KUENSEL
M o n d a y, M a y 6 , 2 0 1 9 • N u 1 5
Education
City still
unutilised
Government exploring
options
Yangchen C Rinzin
Four years after the former
government shut down the
Education City, the govern-
ment is yet to decide on the
utilisation of the land oppo-
site Wang Sisina, Thimphu.
The Education City
whose authority is with
the works and human set-
tlement ministry has since
remained idle and entry into
the site locked. The former
government looked for
ideas to put the space and
infrastructure to some use,
formed a “think tank” and
explored other options, but
nothing has materialised so
far.
The former government
shut down the project in
March 2014 after the Na-
tional Land Commission
said that land acquisition
at Wang Sisina had con-
travened provisions of the
Land Act 2007. An area of
about 1,000 acres of land
was identified for the pro-
ject. The Land Commission
called it “illegal”.
The project office at Mo-
tithang and infrastructure
like bridge, a power substa-
tion, boreholes, and a 2.4km
road at Wang Sisina were
handed over to the depart-
ment of roads in 2015.
After the official with the
roads department that was
responsible to look after the
project superannuated, the
project was handed over to
the MoWHS’s directorate
service.
Pg 2
Relatives of passengers who died in the Wangdue bus accident wait to claim the bodies
at Bajo hospital on May 4
Bus accident
claims eight lives
Last missing passenger was found yesterday evening
Phurpa Lhamo | Wangdue
T
he last missing
passenger of
the Thimphu-
Tsirang bus
accident on
May 4 was found yesterday
evening. There were 24 pas-
sengers on board.  terday.
Her husband, who was
also a passenger, identified
the body of the 26-year-old
woman.
According to police, a
relative of one of the pas-
sengers who had visited the
accident site had reported
seeing a limb underneath the
bus submerged in the river.
Police officials said they
could not find the body
under the bus earlier, as the
bus was half submerged and
also because the river was
THAT THE PEOPLE SHALL BE INFORMED
muddy.
A search team compris-
ing of dessups, police, com-
munity volunteers, soldiers,
officials from the Department
of Disaster Management,
and relatives of the missing
woman combed the banks of
the river until Sunkosh yes-
Of the eight who died
in the accident, six were
found dead at the spot in
Kewathang, which is 16kms
away from Wangdue towards
Tsirang. The driver of the bus
and a three-year-old girl were
among those who died on im-
pact. An elderly woman died
in Bajo hospital.
Sources confirmed that
the bus veered off the road
after two falling boulders
hit the tyre of the bus at Ke-
wathang around 10:25am.
Briefly
SAARC Finance
Ministers’
Meeting
The SAARC Development
Fund (SDF) conducted its
sixth Governing Council
meeting in Nadi, Fiji this
week on the sidelines of the
SAARC Informal Meeting
of Finance Ministers and
Annual Meeting of the
Asian Development Bank. 
Inside
HOME
Work begins to merge
referral hospitals,
drafting of a health
Act 
Pg 5
HOME
Management of
heritage buildings
should be well
integrated
Pg 9
Although not many accidents
Weather
were reported, Kewathang is
identified as a risky road.
Falling boulders also
damaged an ambulance of Thimphu
Punakha hospital that was
19 9
deputed for rescue. A secu-
rity guard of Punatsangchu
project also sustained inju- Max Min
ries on the hand. He was ad-
mitted at Bajo hospital.
Of the 16 survivors, 13
were admitted at Bajo hos- Trashigang
pital of which 10 were sent
home yesterday and three
referred to Jigme Dorji
Wangchuck National Referral
23
Max
11 Min
Hospital (JDWNRH). All sur-
vivors are in stable condition.
His Majesty The King also
visited Bajo hospital. As part
of the medical team, Lyonch-
hen Dr Lotay Tshering and
www.kuenselonline.com
the health minister were also
at the hospital.
Home
Page 2 Monday, May 6, 2019 | KUENSEL

Tea replaces
alcohol in Mongar
Nima | Mongar
Kidheykhar, Mongar. It is
4pm. A group of farmers are
busy weeding. They break
for tea.
The farm’s owner, Chimi
Dema serves tea as  Lai-
chang.  One prefers to drink
locally-brewed ara to tea.
In 2011, to reduce alco-
hol consumption and its im-
plications in the community,
it was decided that tea would
be served instead of alcohol.
This began from the three
gewogs of Shermuhung,
Ngatshang, and Chaskhar.
Every household in Mon-
gar is allowed to use only
three bottles of alcohol dur-
ing a religious ceremony and
important occasions. Efforts
are made to serve tea and
juices instead.
Chimi Dema said that not
many drink alcohol these
days. “Most prefer tea.”
 
Alcohol losing popu-
larity in rural parts of
the country?
Since the start of the commu-
nity initiative, the number of
household members taking
alcohol in Mongar decreased
almost by 50 percent.
There were more than
5,100 people consuming al-
cohol in 2011 in Mongar. The
number has reduced to 2,776
today. This is according to
the record with the dzong-
khag health sector. The num-
ber of alcohol liver disease
decreased from 173 in 2011
to 156 in 2018. Deaths due to
alcohol reduced almost by 50
percent after the community
initiative.
The gewog administra-
tions are involved in a series
of awareness programmes
The community’s initiative is implemented in all gewogs of Mongar today
related to alcohol use. Peo-
ple dependent on alcohol are undergo detoxification.  khag. “Challenges remain, initiative to succeed.
advised and encouraged to Dzongkhag’s health of- however, what with easy Mongar Gup Tenzin
ficer, Tshering Dorji, said availability and affordability.” Wangchuk said that the ini-
that the community initiative He said that there was a tiative had the potential to

Bhutanese
helped reduce the consump- need to limit bar licence in reduce alcohol consumption
tion of alcohol in the dzong- towns and rural areas for the nationwide.

student commits
suicide in India
Staff Reporter
A 20-year-old third year Bhuta-
nese student studying Interior
Designing in Acharya Group of
Institutes in Bengaluru, India
committed suicide on May 2.  the body. The body was flown
She was a recipient of
government’s undergraduate
scholarship.
Indian media reported
that the girl lived in the college
hostel with three of her friends.
She left college at around 12.15
pm and locked herself in. Her
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roommates found the door
locked from inside and there
was no response when called.
Two Bhutanese officials
from Vellore, one of whom was
a relative of the victim, claimed
to Bhutan on Friday, May 3.
A friend of the victim, who did
not want to be named, said that
the reports in the Indian media
were wrong and insensitive.
“Her father was very sup-
portive and loved what she was
doing,” he said. 
Education City still unutilised
From Pg 1
Director Dhak Tshering
said that there are still no
directives from the govern-
ment. In the meantime, the
Royal Audit Authority has is-
sued three audit memos on
the project.
However, the director
said that of the three memos
issued in the name of the for-
mer minister, Dorji Choden,
one memo issued in 2015 and
2016 still stands. The former
minister was the chairperson
of the Education City board.
“The Audit memo was is-
sued on the project’s facilities
like bridge, road, substation
not being put into use,” he
said. “Although explanation
was given to the audit, the
memo was not dropped.”
He said that another
memo was on the underu-
tilisation of project office at
Motithang, office equipment
including the office rent. How-
ever, the memo was dropped
after the Directorate Service
surrendered the office and
equipment to the department
of national property.
The third memo was is-
sued for retaining of the fund
in the fixed account with Bhu-
tan National Bank in the name
of the project. “Audit asked the
ministry to surrender the fund
to the finance minister, which
the ministry did accordingly.
We’ve already surrendered
about Nu 127 million includ-
ing the interest,” said Dhak
Tshering. “The education city
is closed.”
Works and human settle-
ment minister, Dorji Tsher-
ing said that since the board
had dissolved by the time he
assumed office, he did not
take the chairmanship of the
board. However, Lyonpo said
that the government is explor-
ing options to put the land to
use.
“It is not sure, but we’re
hopeful that the land would
be put to use by next one or
two years depending on the
government’s priority,” Ly-
onpo said. “For instance, the
government is looking into the
possibility of coming up with
a tertiary hospital.”
Lyonpo Dorji Tshering
said that MoWHS was never
involved in the Education
City project, but the project
was handed over to the road
department because of the
presence of road and bridge.
Meanwhile, an official
from the ministry earlier said
that unless the Education
City Act 2012 is repealed, the
project can neither be closed
nor any other developmental
work could take place as the
project is governed by the
Act. The Parliament passed
the Education City Act in
2012.
The Act, however, was
submitted to the National
Law Review Task Force for
review. The task force found
the Act redundant since the
Education City project stands
cancelled.

