When 14-year-old Jamyang Jamtsho Wangchuk knocked on the door of a stranger to ask if they had a copy of the 1995 comedy Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls, he had no idea the person on the other side would make him a film star. That was in 1996, and the Bhutanese teenager was in Hong Kong on vacation. Little did he know that the person on whose door he knocked was a casting agent. The rest is geography.&nbsp; Within months, Wangchuk and his younger brother were on set shooting Jean-Jacques Annaud’s 1997 film Seven Years in Tibet, starring Brad Pitt. Chaperoned by their mother, both boys played the Dalai Lama in the movie.&nbsp; “I was honoured to get the chance,” says Wangchuk, now 41. That chance meeting eventually got Wangchuk into filmmaking in the US.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023060209068_3cda25464ba95e1997eca79d2fd72c689af9fe824c05a4d80fe74e355f30786c.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="2023060209068_3cda25464ba95e1997eca79d2fd72c689af9fe824c05a4d80fe74e355f30786c" data-rendition-name="original" width="2250" height="3275" loading="lazy" alt="Jamyang Jamtsho Wangchuk with Brad Pitt"> <figcaption>Young Jamyang Jamtsho Wangchuk with Brad Pitt. The two actors worked together for Jean-Jacques Annaud’s 1997 film Seven Years in Tibet.</figcaption> </figure>  In 2020 during the pandemic &nbsp;Wangchuk was cooped up in a studio apartment in New York. The isolation, and a bout of Covid infection, made him reevaluate his career and place in life. He decided to cycle from Thimphu to COP28 in Dubai to draw attention to the climate crisis and how it was affecting Himalayan people. “I feel fortunate to be able to combine my love for films with my passion for sports and travel, all the while championing the environment,” says Wangchuk, who spent his early years trekking through forests in Bhutan’s Pema Gatshel district with his father.&nbsp; In 2022, Wangchuk biked for a week, nine hours every day to reach Bhutan’s Thorthomi glacial lake, where the water level has to be drained to prevent it from bursting. He filled a bottle of water from the lake, and on 2 May began the first phase of his journey from Thimphu to India. Supported by the Kathmandu-based research institute, ICIMOD, he cycled across eastern Nepal, reaching Everest Base Camp 20 days later. There he met up with 22-time Everest summiteer Lhakpa Nuru, who had collected ice from the South Col for his mission.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023060209064_42a5130b18ca731580eedc477adaf1dea86a6b55a2de7db3c4a7fd1931bdae44.png" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="2023060209064_42a5130b18ca731580eedc477adaf1dea86a6b55a2de7db3c4a7fd1931bdae44" data-rendition-name="original" width="2048" height="1536" loading="lazy" alt="Team NT"> <figcaption>Jamyang Jamtsho Wangchuk and team on Everest Base Camp. Photo: BEN CLARK/FACEBOOK</figcaption> </figure>  &nbsp;The ice joined the water collected from the glacial lake in Bhutan on the journey to Dubai. The bike journey so far has been a 'warm up' in more ways than one. &nbsp;Last month several Asian cities recorded all-time high temperatures. The heat of the plains made Wangchuk dizzy, forcing him to make several unplanned stops. “We learned the hard way that riding in the heat and pollution can be detrimental to health,” he notes. To avoid this, he starts out early, and takes a break during the intense mid-day heat. &nbsp; Wangchuk will soon begin the second phase of his journey cycling across India and Pakistan. He has not yet figured out how to cross the Arabian Sea to Oman. &nbsp; “There will be more extreme heat to justify why I’m riding to COP28 to take the messages of &nbsp;Himalayan communities being unfairly impacted by climate change,” he says. &nbsp; Climate summits like the one in Dubai are notorious for being talkfests, and the 2023 event is being held in UAE, a country that is a major exporter of fossil fuel. Says Wangchuk: “COPs have failed to set a concrete and time-bound target to phase out all fossil fuels and meet the zero-emission vehicle sales targets. But this should not deter us from pressuring world leaders and corporations to be accountable.”

Shristi Karki

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Here & Now

Cycling to COP28

Some 15 million people worldwide are at risk from flooding caused by glacial lakes, half of them in India, China, Pakistan and Peru, according to the latest study published in the journal Nature Communications. As the most densely populated mountain country in the world, Nepal is at higher risk. Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs) in the Nepal Himalaya can be even more catastrophic for towns along valley floors as well as downstream infrastructure. <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/climate-smarter-himalayan-infrastructure">What happened in Melamchi </a>in July 2021 is a sign of things to come. Nepal’s largest infrastructure project to supply water to Kathmandu was nearly destroyed by a massive debris flow after a cloudburst upstream in the Langtang National Park. “What make GLOFs worse in Nepal is that they are often combined with the monsoon,” explains watershed expert Madhukar Upadhyay. “Every year we have seasonal floods. When a weakened moraine is breached, more water is added to already swollen rivers. Making matters worse is high-intensity rainfall in higher altitudes as we saw in Manang in 2022.”&nbsp; Read more: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/climate-risk-to-hydropower-investment/">Climate risk to hydropower investment</a>, Ajaya Dixit  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230602040624_e60a90be970842d53f6e236b1a59612c82aa035635a3ae4838481a31710f1446.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20230602040624_e60a90be970842d53f6e236b1a59612c82aa035635a3ae4838481a31710f1446" data-rendition-name="original" width="853" height="640" loading="lazy" alt="Melamchi amage NT"> <figcaption>The damage from a massive debris flow on the Melamchi River in June 2021 to the channel diverting water from the Melamchi to the tunnel at the project headwork. Photo: SHIVA BASKOTA</figcaption> </figure>  Scientists say that the permafrost binding loose moraine material is also melting, and without the cementing action of the ice the moraine walls can collapse easily in heavy precipitation. Rain falling where there used to be snow is making matters worse.&nbsp; <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/living-below-nepal-s-melting-mountains">The Himalaya is melting</a> faster than the global average, and even in the best-case scenario, the mountains will lose more than one-third of their ice by 2100.&nbsp; A paper published in the journal Climate and Atmospheric Science last year revealed that the rate of ice loss on the South Col of Mt Everest is shocking: what took 2,000 years to accumulate is melting in a mere 25 years.&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/tracing-past-glacial-floods-in-kangchenjunga/">Tracing past glacial floods in Kanchanjunga</a>, Alton C Byers  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230602040632_f3e5d9e3eb4dca842d715afab7ee68899e0fa3c0d2f9f039d9b288b1492f4955.png" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="20230602040632_f3e5d9e3eb4dca842d715afab7ee68899e0fa3c0d2f9f039d9b288b1492f4955" data-rendition-name="original" width="891" height="500" loading="lazy" alt="Map"> </figure>  There are 3,252 glacial lakes in Nepal, including the Khumbu Glacier where Base Camp is now 50km lower than when Hillary and Tenzing climbed Everest<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/everest-70-years-on"> seventy years ago</a>.&nbsp; Imja was a debris covered glacier on trekking maps even 25 years ago, but is now a 2km long lake. Tso Rolpa glacial lake at 4,580m in the Rolwaling Valley has grown seven times in size in the past 60 years. “There is a lot of evidence that the number of glacier lakes in Nepal and worldwide is increasing,” says Miriam Jackson, glaciologist with the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD). “The size of existing lakes is also increasing. For example, the area of glacier lakes increased by 12% in the Kosi basin and 8% in the Gandaki basin.” The water level in Imja has been lowered by 3.4m and by 3m in Tso Rolpa at a cost of $7.2 million and $9 million respectively. Scientists now say the water level in Tso Rolpa needs to go down by another 20m to reduce risk of bursting. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/danger-nepal-s-glacial-lakes-are-filling-up">DANGER: Nepal’s glacial lakes are filling up</a>  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230602040628_4ac8ea629de0f69bfb27fe9b783f126c7eea6dcadda7e812436d393d7c21c13e.jpg" data-media-id="editor_8" data-image-id="20230602040628_4ac8ea629de0f69bfb27fe9b783f126c7eea6dcadda7e812436d393d7c21c13e" data-rendition-name="original" width="1843" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Imja lake NT"> <figcaption>A frozen Imja Lake looking east from the outlet. Photo: SHARAD JOSHI</figcaption> </figure>  There are other potentially dangerous lakes like Thulagi below Himalchuli, and new lakes are emerging on both sides of the Himalaya in China and Nepal that have not even been mapped. Nepal’s glaciers are shrinking three times faster than in 1998 and Jackson says that the possibility of flooding, whether from glacial lakes or other sources, is taken into account when building close to the rivers. When Nepal’s only reservoir project on the Kulekhani was commissioned in 1982, engineers had designed it to function for 100 years. But a cloudburst in the catchment area in 1993 deposited so much debris into the lake that its lifespan was reduced by 30 years. “Melamchi and Kulekhani are proof that the entire Himalayan region including Nepal are not suited for mega projects. Our focus and investment should instead be on multiple small-scale projects spread out across the country,” says watershed expert Madhukar Upadhyay. As for infrastructure already under construction, there are several mitigating measures that can be deployed, such as early warning and real-time information systems in the catchment area, not only about rainfall but GLOFs and landslide blocked rivers. Experts say Nepal and the countries in the Himalaya should not overlook the phenomenon of permafrost melting that is making the mountains and moraines much more prone to erosion. Permafrost is a thick subsurface layer of frozen soil that is generally not visible and thus harder to identify. Besides Melamchi, thawing permafrost is thought to have been partly responsible for the Chamoli disaster in the Indian Himalaya in 2021. Read also: <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=2391#.XoyO8MgzbIU">The day after tomorrow in the Himalaya</a>, Navin Singh Khadka “Generally, moraines have an ice core, which is one reason why moraine-dammed lakes are so dangerous. The ice could be hundreds or even thousands of years old and melt very slowly but the moraine is constantly settling,” explains Jackson. “Thawing permafrost makes mountains unstable, thus causing rockfalls. If there is a landslide into a glacier lake, then that could trigger a flood.” GLOFs also have a transboundary dimension since so many of Nepal’s rivers and their tributaries originate in glaciers in Tibet. Of the 47 high-risk glacial lakes in Nepal, 20 of them start in Tibet (see map, below). Mitigating measures such as artificially lowering the water level are expensive which makes cross-border early warning of GLOFs so crucial. ICIMOD has launched the Kosi Initiative with a transboundary working group collaborating with the Chengdu-based Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment (IMHE) and others. It has also done computer modelling of flood hazard and an assessment called WeACT that integrates local knowledge with science to improve community preparedness. But GLOF risk can be reduced if vulnerable communities are aware of the danger, are given decision-making powers and have the resources to be prepared, as has been seen in Chunkung in Khumbu and Langtang, where villagers are adapting to climate change by building embankments on their own, and avoiding construction along river banks. Says Madhukar Upadhyay: “We need to strengthen our local science to better understand the geology and glaciology, make local communities and the national government aware of the dangers and take the risk into account in building settlements, hydropower plants, bridges and roads.” &nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/human-face-of-a-himalayan-climate-crisis/">Human face of a Himalayan climate crisis</a>, Rastraraj Bhandari

