Grow your own greens using hydroponics
Are you one of those folks who like gardening but do not have enough time to tend to your plants? Or someone who is not home often and have to ask someone to water them? Then you would perhaps be interested in hydroponics, which lets you tend to your plant just once a fortnight. Using this technology you can easily grow fruits and vegetables such as tomatoes, lettuce, spinach and cucumber. Hydroponics is a method of growing plants without soil, using only mineral nutrient solutions in water. Terrestrial plants are grown in high-tech tunnels or pipes with only their roots exposed to the mineral solution, or the roots may be supported by an inert medium such as coco peat (coconut powder) or gravel.
Hydroponics is a method of growing plants without soil, using only mineral nutrient solutions in water
Ganesh Kumar Pandey, who started hydroponics (‘soil-less farming’) in Nepal with his Hydroponics Nepal Private Limited, hopes that “the new generation can use this technology to grow their own vegetables on their rooftops.”
With rapid urbanization of Kathmandu and with land getting increasingly scarcer and expensive, hydroponics assures best use of gardening space. “Using hydroponics you can get the same yield in 5,400 square feet of land that you would get in 27,000 square feet of agricultural land,” Pandey says.
The initial investment may seem a touch high for some. For example, to install the system over a 400 square feet of land, Rs 50,000-75,000 has to be spent on pump, timer, submersible pump, high-tech tunnel, containers and nutrients. But small hydroponics systems can be installed with initial investment of as little as Rs 20,000. If you plan on installing the system yourself, a knowledgeable technician would cost you Rs 1,500 a day. Pandey argues that this is good investment in long term because once installed, you only pay for nutrients and electricity (to keep the water running) for the next 15 years. Also, 400 square feet of land, if used strategically, “can easily feed a family of six round the year”.
There are other benefits too. The plants do not contract soil-borne diseases. In more traditional farming, a great deal of human and non-human resources as well as time are used up nurturing plants. Hydroponics, in addition to requiring less time from you, also ensures no bugs or dirt. Pandey says that vegetables grown this way taste better and stay fresh for longer, compared to those available in the market. As the plants do not have to compete for nutrients with other plants and can get nutrients as and when they want, they are healthier as well.
But there are some downsides too. This automatic system requires electricity for the water to run and with the power-cuts that Nepalis (still) experience, one has to have a generator to ensure smooth growth of plants. “Due to the presence of some chemicals in the nutrients, it is also only 80 percent organic,” Pandey informs. Moreover, the plants require controlled lights and temperature. Pandey assures that they are still developing the technology and in due course the system would be made even more efficient.
Pandey says that despite the government showing some interest in the beginning, there has been no initiative to promote hydroponics in Nepal. As the nutrients for hydroponics have to be imported, their cost is as high as Rs 400 a kg. “If only the government made the nutrients tax-free, it would be of great help for our cause!” he says. Not everyone who is interested can afford it, thus if a banking system were available where one could pay for the system in installments, Pandey adds, perhaps more would be encouraged to take up hydroponics.
Despite all these challenges, Pandey says the company gets around 50 requests a day from people who want to learn about hydroponics. He plans on starting a training program for them in the next two months.
Searching for Shangri-la
“… Kathmandu is Shangri-la… you’re going to find everything you need there,” Paulo Coelho
Last week I was at a memorial gathering for Jan Salter who died earlier this year. Jan was famous for her paintings (Faces of Nepal) and for being the founder of the Kathmandu Animal Treatment Center (KAT). But before that Jan was an adventurous traveler, what we would now describe as a hippie! Over wine and candlelight we reminisced how she told us of her travels through South East Asia, in the 1960s I believe, in the days of conflict, dubious border crossings, and definitely no tourists!
This brought to mind a book I have just read… Paulo Coelho’s new work Hippie is a biographical tale, taking place in 1970, before Coelho became a writer, although his budding passion as a ‘mystic seeker’ is very clear. In the book, he describes the people, the hippies, who join him on the Magic Bus which travelled overland from Europe to Kathmandu via Eastern Europe, Istanbul, Tehran, and Baghdad.
When I first came to Nepal, this overland route was still open, albeit in much more comfortable buses than the Magic Bus (an old school bus with static seats). Those buses would occasionally call into Bardia (where I was living at the time) and could be seen parked in hotels in Thamel. I’m not sure exactly when these overland buses stopped running: either politics got in the way, or it was too dangerous to drive through conflict zones. Which is a shame, because I think I would love to do this now!
