My Penultimate Article on DrukAir

This will be my absolute last article on anything related to DrukAir - No More Honking!

The American poet and educator, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow believed that "If you only knock long enough and loud enough at the gate, you are sure to wake up somebody." Poor fellow – obviously he did not meet any Bhutanese in his life time --- otherwise he would have known that the Bhutanese don’t – and even if they do, they would be nothing more than walking zombies – clueless, sightless, heedless and mindless!!

More than a year back, late Draksho Tsering Wangda called me up from Gelephu and said;

“Yeshey --- I want to take up the issue of the DrukAir with the Royal government – will you find time to prepare a background paper for me on the issue so that I have an understanding of the issues in their entirety?”

Thus, on January 3, 2024 at 7:50 AM (going by the meta data embedded in the MS Word document I sent him) I began putting together the following article which ran into all of 11 pages!!!

I do not know if he ever took up the matter with the RGoB … he never told me … and now he is no more 😢. Not wanting to preempt whatever Draksho Wangda was planning … I decided not to publish the article on this Blog, or any where else. But few days back … a short conversation with a friend convinced me that I should publish it – because, the friend and I both agreed that it is not necessary that one’s endeavors will actually wake the dead – but for sure posterity will bear witness that I knocked and knocked and knocked ---- 19 times!!!

https://yesheydorji.blogspot.com/search/label/On%20The%20Wings%20Of%20The%20Dragon

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When & Why

It is accepted that the essential attributes of a sovereign state are some of the following:

1. Defined Territory

2. Settled People

3. Standing Army

4. A Government with control over its territories

5. A National Flag Carrier

What Is A National Flag Carrier?

In the context of international law and relations, a national flag carrier is either an aircraft or ship that flies the national flag of a sovereign state.

It is universally accepted that all ports of call or landings in host countries extend to national flag carriers’ preferential treatment and access to certain routes and markets. 

Simply stated, the global community will endorse a national flag carrier only if it is floated by a state that is accepted as wholly owned and administered by a sovereign state.

Creation Of DrukAir – Our National Flag Carrier

I believe that it is in this context that His Majesty the IVth Druk Gyalpo worked tirelessly for more than three years to establish our National Flag Carrier - the DrukAir. The laborious journey began in 1981. By 1983, DrukAir was finally able to start commercial fights, having cleared the many hurdles placed in the path of its creation and launch. At last, the last of the missing spokes in the orb of our nationhood was put in place.

DrukAir debuted with one unpressurised 18-seats Dornier 228-200 turboprop aircraft. The country’s only usable airport, in Paro, had an airstrip measuring less than one-and-a-half miles long. It can be said with certainty that in creating DrukAir, His Majesty the IVth Druk Gyalpo could not have harbored any lofty commercial aspirations - I believe that it was his way of making a statement of nationhood, an assertion of independence, an announcement to the world that Druk Yuel was an independent nation with the necessary apparatus of nationhood in place.

Over the years, the national carrier began to grow, both in fleet size and in scope and scale of operation. Today, the airline boasts of the following fleet of aircrafts:

The Bhutanese people’s investment in the airline runs into tens of billions of Ngultrum – that is pretty substantial for a country whose annual GDP is less than Nu.280.00 billion.

National Flag Carriers Around The World

DrukAir’s singular history raises the question: Are there other national flag carries around the world that serve the national interest over narrow commercial interest? There are - to name a few:

Britain’s erstwhile Imperial Airways, formed in 1924, was specifically created to provide air links between Britain and its far-flung empire. No profit motives here. KLM followed suit, providing air links to the Dutch East Indies. Belgian’s SABENA Airlines serviced the Belgian Congo. Air France’s predecessor, Air Union, flew to French colonies in West Africa. Profit-making was furthest from the minds of these governments.

The Malaysian government considered Malaysia Airlines (MAS) “an essential instrument in the nation-building process”. The carrier’s primary focus was in servicing domestic routes rather than international ones. At the time, the Malaysian government’s focus was in integrating different regions as one nation. Here too, profit was nowhere in the scheme of things.

All of these airlines were established not as institutions of profit but as instruments aimed solely at providing control, prestige and national integration. Of course, some were also created as state apparatus for espionage. For instance, during the Cold War era, the US government used flight attendants of the now defunct PAN AM, its unofficial flag carrier, to perform espionage duties. Mossad regularly used El Al, Israel’s national flag carrier, for the same purpose. KGB agents infiltrated the state-owned airline Aeroflot to carry out intelligence and counterintelligence activities. South African Airways was used by the Bureau of State Security for espionage work.

As these examples attest, whether for espionage or for connectivity, it is clear that national flag carriers were created solely to serve a national interest. Narrow commercial interests seem to be the least concern to the states that owned these carriers.

Destiny’s Lost Child

From all the above, it is clear that a national flag carrier exists because it fulfills a social and national mandate - far above and beyond narrow commercial interests.

