Keshab Poudel

KALIGANDAKI RIVER: Under A Threat

Following an interim order issued by the Supreme Court on a petition filed by senior advocate and prominent environmental lawyer Prakash Mani Sharma and others on behalf of Pro-Public in July 2020, all activities including the stone queering, sand extractions and proposed preparation for Kali Gandaki River Diversion scheme come to a halt. However, the ecological, cultural and environmental threat to Kali Gandaki, one of the highly important spiritual rivers of Nepal with civilization linkage, remains. Backed by high-level political leadership, massive illegal sand extractions and stone queering continue in some areas and the idea of diversion is yet to remove from Nepal’s Irrigation Master Plan, which proposes to divert rivers in eight different basins. Thanks to the petition and order of the court, people from all walks of life united to protect the river. From the mouth of the river (Damodarkunda in Mustang) and up to the tail of the river at Debghat (Chitwan, Nawalparsi and Tanahu), there is a consensus against diversion and indiscriminate stone and sand queering. However, delaying taking the final decision on the river is causing problems as well. Local levels and communities, who opposed interventions in scared river, have been facing a scarcity of construction materials like sand and stone necessary for infrastructures development and construction of houses calling new order for wise use of resources of the river

By Keshab Poudel Nov 12, 2022

HITI PRANALI Traditional Stone Spout System

Based on intensive research and review of literature, Padma Sunder Joshi in his book Hiti Pratha (stone spout system) elaborates on history, present and future

By Keshab Poudel Oct 31, 2022

Tony Hagen, Helvetas, Record-Breaking Suspension Bridges In Parbat And Baglung

By Keshab Poudel Oct 30, 2022

Book On Non-Governmental Organizations

Dr. Bishwa Keshar Maskay’s new book Non-Governmental Organizations in Development analysis success, failure and flaws of NGOs in Nepal

By Keshab Poudel Oct 28, 2022

NEPAL-INDIA ELECTRICTY TRADE Request Pending

At a time when Nepal has been wasting about 800MW of electricity due to lack of consumption in domestic market, India can generate huge goodwill in Nepal by allowing additional 212MW electricity import from Nepal

By Keshab Poudel Oct 20, 2022

NEPAL’S ISRAEL POLICY Rhetoric And Reality

Recently, Nepal has chosen realistic approaches to multilateral issues keeping Nepal’s core national interest in mind. However, Nepal’s foreign policy Mandarins are yet to reform multilateral policy towards Israel with whom Nepal has cordial and warmth relations at the bilateral level

By Keshab Poudel Oct 08, 2022

Constitutional Commissions: Search For Visible Role

At a time when some constitutional commissions are struggling to demonstrate their visible presence by exercising their enormous constitutional powers, Chief Elections Commissioner Dinesh Kumar Thapaliya has revealed how studies conducted by Niti Foundation helped them to make the commission’s function effective and strong

By Keshab Poudel Oct 04, 2022

PROYEL: Empowering Youth

Funded by the European Union and implemented by Helvetas-Nepal in close partnership with local NGOs Women Empowerment Action Forum (WEAF) (Karnali Province) and Sahayogi Samaj Nepal (SSN) (Madhesh Province), Promotion of Youth Engagement in Local Governance Process (PROYEL) has demonstrated how equipping youths with basic information on constitutional, legal process and techniques of handling new digital media can increase the participation of youth to exercise their democratic rights and duties through dialogue and engagement with the local governments.

By Keshab Poudel Sep 29, 2022

UPPER ARUN Power Of Four Digits

By signing an MoU to build 1061 MW Upper Arun project under blended finance, Nepal Electricity Authority and its subsidiary UAHEL have pushed Nepal into a new era in the power sector. This is the first four digit project which will be built by Nepal. In the presence of minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, NEA MD and chairperson of AHEL Kul Man Ghisin signed the MoU with financial Institutions

By Keshab Poudel Sep 28, 2022

MCA-Nepal Starting Implementation

Almost five months after the ratification, MCA Nepal is preparing to implement the project from August 2023

By Keshab Poudel Sep 14, 2022

NEPAL’S ENERGY Getting Green And Clean

Unprecedented global energy crisis created by Russian invasion of Ukraine is pushing some countries in South Asia to the brink of collapse. With surplus hydro-electricity in the grid, Nepal is taking this crisis to transform from fossil fuel to green and clean hydro-electricity. With the backing and support of Minister of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Pampha Bhusal, Nepal Electricity Authority, under the leadership of Managing Director Kul Man Ghising, has pushed Nepal’s energy sector to a new era. After exporting over 365 MW surplus electricity to India daily, NEA has launched a nation-wide campaign to increase the domestic consumption targeting the kitchen for e-cooking and street for e-vehicles

