Prince Pranjal Playing with Snow

Prince Pranjal playing with snow ( December 2011)
Copyright reserved

Children are the most happiest people in the world and they show their utmost  sincerity in expression. Children are the princes and princesses.They are the future of the world and if we can nurture the true humanity in them it is sure that the world will be more happier place to live in. Please love children and make them more happy whatever means you have and whatever small it may be. Wishing a very happy time with children.

DEAR Children we wish you very very wonderful days ahead.

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2012.

Top Universities in the World 2011

Each year universities around the world are ranked to give the glimpse of the impact they have on the academic community and contribution to the humanity. QS world ranking is prestigious ranking. In this ranking, for each university 100 marks is allocated of which academic reputation counts for 40% weight, employer reputation 10%, citation per faculty 20%, faculty student ration 20%, proportion of international student 5% and  proportion of international faculty 5%. 

Fig 1 Allocation of weightage for evaluation

The top 10  universities in this year are from United Kingdom and United States of America (5 from each country).University of Cambridge from UK ranks first, Harvard and MIT from USA ranks second and third respectively. Details are as shown below:

Fig 2 Top 10 Universities in 2011

It is interesting that western universities are again the top universities in the world. However, many Asian universities are also vying for top position. The HongKong university ranks 22nd, The University of Tokyo 25th, National University of Singapore 28th and Kyoto University  32nd. Regarding South Asia, the situation is bleak as the most renown universities in the region are not even within top 100. Indian Institute of Technology (IIT Delhi ) is just 218th.There is no rank for the university in Nepal. There must be some reasons behind this situation. Some reasons are  politics in the education, lack of motivation and research fund, high teacher student ratio and so on.

Panorama

Panaromic view of Garden, Japan

Lapaz, The world's highest capital city

Lapaz is world's highest capital city in the world. Located in the South America it is the capital of Bolivia and is above the 3,650 m (11,975 ft) above the sea level. Bolivia is landlocked country like Nepal. Capital of Nepal is Kathmandu which is valley and has elevation of 1,400 m (4,593 ft) above sea level. Lapaz has population of about 1 million and is the second largest city of Bolivia. It has subtropical highland climate with average temperature of 30 degree Celsius.

Landslide Disaster

There is a big news from Colombia in South America regarding the deadly landslide causing widespread destruction and damage. Landslide is one of the natural or man- made hazards and can be disaster if it affects the human population directly or indirectly. It is to be noted that it happens only in those places which have mountains so it is not found in plain areas. Each year many people around the world are affected by landslide and it is common in many countries including Nepal during the rainy seasons. Landslide in Krishnabhir on Mugling highway is well known in Nepal for its yearly blockage during Monsoon time causing the disruption in transport disruption and break in supply chain to Kathmandu city.

In 1949 landslide in then USSR killed 12,000 people, Honduras landslide ( 20 Sep 1973) killed more than 2,000 people and in the latest event landslide in China (7 Aug 2010) killed 1,756  people. Many factors are involved in landslide like nearby the fault area, slope of the mountain, proximity to river and so on.Sometimes earthquake also induces instability to the weak mountain and causes the landslide.Figures below from USGS shows the before and after the landslide event where we can see closely the damage to the roads (red circle). 

Landslide images  (Up: Before and Down: After)

There are many ways to tackle the landslide and one is the landslide mapping and do land-use according to the hazard. Beside that, retaining wall and other engineering methods can also be employed.Forestation of affected area can also help a lot in controlling the rain water and thereby reducing the chance of landslide in very steep slope areas as in Nepal.Water Induced Disaster Prevention (DWIDP) was established on 7 February 2000 under the Ministry of Water Resources  to tackle with the water induced disaster including landslide in Nepal. Next blog will talk about the disaster scenario of Nepal including landslide.

