Understanding Hygiene

The practice of open defecation is still prevalent in many parts of the country despite efforts to raise awareness about health and sanitation practices and the creation of open defecation free (ODF) areas. The government has not been able to meet the target of achieving 100 percent ODF status, and at the same time, there are many challenges involved in the task. According to the 2016 report of the National WASH Coordination Committee, 38 of the country’s 75 districts remain to be declared as ODF areas; but the figure could have decreased as we approach the end of the National Sanitation and Hygiene Master Plan 2011-17. The problem, however, lies not in the delay in meeting the target but the way the project is being implemented.

Alien concepts

The government has built public and private toilets in many villages and municipalities across the country with the help of donor agencies and non-governmental organisations, but it has yet to make people aware of the importance of healthy sanitation practices. Most of the public toilets are in a sorry state—some have broken doors, others are missing taps, some have broken sinks and some lack a water supply. One of the most common problems is the stink that pervades the public toilets and nearby areas. And apart from the lack of water, lack of knowledge among the people about using the available resources properly is another hitch. 

For those who have never seen a toilet before, the facility is not only alien, the concept too is equally strange. During my stay in different villages in both the Eastern and Western regions of Nepal, I came across many people who did not have toilets and but also came across many who did have them in their houses. Most of the toilets had been built less than five to six years ago with the aid of external agents and government and non-governmental organisations working for the improvement of sanitation and health. People in the Tarai who did not have toilets in their houses practiced open defecation in the fields and grasslands. When asked whether there were toilets around, they would casually say no. If anyone in the village had a toilet, they would point in the direction of the house.

People who had recently constructed toilets, whether in the Tarai or in the hills, would rattle off their importance the way NGOs had taught them. It is similar to what we call ‘suga-ratai’ in Nepal. They say, “You should not defecate in open spaces because that will spread diseases and you should also wash your hands after going to the toilet.” However, this is limited to words and not seen in practice. The people have built toilets because it was made compulsory and because they were given money to build them, not because they understood their importance. I am not trying to belittle the efforts of those who have constructed toilets after understanding their need and importance on their own. What I am trying to say is that in order to ensure that the project is implemented properly, it is essential for the people at whom it is targeted to understand its importance and to convince them to use the facilities.

Changing minds

One way to do that would be by setting an example. Keeping the toilets in hospitals and private and public service offices clean could be a start. How will people know about proper maintenance of toilets if they only see stinking, dirty and messy toilets everywhere they go? After that comes regular monitoring of every toilet used by the public—both those in public stalls and in private hotels, restaurants, malls and shopping centres—by municipal and health offices to make sure that they are not violating any health and sanitation standards. This isn’t as difficult as it may sound, and also no additional department might be required since it falls under the work policy and responsibility of the Sanitation and Sewer Section of the Water Supply and Environment Division under the Ministry of Water Supply and Sanitation. All that is needed is a little extra effort in monitoring and evaluating the sanitation condition in different places for which it can mobilise its local bodies.

In addition, open defecation should be completely stopped, and this has to be strictly implemented for passengers on long route vehicles too. As long as vehicles are allowed to stop in the jungle to allow the bus crew and passengers to relieve themselves in the open, the concept of an open defecation free Nepal may not be completely accepted. One hurdle to banning vehicles from stopping in the jungle or open spaces for that purpose is the lack of public toilets on the highways. However, if we are to achieve the goal of an ODF Nepal, we need to start working on constructing toilets along the highways, especially in places where there are no establishments like petrol pumps, hotels or shops. 

Finally, raising awareness is always useful and necessary because without understanding why one is doing something, it would be no different than ‘suga-ratai’. The only difference here would be doing something without understanding the reason instead of repeating words and sentences. Sanitation habits should be made a practice coming from awareness rather than through imitation.

Published: 03/11/2017, The Kathmandu Post

http://kathmandupost.ekantipur.com/news/2017-11-03/understanding-hygeine.html

Shopping is fun

I hated shopping!

The crowd, tiring walks down the alleys, running from one shop to another and the long drives on microbuses or tempos gave me repulsive feelings towards shopping. When anyone asked me to accompany them for their trip to the market, I drove them off with an excuse or two. I hated the idea of what I call the ‘aftermath’ of shopping.

Tired eyes, swollen feet and the unbearable headache as the result of the day spent running around in the heat going over and over to the similar stores in search of one good tee shirt or a pair of jeans or that comfy shoe that your friend got for her. The whole idea of going round and round the same block looking for one thing or other has always gone beyond my head. I always wondered what motivates people to shop, especially those who go to each and every store in the market trying out each and every item and still at the end of the day finding nothing satisfactory to them. It is all too time consuming. The whole concept of going on shopping at the market seems pointless to me. These aftermaths made me hate shopping despite the fact that I love pampering myself by buying things. Well, not anymore!

