu about the kind of message New Delhi was sending Nepal. Read more:<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/new-delhis-new-dealings-in-nepal/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/new-delhis-new-dealings-in-nepal/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1605254334290000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHW67LjxEMbQ4Kn4FxTDOi0T1--0g">New Delhi’s new dealings in Nepal</a> by Kanak Mani Dixit“It is quite natural for Nepalis to be taken aback by India selecting the head of its spy agency as the first visitor, after all it is quite clear that it was not an ordinary visit,” wrote Surya Nath Upadhyay, a member of the Indo-Nepal Eminent Persons’ Group (EPG), in <a href="https://nagariknews.nagariknetwork.com/opinion/379641-1605072399.html?click_from=category" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://nagariknews.nagariknetwork.com/opinion/379641-1605072399.html?click_from%3Dcategory&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1605254334290000&amp;usg=AFQjCNE-eisVVEXS9b_SG-f58-45y3JJ4A">the Nagarik newspaper</a> on Tuesday.
Modi has been sitting for the past two years on the EPG’s report on revising the 1950 Indo-Nepal Treaty and other bilateral issues. But Upadhyay had even more serious objections about Indian Army Chief Manoj Mukund Naravane’s three day visit to Nepal to be conferred the ceremonial title of honorary general of the Nepal Army. 
Gen Navarane is the same person who caused a ruckus in May after Nepal strongly objected to the Indian road to Lipu Lek, <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/gorkhas-on-the-frontline-between-india-and-china/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/gorkhas-on-the-frontline-between-india-and-china/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1605254334290000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFg5obXnutCkcO64t80UTpX1qrbsQ">insinuating that Nepal was being put up to it by China.</a> There was an uproar in Nepal, and Naravane was criticised even in India for a remark many saw as being insensitive.
Upadhyay went on to speculate if the real reason Samant Goel of R&amp;AW met for three hours late at night in Baluwatar with Prime Minister K P Oli on 21 October was to undermine his nationalist image among Nepalis. This theory carries some credence since although Goel also met other political leaders in Kathmandu, those were kept under wraps.
Indeed, the prime minister immediately came under fire from other leaders, including his rivals in the Pushpa Kamal Dahal faction of his own party, for having met an Indian spy-in-chief. Oli had to then clarify that he had agreed in his phone conversation on India’s Independence Day in August with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to receive an emissary, but that he did not know it would be the head of R&amp;AW.
<a href="https://ekantipur.com/opinion/2020/11/11/160506277628759749.html" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://ekantipur.com/opinion/2020/11/11/160506277628759749.html&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1605254334290000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFLUiT98uCKhqnzzOzn-XPidMEPZA">Writing in Kantipur newspaper</a> on Tuesday, strategic affairs expert Geja Sharma Wagle said Oli agreeing to meet Goel was ‘not just unfortunate but objectionable’. Wagle was also critical of Gen Navarane wearing a Nepali dhaka cap and engaging in ‘religious and cultural diplomacy’ by visiting Pashupati and the Kumari temple in Kathmandu.
‘The Goel and Naravane visits have at least ended the absence of communication between the two countries, but Modi sending a spy chief and an army general instead of a political or diplomatic emissary have raised questions about India’s perspective, policy and intentions in Nepal, especially given the border dispute,’ Wagle wrote.
Gen Naravane’s visit came a week after US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Defence Secretary Mark T Esper (since fired by Donald Trump) held a ‘2+2’ meeting with Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to sign the Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement for Geo-Spatial Cooperation (BECA). The strategic pact is said to be aimed at countering China’s increasing <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/from-mt-everest-to-the-indian-ocean/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/from-mt-everest-to-the-indian-ocean/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1605254334290000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGo_dnfkt6569YBk9I0ZaJ-bm35qQ">military clout in the Indian Ocean.</a>
This has raised speculation that the Goel and Naravane visits to Kathmandu had more to do with China than Nepal, because it came at a time when New Delhi’s relations with Beijing are at their worst since the 1962 war. Some analysts say there could be a realisation in Prime Minister Modi’s circle that India might have gone too far with the 2015 Blockade and the Kalapani issue, prompting Prime Minister Oli to lean towards China. 
Interestingly, the visits also came at a time when Prime Minister Oli himself <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepals-communists-on-verge-of-split-again/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepals-communists-on-verge-of-split-again/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1605254334290000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHdkImqPzp77UeqYehrtTJvJkI0bw">is on shaky ground</a> with a vigorous challenge from the Dahal faction of the Nepal Communist Party (NCP) to clip his wings. Oli ignored Dahal’s effort to call a Secretariat meeting, and spent the whole of Tuesday visiting eastern Nepal by helicopter.
