National News

…𝒇𝒂𝒓𝒎𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒅𝒐𝒓𝒔 𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒈𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒖𝒎𝒆𝒓 𝒔𝒖𝒑𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒓𝒆𝒅𝒖𝒄𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒈𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒓𝒖𝒓𝒂𝒍 𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒉𝒐𝒐𝒅𝒔 By Kezang Choden Despite it being the peak season for oranges, imported fruits continue to dominate the fruit section at the Centenary Farmers Market (CFM), raising concerns among local growers and consumers alike. A visit to the market shows that many of the oranges on …

…𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒑𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒆𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒔-𝒐𝒏 𝒈𝒖𝒊𝒅𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒈𝒖𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒄𝒆𝒔, 𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒔𝒆𝒌𝒆𝒆𝒑𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝒇𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝒉𝒚𝒈𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒆, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒍𝒐𝒅𝒈𝒆 𝒐𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒆 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒇𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒔 By Leki Chungdon A hospitality training programme conducted at the Community Lodge in Jigme Village, under Dophuchen Gewog, Samtse, has successfully concluded, strengthening local capacity in community-based tourism and lodge management. Supported by the Tarayana Foundation, the training aimed to equip community members …

…𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐥𝐞-𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐚𝐱 𝐬𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞, 𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐞𝐬 𝐛𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧𝐬 𝐠𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐞𝐫-𝐟𝐨𝐜𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐫𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐬. By Kinzang Lhamo Bhutan officially rolled out a single-rate Goods and Services Tax (GST) on January 1, 2026, marking one of the country’s most significant fiscal reforms. The flat 5 percent tax on goods and services replaces the existing sales tax …

…𝒂 𝒕𝒆𝒄𝒉𝒏𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒍 𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒎 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒂𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒕𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒗𝒆𝒍, 𝒎𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒆𝒕 𝒂𝒄𝒄𝒆𝒔𝒔, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒕𝒉𝒄𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒄𝒆𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒐𝒕𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒔 By Leki Chungdon A survey has begun for the proposed Balung-Taksha road, a long-anticipated infrastructure project expected to improve connectivity between Dagana and Wangdue Phodrang. The planned road will link Balung under Lajab Gewog in Dagana with Taksha in Wangdue Phodrang, addressing …

…𝒖𝒏𝒔𝒐𝒍𝒅 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒄𝒌𝒔, 𝒍𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒓 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒂𝒈𝒆𝒔, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒇𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒎𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒆𝒕 𝒅𝒆𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒕 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒃𝒊𝒍𝒊𝒛𝒆 𝒔𝒂𝒍𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒎𝒐𝒕𝒆 𝒎𝒐𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒏 𝒎𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒆𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒑𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒆𝒔 By Kezang Choden The Government has acknowledged concerns raised by farmers over low potato auction prices this season and assured that the issue is being addressed with urgency and seriousness. Bhutan produces potatoes in two main seasons. The summer crop is grown …

…𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒚 𝒆𝒎𝒑𝒉𝒂𝒔𝒊𝒛𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒆𝒎𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒂𝒓𝒚 𝒎𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒍𝒐𝒏𝒈𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒆 𝒍𝒐𝒏𝒈-𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒎 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒈𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒈𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒏𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒄𝒂𝒑𝒂𝒄𝒊𝒕𝒚 By Sonam Choden Following growing public attention over the recent recruitment of Indian nurses, the Ministry of Health has clarified that the move was a temporary measure to address the country’s widening nursing workforce gap.Dr. Kuenzang Wangdi, Director of National Medical Services, said the decision was necessary to …

…𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒇𝒍𝒆𝒙𝒊𝒃𝒊𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝒐𝒇𝒇𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒅𝒆𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒖𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒆𝒙𝒄𝒆𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒗𝒂𝒊𝒍𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒈𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒏𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒔𝒄𝒉𝒐𝒐𝒍 𝒔𝒍𝒐𝒕𝒔 By Kinzang LhamoParents in the capital are facing uncertainty following the Ministry of Education and Skills Development’s decision to raise the minimum age for Pre-Primary school admission to six years for the 2026 academic session. While the ministry has announced a one-time flexibility for children who are at …

…𝒅𝒖𝒑𝒍𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒑𝒂𝒚𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝑵𝒖. 0.202 𝒎𝒊𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒐𝒏, 𝑵𝒖. 0.100 𝒎𝒊𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒐𝒏, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑵𝒖. 4.164 𝒎𝒊𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒉𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒖𝒓𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒇𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒈𝒂𝒑𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒘𝒆𝒂𝒌 𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒍 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒍𝒔 By Yeshi DolmaA disturbing pattern of procurement irregularities has emerged from the Annual Audit Report 2024-25, with double payments to contractors representing a significant and recurring vulnerability in Bhutan’s public financial management system. These findings expose systemic weaknesses in …

Tashi Penjor, Paro The steady rise in both food and non-food prices across the nation is no longer an abstract statistic- it is a pressing reality that affects every household. Inflation, when predictable and moderate, can be managed. But when the cost of staples, services, and everyday goods continues to climb steadily, it strains household budgets and exposes the nation’s …

…𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒅𝒖𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒎𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒑𝒖𝒃𝒍𝒊𝒄 𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒄𝒆, 𝒑𝒍𝒆𝒅𝒈𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒍𝒐𝒚𝒂𝒍𝒕𝒚, 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒈𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒚, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒅𝒆𝒅𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒂𝒄𝒓𝒐𝒔𝒔 𝒅𝒛𝒐𝒏𝒈𝒌𝒉𝒂𝒈𝒔 𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑬2𝑩10𝑿 𝒗𝒊𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 By Tashi Tshewang A total of 520 newly recruited officers officially joined Bhutan’s civil service on December 31, 2025, after taking their oath of allegiance at Tashichhodzong. The ceremony marked a significant milestone in the nation’s public service journey following the Bhutan Civil Service …