The Guthi bill that was tabled by Minister of Land Management, Cooperatives and Poverty Alle­viation Padma Kumari Aryal was met with strong protests, especially by the Newars of Kathmandu. The bill proposed to regulate all religious sites, nationalize both private and public guthis, and ‘better manage’ guthi lands and assets.

Following the protests, the gov­ernment withdrew the bill on June 18. Still, a peaceful demonstration was staged on June 19 at Maitighar Mandala, demanding that the gov­ernment scrap the bill altogether. Nardevi Guthi estimates more than 100,000 people from different eth­nic groups of Nepal took part.

Among the many castes within the Newar community is Jyapu. Jyapus (“competent workers” in Newari) have rich traditions. Their pottery work and unique traditional music enrich the Newari culture. If the Guthi Bill was endorsed, Jyapu guthi operators worry, it could have vastly altered their way of life that they have preserved for generations.

Satya Narayan Dangol, 65, presi­dent of Nardevi Guthi and vice-pres­ident of Jyapu Maha Guthi, says that one reason guthis were formed, centuries ago, was to manage land used for religious and cultural pur­poses. Different guthis serve differ­ent purposes. There are 60 guthis in Kathmandu under Jyapu Maha Guthi, with around 200,000 mem­bers. Even under these 60 guthis, there are smaller guthis that handle different tasks. For example, under Nardevi Guthi, there are 24 guthis that have direct contact with the government for the celebration of 24 compulsory Jyapu festivals. Sim­ilarly, there are other Jyapu guthis outside Kathmandu.

Each Jyapu guthi has a unique responsibility during the celebra­tion of festivals, including organiz­ing bhoj (banquets). Dangol gives an example of how the festivals would have been affected had the bill passed. Jyapu Maha Guthi orga­nizes ‘Devi Nach’ in Nardevi Chowk in Kathmandu during Ghode Jatra. This dance is performed for 36 hours straight, attracting locals and foreigners alike. The next day, Jya­pus pull a chariot, taking it around the core areas of Kathmandu valley to celebrate Paanchare (Nardevi Jatra). “How would the government have managed the logistics on such a scale?” Dangol asks.

"How would the government have managed the logistics on such a scale?"

Satya Narayan Dangol President of Nardevi Guthi

Don’t need no permission

Then there are small Jyapu guth­is whose only work is to provide drinking water to visitors during Rato Machhindranath Jatra in Patan. Had the Guthi bill passed, Dangol wonders if the government would have provided contractual work to serve drinks during festivals, as he is certain small guthis would have dissolved. Moreover, assets such as chariots, idols, and jewelry used in various cultural dances would have all belonged to the government. And guthi operators would have required permission to use them, which Dan­gol says would be unacceptable.

Like other Newar communities, Jyapus also have their own Kuladeva­ta, Clan God, which is passed down generations and is usually owned by guthis. Dangol says that it is infuriat­ing to think that his pious Clan God would also have belonged to the gov­ernment. “I would have to seek the government’s permission to pray to my own Clan God. This reminds me of what Mao Tse-tung did in Chi­na,” he says, in what had become a common refrain of Newari protes­tors. Chairman Mao had launched a destructive campaign against the ‘Four Olds’—old customs, cultures, habits, and ideas—as part of the Cul­tural Revolution in the 1960s.

Ashish Maharjan, 26, who also hails from the Jyapu community, says, “The government has no right to touch our holy and treasured rit­uals and idols.”

Instead of preserving culture, Dangol says the government had been bent on trying to control guthi lands and assets. He adds that funds for the “Bahra Barse Devi Naach”, which takes place every 12 years and is organized by Nardevi Guthi, used to come directly from the Finance Ministry. He points out Jyapu Maha Guthi received Rs 200,000 for the last time in 1969 through King Mahendra. Since then, the govern­ment has refused to provide money and so the guthi operators are man­aging funds themselves.

Guthis, such as Sana-Guthi, Raj-Guthi, Si-Guthi, which play a vital role in keeping community spirit alive by organizing communal meals and providing solace to families who have lost a member, would have also been affected.