DrukAir cannot be an exception. Indeed, our national flag carrier has every reason to remain an apparatus in the service of the nation, because of all the airlines named above, DrukAir is the only airline that is financially unable to operate as an entity of profit. It is simply impossible, unless it does so at the cost of the nation and the people of Bhutan – which is what it is doing now - with impunity.

Somewhere along the line, DrukAir got its priorities confused and muddled. Even while it was clear, beyond any doubt, that the country’s operating conditions were extremely hostile, the airline began to pursue commercial aspirations - an ambition that was, and remains, untenable.

Today, the airline stands resolute and unbending - chasing an impossible dream, adamant that it will stand its ground, mindless and uncaring that it is causing jeopardy to the lives and livelihoods of a few hundred thousand of its principal shareholders: the Bhutanese people. The country’s vital tourism industry lies crumbling and helpless, at the mercy of a near-monopoly that no one seems to have the power to control or manage.

Now we are told that the DrukAir has lost 80% of its market share to operators from outside the country. Not that they care – because it is not money out of their pockets!

I have always held the view that the DrukAir is not a commercial entity, but an essential service apparatus - like the Food Corporation of Bhutan (FCB), the Bhutan Post (BP), the Royal Bhutan Army (RBA), the Royal Bhutan Police (RBP) etc. But strangely, the airline has been misled into believing that it is a commercial entity with profit at the core of its existence. Unfortunately, despite its self-assigned mandate to operate as a commercial entity, the airline forgot the fundamental objective of a commercial enterprise: to generate profit!

The airline may have been allowed to fail in its most fundamental duty, through neglect and lack of stewardship. It may have caused other institutions that depended upon it to fail. It may not have contributed in monetary terms to the national exchequer. But one must admit that DrukAir has contributed in other noteworthy ways. It has unshackled Bhutan from the country’s landlocked isolation. It has given wings to the Bhutanese people to traverse the world beyond. It has validated Bhutan as a sovereign state.

All things considered, however, we have to accept that DrukAir cannot be mandated to make a profit. There is simply no way it can, unless it does so, as it does now, at the cost of our national interest.

Challenges To The Airline

Paro airport is located in a narrow valley boxed in by steeply rising mountain peaks. Located in a geographically complicated site, it is classified as one of the most challenging airports of the world. Only a few dozen commercial airline pilots in the world are certified to fly into and out of Paro airport.

The operating conditions are difficult. Depending upon the season, dipping temperatures and windy conditions, coupled with high altitude, impose limitations on the operating hours of the aircrafts. At times aircraft are able to haul only half of their carrying capacity. Flight diversions and cancellations due to adverse weather conditions are common. The myth is that DrukAir has a monopoly in Bhutanese airline business. But the reality is that no international airline operators are willing to come to Bhutan. If that were not the case, under the bilateral ATA/ASA agreement with countries where DrukAir flies, airline operators from those countries have the right to fly the Bhutanese airspace. But they don’t, because the passenger flow is minuscule, the operating conditions are extremely difficult, and the operating costs are prohibitive.

Network Of Domestic Airports

The country has three additional domestic airports that DrukAir serves: Batpalathang, Gelephu and Yonphula. Here, too, the situation is no better. Given the restrictive length of the airstrips in these locations, only small airplanes with minimal carrying capacity can be operated. 

To aggravate the situation further, none of these three airports is equipped with bowsers - specially designed truck-mounted tankers that deliver jet fuel to the aircrafts. This is an essential service that every airport must be equipped with. Gelephu airport does not have one. Yonphula airport does not have one, either. Batpalathang does have one, but it is said to be a leaky apparatus. Because of the leaky tanks, it is said that the aircrafts captains refuse to accept fuel from it, for fear that the fuel may be contaminated - a safety measure that cannot be compromised.

Consequently, since the start of commercial services, Druk Air’s planes have been required to carry tons of extra jet fuel for the return flight, rather than carrying passengers. Add to that the fact that the load is already less than half its rated carrying capacity, due to high altitude and unpredictable weather conditions. The result: extremely high operating costs and a flight schedule that is akin to the roll of the dice.

Given these compelling circumstances, the way forward is clear for the government and for the airline company: focus on up-scaling carrying capacity; expand route coverage, service, safety and security; work toward creating the enabling conditions for others to generate jobs and income. In other words, support the government and the tourism industry by rationalizing fares. What the airline cannot earn, the tourism industry will augment a thousand-fold.

Sadly, more than four decades since its birth, DrukAir is like a lost and misguided child by the wayside. It cannot take pride in the fact that it has served a national cause, nor can it claim to have filled the national coffers with abundant profit.

Standing In The Way Of Bhutan’s Potential

Bhutan prides itself as a tourist destination of choice. We talk of the many tourism awards we have won in the international arena. We boast about our pristine environment. We advertise our unique cultures and the magnificent fortresses that adorn our hilltops and cliff faces. We revel in our colorful festivals that leave tourists breathless. Yet, after sounding the drum beat for close to half a century, our annual tourist arrivals is less than 8% of neighboring Sikkim with almost the same tourist appeal as Bhutan. Sikkim recorded a whopping 1,321,000 tourists in 2023 – as opposed to Bhutan’s 103,000 for the same period.