Even that visit was an indication of the fine balancing act Nepal has to tread between its two giant neighbours. Oli visited Kimathanka on the Chinese border, as well as the 900MW Arun III hydropower project being built by the Indian public sector company, SJVN.
Foreign Secretary Shringla’s visit to Kathmandu later this month is expected to put India-Nepal relations on a more even keel. Although no analyst expects New Delhi to back down from its claim to <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/untangling-the-kalapani-knot/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/untangling-the-kalapani-knot/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1605254334290000&amp;usg=AFQjCNF35Xiuy9ZlpdS0nCPZz9TuBkPGPQ">Limpiyadhura-Lipu Lek</a>, Nepal will try to allay Indian concerns about China in the Himalayan region.
Relations soured after India unveiled an official map last year that showed the Kalapani region of northwestern Nepal as a part of India, and then made a high-profile inauguration of a military road through that territory to the Chinese border.
Nepal retaliated by getting Parliament to <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/lines-on-a-map/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/lines-on-a-map/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1605254334290000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHYQOrlON1cO-EodrvlzvjpPnP--g">pass a new map</a> that included not just Kalapani but the entire east bank of the Kali River within its boundary, citing the 1816 Sugauli Treaty with British India.

India’s multi-pronged line to right Nepal ties

The dispute over the tri-junction of India, China and Nepal on the remotest northwestern tip of the country is the latest strain on bilateral relations.The <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/kundadixit/2014/01/05/double-centennial/">Sugauli Treaty of 1816</a> between the East India Company and the defeated Gorkhalis clearly stated that the main channel of the Mahakali River would form a shrunken Nepal’s western border with British India. But the Survey of India maps of 1850 and 1856 slyly tucked the area back into Garhwal.Successive rulers in faraway Kathmandu were either unaware or did not care that the boundary had been moved. After the Chinese annexation of Tibet in the 1950s, Nepal allowed India to put up 17 military checkpoints along its northern border. China and India fought a fierce Himalayan war in 1962 during which the Indian military set a base on the <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=2049#.Xcp6ktIza70">strategic Lipu Lekh Valley</a>. That base is still there. In 1969, Prime Minister Kirti Nidhi Bista got Delhi to remove all its checkpoints on the Nepal-China border, except the one in Kalapani. Was Lipu Lekh a quid pro quo for the removal of the other bases? <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/from-nepali-press/from-nepali-press-his-highness-gave-us-Kalapani,2570">Did King Mahendra sacrifice the region</a> in return for Indian support for his takeover? Historians are divided.Whatever the case, the elected rulers of Nepal after 1990 used anti-Indian nationalism for political benefit, but did little to press Nepal’s legitimate claim over the territory. K P Oli, who now heads the united NCP in government, was one of the most vocal in Parliament demanding that India return the area. Current Tourism Minister Yogesh Bhattrarai even led a student group to Kalapani to raise the Nepali flag in the tract occupied by India.  <img width="624" height="718" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108181144/636a95af9c7e80680e05dc20jpeg.jpg" alt=""/>Many field reports from the area have just gathered dust in Singha Darbar. No action was ever taken, except when it was politically expedient to raise an anti-Indian drum beat. Nepal’s own official map in 1975 showed Lipu Khola as the boundary between Nepal and India, and not the Mahakali River. Ultra-nationalists cry themselves hoarse about ‘big bully’ India, but why would a neighbour respect your boundary if you yourself do not really care where it is? New Delhi has not really been bothered about winning the hearts and minds of Nepalis, either. It believes in carrying the big stick and showing who’s boss. And all this is convenient for Nepal’s India-bashing pseudo-nationalists who have a handy excuse to take to the streets every time the border dispute flares up.For Prime Minister Oli the brouhaha could not have been better timed. It has allowed him to distract public attention away from his administration’s non-performance, and once more drape himself in the flag. But what good is it to work ourselves into a frenzy of territorialism over this tiny strip of land when our rulers do not seem to care what happens to the rest of the country over which they enjoy full sovereignty?This is also not one where Nepal can play India off against China. In fact, <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/editorial/PM-task-in-China,2929">Beijing seems to be on the same page as New Delhi</a> on the issue. As far back as 1954, India and China agreed to allow Indian pilgrims to use Lipu Lekh Pass on their holy trek to Lake Mansarovar. Lipu Lekh was discussed during visits by Indian External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh to Beijing in 1999, by <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=289#.Xcp8z9Iza70">Chinese Premier Wen Jiaobao to Delhi in 2005</a>, and by Chinese President Xi Jinping in India in 2014. A joint communiqué between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi in 2015 in Beijing listed Lipu Lekh as one of the Sino-Indian border passes through which the two countries agreed to conduct trade. <img width="3455" height="1679" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108181144/636a95b19c7e80680e05dc21jpeg.jpg" alt="">One of the few instances in Nepali history when anti-Chinese protests broke out in the streets of Kathmandu was four years ago after that India-China joint communiqué on Lipu Lekh. Yet, Nepal’s governments since then did not dare broach the subject with the Chinese, it was not even raised last month during <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/president-xi-in-kathmandu/">President Xi’s state visit to Kathmandu</a>.Nepal cannot go to war with India over this. (For one thing, our men are enlisted in their army.) How about first revising our own official map, and take up the matter at the highest level in every future bilateral? And they may as well also talk about disputes along the Tarai caused by rivers changing course, and <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/borderline-disorder/">border pillars mysteriously moving under cover of darkness</a>.The time is right for dialogue: there is a government in Kathmandu with a solid two-thirds majority, we have rare all-party unity over the matter, and Nepal’s international stature is higher than it has been in a while.