Shopping has been made easy and I do not have to worry anymore about the ‘aftermath’ of shopping, all thanks to the online shopping portals established recently in Nepal. Shopping had never been so easy and effective and yet, time and money saving. Now I can get anything I want just with a click of a finger.

One of the major benefits of online shopping is that it saves time. Rather than going out from one shop to another, you can simply browse through pages looking for your desired product. Once you find it, order it online and wait for it to be home delivered. If you fear about losing your money, then no need to worry as they provide you ‘cash on delivery’ service by which you can pay for the product after you receive it. Moreover, if you do not like the product or think that it isn’t what you had ordered, you could also return it. As I said, shopping had never been so easy and convenient.

One of the most popular online shopping applications, popular not only in Nepal but also at global scale, Kaymu has been getting much attention of online shoppers like me who would love shopping without all the hassles it comes with. It is easy and efficient and of course time saving. With the varieties of product that it offers, it is like entering into a shopping mall that could fit on your palm.

Whatever you want to buy, clothes, shoes, accessories or electronics, Kaymu is your partner for shopping. You can find a large variety of products at reasonable prices here. Also, it gives you the facility of getting information on the seller of the product. Moreover, if you want to sell your product, Kaymu could be your platform to reach larger number of customers.

At time when things are going digital, the online shopping portals act as virtual shopping malls where you do not have to be physically present to buy things that you desire. You can browse through the products selecting your favorite by sitting at your home, office, college or anywhere with good internet connection.

What if you need to attend a party in the evening but are stuck at your office until late? Wouldn’t it be wonderful to be able to buy your desired gift without having to go out? Indeed! Online shopping with services as ‘free home delivery’ and ‘cash on delivery’ has come as respite to people who could not afford to spend time on shopping in the markets. Moreover, it is also a relief to the people like me who hated shopping because of its ‘aftermath’. 

Shopping had never been a pleasurable act for me before but not anymore. All I needed to do was download Kaymu mobile app and shop as much as I wanted browsing through the products and  buying the desired one. Now that I do not have to worry about the 'aftermath' of shopping, I have started to love it. Shopping is fun!

Clearing Misconceptions

What comes to your mind when you hear the word political party? You might probably think of a group of wrinkled corrupt sly foxes partying at luxurious hotels with money extracted from poor citizens. That was what I used to think. Yes! That image of a political party, although still prevalent, might soon be an imagery of the past. I say so as I came in contact with a political party that does more 'social service than politics'.

Sounds strange, doesn't it? A political party coming forth and gaining reputation as a social service organization isn't what we are used to seeing. But as strange as it may seem, it is the truth. I am writing about the new political party in Nepal that has been attracting a lot of interest from youths and professionals. Yes, I am writing about BibekSheel Nepali Party!

The party supported and created by group of young professionals has, since its inception, been actively taking front row in bringing positive change in the country. Be it taking stand for Dr. Govinda KC or raising voice against violence against women, the members of BibekSheel Nepali had always taken the lead to guide people through it. BibekSheel Nepali has proved itself yet again.

After the devastating earthquake of 25th April 2015, BibekSheel Nepali took it upon themselves to mobilize its volunteers and members in rescue mission. Within an hour of the earthquake, volunteers for BibekSheel Nepali had started working on rescue mission, which after a couple of days, shifted towards relief program. A formal task-force, Earthquake Response Task-force was created where volunteers working for helping the victims of earthquake came from all over the place to offer their help.

After what is said to be the biggest aftershock of all, the 7.3 quake with epicenter at Dolakha district of Nepal, shook not only the structures but also the hopes of all Nepalese people. Yet again, it stroke with such a jolt that jarred the courage of many people that was being slowly recovered. It, however, could not shake the determination of youths who had been working tirelessly for rescue and relief of the victims and BibekSheel Nepali was not an exception.

BibekSheel Nepali Party mobilized its volunteers and sent them in groups to various hospitals around Kathmandu within an hour of the aftershock. The volunteers were spotted at TU Teaching Hospital, Bir Hospital and Bhaktapur Hospital assisting and helping the victims. With their willingness to lead and help people when everyone else are in state of confusion and chaos, the determination with which the members at BibekSheel Nepali are working shows a ray of hope towards actually creating a better and prosperous new Nepal lead by the new generation.