Sonia Awale

For destruction, ice is also great and will suffice

For the past month, Nepal has been <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/losing-our-moral-compass">rocked by a scandal</a> involving former ministers and officials who swindled hundreds of people offering to take them to the US posing as refugees from Bhutan. But real refugees who have lived in camps in eastern Nepal for over three decades say they are still pining to return to their homeland. More than 100,000 <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/gross-national-reconciliation-in-bhutan">Nepali-speaking Bhutanese</a> were evicted from the land of their birth by the Thimpu regime 1990-92, transported across India and dumped in eastern Nepal. Most have been resettled in seven western countries with the United States taking the majority.&nbsp; About 5,000 elderly refugees still remain in the camps, and say that they want to see their children one last time, and be allowed to die in their homeland. &nbsp;&nbsp; “I want to go back to Bhutan, but Bhutan doesn't let us,” says Sanmaya Gurung, 82, who, like many Nepali-speaking Bhutanese, called Lhotshampa, has been living in a refugee camp in Nepal since 1990. “I don’t know how much longer I will live, but I want to die in my motherland.”  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230531120544_5c0e71aeb17036a4fdb91a40eff2b1c3c34dfc6aa672feb8d5da9acd46e82543.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20230531120544_5c0e71aeb17036a4fdb91a40eff2b1c3c34dfc6aa672feb8d5da9acd46e82543" data-rendition-name="original" width="1205" height="1306" loading="lazy" alt="Bhutanese refugees"> <figcaption>Sanmaya Gurung</figcaption> </figure>  Sanmaya’s family was <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/who-stands-with-bhutanese-refugees-in-nepal">evicted by the Bhutanese regime</a> for being ethnic Nepali, but her children and relatives have been resettled overseas. Dal Bahadur Karki was born and raised in a farm in Gelephu in Bhutan, but was thrown out in 1992. He has been living in Goldhap refugee camp of &nbsp;Jhapa district in Nepal. His four sons and four daughters have all been resettled in the US. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/no-one-to-care-for-doctor-who-cared-for-everyone">No one ot care for the doctor who cared for everyone</a>, Om Astha Rai Karki reaches into his pocket to show a phone and says, "They have given me this mobile. But what's the point? It’s just their voice, they don't come here in person.” Karki’s wife died recently in the camp, and he made a pavilion in her memory, naming it after her. "When my time comes, I hope my sons come to Nepal to remember me,” adds Karki. “But I also want to see the country where I was born and touch its soil one last time.”&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230531120548_2c7347224269940ac08dffa7a4aba1835f1118d4b8f7e9fa709dd2a81d1bde56.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="20230531120548_2c7347224269940ac08dffa7a4aba1835f1118d4b8f7e9fa709dd2a81d1bde56" data-rendition-name="original" width="1600" height="1205" loading="lazy" alt="Bhutanese refugees"> <figcaption>Dal Bahadur Karki</figcaption> </figure>  According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), 113,500 Bhutanese refugees were resettled in eight countries, including in the US, Australia, Canada, and European nations. The Lhotshampa were denied citizenship over restrictions imposed by the dominant Drukpa community that rules Bhutan. Unlike many others, Karki and Sanmaya refused <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/resettled-former-Bhutanese-refugee-hold-on-to-their-roots,3043">third country resettlement</a> because they still hoped to return to Bhutan some day. So did 72-year-old Nilamaya Rai who waits by her mobile phone to talk to her two sons in the US, but they rarely call. Occasionally, the younger son sends money which supports Nilamaya and her husband. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/news/far-from-home">Far from home</a> “Ever since I refused to be resettled overseas, and said I wanted to go back to Bhutan, my sons refused to talk to me,” explains Nilamaya. "When I die, neither of my sons will be with me, nor will it be in my own country."  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230531120548_96e8759d55cba41516aebd9e86ac3eb34a5ffd8c90c2300e739bda1433fc58d8.jpg" data-media-id="editor_8" data-image-id="20230531120548_96e8759d55cba41516aebd9e86ac3eb34a5ffd8c90c2300e739bda1433fc58d8" data-rendition-name="original" width="1409" height="1061" loading="lazy" alt="Bhutanese refugees"> <figcaption>Nilamaya Rai</figcaption> </figure>  With only elderly people left at the camps, and after the third-country resettlement program was closed in 2016, <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/Bhutanese-refugees-resettlement-program-ending-in-2018,4121">support for the camps has been cut</a>. UNHCR which had been operating in Jhapa for 28 years closed in 2020. T. B. Rai, secretary at the Beldangi Refugee Camp tells us: “For the remaining refugees to have proper food, they either need to receive money from abroad or break rocks in the Ratua River. Most do not have enough to eat.” The scandal involving hundreds of Nepalis paying hefty sums to senior government officials to get <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/news/in-a-federal-kleptocratic-republic-of-nepal">fake refugee certification to be resettled in the US</a> has enraged the real refugees about what both Bhutan and Nepal have done to them.&nbsp; Around the refugee camp, there is talk of some genuine Bhutanese refugees who sold their documents to Nepalis. Some say many Nepalis posing as refugees went to the US and other countries when the resettlement started in 2007 to <a href="http://nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/resettled-former-Bhutanese-refugee-hold-on-to-their-roots,3043" target="_blank">the United States</a>, Canada, Australia, <a href="http://nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=17868#.Wk3SKlWWbIU" target="_blank">New Zealand</a>, Denmark, Norway, <a href="http://nepalitimes.com/article/nation/Bhutanese-refugees-in-united-kingdom-find-stability,1585" target="_blank">the UK</a> and the Netherlands.&nbsp; The <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/elderly-left-in-bhutan-refugee-camp">Beldangi camp in Jhapa</a> still houses 4,966 Bhutanese refugees, 2,688 men and 2,278 women. Only 2,004 renewed their refugee identity cards this year. Translated by Shrijan Pandey from the Nepali original published in <a href="http://himalkhabar.com/" target="_blank">himalkhabar.com</a>