HAPPY DASHAIN 2011

Tika and Jamara 

हट्यो सारा हिलो मैलो, 

हरायो पानीको वर्षा,

                                     भवानीको भयो पूजा,

                                     चल्यो आनन्दको चर्चा,

        जहाँ जाउँ उतै भन्छन्,

                    दशै आयो दशै आयो

Nepalimana family wishes:
 Happy Bijaya Dashami  2068  to all valued readers and well wishers. May peace, prosperity and progress prevail in your all walks of life !!!  

 

भिसाका लागि एक वर्षमै ६४ करोड!

लोकमणि राई,


काठमाडौं, माघ १७ - एक वर्षयता अमेरिका, बेलायत र अस्ट्रेलिया जाने विद्यार्थीले भिसा प्रक्रियाका लागि मात्रै करिब ६४ करोड रुपैयाँ खर्चेका छन् ।


फिर्ता नहुने यो रकम विद्यार्थीले भिसा पाउनुअघि तिर्नुपर्छ । भिसा प्रक्रियाका लागि अमेरिकाले सन् २००८ मा नेपाली विद्यार्थीबाट करिब ४४ लाख २ हजार अमेरिकी डलर -करिब ३४ करोड ८ लाख रुपैयाँ) असुलेको छ । त्यसमध्ये डिपार्टमेन्ट अफ होमल्यान्ड सेक्युरिटीले स्टुडेन्ट एन्ड एक्स्चेञ्ज भिजिटर इन्फर्मेसन सिस्टम-सेभीस) शुल्कका नाममा करिब २० करोड ५९ लाख रुपैयाँ लिएको छ । काठमाडौंस्थित अमेरिकी दूतावासले झन्डै १३ करोड ४९ लाख असुलेको छ ।
दूतावासले भिसा आवेदन शुल्कबापत प्रतिविद्यार्थी १ सय ३१ डलर -करिब १० हजार १ सय रुपैयाँ) र होमल्यान्ड सेक्युरिटीले प्रतिविद्यार्थी २ सय डलर -करिब १५ हजार ४ सय रुपैयाँ) लिन्छ । दूतावासका अनुसार २००८ मा करिब १३ हजार ३ सय विद्यार्थीेले भिसा आवेदन गरेका थिए । त्यसमध्ये ८ हजार ९ सय ३६ ले भिसा पाए । दूतावासले भिसा शुल्कबापत थप २ सय डलर असुल्छ ।


दूतावासका अनुसार उक्त वर्ष विद्यार्थीबाहेक भिसा आवेदन गर्नेको संख्या करिब २० हजार छ । उनीहरूले पनि त्यति नै आवेदन र सेभीस शुल्क तिर्नुपर्छ । दूतावासले विद्यार्थीबाहेक भिसा आवेदनबाट मात्रै करिब ५१ करोड ६३ लाख रुपैयाँ आम्दानी गरेको छ ।


यस्तै, अस्ट्रेलियाले चालू आर्थिक वर्षमा भिसा शुल्क आवेदनबाट करिब १९ करोड ५० लाख रुपैयाँ असुलेको छ । उसले भारतस्थित अस्ट्रेलियन हाई कमिसनमार्फत नेपाली विद्यार्थीको आवेदन लिने गरेको छ । कमिसनले प्रतिविद्यार्थी करिब २५ हजार रुपैयाँ लिन्छ ।


शिक्षा मन्त्रालयका अनुसार आर्थिक वर्ष २०६४/६५ मा ७ हजार ७ सय २२ विद्यार्थीले अस्ट्रेलियाका लागि 'नो अब्जेक्सन लेटर' लिएका थिए । अस्ट्रेलियाका उच्च शिक्षालयले नेपाली परामर्शदाता कम्पनीलाई शैक्षिक सत्रभरि विद्यार्थीले तिर्ने शुल्कबाट कमिसन दिने गरेको सम्बद्ध व्यवसायी बताउँछन् । अस्ट्रेलियाका लागि नेपाल
११ औं ठूलो स्रोत मुलुक हो । मन्त्रालयका अधिकारीले पनि त्यहाँ जाने विद्यार्थी संख्या बढेको जनाए ।
बेलायतले गत आर्थिक वर्षमा नेपाली विद्यार्थीबाट भिसा शुल्कबापत करिब १७ करोड ६० लाख रुपैयाँ पाएको शैक्षिक परामर्श कम्पनीहरूको अनुमान छ । राजधानीस्थित यूके भिसा एप्लिकेसन सेन्टरका सुपरभाइजर अमित चुकेले यसबारे तथ्यांक दिन नमिल्ने बताए ।
सेन्टरले प्रतिविद्यार्थी करिब १२ हजार रुपैयाँ शुल्क असुल्छ । मन्त्रालयको तथ्यांकअनुसार आर्थिक वर्ष २०६४/६५ मा बेलायत जान 'नो अब्जेक्सन लेटर' लिने विद्यार्थी संख्या २ हजार ८ सय ४४ थिए ।