TERRITORIALISM

The daily 10-hour curfew at Tribhuvan International Airport from 8 November that will last five months has affected tourism during Nepal’s peak season, with some hotels and trekking agencies here reporting cancellations into spring next year. The reduced hours at Nepal’s main aviation gateway till 31 March means that a third of all flights have been cut. This has also caused ticket prices to surge by up to eight times of normal fares. For example a Kathmandu-Delhi ticket that used to cost Rs12,000 is now listed at Rs50,000, and even then seats are not available.&nbsp; “Especially if they are here to trek, change in flight dates can cause tourists to miss their connections,” says Jagan Timilsina, who runs a trail running and outdoor education business. &nbsp; Pokhara is feeling the brunt as hotels report last-minute cancellations for November because of flight disorders. Some hoteliers also say although there have been some cancelled trips, most itineraries have been rescheduled.&nbsp; Hari Prasad Sharma Gaire of the local chapter of the Hotel Association of Nepal says the Kathmandu airport closure should have been timed for the off-season. He told us: “Starting construction during the peak tourist season was a mistake and will cause the tourism industry to lose a lot of business. The upgrade could have been spread out over a longer time but closed for fewer hours at night so that disruption was minimal.”&nbsp; Nearly a third of the 1.2 million tourists who visit Nepal annually come to Pokhara, which is also the gateway to Mustang, the Annapurna treks and pilgrimage tourism to Muktinath. Located by scenic lakes with a range of adventure sports like hot air ballooning, paragliding, canyoning, bungee and ziplines, Pokhara is also popular among diaspora Nepalis. “Besides its own attractions, Pokhara is really the hub for central Nepal, and we have been trying to get visitors to extend their stay here,” says Timilsina, who started out as a trekking porter and rose up the ranks to be an expedition guide and entrepreneur. &nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2024111603114_0e071ce63ea9b0a9a7ee76f8c3cea0ff08c6767c41dd09f6bc4413d2db067a60.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="2024111603114_0e071ce63ea9b0a9a7ee76f8c3cea0ff08c6767c41dd09f6bc4413d2db067a60" data-rendition-name="original" width="3500" height="2333" loading="lazy" alt="Pokhara's tourism woes NT"> <figcaption>Tourist arrivals in Pokhara have slumped since the disruptions at Kathmandu airport due to upgrading work. Photo: KRISHNA MANI BARAL/NEPALI TIMES ARCHIVE</figcaption> </figure>  Even without the Kathmandu airport closure affecting tourist arrivals, Pokhara was already suffering from a decline due to many factors like the poor state of the Prithvi Highway, the shortage of luxury accommodation for high-end tourists, and the reluctance of international airlines to start direct flights to Pokhara despite an expensive new airport that was inaugurated two years ago.&nbsp; “There was a lot of initial excitement on the construction of the international airport,” says Timilsina, “but it hasn’t delivered as expected due to politics. People have invested in nearby businesses, and have faced losses.” India has blocked direct flights from its cities to Pokhara because the facility was built by a Chinese company. Although tourists and pilgrims from India hit record levels this year, the poor state of the highways and the Indian bus accident on the highway to Kathmandu in July that killed 27 pilgrims from Maharashtra state dampened arrival figures. Gaire says, “While tourist arrivals to Pokhara are now approaching pre-Covid levels, we haven’t seen the improvement we were expecting. We need a better marketing strategy. What are our embassies abroad doing?”&nbsp; Indeed, Pokhara used to be a favourite destination for Chinese tourists. There was a boom in arrivals from China before Covid, especially after a popular Chinese tv serial was shot on location here. But arrivals from China have not really recovered since the pandemic because of the economic slowdown there. Promoting Pokhara airport to handle direct flights from Chengdu or Kunming could revive Chinese arrivals.&nbsp; Nepal’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAAN) has used the Kathmandu airport closure as an excuse to arm-twist international airlines to start flying to Bhairawa, which has barely been in operation for two years since it was inaugurated. So far, Fly Dubai, Thai AirAsia, Jazeera and Qatar are flying to Bhairawa, but most use it as a hop before flying on to Kathmandu, which does not reduce congestion at Kathmandu.&nbsp; An ideal situation could have been to get Pokhara to run to full capacity while Kathmandu is partially out of action. Pokhara entrepreneurs are puzzled why the CAAN and the national government have not taken more interest in promoting Pokhara as an alternative to reduce the congestion in Kathmandu. Nepal’s football team that was flying to Dushanbe this week couldn’t get tickets via Delhi, and took a domestic flight to Bhadrapur, crossed over to Bagdogra and flew on to Delhi to catch their flight to Tajikistan.