Suggest, don’t suppress

Dangol says Si-Guthi currently has Rs 4 million, collected by orga­nizing a biannual bhoj. This bhoj takes place on the day of Yomari Punhi (on full-moon day in Novem­ber/December) and then exactly six months later. Members have to pay a minimum amount to organize the bhoj, and any excess money they contribute goes to the Si-Guthi fund. The money is later used when some­one from a family belonging to the guthi dies. Guthi operators visit the house and manage all death rituals. Dangol wonders if the government officials would have been willing to visit the families of the deceased and how they would have managed the intricate rituals.

Spokesperson of Ministry of Land Management, Cooperatives and Pov­erty Alleviation Janak Raj Joshi says the bill was tabled to make guthis more systematic and organized. He adds that given the widespread con­cern over the bill, the ministry, in any case, would take into account every­one’s concerns and interests before moving forward.

Dangol says if the ministry wanted to make guthis more systematic, it could have offered suggestions to existing guthis “instead of trying to replace a system that has been in place for generations”. The nature of guthis in Janakpur or Dang should not, he adds, influence the govern­ment’s decision on managing guth­is in other regions of the country. He thinks the bill would have been more appropriate for a place like Dang, where landless peasants have worked the lands of others for gen­erations.

But that’s not the case in Kath­mandu. “Jyapus in Kathmandu have donated a lot of lands to guthis. For example, my forefathers gave some of their land to their children and the rest to various guthis,” says Dangol. He thinks that the govern­ment should solicit advice from the local governments before proposing a similar bill in the future and that each province should have a differ­ent set of laws governing guthis.

Had the bill passed, Dangol says, it would have affected not just Newar guthis, but also those of other eth­nicities. Dangol adds that guthi oper­ators should reflect on why guthis were formed in the first place and try harder to meet those needs.

 There are flocks of people walk­ing in and around Bir Hospital, one of the busiest in the coun­try. These are not just patients and their visitors, but also those looking for a palmist, in the hope of getting a peek into their future.

As a child, I was fascinated by palmistry. The idea of someone looking at my palm and somehow foretelling my future was too good to be true. But I took it seriously. I clearly remember two things a palmist had told me in 2010: I would soon be leaving Nepal for my higher studies and I would get married at 25. The thought of getting mar­ried at 25 was exciting then, but now that I am 23, I don’t see myself getting married in two years. But the palmist’s first prophesy was fulfilled. It seemed impossible at the time that I would leave Nepal soon, but two years down the line, I did end up in Bangladesh for an undergraduate degree.

Now that I am older, I am skeptical about palmistry. My first thought is, “Why do palmists sit around pre­dicting others’ future when they could have looked into their own future and changed it for the bet­ter?” Additionally, even though the palmist foretold those two specific things, other things he said were vague: “You will always be there for your family”, “You have a great future”, and “You should not trust people easily”. Unsure about his predictive power, I once again hit the streets to find out more about palmistry.

Under the overhead bridge in front of Bir Hospital is a small room with two palmists—Keshav Prasad Poudel, 79, and Dilliram Koirala, 71. They claim to have read numer­ous palms under that bridge in the past 15 years. Currently, they charge between Rs 150 to Rs 250 for reading a palm. They say they learned palm­istry from family members.

I ask Poudel what he can predict. “Everything,” he replies. I then ask him when I will die. “That’s an easy one,” he says, and explains that if he says I will die within a year, I might come back to question his knowledge after a year, but if he says I will die in the next 20 years, I will probably forget what he said by then. I nod.

I want to talk to other palmists before going back to him. So I approach Bharat Subedi, 75, who is sitting on the sidewalk in front of the hospital. He claims to have learned palmistry at the age of sev­en, when a palmist took him to a dark place in Sundarijal and taught him for seven months. When I ask him how I can believe what he says, he shows me a newspaper cutting. It’s an article about him from April 2015, entitled ‘Ma doctor ko doctor hoon’ (“I am the doctor of doctors”). He charges Rs 330 for a session, for which he uses rice. (I did not see oth­er palmists doing so.) Subedi divides the rice into three parts, each of which requires Rs 100 on top. (Another Rs 30 goes straight into his pocket.) Subedi claims the number of his “customers” has grown over the years.

