Submit your Article

The electricity of the national transmission grid has reached the base camp of Tilicho Lake, a tourist destination in Manang district.

Electricity supply has been started by bringing the national transmission line to the base camp at an altitude of 4,250 meters above sea level in Manang Ngisyang Rural Municipality-9. Power supply has been provided by keeping a distribution transformer of 50 KVA capacity at the base camp.

There are 10 hotels, health posts and small restaurants operating in the base camp. There are 15 electricity customers in the base camp. Before reaching the national transmission line, the base camp was supplied with electricity from solar energy and diesel generators. The place falls within the Annapurna Conservation Area.

Chyolpa Gurung, Ward Chairperson of Manang Ngisyang Rural Municipality-9, said that there was a big problem of electricity supply in tourist places due to expansion of solar energy and said that now it is much easier after reaching the national transmission line.

After reaching the national line, a machine has been placed to measure the oxygen level for the hikers going to Tilicho Lake from the base camp. Gurung, who is also running a hotel in the base camp said “Water has been boiled using electricity, which has reduced the use of gas by about 40 percent.” He also mentioned that because firewood is expensive in that area, gas is used for cooking and boiling water.

33 KV power transmission line from the substation of Radhi small Hydropower station located in Marsyangdi-5 Ghermu of Lamjung to the 33/11 KV substation located in Chame Rural Municipality-1 Sarkyu. From the said substation,  11 KV line was taken to the base camp through Chame, the headquarters of Manang District. The Authority has operated 45 KW Chame Small Hydropower Station and 80 KW Manang Small Hydropower Station to supply electricity to Manang. As part of the Marsyangdi Corridor 220 KV transmission line project, the power supply of Manang will be improved after the construction of a 220 KV substation is completed in Nason rural municipality-1 Dharapani of Manang and the line is started from there.

Nepal Electricity Authority’s (NEA) Karnali Province Office has set an ambitious target to provide electricity to all households in Karnali within the next 18 months. Currently, 74.25 percent of households in the province have access to electricity, leaving 24.75 percent yet to be connected. Despite the challenges posed by Karnali’s rugged terrain, the NEA is determined to complete electrification within the given timeframe, supported by a contract worth Rs 12bn.

Shambhu Kusiyat Yadav, head of the NEA Karnali Province Office, expressed confidence in the project’s success. “Karnali will be fully illuminated within the next year and a half,” Yadav said. “We are working diligently to expand electricity service to every household.”

The NEA has completed surveys in areas where electricity has not yet reached, and the contract process for expansion is underway. Transportation of materials for the extension project is in progress, aiming to ensure that all Karnali residents have electricity within the target period.

Karnali currently has 279,078 households connected to the national grid, while 35,698 households rely on small hydropower, and 244,344 households use solar power, according to the NEA Karnali Province Office.

Electrification status across Karnali districts

The highest electrification rate is in Rukum Paschim, where 94 percent of households are connected. In contrast, Humla has the lowest electrification rate at just 24 percent. Other districts’ electrification rates are as follows:

• Surkhet: 84 percent
• Salyan: 77 percent
• Jajarkot: 45 percent
• Kalikot: 70 percent
• Jumla: 57 percent
• Dolpa: 39 percent
• Dailekh: 80 percent
• Mugu: 34 percent

Thirteen of Karnali’s 79 local levels remain without electricity, including six in Dolpa, four in Humla, and three in Mugu. The NEA aims to reach these areas within 18 months, overcoming geographical barriers to make Karnali a fully electrified province. Local levels still without electricity include Dolpo Buddha, Shey-Phoksundo, Jagdulla, Mudkechula, Kaike, and Charkatangsok in Dolpa; Sarkegad, Chankheli, Adanchuli, and Tanjakot in Humla; and Mugumkarmarong, Soru, and Khatya in Mugu.

Karnali bright program and state funding

Karnali lags behind Nepal’s other provinces in electrification, prompting the state government to launch the Karnali Bright Program to eliminate energy poverty in the region. This year, the government allocated NPR 100 million to the program, managed by the Ministry of Water Resources and Energy Development. However, Engineer Prem Bahadur Oli noted that staffing shortages have slowed the progress of small hydropower projects.