Pokhara’s tourism woes

An excerpt of a conversation between an anthropologist and linguist Mark Turin, PhD and Lava Deo Awasthi, PhD, the first Chairperson of the Language Commission of Nepal. Nepali Times: What is the role of Nepal’s Language Commission and when was it formed? Lava Deo Awasthi: The Constitution of Nepal (2015) created a Language Commission (LC) with the following four core mandates: (a) to develop eligibility criteria for gaining status as an official language and offer recommendations to the Government of Nepal about the official language(s) in each province; (b) to offer recommendations to the Government about measures to be taken for the conservation, promotion, and development of languages; (c) to suggest possible ways of using mother tongues in education by assessing their stage of development; and, (d) to conduct studies, carry out research and perform monitoring functions about the response to the constitutional provisions for the federalisation of languages in Nepal. The Commission was founded in 2016 and I was appointed as the Chairperson of the Commission in September of the same year by the Cabinet of Ministers. What in your own professional and educational background helped to prepare you for the role? I have worked with the Government of Nepal for about 30 years, alongside holding teaching appointments at universities in Nepal. Prior to assuming the role of the Chairperson of the Commission, I served as permanent Secretary to the Government of Nepal and worked as the Chief Administrator of the Central Development Region. I was appointed as Director General of the Department of Education and completed my assignments as Joint Secretary at the Planning, Monitoring and Educational Administration Divisions of the Ministry of Education.&nbsp; In addition, I have taught courses as a visiting professor at Tribhuvan University and Kathmandu University for more than three decades. Later, I also started supervising MPhil and PhD students at the Far Western University in Mahendranagar, Kanchanpur. My PhD project from the Danish University of Education was dedicated to making sense of Nepal’s social construct and commitment to multilingualism, exploring the persistence of monolingual school practices in the face of constitutional promises and state commitments to multilingualism. I conducted a survey of Nepal’s languages and carried out a qualitative study of the Tharu language in the district of Bardia. I analysed language policy statements and explored classroom pedagogies in schools. I documented how teachers showed a tendency to resist change and maintain the status quo because they were not consulted when new educational language policies were introduced. Teachers also exhibited a deeply-held adherence to the Gurukul education system which appears to have been harnessed as a way to resist newer pedagogical ideologies imported from the West. Recognising how engrained these rich traditions of knowledge transmission are, I wanted to know how students’ engagement in the learning process appeared to have dwindled, creating a gap between children’s home languages and the language(s) of the school. Whilst statutory provisions for education in the mother tongue were oriented towards promotion, classroom pedagogies remained resolutely monolingual and exclusionary. The result was that multilingual education policies that had been introduced in Nepal did not result in meaningful changes in classroom practices. My research was also a reflection of childhood traumas I had experienced at the earliest stage of formal education. My home language, Baitadeli, has a strong oral tradition and no written literature. English is my fifth language in terms of exposure and competence, and my home district of Baitadi is well-known for its loyalty to the local language. I had to drop out of school after completing my sixth grade. Staying at home, I received much attention from my family and had much greater exposure to my native language, culture and environment. My overall impression is that dropping out of school had a surprisingly positive impact on my life. The opportunity offered a surprising dividend for me as I gained mastery in my mother tongue and received extensive exposure to folk literature and Indigenous knowledge and survival skills, cultivating my interest in language, culture, literature and local cosmologies.&nbsp; Now that I reflect on it, I appreciate how language has always played a key role in my life. I grew up in a multilingual environment: brought up with Baitadeli, Hindi, Sanskrit, Nepali and English. Language played a major part in my decision to leave school and my later success is closely linked to my competence in several languages. It was rewarding to be at home with my family as I deepened my understanding of native language and culture, which in turn helped me to harness and refine my art of living. Languages matter so much to me because they are both software and hardware. Later, when I was in secondary school, I realised that my command of my home language contributed significantly to enhancing my Nepali and English. I used my mother tongue as a form of linguistic capital to strengthen my competence in both English and Nepali.