Champions of Rangzhi Nyetang

In the five years that I served as the Club Secretary of the Rotary Club of Thimphu, from 2017 to 2021, I helped the Club raise funding in excess of Nu.400.00 million that went into supporting meaningful projects in a number of areas such as Agriculture, Education, Health, WASH etc. etc.

Nothing was too small, or too big, for the Club to handle. I had a personal motto:

We Are Not God To Decide Who Needs Help and Who Does Not!

We have been called in to help with a mind-boggling array of services - from help in skilling the women inmates at Dawakha Open Air Prison, to supply of portable shit pots to every single RBP stations across the country, including, as gory as it sounds - to providing freezers to freeze the dead and the departed at Gelephu General Hospital etc. etc.

But there was one thing I adamantly refused to touch:

AWARENESS PROGRAMS!!

I am of the firm belief that trying to make the Bhutanese aware of anything is akin to throwing good money behind bad joke! Even a drunkard friend offered me the view that the only way to make a Bhutanese aware is through the use of - Taetha - the Stick! For proof, consider the following:

On 11th June, 2025 I was driving down to town. As I approached Pangrizampa Bazam, I saw a motley of people around a table fully laden with bottles and bottles of mineral water - the small sized ones. I was a little intrigued as to why that water station was set up. As I continued my drive towards Taba, I saw a haphazard string of joggers/runners advancing towards me.

Wellbeing at the cost of the Environment

I moved to the shoulder of the road and parked my car so that they could pass freely and without hindrance. It was then that I noticed a jogger gulping down water from a small mineral water bottle … and mindlessly chuck the empty bottle on the road! He was not alone – some others did the same.

I was aghast! How can they? As I continued my drive towards town, I noticed many empty bottles on the road - all of them of the same size and brand. I realized that the joggers/runners were responsible for all that trash …. So I retracted back to Parizampa Bazam and began picking up every discarded plastic bottle - to see how many of these bottles have been chucked on the road.

In a distance no more than 3 KMs, I gathered 69 empty bottles - some flattened - some whole.

Days later I got to know that the joggers/runners were all civil servants participating in an event designated “Celebrating Civil Service Well Being Day”.

The Program List does not show littering as part of the event activity

I couldn’t believe it! They do this? After decades of education on Rangzhi Nyetang (environment)? Have they learnt nothing at all??

I am dumb founded - I mean, we are supposed to be recipients of the Champions of the Earth Award, J. Paul Getty Award for Conservation Leadership, Murie Spirit of Conservation Award, Green Destinations' Silver Award …. and so many other awards.

There were 69 empty plastic mineral water bottles carelessly chucked on the road. Suppose 100 civil servants had participated in the event - that would account for a whooping 69% of them being totally uneducated.

If 200 had participated, it would still mean 34.5% of them.

It is so heart breaking - obviously being literate is not the same as being educated! How else can you explain such disgusting behavior from the supposed crème de la crème (to qualify to get into the civil service one is supposed to be the most excellent, outstanding, or the elite)?

Fellows, we seriously need to get serious about deserving the numerous environmental accolades the global community bestow upon us - or we will be caught out soon.

Four & Half Decades of Confusion

We have to hand it to our Parliamentarians – their eloquence is riveting! That said, I am afraid that their glibness fails to mask their apparent lack of adequate knowledge on some of the subjects they speak on.

A case in point is the ongoing discussions related to forestry - in both the Upper, as well as, in the Lower Houses of the Parliament. It is clear that some of the Honorable Members are confusing PRESERVATION for CONSERVATION. Perhaps the following will help bring some bit of clarity to the issue, so that the goat is not confused for the sheep.

Quality of our forests - valuable renewable natural resources left to turn to dust and debris!

It is my view that the intergenerational confusion began in the late 1970s when His Majesty the IVth Druk Gyalpo banned timber harvesting and nationalized illegal brown jacket cardamom plantations. In my understanding, that act has to be viewed as an act of preservation – and not be confused as an act of conservation.

In the North-Western regions of the country, powerful and influential private timber merchants, in cahoots with corrupt Forestry officials, caused indiscriminate and illegal felling of the trees. In the South-Central parts of the country, large swaths of virgin forests were being usurped and cleared of mature trees – for illegal plantation of the highly lucrative brown jacket cardamom, and for firing tens of hundreds of Battis - to dry the harvested cardamom.

The King was so infuriated by the mindless acts of destruction caused to the country’s forest stand that He ordered the seizure of the illegal cardamom plantations and banning of the harvesting of trees. It was an act designed to PRESERVE our forests from total annihilation – it was NOT an act of CONSERVATION. I know because I was one among the principal players in implementing the policy – for disposing off the residual stock of semi-processed lumber taken over from the timber merchants, and marketing of the yield of cardamom (from illegal plantations), harvesting of which was mandated to be overseen by the district administration officials. (How the policy implementation was botched up is an interesting story to be told another day)

Modern, scientific forest management practices encourage mindful human intervention – both for a robust ecosystem, as well as for biodiversity. Unfortunately, it is clear that we in Bhutan have come to believe that a densely populated forest is a sign of a successful conservation policy. That is why we unfailingly take great pride in claiming that we have forest coverage in excess of 70% of our land mass – clueless that those forests are causing more harm than good.