As I head toward Shahid Gate, I see around eight palmists, all sitting close to each other. I approach one and he tells me they all came to Kathmandu 23 years ago from South India, where they learned palmistry. Tripadi baba, 38, accepts the money I hand him.

I show him my palm. He speaks hastily as if he is reciting a man­tra. And although he talks to me in Nepali, he has a strong accent, which makes it hard for me to understand. He asks my age and predicts I would get married at 25! He goes on to say things like I have a bright career and a future of Laxmi, the goddess of wealth. As I am about to leave, he warns me not to go to other palm­ists, as they might make false predic­tions (like I have a bad future), which would upset me.

Finally, I go back to Poudel. He asks the date and time of my birth, and does some calculation with the numbers. Then he looks at my palm and says I am going to get married soon. I wonder why they have to start with my marriage! I tell him I have no intention of get­ting married before 30. He hesitates slightly but tells me he sees a sign that I would get married earlier. When I ask him for a specific age, he says 28. He predicts I would go abroad within the next eight months and advises me to worship Saturn on Saturdays to placate him. He adds that I have a bright career and I will live a healthy life until I die at 75.

Poudel says people who are in deep trouble and looking for some solace usually get their palms read. Earlier, Subedi had said, “Even doc­tors can’t cure a troubled heart. There are many people who have problems related to life, relation­ships, money, etc. and I am here to guide them.” And Bir Hospital seems to be the right place for it, as there are countless people visiting it from all over the country.

 Youth Time International Movement is organizing its fifth annual Youth Global Forum 2019 in Amsterdam this year and you can apply as a project presenter or a participant. The forum will be held from December 2 to December 6, 2019.

This year, at Youth Global Forum the topic that would be discussed is “Inclusive Development vs Industry 5.0: Where is the future?”. Our technology is rapidly changing and project organizers say that we are moving towards a future where machines and technology are beginning to dominate our daily routines. So, with the help of a diverse range of field experts and industry leaders, the forum hopes to equip youth with the necessary tools to adapt successfully to modern conditions. Gain invaluable knowledge, skills and experience that will serve as a solid ground for your professional journey ahead!

The participants will benefit from several workshops, keynotes and master classes led by some of the world’s foremost experts on the matter of Industry 5.0 & Inclusive Development.

Visit youthtime.eu to check participation costs, eligibility requirements and for more details!

If you want to watch videos from previous Youth Time events then go through this link:

 https://www.youtube.com/user/rhodesyouthforum/videos

 Should women who have unbearable menstrual pain get a day or two off every month? This is an evolving debate and as of today only a handful of countries and companies give their female employees the option of taking days off or working from home in case of difficult menstruation. Four of the five countries that mandate compulsory menstrual leave— Indonesia, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan—are in Asia. Nike is the most notable global company to do it. In Nepal, Sastodeal.com, an online shopping portal, is a notable outlier.

When Sastodeal first introduced the policy in 2016, it had as many admirers as critics. Many were of the view that giving women the option of taking leave or working from home during the most painful days of their monthly cycle was a ‘just’ policy: you cannot victimize women for their biology. According to Sastodeal, menstruating women are given the option, as they might not feel at ease and might not be as productive as on other days.

But there were also many who opposed Sastodeal’s decision. Won’t the women who can work perfectly well during their periods abuse the provision? Internationally, too, it is a contentious topic. For instance, some women’s rights activists believe such policies will further discourage companies from hiring women, who are already judged negatively for their long maternity leave and time taken off to raise children.

The men APEX talked to for this report also had varied responses. Some said they could say nothing conclusive on the topic since they will never experience the hardships of many menstruating women. Others thought the leave should be granted only in serious cases. Then there were those who were entirely hostile to the idea, arguing women already get much ‘leeway’ in the workplace.

APEX is glad to be contributing to this evolving debate in Nepal. Nepal can boast of the most progressive women-friendly policies in the whole of South Asia, starting with women’s 33 percent representation at all levels of government. Menstrual leave or not, perhaps the country can also take the lead in making its workforce more women-friendly, and thereby encourage more of them to take up gainful employment

Is a menstrual leave policy viable in Nepal?