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2024111811110_5400ba54792bf9e4854e1c1effde8bf09804e99647f23513700b450cc49adc4a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="2024111811110_5400ba54792bf9e4854e1c1effde8bf09804e99647f23513700b450cc49adc4a" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="1500" loading="lazy" alt="Dr Lava Deo Awasthi"> </figure>  In your term as the Commission’s first Chairperson, what were your strategic goals and objectives? My first strategic goal was to create an environment conducive to implementing the provisions of the Constitution of Nepal in relation to language. My priority was to prepare a detailed action plan for my six-year tenure in consultation with language stakeholders, including language experts, professionals, activists, Indigenous community members and representatives of relevant national and local-level institutions. The Commission formed a body of high-level advisors to ensure that the Chairperson’s work was well-informed and credible. The advisors to the committee had highly visible professional and social reputations in Nepal and had much experience in the field of language conservation, promotion, research and development. Another strategy we adopted was to establish close institutional linkages with federal, provincial, and local level governments for collecting opinions and disseminating information widely.&nbsp; What critical issues did you have to consider while discharging your duty? When Nepal’s new Constitution was drafted, a number of concerns could not be adequately addressed. These related to the conservation of languages, the recognition of official languages at the provincial level, and the use of mother tongues at federal, provincial, and local levels. These unresolved issues and matters pertaining to the federalizsation of Nepal’s languages were passed on to the Language Commission to address and resolve.&nbsp; Regarding the recommendations for official languages, a five-year timeline had been set by the Constitution. With great effort, we succeeded in having all provinces agree to recognise their official languages as per the recommendations of the Commission.&nbsp; What were your greatest achievements during your term? One of the greatest achievements was that we succeeded in setting a language agenda at all levels. Nepal’s language communities and other stakeholders expressed the view that this was the first time their languages were recognised and their voices heard by the state. People participated in debates and discussed issues relating to language that in all likelihood had never before happened in their lifetimes, at least not in ways that were supported by the state. We encouraged people to speak in their own language(s) and provided translators during plenary sessions and group discussions. Another major achievement was developing criteria for the status planning of languages at federal, provincial, and local levels, and to recommend 11 province-level official languages, in addition to the Nepali language. Similarly, a notable achievement was recognising Indigenous languages spoken by smaller communities, all of whom faced ongoing marginalisation and high levels of endangerment. The Commission identified 9 new languages that had not been reported in the 2011 census, and provided a framework for recognising official languages within a municipality. The commission emphasised the need for documentation and digitisation of languages for developing corpora and archives at national and sub-national levels.&nbsp; Languages of historical importance as well as classical languages were given recognition for their protection, growth, and development. Recommendations were made for the conservation, promotion and development of Nepal’s marginalised languages that are threatened by majority languages and for those languages that hold particular power at local and global levels. Recommendations were also made for how best to safeguard Nepal’s languages from the ever-growing spread of English and other powerful, globalising languages.&nbsp; A further important aspect of the Commission’s work was to emphasise mother tongue medium instruction in schools across the nation. Recognising the role of language in children’s cognitive, socio-emotional and academic development, the Commission suggested strategies for linking schools with ward-level language clusters for use in the classroom. The importance of nurturing and respecting a child’s first language was reiterated in the Commission’s recommendations for children’s learning and all-round development. By the end of my term, a remarkable change could be observed in terms of building trust within and across Nepal’s diverse language communities. A network of language groups and stakeholders across the country proved to be a powerful way of bringing all language communities under one roof for a collective review of and response to the process of federalising language policy. The many language stakeholders across Nepal appreciated the opportunity to work within a coordinated framework, and—feeling empowered by this—seemed genuinely enthusiastic about the initiatives taken by the Commission.