Please pause for a minute and think:

Why do lionesses deliberately abandon some of their cubs?
Why do some birds push some of their chicks off the nests?
Why do farmers prune their fruit trees and weed their kitchen gardens?
Why does silviculture promote thinning of the forest stand?
Why do human couples practice birth control?

Bhutan Is Home to Two Of The World’s 15 Most Gorgeous Moths

“ ……….. Got back from Sektena surveying tour. BPC officials will prepare a detailed report and present it to their authorities in the next couple of days ……….. “

“ ……….. so what does this mean they will realign or business as usual ……….. “

“The survey team does not have the power to decide. They will report the findings and it will be decided by authorities in Thimphu la ........ ”

“ .... and what the authorities in Thimphu decides will determine if there is any meaning at all ... in how desperately some of us care for our natural environment .... on the other hand, it will show to us if the powers that be give a damn what the citizens feel about what they do ... ”

Wed Apr 23 7:07AM

The above is a short chat that I sent out to a Chat Group early this morning …. in response to a report submitted by a Member of the Group …. expressing my sense of helplessness over an issue that we care deeply about but are powerless in determining the course it will eventually take.

It was then that the website AOL.com notified me, as if on cue, of the selection of the world’s 15 most beautiful moths. I went through the 15 images listed on the website … and was happy to see that Bhutan is home to two of them – it is possible that we may have all of the 15 moths – waiting to be discovered!!

Brahmin Moth photographed in 2024 at Dangrena, Dechenchholing, Thimphu, Bhutan

Luna or Moon Moth photographed in 2014 at Zomlingthang, Punakha, Bhutan

The world recognizes Bhutan as one of the ten most important global biodiversity hotspots. It is for this reason that some of us try so hard to help save our environment because we recognize that when the environment is gone, nothing else matters. No justification is justification enough!

Of Trees and Water

In recent times, the media – in particular the government mouth pieces: Kuensel and BBS – have tended to go gung-ho over the twin endeavors launched by the Bhutan Ecological Society (BES) and the Mountain Hazelnut Venture (MHV) - to blanket the entire country with tens of millions of trees - both fruiting and none-fruiting.

The BES aims to plant 10,000,000 trees by 2030.

Trees, trees everywhere

Making its initial start from remote Rangshikhar village of Trashigang in October of 2008, MHV’s initial plans were: 11,000,000 exotic hazelnut trees, covering 37,000 acres of degraded and barren land, in 15,000 plantations spread across all 20 Dzongkhags.

Nuts, nuts everywhere

In all fairness, the intensions of the BES and the MHV may be honorable – but have we really understood the long-term implications of these endeavors on the country? Their scope and scale are scary!

Given its nomenclature, BES should be a knowledgeable organization. But have they stopped to weigh the benefits of carbon sequestration – as opposed to ground water loss arising out of their endeavors? Have they considered Bhutan’s current stock of forest stand? Have they considered the following?

• Since 1979 – since close to half a century – there has been a ban on commercial harvesting of trees which has resulted in overstocking of the forests with poor quality trees, in addition to, some say, contributing to ground water depletion, resulting in drying up of springs that have traditionally been our source of drinking water.
  
  
• Available government records suggest that our tree density has increased from 280 trees per ha in 2016 to 377 trees per ha in 2022.
  
  
• The National Forest Inventory 2023 records that there are already 1.008 billion trees in the country. Of these humongous number, 93% of them are said to be growing in densely crowded conditions.
  
  
• One important question – do we have available fertile land (trees don’t grow on infertile lands) to accommodate such numbers of trees? Even if we do, is it beneficial to populate them all with trees, that too with only select species? What of space for other vegetation types – for the sake of bio-diversity which is critical for a healthy ecosystem?
  
  
• Studies show that agriculture land has decreased from 7.7% in 1995 to under 3% presently. Planting trees on agricultural land will further compromise the already compromised national goal of food security.
  
  
• Research indicates that a three-year-old tree can absorb around 10 kilogrammes of carbon dioxide annually. Another research has established that a 400 - 600 cm tall tree will drink up anywhere between 10 – 15 litres of water a day! Of the two, which is more beneficial? Remember: carbon sequestration impacts globally, while ground water depletion impacts locally.
  
  
• And what of the ethical issues surrounding carbon trading? Does it not seem like we are promoting environmental destruction elsewhere on the planet (after 29 COPs, there is clear indication that the state of our planet's environment is deteriorating by leaps and bounds - not improving), while screwing up our own – with doubtful and poorly understood undertakings?

