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In the setting of a young democracy, the foundations are not laid by laws alone but by the people who live, breathe, and uphold its principles. Bhutan, with its relatively recent embrace of democratic governance, finds itself at a critical juncture- one that demands not just participation in elections, but a deep-rooted understanding of democracy itself. The Election Commission of …

…𝒑𝒉𝒂𝒔𝒆 𝑰𝑽 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒐𝒚𝒂𝒍 𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒔 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒅𝒖𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒐𝒇 𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒅𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒈𝒆𝒐-𝒄𝒐𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒃𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒎𝒐𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 By Tashi Tshewang Over 2,700 high-value fruit tree saplings were planted across four Gewogs in Bumthang as part of Phase IV of the Million Fruit Trees Plantation (MFTP), a Royal Initiative aimed at transforming rural livelihoods and promoting sustainable agriculture. The fourth phase of …

…𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒔-𝒐𝒏 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒎 𝒆𝒏𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒔 𝒓𝒖𝒓𝒂𝒍 𝒂𝒏𝒊𝒎𝒂𝒍 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒕𝒉𝒄𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒈𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏𝒔 𝒇𝒊𝒆𝒍𝒅 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒑𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒆 𝒄𝒂𝒑𝒂𝒄𝒊𝒕𝒚 By Tashi Tshewang In a significant move to improve animal healthcare in Bhutan, the National Veterinary Hospital under the Department of Livestock conducted nationwide hands-on training on veterinary critical care and emergency management. Supported by the Government of India through GoI-PTA funding and endorsed under the Royal Civil Service …

By Lhendup Wangmo Dungna Gewog in Chukha Dzongkhag is raising growing concerns over the impact of climate change on its drinking water sources. While the volume of water currently remains sufficient, shifting weather patterns and environmental degradation have raised alarms about the safety and long-term sustainability of these sources. Gup Lobzang of Dungna Gewog said the lack of clean and …

…𝒌𝒊𝒅𝒏𝒆𝒚 𝒅𝒊𝒔𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒆 𝒄𝒂𝒔𝒆𝒔 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒕𝒉𝒄𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒇𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍𝒔 By Yeshi Dolma As energy drinks continue to dominate shelves and fuel lifestyles worldwide, a growing body of international research, real-life case studies, and national policy responses are highlighting the alarming health risks associated with these beverages, particularly concerning kidney health. From policy interventions in Europe and Central Asia to …

…𝒏𝒆𝒘 𝒄𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒐 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒆𝒕 𝒂𝒄𝒄𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒇𝒂𝒓𝒎𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒋𝒐𝒃 𝒐𝒑𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝑬𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒏 𝑩𝒉𝒖𝒕𝒂𝒏 By Kezang Choden The ongoing construction of the Export and Import Facilitation Center in Nganglam, Pemagatshel Dzongkhag, is nearing completion, with nearly 70 percent of the work finished. Once operational, the center will become a crucial asset for farmers and traders in the eastern region, …

…𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒍𝒚 𝒍𝒂𝒖𝒏𝒄𝒉 𝒂𝒄𝒄𝒆𝒍𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒔 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒅𝒖𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏, 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒅𝒖𝒄𝒆𝒔 𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒊𝒖𝒎 𝒔𝒎𝒐𝒌𝒆𝒅 𝒇𝒊𝒔𝒉, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒔 𝒍𝒐𝒄𝒂𝒍 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒊𝒏 𝒔𝒖𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒂𝒒𝒖𝒂𝒄𝒖𝒍𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆 By Lhendup Wangmo Bongo Gewog in Chukha Dzongkhag is witnessing positive developments following the early launch of its Rainbow Trout Project on September 11, 2024. Originally scheduled for October 16, the launch was advanced to expedite production and meet Bhutan’s growing demand for high-value fish. …

…𝒂 𝒏𝒆𝒘 𝒈𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒐𝒇 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒖𝒑𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒉 𝒐𝒑𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒅𝒅𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒍-𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅 𝒊𝒔𝒔𝒖𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒊𝒏𝒏𝒐𝒗𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 By Kezang ChodenThe Royal Bhutan Police (RBP) has raised alarm over the escalating cases of hard drug abuse and trafficking, particularly involving brown sugar and heroin. Recent data indicates a significant rise in drug-related offenses across the country, with urban centers such as Thimphu, Phuentsholing, …

…𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒆𝒆-𝒅𝒂𝒚 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒘𝒄𝒂𝒔𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒅𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒇𝒐𝒐𝒅𝒔, 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒔, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒍𝒐𝒄𝒂𝒍 𝒄𝒓𝒂𝒇𝒕𝒔 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒆 𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒐𝒎𝒊𝒄 𝒐𝒑𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒔 By Kinzang Lhamo The Haa Spring Festival, a vibrant annual event in western Bhutan, concluded its three-day celebration on April 9, 2025, drawing locals and visitors from across the country. Organized by the Haa Dzongkhag Administration, the festival highlighted the region’s cultural richness while providing …

…𝒏𝒆𝒘 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒎 𝒔𝒆𝒄𝒖𝒓𝒆𝒔 𝒓𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒑𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒆𝒏𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒅 𝒊𝒏𝒇𝒓𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒄𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒈𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝑫𝒂𝒈𝒂𝒏𝒂’𝒔 𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒄𝒌 𝒔𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒐𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒓𝒖𝒓𝒂𝒍 𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒐𝒎𝒚 By Kezang Choden In a major initiative to address longstanding market challenges for livestock farmers in Dagana Dzongkhag, the Bhutan Livestock Development Corporation Limited (BLDCL) has officially launched the Livestock Priority Products Aggregation Program at Dagapela. The program is designed to strengthen the domestic …