kuensel
DESCRIPTION
kuenselTRANSCRIPT
THAT THE PEOPLE SHALL BE INFORMED
M O N D A Y
KUENSEL
The mysterious killer mushroom
Disaster response A four-day SAARC regional training on incident command system for disaster response in South Asia begins today in Thimphu. The training is organised to provide in depth knowledge about the principals, concepts and practices of incident command system and its role in disaster response.
Career conference Two-day career conference for class XII students of Yangchenphug on May 17 and 18 as part of its career education program was conducted. Information on ex-country and in-country programs, labour market information and opportunities and job interview skills were shared with the students.
INBRIEF »
WHAT’S INSIDE »
PG. 11: HOME
» The pinch of a price hike for power
PG. 13: Q&A
» “We are in the business of minding our own business”
PG. 14: HOME
» Tshokhana avoids a near disaster
HOUSING
11DAYS TO NA
PRIMARY POLL
CMYK
The symptoms
and their tim-
ings (of the
Amanita spe-
cies mush-
room) match
with the
ones that the
deceased fam-
ily had”
LB TamangSenior mushroom supervisor, NMC
‘‘
Chopper dropper: The helicopter did 41 trips to the two gewogs of
(Story Pg. 16)
Yangchen C Rinzin, Samtse
Samtse hospital yesterday re-
ferred the lone survivor of the
mushroom poisoning case to
Thimphu referral hospital for
further tests, and to be on the
“safer side.”
The man, neighbour
to the family that died of
mushroom poisoning, was
admitted to Samtse hospi-
tal on May 11. The family,
comprising the husband in
his 30s, his 33-year-old wife,
their 10-year-old son and the
seven-year-old wife’s brother,
had eaten the mushroom on
May 11 evening. They were
from Mujuar (Tharpaling)
village in Ugyentse (Nainital)
gewog. The funeral expenses
for the deceased family was
taken care by the state.
Tharpaling village is
about a three-hour walk from
the gewog centre. Samtse’s
district medical officer, Dr
Tshering Tamang, said that,
even if the neighbour was in
stable condition, it was im-
portant to make sure that the
mushroom’s toxics had not
affected his other organs, like
kidney and pancreas.
“His liver’s blood test
showed good results but we
aren’t sure about his kidney
and pancreas,” Dr Tshering
Tamang said. “We could only
test the liver to make sure it
wasn’t bleeding.” Pg. 2
Dawa Gyelmo, Thimphu
People who have lived in the
many living quarters of the
National Housing Develop-
ment Corporation (NHDC)
across the country for more
than 10 years, going by its draft
revised housing rule, will have
to move out.
The revised rule, if it
comes through, will apply to
all occupants irrespective of
whether they have resigned
from civil service.
The rule will come into ef-
fect on the day it is finalised.
However, for those who
have been living in the same
unit for more than 10 years,
the rule states would be al-
lowed to stay for 10 more
years provided they are still
civil servants, or who have not
resigned.
“This is to bring equity
and justice in the allotment
system,” NHDC managing di-
rector Ugyen Chewang said.
“Some civil servants have
been staying in the same
quarter for more than 20-30
years and some, despite ap-
plying for quarters for same
number of years, have not
benefitted one.”
Pg. 2
After 10 years occupancy, vacate quarters So states the re-vised NHDC draft housing rule
2 HOME *MondayMay 20, 2013KUENSEL
ANNOUNCEMENTGPY Computer Training Institute Phuentsholing is offering special offer for the students on admission for session 2013.
just Nu. 1,300/- per month.Call 05-252210/17560848
Admission ends on 31st May, 2013
From Pg. 1The medical officer said
they also did a blood test on
“pronthrombin” (protein) pro-
duced in a liver, which helps
in clotting the blood inside the
liver when a person is normal.
“When the poison enters the
liver, the protein gets removed,
causing the liver to bleed and
fail,” he said. “In the case of the
family, the toxin had already
entered their liver.”
Dr Tshering Tamang said
the hospital couldn’t test his
other organs, because their
bio-chemistry (photometer)
machine, which is used to test
the functionality of kidney and
liver, has been out of order for
the last three months.
The DMO also said that
they have asked the patient’s
brother to try and bring the
same mushroom that had poi-
soned the family, so that the
hospital could study the mush-
room. The patient had only
tasted the mushroom curry, as
he had already had his dinner
when he visited the family that
evening.