Even more important, it is increasingly becoming clear that we will have to depend on our ground water reserves to supply us water in the future – particularly in rain-scarce countries like Bhutan.

Ice and snow melt – even rain – as sources for recharge of rivers/lakes/springs are likely to prove undependable as global warming escalates unchecked. Thus, it is clear that we will have to be extremely careful about jeopardizing our ground water reserves percolated over many thousand centuries. Looks like ultimately, we may have to depend on them for our safe drinking water.

As for MHV’s hazelnut project, I have already discussed about its impact on the nation – as far back as 2018. A repeat would be an overkill!

Copping Out COP28

Over three hundred years back, the English astronomer, mathematician and physicist Edmond Halley implied that for the environment to survive, the human race has to go extinct. Amazing that such a thought had already occurred some three centuries back. One has to wonder - what may have been happening those early days that someone foretold - quite accurately - the state of our environment, many centuries later?

In June of 1992, a total of 154 countries got together to sign the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Thirty-one (31) years later, and after deliberating for twenty-eight (28) years of COP after COP (Conference of the Parties), our environment is in greater peril than when the UNFCCC was initiated.

Twenty-eight years of yacking in great pomp and pageantry has not resulted in any improvement to the health of our environment. Apparently, the human society is running out of ideas – we are now forced to hold the 28th COP in a country that contributes to the top ten polluters of the world.

As I told one American friend – the way of the GNH could save the environment – but its very idea is antithesis to the basis of human development as we understand it. I told her that unless the present human society is willing to dismantle everything on which the supposed human progress is founded, NO WAY we can halt the march of environmental devastation.

Because, the human society has gotten used to exacting the cost of our competitiveness and efficiency on the environment. That would explain why the chilies grown at the other end of the world can be sold cheaper in your local Sunday Market, than that which is grown in your backyard. No one will stop to ponder: how is it possible that chilies trucked and moved tens of thousands of miles across the seven seas can be cheaper? The answer: abuse of the environment.

The processes we have developed to manufacture, transport, distribute and package our manufactured goods is such that it disregards the environment completely. We have gone so far that it is not an option to dismantle it – for the sake of the environment – it is a scary thought!

Consider, for instance, the European manufacturing conglomerate - Airbus SE, a company that holds almost 50% of the global civil aviation market. Its success is not because it manufactures all of their over a million parts that go into a single aircraft – its success is attributed to building partnerships among a number of countries such as France, Germany, United Kingdom, Italy, Spain and the Netherlands, UA, Canada, China. They build competitive edge over their competitors – by allocation manufacturing and assembly to different countries in different geographical locations, based on their core competences. This way, they distribute the burden of investment, tap into talents and skills based in a number of locations, instead of in one country and one location. This way they achieve economies of scale – cost savings, efficient distribution, cheaper cost of storage, ease of transportation to markets and consumers etc.

Same is with the Apple iPhone – they are built, assembled and shipped from multiple locations spread across multiple counties around the world, such as: China, the Czech Republic, Malaysia, Thailand, and South Korea among others.

Similarly, the car we drive may carry the brand name of one company such as TOYOTA – but over a hundred manufacturing companies spread across the globe would have contributed to the final product.

This means that the principal manufacturing company and the hundreds of ancillary companies based in over a dozen countries must function in synch with each other – they must use the same technologies – follow the same objectives and, above all, must be tuned into each other – the moment one part of the whole collapses, the entire chain gets broken. No single company in the world has the wherewithal to bear loss at this scale! Thus no one will dare shift to something new that calls for investment from ground up.

This means that the principal of GNH manufacturing – as charming as it may sound – is impractical as well as impracticable – it will be too costly to make it work.

Can you imagine the chaos it will create – the day you decide to shift over to a new order of things? It will fast-forward the collapse of the human race!

A simple thought: Can you imagine the catastrophe that will befall the automotive industry if they have to change over to electricity as the source of energy to power their engines? Can you imagine how many million companies will go bankrupt? How many millions of workers will be rendered jobless? How many fossil fuel producers (don’t forget they are also members of the human society) will go out of business?

Bhutan Trust Fund For Environmental Conservation

The world’s first environmental conservation Fund - BHUTAN TRUST FUND FOR ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION (BTFEC) - held an event at the Hotel Le Méridien, Thimphu yesterday. The event was yet another first for the world’s pioneering fund specifically founded for the conservation of the nation’s natural environment. In an era of exclusion and elimination, the event brought together a gaggle of personae from practically every walk of life - regulators, environmentalists, educationists, photographers, members of the bureaucracy, financiers, UN workers, hoteliers, college students, a large troupe of aid workers from NGOs, a motley of journalists from the fourth estate, including a surprise package in the form of Dr. Sean Watson of the Mountain Hazelnut Project fame.

