Article

…𝒔𝒎𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒍𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒐𝒘𝒏𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒚 𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒏𝒆𝒘 𝒑𝒍𝒐𝒕 𝒔𝒖𝒃𝒅𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒓𝒖𝒍𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒖𝒓𝒃𝒂𝒏 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒏𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔. By Kinzang LhamoConcerns over the social and economic impact of the revised Thimphu Structure Plan were raised in Parliament after the Member of Parliament from Gangzur–Menji constituency questioned the government on the implications of increasing the minimum plot subdivision size in the capital and its surrounding areas. The …

…𝒍𝒂𝒘𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒒𝒖𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒅𝒆𝒇𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒕 𝒍𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒍𝒔, 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒓𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒍 𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒄𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒃𝒊𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝒊𝒏 𝒑𝒖𝒃𝒍𝒊𝒄 𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 By Yeshi DolmaDuring the 4th Session of the Fourth Parliament, lawmakers engaged in rigorous scrutiny of the FY 2025–26 national budget, raising concerns over a proposed fiscal deficit of 6.2 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), government-led commercial ventures, and the transparency of social and infrastructure programmes. Finance Minister …

…𝒎𝒖𝒍𝒕𝒊-𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒂𝒄𝒉 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒔 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒂𝒍 𝒔𝒂𝒇𝒆𝒈𝒖𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒔 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒅𝒊𝒈𝒊𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒈𝒚 By Kinzang LhamoAs Bhutan accelerates its digital transformation, concerns over harmful and inappropriate online content have become increasingly prominent. In response, the National Assembly has passed a resolution mandating zero tolerance toward pornographic and violent online materials. The Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Employment (MoICE), tasked with implementing this mandate, recently …

…𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒆 𝒖𝒓𝒈𝒆𝒔 𝒅𝒊𝒇𝒇𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒃𝒖𝒊𝒍𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒓𝒖𝒍𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒏 𝒔𝒂𝒇𝒆𝒕𝒚 𝒆𝒒𝒖𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒖𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒖𝒓𝒃𝒂𝒏 𝒈𝒓𝒐𝒘𝒕𝒉 By Sonam ChodenDebate is intensifying over Bhutan’s three-storey building limit as towns like Gedu, Tsimasham, and Doksum grapple with its economic and development impact. A recent report by the Environment and Climate Change Committee to the National Assembly on the Building Height Restriction Policy (G+2 limits) …

…𝑼𝑵𝑰𝑪𝑬𝑭 𝒔𝒖𝒑𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒌𝒆𝒆𝒑𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒋𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒗𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒔 𝒔𝒖𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒊𝒏𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒎𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒔 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒑 By Tashi Tshewang The Dagana Dzongkhag Administration has formally acknowledged and celebrated the launch of the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) supported NectarNest – Honey Production initiative in Laja Gewog, a project aimed at empowering rural youth and strengthening local economic opportunities. The programme, led by a …

…𝒂𝒅𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒇𝒕 𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒐𝒘𝒔 𝒎𝒆𝒅𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒍 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒇𝒇 𝒕𝒐 𝒇𝒐𝒄𝒖𝒔 𝒐𝒏 𝒑𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒄𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒆 𝒅𝒛𝒐𝒏𝒈𝒌𝒉𝒂𝒈 𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒂𝒈𝒆𝒔 𝒔𝒖𝒑𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕 𝒇𝒖𝒏𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 By Leki Chungdon Gasa Dzongkhag officially took over the management of health facilities from Gasa Hospital Administration today at the Dzongkhag Conference Hall. During the ceremony, the 10-bedded Gasa Hospital, along with primary health centres, was formally handed over to the Dzongkhag Administration, marking a …

…𝒆𝒏𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝑶𝑯𝑺 𝑹𝒆𝒈𝒖𝒍𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝒃𝒚 2026 𝒎𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒔 𝒂 𝒔𝒚𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒎𝒊𝒄 𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒇𝒕 𝒕𝒐𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒔 𝒔𝒂𝒇𝒆𝒓 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒌𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒑𝒖𝒃𝒍𝒊𝒄 𝒔𝒂𝒇𝒆𝒕𝒚 By Sonam Choden The country’s construction sector is preparing for a major shift as the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Employment moves to strictly enforce Occupational Health and Safety regulations beginning January 2026. The recent notification requires all enterprises employing more than twenty workers …

…𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑴𝒐𝑰𝑻 𝒐𝒖𝒕𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒔 𝒏𝒆𝒘 𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒕𝒖𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒎𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒆 𝒅𝒖𝒓𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒇𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒅𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒈𝒏𝒆𝒅 𝒓𝒖𝒓𝒂𝒍 𝒊𝒏𝒇𝒓𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒄𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆 By Sonam Choden Rural connectivity remains the backbone of the country’s local economy, linking farms, schools and markets to the national development vision. Yet as many gewogs struggle with deteriorating roads, the issue of sustainability and quality assurance in rural infrastructure resurfaced in Parliament. During the …

…𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒚 𝒂𝒊𝒎𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒛𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒅𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝒃𝒚 𝑫𝒆𝒄𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 2025, 𝒊𝒏𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒑𝒂𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒕𝒔 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝑵𝒖. 30,000 𝒕𝒐 𝑵𝒖. 150,000 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒅𝒖𝒄𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒈𝒆𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒔𝒖𝒃𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒗𝒖𝒍𝒏𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒔𝒆𝒉𝒐𝒍𝒅𝒔 By Kinzang Lhamo The government’s review of the Rural Life Insurance Scheme (RLIS) is entering a critical stage, with the Finance Ministry expected to finalize its recommendations by the end of December 2025, as mandated by …

…𝒈𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒏𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒂𝒈𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒄𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒍 𝒔𝒐𝒄𝒊𝒆𝒕𝒚 𝒋𝒐𝒊𝒏 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒈𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏, 𝒅𝒊𝒈𝒊𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒚, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒕𝒉 By Sonam Choden As Bhutan approaches 2026, a new vision of safety is unfolding- one that extends beyond traditional policing to encompass health, digital literacy, and community protection. The Ministry of Home Affairs, in its Action Taken Report on Crime Prevention and Reduction presented …