  When Sastodeal, a Nepali online shopping portal, introduced a menstrual leave policy for its female employ­ees in 2016, the decision was both applauded and criticized on social media. Menstrual leave is a type of leave where a menstruating woman has the option of taking paid or unpaid leave if she is unable to go to office. In Sastodeal’s Facebook post announcing the policy, many people weighed in on whether menstru­al leave was a good or a bad idea. “Great initiative. It will reduce the chances of taking those pain killers, which in long run cause harm to us. But as we need to work in office, we are bound to take them and work,” Monika Jaya Pant wrote.

Surbhi Bahety, a human resource representative at Sastodeal, says that among their 20 female employ­ees, on an average, only around 25 percent use their monthly one-day menstrual leave. This, she says, shows that the leave is not being misused. Nor has the policy elicited any negative feedback from staff.

“Menstrual leave is important as many women face unbearable cramps, nausea and bloating, especially on the first day of their period,” she adds. “They are thus given an extra day of leave on top of other types of leave they get every month.” She adds that even if these women come to office, they might not be as productive as they are on other days and not feel at ease. So they have the option of working from home or taking a whole day off. According to Bahety, this policy encourages wom­en to apply to Sastodeal, even as it does not affect the hiring process in any manner.

Menstrual logic

Many complained that this policy may create problems. The main concern was that women could misuse the leave. But Sanjog Thak­uri, who has been working on men­strual hygiene issues for the past six years—and is also a founder of ‘Hami Daju Bhai’, which works on gender issues—says any leave can be misused. “This does not mean there should be no sick leave. This logic applies to menstrual leave as well,” he says.

Some men, in their Facebook posts, joked they wished they had periods too so that they would get extra leave. Some questioned if the women are not embarrassed let­ting their co-workers know they are menstruating. Others wished other Nepali companies would follow suit.

Internationally, too, there is a debate over the necessity of men­strual leave. Last year, when the Vic­torian Women’s Trust, an Australian company, introduced a menstrual leave policy, it stirred a worldwide debate. Kylie Lang, Associate Editor at The Courier Mail, wrote that a menstrual policy will “only prove a disincentive to hiring women, and there are already enough of those, including maternity leave and lon­ger breaks from the fulltime work­force to raise children.” Meanwhile, menstrual leave has been legal in Japan since 1947, as well as in South Korea, Indonesia, Taiwan and parts of China.

But in Nepal, most of the liter­ature on menstruation is either about extreme menstrual practices (Chhaupadi) in Far-Western Nepal or menstrual hygiene education in schools. Publications about men­struation in formal workplaces seem almost nonexistent.

Johannah Mitchell, a Cornell Uni­versity student, undertook a study titled ‘Power to the Period: The Role of Menstruation in Nepal’s Formal Workplace’ in 2017. She shares that there were many moments during the research that she questioned herself if a menstrual leave policy was even an issue in Nepal that need­ed attention. “Dustbins may have not been present in several of the facilities, and there was talk [mainly among healthcare employees] of menstruation interfering with work life, but really, how prevalent a topic is this? Does menstruation play a role in the workplace?” Her final answer: “Yes”.

There were moments during the research that Mitchell questioned herself if a menstrual leave policy was even an issue in Nepal

Cramped for room

Mitchell writes that although only a small percentage of Nepali women work in a formal workplace, she believes that “in terms of counter­acting menstrual stigma, the work­place is the perfect place to start.” Further, in workplace environments that lack a culture of open commu­nication and where gender discrim­ination is strong, she says that “the topic of menstruation is a perfect gateway for discussion regarding these pressing issues.” She con­cludes that although menstruation may play only a small role in the workplace, it is far from irrelevant.

Women face problems at work, to varying degrees, due to menstru­al cramps. Sushmita Mahat, 23, a Nepali nurse in Australia, says that she was told off by her employer this January when she asked for leave due to her menstrual cramps. The employer, also a woman, said that since Mahat had her period every month, she would take leave every month, which made her unfit for the job. Mahat was heartbroken and had to finish her shift despite unbearable pain.