A first-of-its-kind initiative

Truly an event that can be said to be a result of the out-of-box thinking by the management team headed by a brand new CEO in the person of Dr. Karma Tshering, the BTFEC has initiated a groundbreaking initiative that we hope other similar institutions will want to replicate. That said, I hope it does not turn out to be a flash-in-the-pan kind of thing - I hope they stay the course over the long haul.

The event saw participation from a staggering 74 participants - excluding the Foundation officials and staff. If numbers matter, it should speak sufficiently for the popularity and relevance of the event. Inviting the Foundation’s Founder - Dasho Benji Dorji - to speak at the event was a nice touch. But I was sorely disappointed that the BTFEC forgot the past CEOs of the Foundation without whose competent contributions the BTEFC would not be where it is today. I noticed the same lack of social grace during the celebration of the Tourism Council of Bhutan’s 50th Year Anniversary at the Dusit Hotel in 2021. Then too they forgot the pioneering players and trailblazers of the industry who are still alive and contributing vigorously to the growth of the country’s most vital industry - the peerless tourism industry.

I hope people will remember that our present is innately linked to our yesterday - and our today will define our tomorrow.

The discussions and recommendations that ensued during the event were truly meaningful and it is my hope that they would serve as a road map for the BTFEC. It is also my hope that they would make such gatherings a calendar event - so that they can feel the pulse of their aspiring collaborators of the future.

Three of my submissions to the BTFEC during the event were:

1.   Please choose your partners wisely;

2.   Please reassess your past projects so that you avoid known pitfalls; and

3.  Please institute a Reward scheme for the proven environmental champions of the country

      - not a reward for the already rewarded.

My formula for success has always been that we should attempt many, many small and manageable undertakings that are within our financial and technical competence, instead of attempting large enterprises that are outside our capability. It is my hope that the BTFEC would see merit in espousing minor players as well - even as they muddy the waters with big and mighty fish in the rivers.

Addendum:

I have it on authority that the management of the BTFEC did send out invitations to all of the past CEOs of the Fund, for their presence at the event. Unfortunately, none of them could make it - given their prior engagement elsewhere.

The Sozzled Himalayan Black Bear

It is bloody amusing! Is it, really? 

First off, have you ever heard of a Himalayan Black Bear getting drunk on XXX Rum (a potent liquor), anywhere else in the world? I have not - it is provably why I must finally accept that Bhutan and the Bhutanese are truly unique.

The case of the drunken bear - proof that their domain is shrinking or that it does not contain food they need for their sustenance

On a serious note, one has to wonder what is a Himalayan Black Bear doing bang in the middle of Bhutan’s largest and most densely populated metropolis? Its rightful domain should be the 70 - 80% forest that we are supposed to have. And this is not the first time it has happened - the last similar incidence was another Himalayan Black Bear that was observed lumbering casually above the IT Park, Babesa in broad day light - at 1.30PM, on 12th December, 2021.

The KUENSEL reported many sightings of the Himalayan Black Bear in the capital city - in places like, Lungtenphu, Serbithang, Upper Motithang, Taba, Chamjeykha, Tango & Chari and Jemina.

It is very simple to understand that wildlife venture out of their comfort zone when their own domain lack the food they need for sustenance - it is then they step into dangerous domains - such as those of the human beings.

Despite our tall claims, incidences such as these clearly indicate that our ecosystem is not as pristine as we say it is. Time is here then that we start to put our money where our mouth is - we cannot hope to put wool over people’s eyes forever. Let us begin to look at the truth and reality squarely in the face - or we will be doomed.

I am now beginning to realize, after more than four decades since, why close to US$5.00 million GWMC project had to go under liquidation, in less than a decade of starting operation in 1982.

I am now wiser why I was called in to be a party to an unthinkable incidence that took place sometime during 1979/1980.

Not The Complete Truth!

I find that today’s report by the Kuensel or, more accurately, the report by the Centre for Bhutan & GNH Studies on the causes for the drop in Yak rearing in our alpine highlands is incomplete, at best. I would like to attempt to complete the list by adding the following causes that have been poorly reported, or missed out entirely.

Disenchanted by Yak herding!