In large part, DrukAir is responsible for this failure. As a critical transport service provider for Bhutan’s vital tourism sector, DrukAir has had a ripple effect across the broad spectrum of the business chain. When tourism is hurt, the repercussions are felt by the government through reduced tax collection and a drop in foreign currency earning. Beyond that, its impact is immediately felt by the hotel and restaurant industry, the handicrafts sector, the transport industry, the farming community, pony drivers, roadside trinket sellers - even the wooden walking stick fashioners at the base of Taktsang. As we all know, the tourism industry provides employment to the highest number of Bhutanese people, earns the highest foreign exchange and is among the very few net gain industries in the country.

Sadly, DrukAir has been negligent in its responsibilities. Coupled with the ill-timed Tourism Levy Act of Bhutan 2022, it has caused serious damage to the country’s tourism industry. While the Tourism Levy Act has been partially rectified, DrukAir and its exorbitant airfare continues to cause mortal damage to our vitally important tourism industry.

DrukAir’s fares are simply too high - to the point that potential visitors believe that they are being taken advantage of, because of the near-monopoly prevailing in the Bhutanese air transport sector. Prospective tourists are forced to choose competing tourism destinations such as Sikkim, Darjeeling and Nepal for their annual holiday trips.

Because of DrukAir’s unreasonably exorbitant airfare, more than 80% of Bhutan-bound Indian tourist traffic is diverted to enter overland through neighboring Jaigaon. Add to that the recent rule that tourists are not required to be hosted by a local tour operator, and the situation is wide open for entrapment by the operators across the border. Given the enabling conditions that have been created by exorbitant Druk Air fares and tourist traffic being forced to enter through Jaigaon, the following situations have developed:

1. Jaigaon operators have taken over business which otherwise would have been handled by the Bhutanese operators.

2. Bhutanese tour operators have become secondary players, even acting as mere commission agents for foreign operators. It is rumored that in some cases, Bhutanese tour operators conduct their entire business - from quoting the land cost to preparing the daily itinerary - then ask their Jaigaon counterparts to act as the official tour operator. This way the local tour operators do not have to pay tax on the business because all transactions are conducted in cash in the name of the Jaigaon operators.

3. In this situation, all tour payments are collected/routed through the principal operators at Jaigaon. This means that Bhutan-bound Indian rupees terminate their journey inside the bank accounts of Jaigaon operators. Payments to service providers within Bhutan - such as transport operators, hotels, guides, restaurants etc. - are transected in local ngultrums. This explains why Bhutan has seen a dramatic drop in the inflow of precious Indian rupees.

4. Since the business is unregulated and mostly handled by the Jaigaon operators, taxable tourism business turnover goes undeclared - resulting in a substantial drop in tax collection by the DRC.

5. Over time, the Indian rupees earned by the Jaigaon operators from business usurped from Bhutanese tour operators, are sold to the Bhutanese at a premium ranging between 3-10%, thereby devaluing our ngultrum that is officially traded at par with the Indian rupee. Even worse, unofficially traded Indian rupees are used to under-invoice imports from India, further impeding tax collection.

6. Arising out of the introduction of new way of doing things under the recently introduced Tourism Levy Act of Bhutan 2022, the $$ inflow has experienced severe dip - to such a level that now the RMA and the DRC is said to pretend surprise – rather they feign ignorance - as to why the $$ earning from the tourism sector has gone down so drastically. They know very well that the reason is that under the new rule, only the SDF of US$100.00 is required to be deposited with the DoI – balance amount needed to cover the cost of hosting the tourists – IS NOT REQUIRED to be remitted officially. This has enabled many tour operators to seek cash payments from the tourists, or their foreign agents – resulting in reduced foreign exchange inflow – in addition to loss of tax collection as a result of a large amount of tourism business being conducted clandestinely – in CASH and without any official record of business transection.

7. It has ushered in an era of immorality – it has created enabling conditions for guides, drivers and even police personnel to siphon off hundreds of millions of the monument fees collected from the tourists.

Additionally, at the third-country level, DrukAir’s high fares have caused the following situations to develop:

1. Loss of company business to competing airlines in the region.

2. Loss of revenue to the company through loss of turnover, because what business that can be had is being taken up by competitors in the region.

3. Diversion of Bhutanese tour operators’ business to competition across the border, because inbound/outbound tourists find it cheaper to fly the Bagdogra route and employ operators in Jaigaon instead of the Bhutanese tour operators who are going out of business for want of work.

4. Loss of hundreds of millions in foreign exchange, including third-country currency such as dollars. Because dollar-paying potential visitors find the air fare too expensive, they choose competing destinations such as Sikkim, Darjeeling and Nepal for their annual holiday trips.

