Hi,
Is it only me, or have you all also been wondering what’s with the airport road being closed off every time the Hon’ble President or Hor’ble Prime Minister fly off or fly back from some junket abroad. And it is not just the roads that are closed off with ‘beefed up’ security, Nepal’s air space is also cleared of all traffic for the duration of the mandatory guard of honour and national anthem at the VIP terminal so no aircraft noise disturbs the solemn occasion. Methought we abolished the monarchy in 2008.
If SAARC is revived there is a real danger that we will face another 8 Magnitude SAARC attack since there will be not one, not two, but eight heads of government descending on Kathmandu for another one of those Summits. We have enough summits in Nepal, thank you. We do not need any more.
Relax. There does not seem to be any danger of SAARC going anywhere fast, as Shristi Karki reports on page 1 this week. Just for an instant, there was some hope that a chastened Modi government in India would mean that New Delhi would not be as allergic to SAARC. But no such luck. “India’s foreign policy is not dictated by politicians, but bureaucrats,” former SAARC Secretary General Arjun Bahadur Thapa tells us. And the last we checked, India still has the same External Affairs Minister and the same bureaucrats.
The Editorial on page 2 this week takes note of the annihilation of Gaza being carried out by the Israeli Defence Forces. Editor Sonia Awale wonders what B P Koirala would have to say about the atrocities being perpetrated on Palestinian civilians.
The centerspread this week has highlights of a new guidebook about cross-country bicycling across the Himalayan foothills in Nepal from east to west. The trail avoids the heat and dangers of the East-West Highway along the Tarai, and the extreme cold and altitude of high passes of the Great Himalayan Trail to take in the food and culture of the mellower midhills.
Vishad Onta also analyses the performance of the Nepali team in the ongoing T20 World Cup, and says that despite defeat, the Rhinos won the hearts of the cricketing world.
On page 9, Pradnya Pradhan in her report ‘The Rise and Fall of Nims Purja’ looks at the debacle that Nepal’s foremost mountaineering icon finds himself in, and how his sexual harassment scandal has hurt the country’s image.
We have often reminded readers that the climate crisis is a water crisis, and as the monsoon hits Nepal this week, Mohan Mainali reports on the importance of protecting Nepal’s remaining 3,200 lakes and ponds which are crucial in recharging ground water (page 10-11) so springs do not go dry the rest of the year.
For those of you in Nepal, enjoy the rain that is finally cooling things down after the heat wave. Until next Sunday, same time same station…
Kunda Dixit