An incomplete report on the issue

• I believe that at the top of the list is the economic competence afforded by the income from annual Cordyceps harvest from their regions, authorized/legitimized during early 2000s. The highland Bjops as a community are now richer than their lowland Ngaspos (hosts) who host them during the winter months when they migrate for few months. These Bjops now own a number of multi-storied buildings in urban centers such as Trongsa, Bumthang, Wangdue, Punakha, Paro, Trashigang, Mongaar etc.
• Some of the Bjops have made permanent relocations to low lands, upon becoming owners of land and other properties - thus abandoning their traditional yak rearing occupation.
• The yaks’ traditional pastureland where they use to graze has seen invasion by hundreds of pack ponies from the low lands. These ponies compete with the yaks for the scantily available grass. During one of my trips to the remote alpine regions, I have seen quarrel breakout between the yak herders and the pony drivers. The yak herders claim ownership right over the grazing space - while the pony drivers contend that their ponies cannot be denied right of nourishment. At one point I had to pay the yak herders compensation for the grass consumed by over a dozen of my pack ponies because I believed that the yak herders’ rights precedes that of the pony drivers.
• Thousands upon thousands of Cordyceps collectors storm the mountainsides during the Cordyceps collection months that illegally extend over three months. During these periods, the collectors use up huge amounts of a low-lying alpine bush called “Pam” - for use as fuel wood. This renders the topsoil barren of cover for regeneration of much needed grass for consumption by the yaks, also causing erosion over time.
• Something that I had never realized before was the fact that a large number of the yaks reared in the high mountains are owned by the monk body and the powerful and rich families in the low lands - only a limited number of the yak herders actually own the yaks they herd under extreme climactic and weather conditions. These traditional part time owners are now abandoning the occupation - for better opportunities and as a result of economic gains afforded by the cordyceps collection.
• On one of my trips to Merak’s highest peak - Mt. Jumo Koongkhar, I spent a few nights at a yak herding family’s camp. I was witness to a brutal predation on few yaks by the Black Bears - this was the first time I realized that bears were not entirely herbivores, as I had believed. I am told that this is a regular problem with the yak herders.

Perhaps it is time for the government to take a closer look at the consequences of the changing habits of the Bjops.

Mother Earth: Pregnant with Beer Bottles

More than a dozen years back (July 2010), I reported about rural Bhutan being used as burial grounds for empty glass beer bottles. Please read about it at:

https://yesheydorji.blogspot.com/2010/07/plastic-wrappings-and-buried-beer.html

What I reported above pertains to an act of a village bootlegger - in the remote village of Kheng Nimshong in Zhemgang. In all fairness, what the man did was an act borne of innocence - he would not have known any better.

It is likely that few million glass beer bottles may remain buried inside our forests across the country

But what is the excuse for the government to do nothing to mitigate such eventualities? Obviously if a clueless Khengpa is doing it in Zhemgang, a Sharchop in remote Sharchok could well be doing the same. So would a Lhotshampa in the South and Bjops in Laya, Lingzhi, Merak and Sakteng, in the North.

Empty beer bottles are heavy, brittle and their resale value is not worth all the trouble of delivering them to the scrap dealers in urban centers. So they end up strewn all over the forest floor and, even worst, deep inside trenches dug into the belly of the earth.

Can we do something about it, for the sake of our environment? Remember - we are known the world over as the champions of environmental protection - we have prestigious awards to prove that!

How about introducing a rule that would require the beer manufacturers/importers to maintain a monetary deposit with the government - for every glass bottle they release into the market. The manufacturer/importers in turn should hold a like sum in deposit from their Distributors, so that every bottle they lift is required to be deposited back with the manufacturers/importers, failing which the deposit gets deducted by the pre-determined value of shortfall in the number of empty bottles. Likewise, the distributors/dealers impose a similar requirement on their retailers.

The manufacturers/importers should not be affected by the rule since the deposit is passed on down the marketing channel. The beer consumer should not be affected greatly since the deposit requirement is likely to impact the pricing of the beer only marginally, if at all. If it does, tough shit!

Today, given the changing taste of the Bhutanese drinkers, I am told that beer is THE alcohol of choice among rural Bhutanese. I understand that the lowly Aara is now infra dig!

Is the ongoing transformation exercise likely to transform anything in Bhutan at all? Or, is it going to be the case of whole lot of EFFICIENCY without EFFECTIVENESS!

Let us dispense with the verbosity - it is time to get down to action for a change!

COP27: Taking On The Burden Of Cost Of Climate Change

Morning Briefing

November 9, 2022

European countries make climate pledges

Wealthy nations have long resisted calls from developing countries to shoulder the costs of climate change. At last year’s U.N. climate summit, only one, Scotland, made any sort of pledge.

But at COP27, the dam may have begun to break.

As a country that is among the most committed in environmental conservation, will Bhutan seek a piece of the pie? Are we going to stake our rightful claim? Let us not dither.

Yesterday, Scotland pledged $5.7 million. Then, Ireland pledged $10 million, followed by Austria, which said it would pay around $50 million to vulnerable developing countries. Belgium, Denmark and Germany made similar pledges. Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, endorsed the idea.

All eyes are now on the U.S., which has not agreed to new funds for poorer nations affected by climate change. Emmanuel Macron, the president of France, sent up a not-too-veiled flare yesterday to Washington. “Pressure must be put on rich non-European countries,” he continued, “‘You have to pay your fair share.’”