नेपाली विद्यार्थीको अर्को आकर्षक गन्तव्य क्यानडाले भने भिसा आवेदन शुल्क लिँदैन । उच्च शिक्षाका लागि विदेसिनेमा नेपाल दक्षिण एसियाकै दोस्रो ठूलो मुलुक हो । गत आर्थिक वर्षमा यहाँबाट २१ हजार ३५ विद्यार्थीले 'नो अब्जेक्सन लेटर' लिएको मन्त्रालयले जनाएको छ । हालसम्म ५१ मुलुकमा नेपाली विद्यार्थी पढ्न पुगेका छन् ।

(Source: Kantipur)

Nepal Earthquake 2011

On 18th September 2011  earthquake of magnitude 6.9 rocked in the Nepal Sikkim border. Till date more than 70 people have been killed in Nepal , India and Tibet. Nepal is earthquake prone countries. The constant movement of  tectonic plates between Indian and Tibetan subcontinent is pushing each other thereby causing stress underneath. For this reason, earthquake happens to release the pressure. After the  deadly earthquakes of 1934 and 1988, it is more devastating. Due to the low preparedness as well as non engineered houses there is more probability of the high damage situation. Pralhad Uprety  et al (2009) has done good research on the Kathmandu  city area and in their finding shows significant loss in possible large earthquake with epicenter nearby the Kathmandu.This time it was 300 km away from the epicenter and so not significant damage. Their findings are coming in international journal and will highlight the situation.

The Japan Earthquake March 11, 2011- Part 4 (6 months anniversary)

Time is running leaving us with all the good and bad memories of past times. It is the law of nature and therefore time is said to be very mighty. It has been 6 months since the great Tohoku earthquake has hit  Japan on 3/11/ 2011 causing widespread damage and casualties.More than 20,000 people lost their lives. 

Another tragedy of the event is the nuclear plant damage due to tsunami in Fukushima Nuclear plant run by TEPCO. Because of the radiation many areas have been evacuated. Though the situation has been taken under control but it is said that more than 100,000 people have not been able to  return their homes either due to the prohibitory orders and voluntary evacuation.It must have been very hard times for the affected population. In  spite of this resilience shown by them is praiseworthy.

On the very same day of the event it is the 10th anniversary of 9/11 event in New York, USA where the twins towers were hit by the suicide  aeroplane hijackers killing more than 3,000 innocent people. Designed by  architect Minoru Yamasaki, twins towers were two 110 storey with 10,000,000 square feet (930,000 m²) buildings.

RICE

Rice (the grass species Oryza sativa) is one of the most popular food in the world. 

• Rice has a long history and it is mentioned in the Vedas.
• Rice is grown in Asia, Africa, South America,  and some parts of North America.
• There are many folk lore, culture and tradition related with the rice cultivation.
• It is main staple food of about 2.5 billion people.
• More than 90% of rice is consumed in Asia.
• Most of the rice is consumed where it is produced  like India, China, Japan. Only some countries like Thailand, Vietnam and USA export rice to other countries.
• There are 140,000 varieties of cultivated rice. Basmati rice is famous for its sweet flavor.
• Rice is water intensive farming. For each kilo of rice production  5,000 liter of water is needed.
• Rice production (in million metric tons)
• World 476
• Asia-430
• India  and China -215
• Nepal-4

Regarding rice farming in Nepal it is one of the oldest agricultural practices. There are about 3000 varieties  of rice in Nepal.Out of 75 districts in Nepal only 3 districts are without rice farming.Rice is grown in 1.4 million hectare of land producing about 4 million metric ton. Chandannath rice is grown in Jumla and  it  is the highest rice planting area in the world(about 3000m above sea level).  