Need For Shift In Policy

To my mind, it would be simple to make DrukAir a respectable organization: categorize it as a service organization with a mandate to provide social/national service. This will require the government to subsidize its capital and operations costs to some extent. This is necessary because, on its own, DrukAir cannot survive, unless it exacts costs on others, which is what it is doing - on the country’s tourism sector.

Need For Subsidizing the DrukAir

DrukAir is a critical transport service provider for Bhutan’s vital tourism sector. The government should provide it subsidy - there should not be an iota of hesitation - so that the airline can help boost the country’s tourism business. It is the only way by which DrukAir can keep fares within the realm of sanity. Doing so will provide direct and indirect benefit to the country’s mortally maimed tourism industry and, consequently, to the society at large.

In this regard, Bhutan would not be a unique case. Such subsidies are specifically provided by governments around the world to provide a competitive edge to fledging local industries; to balance unfair competition from superior economies; to act as a counterweight to harsh and unyielding economic challenges; to heighten economic buoyancy; to prevent financial losses; to keep costs down so that ancillary industries can grow and prosper; and to ensure that critical services are not discouraged due to challenges outside their scope and competence.

In this sense, subsidies are not a loss but a responsibility of the government. Because DrukAir is a critical service provider, it deserves whatever subsidy is necessary to keep it afloat so that it can continue to serve an important national interest.

If subsidies were to be considered losses, we should forthwith close down our schools and hospitals and the civil service. They exist only because they receive 100% subsidy from the state.

Not all enterprises that the state creates are profit-centric. In 99% of the cases, they are service-oriented, either required to engage in areas that are sensitive or required to perform a service that no commercial entities are willing to undertake. 

A case in point is the Food Corporation of Bhutan (FCB) - another state-owned enterprise of the RGoB. This organization is not expected to make profit for the state. Its existence is solely for the delivery of essential foods to remote and underserved locations where enterprises of profit will not venture. Through government subsidies, the FCB is expected to ensure food security by delivering essential foods at affordable prices. Imagine FCB trying to make a profit!

We have to remember that even the most advanced economies of the world provide subsidies to selected industries - the transport sector being one of the highest-subsidized sectors. Every year, the European Union (EU) subsidizes its transport sector to the tune of €73 billion. Likewise, the transport sector in China receives a government subsidy in excess of US$130 billion a year. Germany is routinely accused by competing neighbors of continuing to operate its money-losing airports; it continues to subsidize them as a veiled way to gain competitive edge over others.

DrukAir’s Differential Pricing Policy

As if high airfare were not enough, DrukAir has adopted a strangely unfair differential pricing policy that discriminates between nationalities. It is not clear why this is beneficial. Given Bhutan’s strong ethical profile, it is important to treat every visitor as equal. We cannot be seen to prefer one nationality over the other.

Lower Fares For The Bhutanese

What is the logic behind lower fares for the Bhutanese nationals? It may be perceived to benefit the Bhutanese people. But as we can see, the Bhutanese flying the DrukAir are those who are rich and can afford to pay or, they are travelling bureaucrats on official business whose bills are paid for by the state. Needy Bhutanese people do not fly DrukAir - they take the bus. In my view, this is yet another example of the airline’s disservice to the country.

Preparing For Change

A direct initiative from the Throne, work on the upgrading of Gelephu airport has already started – slated to be ready within the next 4-5 years. The current airstrip is slated for massive expansion to accommodate larger aircraft.

This renovation opens up boundless opportunities for the DrukAir. Unfortunately, Gelephu International Airport is also likely to attract international competitors. Thus, DrukAir will need to dismount its high horse and prepare to beat the competition by being a step ahead to claim and retain market share. That forward-looking work cannot begin too soon.

Making A Case For Change

To summarize, I believe our leaders need to revisit the mandate of DrukAir in the clear light of day. Why has this national jewel been allowed to fade? How can we restore it to its original national purpose - and do so in the context of modern financial and commercial realities? How can DrukAir once again dedicate itself to a single and high-minded purpose: to serve the nation and people of Bhutan?

Let us begin the job NOW – before someone else steals our thunder – completely and irrevocably!

The National Flag Carrier Loses Out 80% Of Its Business Share To The Competition!

BREAKING NEWS!!!

The venerable Kuensel has finally found its voice - after suffering mumps for the past 60 years.

I am hugely encouraged! The following report by the Kuensel on the self-defeating foolishness of the DrukAir Corporation may be proof that the Kuensel is finally maturing into a responsible media house:

It is sad – and no less intriguing - that the Royal Government of Bhutan can continue to tolerate stupidity at this scale – in allowing the DrukAir to price themselves out of the market. Imagine, what commercial entity allows 80% of its market share to be usurped by the competition operating from outside their domain? And to think that they have a commanding position given that they are the country’s national flag carrier with advantages that their third country competitors do not have.

The country is ill-equipped to counter the long-term implications of DrukAir’s irresponsible behavior. The consequences of what they are doing goes far, far beyond loss of business; beyond the devastation they have already caused to the country’s vital tourism industry.