Real refugees want to go back to Bhutan

<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/everest-70-years-on">70 years after the first ascent</a> of the world’s highest mountain, at least 600 climbers this season followed the route taken by Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary to the summit of Mt Everest (pictured above on 17 May). Next year will be the centenary of the 1924 British expedition to Chomolungma during which <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/1921-rendezvous-mallory-pumori-and-everest">George Mallory</a> and Andrew Irvine were last seen below the summit pyramid. Did the pair reach the top? Mallory’s body was found in 1999 on the North Face, but no clues about whether they were the first to climb the peak. A lot has changed in Himalayan climbing in the past seven decades, but new records are still being broken. This year Kami Rita Sherpa and Pasang Dawa Sherpa <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/news/without-sherpas-there-is-no-mountaineering">broke their own and each other’s</a> records twice with 28 and 27 summits respectively. Hari Budha Magar became the first <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-pinnacle-of-determination-and-courage">above knee double amputee to reach the summit</a>. The style of expeditions has also changed. Most purist mountaineers shun the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/overkill-on-everest">crowds on Everest</a>, and are tackling lesser unclimbed peaks, and exploring new routes alpine style without guides, oxygen and fixed camps.  <figure><img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230529050524_e3f816d1368b81c77fd6bd91382eee1ebf98a7d11410576faa4812394982a629.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="20230529050524_e3f816d1368b81c77fd6bd91382eee1ebf98a7d11410576faa4812394982a629" data-rendition-name="original" width="2268" height="4032" loading="lazy" alt="Everest"></figure>  The <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nims-purja-does-it">record set by Nims Purja</a> to climb 14 eight-thousanders in just six months in 2019, and the worldwide publicity from his Netflix documentary and the Covid backlog brought many more mountaineers to Everest this year. The trend of climbing multiple 8,000ers in Nepal by hopping on helicopters from one base camp to the next has also caught on. <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/government-is-god">Ad hoc mountaineering</a> rules, bureaucratic hassles in Kathmandu, over-commercialisation, theft of expedition gear, corpses, garbage and traffic jams have tarnished the Everest brand. But just this mountain earns the Nepal government $5 million every season in fees, aside from the income to guides, porters and lodges along the way. There are still expeditions led by well-known Western climbers, but more and more slick Nepali companies like Seven Summits, Elite Exped or Imagine Nepal are now guiding clients up Himalayan peaks not just in Nepal, but in Pakistan and China as well. There are calls to diversify expeditions to other mountains, and climbers have been <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/what-is-it-about-ama-dablam">flocking to Ama Dablam</a>, Manaslu and Annapurna. But the main attraction is still Mt Everest because, as Mallory famously said, “it is there”.  <figure><img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230529050536_d7750a5f0c118770e445b88d7d2e94eb24a8c9cd891b852acef9444da9495b05.jpg" data-media-id="editor_9" data-image-id="20230529050536_d7750a5f0c118770e445b88d7d2e94eb24a8c9cd891b852acef9444da9495b05" data-rendition-name="original" width="772" height="402" loading="lazy" alt="Everest Timeline "></figure>   <figure><img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230529050536_f7970bf13b822ac51b414d9b90ed09a2ea2e94ea59c73aeb74386e36f1088d91.jpg" data-media-id="editor_10" data-image-id="20230529050536_f7970bf13b822ac51b414d9b90ed09a2ea2e94ea59c73aeb74386e36f1088d91" data-rendition-name="original" width="829" height="404" loading="lazy" alt="Everest Timeline"></figure>   <figure><img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230529050536_dfdb7ec2900b342b760be5647217c8e69a13bd63b709aad707844a3c5284880f.jpg" data-media-id="editor_11" data-image-id="20230529050536_dfdb7ec2900b342b760be5647217c8e69a13bd63b709aad707844a3c5284880f" data-rendition-name="original" width="830" height="401" loading="lazy" alt="Everest Timeline"></figure>   <figure><img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230529050536_bfcae299ac601c14a44abf1dc7ad4d606181177918e085503d1de313ae68c4d8.jpg" data-media-id="editor_17" data-image-id="20230529050536_bfcae299ac601c14a44abf1dc7ad4d606181177918e085503d1de313ae68c4d8" data-rendition-name="original" width="777" height="403" loading="lazy" alt="Everest Timeline"></figure>   <figure><img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230529050536_e5992378a542fbdec992e086e423e54344cb07b80d36affa0a974bc56082e247.jpg" data-media-id="editor_13" data-image-id="20230529050536_e5992378a542fbdec992e086e423e54344cb07b80d36affa0a974bc56082e247" data-rendition-name="original" width="774" height="330" loading="lazy" alt="Everest Timeline"></figure>   <figure><img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230529050536_791a7c0d9849f54d0e484281158226e49692389d3c75a274f3e4a1a8189d5bd7.jpg" data-media-id="editor_14" data-image-id="20230529050536_791a7c0d9849f54d0e484281158226e49692389d3c75a274f3e4a1a8189d5bd7" data-rendition-name="original" width="835" height="332" loading="lazy" alt="Everest Timeline"></figure>   <figure><img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230529050536_326020db4bf7cf38f8b1761381effe7d99f481e1013e47a9cd52fb309575c131.jpg" data-media-id="editor_15" data-image-id="20230529050536_326020db4bf7cf38f8b1761381effe7d99f481e1013e47a9cd52fb309575c131" data-rendition-name="original" width="823" height="333" loading="lazy" alt="Everest Timeline"></figure>   <figure><img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230529050536_064e3a7a6707f34037f2b1e87245431508af6269ab3d503ec9403ba851552675.jpg" data-media-id="editor_16" data-image-id="20230529050536_064e3a7a6707f34037f2b1e87245431508af6269ab3d503ec9403ba851552675" data-rendition-name="original" width="781" height="335" loading="lazy" alt="Everest Timeline"></figure>   <figure><img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230529050536_bfcae299ac601c14a44abf1dc7ad4d606181177918e085503d1de313ae68c4d8.jpg" data-media-id="editor_17" data-image-id="20230529050536_bfcae299ac601c14a44abf1dc7ad4d606181177918e085503d1de313ae68c4d8" data-rendition-name="original" width="777" height="403" loading="lazy" alt="Everest Timeline"></figure>

8848.86

When a soccer coach from Seattle, a registered nurse from Indianapolis, and a former US Marine from Miami met recently, they had one thing in common. They all had only one kidney, having donated the other one. In April, Cristina Fontana, Bobby McLaughlin, and Gionnon Goldhagen, two of their partners and a support team undertook the 12-day trek to the 5,364m Everest Base Camp to spread awareness about <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/kidney-transplants-heavily-favoured-towards-men-in-nepal,1901">kidney donation</a>.&nbsp; Supported by the non-profit United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), they wanted to prove that transplant donors can live healthy and active lives.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230527140548_b28289a14aab5fcdb850af43a3b8203e4be364a5b9868471886616d80f2a7cdc.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20230527140548_b28289a14aab5fcdb850af43a3b8203e4be364a5b9868471886616d80f2a7cdc" data-rendition-name="original" width="1024" height="768" loading="lazy" alt="Kidney donors at EBC"> <figcaption>Trekking guide Lachhuman Tamang with kidney donors Cristina Fontana, Bobby McLaughlin and Gionnon Goldhagen.</figcaption> </figure>  “My initial calling for kidney donation was to help my father,” recalled Cristina Fontana after returning to Kathmandu from the trek. “I always knew him to be sick and I always knew that he needed a kidney.” Fontana’s father was diagnosed with kidney cancer when she was nine and died five years later. She went on to become a registered nurse and worked as a transplant nurse as well as in paediatrics. But the calling to be a donor never left her. Eventually, she decided to donate a kidney to a stranger. Her husband of 32 years Daniel Gomes, who is also in the medical field, was apprehensive at first but knew her well enough to see that she had made up her mind. Read also: <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nation/valentines-day-man-gives-kidney-to-wife,3535">Transplanting love</a>, Shreejana Shrestha Fontana donated her kidney in January 2018. Her recipient turned out to be a 20-year-old young male. “We realised that helping him wasn’t just about helping him, but his family and his community, and this had a much bigger ripple effect than I would have ever imagined,” said the 54-year-old. Unfortunately, the recipient’s body rejected the kidney and he is back on the transplant list. “But what happened after the surgery does not change the fact that I would do it all over again,” added Fontana. More than 100,000 people are in need of organ transplants across the US. In Nepal, the Human Organ Transplant Centre (HOTC) estimates that there are 3,000 people diagnosed with kidney failure, but the real number is much more.&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/A-mysterious-rash-of-kidney-failures,3639">A mysterious rash of kidney failures</a>, Om Astha Rai Bobby McLaughlin was a soccer coach, and decided to become a donor in 2019. A year later, he met his recipient, his wife and their two children. “My donation started a chain of four other donations,” he said. Studies suggest that kidney donors tend to have a longer life than those with two functioning kidneys, likely as a result of increased caution and care about one’s diet and lifestyle after the donation. “I have probably met about 150 donors by now, they are so grateful to have done it. They might have done it for somebody else, but the benefits to themselves and their happiness level from doing it is obvious,” says Stacey Solain, a kidney donation advocate and &nbsp;McLaughlin’s partner.&nbsp; Gionnon Goldhagen enlisted in the US Marines right out of high school and was in the military on and off for six years. The 41-year-old is the only one to have given his kidney to someone he knows — his wife’s uncle. The <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/everest-garbage-caravan">EBC trek</a> was planned over a year ago after other groups of kidney donors climbed Mt Kilimanjaro in 2022. McLaughlin and Fontana both climbed the mountain last year one after another.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230527140548_0bf573b12d7597f09967fca06151db25a87af1a8071beea3445d41e86804fa3f.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="20230527140548_0bf573b12d7597f09967fca06151db25a87af1a8071beea3445d41e86804fa3f" data-rendition-name="original" width="1024" height="768" loading="lazy" alt="Kidney donors at EBC"> </figure>  Their tour company recommended Everest Base Camp trek to further promote their cause. And unlike on Kilimanjaro, their partners could also join. “It is important to our group that this is not just a group of donors, but one that includes spouses and partners as well,” explains McLaughlin. Many Zoom meetings later, McLaughlin, Fontana, Goldhagen, and their companions finally met for the first time in Kathmandu in April before beginning their trek. They also met their lead guide Lachhuman Tamang and his team. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/sherli-goes-trekking">Sherli goes trekking</a>, Sahina Shrestha “When my company told me I was guiding a team of kidney donors, I was worried about how that would work out but I need not have. Now, I’m grateful to have been a part of this important cause,” said Tamang.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230527140548_57f994e65e9f783df95358f57fb99d24bcdf88d448a11f4f7df1e43ae583bdcd.jpg" data-media-id="editor_7" data-image-id="20230527140548_57f994e65e9f783df95358f57fb99d24bcdf88d448a11f4f7df1e43ae583bdcd" data-rendition-name="original" width="1024" height="768" loading="lazy" alt="Kidney donors at EBC"> </figure>  Despite bad weather that delayed their flight to Lukla their journey was pleasant. There were no major health-related problems, and the team was able to complete their trek from Lukla and back completely on foot in 12 days as planned, unlike many others who take helicopters back. Growing up in Caracas, Fontana had dreamed of summiting Everest one day. And while that is never going to happen, she acknowledges, the trek exceeded expectations. The views, she adds, were better than books could ever attempt to describe, or documentaries could ever capture. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/everest-garbage-caravan">Everest garbage caravan</a>, Sonia Awale  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230527140548_5e24368efa74e19c83165ca763e1439ba6bf60aecef09026eb7e071fd1402b16.jpg" data-media-id="editor_9" data-image-id="20230527140548_5e24368efa74e19c83165ca763e1439ba6bf60aecef09026eb7e071fd1402b16" data-rendition-name="original" width="1024" height="768" loading="lazy" alt="Kidney donors at EBC"> </figure>  And the camaraderie the trekkers and the guide team shared was special. “By the end, we had become like a family,” Tamang said. “We have made plans to reconnect.” Tthe team is already discussing another Kilimanjaro climb next year and to Patagonia to spread their message wider.&nbsp; As they prepare to leave, the five trekkers and their guide gather quietly to talk amongst themselves. They ask after Lachhumang Tamang’s young daughter and family. One by one, they give him a hug, say thank you, and go out to explore Kathmandu before flying out. &nbsp;

