National News

…𝒁𝒉𝒆𝒎𝒈𝒂𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒐 𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒕 5𝒕𝒉 𝒂𝒏𝒏𝒖𝒂𝒍 𝒃𝒊𝒓𝒅 𝒇𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒂𝒍 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒇𝒐𝒄𝒖𝒔 𝒐𝒏 𝒃𝒊𝒐𝒅𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝒆𝒏𝒈𝒂𝒈𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕 By Tashi Tshewang The much-awaited 5th Bhutan Bird Festival 2025 is set to take place in Zhemgang Dzongkhag on November 13 and 14, bringing together conservationists, tourists, and local communities under the theme “Wings of Harmony: Conserving Birds, Celebrating Kheng Culture.” The festival, to be held …

…𝒓𝒆𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒈𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒊𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑮𝑳𝑶𝑭 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒔 𝒅𝒆𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒋𝒐𝒊𝒏𝒕 𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏, 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒓 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘𝒍𝒆𝒅𝒈𝒆 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒕𝒆 𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒌-𝒓𝒆𝒅𝒖𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒄𝒓𝒐𝒔𝒔 𝑩𝒉𝒖𝒕𝒂𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑯𝑲𝑯 𝒓𝒆𝒈𝒊𝒐𝒏 By Kezang ChodenA session on Cryosphere and People at Risk highlighted the urgent need to act on the rapid disappearance of glaciers in Bhutan and across the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH). Experts and participants stressed that the consequences …

…𝒉𝒂𝒃𝒊𝒕𝒂𝒕 𝒍𝒐𝒔𝒔, 𝒑𝒐𝒊𝒔𝒐𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒏𝒇𝒓𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒄𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒛𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒏 𝑩𝒉𝒖𝒕𝒂𝒏’𝒔 𝒓𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒗𝒖𝒍𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆𝒔, 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒌 𝒕𝒐 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎. By Kinzang Lhamo Bhutan is home to five species of vultures: Bearded, White-rumped, Himalayan, Red-headed, and Cinereous. Their populations, however, remain fragile, with most species rarely sighted. The Himalayan Vulture is the most frequently observed, particularly during winter and spring. Due to …

…𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒕𝒉, 𝒗𝒐𝒍𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒆𝒓𝒔, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒐𝒇𝒇𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒍𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒄𝒖𝒍𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒂𝒍 𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒂𝒈𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑮𝒂𝒓𝒑 𝑳𝒖𝒏𝒈𝒆 𝑲𝒉𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒐 𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒆 By Leki Chungdon Members of the Tarayana and UPSHIFT clubs joined teacher Desuups to clear the historic trail leading from the southern gate of Choetse Dzong up to the viewpoint. The activity was more than a cleaning campaign; it offered participants an opportunity …

…𝑨𝒃𝒊 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒓𝒂 𝑨𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒚𝒂 𝒂𝒎𝒐𝒏𝒈 65 𝒈𝒍𝒐𝒃𝒂𝒍 𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒄𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒏 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓 12,600 𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒍𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑪𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝑺𝒐𝒍𝒖𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝑷𝒓𝒐𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒎 By Kezang Choden Abi Chandra Acharya, a former Project Officer under the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Partnership Program, has been selected as a finalist for the 2025–2026 Community Solutions Program (CSP). Funded by the U.S. Department of State and implemented by IREX, …

Bhutan stands at a critical juncture. Graduation from Least Developed Country status is a milestone, but it also exposes a harsh reality: the nation risks losing its most talented young people unless opportunities at home improve dramatically. Across the world, countries that fail to retain their youth face stagnating innovation, reduced productivity, and a hollowing out of their labor force. …

…𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒕𝒉 𝒆𝒎𝒑𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒋𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒅𝒖𝒄𝒆𝒔 𝒎𝒐𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒏 𝒇𝒂𝒓𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒌𝒊𝒍𝒍𝒔 𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒊𝒏 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝑯𝒂𝒂’𝒔 𝒎𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒐𝒕𝒆 𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒘𝒐𝒈𝒔 By Kezang Choden A major initiative to uplift one of Bhutan’s most remote and vulnerable communities was launched at Sektena Chiwog under Gakiling Gewog, Haa Dzongkhag. The Organization for Youth Empowerment (OYE), in partnership with the Dzongkhag Administration Haa and Gakiling Gewog Administration, introduced …

…𝒍𝒐𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒔 𝒇𝒍𝒐𝒄𝒌 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒍-𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒉 𝒔𝒑𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒘𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔, 𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒅𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏…𝒍𝒐𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒔 𝒇𝒍𝒐𝒄𝒌 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒍-𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒉 𝒔𝒑𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒘𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔, 𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒅𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 By Yeshi Dolma For many, visiting a Tsachhu or hot spring is more than a health ritual; it is a journey of hope and healing. Nestled amid serene valleys, Gasa Tsachhu draws people …

…𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒇𝒇𝒊𝒄 𝒑𝒐𝒍𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒃𝒖𝒔 𝒐𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒔 𝒑𝒖𝒔𝒉 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒆𝒏𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒆 𝒔𝒂𝒇𝒆𝒕𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒎𝒐𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒇𝒍𝒐𝒘 By Kezang Choden Designated parking areas for city buses are meant to allow safe pick-up and drop-off of passengers. Increasingly, however, these spaces are being occupied by private vehicles, creating major inconvenience for buses and their users. When city buses are forced to …

…𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒖𝒓𝒈𝒆 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒑𝒆𝒓 𝒅𝒓𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒈𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒍𝒐𝒑𝒆 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒆 𝒍𝒐𝒏𝒈-𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒎 𝒃𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒇𝒊𝒕𝒔 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝑵𝒖 12.56 𝒎𝒊𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒋𝒆𝒄𝒕 By Lhendup Wangmo The Granular Sub-Base (GSB) layer is being laid as part of essential road strengthening to improve durability during the monsoon, ease transport for farmers, and make commuting safer for students and villagers. Proper drainage and compaction at this stage are seen …