Meanwhile, Ugyentse gup
Sonam Norbu said villagers
at this time of the year usually
go to nearby forest or paddy
fields to collect mushrooms.
But no one knows what kind
of mushroom the family had
consumed.
“Before she was brought to
the hospital, the wife had told
villagers that they had eaten
the same mushroom before
too,” Gup Sonam Norbu said.
“So maybe it was a edible
mushroom, but might have
been poisoned by a poisonous
insect or snake’s venom.”
A team from the national
mushroom centre is also in
the village to find out which
mushroom was responsible
for poisoning a whole family.
Senior mushroom super-
visor and officiating program
director, LB Tamang, over a
telephonic interview, said even
after searching the forest for al-
most six hours, they could not
find the exact sample of mush-
room that the deceased family
had consumed. “All members
of the family, who had seen the
mushroom, have died and no
one knows how the mushroom
looks like,” he said.
Ugyentse, according to
the district agriculture officer,
has a mixed vegetation with
sub tropical plants, and that
the early rains had resulted in
sprouting of mushrooms.
LB Tamang said the team
also talked to the 78-year-old
father of the deceased man,
who lives separately, since his
son had shown the mushroom
to him first before consuming
that evening. “But he doesn’t
remember anything, since
he’d seen the mushroom in the
evening,” he said. “Since it’s flat
cap was black, he assumed it
was “balu chew” and told them
that it was edible.”
But LB Tamang said balu
chew called Albatrellus is ed-
ible. “In fact, it’s a delicacy,
so it’s confirmed that it’s not
balu chew,” he said. “Also, it’s
not the season for balu chew
and we didn’t find one in the
forest today.” The mushroom,
according to LB Tamang, starts
sprouting only by mid June.
The senior mush-
The mysterious killer mushroom
room supervisor added that,
although they haven’t been
able to collect the exact sam-
ple of the mushroom that
caused the deaths, the team
has found many other ined-
ible mushrooms. “We couldn’t
even recognise some of those
mushrooms,” he said. “We’ll be
taking their samples to our lab
to study.”
However, LB Tamang said
that, by looking at the symp-
toms the family had suffered,
they suspect the mushroom to
be of Amanita species, which
is known to contain “Alpha-
Aminitan” a toxin, usually
making the mushroom ined-
ible. “This toxin usually leads
to liver bleeding, which was the
same in this fatal case.”
He explained that this spe-
cies of mushroom destroys
the whole internal organ and
symptoms, such as acute di-
arrhoea and vomiting, occur
after six to 12 hours. Within 24
hours, the toxin damages the
liver. “The symptoms and their
timings match with the ones
that the deceased family had,”
he said.
The team has found one of
its species and taken a sample
to study it. “But there are a few
edible mushrooms under the
same species,’ he said. “When-
ever there is a fatality after
consuming mushroom, it’s
confirmed that the mushroom
was poisonous; the belief that
the mushroom was poisoned
by an insect or snake venom is
untrue.”
The symptoms
and their tim-
ings (of the
Amanita spe-
cies mushroom)
match with the
ones that the
deceased family
had”
LB TamangSenior mushroom supervisorNMCN
‘‘The Amanita species is known for being responsible
for 90 percent of fatal mushroom poisonings world-
wide.
Most fatalities resulting from mushroom ingestion are as-
sociated with amatoxins within the mushrooms. Amatoxins are
heat-stable, insoluble in water, and not destroyed by drying. At
least five subtypes of amatoxins exist; the most significant of
these are the alpha and beta subtypes of amanitin. Amatoxin
toxicity occurs over several days.
The clinical course of amatoxin poisoning can be divided
into 3 stages. First, there is a characteristic latent period of
6-12 hours post ingestion before the onset of clinical symptoms.
After this asymptomatic period, abdominal cramping, vomiting,
and profuse watery diarrhoea (rice-water or cholera like) occur.
Fluid losses may be severe enough to cause profound dehydra-
tion and even circulatory collapse.
Once this acute phase is over (usually after about 24 hours),
the second stage begins. Although the patient appears to have
improved clinically, ongoing liver damage is occurring, as indi-
cated by laboratory abnormalities. This stage may last as long
as 2-3 days. In the third and final phase, hepatic and renal injury
become clinically apparent. Death may occur in 3-7 days.
http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1008902-
overview#showall
From Pg. 1The NHDC quarters, its of-
ficials said were allocated only
to its own staff and civil serv-
ants.