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2024111811114_b45297fdd2fedf17bdb6313e495a1062c0d87f1a19fa5349f871f220b75f93ab.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="2024111811114_b45297fdd2fedf17bdb6313e495a1062c0d87f1a19fa5349f871f220b75f93ab" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Dr Lava Deo Awasthi NT"> </figure>  What were the most significant challenges for you as Chairperson? One of the major challenges was winning people’s trust in advocating for the mission of the Language Commission. I faced considerable resistance as I sought to emphasise the use of native languages in families and communities. While the Commission advocated for multilingualism and promoted linguistic diversity, the prevailing policy circles and central level institutions had been deeply influenced by a one-language discourse and ideology of Nepali only. The spread of English also poses a huge threat to Nepal’s languages. However, people in power do not seem to see this as a problem. They tend to abandon their own languages in preference for English. The way that Nepal’s municipalities are increasingly introducing English as a medium of instruction at the earliest stage of a child’s school-based education has proven to be detrimental to their cognitive development, socio-emotional wellbeing and academic success. Most of Nepal’s elites have been heavily influenced by the spread of English and remain unaware about its impact on their home languages as well as on the inter-generational transmission of Indigenous languages in the country. I wish that we could have produced more compelling evidence to show the consequences of making poor policy choices for our children’s education. Demystification calls for a collective response. To make change happen across this entire, complex and federalising country was daunting work and left like a race against time. I feel that I could have done more to offer concrete examples in favour of using the mother tongue as a medium of children’s education at the earliest stages of a child’s education. What do you see the Language Commission achieving in the next 5-10 years? The Language Commission will have to ensure that all of its key recommendations are implemented at all levels of government. In 10 years’ time, all seven of Nepal’s provinces will have their official languages in place. These languages will also be recognised as languages of federal business, alongside Nepali. I anticipate that all official languages in the federal and provincial systems will have a national portal for inter-language corpora using machine translation to fulfil their federal, provincial and local level language functions, and that all languages spoken in Nepal will be represented through a digital database in the national archive. The Office of Statistics will monitor the status of Nepal’s languages over time. By the end of the next decade, each municipality in the country will have recognised one or two official languages at the local level, based on speech populations. Other local languages will have received community-level legal recognition and official status to fulfil their functional roles. Languages that are highly endangered or at risk will be entitled to receive state grants for enhancing local level capabilities to encourage families and young learners to speak the language. Incentive schemes will be introduced in municipalities that promote language within the family and at home. Inter-generational transmission of languages will have received welcome and timely attention across Nepal. It is my hope that all schools—public and private—will have introduced mother tongue medium instruction at the earliest stage of school education, at least up to class five. Nepali, English and other national as well as classical and foreign languages will be taught as subjects. The existing policy of English medium education at the early stage of education will be abolished. The Government of Nepal will be held accountable if the number of speakers of any language decreases or if local communities face language loss and greater endangerment. Under the aegis of the Language Commission, a Centre for Language Research and Innovation will be created with world-class facilities for language documentation and archiving in collaboration with Tribhuvan University’s Central Department of Linguistics and other relevant institutions. Harnessing the vastness of Nepal’s linguistic diversity, the Language Commission will morph into a centre of excellence for national and international communities to engage in collaborative language research, to share experiences and document best practices at in service of global linguistic diversity and Nepal’s many Indigenous languages.