To the base of Everest on one kidney

Lisa Choegyal

Everest 70 years on

It is that time of the year again. The last-minute construction spree is underway to make up for chronic underspending of capital expenditure, right ahead of the new budget to be presented in Parliament on 29 May. The paradox is that while the government faces a severe cash crunch due to falling revenue, it spent only one-third of the development budget in the last 10 months of the fiscal year.&nbsp; The new parties in Parliament like the RSP have been trying to shake things up and urge multi-partisan consultations before the budget, but given the obsolete structure and leadership of the parties, not much is expected to change. But there is a strong argument for tax reform since the government faces a major challenge in balancing revenue with expenditure. The previous government’s ban on luxury items to augment depleting foreign reserves post-pandemic and increased bank interest led to the decline of real estate transactions resulting directly in a drop in revenue. But what makes matters worse is that the government has been profligate in spending beyond its means. Salaries, allowances, administrative expenses, grants and loans have all gone up. The government collected Rs756 billion in revenue in the last 10 months against the target of Rs1.4 trillion whereas its expenditure has exceeded Rs1.04 trillion.&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/institutionalised-inequality">Institutionalised inequality</a>, Editorial Taxation is the primary source of income for any government. Contrary to what the wealthiest Nepalis think, the government is not run with their tax money but by what ordinary citizens pay in taxes. &nbsp;While tax evasion concentrates the wealth within the already privileged, the tax the poor pay is not proportional to their earnings. &nbsp; Nepal’s liberal economic policy since 1990 was expected to alleviate the income gap with trickle down effect, but the economic disparity in society is more stark than ever. A 2020 report Equality for Prosperity showed that while the wealthiest 20% of Nepalis own 56.2% of wealth, the poor 20% have only 4.1%. This economic gap is likely to have widened with the current crisis.&nbsp; This income gap is not just in Nepal. Worldwide, a skewed tax system is blamed for rising inequality. A new Oxfam report points out that two-thirds of the wealth that has increased globally after the Covid-19 pandemic is in the hands of the richest 1%. It recommends tax reforms based on wealth accumulation. “Because the tax system is not progressive in Nepal, wealth is piling up in the hands of the rich, while the income of the poor is not increasing,” explains economist Dilliraj Khanal. “We don't have a system of taxing the rich because of policy weakness and dominance of middlemen.”&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/nepals-care-economy">Nepal's care economy</a>, Bina Pradhan  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230526050528_6fe0c49de563e6fb210c25501e835186d93ecd57b2f63f8ff8154dca49daeee7.png" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20230526050528_6fe0c49de563e6fb210c25501e835186d93ecd57b2f63f8ff8154dca49daeee7" data-rendition-name="original" width="741" height="541" loading="lazy" alt="Rich-poor gap graph"> </figure>  Who pays taxes? Two-thirds of the government's annual revenue is collected not from corporations and industry, but from various taxes and revenue paid by the general public. The share of tax on corporate profit is in fact very small.&nbsp; In fiscal year 2021/22, the government collected a total of Rs989.62 billion in revenue. Of this, the income tax paid by businesses from the profits earned through private companies is only 5%. So while income tax did bring in Rs229 billion which is 24% of total revenue collected, this amount is largely from the income tax paid by ordinary citizens on their personal income. The tax paid from the profits of private companies is only Rs47.5 billion. When adding public limited companies (issued shares to the general public) and other types of companies, corporate income tax comes to only about Rs114 billion,which is just 11% of the government’s annual revenue.&nbsp; The government collected Rs314 billion from VAT last year, and this made up about one-third of total government revenue. Similarly, Rs241 billion was collected as customs duty and Rs155 billion as excise. “Society with unequal income and wealth, but equal taxes, burdens the poor and favours the rich, it is a regressive tax system that makes it difficult for the poor to survive,” says Khanal. For example, VAT is the same 13% for all Nepalis – rich and poor. &nbsp; “In essence, five-star hotels in Kathmandu and the poor are both taxed equally for LPG fuel,” he adds. “From a social justice standpoint, taxes must be based on income.” Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/ground-reality-of-landlessness-in-nepal/" target="_blank">Ground reality of landlessness in Nepal</a>, Rabi Giri Taxation expert Roop Khadka disagrees, saying it is impractical to have a different VAT rate for rich and poor, and even if it was introduced it would be impossible to enforce. Instead, Khadka favours revoking VAT exemption on goods and services consumed by the upper classes, which are worth nearly Rs100 billion per year. Tax evasion by the rich is another problem that needs to be tightened, and collusion between business and politicians means that the government itself abets tax evasion. Real estate speculation has helped select groups in Nepal to become immensely rich immediately, but the government collects a bare minimum in tax from profits made in land transactions. &nbsp; A real estate sale within five years is required to pay 7% of its profit. If the transition happens within 10 years, only 5% of the profit is taxed. This means most of the astronomical profits made in real estate sales in the past years have gone into the pockets of brokers and large landowners. On the other hand, the 60th report of the Auditor General's Office says many evade tax by showing less than the actual value of the property. The VAT bill scandal 10 years ago also revealed the widespread tax evasion by the commercial sector. The politics of patronage means that businesses are now colluding with politicians and bureaucrats to loot the treasury. The Tax Settlement Commission decided to collect Rs9.54 billion from businesses that have not paid tax for a long time, but the Auditor General's Office later revealed that the decision was made in cahoots with the businesses themselves who actually needed to pay Rs30.52 billion. The most egregious and blatant wrongdoing was by former Finance Minister Janardhan Sharma who was making backroom deals with select business groups importing steel rods and electric vehicles so their products got customised tax breaks in the budget last year. The deal cost Sharma his ministership but the unholy nexus between politicians and business continues with impunity.&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/state-sponsored-economic-crisis-ikcxxmnp">State-sponsored economic crisis</a>, Ramesh Kumar  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230526050528_60a9385914649170d0496b8864bcb751477820b43554c68bec524f6e2412d39b.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="20230526050528_60a9385914649170d0496b8864bcb751477820b43554c68bec524f6e2412d39b" data-rendition-name="original" width="6124" height="4082" loading="lazy" alt="Kathmandu labourer NT"> <figcaption>Photo: SUMAN NEPALI</figcaption> </figure>  Alternative to the wealth tax In this state, the only sector keeping Nepal’s economy afloat is the estimated $9 billion Nepalis abroad send home every year. Still, Nepal’s debt has reached 43% of GDP, a sharp rise from 28% a decade ago. This will have a direct impact on the tax system. Sooner or later, the government will raise taxes. But for whom?&nbsp; If the status quo continues, and the poor are subjected to more taxes the income gap will widen further, inviting social unrest. Taxation relative to the size of the economy is about 22% in Nepal, one of the highest in South Asia. But for every Rs100 the government receives as revenue, only Rs23 is collected through income tax. The rest is made up of common citizens paying for the consumption of goods and services.&nbsp; All over the world, different levels of income are distinguished and income tax exemption is given to the lowest which is known as a basic exemption. Welfare states also have a weighted system of taxes of the richest that ensures socio-economic equality. But even though there is a flat tax on salary and allowances, windfall profits including from real estate transactions are not taxed properly, leading to a consolidation of wealth among certain groups. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nepals-great-income-divide">Nepal's great income divide</a> Experts have proposed wealth-based taxation to reduce the disparity between rich and poor. Economist Keshab Acharya says that the government should levy an inheritance tax on ancestral property to children as is done in the US, Japan and Europe. This encourages entrepreneurship and inspires the new generation to find creative ways to earn money. But the historical distribution of land in Nepal was largely unfair where families close to the ruling class were granted ownership exempt from tax. These assets have been handed down through generations and ownership of a large part of it is still limited to certain families.&nbsp; Historian Mahesh Chandra Regmi in his book Land Ownership in Nepal states that before 1951, more than one-third of the total arable land had been handed down intergenerationally in that manner. An inheritance tax will also reduce corruption because the mentality that wealth should be passed on to children will be weakened if such a tax is implemented. Meanwhile, land prices in Kathmandu skyrocketed thanks to the government. Since the state has spent on infrastructure that led to the rise in value of property, it should get a share of the profits “The government should get the benefit of increased property valuation in the form of taxes which will increase the spending purse for the welfare of the poor,” explains Khanal. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/?p=21822&amp;preview=true" target="_blank">Some are more equal than others</a>, Anil Chitrakar