Rice is one of the most important food and has the great influence in the economic sector  (25% of GDP). This is the reason why the Nepal government has started commemorating Asar 15 (June/July) as the National Rice Festival for last 7 years. It is to be noted that Asar 15 is also celebrated as the Dahi Chiura Khane (Curd and beaten flake rice eating ) festival and traditionally rice plantation festival.This year rice production is expected to be of 90 billion rupees.

The Japan Earthquake March 11, 2011- Part 3

On 11 March  2011, Japan was severely rocked by earthquake of magnitude of 9 Mw It is also called "Eastern Japan Great Earthquake Disaster" (東日本大震災 Higashi Nihon Daishinsai).  It is already 5 months. The latest casualty figures include

• 23,000 deaths (if included   4,666 missing people)
•  5,715 injured 

There have been more than 1200 after shocks after the event and many include earthquakes of magnitude over 6. It is to be noted that most of the casualty in the event was primarily due to the tsunami rather that the building damage caused by the shaking. 

According to Japanese government, estimated loss is 16.9 trillion yen and this does not account  loss  caused by the Fukushima nuclear plant accident. Since the earthquake caused tsunami and subsequent affect on the nuclear power plant it is more complex to investigate the true situation. It is the first ever kind of accident in human history.

In this tragedy all the international communities stood behind Japan and help in all ways they can. Many countries have offered help and support. and even international celebrities come forward like Lady Gaga supported by making "We Pray for Japan bracelet" and raised more than 1 million dollar for relief works. As per the data released by Japan Red cross (as of 5th August 2011) 489 million US dollar has been donated (38.6 billion Japanese yen)  through National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies around the world. 

In the ray of hope for which man is always craving is that there have been continuous countermeasure against the debacle. Japanese government has formulated the reconstruction plan under the title of  Towards Reconstruction “Hope beyond the Disaster. World is eagerly watching Japan with all the great belief and hope that Japan can overcome the all the odds as it has shown the endurance after 1923 Kanto earthquake, after World War II as well as aftermath the 1995 Kobe earthquake. 

World Heritage Sites and Nepal

There are some gifted items either man-made or naturally endowed which are so beautiful/important not only to some particular people or nation but to the world. The legacy of  our forefathers are both culture and natural heritage. These global entities are designated as the World Heritage Sites by the UNESCO. Till date there are 936 in the list. Followings are the breakdown:  

Cultural World Heritage Sites-725 

Natural World Heritage Sites-183

Mixed World Heritage Sites-28.

These world heritage sites are indicators of  global importance of site so it is a matter of pride for each country to have as many sites as possible in the list. Protecting and nurturing of designated site is duty of each country and person in the world so it is good for the developing nations to be enlisted as this will enhance their chance to get international support for the cultural and natural heritage conservation.

Regarding Nepal, there are 10 world heritage sites. 7 sites are located in the Kathmandu valley (in hilly region), 1 in Himalayan region and 2 in plain region. Details is as follows:

1. Kathmandu Valley (7 heritage sites)
2. Sagarmatha National Park
3. Royal Chitwan National Park
4. Lumbini, the Birthplace of the Lord Buddha

Sites in Kathmandu valley are Durbar Squares of Hanuman Dhoka (Kathmandu), Patan and Bhaktapur, the Buddhist stupas of Swayambhu and Bauddhanath and the Hindu temples of Pashupati and Changu Narayan. Sagarmatha (Nepali name of Mt. Everest) houses the highest peak in the world and is rich in flora and fauna. Royal Chitwan National Park is famous for one horned rhinoceros, Royal Bengal tiger and crocodile. Lumbini, being the   Birthplace of the Lord Buddha, is sacred not only to Buddhist but also to all peace loving people.