Five commercial banks
make Nu 2.3B net profit
Tshering Dorji
The country’s five commer-
cial banks made a combined
net profit of Nu 2.3B last year,
according to the audited fi-
nancial statements of the
banks.
The financial statements
also show that all the banks
recorded an increase in profit
compared with that of 2017.
Bhutan Development Bank
came out of the red.
Bank of Bhutan’s (BoB)
profit for the year constitutes
more than half of the com-
bined profit. The net profit
of the bank was a little over
Nu 1B after deducting a tax
of Nu 436M. The bank gener-
ated Nu 1.99B from the inter-
est alone.
As of December 31 last
year, the bank’s deposit base
increase to Nu 46.5B from
Nu 42.8B in 2017. Of the total
deposit, BoB has lent and in-
JAB to change award rules
from next year
Staff Reporter
Recognising their exceptional
contributions, 34 journal-
ists from print and broadcast
media received awards at
the fifth Annual Journalism
Awards (AJA) organised by
the Journalists’ Association
of Bhutan on the World Press
Freedom Day (May 3) in Thim-
phu.
English newspapers took
12 awards, including one for
photojournalism; Dzongkha
newspapers took five; English
radio three, radio programs in
Dzongkha and Tshangla three;
English and Dzongkha TV six;
television technical three. Two
journalists were award the
Most Promising Journalist of
the Year award.
Jigme Wangchen of Busi-
ness Bhutan and Phub Dem
of Kuensel (formerly of Busi-
ness Bhutan) were awarded
the Most Promising Journalists
of the Year.
Kuensel claimed 13 awards
(highest this year), Business
Bhutan  four, and  The Bhu-
tanese two. Sonam Yangdon
of  The Bhutanese  won the
Crime Story of the Year and the
vested Nu 44.8B.
Bhutan National Bank’s
financial statement revealed
a net profit of Nu 606M and
Nu 439M tax. BNB earned
a total income of Nu 1.8B,
of which a major chunk
(Nu1.64B) is from interest
earning.
The Bank has a lending
accumulation of Nu 28 as of
December 31 and a deposit of
over Nu 30B.
Bhutan Development
Bank Limited (BDBL), made
a huge progress despite its
social mandate. The bank
came out of Nu 921M in the
red and earned a profit of Nu
300M last year. BDBL has also
spent Nu 27M on the commu-
nity centres, which fetched
an income of only Nu 4.5M.
The bank, however, earned
an income of Nu 679M from
interest and provisioned Nu
5.37M tax. BDBL’s total de-
posit base also increased by
Investigative Story of the Year.
Rajesh Rai of  Kuensel  took
home the Culture Story of the
Year and the Photojournalist of
the Year. Dawa Pem of Bhutan
Broadcasting Service  Radio
(BBS) won two awards for the
Documentary and Talk Shows
of the Year in the Dzongkha,
Lhotshamkha and Tshangla
category.
Of the 42 awards, eight
awards were cancelled, seven
for print and the most cov-
eted Jigme Singye Wangchuck
Prestigious Award due to lack
of quality, irrelevance, and the
need to do things differently at
the AJA.
The jury for (print) Dzong-
kha cancelled the awards for
business, environment, and
gender citing lack of relevance
of the stories to the categories
and lack of reporting rigour.
Three new awards were in-
troduced for broadcast media
at the AJA this year. There
were categories in television
for: camera, visual editor, and
sound design. Additionally,
entries for radio programmes
in Tshangla and Lhotshamkha
were included for the first time.
JAB received 105 entries
Monday, May 6, 2019 | KUENSEL
about Nu 1B to Nu 22.3B as
of December last year. Of the
total deposits, the bank lent
Nu 18.3B.
Druk PNB’s (DPNB) profit
also increased from Nu 184M
in 2017 to Nu 233M last year.
That is after paying a tax of
Nu 109M. DPNB generated
Nu 403M from interest. The
bank’s deposit based last year
was recorded at Nu 12.6B,
an increase of about Nu 8M
compared with that of 2017.
It lent Nu 8.47B.
T-Bank’s profit increased
from Nu 112M in 2017 to Nu
140M last year. The bank’s
deposit base was recorded
at about Nu 7.8B, of which
about Nu 6.2B was lent out.
Interest income constituted
Nu 202M, about 60 percent
of the total income.
With increasing services,
most of the banks’ income
from fee and commissions
have also increased.
from various media organisa-
tions.
“The AJA will no longer
accept self-submissions from
next year. This has been de-
cided based on feedback and
suggestions from the jury,
journalists, and consumers of
media,” a press release from
JAB stated. “Next year, AJA
will be recognising the social
media impact of media houses
as well.”
The President of JAB, Rin-
zin Wangchuk, highlighted the
need for training Bhutanese
journalists. “The journalism
community is still grappling
with the same old issues- sus-
tainability, high turnover of
journalists, impacting quality
and professionalism, and self-
censorship, among others. De-
spite the odds and challenges,
those in the field have stayed
strong in trying to make a dif-
ference. The need of the hour
for the media industry today
is to build capacity of the jour-
nalists and this is where the
government could come in to
support”.
The event was attended
by journalists, public officials,
and event supporters.
Home
New FD feature
BoB launched an
additional feature on its
fixed deposit scheme
yesterday that allows
clients holding fixed
deposit with the bank to
partially withdraw the
required amount without
having to close their entire
Fixed Deposit account.
If a client has an fixed
deposit of Nu 500,000
and requires Nu 100,000,
he/she can withdraw the
required amount without
Court penalises
three for failure to
report crime
Tshering Palden
Tashi Dendup and his
friends brutally beat up a
person near the fuel depot
in Chubachu, took his mo-
bile phone and fled from the
scene on September 29 last
year.
His friends, four of them,
stood there witnessing the
crime but did not report the
incident to the police.  penalty equal to the wage
In court, Tashi Dendup
submitted that he had asked
the individual to lend him
his phone to make a call.
When the other person re-
mained quiet, he turned his
back to leave the place but
he heard his friends beating
the man and saw them took
the phone.
The court established
that he was lying when it
examined the evidence sub-
mitted by the Office of the
Attorney General obtained
from closed circuit televi-
sion record.
The videos showed Tashi
Dendup walking up to this
man walking on the other
side of road. After sometime
three of his friends from the
group followed him. The
four of them beat the man
and ran away with his Nu
9,800 worth Samsung J7 NXT
mobile phone.
The medical report also
showed that the victim suf-
fered injuries.
The court sentenced
PAGE 3
having to close the entire
FD account.
Clients can continue
their FD with the balance
amount, with same
account number, tenure
and interest rate provided
during the time of opening
of the FD.
Bank officials said
that with this new added
feature, clients can now
have greater flexibility
with their FD accounts,
and encourage saving.
Tashi Dendhup to three
years in prison for robbery.
The court ordered the
four men to compensate the
victim for his cell phone. It
ordered Tashi Dendup to
compensate Nu 2,450 - the
cost of the phone divided
among the four of the per-
petrators.
Two witnesses of the in-
cident were ordered to pay
rate of 45 days to the state.
The court stated that
while the three had the re-
sponsibility to inform the
police about the incident
they had fled the scene and
did not report.
The penal code states
that an individual shall be
guilty of the offence of fail-
ure to report a crime, if the
person, who witnesses any
person committing a crime,
does not report it to the law-
ful authority. The offence is
classified as a violation.
Another accomplice,
Samdrup Dorji was initially
charged for taking care
of stolen property but the
charge was later dropped in
the course of the case.
He was, however, con-
victed of not reporting the
crime and was asked to pay
fine equal to the wage rate
of 45 days.
Samdrup Dorji has been
in detention for 45 and need
not pay any fine.
PERSPECTIVES
PAGE 4 Monday, May 06, 2019 | KUENSEL

