Top 10 News

By Phurpa Wangmo His Majesty The King arrived in Thimphu on October 21 after a Royal Tour of the South, and entered quarantine. During the Royal tour of the South, which also coincided with the Hindu festival of Dassai, His Majesty visited Gelephu, Samtse, Lhamoyzhingkha and Phuentsholing, while also stopping at Tencholing and Tsirang to meet De-suups and Dzongkhag civil …

The recent catastrophe lashed by the retreating monsoons has become a cause of concern as the country battles changing weather patterns and freak weather reports By Rinchen Dorji The recent trail of destruction left by the sudden and untimely downpour has left the country reeling as we scramble for answers to fight natural calamities that is becoming a regular phenomenon …

However, some farmers have refused help stating His Majesty is already burdened by the pandemic By Phurpa Wangmo In the aftermath of the rains that has put a huge dent on the year’s paddy yields, Prime Minister Dr Lotay Tshering, upon Royal command, met with the affected farmers of Paro, Punakha and Wangdiphodrang this week. Lyonchhen conveyed that His Majesty …

The Weekly Editorial The recent trail of destruction wreaked by the untimely rains has left a flood of afterthoughts, as thousands of farmers across the country were caught off-guard by this freak natural calamity. Reports of hundreds of acres of paddy fields being inundated across the country reveals the vulnerability of our farmers to such freak weather conditions which, according …

By Phurpa Wangmo Despite flak and criticisms from the general public, the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MoEA) has stated the moratorium on ban of bar licenses will be lifted once a regulation to reduce alcohol consumption is ready. The Economic Affairs Minister, Loknath Sharma, shared this during his recent visit to Sarpang dzongkhag. Members of the business community in the …

In Bhutan, recent freak weather phenomenon and varying degrees of change in the climatic-pattern has become a cause for anxiety By Rinchen Dorji Rising temperatures as a result of climate change are melting Bhutan’s immense collection of glaciers in its mountainous north, threatening significant human and economic devastation. Freak weather patterns, like the recent late spate of monsoons, has affected …

The country has listed 22 white-belied herons across the country By Sonam Choki The White-bellied Heron (Ardea insignis Hume) is a large heron species of the family Ardeidae, order Pelecaniformes, found in freshwater ecosystems of the Himalayas. It is categorized as critically endangered under the IUCN Red List of threatened species and protected under the Schedule I of Forests and …

By Tandin Wangchuk A report by UNDP titled; Behavioral Insight- a Nudge towards circular economy states that with rapid socio-economic development the country has been seeing another growth, albeit an undesirable one,  waste management. It has become a scourge troubling many countries the world over, and a growing national concern. The UNDP report publiched last month states that in a …

By Tandin Wangchuk The Bumdeling Wildlife Sanctuary (BWS) is one of the sites identified for the proposed eco-tourism project “Mainstreaming Biodiversity into the Tourism Sector.” The Gross National Happiness Commission, Tourism Council of Bhutan and UNDP are in the process of finalizing the project proposal for submission to the Global Environment Facility.  If approved, it will work to promote community …

By Chimi Wangmo Not too long ago the people of Thed and Wang migrated to Punakha every year to avoid the cold Thimphu winter. While the Punakha-Thimphu trail was used by many generations of Bhutanese, today, the tradition of using the old migratory trail is almost completely lost and unknown. Therefore, to once more tread and relive this ancient trail, …