Red Sun and Moon (Rato Chandra Ra Surya)

Government of Nepal has decided to honour the creators of very popular national song Rato ra chhandra surya (Red Sun and Moon). Writer late Gopal Prasad Rimal and musician/singer Amber Gurung  will be honored with  Mahasenani post (Colonel) of Nepal Army along with cash reward while  side singer Fatehman will be honored with cash reward.

The song is like this 

Rato ra chhandra surya jungi nishan hamro 
Jiundo ragat sari yo baldo yo shaan hamro
Rato ra chhandra surya jungi nishan hamro 
Jiundo ragat sari yo baldo yo shaan hamro
Rato ra chhandra surya jungi nishan hamro 
Jiundo ragat sari yo baldo yo shaan hamro
Rato ra chhandra surya
 
Himal jhain aatal yo, jhukena ko kahile
Latrana yo kahile, jungi nishan hamro
Yo janmadai jagat ma kayoun prahara aaye
Samrajya dubi hare, harena shaan hamro
Rato ra chhandra surya jungi nishan hamro 
Jiundo ragat sari yo baldo yo shaan hamro
Rato ra chhandra surya 


Jaba samma chhandra surya aakash ma rahanchha
Taba samma hunchha aafnai rato ragar yo hamro
Gai sari chhan sankhu jo jo yahan jagat ma
Sabako saran baljhiyo jungi nishan hamro
Rato ra chhandra surya jungi nishan hamro 
Jiundo ragat sari yo baldo yo shaan hamro
Rato ra chhandra surya jungi nishan hamro 
Jiundo ragat sari yo baldo yo shaan hamro
Rato ra chhandra surya

It is to be noted that this song is used as Nepal Army as the army song.

Broadcasting Service in Nepal

Information is fundamental rights of citizen. In the olden days information to public was given in the public places using like plaza, temples  to name a few. But after the scientific innovation of different pioneers like Tesla, Marconi and so on it has been a different story.

                  When we take case of Nepal it was only after 1951 that Nepal has Radio service. Previously, it was used by revolutionary group during the armed struggle against autocratic Rana regime. After the successful revolution of 1950 the same radio service was used for the national purpose and called Radio Nepal. Formal date of establishment is  on 1st April 1951. Initially, the transmission covered duration of 4 hours and 30 minutes (through a 250 Watt SW transmitter). Now it operates from 5 am to 11 pm daily using different bandwidths (am, shortwave). It was only in 1995 that FM radio service started in Nepal. 

              Regarding Television service, only in 1985 that Nepal operated its own television (Nepal Television) service and its credit basically goes to noted personality Nir Shah. 

               With the liberalization of communication services country has witnessed a dramatic increase in media. Radio Nepal and Nepal Television are the state owned radio and TV services and others are privately or community operated services. Private TV channels include Kantipur Television, Image Channel, Channel Nepal, Avenues TV, Nepal 1 Television and Sagarmatha Television. Sagarmatha Television is the first news television in Nepal. Nepal 1 Television is broadcasted from India. 
                  As of 2011 followings are the official details regarding electronic services obtained from Government of Nepal (2011). 

Cable TV operators: 701

FM Radio: 380  licensed(319 operating)

Down link approval:91 foreign TV(including NHK of Japan)

TV service: 28 approved and more than dozen operating.

Nepal : Good things to Share-1

According to International Campaign to Ban Landmine definition landmine is an ammunition  placed under or on the ground, antipersonnel mines explode from the contact or presence of a person. When triggered, they kill or cause injuries like blindness, burns, destroyed limbs and shrapnel wounds.

Nepal has become the second country in Asia (First is China) to be land mine free nation. The United Nations declared Nepal free of land mine fields on Tuesday 14 June 2011. It was declared in the presence of Prime Minister Jhalananth Khanal  and other  dignitaries.   Land mines were extensively used in the time of insurgency 1996-2006 during which more than 473 landmine casualties occurred taking lives of  78. It is to be noted that during insurgency more than 15,000 people lost their lives and estimated 300,000 people were forced to left their home to avoid the casualty. 