My Country, My Town
Prioritise
road safety 

T
he tragic mishap in Wangdue, where a
bus with 24 people on board plunged
into the Punatshangchu, raises the
issue on road safety, yet again. 
Motor vehicle accidents are both
traumatic and dramatic. At times like this, we are
quick to blame the roads, the weather and the
driver for the mishap. Our roads new or old are
still not safe. Rolling boulders have claimed lives
in the past and until the terrain stabilises, this
phenomenon is likely to continue. The way we
drive is, as much an issue but no driver of a pub-
lic transport, experienced as they are of driving
on mountain roads, would intentionally veer the
vehicle off a cliff. When falling boulders strike a Onion shoe!: Makes
moving bus, blaming the driver, who is no longer one wonder what’s
alive, would not salvage the country of the tragedy growing in the other
it went through. half of the pair -
We all become wise after the event. But ques- tomatoes perhaps?
tions remain. The recent incident has raised issues Photo: Kinley Wangchuk
on the state of public transport in the country.
Government policies and political promises stress
on private vehicle ownership and vehicle quotas,
not on improving public transport that a majority Send in your pictures to: editorkuensel@gmail.com
of the population use. We have for long neglected
the importance of public transport services. The
sector gets attention from policy makers and the MY Say
media only when lives are lost or when bus drivers
test positive for drugs. It is time we address this

Bhutan Telecom,
lacuna in our policies.
The other issue that has surfaced in the wake
of the mishap is on heeding to weather adviso-

please explain
ries and cautionary notices that authorities issue.
Bhutan was alerted on the impacts of cyclone
Fani and disaster management hotlines activated.
The education ministry and police had notified
schools and the public to avoid unnecessary trav- Why am I paying a hefty was that confusion a trick to from Bhutan Telecom. Please
els. Travellers were asked to take the old Thimphu price for the little that I hide the surge in charges?  use this Kuensel’s My Say
– Phuentsholing road given the risk of falling boul- get? Dear Bhutan Telecom, Gone are the days when section to explain. It’s free.
ders along the new highway. Tour operators were before I share my frustration we were notified when our And please don’t give us the
also informed.  and before BT gets into that data pack gets exhausted. excuse about background
How then were public transport operators that reason, no, I do not have any Now BT only reminds when application updates because
ferry thousands of people everyday to all parts background applications our talk time reaches Nu 10. I am not buying it. 
of the country allowed to travel during such in- running or my applications If there was ever a day light  
are automatically updating. robbery in this modern day Sincerely Frustrated
clement weather? With advanced technology, our
However, Nu 99 data that and time, this is it.  Client
weather forecasts have today become reliable. Yet, If there are data charge Sherub Dorji
lasts me three days isn’t even
we don’t tend to heed to their advisories as much giving me a day, these days.  changes, do let us know. We
as we heed to the zakar. BT needs to explain the have no choice, its either
With the rise in the number of vehicles in the sudden surge in data charges, BT or TashiCell. We will
country, we are seeing a rise in motor vehicle never mind all the confusion manage anyhow, but don’t
accidents. Last year, Bhutan recorded the high- that you have created to just kill us. With this letter,
est number of  accidents in the last seven years check available balance. Or I am expecting a response
and the highest number of deaths in the past 13
years. There were 1,360 vehicle accidents in 2018
where 135 lives were lost and 807 injured.
Driver’s error was the major cause of accidents
followed by bad road conditions, poor weather Make your opinions known. Send your letters to
conditions and mechanical failure. 
It is time we prioritise road safety and enhance editorkuensel@gmail.com
communications between agencies. It is time we
give attention to public transport.  Letters are edited for space and clarity

Managing Director - Bachu Phub Dorji, Managing editor - Ugyen Penjor, EDITOR - Sonam Pelden,
PRINTING GM - Karma Nima, Marketing & sales GM - Karma J Yangzom, KanGlung Regional Manager - Ugyen Wangdi