Nepal’s tax system widens rich-poor gap

&nbsp;Mountaineer, climbing chronicler and international humanitarian worker, <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/Silly-season-on-Sagarmatha,460">Billi Bierling</a> has been in many dangerous places in her life. But it was while riding her bicycle down a street in Kathmandu last month that she broke her ankle. When they see her limping around with her right leg in a brace, many who know the Swiss-German climber ask her if she suffered a mountaineering accident. But that freak mishap seems deliberately timed for the launch of her book, Ich hab ein Rad in Kathmandu (I Have a Bike in Kathmandu) this month. Bierling first came to Nepal in 1998 as a free-spirited youth from her hometown of Garmisch-Partenkirchen in the Bavarian Alps. “The mountains were too close and as a free spirit, I always had the feeling they were limiting my view,” she explains.&nbsp; Read on:&nbsp; <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/news/on-mt-everest-s-70th-records-and-fatalities">On Mt Everest’s 70th, records and fatalities</a>, Pradnya Pradhan <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/news/the-pinnacle-of-determination-and-courage">The pinnacle of determination and courage</a>, Bhadra Sharma After dropping out of high school her concerned parents sent Bierling to work as an au-pair in the United States. Soon, she was roaming around the world and after completing her masters in international journalism at City University London, became a reporter for Swiss Radio International in Bern. Coverage of mountaineering brought her close to Elizabeth Hawley, the famous Kathmandu-based chronicler of <a href="http://www.himalayandatabase.com/">Himalayan Database</a>. <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/from-liz-hawley-in-kathmandu">After Hawley died in 2018</a>, Bierling’s team is carrying on her work of keeping detailed records of expeditions in Nepal.&nbsp; Bierling has combined her mountaineering career, work with Himalayan Database, with being a communications officer with Swiss Humanitarian Aid (SHA) in hotspots like Afghanistan and Ukraine. Bierling has now summited six of the eight-thousanders (Makalu, Manaslu, <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=16053">Everest</a>, Lhotse Cho Oyu and Broad Peak) besides lesser, but no less formidable, peaks like Nuptse..&nbsp; Elizabeth Hawley had her trademark blue Volkswagen Beetle in Kathmandu, and Bierling has her trusted bicycle. In fact, she bought that bicycle even before she had a city map of Kathmandu, and has earned notoriety for showing up unannounced at hotels to interview mountaineers who come back from expeditions.&nbsp; Bierling admits to having an attention span of a five-year-old, but when she commits to doing something she gives it her best. A German newspaper once even called her, ‘The woman who says yes before thinking.’&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230525070524_904cb95ca74b33535cda7c5c3c68a561e69eed6c4ecdba087bd8cd18b42904d7.jpg" data-media-id="editor_6" data-image-id="20230525070524_904cb95ca74b33535cda7c5c3c68a561e69eed6c4ecdba087bd8cd18b42904d7" data-rendition-name="original" width="5161" height="3440" loading="lazy" alt="Billi Bierling’s life cycle"> <figcaption>Billi Bierling broke her ankle riding her bicycle down a street in Kathmandu last month. Photos: PRADNYA PRADHAN</figcaption> </figure>  Despite her many avatars, at <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=16928">55 Bierling is still a journalist at heart</a>, and it satiates her sense of adventure and curiosity about the world. When the Austrian publisher Tyrolia first approached her to write a book, her immediate answer was, “No, but thanks for asking.” Later, the persuasive publisher got her to join hands with co-author Karin Steinbach. Ich hab ein Rad in Kathmandu is a memoir, but more about the people Bierling has encountered rather than herself. “I am first and foremost a journalist, so I write about other people, not just about myself,” she says. <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/the-nepali-chronicles,2195">Elizabeth Hawley looms large</a> in the book, the turbulent first year with the unyielding American.&nbsp; But she later finds that beneath the tough skin, <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/So-far-so-good/remembering-Elizabeth-Hawley,1112">Hawley was sensitive person</a> obsessed with accuracy. It is apt that the book comes out this year, when Hawley would have turned 100.&nbsp; Read on: <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/So-far-so-good/remembering-Elizabeth-Hawley,1112">Elizabeth Hawley 1923-2017</a>, Lisa Choegyal The book is only available in German for now, but Bierling is working on an English translation. As the Managing Director at Himalayan Database and a prolific mountaineer herself, Bierling has witnessed first-hand the evolution of climbing in the Nepal Himalaya. The author does not dwell much on her own six eight-thousanders, but uses the book to discuss the commercialisation of climbing.&nbsp; &nbsp;In the 1980s, there would be only a few international flights landing in Kathmandu, and Hawley would drive to the airport in her Beetle to catch hold of climbers in mountaineering boots to collect information for her Himalayan Database. Today, there are hundreds of expeditions and thousands of climbers to keep track of as Bierling pedals around Kathmandu to reach them. &nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230525070528_7c99f4b96d4eeb5801e65e374189e8430b49ba72bb130d0ff16d77428268b4c3.jpg" data-media-id="editor_11" data-image-id="20230525070528_7c99f4b96d4eeb5801e65e374189e8430b49ba72bb130d0ff16d77428268b4c3" data-rendition-name="original" width="5568" height="3712" loading="lazy" alt="Billi Bierling’s life cycle"> <figcaption>After Elizabeth Hawley, the famous Kathmandu-based chronicler at The Himalayan Database died in 2018, Bierling’s team is carrying on her work of keeping detailed records of expeditions in Nepal.</figcaption> </figure>  The change is not just in the numbers of climbers, but also the way they climb. Says Bierling: “Helicopters on Everest have become as common as microbuses in &nbsp;Kathmandu.” She is concerned that the pressure to get to the top has led many to forget the essence of mountaineering.&nbsp; She explains, “You don’t conquer a mountain, you don’t attack a mountain. You and the mountain have to be friends so it allows you to get to the summit. You go there together.”&nbsp; Another significant portion of the book examines a progressive change in the mountaineering community: the reclamation of Sherpas as mountaineering entrepreneurs. Bierling delights in the fact that a new generation of Sherpas is finally getting long overdue credit for the sacrifices of their forefathers. Expeditions are finally acknowledging that it is not possible for Himalayan expeditions to climb peaks without Sherpas. Read on,<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/news/without-sherpas-there-is-no-mountaineering"> "Without Sherpas, there is no mountaineering"</a>, Bhadra Sharma Bierling summarises the essence of her book: “I am not solely my own self. I am a composite of all those whom I have met, seen, and loved. Their experiences, memories, and emotions reside within me, shaping the person that I am.”&nbsp; Even with an ankle brace on one foot and trekking boots on another, Bierling was riding her bicycle around Kathmandu this week as news comes of more summit records breaking on Everest. This is the same bicycle she bought all those 19 years ago, and same bicycle in the title of her book, and the same bicycle she fell off to break her leg.&nbsp; As she pedals off, Billi Bierling looks more at ease on her bicycle than she is on foot. But she looks even more at home on the mountains.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230525070528_94b80deff51ca056d916786a162c4a8fb5f3eb9d4b846ea92cda037a9f6aa177.jpg" data-media-id="editor_13" data-image-id="20230525070528_94b80deff51ca056d916786a162c4a8fb5f3eb9d4b846ea92cda037a9f6aa177" data-rendition-name="original" width="900" height="300" loading="lazy" alt="Billi Bierling’s life cycle"> </figure>  Book details Ich hab ein Rad in Kathmandu: Mein Leben mit den Achttausendern. Bergsteigen im Himalaya und Alltag in den Krisengebieten unserer Welt.&nbsp; (German) by <a href="https://www.amazon.de/-/en/s/ref=dp_byline_sr_book_1?ie=UTF8&amp;field-author=Billi+Bierling&amp;text=Billi+Bierling&amp;sort=relevancerank&amp;search-alias=books-de">Billi Bierling</a> (Autor), <a href="https://www.amazon.de/-/en/Karin-Steinbach/e/B0045ACPFY/ref=dp_byline_cont_book_2">Karin Steinbach</a> (Autor), <a href="https://www.amazon.de/-/en/s/ref=dp_byline_sr_book_3?ie=UTF8&amp;field-author=Gerlinde+Kaltenbrunner&amp;text=Gerlinde+Kaltenbrunner&amp;sort=relevancerank&amp;search-alias=books-de">Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner</a> (Vorwort) TYROLIA GmbH, 2023 240 pages, Hardcover Price on Amazon: €46.00 ISBN: 10- 3702241035