Initiated under former Chief Minister Mahendra Bahadur Shahi, the program originally aimed to electrify 90 percent of Karnali households by 2023. While that goal remains unmet, the government and NEA continue to work toward bringing light to every home in Karnali.

The foundation stone for the cable car leading to Pathibhara Temple, a famous religious shrine in Taplejung, was laid on Friday. Member of the Constituent Assembly Dumbardhwaj Tumbahamfe and Mayor of Phungling Municipality Amir Maden jointly laid the foundation stone at Kaflepati, the starting point of the cable car construction, after performing a worship ceremony.

Indra Kedem, head of the construction company Himalaya Construction, shared that the foundation stone was laid amid cheers for Pathibhara Devi, with political party representatives and local residents present. “We have laid the foundation stone for the cable car construction in the presence of all the district’s political party representatives, the mayor, people’s representatives, and locals. Now, the work will proceed at a fast pace,” said Kedem, the company’s owner.

Mayor Maden emphasized that the Pathibhara cable car is not just for one company but is connected to the broader economic, social and cultural development of Taplejung district. “It will be the cornerstone of the economic prosperity of Taplejung and Koshi province as a whole,” he said.

Rudra Paudel, a board member of the cable car company, stated that the trees in the construction area were cleared, and the foundation stone for the cable car was laid on Friday. Paudel also informed that the cable car will be ready for operation within the next 15 months. “This cable car will promote tourism, create jobs, maintain environmental balance, and contribute to economic and social development,” he added.

However, the construction attempt was met with conflict at Tallo Phedi in Phungling municipality, where protesters threw stones at the site. Police responded with a baton charge, resulting in several minor injuries among the protesters. The situation is now under control, according to Koshi Province’s DIG Chandra Kuber Khapung.

The Nepal government approved the project in 2018, and the National Planning Commission declared the cable car a national priority project following a recommendation from the Ministry of Federal Affairs and General Administration in July 2018.

Since the announcement of the Pathibhara cable car project, Indigenous communities and activists have led an opposition campaign. Indigenous lawyer Shankar Limbu even filed an appeal with the Supreme Court against the project being developed by the IME Group, to no avail. Opponents argue that the project will primarily benefit investors, not local communities. While developers claim the project will provide employment opportunities for locals, critics contend that this will not compensate for the significant economic losses to porters, small business-owners and others.

As the highway to Mustang becomes more accessible, more hotels are being established to accommodate tourists. According to data provided by the District Police Office, Mustang, there are currently 325 hotels operating in Jomsom, including Shintamani Resort, one of the luxury and most expensive resorts in the district. Deputy Police Chief of the District Police Office, Mustang, Surya Bahadur Bogati, stated, “There are 325 hotels operating across five local levels in Mustang. Gharpajhong Rural Municipality, the headquarters of Mustang, has 163 hotels, Varagung Muktichhetra Rural Municipality has 63, Lo-Ghekar Damodarkunda Rural Municipality has 30, Lo Manthang Rural Municipality has 20, and Thasang Rural Municipality has 49.”

Police data shows that Gharpajhong has the most hotels, while Lo-Ghekar has the fewest. Bogati added that the hotels in Mustang can accommodate up to 7,000 tourists at once. Most of the hotels in the area are run by the owners themselves, though some operate out of rented houses.

Bogati also pointed out that some locals believe the hotel capacity cannot keep up with the growing number of tourists, especially during the year-round favorable weather. Those who own property along the road have established hotels, but opening new hotels is difficult due to the lack of land management in suitable locations.

The construction of new hotels in Mustang has been hindered by the lack of land surveys for one percent of the total land area and the absence of provisions allowing local governments to lease unsurveyed public land. In recent times, some locals have demolished apple orchards to build hotels, as the earnings from tourism-oriented businesses are higher than those from apple cultivation.

According to records from the District Police Office, nearly 500,000 domestic and international tourists visit Mustang annually. Last year, 354,927 domestic tourists and 99,399 foreign tourists from SAARC countries and beyond visited Mustang.

With the ongoing construction of the Beni-Jomsom-Korla road, a national project, tourist arrivals to Mustang have been increasing year by year. Approximately 90 percent of the road from Ghasa, the gateway to Myagdi and Mustang, to Muktinath has already been blacktopped. The road from Kagbeni to the northern Korla border is now graveled, and concrete bridges have been built at various locations along this national pride project.