Work begins to merge referral
hospitals, drafting of a health Act 
Dechen Tshomo
To have a progressive policy and
legislation in place, the health
ministry is drafting a Health Act.
Health minister Dechen
Wangmo, during the Jigme
Dorji Wangchuck National Re-
ferral Hospital’s second foun-
dation day on May 2, said that
for the health system to grow,
there must be a good enabling
environment.
“Talking about an enabling
environment, we are looking
forward to having a progres-
sive policy and legislation in
place,” Lyonpo said. “The Act
will clearly specify the roles,
the legislative environment in
which the health system will
grow in Bhutan.”
Lyonpo said Bhutan doesn’t
have a health Act today, which
is fundamental to the growth of
the health system in the coun-
try. “We hope that during our
tenure we will be able to pass
the Health Act.”
In terms of progressive poli-
cies, Lyonpo said the ministry
is also reflecting on what works
best for the country. “If you look
at Bhutan as a developing health
system, we have done extremely
well since the adoption of Alma
Ata Declaration in 1978.”
“We have made leaps and
bounds in terms of our achieve-
ments but then as we prepare for
the transition from a low-income
country to a middle-income
country, it is time for all of us to
reflect on if we have enough sys-
tems in place to go through this
transition,” Lyonpo said.
If we look at a developed
health system around the world
in indicators such as palliative
care, quality services, com-
prehensive services, Lyonpo
said the country is still lacking
in terms of waiting time, post-
operative care management.
“We hope that during our
tenure we will be able to address
some of these critical elements
of health systems,” Lyonpo said.  the media publish stories about
During the government’s
tenure, Lyonpo said it is hoped
that the government would be
able to define what is the best
health. “Our dreams are that it
will be a quality and a compre-
hensive service.”
To do this, Lyonpo said that
there would be a few institu-
tional reforms that will happen
in the next few years.  “From our side, from the
The three referral hospitals
Monday, May 6, 2019 | KUENSEL
Home Page 5
in the country would be merged
as one teaching hospital. This,
Lyonpo said was to deliver
health services, at least second-
ary and tertiary level health ser-
vices to every nook and corner
of the country. 
J D W N R H ’s presi-
dent, Lhab Dorji said the hos-
pital has started working on
the merger of the three referral
hospitals on the government’s
directives. “This would greatly
benefit the people.”
The ministry is also look-
ing at revising the medical and
health council Act 2002. 
“We hope that we will have
progressive and conducive leg-
islation in place so that it will
promote the growth of profes-
sionalism in the health sector,” Health minister Dechen Wangmo and JDWNRH president Lhab Dorji release the annual
Lyonpo said. “If we want to JDWNRH report on May 2
have a smooth transition as a workers, we have been working It is important to see if there assistance we will reach out to
developing nation into a devel- hard,” he said. “We have worked have been enough systems in our partners to help us.”
oped world then we must have a hard and will continue to provide place for the mother to be able It is also time to look at
sound, dynamic and responsive better and quality health services to access the services, and then at human resources. “JDWNRH is
health system that caters to the to the people.”  the point of entry into the emer- an apex body for the health sys-
need of our population.” Regarding the media reports gency, how she was handled. tem. I think it is also a body where
Lyonpo congratulated all on the hospital, Lyonpo said she “We want to look at whether the ministry of health looks at it
the staff of JDWNRH who work doesn’t look at it as criticisms of there has been a delay from the as a hub of technical assistance.
tirelessly to make sure that the health system but an oppor- emergency to the delivery room So we really envision JDWNRH
Bhutanese have the best health tunity to relook at the systems or the operation theatre.” as a centre of excellence for our
services.  and see what best could be done If there has been delay, she health workers.”
Certificates and citations to improve it. said, they would look into what In 2018, the hospital saw
were awarded to national and “If we look at the death that could be done to improve it and 552,544 patients, 26,053 more
international donors, the hos- has happened in the Neonatal follow the case from there to the than the previous year at its
pital staff in various categories, Intensive Care Unit (NICU), we NICU where the incident hap- out-patient department. Inpa-
in appreciation for their contri- want to look at not only the death pened.  tient admission increased from
bution. at NICU in isolation,” Lyonpo Lyonpo said that historically 17,468 in 2017 to 17,709 last year.
Some of the achievements said. “We want to look at what it is important to look at all these The bed strength of the hos-
of the hospital last year include has happened during the preg- chains so that every link in the pital has extended from 350 to
the extension of the Paediatric nancy and whether the parents chain is strengthened and built. 381 since 2015. It has an occu-
Intensive Care Unit, the intro- have given enough information “Where there is no capacity we pancy rate of 82.3 percent with
duction of the rheumatology on the importance of taking care will request our partners to come an average length of stay at 6.2
service, and new technology of the fetus.” in, where there is no technical days. 
like Neuronavigation system
and laser equipment, and start-
ing of home-based palliative
care, among others. Request for proposal
Lhab Dorji said the achieve-
ments are a result of the hard Jigme Dorji Wangchuck National Referral
work of the hospital staff and
health workers. Hospital
However, he said, that some Procurement division
people who do not understand Pro/17/JDWNRH/2018-19
the situation of the hospital and
Jigme Dorji Wangchuck National Referral Hospital (JDWNRH) would like to invite
the hospital.  registered consultancy firms or individuals in the country to submit proposal for
He said that this concerns developing Financial Manual for the Autonomous Hospital.
the hospital as the government
spends much to provide qual-
The detailed Request for Proposal (RFP), along with Terms of Reference can be
ity services through the hospital obtained from Procurement Division paying Nu. 500/- (Non-refundable).
and such issues might result in Interested local consultancy firms or individuals are requested to submit your
people thinking that the hospi-
RFP to Procurement Division by May 20, 2019 (before 3 PM).
tal is lacking in its mandates and
that the health workers are not For further details, please contact Procurement Division at 333596/337843 or
doing their job well. email at karmagyeltshen@jdwnrh.gov.bt.
administration to the health
Management
REGION
Page 6 Monday, May 06, 2019 | KUENSEL
Cyclone Fani:
12 lakh moved
to shelters
More than 12 lakh people
have been evacuated and
moved to cyclone shelters
in 19 coastal districts as
cyclone Fani is charging
towards Bangladesh, after
making landfall in the East-
ern Indian coast yesterday
morning.
The very severe cyclonic
storm, named Fani meaning
snake’s hood, lost its speed
and strength and turned into
a tropical storm. It was on
its way to West Bengal when
this report was filed around
1:00am today.
It is expected to strike Bang-
ladesh around midday today,
according to the Met office.  Adequate medicine,
It will enter through the
north of Khulna and south
of Rajshahi around noon and
will remain in Bangladesh
territory for 6-10 hours, said
Shamsuddin Ahmed, direc-
tor of Bangladesh Meteoro-
logical Department.
“Currently the eye of
the cyclone is some 300km
southwest of Satkhira,”
he told The Daily Star at
11:00pm yesterday.
Hindustan Times report-
ed that it will further weaken
by the time enters Bangla-
desh with a wind speed of
60-70kmph.
But even before the strike,
Fani already caused cyclonic
storm with a speed of more
than 100kmph and five feet
high storm surges and trig-
gered rainfall almost all over
the country yesterday.
At least seven people
reportedly died and seven
were injured in lightning
and tree falls in different
parts of the country.
At least 30 villages in
Patuakhali, Bagerhat and
Khulna were inundated
as storm surges breached
earthen embankments and
overflew them. Water level
was also rising in rivers in
those districts.
In Cox’s Bazar’s remote
island Kutubdia, at least 20 vil-
lages went under water as tides
as high as four-five feet struck
those areas yesterday morning.   
In Patuakhali, at least
Heavy rainfall across
Bangladesh; storm surges
hit coastal areas; 50 villag-
es inundated as embank-
ments breached.
- Lightnings and tree
fall kill 7
- 4,071 cyclone shel-
ters in 19 districts
prepared
- Dry food, medicine,
drinking water sent
to cyclone shelters
- 32 Navy ships in
operation to rescue
people
- Thousands still
stranded in offshore
islands of Noakhali,
Bhola
17 villages were flooded as
dykes in Kalapara, Mirzagonj
and Rangabali collapsed on
impacts of the tidal surge,
said Hasanuzzaman, execu-
tive engineer at Patuakhali
WDB.
At least three villages
in Bagerhat’s Shoronkhola
were also flooded.
In Barishal, many boats
that went to fishing in the
deep sea did not come back
till yesterday evening.
Standing crops in differ-
ent districts were also dam-
aged, although the extent
was not immediately clear.
The whole country will
experience heavy rainfall
and storm today. After mak-
ing landfall in Bangladesh,
Fani will move towards
Assam.  600 people can take shelter,
“ Though it became
week, it still is a very severe
cyclone. The whole country
would experience rainfall
and cyclonic storm on its
impact tomorrow [today],”
said Shamsuddin Ahmed,
director of the Met office.
Operations of all water
vessels will remain sus-
pended until further notice.
Due to bad weather, two
domestic flights of Biman
Bangladesh were cancelled
while several others had to
be rescheduled.   
Braving the rough weath-
er, members of navy, coast-
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guard, police, Ansar, VDP,
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party activists shifted lakhs Showroom, Babesa. zexim@wlink.com.np
of people to cyclone shelters Call 17110018. Announcement: Shree
from vulnerable areas.
The rescue operations Required: Interested Ranisati Electricals,
began at 10:00am and con- to buy 3 to 4 bedroom Siliguri. Wholsale of
tinued till evening.  apartment around fancy lamp shades,
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ate 21 lakh people. But till
Contact 17981820. led lights. Contact
6:00pm, we could shift 12.40
lakh. The rescue work is still +919749884303. Email:
on,” Enamur Rahman, state ranisati.lites@gmail.
minister for relief and dis- Sale: Land at Hejo, com
aster management, told The Dechencholing, Olakha, Lost: Lag thram of Mrs.
Daily Star around 9:30pm.
Babesa and Namseling. Tashi Pem Jamyang,
The people were taken to
4,071 cyclone shelters in 19 Contact 17330212. bearing thram no.
coastal districts, he added. 4818 plot no: DA1-128.
Finders may contact
drinking water, dry food and
other necessary goods as
Vacancy: One slot 17111218.
well as medical teams have bakery helper for Hotel
been sent to all the shelters, Norbuling. Contact nu. per units of foreign Currency
as of yesterday
said Shah Kamal, senior sec- 335697. NOTES
retary at the relief and dis-
aster management ministry. Vacancy: 2 male and 2 Buy Sell
US $ 68.35 70.45
However, tens of thou- female helper for shop PounD 88.70 91.15
sands of people are still in at Olakha, Thimphu. EURO 76.15 78.25
the offshore islands in Bhola Contact 17624123. YEN (100) 61.25 62.95
and Noakhali. HK $ 8.70 8.95
Around 17,000 people Required: Temporary AUS $ 47.75 49.05
were stranded in Dhal Char and permanent staff Sing $ 50.00 51.45
union of Bhola’s Charfassion for tourist standard Courtesy BNB
as there is no cyclone shel-
ter there, said Abdus Salam,
chairman of the union.  
Despite the risk, the
people there cannot move
to the mainland due to bad
weather.
There are two concrete
buildings in Dhal Char -- a
police outpost and the union
council office -- where only
locals said.
Many panicked locals
were taking shelter in the
mangroves to save their lives
as the water level in the Bay
was rising, reports our cor-
respondent there. 
In Hatia, the cyclone
shelters at Hatia Bazar and
Ali Bazar were found empty
yesterday though the district
To advertise in Kuensel:
administration kept those Call 326191 or fax 322975;
ready and requested the
people to go there, accord- kuenseladvertisement@gmail.com
ing to our Noakhali corre- TO Subscribe: Call 327463/ 17728174
spondent.  
The Daily Star For news: Call 324684, 322483
ANN
 Diversion
Monday, May 6, 2019 | KUENSEL Page 7