Billi Bierling’s life cycle

It is nearing 6PM and Mandeep Pathak is on the daily evening round of the in-patient ward at <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/state-of-the-art-rural-hospital">Bayalpata Hospital</a> in Achham District. The section is crowded with patients young and old.&nbsp; Most have respiratory problems, women with limbs broken in falls from cliffs, some have diabetes, and there is a psychosis patient in an isolation ward. There is wailing from the delivery room of the maternity ward. Pathak’s mobile phone buzzes. He listens, and rushes off to the emergency room. A crowded tractor has fallen off the road and there are mass casualties. The wounded soon arrive, and Bayalpata’s staff go into practised triage mode.&nbsp; The team declares a 12-year-old boy dead on arrival. Others are rushed into x-ray and readied for splints and plaster casts. Some are discharged after treatment to join crowds of waiting relatives outside. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/is-free-health-care-possible-in-nepal/">Is free health care possible in Nepal?</a> S P Kalaunee  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230520000536_f8555f89919f26435edcbab7f4f0d99c2314a6c4ebea79795c3987a6571cd56f.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20230520000536_f8555f89919f26435edcbab7f4f0d99c2314a6c4ebea79795c3987a6571cd56f" data-rendition-name="original" width="1400" height="823" loading="lazy" alt="Bayalpata Hospital"> <figcaption>Orthopaedic oncologist Mandeep Pathak consulting a patient at Bayalpata. Photo: NEPALI TIMES ARCHIVES</figcaption> </figure>  Patients in this isolated hospital in a corner of <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=17650#.WreWXNRua70">one of Nepal’s most remote districts</a> are from all over Sudur Paschim and Karnali Provinces. One 8-year-old girl with a broken arm has been brought here by her father from Humla, after walking four days to get to a road. In the 14 years since it was established, word has spread that Bayalpata provides high quality service free of cost, and the hospital is treating 100,000 patients a year with a team of dedicated staff, surgery, lab, pharmacy and a high dependency unit.&nbsp; In the maternity ward is a 35-year-old new mother who is quietly taking her supper. She has a shining smile as her husband fusses over her. They are now happy parents of twin boys, their fourth and fifth children.&nbsp; A few beds away is another young mother recuperating from a caesarean delivery. The husband is not happy — the baby is a girl and they already have two daughters. Hospital staff try to persuade him to get a vasectomy, but he still wants to try for a son.&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/poor-health-makes-nepalis-poorer/">Poor health makes Nepalis poorer</a>, Editorial Unlike private hospitals in Nepal, some of which have up to 80% caesarean deliveries, at Bayalpata most births are natural. Doctors do caesareans only on complicated deliveries, or on referral patients. In one recent case a 17-year-old mother died <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/born-by-the-roadside-in-nepal">on the way</a> to Bayalpata from Bajura district. She had twins, only one of whom survived. Another woman who was 30 weeks pregnant suffered a stillbirth, but because it was a girl, the mother-in-law and husband did not look too perturbed.&nbsp; A mother who gave birth after a difficult delivery was nearly bleeding to death from postpartum haemorrhage. While doctors tried frantically to save her life, the family was celebrating the birth of a son.&nbsp; Despite improved literacy, patriarchy is still entrenched in these remote mountains of far west Nepal. Boys are sent to school while girls help with house chores and raise their little brothers. When children fall sick, the boys are likely to be taken to an expensive private hospital in Dhangadi, while girls are brought to free institutions like Bayalpata. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/this-is-how-to-upgrade-nepals-rural-health/">This is how to upgrade Nepal’s rural health</a>, Sewa Bhattarai <div class="embed-block"><div><div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"><iframe src="//cdn.iframe.ly/api/iframe?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fembed%2FCJzWlnYd0ZM&key=87ca3314a9fa775b5c3a7726100694b0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;"></iframe></div></div></div> “The paradox here is that girls are getting world-class treatment while boys have to settle for less than optimal healthcare at private facilities,” says Mandeep Pathak, one of few orthopaedic oncologists in Nepal who has been working at Bayalpata for eight years. Pathak examines a 14-year-old girl from Mugu on whom he operated to remove a benign but complicated tumour that had restricted her mobility for the past two years. As he does his evening rounds, Pathak tells us: “Our patients are among the poorest and neediest and from the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/devolution-for-development">remotest part of the country</a>. They would not have got a correct diagnosis, let alone get timely and affordable treatment otherwise.”&nbsp; The only cost families have to bear is for transport to the hospital. The hospital even provides free food for one relative accompanying the patient. Read more: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/grassroots-democracy-promotes-good-health/">Grassroots democracy promotes good health</a>, Sagar Budathoki  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230520000536_e8cebc3bbce1465eda92a1bffc6b0129b91ab7fa1ead7f2282eadcfd0b01115e.jpg" data-media-id="editor_10" data-image-id="20230520000536_e8cebc3bbce1465eda92a1bffc6b0129b91ab7fa1ead7f2282eadcfd0b01115e" data-rendition-name="original" width="2592" height="1944" loading="lazy" alt="Bayalpata Hospital"> <figcaption>Program Associate Bhawana Bogati during a community visit.</figcaption> </figure>  <h2>Community Care</h2> Bayalpata Hospital is managed by the non-profit <a href="https://www.nyayahealthnepal.org">Nyaya Health Nepal (NHN)</a> in partnership with the provincial and municipal governments.&nbsp; Although the hospital gets much of the attention, NHN’s emphasis is on the community that provides door-to-door care to families in Achham. There are up to two <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/news/enlisting-female-health-volunteers-to-fight-covid-19-b4qlgy1e">Community Health Workers (CHW) </a>for every ward who regularly visit families to monitor the condition of pregnant women, provide ante-natal care, or check up on those with chronic conditions. This reduces the pressure on the hospital, and also saves families money.&nbsp; CHW can even assist while community nurses perform lab tests including for HIV, hepatitis, urine, sugar, protein, pH level, haemoglobin so patients do not have to come to hospital. The nurses even provide psycho-social counselling, since mental health is still not discussed openly. Aside from healthcare, the female CHWs also demonstrate the important role women can play in this socially conservative society. Jamuna Saud, a 24-year-old CHW, is visiting families in the village of Patalkot, and recording data of patients on her Electronic Health Record app that provides physicians at Bayalpata with instant information on the medical condition of patients in case they need to be taken to hospital. “We are still a male-dominated society here, as you can see, but things are improving,” says Saud, as she climbs up the trail to another family’s homestead. “I have seen families sending daughters to school because they see us being respected for our job. They are starting to treat their own daughters better.” Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/altruistic-healthcare-models-in-nepal">Altruistic healthcare models in Nepal</a>, Yugeshwor Koirala and Yugottam Koirala  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230520000536_b59dabd4604a24426a55fe91c0e5866b5029858bdb4c4028c331557aeb5408ae.jpg" data-media-id="editor_14" data-image-id="20230520000536_b59dabd4604a24426a55fe91c0e5866b5029858bdb4c4028c331557aeb5408ae" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Bayalpata Hospital"> <figcaption>In 14 years, Bayalpata hospital has treated 1.2 million patients free of cost. Photo: NEPALI TIMES ARCHIVES</figcaption> </figure>  The work of NHN’s community health program is already seen in Achham district’s health parameters. After a dip during the pandemic, institutional deliveries have climbed again to 80%, and this has sharply reduced <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/newborn-deaths-and-a-vision-for-a-post-pandemic-nepal">maternal and child mortality</a>.&nbsp; “Mother and child health is our main focus and ensuring that we follow the progress of pregnant women means most now go to Bayalpata to deliver,” says Program Associate Bhawana Bogati, 28.&nbsp; The hospital which recently marked its 15th anniversary has so far treated 1.2 million people free of cost, and sustainability continues to be the biggest challenge for Bayalpata’s public-private partnership with the local government. Half the annual budget still comes from international donors. But more than anything else, Bayalpata is a working example that free quality medical care is possible. Other government district hospitals have larger budgets, treat fewer patients and charge fees. Given the remoteness of Achham, the other challenge is retention of doctors and paramedics. Flights to Sanfebagar are unreliable, and a jeep ride to Dhangadi takes 10 hours. Says surgeon Bhaskar Pant of HAMS Hospital in Kathmandu and a board member of NHN: “Bayalpata is a rural lifeline, we need hospitals like these in the remotest corners of Nepal and to run them we need medical staff who are willing to be posted here.” &nbsp;&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/taking-wealth-out-of-health">Taking wealth out of health</a>, Anita Shrestha Jamuna Saud  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230520000536_fa3a215b0130ef026aa9f62b74904ceccd78962b7f6b325f709da8e74ce04301.jpg" data-media-id="editor_17" data-image-id="20230520000536_fa3a215b0130ef026aa9f62b74904ceccd78962b7f6b325f709da8e74ce04301" data-rendition-name="original" width="2592" height="1944" loading="lazy" alt="Bayalpata Hospital"> </figure>  Her baby son is only nine months old, but Community Health Worker (CHW) Jamuna Saud is already back to making door-to-door visits to advise other expecting mothers about safe delivery. Her visit today to Patalkot village, a 3 hour drive through rough roads from Bayalpata, is hindered by a sudden thunderstorm, but she is not bothered. “You need to eat for two now, it will not be good if you skip meals,” says Saud as she counsels Pabitra Auji who is six months pregnant with her first baby and looks undernourished. “Fruits, leafy vegetables, meat and egg, and don’t forget to take your iron capsules.”&nbsp; Saud has been a CHW for four years. She had originally wanted to be a doctor or a nurse, and was a class topper in school, but her family could not afford medical school fees. Moreover, young women in her community were expected to get married, not go to college. “Mine was the only family in the neighbourhood that let girls go to school,” recalls Saud. “But my parents passed away when I was in the 9th grade and my brothers were not planning to educate me further. I cried until they admitted me to +2.” Saud moved to Sanfebagar and paid her own way through college, supporting herself by doing odd jobs. She is happy to have been accepted by Bayalpata’s <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=19559">community health program</a>, and feels a personal sense of achievement that childhood diarrhoea, malnutrition and respiratory infections among babies is decreasing, while more women accept family planning advice. Over the years, Saud has seen changes among women like her in Achham. Girls are no longer restricted to just doing housework and producing babies. She says, “I am proud to have contributed to raising the living standard of people here even if by the tiniest bit.” Read also: <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/editorial/health-tip-editorial,4032">Health tip</a>, Editorial Ramita Bogati  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230520000536_a967ed31fa4880fa2fdad2765c288c191890294af92823d94b5d2b11f2aed6b7.jpg" data-media-id="editor_20" data-image-id="20230520000536_a967ed31fa4880fa2fdad2765c288c191890294af92823d94b5d2b11f2aed6b7" data-rendition-name="original" width="2592" height="1944" loading="lazy" alt="Bayalpata Hospital"> </figure>  The story of Florence Nightingale was the inspiration for Ramita Bogati, who always wanted to be a nurse herself. Back in her village, girls were actively discouraged from going to school, and were married young so as not to be a drain on the family. “My parents did not actually want to send me to a school but my mother’s side of the family were educated, and many of them were in medicine,” says Bogati. “But I had to prove myself to change my father’s perceptions about what women should be allowed to do.” Today, Bogati is one of 10 Community Health Nurses at Bayalpata overseeing 70 community health workers with her colleagues. Her passion for the job and the importance of the service she provides is all the encouragement she needs. She does not envy her staff nurse classmates who have flown to Australia and other countries. &nbsp; On a typical day, Bogati is involved in early detection of chronic and infectious diseases, tuberculosis and hypertension so that the poorest in the community do not have to borrow money for treatment or, worse, have their lives shortened due to the lack of diagnosis and treatment. Bogati has seen tangible <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=14071">impact</a> of her work in birth spacing. In the past, women here used to give birth to as many as 15 children, and most died young. Now, they give birth to fewer but healthier children. “As a nurse, the concept of community health was new to me but I have seen that we need to look beyond those who are able to come to Bayalpata. If they cannot come to hospital, the hospital needs to go to them.” Read more: <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/national-health-insurance-not-as-easy,4028">A national health insurance scheme is not as easy as it looks</a>, Sonia Awale

