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To men: Have you done this, knowingly or unknowingly? To women: Has this happened to you?

You were explaining something to somebody and a man next to you—whether your male coworker, husband, father, brother, uncle, a male stranger or any other man—talked over you and started explaining without your permission? Did you feel that it undermined your ability to explain? If yes, you were mansplained! Mansplaining is a new word in the dictionary defined as ‘the explanation of something by a man, typically to a woman, in a manner regarded as condescending or patronizing.’ 

Much of this has happened and is considered normal due to the patriarchal society we live in. A generation still believes that women are subordinate to men and incapable of articulating their ideas, that they are weak and cannot be trusted for making decisions. There are families that consider men as, what I don’t like to call, the ‘head’ of the family. We might have our own experience of fathers being the decision makers in the families, not trusting the mothers’ wisdom or not encouraging them to be a part of it. Think about the impression it left on the children!

Men certainly had better/higher education than women and earned more in the past in our societies and thus the idea of men being the only heroes in the family might have seemed fair. While mothers were portrayed as the compassionate ones, the fathers were shown as more rational, risk takers, and strong willed. Portraying the softer side of the women is fine but it should not lead to the understanding of a weaker gender. 

A close male friend of mine was quick to conclude that the reason for a prolonged traffic jam at an intersection was a female traffic policewoman. I had a good argument with him and asked him not to be so judgmental. He stayed quiet when he saw male officers were also there in the scene. His notion of women managers was based on the idea of perceived gender roles of what women can/should and cannot/should not do.  

I would also like to cite a scene from the recent Hollywood blockbuster, Barbie. When Barbie finds herself in the company that produces Barbie dolls, she wants to meet with the female Chief Executive Officer. She is surprised to learn that there is not a single woman in the senior management team. That is a reflection of many boards of directors and people in leadership who claim to provide a woman-friendly environment but lack inclusive policies themselves. Time to put the money where the mouth is! 

If you see in the animal world, there are plenty of examples of female leadership: Lioness, hyenas, elephants are some of the alpha females. In life under water, killer whales lead their group; male seahorses give birth. And in the insect world, queen bees are powerful. I believe no mansplaining occurs there! In the human world on the other hand, there are incidents of men trying to overpower women. Abduction, rape, murder cases or not giving leadership positions are all examples of showing the quirky idea of ‘manpower’.  

In recent times, however, gender roles are slowly being reversed. Men who would not do the perceived female-only jobs or household chores are doing so. Men attending nurses courses is an example. In my family, my husband cooks and does the cleaning. My sons do their stuff themselves. In doing so, they aren’t helping me but learning to be fit in a new more gender-balanced generation that has women politicians, executives, technicians, and other women professionals. But a lot needs to be said and done at school, workplaces, and the society to break gender stereotypes so that women can put their voice without being mansplained. 

Floods triggered by incessant rainfall in Kagkhola on Sunday night have caused a huge loss in Kagbeni.

The floods have completely destroyed 29 houses and 12 vehicles.

DSP Rabindra Nath Paudel of the District Police Office, Mustang said that the floods also swept an excavator.

He said that the floods have caused partial damage to 13 houses of Kagbeni Village while nine cow sheds have been completely destroyed.

Similarly, three temporary bridges, a concrete bridge connecting Jomson-Korala and a suspension bridge linking Kagbeni-Tire Gaun have been washed away, DSP Paudel said.

Warjung Muktichhetra Rural Municipality Chairman Rinjin Namgel Gurung said that the floods swept away houses, shops, hotels, police station and ward office among other structures.

Likewise, the floods in the Kagbeni river also washed away religious shrines and temples.

Gurung said that it will take a few days to gather the details of the property damaged by the floods in Kagkhola apart from physical structures.

The administration, police and local level had moved the people living near the embankment of the river to safer places after the landslide blocked the Kagbeni river.

Police said that there was no human loss owing to the floods in Kagbeni because of the same.

Floods have also damaged electricity, telephone and internet poles.

Chief District Officer Anup KC along with the teams of all three security agencies from Jomsom had reached the floods-hit area in Kagbeni after the floods caused damage to the Kagbeni Dham.

Contractors have staged a demonstration in the Capital on Monday also demanding that the government make payments for their completed works.

The contractors staged the demonstration in front of the Department of Road in Chakupat and Department of Irrigation in Jawalakhel.

The contractors have been staging the protest since June 30 demanding a formation of a high-level talks team to address the demands of contractors, extension of the contracts, overdue payments and adjustment of price among others.

The contractors from all over the country have come to the Capital to make the protest successful, contractor Raju Karki said.

They said that they will continue their protest until the government addresses their demands.

The water level in the rain-fed Narayani river has crossed the danger mark.

According to the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology, the Narayani river crossed the danger mark at 5.51 am on Monday.

With the constant rise in the water level in the river, the local administrations have asked the river side settlements in Chitwan and Nawalparasi to adopt safety alerts.

According to the Weather Forecasting Division, heavy rainfall is likely to take place in different parts of the country today.