Worst thing of land mine is that once the armed conflicts are over, if the  land mines are not cleared it will cause more casualty than in the conflict time as more people return to their left places. More than 300 people lost their lives after the post conflict period (2006 -2010 A.D) which is about 5 times  than in the 10 years conflict.  Horrible stories of land mine victims in Cambodia and Afghanistan are frequently appeared in media . Many people have lost their lives and their livelihood due to landmines explosion.

Nepal has not yet approve the  Ottawa Convention which urge the ban of landmine legally. With the improve of security situation, the days are near when it is possible for Nepal government  to accept it formally.More than 140 countries including Japan, Canada  have already ratified the convention 

International Students in Japan

Japan has become the one of the leading destinations for international students due to the strong economic background as well as the highly sophisticated educational system. Number of students have increased each year  and government is also supporting this trend to foster the people to people contact as well as to promote the  better understanding of Japanese culture. There were just 10,482 foreign students in 1983 and within the next 27 years it rose to 141,774 in 2010 (Source: JASSO 2010). This is about the 14 times than the early one. 

Figure 1: International  students in Japan as of 2010

           Figure 1 shows the number of foreign students in Japan by origin. Chinese students are overwhelmingly high (60.80%) followed by  Koreans (South Koreans) and Taiwanese. This may due to the long  cultural and historical affinities between these counties. Another advantage for three above mentioned students is the ease of understanding the Japanese language compared to other international students as Khanjis are basically originated in China and Japanese language uses lots of Khanji in study and day to day life. Though Koreans use Hangul script now, it  is also derived from Khanji like Hiragana and Katakana scripts in Japanese. Life is  easier who understands the Japanese language. By number of students Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand, USA, Indonesia, Nepal and Bangladesh ranks 4th to 10th respectively. These 10 countries account the 90% volume of all international students. It is interesting to note that Nepal ranks 9th in this rank. As of 2010 A.D. 1829 Nepali students are currently studying in Japan in different language school, universities and technical institutes. The number has increased from 1628 in 2009 (0.1% increase). This positive change may be  increasing  number of students enrolling in the language school as Japanese language and culture  has become a popular in Nepal.
             Formally Japan was the first overseas country where Nepali government sent its 8 students for higher studies 100 years ago. When they returned home they not only brought new wealth of knowledge but also the new species to Nepal like persimmon.  With the diplomatic  relation in 1950's, Japan Nepal relationship have crossed a very high niche in the last 50 years. It can be hoped that with more people to people contact the relationship is expected to foster in new height. Nepali students studying in Japan will be the best ambassadors of Japan in this regard.

The Japan Earthquake March 11, 2011- Part 2

It is already more than 2 months after the great Earthquake of March 11, 2011 that severely hit the Japan. More than 15,000 people lost their lives and more than 15000 are still missing. It is the worst type of natural disaster after the 1923 Kanto Earthquake in which more than 100,000 people were killed. The major cause of the casualties was Tsunami rather than the building damage by the earthquake shaking.The most affected areas include the Miyagi, Iwate and Fukushima prefectures all in the Northern part of Japan. Properties worth of billions of dollars have been destroyed. It has been said that it will take more than 2 years to clear the debris and make the area fit for the rehabilitation.

Drive of the Support

1. Rt. Hon. Prime Minister of Nepal Jhal Nath Khanal visited the Japanese Embassy in Nepal on 14th March 2011 (just after 2 days after event) and had meeting with Ambassador Mizuno. He expressed his deep condolences to the victims of the enormously powerful earthquake and tsunami.
2. Many people have shown their generosity towards the Japanese people in this difficult times. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Many countries including Nepal have offered their help. As a gesture of support Government of Nepal provided 5,000 blankets for the evacuees suffering from severe cold.
3. People pray in memory of Japan earthquake victims back in Nepal. People lit the butter lamps in the memory of the victims of the devastating earthquake and tsunami in different religious places including Bouddhanath Stupa in Kathmandu, Nepal.
4. Nepalese people residing in Japan have contributed in cash as per their capacity to different organization to support the victims.