She later found that she has a con­dition called Dysmenorrhea, which makes the first day of her period “horrible”. She then submitted a medical report to her supervisor, whereupon she was legally entitled to one day of leave every month when needed. She says having a menstrual leave policy in place ben­efits working women in many ways.

Sharmila Bhattarai, 21, who is pursuing a Bachelor’s degree and working part-time at a call center in Kathmandu, is relieved that her boss is accommodating when she has period cramps. “I tell him I have ‘ladies’ problem’ and he tells me that if I am finding it hard to con­centrate, I may leave for the day.” Pooja Gupta, 25, a saleswoman at a clothing store in New Road, also thinks two days of paid menstrual leave will make things a lot easier for women.

Lah Puka Chhen is a restaurant in Kathmandu run by two wom­en, Renusha Pradhan and Alina Manandhar. They say that paid men­strual leave is necessary but add that women should not abuse it for it to be sustainable. “Many women get severe cramps during their period so at least one day of leave should be given,” says Manandhar.

Show must go on

But there are women who think it is unnecessary. Sunita Singh, 41, who works in Basantapur Durbar Square Conservation Program, says, “It is normal and happens to most women. But if it is extremely painful, then they may take leave.” She adds that a woman needs to be careful and should carry essential things required during her period. She recalls the time when she faced difficulties in school when she first had her period. “It was a really hard time, especially because we did not know how to handle our periods. The blood used to stain our skirts. But now, as girls grow older, they learn how to handle it.”

Alize Biannic, who runs Solis Per­forming Arts and has been leading various dance groups in Nepal for the past four years, says that she has dealt with more females than males in her industry. “But I cannot real­ly give leave to women when they menstruate.” Instead, she asks them to participate as much as they can. She encourages them to do medi­tation, which she says helps lessen the severity of the cramps. “While I understand that some women can­not even move on the first day of their period, the show must go on,” says Biannic.

 If you are between 20-35 years old and interested in spending an exciting week in one of Europe’s tech hubs, the city of Amsterdam while gaining invaluable skills, knowledge and experience that will serve as a foundation for your future professional endeavors then this opportunity is for you! Applications for Youth Global Forum 2019 is officially open. You can either apply as a participant or a project presenter.

 This is the fifth time Youth Time International Movement is organizing this forum. Project presenters will be competing for the Youth Time Idea Grant, which is 10,000 Euros, fully funded scholarships to study in leading business schools in Europe and South-East Asia and get paid internship opportunities. What’s more? Because this is the fifth anniversary of the Youth Global Forum, this is the first time they are offering a limited number of scholarships which covers flights, food and accommodation expenses to the most outstanding young leaders who are leading positive changes around the world, but unfortunately cannot afford the event. Solving social issues is at the forefront of their work and if you are also interested in doing the same for your community, you should give this a try. The forum is set to be held from December 2 to December 6 and it hopes to bring together over 100 participants, experts and trainers from all over the world.

The deadline to apply is June 1, 2019.

For more information, visit www.youthglobalforum.org!

 There has of late been a lot of talk about women’s empowerment and the record presence of Nepali women in law-making bodies. But who are these women? What are their personal and education backgrounds and what are their commitments to the society? If you are curious, there is now a handy tool at your disposal.

“Hamro Mahila Pratinidhi” is a project funded by the Norwegian Embassy and implemented by a not-for-profit civil technology company called Youth Innovation Lab (YI-Lab). The result is a web-cum-written profile of 301 elected female political leaders of federal and provincial parliaments. Besides this, through an interactive web portal, you can view profiles of 14,353 local level female representatives and access information such as their age, education level, ethnicity, contact details, and their political commitments.

Pradip Khatiwada, 28, the lab’s executive director, says that the goal is to foster facts-based conversations about politics. “There are countless female political leaders in Nepal whose stories have not reached the public yet. We are trying to change that,” he says.

“Hamro Mahila Pratinidhi” is a project funded by the Norwegian Embassy and implemented by Youth Innovation Lab

Khatiwada says that despite the proliferation of social media and modern technology, people still struggle to find basic information about their representatives.