They have, with their good work and transparency, been possibly attempting to redefine how politics should be practiced and what a political party should stand for!

Building Road to Maitighar

When I pass through Babarmahal-Maitighar route, I feel like ‘WOW! I am in the capital city’. Apart from that, there is nowhere else that makes me feel so, well, of course there are few other places and things but let’s not focus on that for now.

Getting back to Babarmahal, the wide roads, not-so-messy light poles (without the wires) at least at the side of the road, lights with solar panels, neatly planted trees on the sides, freshly painted dividers, clean and unbroken sidewalks, all of these make me feel that yes I am in the capital. The road from Maitighar to Baneshwor, even to Koteshwor Chowk clearly gives us the feeling of a capital city but just as I cross the Chowk towards the route to Balkumari, it is the worst road one could ever be on. And it has been like that for over four months now.

As far as I could remember, the Baneshwor-Maitighar route was built within few months and now that the SAARC Conference is all set to happen in Nepal, the roads have also received finishing touches. Unfortunately, the Koteshwor-Satdobato route, however, have not received much attention. The dusty fog always covers the way as soon as the day gives way to afternoon. I wonder how the drivers find their way and Oh, how can I ever forget the never ending, usually an hour long traffic jam on the route! How I wish Mr. Modi had put forward a wish to visit Patan through Koteshwor! I am sure this road would have been ready by now.

It’s incredible, the sort of motivation it takes our government to get to work. All those tax payers paying a part of their hard earned money for almost non-existent benefit they get in return, all those troubles we Nepali citizens face on daily basis, the number of complaints we make to the government, the support we could show to them if only they had asked, none of these could get them to work, none of these could get our government to repair roads or erect street lamps. One international conference and up and about they go. Feels like they had some magic wand they waved and suddenly they had money and labor force to start the construction and repair works. Unfortunately, the wand only worked in the route these delegates would probably take. I just wish they had put forward a desire to go on a tour of the entire city. Maybe then the roads of Kathmandu would have been transformed.

There is no saying about how our government works and no one can, I believe, predict what the government will be doing or what will motivate it to work. All I wish is maybe someday before I die, I shall see our government motivated to work for its citizens and for their benefits rather than to show it to the delegates of other countries. I understand that impression matters and to earn a place in the world, one should learn to give an impression, a good one at that. However, if you cannot earn the respect, love and trust of your own people, there is no point in trying to win it from others. As we say charity begins at home, I believe love, trust and respect should also begin from home. You see, change should come from within.

We can only wish that this construction and repair works do not end here and shall continue even after the conference is over. We wish the money that we received from our neighboring nation shall be put to proper use. Else, repairing roads of only one route or the couple of them while all other roads are covered with dust and pebbles is like buying a brooch when you don’t even own a suit?

My take on The Gurkha's Daughter

Recently completed a book, The Gurkha's Daughter, by Prajwal Parajuly. I will not consider it a bad book although it could not meet my expectations. The book, in fact, is a good read. It tells the story of the resident as well as non-resident Nepalese. Their social as well as psychological changes and issues are wonderfully presented in the book and the characters mostly belong to the hilly regions of Nepal as well as India. Although the stories are good, the book, however, could not meet my expectation.
I expected the book to be a novel (a lack of knowledge in my part before starting the book) rather than a short stories collection. I expected it to depict the plights and pains, happiness and pride of being a Gurkha's daughter. But after reading the book, I found that the title was taken from one of the short stories, which although presented the social context and condition of the family of a British Gurkha soldier in Nepal, could not exactly captivate me.
I wanted to read a book that would keep me interested for a long time but while reading The Gurkha's Daughter, I easily got distracted. Were it a novel depicting the story of a Gurkha's daughter, it might have garnered my attention for a long time. I had wanted to read it the moment I heard its title but as it is said, don't judge a book by its cover, in my case, judging a book by its title didn't go so well.
Parajuly's writing reminded me of Samrat Upadhyay, who is famous for his short story collections such as Arresting God in Kathmandu, The Royal Ghost and The Guru of Love (books that had already found way into my reading schedule). I found many similarities in the writings of these two authors.
The first similarity of course was the structure of their books, short stories collection. Another distinct similarity is their choice of subject matter or the social setting of their characters. Most of their characters were of course Nepali, while Upadhyay's characters were from Nepal only, Parajuly chose his characters from Nepal as well as India (all having their origin as Nepali). The social setting or the economic and social background of the characters are more or less similar, usually upper or lower middle class. It probably was their own socio-cultural setting and background which inspired them for the stories. Although their writings were found to be similar, they are equally distinguishable, too.
Parajuly's character's were mostly based in Darjeeling or hill areas while Upadhyay's characters are always found in Kathmandu. Also, Upadhyay's writings were found to be more focused on relationships while relationships aren't major focus of Parajuly.
Both their works made me think whether our society is actually like how they both present it. Of course, their stories give us reflection of what and how Nepalese society is like, I cannot find comfort in the fact the our society has gone towards that direction. Well, who am I to comment on such broader issues like society and culture when I do not have proper understanding of my own culture and society? Nevertheless, living in Nepal and observing my surroundings and people, things, culture, relationships, etc. I find it hard to relate to the characters of Upadhyay's writings. However, I have found people and stories that are closer to Parajuly's characters.
Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, author of Spanish novel Don Quixote had wrote "there is no book so bad...that it does not have something good in it." Indeed, every book is good in itself as it has something new and different to offer than the other. We learn something from every book we read and there is no such thing as bad book. It is only the matter of our individual (and sometimes collective) choice and perception that we categorize a book as good or bad.
I do not consider any of the books mentioned above as bad books, they are, in fact, good in the sense they give us new perspectives of seeing the society we live in. I would definitely give an 'OK' if anyone asks me whether they should read them or not, however, I shall not suggest them to buy them to add to their collection unless they have read it on their own. Moreover, what I have learned from my experience is that selecting a book on the basis of its review is not healthy all the time as different people have different taste and your taste might be completely different from those reviewers. Nevertheless, to learn about new book and stories, it is always advisable to seek reviews, if not online than from someone who shares similar interests. Afterall, at the end of the day, it is always a pleasure to sit on your bed with a good book in hand.