Terma and Terton

complex mystical and transcenden- ally did not originate from one establish- discovery.
Karma Phuntsho is a social thinker
tal process involving sacred sites in ment or institution or even from one Due to the Bhutanese faith in Padma-
and worker, the President of the
which treasures are hidden, secret school although most of them belonged sambhava and treasure tradition, almost
Loden Foundation and the author of
codes (བརྡ་ཡིག་), guides (གཏེར་བྱང་), to the Nyingma tradition. They did not all of them would have enjoyed a very
many books and articles including
rituals (ཆོ་ག་), miracles (རྫུ་འཕྲུལ་) and, function as part of an organised religious good reception, hospitality and even de-
The History of Bhutan.
above all, terton (གཏེར་སྟོན་) or treasure movement or group although they loosely votion from local patrons, followers and
discoverers with special connections shared goals and stratagems. The tertons the Bhutanese public but an unfortunate
Bhutan has a rich heritage of both
to Padmasambhava and the figures were mostly individual mystics seeking few may have faced skepticism and utter
‘received teachings’ and ‘revealed
of the Yarlung dynastic period of Ti- religious treasures and hidden lands fol- rejection like the case of a recent Tibetan
teachings’. Its received teachings in-
betan history. Consequently, terma lowing the cryptic prophecies and guides tertön whose discoveries were examined
clude the transmissions of Kagyu
revelation was not merely perceived which came to their hands or their own and declared to be forgeries by the Bhu-
(བཀའ་བརྒྱུད་) school and the kama
as an ordinary practice of hiding and prognostic dreams. Besides, they shared tanese state and the person seen off un-
(བཀའ་མ་) teachings in the Nyingma
retrieving things but as a transcenden- the link to Padmasambhava and the claim ceremoniously. Today, the proliferation of
(རྙིང་མ་) school. The revealed teach-
tal revelation of religious knowledge to be his destined spiritual heirs. Most ter- clinical scientific thinking has placed the
ings consists of the terma (གཏེར་མ་) or
and objects using superhuman and tons associated with Bhutan also shared belief in ancient treasure under intense
rediscovered treasures, which started
prophetic abilities. The treasure cul- two beliefs; that the hidden lands condu- scrutiny. There are perhaps fewer persons
to develop during the Buddhist re-
ture also expanded in terms of what cive for spiritual practice lay mostly in the who claim to be tertons today than in any
naissance in Tibet in the 11th centu-
was discovered. In addition to texts borderlands south of Tibet and that these of the last ten centuries. Nevertheless, it
ry. The treasures are mostly texts, but
(ཆོས་གཏེར་), religious artefacts and holy places were filled with treasures buried by is still not very hard to find a Tibetan reli-
also included artefacts, which were
substances, (རྫས་གཏེར་), the treasures Padmasambhava and his disciples to be gious visitor travelling across Bhutan on
believed to have been concealed by
also included visionary (དག་སྣང་) and revealed when the propitious time came. pilgrimage to imbibe blessings from the
Padmasambhava or other figures
psychic revelations (དགོངས་གཏེར་). With these beliefs, they set on their jour- powerful places and also extract a treasure
during the 8th and 9th century in or-
The locus of the treasures also ex- neys mainly to find and extract treasures if it comes their way.
der to be revealed when the time is
panded with treasures discovered not but also subsequently to spread the teach- In the Bhutan, the most popular trea-
ripe by individuals destined to do so.
only from the earth but from lakes, ings which they have rediscovered. sure cycles include the Peling (པད་གླིང་), Ny-
This skilful technique of religious
cliffs, space and even the inner depths These religious explorers traversed ingthig (སྙིང་ཐིག་), Tersar (གཏེར་གསར་) teach-
preservation and regeneration per-
of the human psyche. Similarly, as the the entire country either in search of trea- ings. Even among the Drukpa Kagyu in
haps started as a simple practice of
treasure culture and its influence be- sures or on their missions to promote their Bhutan, some of the most popular teach-
burying texts for safety during trou-
gan to spread, it was no longer limited treasures. They attracted large following as ings are rediscovered terma including the
bled times and having them recov-
to the Nyingma school as it was in the they were believed to be the incarnations worship of Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal
ered when the socio-political situa-
beginning. There are treasure dis- of the important persons who received the which is a visionary rediscovered treasure.
tion became conducive for their use.
coverers in all four Tibetan Buddhist teachings directly from Padmasambhava Thus, the terma culture pervades Bhutan’s
A great number of texts and objects
schools and Bon religion. Treasure and their teachings and techniques to be religious landscape and has substan-
may have been buried for safekeep-
discoverers from the Nyingma and spiritually more fresh and effective than tial impact on the lives of people. Terma
ing when the Tibetan empire crum-
Drukpa Kagyu schools of Buddhism other forms of teachings, which have be- teachings form the basis of the grand state
bled in the middle of the 9th century,
and Bon religion were active in Bhu- come stale due to gradual transmission rituals as well as the personalized practice
the state support to Buddhism was
tan. This fascinating and problematic through the ages. The teachings they dis- of hermits in seclusion. The corpus of re-
lost and political chaos ensued after
practice of religious regeneration and covered and propagated often became the discovered treasure texts, which Kongtrul
the peasant revolts. Thus, it is likely
revelation had substantial impact on trendy religious practices of their times. Yonten Thaye compiled at the end of the
that a lot of the early treasure discov-
the course of Bhutan’s history. Some Many, however, failed to leave any sig- 19th century, form one of the most impor-
eries involved only ordinary human
fifty treasure discoverers from Tibet nificant legacy for posterity and passed tant scriptures among Bhutan’s spiritual
procedures of retrieving the texts
visited Bhutan in search of treasures into oblivion. In the case of many of the heritage. Most of Bhutan’s valuable mate-
or artefacts, although the acts of re-
from the 11th century until the end minor tertöns, we do not even know when rial heritage in the form of antiques and
trieval may have been accompanied
of the 20th century and Bhutan itself they lived and what they did apart from sacred objects are also considered to be
by some religious prayers and rituals.
produced about a dozen treasure dis- a sparse mention of their acts of treasure rediscovered treasures.
However, as the practice devel-
coverer including the famous treasure
oped, the treasure culture appears
discoverer, Pema Lingpa, who is Bhu-
to have gone through an accretive
tan’s foremost local spiritual figure.
process of sacralisation and ritualis-
The treasure discoverers gener-
tic systematization. It evolved into a

Sudoku

How to play
Fill in the grid so
Know your LAW that every row, every
column, and every 3

What is an ‘Oral Argument’?

X 3 box contains the
numbers 1 through 9.