Languages are both software and hardware

Nearly 750,000 Nepalis went abroad for employment in the past year, and more than 100,000 left on student visas. Most of them were young Nepali men and women, and the number has been increasing every year. As with other sections of society, Nepal’s security agencies also face a recruitment crisis. Nepal Police opened recruitment for 64 inspectors in September, and received 2,239 applications, compared to 2,718 candidates last year. Police also invited candidates for 256 assistant sub-inspectors this year for which it received 17,756 applications – down from 19,932 last year. It is the same story in the Nepal Army, the number of applicants for the post of Officer Cadet (Second Lieutenant) went down from 6,144 for 400 open seats in 2019 to 4,390 in 2020. Meanwhile, applicants in the paramilitary Armed Police Force went down from 857 applications for 75 posts in 2021 to 536 applicants for 99 posts last year. While the number of applicants appears higher than the demand, the data shows a significant decrease in applications for vacancies in Nepal’s law enforcement agencies. Security personnel are recruited on the basis of rank and age in Nepal, and the age cutoff for entry into Nepal’s security agencies is typically 25 years. Sociologist and migration expert Ganesh Gurung says that the demographic of young, physically fit Nepalis emigrating abroad in search of better opportunities has impacted recruitment into law enforcement and the military here at home. “The returns from working in Nepal’s police and army are minimal, whereas overseas job opportunities are more attractive,” Gurung says. “The work may be physically demanding abroad, but the pay is a lot higher.”  <figure><img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241116041148_a7e477e0ee2f56acf16c2559fdb24d8f0377f7bc1f9e56138bc40108fc4fa33f.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20241116041148_a7e477e0ee2f56acf16c2559fdb24d8f0377f7bc1f9e56138bc40108fc4fa33f" data-rendition-name="original" width="800" height="534" loading="lazy" alt="Nepal Police"><figcaption>Nepal Police</figcaption></figure>  Nepal Police spokesperson DIG Dan Bahadur Karki agrees that the physical and mental demands of a law enforcement job is incomparable to the income that security personnel earn. “A young Nepali who works in Dubai earns enough to build a home in the village within four years, while a Nepali with the same qualifications and physical ability in a security agency here barely makes enough to survive,” says Karki. “Obviously the youth prefer foreign employment.” Security agencies are now worried about the quality of inducted manpower. “There is a difference in work ethic between an applicant chosen from a competitive pool of 50 candidates versus one chosen from a pool of three candidates,” explains Gurung. “Unmotivated employees hamper the overall performance of the state apparatus.” Nepal Army spokesperson Brigadier General Gaurab Kumar KC says recruitment has not been hampered by outmigration: “We have still been getting more than three times the applicants than there are open posts, so we are not yet worried.” Even so, the passing rates of aspirants have gone down for security forces after the Public Service Commission began examinations for military recruitment in 2015. In fact, the Nepal Army complained about the Commission’s involvement in recruitment. Still, the number of vacant military posts tends to exceed the number of passing candidates. Nepal Army’s KC says that the military will not compromise on intake criteria even if there are fewer passing applicants. “Unqualified persons will not be admitted even if there are less-than-required passing candidates. We will re-advertise if that is the case.” But Nepal’s security forces now also have to worry about retention of existing personnel. About 900 Nepal Army, 600 Nepal Police, and 300 Armed police personnel resign every year before the completion of their tenure.  <figure><img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241116041148_b8cd62f70eea3aac7d3d3778615a5b70b1e20550c9bd76321f051f9c766fd2a9.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20241116041148_b8cd62f70eea3aac7d3d3778615a5b70b1e20550c9bd76321f051f9c766fd2a9" data-rendition-name="original" width="750" height="378" loading="lazy" alt="Armed police forces"><figcaption>Armed Police Force</figcaption></figure>  In 2020, Home Minister Ram Bahadur Thapa recalled almost 1,000 police personnel who had been deployed for the security of VIPs after long-standing criticism that security forces were being misused to cater to political and bureaucratic leadership. However, security personnel have continued to be assigned to high-ranking officials as glorified housekeepers. In December 2022, Rabi Lamichhane’s Home Ministry had instructed its offices to recall unauthorised security personnel assigned to high-ranking officials, following which 500 officers from Nepal Police and Armed Police Force were withdrawn from their details. But the Nepal Army does not have to follow such rules, and the practice of army personnel serving high-ranking active-duty and retired military personnel remains. Conditions here are dire enough that many active duty officers in Nepal’s military and police forces have chosen to leave their jobs to serve in the Russian Army to fight in the Ukraine war. The hierarchical culture and chain of command of politics, bureaucracy, law enforcement and military has also meant that abuse and mistreatment of subordinates is rife in Nepal’s security forces. “Feudalism is alive and well within our security institutions,” says Gurung. “When soldiers and security forces who swore to protect and serve the nation are made to be at the beck and call of politicians and bureaucrats, it is easy to understand why they are disillusioned with their jobs and why they choose to quit and find jobs abroad.”

