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A two-country Himalayan Vegan Festival is being held in April 2022 in Thimpu, Bhutan and Kathmandu, Nepal. The festival organizing committee informed as much during a special vegan buffet held at Utpala Café, Boudha, on September 18.  

The first of the two-part event will be held in Kathmandu from April 15-17, to be followed by the second part in Thimpu from April 18-20.

The goal is to raise awareness about the benefits of a plant-based diet and encourage more people to go vegan. “There are endless reasons one should go vegan,” says Zachary Lovas, general secretary of World Vegan Organization and a member of the organizing team of the Himalayan Vegan Festival. “We want to promote a vegan lifestyle and educate people about the necessity of veganism in today’s world”.

An Oxford University study says adopting a vegan diet can reduce one’s carbon footprint by up to 73 percent. A lot of methane, a gas responsible for climate change and global warming, is produced during the raising of livestock. Then a copious amount of carbon-di-oxide and carbon-mono-oxide, both greenhouse gases, are released in their transport. If we stop eating meat and meat products, a major chunk of food-based air pollutants will be removed from the atmosphere.

Shifting to a plant-based has multiple health benefits and it helps eliminate animal cruelty. “There has always been this debate about whether humans are carnivorous, herbivorous, or omnivorous. Let us put all that aside and just be humans,” Lovas adds. 

Our connection to the wonders of nature is part of who we are, and yet that connection often feels like an uneasy one. While we lived mostly indoors during global COVID-19 lockdowns, many of us realized how much we treasure the awe-kindling beauty of the natural world, whether in our own garden or deep in the forest. We are not separate from nature, as Sebene Selassie says—we are one with it.

Yet, at the same time, these feelings of awe and connection may be tinged with more than a little fear and grief. With record-breaking storms, floods, and heatwaves, not only is this beautiful planet earth sending out an SOS, but humans and other living beings are suffering too. If your heart has been aching for all these impacts of climate change, you’re not alone. 

Mindfulness teachers like Selassie remind us that the lighthouse in this storm of disruption is found in our innate connection to the earth. At any time, we can turn toward these challenging thoughts and emotions and choose to respond with kindness—kindness that extends to ourselves, to other people, to the global home we share.

You might start with these ways you can ease the ache by practicing kindness to yourself, and kindness to the earth.

1. Name your feelings. Are you feeling anxious? Sad? Angry? Betrayed? Recognizing our emotions around climate grief is the first step—it’s what allows us to validate those emotions, without letting them paralyze us. “We never really know what is coming next,” says Carley Hauck, “and sometimes the best and most courageous thing we can do is put one foot in front of the other and keep breathing through all of it.” Try this 10-minute guided meditation to help you name and work with difficult emotions.

2. Unhook from the worry loop. Sebene Selassie writes, “Our minds can have a hard time staying grounded in the present. It’s our meditation practice that can help us connect to our body and our breath, allowing us to build our capacity to be present with what is with kindness and care.” Explore her Four Elements practice to release climate anxiety and reconnect with a joyful sense of belonging to nature. 

3.  Notice where you feel called to take kind action. Start where you are, and do what you can to be kind to the earth. Whatever your activism looks like—whether it’s tending a little patch of green in your backyard, or being part of a global effort—no act of kindness is too small to matter. Joe Flanders offers three tips to channel your kindness toward yourself, those around you, and to the planet.

Mindful.org

Sher Bahadur Deuba has given a poor account of himself in his two months as prime minister. The holder of 17 ministries has even failed to give a full shape to his cabinet. CPN-UML, the main opposition, has been an obstreperous foe, and yet Deuba too has failed to play his part to clear the parliamentary logjam. Devoid of a foreign minister until September 22, his government bungled on key foreign policy issues like the MCC Compact and the drowning of a Nepali national by Indian border forces.

During his four previous tenures as prime minister Deuba was reputed as a consummate wheeler-dealer who could do just about anything, including distributing expensive SUVs, to keep his coalition partners happy. In his latest stint as prime minister, there is nothing to suggest he has learned from his previous mistakes. On the contrary, he seems determined to regain the Nepali Congress presidency by misusing the PMO.