In any civil or criminal proceedings, proceedings take place in

two phases. One is the opportunity to submit the written state-
ments and the other is the opportunity to submit oral arguments
in favour of one’s case. The oral argument gives opportunity for
the Petitioners and the Respondents to summarize their position
before the court of law and also answer the questions of the judges
regarding the matter.
Answer

Source: BNLI
Advertisement
Page 8 Monday, May 6, 2019 | KUENSEL

Re-Announcement of Vacancies for pre-commission training at Indian Military

academy, officers’ Training academy, Chennai, Technical entry scheme, Gaya and
National defence academy, Pune (India)
Headquarters Royal Bhutan Army
702/15/GS(Trg)

1. With reference to earlier announcement done in advertisement ii) Degree- Graduate from recognized university with minimum
on Page 14 dated April 06, 2019. of 60% aggregate marks
2. The Headquarters, Royal Bhutan Army, Lungtenphu is pleased c) Age limit for all entries : Should not have exceeded 25 years of
to re-announce the availability in various vacancies for pre- age at the time of joining the
commission training in India as tabulated below: institution (i.e September 2019 for
SSC 110/SSC (W)- 24).
Trg Institutes Courses Vacancies
From To
d) Height for all entries: Minimum 5’6’’ (167.64 cm) for male
IMA, July 01, Dec 12,
IMA-147 12 Minimum 5’2” (157.50 cm) for female
Dehradun 2019 2020
SSC-110/- 07 (05 male September September 5. Eligibility criteria for TES-41 at OTA, Gaya
OTA, Chennai
SSC(W)-24 & 02 female) 30, 2019 05, 2020 a) Education qualification : 60% aggregate (Physics, Chemistry,
July 01, June 06,
OTA, Gaya TES-41 05 Maths and English) and 55% in
2019 2020
English in Class XII result.
June 27, May 31,
NDA, Pune NDA-142 02 b) Age limit - Should not have exceeded 20 years of age at the
2019 2022
time of joining the institution (i.e July 2019 for TES
3. Eligibility criteria for IMA 147 41).
a) Twelve (12) vacancies for Male Candidate only. c) Height - Minimum 5’ 5’’ (165.10 cm)
i) Science Stream: Graduate from recognized university with 6. Eligibility criteria for NDA-142, Pune
60% and above aggregate marks
a) Education qualification : 60% aggregate (Three best
ii) Other Streams: Graduate from recognized university with (All Stream) subjects and English)
60% and above aggregate marks and minimum 55% in English in
iii) Science stream candidates will be given preference. class XII result. However, Science
stream candidates will be given
b) Cut off point (Degree only) preference
i) Class XII- The candidates should have passed with minimum b) Age limit : Should not have exceeded 20 years of age at the
58% aggregate in class XII examination (Three best subjects time of joining the institution (i.e June 2019)
and minimum 55% in English)
c) Height : Minimum 5’ 5’’ (165.10 cm)
ii) Degree: Graduate from recognized university with minimum
of 60% aggregate marks. 7. Mandatory documents in original for all entries:
c) Age limit for all entries : Should not have exceeded 25 years of a) Class X, XII and degree certificates for IMA, SSC & SSC(W)
age at the time of joining the institution b) Class X and class XII certificates for TES and NDA
(i.e July 2019 for IMA 147) c) Citizenship identity card
d) Height for all entries: Minimum 5’6” (167.64 cm) for male. d) Security clearance
4. Eligibility criteria for SSC 110 & SSC (W) 24 e) Two passport size photographs
f) CID copies of both parents
a) A total of Seven vacancies (05 for male candidates and 2 for
female candidates) with technical background for SSC-110 and g) Admission cards
SSC(W)-24 at OTA. Chennai from recognized university as under: 8. Registration/verification will close 1400 hours on May 10, 2019.
i) Electrical -1 9. A small booklet containing detailed instructions on eligibility
ii) Architecture -1 criteria and selection process will be issued on payment of Nu.
iii) IT software Engineer -1 100/- (non-refundable)
iv) Civil -3 10. Names of the shortlisted candidates shall be announced on
v) Mechanical -1 May 14, 2019.

b) Cut off point (Degree only)
i) Class XII- The candidates should have passed with minimum
58% aggregate in class XII examination (Three best subjects
and minimum 55% in English)
11. The vacancies for IMA, OTA, Chennai, TES Gaya and NDA due
in December 2019 and April 2020 will be announced later on
confirmation of the vacancies.
Personnel Officer

To advertise IN Kuensel: Call 326191 or fax 326638;

E-mail us at: kuenseladvertisement@gmail.com,
TO Subscribe Kuensel: Call 327463; For news: Call 324684, 322483

Management of heritage buildings
should be well integrated
Choki Wangmo
The protection of heritage sites
and sustenance of cultural land-
scape has become a daunting
challenge in the face of rapid de-
velopment, urbanisation, and
increased tourism activities in
the country.
According to senior archi-
tect with Department of Culture
(DoC), Pema, management
plan would clarify the roles and
responsibilities of management
partners and inform procedure
to undertake protection work.
World Heritage Convention
defines cultural landscapes as
the “combined works of nature
and man,” a relationship be-
tween people and their natural
environment.
UNESCO Project officer of
World Heritage Centre, Roland
Chih-Hung Lin, said that the
management of cultural land-
scapes should be integrated
and have interdisciplinary ap-
proach. “It should be associated
with people, governance and in-
teraction between man people
and environment.”
The Cultural Heritage Bill of
Bhutan 2016 states: “Bhutan’s
uniqueness lies in its cultural
landscape where tangible and
intangible cultural heritage and
nature coexist harmoniously.” It
Sarpang dzong construction on track
Younten Tshedup | Sarpang
With almost 24.9 percent physi-
cal work completed, the new
Sarpang dzong construction is
expected to meet its deadline of
June 2023.  He said the dzong would be
Pre-establishment works
began in September 2016 but ac-
tual construction works started
in January last year. To date, of
the 13 blocks, foundation works
for five administrative blocks
have been completed.  The dzong’s plinth area
According to project of-
ficials, once completed, the
dzong would offer one of the
best working conditions for the
dzongkhag administration and
the monk body.  ject has received good quantity
Project manager, Sangay
Kinga, said that while the dzong
would maintain the traditional
architectural design, modern
technologies would be incor-
porated. The use of reinforced
cement concrete (RCC) frames
would provide additional stabil-
Cultural landscapes are the combined works of nature and man
declared “Bhutan as a whole is
recognised for its unique cul-
tural landscape.”
The bill aims to provide val-
ue-based protection of heritage
sites in the country.  Punakha Dzongda Karma
In his address at that fifth
workshop on cultural landscape
and sustaining its significance
in Thimphu last week, Home
Minister Sherub Gyeltshen
highlighted the cultural and his-
torical importance of Punakha
Dzong.
Pema said that the dzong
would be designated as the
ity to the structure, he said. 
“It is a perfectly designed
structure. Should everything go
as planned, it would be one of
the best dzongs in the country,”
the project manager said. 
equipped with safety features
including smoke and heat de-
tectors, fire hydrant and an alarm
system. The structure would also
be disable-friendly with ramps
and other facilities.
spreads across 3.9 acres and will
house the tallest Utse measuring
123ft, equivalent to a 10-storied
building.  The new dzong is expected to complete with the 12th Plan
Sangay Kinga said the pro-
of workforce, however, quality
and skill is a challenge. “We need
people with different skills for
dzong construction, which is not
readily available today,” he said.
“We are training them on the job
so that we build our own team
of experts for future projects. We
Monday, May 6, 2019 | KUENSEL
heritage building of special
importance as it was one of the
most important dzongs in the
country. “It is also a popular site
for tourists.”
Drukpa said that the dzong
currently faced space prob-
lem with increasing visitors,
lack of proper facilities for the
monks, and risk from natural
disasters.
“Value-based approach—
balanced historical, archi-
tectural, aesthetic, economic
values for people is adopted for
want to establish a pool of our
own skilled workforce.”
He said that besides the lim-
ited skilled workforce, weather
is another challenge during the
construction. “Long and heavy
rainfall in the area hampers cast-
ing works during summer, which
could affect the strength of the
Home
the sustenance and continuity
of the Dzong as one of the most
important heritage buildings,”
said senior architect with DoC,
Yeshi Samdrup.
The plan divided the site
into three zones for better
management and regulation.
The core area is the dzong; the
conservation zone is the imme-
diate surroundings of the dzong,
and the buffer zone protects the
visual integration of the dzong
and its surrounding. “The three
zones are further divided into
subzones,” said Pema.
structure if we are not careful,” he
said. “We keep those works for
winter and focus on other works
during monsoon.”
Meanwhile, of the 37,000
cubic feet (cft) of timber required
for the construction, the project
has received about 22,000cft. The
project has almost exhausted its
PAGE 9
A panel discussion based
on three themes was held.
Panelists identified the need
for research and development,
architectural information of the
site for visitors, and view protec-
tion as a key to sustenance of
heritage sites. “We need to have
coordinated approach from all
stakeholders involved,” said one
of the panelists.
The home ministry has held
consultation at the agency level
and a public consultation will
follow.
“People are at the centre of
management plan. Heritage is
an asset and identity rather than
a burden,” said Yeshi Samdrup.
After consultation with
stakeholders, the plan will be
submitted to the Cabinet for
endorsement.
A book titled “South Asian
Cultural Landscape Initiatives”
was also launched during the
program.
For the 12th five-year plan,
five sites—Punakha Dzong,
Taktsang, Kyichu, and Jampa
Lhakhangs, and Semtokha
Dzong were chosen as herit-
age sites.
The two-day meeting was
attended by international
representatives, experts and
members of the parliament,
among others.
timber stock and is in the process
to request for additional supply. 
Of the total Nu 550 million
(M) approved by the govern-
ment, the project has used Nu
217M (37.8 percent). The gov-
ernment of India is funding the
project, which is estimated at Nu
1,037M. 
Advertisement
PAGE 10 Monday, May 6, 2019 | KUENSEL