“We have simplified and
kept only the necessary provi-
sions, which could be execut-
able,” Ugyen Chewang said.
“The rule was left unrevised for
so long that we felt it was neces-
sary to do so today to align it
with exiting rules.”
The previous rules, he said
lacked specific provisions on va-
cating NHDC quarters, or ones
that conformed to tenancy Act.
“We are harmonising it with
the tenancy Act and it would
also have legal backings, leas-
ing and renting procedures,”
Ugyen Chewang said, adding
the tenancy agreement would
be renewed every two years,
allowed four times at the most,
after which the quarters would
be taken over by NHDC.
A periodic revision of rental
charges, the revised draft rule
stated would be determined
and levied by the corporation
based on the provisions of the
tenancy Act.
The draft rule considers ap-
plicants, or their spouses own-
ing personal residence, or house
as ineligible for NHDC quarters.
“There shall be only one
allotment per household,”
the rule stated. “Allottees or
spouses availing other public
quarters shall not be eligible.”
Ugyen Chewang said it was,
however, not necessary that
whatever was on the revised doc-
ument would be implemented.
“We’ve sent the revised
draft to all ministries, various
offices and posted it online for
feedback,” he said, adding fol-
lowing that, the draft would be
forwarded to the board, which
would approve of the revisions
after thorough discussions.
“The revised housing rule
is likely to come into effect only
after two to three months,” he
said.
The corporation’s existing
quarter entitlement criteria,
which was divided into six cat-
egories, under the revised rule,
has been clubbed into three
classes to apply civil service
commission’s grade-wise al-
location.
Civil servants between
grades one and three would be
entitled to quarters with a living
room, a dinning, a kitchen, four
to five bedrooms and two to
three toilets including a garage.
Those between grades four
and eight would be entitled to
quarters with a living room,
a dinning, three bedrooms, a
kitchen and two toilet including
a store.
Between grades nine and
general service cadre I and II
would be entitled to houses
with a living room, two bed-
rooms, a kitchen and two toi-
lets.
The NHDC has 2,000 hous-
ing units across the country’s
20 dzongkhags, of which 1,100
units are in Thimphu.
The corporation is in the
process of building 24 new
units in Samdrupjongkhar and
24 in Phuentsholing.
“Very soon we’ll be build-
ing 20 new units in Gasa and
24 units in Lhuntse,” Ugyen
Chewang said.
After 10 years occupancy, vacate quarters
* DZONGKHAG 3MondayMay 20, 2013
KUENSEL
NOTICE INVITING TENDER BIL/TH/HO/CLAIMS/2013/
Sealed tender is hereby invited from all the interested buyers for the sale of accident
vehicles (2 heavy vehicles, 1medium, 1 light vehicle, 1 Farm tractor (P/ling)
and 1 excavator (Wangdi) and Scraps(P/ling). The sealed bid will be opened
on 29/05/2013 at 11 am at BIL, Branch Offi ce, Phuentsholing. All interested
buyers are requested to submit the sealed bid form on/before 4 pm on 28/05/2013.
The details of the accident/salvage wreck will be available in the tender form.
Terms & Conditions:-
1. Tender forms can be purchased with the payment of Nu.200/-(Nu.Two
hundred) only which is non refundable from BIL, Ho, Thimphu /BIL, Branch
offi ce, Phuentsholing.
2. The offer should be submitted with earnest money of Nu.5,000/-(Nu. Five
Thousand) only for bidders bidding single item and Nu.10,000/-(Nu.Ten
Thousand) only for bidders bidding more than one items.
3. The successful bidder will have to deposit 25% of the quoted amount upon
acceptance of his/her tender on the spot and the balance 75% on taking
delivery of the accident/salvage wreck within 7 days from the date of tender,
failing to deposit the balance 75% within the given time , the 25% deposit will
be forfeited.
4. Any taxes/Custom duties/NOC/other charges applicable has to be borne
by the buyer.
5. The items can be inspected during the offi cer hours. Therefore, interested
bidders are requested to inspect the items before the auction. (Please contact
Mr. Kinga Chopel, Mobile No. 17925240, BIL, T/phu/Mr. Kunzang
Dhendup, Mobile no.17676250, BIL, P/Ling).