According to the Kuensel article, the DrukAir offers the reason that they are operating under conditions that are out of the normal. In other words, what they are saying is that they are justified in imperiling the lives and livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of Bhutanese people, as a consequence. That is a pathetic justification!

The benefit of tourism cuts across the entire spectrum of Bhutanese society. Some two years back, upon being invited to give a talk to the DeSuups who were being trained to be guides at the Phaduna Skilling Centre in Punakha, the following was one of the 33 PowerPoint slides I presented to the trainees:

ABTO puts the figure of licensed Tour Operators in the country at roughly 800. Sadly, a sizeable number of them have been driven to migrate to Australia and the US, in search of livelihood – one more is due to depart for Australia on coming Tuesday. The GAB puts the number of Licensed Tourism Guides at about 4,700. An official at the GAB tells me that today less than 700 of them have some semblance of employment.

If the superintendents and the management of the DrukAir has any conscience at all, they should know that they have played a major role in contributing to the bleak situation that is currently prevailing in the country’s tourism industry, in addition to the fact that their incompetence has resulted in rank outsiders to siphon away 80% of the market share that should have been rightfully theirs.

When it is clear that they are incapable of understanding the harm they are causing themselves ... it would be futile to expect that they would understand the consequences of their irresponsibility on the nation and the people of Bhutan.

A Bouquet Of A Solitary Flower

I did not expect that it would be any other way – that a visit to one’s alma mater after a gap of more than half a century would be anything but evocative and haunting – a trip down the cherished memory lane. For those select few of us who had the good fortune to make a trip to our old school – Paro Gaupey School – on 17th October, 2025, it was obvious that the memories of our formative years in the school remains vivid and deeply engrained in our very soul.

For a number of hours, all of us put to rest our individual worries, shackled our hidden devils, heedless that we have unfinished and pressing businesses to attend to, a life to live and lives to care for …. we simply reveled in the momentary joy of being transported back into a time when we were young and carefree and, some among us, incorrigibly devilish! – like myself 😛.

Paro Gaupey School is where our impressionable minds were molded, and our characters wrought – it was here that lifelong values were inculcated in us – values that went on to shape us into responsible and successful citizens in the service of the Tsa Wa Soom.

The occasion was also to celebrate and honor our old school Principal – Mr. Stuart Filby – who is in the country to partake in the celebrations of the 70th Birth Anniversary of His Majesty the Fourth Druk Gyalpo – another peerless architect of events and destinies. Mr. Filby is among the earliest Principals of the school. He joined Paro Gaupey High School in 1967.

More than half a century after he departed the school, and the country, his connections and links to Bhutan and his Bhutanese students remain unbroken. Thus, it is the celebration of this uncommon and enduring connection that we have decided to rejoice – by paying a visit to the bastion where it all began - joined by the very person whom we had chosen to honor.

Old Gaupians have done it all, seen it all. Some of us have circumambulated the globe a few times – many of us have scaled heights loftier than Mt. Gangkhar Puensoom. And yet, even after having walked away a million miles, the fact that we all came together in a spirit of togetherness and celebration - is proof that the umbilical cord that continues to bind us together remains solid and unsevered – it has withstood and survived the vagaries of time and tide.

Paro Gaupey School has produced some truly outstanding citizens of great merit and value to the county, as the following group photo will testify.

Visiting Alumni Members pose for a photo session with the present generation of teachers at Gaupel Lower Secondary School, Paro on 17th October, 2025

We owe a great deal to this school and the many custodians who helped build this great institution of learning. Thus, as an expression of our timeless gratitude, some of us Alumni Members put together a modest token of appreciation in the form of cash donation amounting to Nu.303,751.00. We were honored to present our expression of gratitude to the incumbent school Principal during our visit to the school.

ICING ON THE CAKE

Talking of which, the icing on the cake was that I was singled out for special honor. As I and another Alumni Member – Sonam Zangmo –walked up the pathway of cobbled stones towards the erstwhile Pacific Boys' Hostel, a small girl of class IV walked up to me and coyly offered me the following bouquet of a single flower, enclosed in a holder made of plain, white piece of paper and patched together with a colored plastic tape. I was so humbled – and speechless.

The bouquet of a solitary flower

It has been many days since that day of our visit – but to this day, I am puzzled as to the significance of the offer of the bouquet containing a single pink flower. Why me .... and why for? Regardless, I am happy to accept the gift in all humility.

Thank You a million times my little girl - whoever you are.

Wherefore Art Thou Dithering?

One decision that should have been simple and straightforward - that of abandoning the construction of the Punatsangchu-I (PHPA-I) - the two governments of Bhutan and India continue to dither - even after 13 long years when it became clear that the geological make of the dam site was unsuitable for the location of a mammoth dam that would store few thousand trillion tons of water for the planned hydropower project!!! Nothing could have been more foreboding, than the first land slide that occurred on the right bank of the Punatsangchu-I dam site - during July of 2013. Since then, two more slides have occurred – second one in 2016 and the last one in 2019.