Dozens of bills are pending in the legislature, government spending has come to a halt, and the economy is crying out for a stimulus. No one knows what the prime minister is doing to improve things on these fronts. Having been appointed prime minister by the Supreme Court, things were never going to be easy for him. Even so, it is hard to give a better example of incompetence than his continued failure (reluctance?) to expand his cabinet and get the ministries up and running.

Many are starting to doubt whether Deuba can successfully hold the constitutionally mandated elections by the November 2022 deadline. They also worry about his lack of commitment to federalism as dozens of bills to make it functional continue to languish in parliament. Six years since the promulgation of the new constitution, the implementation of the federal project has been woefully slow, including under this government.  

Even if there are to be elections soon, Deuba, as prime minister, is doing Nepali Congress no favor whatsoever. In its current form, anti-incumbency could weigh heavily against the party. Moreover, his demonstrable incompetence—following hot on the heels of another unsuccessful prime minister from the main opposition—will add to the appeal of the political forces arrayed against the post-2006 progressive changes. 

If you’re looking for a new taste at a reasonable price range, Kothey’s is the restaurant for you. Located in Patan, beside Pimbahal Pokhari, this lively Chinese restaurant serves the original Chinese style kothey food for the first time in Nepal. 

Opened only a month ago, Kothey’s has been bustling with happy customers with its unique and delightful flavors. All the dishes have an authentic touch of spices that make them stand out. The owner of Kothey, inspired by the food he encountered during his years in China, wanted to the flavors to the people of Nepal.

As you enter, welcoming you will be the vamped-up wall with a giant antique Chinese mask. There is more seating upstairs with a window view of the peaceful Pimbahal. Kothey’s is the perfect place for an afternoon hangout.

Chef’s specials:
Kothey
Spicy Sausage Aaloo
Hot n Spicy Cold Noodles
Crispy Chicken Roll
Opening time: 11 am - 8 pm 
Location: Pimbhbal, Lalitpur 
Phone pay 
No reservations

On the occasion of Constitution Day on September 19, the government announced the names of the recipients of various medals and decorations for this year.

Actors Keki Adhikari and Anmol KC and singers Prakash Saput and Hemant Sharma are on the list for Janasewa Shri. Comedian Kamal Gaonle, dancer Mahesh Prakash Hada, singer Navin Kumar Poudyal, deaf artist Sujal Bam, dancer Teriya Fauja Magar, artist Shiva Shankar Rijal (Jogendra), Rajkumar Rai, and Maithili artist Ranju Jha have also been chosen for the award.

Folk singer Bishnu Majhi, artists Nawal Khadka, Prakash Ghimire and Ramesh Budhathoki, actors Deepashree Niraula and Hemant Budhathoki, and singers Chandra Prasad Sharma, Kulendra Bishwakarma and Devika Pradhan, and musician Kastup Pant have also been named.

President Bidya Devi Bhandari will confer the medals on the recipients at a later date.

Birth: 1952, Lalitpur 
Death: 2021, Kathmandu

Entertaining the Nepali audiences, most famously in his comic mien of ‘Mattare’, Ramesh KC contributed to the Nepali theatre and film industry for nearly 50 years. 

Born in Imadol, Lalitpur, KC grew up with singing, dancing, and acting as his hobbies. After tying the knot with Lila KC in 1970, he started his professional acting career. In the beginning, he used to be involved with a yearly cultural program. 

His journey as an actor started with his role in a play called ‘Anjaan’. In the following years, he acted in other plays like ‘Ke Sakkali Ke Nakkali’, ‘Muna Madan’, ‘Prithvi Narayan’, ‘Modi Aain’, ‘AKN’, and serials like ‘Nautanki Maailo’, ‘Khotai Khatal’ and many more.

Again, he was most popular among the Nepali audience in his role of ‘Mattare’, a drunkard character, in the TV series ‘Khottai Khane’. Most recently, he appeared in ‘Ekadeshko Churifuri’ and ‘Harke Hawaldar’ TV shows.