6. Decision of the BIL Management/Tender Committee shall be fi nal and binding.
Management
Picture story: About 60 people who were involved in a village lhakhang renovation helped contain the fire on a two-storied traditional house on May 18 at Dangchu gewog, Wangdue. The fire had started from a LPG gas leak and caught onto the bamboo ceiling burning the roof down. The rescue team could save CGI sheets and re-roofed the house the same day. Except for the ration, clothes and kitchen utensils, the fire didn’t cause any more damage to the house and its six family members. The house was built sometime in September 2012.
Tempa Wangdi
Poor voter turnout at common
forum for campaigns held in
Udzorong gewog in Trashigang
has candidates worried.
Despite having more than
1,197 eligible voters, only
around 40 people attended the
common forums held in Chiya
and Benshingmo under the
gewog yesterday.
Benshingmo alone has over
121 households, and Chiya has
125 households.
Political parties, especially
the new ones, are concerned
that poor turnout at such fo-
rums could deprive voters the
basis to determine which party
to vote for.
Druk Nyamrup Tshogpa
(DNT) candidate from the
constituency, Norbu Wang-
chuk, said it was going to have
serious impact on new political
parties like his.
“Being new, we’re banking
on the common forum to reach
out to people,” he said.
“So if we’re interacting with
only around 600 people from
the total 11,000 voters, we’re
worried as to how people
would vote without knowing
our party and our pledges,” he
said.
The candidates said that
people failing to attend com-
mon forum is leaving the only
important medium for both
candidates and voters to know
each other unfulfilled.
Druk Phuensum Tshogpa
(DPT) candidate, Thinley Pal-
den Dorji, also shared similar
concern, despite his party re-
ceiving good turnout in Trashi-
gang.
“It’s very unfortunate be-
cause common forum is the
only platform to create aware-
ness among the voting popula-
tion,” he said.
The candidates said that
it would be worse, if the few
people, who attended, fail to
convey messages to those, who
missed the common forum.
“Then that’s when voters
would vouch on hearsay, ru-
mours and influences,” Norbu
Wangchuk said. “Such inci-
dents would then force people
to make an uninformed deci-
sion.”
The candidates said this
could have happened because
of confusion in the word tshog-
pa.
Since the term referred to
both party workers and local
government tshogpas, the
gewog tshogpas thought it was
party tshogpas (party work-
ers), who had to assemble the
crowd.
“In fact it’s the former who
had to do the job,” one of the
candidates said.
The voters also shared
similar view.
“People are confused about
which tshogpa is to coordinate
the crowd,” a villager from
Jomtshang, Sangay Tenzin,
said.
He also said that voters
should be informed about the
meeting beforehand. “The in-
formation about the meeting
reached us only in the morn-
ing,” Sangay Tenzin said.
ELECTIONS
Poor turnout worries candidatesThe lack of numbers is of particular con-cern to the new parties in the fray
Being new, we’re
banking on the
common forum
to reach out to
people”
Norbu WangchukCandidate Druk Nyamrup tshogpa
‘‘
*
MANAGING DIRECTOR - Chencho Tshering, DEPUTY MANAGING DIRECTOR - Thinley Dorji, EDITOR - Phuntsho Wangdi, NEWS EDITOR - Samten Wangchuk, DESIGN EDITOR - Chencho Tshering, CHIEF PHOTOGRAPHER - Karma Dupchu, PRINTING GM - Karma Nima, CIRCULATION MANAGER - Ugyen Norbu, REGIONAL HEAD (KANGLUNG) - Pema Tenzin
Election commission’s
rule 9.2 for common forum
states, “the sole purpose of
the Forum is to provide the
Party/Candidate to commu-
nicate the campaign mani-
festo and the participants to
listen and understand the
same”.
Is the purpose really
met? Or is it just the waste
of time and resources? As
per my understanding, in
democracy, there should be
well-informed choice to the
people.
If the people do not
understand the language in
which the political parties/
candidates use in the com-
mon forum, then the sole
purpose of the forum and
democracy is defeated.
We are talking about
strengthening vibrant
democracy in the country
but with this type of law en-
forcement, I have a very big
doubt. We always appreciate
our diverse cultural compo-
nents but at times we forget
the beauty of it.