YI-Lab first thought of this concept during the 2017 elections. Khatiwada says Nepali politicians make fancy promises during elections. But there is no body to keep track of whether they fulfill these promises. YI-Lab wanted to do something about it.

However, arranging funding was a big challenge, and they were also confused about where to start. Then they came across “Hamro Mahila Pratinidhi” project that an organization working on women’s issues, Sankalpa, had bagged from the Norwegian Embassy. YI-Lab decided to help Sankalpa implement it.

Some female representatives were hesitant to give their personal information and there were language barriers too as they went about collecting data of female representatives, says Khatiwada. “Some first wanted to take their husband’s permission,” he adds. He recounts the times when he had to personally contact representatives as they were not giving information, and he did not want any information missing from the website or the book.

After collecting data, the next goal was to make the collected information easily accessible and interesting. “This is the age of technology and this generation wants information at their fingertips,” says Khatiwada. “Kathmandu’s youth might know more about American politics than Nepali politics because information about American politics is fed to us in a handy and simplified way over the internet.” He wanted to create something similar in Nepal.

Through the web platform, you can compare data about women representatives, say between two provinces or municipalities. Khatiwada says this first-of-its-kind initiative is a “gold mine” for researchers.

“If you have documentation of one election, you can spot the trends in next elections too,” he says. Representatives will keep changing but because a web platform will be in place, more information can be added without additional investment. YI-Lab will even engage volunteers and encourage political representatives to alter or input (new) information on the web platform.  

Click the link to access 'Hamro Mahila Pratinidhi' website: http://mahilapratinidhi.com

 Viewed through a hyper-nationalist lens, so many of our kids speaking Hindi, the lingua franca of the Big Brother next door, is a veritable disaster. But it is nothing to be alarmed about. Studies suggest there are many cognitive benefits to being bilingual. But is it good if your child is being exposed to Nepali, Hindi and English at the same time? Won’t that result in confusion? Not necessarily. Hindi and Nepali belong to the same language family, developed in the Indian subcontinent between the 1st and the 4th century CE. If you know one, it is not that difficult to pick up another.

Nonetheless it is interesting that countless Nepali children are learning Hindi through cartoons. The cartoon television networks broadcast in Nepal are all based in India, and their shows often come with a Hindi commentary.

Some of these cartoons are Indian originals (‘Motu Patlu’, ‘Chhota Bheem’), while other popular western ones like ‘Tom and Jerry’ and ‘Oggy and the Cockroaches’ are dubbed in Hindi. According to Madhu Bikash Khanal, a school psychologist, children are most susceptible to picking up new languages between the ages of two and nine. When they watch Hindi and English cartoons regularly, they gain some skills in these languages.

 There can be no doubt about the benefits of having more cartoons and children-centered shows in native tongues

 Some children get so addicted they refuse to eat without watching their favorite cartoons

But most Nepali children of this age group do not watch cartoons on television but rather on YouTube, often on their parents’ smartphones. Some get so addicted they refuse to eat without watching their favorite cartoons. That is a separate concern.

Getting to learn a popular language of a neighboring country, one which is a rising global power, is a “big plus”, says sociologist Chaitanya Mishra. He advises ditching our ethno-centricity that makes us look down on certain groups of people and languages.

Yet there can be no doubt about the benefits of having more cartoons and children-centered shows in native tongues. This will help children improve their Nepali, the country’s national language. More than that, it will boost other local tongues, all invaluable national treasures. So, the worry is not so much that Nepali children are hooked on Hindi cartoons. It is that many of them are now unhealthily glued to smartphones and are perhaps losing command of their native tongues.