Nepal’s rural lifeline

Four people from Arghakhanchi and one from Dailekh died this week from injuries sustained while trying to put out wildfires fanned by high winds near their communities. Ten more people were injured in a forest blaze in Dailekh’s Aathbis Municipality. <a href="https://firms.modaps.eosdis.nasa.gov">NASA satellite</a> data shows that there were wildfires in 1,196 locations in the last five months, out of which 808 of the fires were under the Division Forest Office, while 388 were in national parks. Of the 808 fires within the purview of the district forest office, most occurred within the Lamjung Division Forest Office.&nbsp; Meanwhile, forests in the Chitwan National Park and the buffer zone have recorded 100 fires: the most out of any protected area. Bagmati Province, with 278 fires, had the highest number of wildfires. More than 80% of wildfires in Nepal occur during the dry season between February to May, reaching its peak in mid-April. According to the Department of Forestry and Land Conservation, wildfires burn 200,000 hectares of forest area in Nepal each year, causing an estimated loss of more than Rs2 billion annually.&nbsp; According to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA), 769 people have died and 2,568 have been injured in 18,791 wildfires in Nepal from 2013 to 2023, and the financial loss has been worth more than Rs22 billion.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023051305058_f33b72d5e950a541269b97c934872ec83c8017f4aebd0bcf8ca0749d45a6edf9.png" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="2023051305058_f33b72d5e950a541269b97c934872ec83c8017f4aebd0bcf8ca0749d45a6edf9" data-rendition-name="original" width="1707" height="721" loading="lazy" alt="Wildfire map"> <figcaption>Infrared hotspots detected by the NASA FIRMS Satellite over Nepal on 12 May at noon. Map: NASA FIRMS</figcaption> </figure>  One reason there are more fires is because there are just more <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/while-the-forests-are-burning">forests</a>. Nepal's forest cover doubled in the past 30 years, and since they are strictly protected there is a lot of dry flammable material in the undergrowth. Anil Pokharel, executive head of NDRRMA, says that wildfires have increased tenfold in the last decade and that there have been five times as many wildfires this year than there were last year mainly because of a prolonged winter drought. “We did not expect that there would be such a large number of forest fires this year,” adds Pokharel. “It has been horrific.” Deputy secretary and wildfire expert Sundar Sharma says that inadequate record-keeping measures mean the actual numbers of wildfires are higher than official figures. The lack of detailed study of wildfires has also meant that there has been no preparation and preparedness plan, and by the time work starts, it is too late. Rameshowr Marhatta, joint secretary at the NDRRMA, says that even as fires rage across the country, the authorities have not been able to do much more than provide first response. “Right now, we have just been delivering fire fighting equipment from district to district, and as such we have not been able to properly study the wildfires,” he adds. “This is because we lack manpower, and Sundar Sharma is the only wildfire expert we currently have on the team.”&nbsp; According to the report, Amplified Drought Trend in Nepal Increases the Potential for Himalayan Wild Fire by Binod Pokharel, associate professor at Tribhuvan University’s Central Department of Water and Meteorology, wildfires in Nepal will increase by 12% by 2030, 30% by 2050, and 50% by the end of this century as the climate crisis intensifies along the Himalaya.&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nepal-is-going-up-in-smoke">Nepal is going up in smoke</a>, Kunda Dixit  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230513040524_605dd833321532552ebb333b3c72b36d89c61875c272e0af23152ce7a3c68e6e.jpg" data-media-id="editor_4" data-image-id="20230513040524_605dd833321532552ebb333b3c72b36d89c61875c272e0af23152ce7a3c68e6e" data-rendition-name="original" width="1200" height="800" loading="lazy" alt="Wildfire NT"> <figcaption>Wildfire seen spreading through Nuwakot's Bidur municipality.</figcaption> </figure>  It’s getting hot out here&nbsp; Most of the wildfires are human induced. Early summer is the peak season when herders and farmers set fire to crop residue or pastures to make greenshoots grow when the rains come. But with long winter droughts, the slopes are tinder dry and the fires spread out of control when they are fanned by up-valley winds. Strict rules to protect national parks and community forests also means there is a lot of dry biomass in the jungle floor, which makes it easy for forest to spread -- especially where highways pass through nature reserves like Bardia, Chitwan, or Parsa. “In the past, forest fires used to be naturally occurring, but at present, they happen increasingly due to human factors, either unintentional or deliberate,” says forester Bhola Bhattarai, “People have been known to set fire to the forests to hide evidence of theft of flora and fauna, smuggling, and even to plant new plants.” Research conducted by Monash University in Australia found that <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/news/protecting-nepals-forests-from-fires">climate change directly contributes to increasing wildfires</a> globally. An article published in the New England Journal of Medicine noted that climate change helps fuel oxygen and fire sources. Climate change has also brought about changes in rainfall patterns, leading to more frequent and prolonged droughts across the world. A 2021 report published in German Watch had Nepal as the ninth most vulnerable country in the world to the effects of climate change. But lifestyle changes have contributed just as significantly to increasing wildfires, says Nurendra Aryal, chief conservation officer of the Api-Nampa Conservation Area. Mass migration from villages to cities and outside Nepal has meant that forest management has fallen behind, undermining traditional practices that helped in preventing forest fires. Indeed, across Nepal’s villages, the practice of collecting and managing dry leaves, twigs and branches, and firewood that litter the forest floors and barren farmlands which catch fire quickly during the dry season have been all but abandoned. Managing dry leaves and twigs has become a major challenge. Cattle-rearing has stopped, and consequently, the number of people dependent on the forest for their livelihood has decreased.&nbsp; “Our traditional practice of collecting forest and farm debris and utilising them must be encouraged,” says Aryal. “The leaves, for instance, can be collected and turned into charcoal and then sold.” An apathetic government Nepal’s Ministry of Forests introduced the Forest Fire Management Strategy in 2010, but the implementation has been lax. A budget of Rs13 billion has been assigned to the Ministry of Forests this fiscal year. Of this, only Rs22 million has been set aside for wildfire management. Meanwhile, Rs1.6 billion has been allocated for the NDRRMA, out of which Rs5 million has already been spent on wildfire control so far. The government sends about Rs500,000 annually to each forest office for wildfire control. A part of it is used to purchase firefighting equipment including fireproof jackets, helmets, gloves, backpacks and the like, while some of it goes towards conducting awareness programmes.