NOTICE INVITING TENDER

MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE AND FORESTS
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, YUSIPANG
ARDC-Y/Adm-08/2018-2019/851

Agriculture Research and Development Center (ARDC), Yusipang, MoAF, Thimphu would like to invite sealed quotations from the eligible
national bidders for the following supplies for the fiscal year 2019-2020.
Sales of tender Date and time of Date and time of
Sl.# Particulars
document bid submission bid opening
1 Office stationery
2 Office furniture
May 6, 2019 to June 5, 2019 at June 5, 2019 at
3 Office computer and equipment
June 4, 2019 11:00 AM 11:30 AM
4 Extension kits and laboratory items
5 Hardware and electrical items
6 Vehicle maintenance, hiring and tyres & tubes
7 Farm machinery spare parts and maintenance May 6, 2019 to June 6, 2019 at June 6, 2019 at
8 Maintenance of computer & its spare parts June 4, 2019 11:00 AM 11:00 AM
9 Agriculture tools and equipment
The tender documents can be downloaded at free of cost from the ministry’s website www.moaf.gov.bt. Please contact ARDC, Yusipang
office at (975)77191124, 77191125, 77191126/17358422 for any clarification.
Offtg. Program Director

Public Notification Notification

Anti-corruption commission Ministry of works and human settlement
ACC/LD/03-2019/610 DEPARTMENT OF ROADS
The Commission would like to invite interested REGIONAL OFFICE, PHUENTSHOLING
Suppliers of Goods and Services and Consultancy DoR/ROP/Mtc.-01/2018-2019/1083
firms to attend stakeholder’s consultation meeting
on the Debarment Rules on the 12th May 2019. The Regional Office, DoR, Phuenstholing would like to request to all the travelers
to refrains travelling through Sombaykha to Namchukhola road (Haa Road) since
For registration or any inquiry, please contact
it is under construction phase and had not yet opened to traffic.
Ms. Kelzang Dema, Legal Officer, Anti-Corruption
Commission during office hours at 02-334863/ The condition of the road is not very safe due to rolling boulders and steep
64/66/67/68 or by email ID: kdema@acc.org.bt. gradients. Since risk is an unforeseen event that will occur during the process of
road construction, Regional office will not be held responsible if any one travelers
Last date of registration is 9th May 2019.
using this road till such time the road is officially opened to traffic.
Anti-Corruption
The vehicle carrying river bed materials/boulders between Sipsu to Samtse road
should also refrain crossing bailey bridges as the capacity of the Bailey bridge is
maximum 18 tonnes only.
Vacancy announcement
The heavy vehicles usually carry 35-40 tonnes of load which is very much beyond
Ariya hotel the capacity of the existing bailey bridges.
Immediate recruitment at Ariya hotel Such overweight vehicle crossing a bridge even if it is a single crossing, will affect
Position Requirement Slot the short term behavior of the bridge and long term performance and life-cycle
cost resulting of the bridge.
CDP Continental 1
Chief Engineer
Commi 1 Indian 1
Commi 111 General 2
Interested candidate can mail CV and basic NOTIFICATION
documents at hr@ariyabhutan.com
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MANAGEMENT