These are only the small part of the news related with the help and support.

This blog wishes the deep condolences to the bereaved families and shows the solidarity in this difficult time. May God bless you all to overcome this tragedy.

The Japan Earthquake March 11, 2011

Gigantic earthquake of Mw 8.8 has hit east Japan on Friday March 11 2011 causing widespread damage. It is the 5th largest earthquake event in the world and biggest in last hundred year of Japan. Many cities have been devastated most affected being Sendai. More than 400 people have confirmed dead and hundreds have been missing.

We have been feeling this earthquake and continuous after shocks till date. Because of strict building codes, the devastation has been limited. Most of the damages have been due to the tsunami nearby the sea shores area like in Sendai city. Hundred of thousands of building have been left without electricity and water. Many hospitals have been stretched to the maximum limit. But because of high disciplined people and well preparedness there is not much panic situation.

What would happen if same event happened in Nepal?

Nepal lies between Indian and Eurasian plate and each year Indian plate moves 2 cm per year towards Eurasian plate thereby causing the stress. Seismologist are predicting gigantic earthquake as pressure has built for last 300 years and it has to be released. Normally Nepal experiences big earthquake in 80-100 years. Hundred of thousands people will be killed because of the building collapse because in Nepal

• there is no strict building codes,
• there is poor implementation of codes,
• there are weak building materials.

Besides these reasons, most of the buildings in villages are non-engineered which are more vulnerable to the quakes. Even in cities many buildings are old and built before the builing code implementation. Last earthquake in Nepal was in 1934 that took more than 10,000 people. The population has increased a lot and so are the buildings. Government has little preparedness to cope up the situation. Most of the time is spent in the political things and there is no time to come for the disaster management. Even political leaers have failed to make constitution in stipulated time of 2 years. Proposed Disaster Management Act has not been acted through the parliament though it was given for approval in 2007. Since 2007, Nepal has seen sea change in politics. County has become Republic from Kingdom, 3 governments have changed. But alas! there is no time for government and political leaders to pass the act and set up the systematic mechanism for the disaster management. SriLanka has set up even disaster management ministry after 2004 tsunami event. May be Nepal is waiting event similar to the 2010 Haiti earthquake to become eye opener. By that time it will be too late as even the lazy current leaders of Nepal will not be able to see the day after that possible doom's day.

Secret of Western Civilization

Western Civilization has dominated for last 500 years and it was the colonial powers of most of the countries in the world. Only after second world war (1939-1945) many countries have broke the shackles of colonism.

Many countries have developed their countries combining the western values with their own values in a unique way. The rise of Japan to World economy was their adoption of Western methods since Meiji Restoration in 1850. Now many countries have followed Japan and become rising super power like China, India, Singapore Vietnam to name a few.

Noted Harvard historian Niall Ferguson has noted 6 points of western secrets for success. They are:

1. competition,


2. modern science,


3. the rule of law and private property rights,


4. modern medicine,


5. consumer society and


6. work ethic.

Nepal lacks many of the above pointed secrets. Most importantly it lacks work ethics and the rule of law. Until all the above steps are adopted in our lives it is difficult for Nepal to compete internationally with dignity.

DEMOCRACY AND EDUCATION-2

Last blog was about the modern education in Nepal. It is true that education pays not only people but also to the nation. Access to education is important in this aspect. This is because Nepal has to do a lot of works to go ahead in improving lifestyle and way of thinking that the modern world deserves. It is high time that our people should be at par to the international level.

Knowledge is POWER.

Regarding the education system around Nepal neighboring countries a lot of lessons can be drawn. Education system of Sri Lanka is good in the sense that it has managed to have high literacy rate ( 92%) and large population having Secondary Education (83% of the total) making it one of the most literate populations amongst developing nations. Sri Lanka has an education system of 9 years of compulsory schooling same as in Japan. Another system it has been catering is free education system since 1945. Many people have credited this to the visionary personality Dr. C. W. W. Kannangara.

