I have been reminded several times, through experiences and encounters, that Nepal is a third-world country. Development is slow. Progress is slow. The everyday life of the average person does not seem to change at all, even after the democratic parties and the revolutionary Maoists overthrew the monarchy and established their own rule.


Friends have recounted the amazement of their countries and described the variety of resources they have available at their disposal. However, when it comes to the topic of my beloved country, people have asked me if there exists a mall or if we use spoons at all. Sure, to their faces, I express my anger and highlight their ignorance of the world. I tell them that Nepal is as beautiful and respectable country as any other. However, behind the curtain of these words, I wonder to myself if all I said is true. How proud can I be of my country?


In order for a country to succeed, in all socio-economic and political fronts, it needs proper leadership and leaders who genuinely care about the interests of the people. These leaders need to be educated, learned, and knowledgeable about what changes are absolutely necessary in a country like ours. These leaders should have the drive to pull the country out of the grips of what binds us to the ground. As of recently, I have seen some changes brought around by our current leaders: the latest being the areas for roads are being reclaimed and expanded, and the common person is grateful towards the government. However, it seems to have stopped at that small things. Is the government going to break down a few walls, sit back with a cup of tea, and wait till people are agitated and go on strikes to rebuild what has been broken? Moreover, does the government think that it has bought more time to stay idle for a few more years by breaking down some walls? Is that enough service for the people in the part of the government?


Personally, I feel like the government is quite detached from the people of Nepal, specifically from the younger generations. It does not care about their nationalist feelings. What I feel is that the politicians and government officials are so busy with electing positions and fighting over who gets to do what, that little thought is given to the people. Honestly, what are the things that the government has specifically done for, and only for, the people? What has the government done for us, the youth, the future of the country?

Isn’t the government responsible for, say, sending funds over to victims of landslides across the country? Isn’t that the purpose of a government, to help the common people, people who have to turn to the government because they have no other means of support?
And it isn’t like the government doesn’t have the financial support. Time and again, various developed countries have donated billions of dollars for the country’s welfare. However, nothing seems to change around us, and all this money seems to just disappear into the government’s pockets. Besides, we don’t seem to have brighter projects to develop the country, and make it as competitive as any other developed nation in the world.


Not only the government, but ‘we, the common people’, are also to be blamed for the slow progress of the country. We are careless and busy. Nobody has any time for anybody else. Everyone is too entangled in the realms of their busy lives to give the victims of that landslide a second thought. Kathmandu seems to be the center point of the country, and while enjoying the richness it has to offer, those residing inside the valley seem to forget about those outside. They are part of Nepal too, and they are as much a Nepali citizen as any other person walking down the paved roads of the valley. Sure, Kathmandu is the capital city, but that does not mean we, its residents, or the government should focus on the city and forget about those who do not get to feel its comfort and take advantage of its resources, resources which we seem to take granted for, like water and electricity.


Moreover, it becomes a responsibility of a city-dweller to leave the premises of the valley and stretch out to help those who seem to be out of reach of the capital.


My arguments boil down to this: we need a better government and some better groups of enthusiastic leaders at all fronts who indisputably want to bring change to our country. We need leaders who know what they’re doing. We need leaders who understand the state of the country and what needs to be done. We need leaders who have enough confidence to know that they can bring change.


(Bidushi Adhikari is a Grade XII student).