Even though our country
is very small it is rich in
diversity. It’s like a garden
with different beautiful
flowers. We have different
cultures, different ideas,
different thinking but same
objective, yet we are not
trying to value our own
valuables. One of the pillars
of Gross National Happiness
is promotion and preserva-
tion of culture, but the way
it is happening is completely
against the vision of our
monarchs. Let us try to
understand, respect and
value different cultures of
the country for everlasting
unity, peace and happiness.
Ganesh Ghimiray
4 PERSPECTIVES MY COUNTRY, MY TOWN To put the money
where the mouth is
At the rate political parties are making promises, the impression one gets is that there are plenty of funds to do so.
Some of the promises are black-ing topping thousands of kilometres of dirt roads to make them all weather, a power tiller in every chi-wog, banking, fuel depots and workshop in each of the 205 gewogs, a new ministry for gender and social development.
Purchase of two helicopters for emergency services, hiking travel and daily allowance for civil servants, travel fare discounts for senior citizens, making pension benefits for the armed and secu-rity personnel at par with the civil service, and jobs for every unemployed youth are some of the other promises.
It is clear that every section of the electorate is being wooed, from youth to senior citizens, be-cause the basic question on a voter’s mind is what’s in it for me? If minors were also allowed to vote, one can imagine what might be on offer. But that is how the game is usually played and, if too much has been said that can’t be delivered, it’s the boot the next time round.
It is likely that quite a few of the promises might already be in the draft 11th plan, like the black top-ping of farm roads and three medical doctors in every dzongkhag (this one sounds like a spillover). There are other aspects in the draft plan like estab-lishing a separate energy ministry, but this one is a difficult sell to garner votes.
All these pledges come at a time, when one repeated campaign issue has been the amount of debt the previous government has piled up, together with the rupee shortage issue and the re-strictions on loans.
So what is going to be the source of revenue to get some of the promises off the ground? When it comes to raising travel and daily allowances, pen-sion benefits, discount for senior citizens and dole for the unemployed to feel employed, these funds would have to come from the recurrent budget. Which means donor money that might no longer be as substantial as before cannot be used for this.
Several parties have mentioned raising the per-sonal income tax slab, and increasing refunds on educational expenses. This would take away the some of the revenue already being earned.
The other common pledge is to double the number of tourists to 200,000 in the next five years. This sector probably carries the hope of not only bringing in government revenue, but also provid-ing the job opportunities everyone is promising.
Vegetable import substitution is the other plan, but it might take the next five years to replace im-ports that are worth around Nu 300M annually.
So where are funds going to come from? The only option is through fees and levies, like domes-tic electricity rates, that are up for revision, and in-creasing taxes. No one is talking about these things though.
Send your letters and pictures to
Letters will be edited for space and clarity
MondayMay 20, 2013KUENSEL
MY SAY
Offloaded luggage?: A not-so-pretty sight at the Lungtenzampa bus terminal in the capital Photo: Tashi Phuntsho, Kuensel
A waste of time and resources?
*HOME 5MondayMay 20, 2013
KUENSEL
Lhuentse’s common forum draws a fair crowdVoters seem to be using the occasion so as not to mix up the many parties
Dechen Tshering, Lhuentse
Despite the heat and sweat, more
than 300 people of Menbi Tsh-
enkhar constituency in Lhuentse,
who came to listen to the four
political parties’ representatives
on May 18, were happy they at-
tended the common forum.
The common forum at Tsh-
enkhar gewog’s auditorium hall
in Phowan was so packed with
party supporters that some vot-
ers had to watch the forum on
the television set that was placed
outside the hall.
Many voters said they had
already decided the party and
candidate, but had come to lis-
ten to avoid confusions that have
come up with four parties.
Druk Chirwang Tshogpa’s
Jigme Norbu said his party was
formed by common people to
solve the problems of common
people.
Explaining that DCT means
power to the people, he remind-
ed the people not to assume that
he is not capable because he is
only 25. “If I serve as a teacher,
I’d benefit a few thousands but,
by joining politics, I’d definitely
serve the nation at large,” he said
Druk Nyamrup Tshogpa’s
Sonam Dendup said the word
Nyamrup means collaboration,
and that their party was formed
by a collaboration of people with
different backgrounds.
He said his party was giving
choice to the people, because
his party was more aware about
issues that need to be addressed
before they get worse.