By Keshab Poudel Sep 13, 2022

COP 27 Nepal For Net Zero Carbon

Just a few months away to start UNFCCC COP 27 in Egypt, Nepal has started discussion targeting among others: net zero carbon from 2022-2045 & become carbon -ve after, maintain forest cover to 45% by 2030 and green energy

By Keshab Poudel Sep 11, 2022

QUEEN ELIZABETH II Nepal’s Admirer

During her 70 years as a monarch of the United Kingdom, Queen Elizabeth II paid state visits to Nepal twice. However, her love and affection towards Nepal remain immense. The frequent visit by royal family members of the UK at the time of difficulty was a testimony of her love for Nepal and the Nepali people. As Nepal had gone through a devastating earthquake with big suffering, Prince Harry visited Nepal to draw the attention of the global community. Connected through Gurkha over two centuries, Queen Elizabeth II takes the relations between the two independent countries to a new height. As Queen Elizabeth died at the age of 96, Nepalese also lost a guardian and good friend

By Keshab Poudel Sep 09, 2022

Nepal’s Hydropower For Poverty Alleviation And Reduce Trade Deficit : Minister Bhusal

As soon as she was appointed as a minister of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation 14 months ago, the first declaration of MinisterPAMPHA BHUSAL was to reduce the use of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), petroleum products encouraging electricity in kitchens and vehicles. She also announced to the provision of free electricity to poor and marginal people. With the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the prices of petroleum products went almost 100 percent higher, and her agenda of electric cooking and electric vehicles took pace. With a big surplus of electricity at hand, electric vehicles and electric cooking have received a high priority and Nepal has even started to export a huge volume of surplus electricity to India, which some Nepalis always describe as a myth and impossible agenda. Minister Bhusal, who has engineering, spoke to KESHAB POUDEL at her residence in Minister Quarter on the issue of energy transition in Nepal. Excerpts of the interview:

By Keshab Poudel Sep 03, 2022

Dalit Commission Is Working In Collaboration With Local Level: DEVRAJ BISHWOKARMA

Having been involved in the Dalit moments, DEVRAJ BISHWOKARMA, chairperson of the National Dalit Commission, has his own way to work to uplift the life and Dalits and end all kinds of discrimination against them. Chairperson Bishwokarma, a young and dynamic, talked to KESHAB POUDEL about various activities and the role of the National Dalit Commission. Excerpts:

By Keshab Poudel Aug 28, 2022

MD GHISING’s SECOND YEAR Highest Profit

As he started his second year of second tenure, Kul Man Ghising, MD of Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA), has set many new records. Increasing profit margin by 164 percent or Rs. 16.089 billion and exporting electricity worth of Rs.3.88 billion and reducing the electricity leakage, MD Ghising has made many historical achievements. As NEA, a public utility, celebrated its anniversary, MD Ghising has a sigh of relief as he cleared piles of problems left over by his predecessor

By Keshab Poudel Aug 17, 2022

YOUTH SOUNDING BOARD: Engaging Youth In Local Governance process

At a time when 41 (forty-one percent) of youth are elected at local level elections this year, Nepalese youth are celebrating international youth day on 12 August. However, electing youth at the local level cannot alone ensure the engagement of youth in the local governance process. Funded by European Union and Implemented by Helvetas in collaboration with local partners, Youth Sounding Board (YSB) can be a game changer to increase the engagement of youth at the local level governance process.

By Keshab Poudel Aug 11, 2022

SARI/EI Energy Trade

When USAID launched South Asian Regional Energy Initiative (SARI/EI) aiming to improve the energy trade among the South Asian countries two decades ago, countries in the region did not have separate business entirety, cross border transmission line and regulatory mechanism for energy trade. Although the energy trade pattern is still dominated by bilateral arrangements between regional countries, there is now everything to conduct the trade at regional level. Nepal has turned from net importer to net exporter with reliable cross border transmission line starting to export electricity to India. Now, Nepal has started to talk on modality for export of big volume of electricity to India and Bangladesh

By Keshab Poudel Aug 07, 2022

NEPAL ECONOMIC CRISIS Getting Deeper

With increasing import bill and declining foreign currency reserve, Nepal’s economy is facing a serve crisis. Thanks to pegging of Nepalese currency with Indian currency, there is some respite. However, nobody knows how government’s ‘glass half full’ approach can rescue Nepal’s crisis as economic crises abound

By Keshab Poudel Aug 05, 2022

SPP CONTROVERSY Much Fuss About Nothing

The first British Resident at the court of Nepal had said Nepalese were yet to see which is good for them and which is not. Harping on too much of anti-SPP rhetoric, Nepalese were destroying their trustworthy, friendly and good relations with the US.