Perhaps the average person in the West has lost the ability to feel what those hippies and spiritualists like Coelho and Namnik felt?
Which leads me back to those ‘old’ friends of Jan living in Kathmandu. Wouldn’t it be fascinating to find out who came across land? (Please tell us!) Air travel at that time was, of course, only for the wealthy as plane tickets were expensive. Thus, the cheap overland option would have been very attractive. According to Coelho it cost $70 from Amsterdam to Kathmandu. I can’t even fly from Kathmandu to Pokhara for that price now. Despite air travel being ‘affordable’ for the masses!
Unfortunately the Shangri-la described by Coelho no longer exists. Or doesn’t it? Perhaps it’s just taken a different, harder-to-find format. Last month I watched an Avenues TV interview with Lotan Namnik, a Tibetan musician here to take part in the film ‘Dakini’ with Bhutanese film maker/writer Khyentse Norbu (Rinpoche Dzongsar Jamyang Kheyntse). Namnik is of the opinion that Nepal is still a magical, spiritual place with friendly, kind, peaceful, and grounded people.
Serenity, calmness, and a rejection of haste, he stated, is part of the people’s make up, and is something other countries don’t have. I think that those who identify as either an original hippie or post-hippie era ‘hippie’ can agree with this to some extent. But is it getting harder to see past the bright lights of consumerism and the fast-forward towards infrastructure development, to the things that attracted them here in the first place? I also believe that, for some years now, Westerners newly arrived for extended stays often fail to see the beauty underneath the dust and cut their stay short, leaving disappointed that Shangri-la could not be found. In Kathmandu at least.
Perhaps the average person in the West has lost the ability to feel what those hippies and spiritualists like Coelho and Namnik felt? Or is it the fact we can now be in Amsterdam, London or New York in the morning, and reach Kathmandu the same evening? Completely bypassing the mystical transition from one culture to another as we pass through the physical transit of generic airports. I wonder what those hippie travelers of the 1970’s would make of Kathmandu today! Would they be able to find Shangri-la?
‘Hippie’ will be available in Nepali from Bookworm early 2019
Presenting five model civil servants. Pick your favorite
The Top 5 finalists of ‘Integrity Idol’ have been announced, as the fifth national campaign to identify and celebrate Nepal’s most honest government officials enters its final stretch.
The finalists were selected by a panel of esteemed judges from over 1,062 nominations, and the public is now invited to vote for their favorite idol, following a special TV broadcast on AP1 television detailing the finalists’ commendable works.
Lack of integrity of public officials remains a big challenge in Nepal, and citizens often feel they are helpless to do anything about it. But through Integrity Idol, citizens are able to engage in a positive discussion about these issues and vote for the person they believe has set a good example as a public servant.
The esteemed judges who picked the Top 5 are: Suryanath Upadhyaya, former Commissioner of Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority; Jiwan Prabha Lama, former Secretary of Government of Nepal; Kashiraj Dahal, Chairman of the High Level Administrative Reforms Monitoring Committee; and Punya Prasad Neupane, executive director of Nepal Administrative Staff College.
And now, the real heroes of the event. Here is a low-down of the Top 5.
Dhruba Raj Acharya, Chief Administrative Officer, Tikapur Municipality, Kailali. After helping his municipality emerge from the decade-long civil war, he then worked on bringing political parties of different persuasions together on common national issues.
“I have never worked for praise or reward. The trust I have gained from service-seekers by working responsibly is my biggest reward”
Arun Kafle, Senior Horticulture Development Officer, Khumaltar, Lalitpur, who introduced ‘soil-less’ vegetable farming to Nepal. Kafle is always available to all farmers who need his expertise and he has been tirelessly working to help farmers transition from subsistence to commercial farming.
“I feel very happy when I see service-seekers in front of my office. And when they return satisfied and with a big smile, my happiness knows no bounds”
Mahendra Prasad Poudyal,Under-Secretary, Ministry of Youth and Sport, Singhadurbar, Kathmandu. He is very passionate about ensuring the youth’s right to information and has supported many talented youngsters get government support to pursue their dreams.