Punatsangchu Hydropower Project’s erstwhile Managing Director, R N Khazanchi, is credited with the masterstroke of proposing the relocation of the PHPA-I’s dam site to the present unproven and untested location, 1.4 KMs upstream of its originally designated location. This was a decision that one of the Indian experts had unabashedly called “the best example of deceit and dishonesty by the project people”.

In recognition of his exemplary ingenuity, Bhutan honored Khazanchi with one of its highest civilian decorations - the Druk Thuksey Medal - in 2012. Before he exited the Project in 2018, Khazanchi in turn gifted the country with the poetic coinage “geographical surprise” to explain the repeated slides that kept occurring at the PHPA-I’s dam site. If this project—against all logic—proceeds, and such landslides continue to occur in this conspicuously unstable locale, will it still be a “surprise”?

Here I am running the risk of being called an insane person - but I tell you … I get this very disturbing feeling that the two governments of Bhutan and India are actually waiting for something catastrophic to occur! If that is what it is – they may not have to wait too long for their wish to come true. We are told that the mighty Thorthorme Tsho (lake) in Lunana is all set to breach!

Let alone the danger of Thorthorme lake burst, the world has seen, and continues to see, natural and man-made calamities at a pace, and scale, that are so numerous that it is near impossible to keep track of them. To recount a few:

Topping the list is the US of A …. It has been hit by the most devastating calamity humanity has ever known …. in the form of Donald Trump being elected as their President. The world’s leading country has been hit by every form of catastrophe known to humanity – humongous Wild Fires, Storms, Super Typhoons, Tornadoes, Cyclones, Volcanic Eruptions, Earthquakes, plunging helicopters and crashing aircrafts etc. etc.

No country has been spared …. practically every country in the world has been hit by natural disasters brought on by Global Warming. Even more scary, the Himalayan region has experienced unprecedented natural calamities such as Cloudbursts, Flash Floods, Landslides, Earthquakes etc. etc.

Seismologists and geophysicists have long predicted that a super earthquake in the Himalayan region is long overdue. They offer the reason that it will be caused by the release of the accumulated tectonic pressure in the area where the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates continue to collide. I understand that it is not a question of IF … but of WHEN .... the hit will come. But it is predicted to come … there does not appear to be any doubt about it.

So … can we be more responsible to ourselves, our future generations, and to those lifeforms downstream of the Project …. and finally take the decision to abandon the PHPA-I project for good?

We simply cannot continue to take the risk – it would be dumb to do so!

A Lucky Businessman

When my Dad was alive, I made sure that I visited him atleast once a year … if not twice. And, during those rare annual events, I invited him to accompany me on my daily bird hunting trips which he enjoyed. Ofcourse he was forever intrigued why, at times, I shot the same bird again and again and again. I did try to explain to him that every new frame of the bird’s image is different - I explained to him that sometimes the lighting is different from the last one --- sometimes the perch is different … and other times, the bird’s posture is daintier than the last … or that at times it is engaged is picking a fly or swallowing a berry ….. Ofcourse, he didn’t see the rationale behind all that …. He thought it was all a waste of time.

But during one of the many trips we made together, the old man made a comment that threw me off completely. He said:

“Yeshey, you know you are one lucky businessman … did you realize that?”

I was puzzled … and asked him:

“Why do you say that?”

He replied:

“You must be the only businessman in Bhutan who does not have to pay for his wares – you get them absolutely free. I mean you take photos of anything and everything you want … anywhere you want … any time you want ... and you do not have to pay a single Chhetrum for doing so. Minya?”

I said:

“True.... but you forget the investment I have to make behind the gear that I need – to photograph those wares. And, by the way, don't forget the time and the passion that I need to invest behind the endeavors ….. Wii bran hiining ... minya?”

Well … my Dad may have thought that I got my wares free … that I did not have to pay for them … but he passed away knowing full well that it didn’t make me a millionaire …. However, that said, the joy and the sense of fulfillment I got from photography is something else …. For proof … please see the following images of the moths I have been shooting in recent times – I dare say that it would have made the old man proud!

Auzatellodes hyalinata

Calluga costalis

Deroca inconclusa

Drepana dispilata

Iotaphora iridicolor

Lymantriine Moth

Macrauzata melanapex

Macrocilix mysticata

Maxates spp.

Ourapteryx contronivea

Pseudomiza obliquaria

Tanaoctenia haliaria

I apologize if some of the ID's of the Moths are wrong .... you know I am a novice at this ... I am no Lepidopterist.... if you know better ... please do not hesitate to correct me.

Confusion, Confusion, Confusion!

Dear …………,

The image you sent me is the reverse of Bhutan’s earliest milled silver coins. As you know, Bhutan’s first two milled silver coins were both issued marked with the date – “Sa Druk Lo” (Year of the Earth Dragon), and denominated “Ja Trum Chet” – meaning “Half Indian Trum” or “Half Indian Coin”.