How about introducing Disadvantage
Compensation Allowance?
I
t’s an undeniable fact
that civil servants,
corporate employees
and almost everyone
want to crowd into
Thimphu. Thimphu is burst-
ing at the seams while other
towns wear a dismal look.
Living and working in Thim-
phu means being close to the
head office, the best referral
hospital in the country, being
close to myriad other oppor-
tunities and conveniences.
A person living elsewhere is
disadvantaged when it comes
to accessing these services
that the capital city provides.
Almost every opportunity
seems to originate in Thim-
phu. Be it training, foreign
travel, access to government
services, business opportuni-
ties et-cetera. Civil servants
stationed in remote locations
often miss out on ex-country
trainings simply because
there wasn’t enough time for
him to make it on time. Other
times, they wouldn’t even be
aware of opportunities that
come with short notice. As
the most happening place,
civil servants in Thimphu
have better investment op-
portunities, be it in buying a
plot of land or business con-
sideration. Those in Thimphu
are most likely to have post
retirement backup plan than
their counterparts in remote
areas.
If a civil servant in Ud-
zorong plans on studying in
Australia, he will have to avail
about 10 days leave to pro-
cess his documents, visit the
hospital for examination, get
his documents notarized and
process his visa application.
Not to mention the financial
burden of such an effort. His
colleagues in Thimphu can
simply sneak out of office to
get all these done without
availing leave and cost.
Healthcare facility is one of
the biggest advantages of tak-
ing up residence in Thimphu.
In the absence of comparable
healthcare facility elsewhere
within the country, civil
servants with aging parents
or dependents with health
issues find Thimphu the best
place to live in.
The farther you are from
Thimphu, the greater the
disadvantage. It is no wonder
no one wants to budge from
Thimphu.
A recent article in Kuen-
sel highlighting the problems
faced by Health Ministry
in sending doctors out of
Thimphu is an apt example of
“crowding” in Thimphu. I as-
sume similar challenges are
faced by other government
agencies.
Perhaps the new gov-
ernment can now be more
cognizant of this fact and
implement measures to
bring parity in advantage of
working away from Thimphu
by introducing what could
be termed “disadvantage al-
lowance” for those stationed
away. A strategy to reward
and convince civil servants
to serve in remote locations
more willingly.
To begin with, classifica-
tion of towns should be done
based on access to healthcare
facilities, education, other
public services, cost of living
and economic vibrancy of
that locality. The allowance
should be based on proximity
to such facility and proxim-
ity to Thimphu. Let’s take
Mongar town for instance. It
has a Referral Hospital (albeit
sans doctor), it’s the district
head office and certain public
services are available, but
can never beat Thimphu. So
Thimphu must be considered
“Ground Zero” where exist
all the favorable conditions
and advantages of working
Perspective
Monday, May 6, 2019 | KUENSEL
and living. Thimphuites will
argue that Thimphu is the
most expensive place in the
country. But the fact remains
that everyone wants to live in
Thimphu. Therefore Thimphu
must offer something that off-
sets the other disadvantages.
I have prepared a hypo-
thetical illustration of the
rationale of “disadvantage
allowance” with few sample
cases just in case the policy
makers never looked at it from
this angle.
Three factors have been
considered.
a. Thimphu as a factor (it
is assumed that no other town
will ever match the facilities,
services and other advan-
tages that Thimphu provides).
Thimphu as ground zero is
assigned zero point.
b. Major hub (major towns
and district head office where
certain services and public
facilities are available). Each
major hub is categorized
based on the services and fa-
cilities available in it. The cat-
egorization could also include
parameters such as existence
of central school, college,
healthcare facility, gas station,
cost of living, public transport,
entertainment and sporting
facilities etc. The more ad-
vantage the town provides, the
less point it gets.
c. The actual place of work
where an employee is sta-
tioned. Point is allotted based
on the distance to the nearest
major hub. For instance, the
nearest major hub of Kamji is
Phuentsholing.
The following two pa-
rameters have been used to
calculate point.
a. Proximity of the major
hub to Thimphu
b. Proximity of the work-
place to nearest major hub
For sake of illustration, I
have assigned hypothetical
points as illustrated in the
diagram below.
PAGE 11
Case 1:
A person stationed in
Dorokha gets a total of 7
points ( 2 points for prox-
imity to the nearest major
hub which is Samtse, 3 for
major hub classification of
Samtse and another 2 points
for proximity of Samtse to
Thimphu.
Case 2:
A person stationed in
Samdrupcholing gets a total
of 9 points (3 point for prox-
imity to the nearest major
hub, which is Samdrupjong-
khar, 2 for major hub classi-
fication of Samdrupjongkhar
and another 4 for proximity
of Samdrupcholing to Thim-
phu.
Case 3:
A person stationed in
Ura gets a total of 7 points
(2 for proximity to the
nearest major hub, which
is Bumthang town, 3 for
major hub classification of
Bumthang and another 3 for
proximity of Bumthang to
Thimphu.
The calculation is similar
for other cases.
Assuming each point is
valued at Nu 500, the disad-
vantage allowance for each
work location is tabled below
I only hope this is worth
deliberating
Note:
All figures, grading and
points mentioned are hy-
pothetical conjecture, and
meant only for illustration. A
real research should be con-
ducted to classify the towns
based on services, facilities
and other advantages offered
by the town. Likewise the
points for proximity to Thim-
phu and proximity to nearest
major hub also could be
determined based on actual
distance.
Contributed by
Pema Tashi
Managing Proprietor,
Build Youth Bhutan
ECPF
 Dzongkhag
PAGE 12 Monday, May 6, 2019 | KUENSEL

Samtse College to start

BA in social work
Rajesh Rai | Samtse researchers about the emerg-
ing social work and practices.
Samtse College of Education It was also conducted to create
(SME) will offer Bachelor of awareness among the people
Arts in Social Works (BASW) about social work education
from July this year. A total of and profession.
39 Class XII graduates will be “We are able to share what
the first batch. is happening in social work
In preparation for this and its history,” Dr Kinley said,
course, the college held an adding the knowledge from
international conference on the conference into the social
“emerging social work prac- work course curriculum.  
tices and education,” from May Meanwhile, UNICEF is
1 to May 3. providing technical support
The dean of research and in establishing the social work
industrial linkages at SCE, Dr program. Development of the
(PhD) Kinley said the confer- curriculum, conference, con-
ence was conducted in line nection, and social work cer-
with the recent discussions tificate are the four phases that
and conversations among vari- UNICEF is supporting SCE.
ous stakeholders on the need More than 500 Class XII
to having social work course. graduates had applied for the Samtse college of education
“Many CSOs and NGOs are course but only 39 have been
emerging in Bhutan today in- admitted for the first batch that courses just to get BASW, she
volving many people,” he said. of the conference on May 1. lated to emerging social work
starts on July 21 this year.   said, adding the conference
“We need to certify them.” More than 600 students of the practices and education were
SCE’s dean for academics would eventually help many
With the objective of start- college attended the three-day presented by both Bhutanese
affairs, Dr Karma Utha, who understand about the course.
ing the new course, the college conference. Various topics re- and international participants.
is closely involved in the de- SCE is also building the
eventually started connecting velopment of the course said course contents and curricu-
with social work institutions people had misunderstood lums with Bhutanese context
in India and other countries. about the social work course. and not copying from other
The college also had carried “Although we went to many countries, Dr Karma Utha Good Day
out social work related “cer- schools we couldn’t cover all,” said. Bhutanese cultural val- • to build new monuments
tificate courses” for the CSO she said, adding many thought ues and contexts with global • to consecrate
Tomorrow
employees in the country. the new course was about so- social work contemporary • to appease local deities
After setting the founda- cially useful productive work knowledge, skills and profes- • to perform wealth accumulation
tion for the course, the inter- (SUPW) from the school.  sional ethics and values would ritual
A good day for rituals (laza): • to appoint to new post
national conference was next, Dr Karma Utha, however, be integrated. those born in the sheep, snake, monkey
Dr Kinley said. This provides said some understood. One and rooster years. • to hand and take over office
Prime Minister Dr Lotay • to start new business
the platform for the institution, Class XII graduate took the Tshering graced the opening Generally a good day (sogza): • to enter into new house
academia, professionals and risk of cancelling 13 different those born in the snake and horse years. • to learn astrology
A bad day (shedza): • to shift house
those born in the tiger and rabbit years. • to set up storage
FLIGHTS • to marry and celebrate
• to hold good discussion
• to sow seeds
DrukAir • to plant trees and flowers
Date Flight No. Route Departure Arrival
May 7 KB 131 Bangkok to Paro via Bagdogra 06:50 10:10 Bad Day
May 7 KB 152 Paro to Bangkok 11:00 15:10 • to sell land
May 7 KB 200 Paro to Delhi 11:30 13:40 • to take new baby out of house
May 7 KB 201 Delhi to Paro 04:45 07:15 and celebrate birth
May 7 KB 210 Paro to Kolkata 07:00 07:50
May 7 KB 211 Kolkata to Paro 08:50 10:30
May 7 KB 270 Paro to Ahmedabad 08:15 11:40
Time of issue: 03:40 PM,
Domestic SUNRISE : 5:20 am |SUNSET : 6:35 pm 5 May 2019
May 7 KB 012 Paro to Bumthang 11:15 11:50
May 7 KB 031 Yonphula to Paro 10:00 10:45
May 7 KB 050 Paro to Yonphula via Gelephu 08:00 09:40
Note : All timings in local. Timings are subject to change. Call Drukair toll free No. 1300 for latest flight information. Gasa Trongsa Bumthang Sarpang Phuentsholing
Bhutan Airlines (Tashi Air)
May 7 B3701 Bangkok to Paro via Kolkata 06:30 09:55 18 20 19 26 30
May 7 B3700 Paro to Bangkok via Kolkata 10:35 16:05 6 10 9 21 19
May 7 B3774 Delhi to Paro 08:30 11:05
May 7 B3773 Paro to Delhi via Kathmandu 11:45 14:40 Source: National Center for Hydrology and Meteorology.
For any weather information: Call hotline 335578
Note : All timings in local. Timings are subject to change. Call Drukair toll free No. 1300 for latest flight information.

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