“The hope that future generations will not inherit negative perceptions of the government is what drives me to work harder”
Sita Kumari Sharma, Senior A.N.M., Birendranagar Municipal Health Office, Surkhet. She is a healthcare worker and a true friend of women and teenage girls who need any kind of medical help. She has also been involved in providing health education and distributing medicines in rural communities.
“Women from the community often need me more than my family. Prioritizing their health and serving them is my social responsibility”
Ram Bahadur Kurumbang, Chief District Officer, Bardiya. A retired Nepal Army Officer, Kurumbang leaves the comfort of his office and goes door to door, ensuring that people, especially those in far-flung places, have a direct access to him.
“By bringing the services to citizen’s doorsteps through our mobile camp, they have felt the presence of ‘Singhadurbar’ in their village”
The winner will be announced on Dec 7 at a public ceremony at Karki Banquet, Babarmahal. To vote for your favorite contestant or to read more about the finalists as well as the campaign, visit http://www.integrityidol.org/countries/nepal/. Viewers can choose their preferred contestant online or via SMS. To vote through SMS, go to the message box in your mobile phone and type IIN <space> Voting Code and send it to 34001. The codes for the finalists are: Arun Kafle-1, Dhruba Raj Acharya-2, Mahendra Prasad Paudyal-3, Ram Bahadur Kurumbang- 4, and Sita Kumari Sharma-5.
(Follow Integrity Idol Nepal on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to keep up with the campaign).
A fighting chance against cancer
At any given time, there are an estimated 40,000-50,000 cancer patients in Nepal. According to the World Health Organization, cancers of cervix, lung, breast, ovary and stomach are common among Nepali women, while, among Nepali men, lung, mouth and oropharynx, stomach, and blood cancers are more common.
Dr Murari Man Shrestha, a medical epidemiologist and the Head of Department of Preventive Oncology at Nepal Cancer Hospital and Research Center, Harisiddhi, says that at the outset there might be non-specific and generic symptoms like loss of appetite, decrease in immunity resulting in frequent infections, and indigestion. As the tumor grows, symptoms in affected areas are more common.
For women diagnosed early, the over-five year survival rate for breast cancer is up to 100 percent
“Diagnosing whether a disease is cancer is challenging,” says Dr Hari Dhakal, senior consultant pathologist and Head of Department of Pathology at the same hospital. “One approach is finding out if the disease has progressed up to the stage where symptoms show up. If a patient is asymptomatic, then there are screening tests for different parts of the body for most common types of cancers.”
More than nine out of 10 colorectal cancer patients live for over five years if they get early treatment. For women diagnosed at the earliest stage of breast cancer, the over-five year survival rate is up to 100 percent, whereas for women diagnosed at advanced stages, the same survival rate plummets to 22 percent.
“It is imperative to promote cancer screening,” says Dr Dhakal. “We need to make people aware that early detection of cancer is actually a good thing, as it is mostly curable.”
Video: Why you may want to get screened for cancer?
Dev Narayan Chaudhary, 53, of Udaypur in Province 1, was diagnosed with stage-three colorectal cancer over three years ago. Twelve cycles of chemotherapy and two surgeries later, he says that had he been diagnosed earlier, his treatment would have been much easier. “For long I took medicines for gastritis. I had no clue it was cancer.”
Cancer is not just one ailment, it is rather a cluster of diseases. Caused by uncontrollable division of cells that results in abnormal tissue growth and tumor-formation—with the exception of blood cancer—it can affect any part of the body other than hair and teeth. Not all cancers are malignant. The ones that are innocuous are called benign, and they do not require immediate medical attention.
One approach of diagnosis is finding out if the disease has progressed up to the stage where symptoms show up
There are over 100 known malignant tumors, each with its own symptoms, degree of severity and treatment options. But in the initial stage there are no observable symptoms.
Dr Murari Man Shrestha, a medical epidemiologist and the Head of Department of Preventive Oncology at Nepal Cancer Hospital and Research Center, Harisiddhi, says that at the outset there might be non-specific and generic symptoms like loss of appetite, decrease in immunity resulting in frequent infections, and indigestion. As the tumor grows, symptoms in affected areas are more common.
“Diagnosing whether a disease is cancer is challenging,” says Dr Hari Dhakal, senior consultant pathologist and Head of Department of Pathology at the same hospital. “One approach of diagnosis is finding out if the disease has progressed up to the stage where symptoms show up. If a patient is asymptomatic, then there are screening tests for different parts of the body for most common types of cancers.”