Both of Bhutan's earliest silver Thalas struck in 1929 and 1930 carried exactly the same markings on the reverse, as above.

Thus, since both the coins were issued with identical markings on the reverse, it is not possible for me to determine if a coin is one of 1929 or 1930 - by simply looking at a coin's reverse alone - you need to send me the image of the coin's obverse - because it is from the obverse that I can tell you which year the coin was struck.
 
Further, as mentioned in my earlier mail of 2022, while the coinage year/year of release was marked as “Sa Druk Lo” corresponding to 1928 in the Gregorian calendar, the Annual Reports of the Director of the Mint, USA records that the silver coins were actually struck in 1929 and 1930 – NOT IN 1928 and 1929 as is popularly assumed.
 
It is my belief that the year 1928 is featured on the coins – because, possibly, the Bhutanese artist who prepared the designs of the coins had actually prepared the designs in 1928 and released them to the English Master Engraver - Mr. A P Spencer - for preparing the coins' dies. But it is clear beyond doubt that the coins were definitely struck in 1929 and 1930, as evidenced by the American Mint’s Annual Reports of 1929 and 1930. The Reports under reference is so exacting that it even gives the total monetary value of the total mintage - in US$ terms!!
 
Please also remember that the first 20,000 pcs. of silver coins of 1929 had a design flaw on its obverse … so another 30,000 pcs. were ordered to be struck in 1930 - in an effort to correct the flaw. Sadly, while the design flaw of the coin’s obverse was corrected, the Mint Master at the British India Government’s Calcutta Mint forgot to change the reverse die … so even the 1930 silver coins were struck with the same year “Sa Druk Lo” although it should have been marked “Sa Drue Lo” (Year of the Earth Snake).

By the way, as I wrote to you in my above referred mail of 2022, few hundred of Bhutan's 1950 nickel Thala were, by mistake, struck using the "Sa Druk Lo" reverse die .... but the Government of India Mint Master in Calcutta realized the mistake in time, and quickly halted further striking of the coins, and switched the reverse die with the correct one that read: "Chaag Taag Lo". That is why one of Bhutan's rarest milled coins is the 1950 nickel Thala with the year "Sa Druk Lo".

Talking of which, did you know that engraving of the Silver Thala's dies is considered Mr. A P Spencer's life's finest work? Imagine!

 
I hope this helps.
 
Bye and take care
 
Yeshey

The World Is On Heat

Do I have some Lepidopterists among my readers? For those of you who are interested in lepidopterology, I have news for you – I mean if you already do not know it. I am inclined to believe that for some decora variety of moth species, mid-August seems to be their mating season here in Bhutan.

Two days back, on the morning of 16th August, 2025 - all of a sudden, I noticed a profuse of this species of Moths - numbering in excess of 30 of them - in a restricted space no more than 35 cu. mtrs. I have been shooting moths for the past close to three months - because it is the moth season in these parts of the northern hemisphere. Usually, I can see no more than 2 to 3 of them in a day, if at all.

Like in the bird world, it would appear that when testosterone levels run high … they too get frantic and careless …. In other words, they are more visible during the mating season than they normally are - easy game for photographers.

Even for me who has been chasing wildlife for the past quarter of a century, I admit that this is the first time I am seeing moths in their Kama Sutra pose - I had never seen it before. I did see butterflies copulating, though.

For the prude among you, time for you to duck - because I am posting those two pretty images of the lepidopterans in rather highly compromising posture - mind you, strictly for educational purposes 😂

Amorous Couple 1

Amorous Couple 2

The above moths appear to be Decora inconclusa - but I am not so sure. The larger of the two is presumed to be the female.

Decision Time Is NOW!

Wishes of any kind is not my thing - I leave that to the dreamers. But on the morning of Thursday the 19th of February, 2015 - Lunar New Year Day, I was driven to make the following New Year Wish:

“I WISH that the two governments of Bhutan and India would get together and take the only sensible decision they can - a decision to abandon the Punatsangchu Hydropower Projects”.

More than ten years later, and after 78 scathing blogs on the subject connected to Bhutan’s hydropower projects - mostly related to the perilous Punatsangchu Hydropower Projects, my views remain unchanged:

There is every reason - now more than ever before - why we must scrap the Punatsangchu Hydropower Project I.

Humanity is experiencing unprecedented natural disasters of every hue and shade - spread across every region of the globe. There are daily reports of floods, tsunami, forest fires, earthquakes, landslides and mudslides - causing devastation at a scale never before experienced.

If that were not enough, I get the feeling that the earth’s magnetic field may have gone a little haywire - causing the muddling of human thought process, the result of which is that even those who were so far considered among the sanest of the sane, have gone and chosen a wobbly old coot with doubtful sanity, to rule and direct them. Perhaps this is also the reason why we have seen numerous aircraft crashes - for no obvious reasons - in all probability due to failure of their navigation systems - caused by interference to their signals - by the shifting of the earth’s magnetic fields.