One Small Step For FC Reserve - One Giant Leap for Environment

The announcement of a moratorium on import of vehicles is welcome news, but it falls far short of what is called for, if we are serious about combatting the plummeting foreign exchange reserve situation in the country. Rumors doing the round is that our foreign exchange reserve has fallen below the level mandated by the Constitution. That appears to be untrue, upon ascertaining from more dependable sources. According to a knowledgeable source, our reserve - which includes both third country currency as well as the Indian Rupee - stood at Nu.845.00 million at the end of last month - enough to cover imports of essentials for little over fourteen months.

Reuters reporting on Bhutan's foreign currency woes

Clearly it is a case of the government dithering on taking swift decisions, which is called for given the precariousness of the situation. They cannot be caught napping. They should have acted much earlier - when they became aware of the headwinds of doom blowing. Since no large-scale exports have been reported in the immediate recent past, the country may be inching closer to the proverbial red line, in terms of our foreign currency reserve.

But to be fair, the DNT government has not been found wanting where bold decisions were needed to be taken. This gingerly step of imposing a temporary moratorium on import of vehicles is not enough by far - but it is a step in the right direction, nonetheless. They now need to rein in the other villains - the importers of none-essential goods. For God’s sakes - why do we need to import cheap imitation branded goods, toilet papers, face tissue, biscuits, chocolates and cosmetics, against hard currency from places like Thailand, China and Vietnam? Shamefully, for a country that boasts of 71% forest cover, we imported Nu.3.2 billion worth of wood and wood products, while our own forest stand is rotting away and degrading the quality of our renewable natural resource, in the process causing loss of ground water, resulting in shortage of drinking water.

I have already written about the dark side of the import of none-essential goods - how it contributes to the falling foreign currency reserve - not just through outward remittances to pay for the imports, but as a consequence of the other more serious clandestine transections that are rumored to be happening - through the Hawala route. I think it is really simple to validate these rumors, if the government is serious about their intensions.

As I keep saying - let us not allow ourselves to arrive at a point where we have to say sorry because, by then, it will be too late.

The moratorium on vehicle imports will surely impact the business of the vehicle dealerships but I happen to know that most of the owners of the agencies that deal in vehicle imports are responsible people. For the common good, I know that they will rise above the situation and accept that each of us citizens have to contribute in different ways during times of difficulty – a small sacrifice by them will mean the world of difference to the much larger population that stand to loose lot more, if tough decisions are deferred.

The moratorium makes sense in two very meaningful ways - it stops the outflow of foreign currency to pay for the import of vehicles. It reduces the import of fossil fuel to power them. In the process, our doddering environment benefits.

The ugly truth that remains hidden from public knowledge is the state of Thimphu’s air and water quality. If the authorities dare conduct a test, we are likely to discover that our much touted “pristine environment” is a myth - I think we are worst than Beijing or New Delhi - for the simple reason that we are located in a narrow valley boxed in by high rise mountains, while Beijing and New Delhi are located in wide open plains. The following image of Thimphu valley was captured by me some 15 years ago - from Phajoding:

Thimphu valley swathed in a thick blanket of poisonous particulates. Imagine what we are breathing.

The image does not look like that of Thimphu - but it is. I have pointed out the statue of Buddha Dordenma with a red arrow to validate that the photo is indeed that of Thimphu valley.

You can see the thick blanket of poisonous particulates that are trapped and suspended over Thimphu valley. The situation would have deteriorated many folds since.

White-bellied Herons: They Matter To Us – Because They Help Us Matter To The World

Yesterday the Kuensel reported on yet another of our mounting failures - Bhutan’s dwindling population of the critically endangered White-bellied Herons (WBH). For the past many years forestry scientist Dr. Phuntsho Namgyel has been wailing cries of despair - calling our attention to the looming disaster to our forest stand - through overstocking with unproductive trees - caused by the uneducated belief that harvesting of trees is bad for environment. Three written submissions later, pleading not to do so, the government has been unfailing in its systematic destruction of the bird habitat in Sengore, Yongkola and Lemithang in Eastern Bhutan - a stretch of bird habit that the global birdwatching community has dubbed - “The Birding Capital of The World”. But this is a subject for another day.

An adult White-bellied Heron photographed in Rurichhu, Wangdue - at the cusp of extinction

Coming back to the issue of WBH, quite mistakenly the destruction of the heron habitat is blamed as the sole reason for the progressive decline in the number of herons, despite the discovery of new and old nests with eggs in them. This is only half the truth. The other reason for the decline in heron population should be attributed to the destruction of habitats of other predators within, and in the periphery of, the heron habitat. It means that due to the disappearance of their traditional prey, these predators may be now preying on the herons and their chicks.

A few weeks old WBH chic practicing flight. Many chicks are hatched year after year - but numbers are still dwindling.