Nepali Education System

Nepali education system goes beyond my head and I am sure many people agree with me.

Nepali education system mostly focuses on the theoretical part and that too, not just for higher level but also for the preschool level. I agree that we need to have theoretical knowledge along with practical skills but what I don’t understand is the reason for torturing the young mind that are just beginning to evolve.

My question is to those authorities who are responsible for approving and also designing the course structure for preschool (pre-primary) education system. Why should the children be tortured in the name of providing education? Getting an education is a matter of choice, well, maybe not for those kids but mostly it is a matter of choice rather than compulsion. What is compulsory is to be literate and at least have knowledge of the basics.

As Einstein had wonderfully said, “Education is what remains after one has forgotten everything he learned in school.”

Education is not about going to school every day carrying bulky books and ten kilogram bags. It’s about learning skills and gaining knowledge which would help you in future. Einstein was a genius and there is no doubt about that. In fact, his brilliance still remains unchallenged. But did he become such a genius by going to school every day and reading bulky books and doing series of exercises on notebooks? The answer is NO! He was curious and his genius lies in this interest in learning more about anything and everything he saw.

The highest level of education can be received with interest and curiosity. One must be interested and curious about things and only then could they be able to learn more. There is no use making someone repeat few pages of the books every day for a year and evaluating their talents on the basis of what they write on a piece of paper. Some people are brilliant in speaking while they suck at writing and some people express themselves well with their writings while they suck at speaking with others.

Everyone has a different talent and their talents could not be judged by one method alone. You cannot call a fish dumb because he cannot climb a tree and you cannot call a monkey genius because he flies from tree to tree with excellence. These are the kinds of talents they are born with and both of these are totally different from one another. Same goes with the children. Not all of them have same talent and so, not all of them could be judged in the same way.

But that alone is not the point. The point is, they should also be able to hone their skills and talents. Why is it that a child who scores 90% in board exams but sucks in sports or any other activities considered a genius and a child who is excellent in all extracurricular activities but scores only 40% in board exams considered a failure? Why do we tend to run so much after the numbers? Be it percentage, marks or ranks? The only thing people find worth appreciating is the number and not the skill or talent a child have.

I have seen parents putting pressure on their children for excelling in exams and the children haven’t even completed their primary level education, yet. They have their whole life to carry the burden of exams and scores and marks and percentage. Why not let them enjoy their childhood as a normal child? Of course you should make them understand the value of education and excelling since childhood but not at the cost of their childhood. They will never get it back!

If your child does not fall in top five category in class, don’t panic. Your child is doing fine. It is NOT compulsion to top the monthly tests all the time. Give them a break. Make them study an hour for whole year, not five hours a day for a whole week before exams. Prepare them from the very start. It will teach them the value of time and also help them excel the exams (that you value the most) and also live their childhood as a normal child should live. 