That said, I believe that all these abnormal occurrences so far are, at best, mild teasers to forewarn humanity of the bigger catastrophes to come . What is said to be due is the truly stupendous, super spoiler - a seismic activity so massive that the geography of the Himalayan region could very well be rearranged in a way that the Mt. Everest could probably be relocated to the North Pole.

Seismologists and geophysicists have long predicted that a super earthquake in the Himalayan region is long overdue. They offer the reason that it will be caused by the release of the accumulated tectonic pressure in the area where the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates continue to collide. The ongoing collusion between the two Plates continue to push the Himalayas upwards - causing the mountains in the Himalayan region to grow taller by about 2 CMS every passing year.

The 8.8 magnitude earthquake that hit Russia yesterday - Wednesday the 30th July, 2025 is one of the severest in modern history - it sent tsunami waves into Japan, Hawaii and other places - even as far as West coast of USA. I fear that this is a warning that the dreaded super earthquake that experts have spoken about, is on its way sooner than later.

I have given a few hundred reasons why Punatsangchu Hydropower Project-I needs to be shut down. There is no escaping the fact that it is now clear beyond an iota of doubt that the Punatsangchu Hydropower Project-I is a proven potpourri of evil and bad Karma - it is sinister that it is still standing. Let us recognize it for what it is and cut our losses - and run when we still have the time to do so!

Imagine a force that can push the whole Himalayan range to rise more than 2 CMs each year! As I have said umpteen times before - DO NOT TRY TO BEST NATURE - it is simply, utterly IMPOSSIBLE!

Even if it is not true what Dr. Yash Pal Shardha, a retired Senior Geologist with the Geological Survey of India (GSI) had said, that “This project is the best example of deceit and dishonesty by project people…...”, we have to bear in mind that the Punatsangchu Hydropower Projects are located bang in the middle of the country’s seismically high hazard zone. That should already give us nightmares!

The picture tells the story: Seismic Hazard Map of Bhutan drawn by IIT, Roorkee - one of India's foremost institutes for science and engineering.

We are seeing heightened seismic activities in recent years, caused by unchecked global warming. In the face of such clear and present danger, do we dare take any chances? How remote is the possibility that the next jolt might be closer to home?

Bhutan’s Coining Journey: Koch Kingdom’s Connection

Boy, am I really, really excited! I mean, I am finally in no doubt whatsoever that I have it nailed!

Whole lot of writers and historians have theorized - a plethora of conflicting views have been opined, and claims made - as to when and where exactly Bhutan’s coining journey began. The confusion is so total that the publication of my coin book has been on hold for the last 15 years - for fear that I may be putting out a factually flawed book. Not to say that I hope to put out a book without any flaws - but I believe it to be my responsibility to try and ensure that the work I release for public consumption is one with the least bit of inaccuracies. Friends and collectors around the world are running out of patience - they tell me that I should go ahead and publish the book .... they say that I can correct any inaccuracies - by releasing a second edition to the book. I tell them - what is the guarantee that I will live long enough to be able to bring out a second edition? 😂

Anyway, close to ten years back when I first came across the following record, I was hugely amused - that good old Bhutan had been cheated out of Rs.5,000.00 worth of silver - I mean how funny is that? However, beyond the sense of tickle, I did not give it much thought. Then again, few days back, in an effort to review my work on the book so far, I reassessed the Note once again …. this time though, my sense of intrigue went beyond the thuggery - it dawned on me that the Note held far greater meaning than I had given it credit during my first reading. I realized that it held the answer to part of the puzzle: when and where did Bhutan begin it's coining journey?

Letter of Request for the recovery of Rs.5,000.00 worth of silver from the Raja of Cooch Behar

I went into a deep delve: Who was the Maharaja of Bhutan (Druk Desi) who authored that Note addressed to the British Governor General in the year 1785? Records indicate that it was Jigme Singye who served as the 18th Druk Desi - between 1776 to 1789.

The Note is explicit that the silver was sent to the “grandfather” of the “present Raja” for minting. Who was the “present Raja”? According to the official records of the government of Cooch Behar, the “present Raja” would be Raja Harendra Narayan - he ruled Cooch Behar between 1783 - 1839.

I pieced together the genealogy of Koch Kingdom’s Narayani Dynasty and the succession of their reign. It turns out that the “grandfather” under reference to whom the silver was supposed to have been sent, would have to be Raja Dairjendra Narayan - during his second term between 1775 – 1783.

Reign of successive Rajas of the Koch Kingdom's Narayani Dynasty - for the period between 1765 - 1839

This is most revealing! - the Note establishes the fact that THERE WAS NO MINT LOCATED WITHIN BHUTAN - not at least during early part of the reign of Druk Desi Jigme Singye. That is why silver had to be sent to Cooch Behar - for hammering into coins - even at the risk of being occasionally usurped!