 How Hindi is gaining many young speakers in Nepal

 In staffrooms of schools around Kathmandu, children replying to teachers’ questions in Hindi has become a topic of discussion. Anima Bhattarai, who has been teaching primary-level children for the past eight years, says she hears many children speaking to each other in Hindi

 At a grocery shop at Talchikhel, Lalitpur, Sarah Singh Katwal, 6, is begging with her mother to buy her a packet of ‘Motu Patlu’ chips. I lean down and ask her why she was insisting on that particular brand of chips and she says she loves watching the Indian sitcom “Motu Patlu” on Nickelodeon. “Do you know how to speak Hindi then?” I ask. “Mujhe aata hai” (“I know it”), she replies and laughs.She then talks excitedly about the cartoons she loves, namely “Chhota Bheem”, “Pokemon”, “Doraemon” and “Chota Singham”, all of which she watches in Hindi. She knows by heart which channels broadcast these shows. Her mother, Sarita Katwal, 39, wishes Sarah watched more English shows. Why, I ask? Because English is an international language, Katwal replies. “Sarah doesn’t just watch Hindi cartoons on TV, she watches cooking shows and Barbie doll shows with Hindi commentary on YouTube.” Katwal reckons her daughter perhaps understands Hindi better than she understands English.

Likewise, her son, Aarya Dhoj, 12, even has his own YouTube channel ‘Mello Tube’ where he uploads shots of him playing video games with English commentary. Aarya Dhoj, says his mother, learnt to give commentary from the Hindi shows he watches.

What about Nepali cartoons? Does Sarah like them? Sarah says she does not find Nepali cartoons enjoyable. Sarita, the mother, replies that the variety of cartoons available in Hindi is missing in Nepali.

Shrishan Raj Upadhyay, 7, can speak Hindi astonishingly fast, says his mother Devika Sharma. For the past 19 years Devika has worked as a primary school teacher. She is familiar with the idea of children liking Hindi cartoons: “Children in the school I teach in Gokarna also speak some Hindi.” But she has not heard anyone speaking Hindi as fast as her son. Sometimes he even uses complex Hindi words that she cannot comprehend.

Hot topic of Hindi

In staffrooms of schools around Kathmandu, children replying to teachers’ questions in Hindi has become a topic of discussion, according to primary school teachers. Anima Bhattarai, 29, who has been teaching primary-level children for the past eight years in Boudha, says she hears many children speaking to each other in Hindi. “Instead of sending their kids to play outside, parents these days prefer to give their children mobile phones on which they can watch Hindi cartoons and channels,” Bhattarai says.

A kindergarten teacher at the school she teaches shared that when she shows English rhymes to children, they ask her to show Hindi rhymes instead. Bhattarai says children may be attracted to Hindi and Nepali rhymes because they are easier to understand than English rhymes. Her son, Swikar, 7, can also speak Hindi fluently. “He even talks to family members in Hindi which is awkward so I try to show him more English cartoons.”

“Mai tumhe maar dunga” (‘I will kill you’) and “Areey buddhu” (‘Hey dumbo’) are common things that Anushka Shrestha, 20, who teaches Upper Kindergarteners, hears in the playground every day. “Children learn from other students and from cartoons,” she comments.

Ranjana Nepali, 38, another primary school teacher with 18 years of experience, says that children speak Hindi at her primary school in Nakkhu. “Even though we do not allow children to speak in Hindi, they do so unknowingly from time to time,” she shares. “When I started teaching 18 years ago, children did not speak in Hindi. They started doing so only when YouTube got popular. Before that, children usually watched cartoons in English like Tom and Jerry or Moomin.”

When she meets parents during admissions, they tell her their kids do not eat food until they are shown YouTube videos. “Children are usually more disciplined at school,” she shares.

Foreign language a plus

The most important thing is that children should be able to speak Nepali well, says Chaitanya Mishra, a sociologist. Learning regional languages of Nepal is important too. He says that the more languages we learn, the better it is for us. “We are becoming more cosmopolitan so learning new languages, especially a neighboring country’s language, is a plus for us. We grew up so ethno-centric, but now we have to learn to go beyond that or we will not progress,” he says.

Madhu Bikash Khanal, a school psychologist who has worked with school children for two decades, also thinks children learning other languages is a good thing. According to WHO and UNICEF, early childhood is a vital point for development in a person’s life. Children start to learn language by hearing and speaking when they are about 2. They also pick up a language quicker when they are between 2 to 6. In developmental psychology, according to Khanal, the critical age for language development is until around 9. After this, it gets harder to learn a new language.

But there also are downsides to watching these foreign cartoons. Khanal says many children have forgotten their mother tongue. Of late he has seen children watch more and more Hindi shows. This is not the proper way to learn a language, he adds, because without instructions they tend to mix up different languages.