Worldwide, Asia accounts for nearly half of the new cancer cases and more than half the cancer-related deaths. In Nepal, as mentioned in the World Health Organization Cancer Country Profile, cancers of cervix, lung, breast, ovary and stomach are common among women, while, among Nepali men, lung, mouth and oropharynx, stomach, and blood cancers are more common. Dr Shrestha estimates that at any given time there are 40,000-50,000 cancer patients in Nepal.
According to WHO, screening refers to the use of tests in a healthy population to identify individuals who have disease but do not yet have symptoms. These are tests specific to parts of body affected by cancer. Examples include mammograms for breast cancers, the ‘pap test’ for cervical cancer, and low-dose computed tomography (CT) for lung cancer.
Dr Shrestha classifies cancer screening as a secondary prevention method. The primary method is to prevent cancer in cancer-free population, for instance through the promotion of a healthy lifestyle. Likewise, the tertiary method involves treatment of patients diagnosed with cancer. Detection of the disease when the tumor is not large and has not spread is vital as it vastly increases the chances of successful treatment.
More than nine out of 10 colorectal cancer patients live for over five years if they get early treatment. For women diagnosed at the earliest stage of breast cancer, the over-five year survival rate is up to 100 percent, whereas for women diagnosed at advanced stages, the same survival rate plummets to 22 percent. Early detection also implies less treatment and less recovery. “So it is imperative to promote cancer screening,” says Dr Dhakal. “We need to make people aware that early detection of cancer is actually a good thing, as it is mostly curable.”
You can choose to add cancer screening to your general examination. As the incidence of cancer is increasing even among the relatively young, Dr Shrestha advises that all those above 40 and those in high-risk groups undergo regular screening. About 10 percent malignant cancers are genetically inherited. Non-genetic risk factors include tobacco smoking, alcohol consumption, physical inactivity, obesity, and pollution.
The cost of screening depends on its type and quality, and not everyone may be able to afford one. “This is why it is imperative that the government make it accessible to everyone,” says Dr. Shrestha.
This is also why WHO recommends that screening programs be undertaken “only when their effectiveness has been demonstrated, when resources (personnel, equipment, etc.) are sufficient to cover nearly all of the target group, when facilities exist for confirming diagnoses and for treatment and follow-up of those with abnormal results, and when prevalence of the disease is high enough to justify the effort and costs of screening.”
The bottom line? If you are in high-risk group and can afford screening, go get it done. “Some people are skeptical about the tests,” adds Dr Dhakal. “But it makes perfect sense if they think about it logically for a while.”
The cancer prevention triangle
While the media often reports on foods that “prevent cancer” and we would love to be told that eating one particular food will prevent cancer, it is unlikely that such a food exists. It is more likely that a combination of good foods may have a preventive effect. Studies over the years have looked at our diets and what foods, if any, will lead to a lower risk of cancer. Fruits and vegetables, whole grains and unprocessed foods have all been promoted as reducing cancer risk. Unfortunately, studies have not consistently proven this to be true. Expert panels state that a diet high in fruits and vegetables “probably” reduces cancer risk, but we just don't know for sure.
However, a healthy diet plays an important role in a sort of “triangle” of cancer prevention. A healthy diet, combined with regular physical activity and maintaining a healthy weight make up this triangle that has been shown to reduce cancer risk. This triangle is thought to be the second most important step, after not smoking, to preventing cancer. An estimated 20-30 percent of cancers could be prevented if people incorporated the triangle into their lifestyle!
But how much physical activity is enough? Experts feel that somewhere between 30 and 60 minutes per day of “moderate to vigorous” activity is needed to impact cancer risk. A moderate activity is the equivalent of a brisk walk, whereas vigorous activities increase heart and breathing rates.
Also, you may exercise a few times a week, but spend many hours sitting at a computer or watching TV. Your risk of many cancers may be higher because of this. Try taking a walk every hour, using a standing desk, taking the stairs to your lunch break, etc. Any way you can lessen the sedentary time and get some activity in is helpful.
Wonder how to get started with an exercise regimen? Make it fun and set reasonable goals. Find a friend to be a walking partner—you can motivate each other and make the walk more enjoyable.
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