But we the Bhutanese people - who outclass the whole world in verbosity, cause the worst destruction. During a White-bellied Heron conservation workshop held in Punakha in December of 2015, which I attended, Bhutan recorded the highest number of the birds at 28, out of the confirmed 60 individuals recorded globally. And today we are admitting that that number has dropped to 23. We need to transcend the hot air – we need to deliver what we promise.

The White-bellied Heron rage countries: Bhutan, India, China, Mynmar

Many years back, Samdingkha in Punakha Phochu area - world’s richest heron habitat then - was being overrun by dozens of trucks and excavators - for collection of sand and boulder from the riverbanks. Some of us launched a drive to prevent such activity in the area. The government listened - and a Cabinet Order was issued banning surface collection of sand and boulder from the areas - sometime in 2004-2005. Sadly, true to form, the Forestry Department failed to carry out effective monitoring and the order remained on paper - with poor or no implementation on the ground. Today, the destruction of that particular habitat is so complete that according to the Kuensel no heron sightings have been reported in the areas since 2018. But Hishey Tshering, perhaps Bhutan’s earliest birding enthusiast says that he saw the birds in the area during a birding trip on 14th November, 2019, but not since.

Global population of White-bellied Herons as of 2015. Bhutan ranked at the top - at 28 individuals.

Environmental conservation should not - must not, be a stumbling block to human progress - when this happens, environment will be at the receiving end. Thus as much as I am against the way the hydropower projects are done in Bhutan, I played subservient to the tyranny of the majority - and the majority view is that hydropower is beneficial. Knowing that we will not be able to halt the hydropower projects in Punatsangchhu River Basin that will ultimately result in the extinction of the WBH species, I proposed that we declare Bertey in Zhemgang as a heron sanctuary - in an attempt to give the herons a standing chance at survival – away from the vortex of destruction. I chose this place because, firstly, during those days there was a resident population of 6 White-belied Herons. Secondly, there is no vehicle road access beyond Berti village - thus no human activity happens there. Thirdly the adjoining village of Chaabang had been abandoned, and thus, there is no agricultural activity of any kind happening there. In other words, the areas remain secluded from human activity.

Today the global community recognizes and accepts Bhutan as the most important WBH habitat. Even at 23, Bhutan still accounts for the highest recorded number of White-bellied Heron population in the world. A country that is credited as being at the forefront of environmental conservation needs to do better - than being caught doling out annual statistical figures that report of diminishing numbers of a critically endangered bird.

The burden of responsibility is on us - to ensure that the bird is not allowed to go extinct. There is no justification for such a monumental irresponsibility. We need to move away from being the habitual paper tiger. We need to put money where our mouth is.

We need to act without delay - to arrest further decline in the numbers of the WBH. They matter to us - because they help us matter to the world.

Giving Environment a Helping Hand

Environment - and its protection - is the one and only area in which Bhutan’s Supreme Court will allow Public Interest Litigation (PIL) – leaving us in no doubt as to how dead serious we are about our commitment towards the stewardship of our natural environment.

A discourse on the merits of a pristine environment is unnecessary – because most Bhutanese already understand the impacts of a degraded environment. It is for this reason that yesterday (04.06.2022) – on the Birth Anniversary of Her Majesty the Gyaltsuen (Her Majesty the Queen of Bhutan), a select group of Members of the Bhutan Birdlife Society – (of which I am one) undertook a tree plantation initiative at the Animoi Dratsang (nunnery) above Tsalumaphey in Thimphu. Some three hundred trees – mostly flowering and fruiting ones - have been planted. I choose to plant a Dogwood sapling.

Members of the Bhutan Birdlife Society readying for the initiative

Teach them young - a small girl plants a Maple sapling

Bhutan Birdlife Society’s initiative hopes to address two emerging environmental issues in the area – that of dwindling wild bird population, and near total loss of tree life that has rendered the area barren and unattractive. It is hoped that in the coming years, the area will be restocked with flowering and fruiting trees that will re-attract birds that have abandoned the area, while at the same time greening a historical place that is Tsalumaphey.

Trees and birds are intrinsically inter-connected – trees support the proliferation of birdlife while birds help multiply and reproduce trees. In the cycle of life, they handhold each other.

LOCKDOWN SPECIAL: The Collection Of The Natural Wonder Called Cordyceps sinensis

Although it is tantamount to tooting my own horn – I must confess that very few can claim to be as lucky as I am. I have been blessed with good health, energy, stamina, power of endurance, determination, daring and audacity – at a level that is almost uncommon. All these qualities helped me embark on many of my jaunts into practically every extreme alpine regions of the country – from Singye Dzong and Jumo Koongkhar in the East to Gangkhar Puensoom in the Central and Chundugung and Nob Tshonapatta in the West.