Sunita Bhattarai, 57, from Baneshwor says that her three grandchildren keenly watch Hindi cartoons. Their mothers let them because then they can get on with their own chores. “No such cartoons during my time!” she laughs.

Khanal stresses the importance of having better Nepali cartoons. “It would be better still if there were cartoons in various regional languages of Nepal,” he says. “When children watch cartoons from other countries, they start emulating other cultures, while forgetting and failing to understand their own”.

If you walk on the streets of Thamel, you may have noticed there are no vehicles in three stretches of the road there. Free of honking, you can move about without any fear of getting hit by moving vehicles on these small roads, and to peacefully check out souvenir shops if you are so willing.

 In October 2017, the Kathmandu Metropolitan City had declared three stretches of Thamel vehicle-free. One of the lead campaigners to make that happen was KTM Walks, which was initiated by activists who wanted to create more livable cities. At the root of this campaign, which started in 2007, is community engagement.

 Kamana Manandhar, the leader of the campaign, says KTM Walks first recognized Thamel as an ideal vehicle- free area back in 2007. “It is a tourist area. To increase the number of tourists as well as its aesthetic value, and to boost economy and decrease pollution, we thought why not make it a vehicle-free zone?”

 In 2011, they did a research ‘Perception of multi-stakeholder in Thamel to make it a vehicle-free zone’. The results showed most locals wanted Thamel to be a vehicle-free zone. A major concern was where to park vehicles.

As vehicle-free Thamel is already a success story, they wish to introduce this idea in Kirtipur and Lalitpur as well

 When an area is declared vehicle- free, all individuals in that stretch are affected, says Manandhar. So KTM Walks divided households into various clusters, 100 in total, and conducted individual meetings. Most residents were in favor of a vehicle-free Thamel but were still doubtful. KTM Walks wanted to show them what would happen if Thamel was declared vehicle- free. On 22 Sept, 2014, they organized a vehicle-free day in Thamel. “We also did presentations in municipality office and traffic police office to show the benefits of vehicle-free zone,” says Manandhar.

 They then decided to make other identified areas like Kilagal, Basantapur, JP Marg, Saatghumti vehicle-free for a day, on the week marking the 2014 ‘World Car-Free Day’. There were interesting on-street events with the participation of the local community, youth groups, entrepreneurs and businesspeople. People found those days to be fun because various events were organized and children played on streets without fear of getting hit by vehicles, recalls Manandhar. “This is how we did the groundwork to prepare local people for a vehicle-free street. We were the ones to give this idea to Thamel Tourism Development Council and municipality.”

 Lakeside Pokhara was also announced vehicle-free towards the end of 2017. But after a few months, the decision was taken back because neither was there community engagement nor the level of stakeholder involvement seen in Thamel.

 KTM Walks even did a post-survey in Thamel after it was declared vehicle- free because “if more than 50 percent of people are unhappy, then the rule will be hard to sustain.” Most of them were happy. But the problem was that neighboring areas in Thamel were complaining that the roads in front of their houses should also be declared vehicle-free since traffic was now being diverted to those areas.

 Manandhar says that since vehicle- free Thamel is already a success story, they wish to introduce this idea in Kirtipur and Lalitpur too. Layakusa Street in Kirtipur has been identified as an ideal vehicle-free street. In January this year, KTM Walks volunteers met municipality personnel of these areas. “If you have a vehicle-free street, it is an opportunity for events to happen and for people to socialize and a community to bond,” says Manandhar.

 They have also done a pre-feasibility study and a perception survey of 400 people in an attempt to introduce vehicle- free zones in core areas of Lalitpur and Kirtipur. In Kirtipur, even though 71 percent of the respondents said traffic congestion was not a problem, 83 percent of those surveyed spoke of the need for a pedestrian zone.

 Likewise, 97 percent respondents from Lalitpur said traffic congestion was a problem, and 89 percent said a pedestrian zone is necessary. The respondents identified improved air quality, reduced noise pollution, better accessibility to road and greater business as main benefits of vehicle-free streets in Lalitpur and Kirtipur.