&nbsp; “Aside from budget gaps, Nepal’s forest offices lack up-to-date resources as well as qualified personnel to fight wildfires,” says wildfire expert Sundar Sharma. “We cannot partake in effective and result-oriented work as long as we do not have an integrated management system and a responsible institution.” Nepal Police, Nepal Army and the Armed Police Force have been coordinating with forest research and training centres under the Ministry of Forest to control wildfires. But the efforts will be successful only if there is sufficient budget, necessary equipment and skilled human resource, says Rajendra Khadka of the Armed Police Force. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/high-and-dry">High and dry</a>, Ramesh Kumar  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230513040524_1945e7fd8846d48d59d088dbc7c65eef30b708f27e26cc696e06691948a0eb4b.jpg" data-media-id="editor_7" data-image-id="20230513040524_1945e7fd8846d48d59d088dbc7c65eef30b708f27e26cc696e06691948a0eb4b" data-rendition-name="original" width="1200" height="800" loading="lazy" alt="Wildfire NT"> </figure>  Meanwhile, the government has been trying to control fires with water bombing helicopters, which is not very effective. “Rather than have manpower and up-to-date equipment, the government has been conducting unnecessary stunts by using helicopters to fight wildfires, which is expensive, cumbersome, and impossible to send to every single affected area,” says Lokraj Nepal of the Chitwan Forest Division. Those who set forest fires are punishable under The Forests Act, 2019 and can be imprisoned for three years, pay a fine of Rs60,000, or both. However, authorities have no information about how many offenders have been prosecuted so far. the culprits in the deadly Arghakhanchi fires this week have not yet been identified. In 2020 the government rendered its Scientific Forest Management Guideline, 2014 null and void, effectively banning the collection, transportation and felling of wood. Consumers now have no incentive to protect the forests and this has led to an indifference towards wildfire control and <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nepal-is-going-up-in-smoke">increased forest fires</a>, say experts. However, Sadhu Ram Chaulagain, president of the Hetaunda chapter of the Federation of Community Forestry Users Nepal, refutes such claims. He says: “The truth is that the drought during last year’s winter and the increasing wildfires have stretched out local manpower thin. Otherwise, our community has a deep connection to the forest.” Pravin Bidari, chief of the Forest Division Office, Bardia says that more than half of the 281 community forest users in his division have been actively fighting wildfires, a sentiment which is echoed by Bharti Pathak, president of the Federation of Community Forestry Users Nepal. “It’s not like anyone can sleep in peace while fires rage around their house. But one is not able to do much without technology or adequate manpower,” she says, adding that if the government were to provide advanced equipment to more than 22,000 community forests across the country to facilitate wildfire control, locals would not have to show up at the scene dressed inadequately— armed simply with buckets and sticks. "Local and provincial governments have shown no desire to coordinate with us," Pathak continues. “After the fire is over, they will send someone over to hold a wildfire-related awareness program, and consider their job done.” Nepal lacks a clear policy on wildfire control, and as such, there has long been confusion over authority and jurisdiction in all three tiers of the government. Home Ministry spokesperson Jitendra Basnet argues that the NDRRMA carries more responsibility over fire control than the ministries. Meanwhile, Devesh Mani Tripathi of the Department of Forests and Soil Conservation, which is under the Ministry of Forests and Environment, says that since the provincial government has the authority to manage national forests, wildfire control should also fall under its purview. "A large amount of money has been sent to the provinces for fire control, so it is them who have a major role to play,” says Tripathi. Bagmati province has had a forest department since 2018, while the Madhes province has recently begun smart patrolling in forests. But much as the provinces have made efforts, Tripathi says, a lack of budget and an abundance of legal hurdles have caused problems. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/central-nepal-engulfed-in-smoke">Central Nepal engulfed in smoke</a>  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230513040528_61c9236284ca305eb1e7043fa14dd810ded58699cfe4075c5e89e535513db89a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_10" data-image-id="20230513040528_61c9236284ca305eb1e7043fa14dd810ded58699cfe4075c5e89e535513db89a" data-rendition-name="original" width="1800" height="1350" loading="lazy" alt="Wildfire NT 4"> <figcaption>Police work to put out a forest fire in Tanahu's Bandipur Rural Municipality. Photo: RSS</figcaption> </figure>  But the real issue lies with the fact that the government is yet o take wildfire control seriously, says Sundar Sharma: “So far, we haven’t had an accountable authority to oversee wildfire control. Our forests will continue to burn and Nepalis will continue to suffer as long as we do have an institutional body to address the disaster.” <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/wildfires-ravage-nepal-mountains">Increasing wildfires </a>also threaten Nepal’s diverse ecosystems, putting biodiversity at risk. Alternatively, when fires raze the habitats of animals, it has led to an increase in human-animal conflicts. &nbsp;But while western Tarai is most impacted by wildfires, Nepal’s low-risk Himalayan region has not been spared. Much of yarsagumba, cypress trees, birch trees and other vegetation have been lost to increasing fires in the Himalaya where it takes up to 15 years for a plant to grow by one meter.&nbsp; “There is such diversity of species in the Himalaya even within relatively small areas that it is impossible to undo the damage caused by wildfires,” says Narayan Ghimire, an associate professor at the Department of Botany at Tribhuvan University. “We risk losing it all if something is not done.” In the Manaslu Conservation Area, 200 hectares of land have been subject to wildfires caused by yarsagumba hunters and cattle herders who believe that setting fire to the land will cause the grass to grow. Manaslu Conservation Area chief Pashupati Adhikari notes that situations like this are the result of an inactive nature conservation fund. Annapurna Conservation Area has also seen an increase in wildfire this year, affecting the habitats of musk deer, snow leopards, and the Himalayan bluesheep. “Large animals may be able to escape wildfires, but animals with young babies and birds that have just laid eggs will not abandon their offspring and will perish, as will small reptiles, insects, and ants,” explains ACAP head Lokendra Adhikari. In the Tarai, construction of fire lines, early warning systems, and fire control patrol dispatched to 67 locations within the protected area have helped greatly in controlling wildfires, says Chitwan National Park chief Jil Bahadur Pun. Says Pun: “Having fire lines has meant that the wildfires do not spread from one location to another, which is why there has not been a big threat to the biodiversity in Chitwan National Park so far.” Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/news/wildfires-in-nepal-cause-air-quality-to-plummet">Wildfires in Nepal cause air quality to plummet</a>