I made two trips into the mountains of remote Lunana – both on photographic assignments to photograph the collection of the magic worm/fungus – Cordyceps sinensis. Another trip I made was to the Northern extremes of Dhur in Bumthang – for the same reason – to photograph the collection of Cordyceps. The account I present to you below is that of my trip to Dhur. It is my hope that these will engage you, even if for a short while – during these tiresome times of the lockdown.

Bhutan is one among very few countries in the world where the magical Cordyceps sinensis is found. This crazy, crinkly and extremely expensive amalgamation between a caterpillar larva and parasite is one of the most important ingredients in the TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine). According to one of my friends in the USA, she swears that the thing is so potent that its administration to her dog cured it of the problem of hair loss.

The Cordyceps sinensis occurs at altitudes around 16,000 ft. and above. Its collection is truly arduous and conditions under which it is collected tests human endurance to the limit.

My Dhur assignment was during May of 2010. The journey began from Dhur village in Bumthang. The trail is among the worst I know – the reason is because the Cordyceps collection season falls during the rainy months. Look at the condition of the trail – it is very muddy and sloshy. Trudging through knee deep mud cannot be any one’s idea of fun. But it is how it is.

Trudging up into the extreme Northern regions of Dhur - over a trial that is muddy and sloshy. Those of you who may have read my series of posts on "Ladoog", you would recall that I said that I always take a minimum of one unladen spare pony - in the event of an unexpected accident. When Western guests are involved, I also take along one riding pony for every four guests - incase they fall sick. You can see the spare pony after the lead pony that is laden with my camera gear.

On the fourth day we are approaching the collection fields where I will be camped for about ten days. As you can see, we are way past the tree lines – we are now in the interiors of Dhur’s extreme North.

On our fourth day of trek, we are approaching the camp site where we will be camped for close to ten days.

We see that some of the collectors are already camped out at the foothills of the mountains where they will start the hunt for the Cordyceps.

Life is difficult for the collectors – look how they live out in the extreme weather conditions. One camp I see is tucked into the cave – with a flimsy plastic sheet keeping off the chilly winds that blow unabated.

Apparently not every one goes collecting – some remain in the camp to keep house and cook and such. Look at how tough the lady is - she is merely wearing a rubber slippers without socks - and washing her hair with the icy water from the brook nearly.

During my rounds around the campsite one day, I happened to arrive when the pretty lady was washing her hair by the small brook running close to her camp – she was stripped naked on the upper part of her body with her breasts dangling out – but she was not bothered about my presence – she looked at me straight with a smile. From this I realized that she must be a mother already. In rural Bhutan, women do hide their breasts – but once they become mothers – they seem to have no qualms about displaying their breasts in public – they feed their babies any time any where – just like that.

The campsite gets seriously cold during the nights and mornings – see the condition of my tent – it is sagging with the weight of the frost formed on it.

My tent frozen stiff from the frost

There was a beautiful lake close by  - it was crystal clear and so calm that I could see the stones and boulders at its bottom.

A pretty lake as clear as a mirror

The mountains at this altitude are jagged and strangely shaped – without a blade of grass on them. One particular cluster was unusually interesting. I photographed it - capturing its three different moods.

Very early in the morning, the mist begins to rise before the sunrise - eventually revealing the jagged cluster of mountain peaks

The cluster of jagged mountain peaks looking majestic in the early morning sun's warmth and brilliance.

Almost mystical - the haphazardly protruding mountain peaks are brightly lit by the brilliance of the moon's light in the night.

The following images show just how extremely hard life is for the Cordyceps collectors – no wonder they are so expensive. Ofcoure I am not sure which is more deserving of such astronomical prices – for the extreme hardship involved in their collection – or because of the supposedly magical properties it is supposed to possess.

Very early in the morning the collectors start their journey for the hunt for the Cordyceps

Crouching over the grounds - every inch of the ground is inspected closely for the worm.

On their belly and knees - searching for the Cordyceps under foul weather.

The following are the four life cycles of the Cordyceps sinensis, which begins its death journey when released by its parent - a moth. The larva of the moth which grows underground gets infested by a parasite. Slowly as the parasite grows, the larva is robbed of is life and the parasite turns into a fungus. Over time, the fungus sprouts out of the ground and becomes visible to the human eyes. It is then harvest time.

An extremely rare occurrence - a moth larva that has not been infested by the parasite. This larva grows underground until it is infested by the parasite which ultimately kills it.

The fungus portion of the Cordyceps sinensis visible above the ground

How the Cordyceps sinensis looks when plucked out of the ground

Cordyceps sinensis: washed, cleaned and dried - ready for the international markets, mainly China.

Dr. Phuntsho Namgyel, a forestry scientist, is marveled by my find of a moth larva that escaped infestation by the parasite. He tells me that it is an extremely rare occurrence. According to him – very few human would have seen a live Cordyceps - without a fungus on its noggin.