Altogether, KC acted in more than 40 stage plays, over 3,000 street and radio dramas and above 20 TV shows. He also made appearances in 13 popular Nepali movies and in numerous music videos. Besides this, KC taught music, singing and dancing at Mahendra Adarsha School before retiring from the job in 2000.

He had taken up acting at a time actors had to spend their own money on the roles they played. In the past few years, KC had thus expressed his great pride in witnessing the Nepali theater and film industry modernize and practice different kinds of storytelling.

As an artist, he always stood up for preserving the country’s artistic heritage. He urged the government to invest and pay more attention to protecting different languages, cultures, festivals, dances, attires, and songs.

KC, who had for long been suffering from heart disease, passed away at the age of 69, on 19 September 2021 on the set of Harke Hawaldar. He is survived by his wife, two sons, and three daughters.

Century Commercial Bank recently lost Rs 50 million due to unscrupulous business practices, but the central bank is yet to take action against the concerned employees.

The story begins with the ‘A’ class bank signing an agreement with M&M, ‘a Mauritius-based company’ on 25 March 2016. Under the deal, Century was to pay local customers against receipts sent by M&M in remittances. Following the deal, M&M issued a receipt to Century requesting payment of Rs 50 million to local clients, to which the bank complied. But M&M never sent the amount to the bank, leaving a hole in its books. But the bank continued to do business with M&M even after it defaulted on its payment.

M&M, owned by Manish Raj Pant, is currently out of operation, according to dristinews.com. The website says that as Pant is absconding, the company, it is believed, was established to defraud the bank.

However, the central bank hasn’t taken any action against the bank’s employees who signed an agreement with the company without proper background check. Due to institutional corruption, the bank is at the bottom of the list of commercial banks.

According to the website, Nepal Rastra Bank first sent a letter to Nepal Police to investigate irregularities in Century Bank and take necessary action. But it again issued another letter asking police not to proceed with the investigation immediately.

The report suggesting that action be taken against the bank employees was prepared six months ago. However, sources say that the investigation was hampered after the involvement of the bank’s promoters.

“We had decided to write to the Central Investigation Bureau asking for investigation,” an NRB source says. “But it was suddenly decided that the investigation was to be directed towards the revenue department. A concrete decision has still not been made.”

Had the CIB investigated the incident, several employees, including the then CEO, could have been arrested. 

The House deadlock that threatens to freeze government spending perfectly highlights the irresponsibility of our major political forces. The Sher Bahadur Deuba-led government kept delaying the parliamentary endorsement of its budget bill fearing that it didn’t have the requisite numbers.

The government decided to press ahead with the bill only when it became certain of a majority. On the other hand, CPN-UML, the main opposition, has been disrupting house proceedings accusing Speaker Agni Prasad Sapkota of bias as he refused to dismiss 14 renegade UML MPs. UML has also boycotted Sapkota’s initiatives to reopen the house. This is not a battle that appears ripe for an early resolution.

As a result, for the first time in the democratic history of Nepal, government spending could come to a halt, even as the country is neck-deep in the Covid-19 crisis and an urgent outlay is vital for timely procurement and distribution of vaccines. All development activities will stop. Meanwhile, the ruling as well as opposition parties, seem determined to tire each other out.

The previous government of KP Oli was much maligned for playing fast and loose with democratic norms before the Supreme Court ordered its ouster. Yet the current Deuba government seems no better in terms of misusing state offices and coffers. Oli, at the same time, continues to cross new frontiers every day by using the most disparaging language against his political opponents and by encouraging his MPs to act violently inside the parliament.

Deuba’s time in office should have been used, first and foremost, to clear the way for the three tiers of elections which must be completed before the November 2022 constitutional deadline. Yet it is hard to see the country head to elections in such a toxic political climate. Given the course of events over the past year or so, there is a possibility of a constitutional vacuum, come November 2022. Hopefully, our major political actors will pull back from the brink while they still have time. Their current strategy of smashing democratic norms to smite their opponents is self-defeating.