Benefits of Free education are;

1. Remedy of social evils
2. Greater competitiveness
3. Improved quality of life
4. Better governance and
5. Equal opportunities

Comparing to Nepal, education was a limited to certain class and rich only. Idea of free education emerges only during the time of King Birendra's Coronation in 1975 (2031 B.S). King Birendra (1945-2001) said once that no one should be deprived of the bright light of education. He proclaimed the primary (5 years ) education free. This was only the case in the government supported educational institutions. After the 1990s democracy time education was claimed to be free up to the secondary level (10 years of education) but due to the lack of financial support this has not been the case. Actually classes up to 8 is free in the government schools. In the coming days Nepal needs to introduce the compulsory education of 9 years and made higher education more accessible to all strata of life. It should be part of life rather than a luxury item for some.

DEMOCRACY AND EDUCATION

Education is key to success as it enables to search the ways for prosperity and development. It also makes people responsive. Considering the trend of development in true sense, it can be found that those countries which have strong sense of education have prospered a lot. Japan, Singapore, Isreal are some examples. That mean to say that the human capital is important intangible assets of a nation.

Regarding the modern education in Nepal, it started only after the establishment of Durbar High school on 1892 (1910 Ashwin 27 Bikram era ). However, only the elite and ruling Rana could send their children for education. Rana dictatorship ruled Nepal from 1846-1950. It was one family ruling and country was closed to outside.

It is tragic thing that the education for common people was seen as menance to their system. They believe that educated people will not tolerate their regime so they deny their education rights. It was indeed bad luck of Nepal that we had rulers with such mentality and they ruled the nation for 104 years. During Rana regime only one college, (Tri- Chandra College) was established and it  was affiliated with Patna University of India. It is said that Rana Prime Minister Chandra Shamaser wept while inaugurating the college. He was saying that he was digging the downfall of Rana regime. What could be expected from such shrewd politician ? Had the Rana ruled that 100 years properly in utilization for the modernization as done by Japanese after Meiji restoration (after 1850) Nepal could be the power house of Asia both financially and academically.

Only after the 1950 revolution the country got the liberation from the aristocrats. This year we are observing the 61st Democracy Day and our forefathers fought for it. It is special for us as it was the time that common people could join the schools. In spite of all odds Nepal has progressed a lot in education in this last 60 years. Each year thousands of students go abroad (USA, Japan , Australia etc). They have excelled in many different fields. Many people have worked in academic and research institutions. Even one guy (Kul Chandra Gautam) became the Vice secretary of United Nations, the highest and most respected organization in the world. Many Nepali scholars have contributed to the knowledge and wisdom thereby not only serving Nepal but also to the whole world. This could not be even dreamt in the Rana regime.

Glimpse of education in Nepal (2010)

Number of schools- 32,130

Colleges-More than 700

Universities- 6 in operation (other 3 in pipelines)

Literacy rates (above 6 years)- About 60%

Now Nepal has 6 universities and more than 700 colleges imparting education from humanities to commerce, medicine to engineering and so on. Even students from other countries come to study in Nepal. There is high charm of education among people and in the coming days we are sure to progress if we do hard work and invest heavily in education sectors.

It is therefore pertinent to remember the martyrs who have sacrificed their time and lives for the betterment of people. Your sacrificed has created the new paradigm in the Nepalese history.

Deep gratitude and remembrances to all the freedom fighters.

The Noble Eightfold Path of Buddha

1. Right View
2. Right Intention
3. Right Speech
4. Right Action
5. Right Livelihood
6. Right Effort
7. Right Mindfulness
8. Right concentration

The first two are related to the WISDOM.

Next three are related to the ETHICAL CONDUCT.

And final three are related to the MENTAL DEVELOPMENT.

If we follow the noble path of Buddha even this day we will sure to make this World a better place to live on.

I am following. Do you ?