The democratic version of the Rana reign

Recently, I have had a lot of time for myself and I spent most of this time doing one thing that I enjoy the most - reading novels!

My recent read Satprayas left me thinking and making comparisons between the Rana rule and present Republic rule in the country. This book by Diamond Sumsher Rana, as most of his other works, tells the story of the Rana reign in Nepal. It mostly revolves around Dev Sumsher Rana, the reformist and probably the only democratic Rana ruler in the country whose democratic and people-oriented ideologies didn't let him stay on power for more than few months. 

Dev continuously tries to work for the betterment of the common people and development of the country which is not liked by the selfish Rana rulers who are more interested in their own personal development and entertainment. Long before he becomes the Prime Minister of Nepal, he approaches the then PMs with the proposals of starting development works in the country. The proposals are postponed with false assurances by the rulers, which Dev happens to believe. When he comes to power, he starts to work seriously on his dream projects, of opening schools, educating the common people, starting hydro power plants in the country, etc. His brothers, naturally doesn't like it and take over the power from him. 

This reminded me how such things still happen in our country. Whoever wants to do good are only given false hopes and assurances by others. Power and wealth are still being misused by those in power to support their personal development rather than the national development.

The book is considered as a historic novel so naturally, many things written there are true. I learned many things from it which made me think and compare the two political eras of our country. Here are some comparisons that I have made:

1.     The Rana rulers claimed to be powerful and strong. They were tyrant. But no matter how strong they presented themselves to be, they were in constant fear. They did not have to fear the common people like the politicians (if they do) have to now, but their own brothers. They are known for killing and overthrowing each other for power. Killing of their own kin was what brought them to power in the first place and it didn't quite stop. Well, even if the killing did, the mistrust remained. They did not trust each other and even a slight misunderstanding between one another lead them into plotting and taking over the control for themselves. This practice still exists in our political world. The leaders don't trust each other and if someone (outside of their political party) is in power, they start plotting to overthrow them and take the power for themselves. No wonder, we don't have a stable political leadership in the country.

2.     The Rana rulers lived extravagantly. They loved to show that they had enormous amounts of wealth (which of course wasn't theirs but belonged to the people of Nepal). They raised the taxes if their Dukutis were running low on wealth. They took people's money and spend them for their personal interest and entertainment. Looking at how our top leaders and country heads live and travel, we can rest assure that the practice of using people's money for personal benefit still exists. The only difference now is that the people are educated enough to know that their hard earned money is being wasted but yet, they do not seem to complain. The taxes still continues to rise. I wonder how poor our late Kings must have been because even after nationalizing all their wealth, our government has not been able to cover the loans and are in deep debt which results as price hike that only seems to affect the common people and not the ones riding the expensive air-conditioned vehicles around the clean roads of the capital.

3.     The newly appointed Shree 3 Maharaj (The title given to the Prime Minister then) would transfer all the national treasure into his palace. Few lakhs (One lakh of that time was more or less equivalent to one crore of today) were given to the second and third-in-command like Mukhtiyars and Hajuria. I fear the practice still exists, although not openly and not in the same way (you need to show some respect to those guys at Income Tax office, don't you?). The Prime Ministers and other Ministers in power still likes to live the same way and spend millions on their unnecessary travels to the foreign countries (apart from Sushil Koirala of course). I don't understand why discussions on state matters require the PMs and Ministers visit foreign country with their family (PLEASE let me know if this is necessary as my understanding of politics is limited). 

4.     Many development projects are still 'under construction' or limited to papers just like it was more than a hundred years ago. We are given assurances and hopes but not results. We only hear promises but do not see the actions. Dev Sumsher dreamed of starting hydro power plants in Karnali and Koshi, which to date, has not been completed (I wonder if it has been started at all).

There are many practices today which would remind us of the Rana reign if only we had enough time to sit, think and compare. We barely get enough time to spend with our family let alone compare the political eras. Our everyday struggle to provide a better life for our family does not give us any time to think about our country. We let everything happen around us without frowning and which is why the political leaders have so much control over our lives. They could easily turn our lives upside down if they want because we have forgotten how much power we have over them. We let them rule us when they are there only to serve us. If only we had enough time to think and take some action.

Well, I did have enough time to think after I left my job and waited for my college to begin. There was nothing else to do, thanks to the hours of load-shedding, which made me grab a book and then think about these issues over and over again.

The conclusion I came to often terrifies me. We abolished the Rana rule decades ago but did we actually do it? Are those days really over? Because from what I can see and feel, the system still exists. I fear that the Republican system in the country is only the modified, refined and so-called 'democratic' version of the Rana rule.