Job insecurity in security forces

Earlier this month, Nepal received Rs1.6 billion from the World Bank as part of its <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/will-nepal-ever-be-paid-for-saving-trees">Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF)</a>, rewarding the country for increasing its carbon sink capacity. Nepal is the first in South Asia to benefit from this facility, and it is specifically to recompense the country for increasing forest cover in 13 Tarai districts between 2018-2024. “We are also trying to get another Rs13 billion from the facility while also preparing for free market-based carbon trading in the international market,” says Nabaraj Pudasaini of the REDD (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries) Implementation Centre. Big emitters of greenhouse gases are under pressure to reduce their carbon emissions, and many have signed agreements to do so by investing in decarbonisation projects in developing countries. Countries that emit more than a specified amount of carbon would be able to buy emission rights from countries that emit less. Nepal is internationally known for its community forestry program which has been largely credited for <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/tree-mendous">increasing tree cover to over 45%</a> in less than three decades. But this achievement had not been adequately recognised or rewarded internationally before. Forests, especially in the tropics, absorb and store large amounts of carbon while releasing oxygen in a process known as photosynthesis. <a href="https://www.fao.org/forest-resources-assessment/en/">Preventing deforestation</a> and increasing canopy cover is considered a much more achievable goal than reducing emission in the scale necessary to limit global average temperature to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. COP11 in Montreal in 2005 first proposed reducing carbon emissions by improving forest quality by halting degradation. By 2015, a new mechanism of financial assistance was created to help less developed countries with sustainable management of forests <a href="https://www.un-redd.org/">(called REDD+)</a>. Under this new mechanism, countries receive aid based on their efforts to prevent forest degradation and increase carbon sink, and in 2021 the World Bank was entrusted with implementing it. Nepal’s FCPF receipt this month was calculated on the basis of 2.4 million tons of carbon stored at a rate of $5 per ton. In the second phase, Nepal will receive more than Rs4 billion within the next year for storing an additional 7 million tons of carbon. Eighty per cent of this amount obtained from carbon trading needs to be spent on local beneficiaries and indigenous communities.&nbsp; But carbon trading is not easy, Nepal needs to prove that protected forests will not be destroyed in future.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241121091132_c8a381c9a95aa86fec558951650d97bb87914741f01766982ba2b086af001f16.jpg" data-media-id="editor_4" data-image-id="20241121091132_c8a381c9a95aa86fec558951650d97bb87914741f01766982ba2b086af001f16" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="999" loading="lazy" alt="Greenbacks for greenery NT "> <figcaption>Photo: KUNDA DIXIT</figcaption> </figure>  Explains carbon trading expert Yugan Manandhar. “Forests should be handed over to the community and shown that they are managed sustainably. Proving this will be particularly challenging; forest encroachment and degradation is rife in the Tarai.” <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/multimedia/nepal-is-going-up-in-smoke">Deliberate forest fires</a> have also added to the challenge because they increase carbon emissions and reduce the sink capacity of forests. The basis for the amount that Nepal received was set five years ago by calculating the carbon reserves of forests in the 13 Tarai districts. In the meantime, sustainable forest management, tree plantation, forest destruction and erosion control were prioritised to increase carbon reserves in those forests. Nepal is signing another carbon trading agreement during the ongoing Baku climate conference. The <a href="https://www.leafcoalition.org/">Lowering Emissions by Accelerating Forest finance (LEAF Coalition) </a>proposes to sell the carbon stored in the forests of Bagmati, Gandaki and Lumbini provinces. For this, Nepal signed the letter of intent three years ago at COP26 in Glasgow. The target is to store 70 million tons of carbon in 32 million hectares of forest in the three provinces per which Nepal will receive Rs13 billion in four years at $10 per ton with provisions to increase the rate if various conditions are met. However, the agreement in itself doesn’t guarantee the amount. According to the targets set by Nepal, forest degradation should be stopped and carbon reserves increased by protecting tree cover. Preparations are also underway for clean air carbon trade because it has offset fossil fuel use by introducing 30,000 electric vehicles. Nepal has been selected for the first round to receive $40 million within one and a half years through the Clean Air System of the World Bank. Given that most of Nepal’s energy mix is from biomass, replacing them with electric stoves can significantly improve health by reducing indoor pollution as well as strengthen the country’s capacity for carbon trade. “Nepal's goal now is to sell carbon in the free market where carbon credits are bought and sold based on supply and demand in an open and transparent manner,” adds Pudasaini of the REDD Implementation Centre. “Nepal can now set its own price and bargain with interested buyer countries and organisations.” Lately, India has been discussing setting up a carbon market. Nepal has exported Rs12.72 billion worth of electricity to India so far this fiscal year, which can be traded under Nepal’s carbon market. “Carbon trading can create significant economic benefits for Nepal, which will help reinvest in development and environmental protection projects,” says Manandhar. “But we must prioritise sustainable management of forests, cutting older trees and allowing regrowth as well as promoting electric stoves and electric vehicles.”