“The five-year plans started
from the ‘60s, but progress
hasn’t been good and, given the
chance, DNT is in a position to
solve and bring changes in the
country,” he said. “Many people
in the same country and same
village don’t get equal treatment
and power shouldn’t be in the
hands of a few.”
Druk Phuensum Tshogpa’s
Tshering Tenzin said his party
has worked hard to fulfil all their
promises, and that the party will
always be there for the people
and for a vibrant democracy.
He said people should not
think and vote with the interest
of job opportunity, and should
not give power to a party without
learning anything about them.
“Because of Indian govern-
ment’s and people’s support,
DPT has achieved great progress
in the 10th Plan,” he said. “DPT
is again ready to fulfil the peo-
ple’s wishes and the country’s
and people’s problems.”
People’s Democratic party’s
Yeshi Dorji, who had lost in
2008, said he is re-contesting,
given his dedication to serve and
give people a choice. “If DPT has
fulfilled the wishes of the people,
then they can easily woo votes
by their handiwork in the last
five years,” he said.
He said it was high time for
people to think and vote, be-
cause he said the support came
in from outside because of His
Majesty’s image and not by any
individual’s effort. “Goods are
carried by yak, but it’s the herd-
ers, who take credit for it,” he
said.
NA ELECTIONS
NA ELECTIONS
Parties harp on Sangay shamu at Genekha forumTshering Wangdi
Along with the pledges made
by party candidates during the
South Thimphu common forum
in Genekha on May 17, the issue
on Sangay shamu (Masutake
mushroom) was the forum’s
highlight.
Save for Druk Chirwang
Tshogpa’s (DCT) Kinley Dem,
candidates of the other three
parties spoke on the potential
of the fungus in lifting the ge-
wog’s economy through better
management.
Farming is the main occupa-
tion for people of Genekha and
the mushroom is the gewog’s
quickest source of income.
Eaten for its aroma and as a
health food, the mushroom is
exported mostly to Japan, and
fetches a good income to the
villagers.
Saying that most people of
Genekha sustain on agriculture,
Druk Nyamrup Tshogpa’s (DNT)
candidate, Dr Lotay Tshering,
said the villagers have been fac-
ing serious issues when it comes
to getting paid for the sale of
Sangay shamu.
Explaining that one of the
problems faced when handling
these mushrooms was to keep
them fresh, Dr Lotay Tshering
pledged that his party would
come up with a “cold storage
system,” big enough to store all
the collected mushroom. “We’ll
bring in storage mechanisms ca-
pable of storing the mushrooms
for even eight months,” he said,
adding that such gadgets are al-
ready being used in other coun-
tries, and that it shall be made
available in Genekha, if the party
gets elected.
To bypass the agency in-
volved between the sellers (vil-
lagers) and buyers, People’s
Democratic party’s (PDP) Tan-
din Wangmo pledged their party
would form a committee com-
prising villagers and let them
monitor the business.
“When a committee comes
in, your rightful share from the
exports shall be assured, and
this can be done by empowering
the local government,” Tandin
Wangmo said.
Druk Phuensum Tshogpa’s
candidate Yeshey Zimba also
spoke on the opportunity the
villagers had of sustaining their
livelihood through agriculture.
“By supporting the cultivation of
Sangay shamu, apples and pota-
toes, the earning capacity of the
villagers will improve,” he said.
DCT’s Kinley Dem instead
focused on explaining the par-
ty’s 12-point vision. “If elected,
DCT will work hard to empower
women and youth,” she said.
Other issues that surfaced
during the forum were the need
for better roads, improving tim-
ber business and other develop-
mental activities for the gewog.
But many voters remained
skeptical on whether the pledges
would materialise.
On the Sangay shamu issue,
Namgay, 63 from Zangleykha
village said they have been los-
ing a lot of money to the agency
responsible for exporting the
mushrooms.
“We only get 10 to 20 percent
of what we’re actually entitled
to,” he said. “But we can’t do
much about it, and I doubt if the
new government can do much
about it either.”
Of the 609 eligible voters in
the gewog, around 80 villagers
attended the forum according
to election officials.
After the forum: Voters leave for their villages taking with them besides pamphlets and brochures, promises party presidents made them
Issue-based: It was more about crops and mushrooms candidates discussed with voters than their manifestos
*6 HOME MondayMay 20, 2013KUENSEL
Wanted on hire: 15 nos.
of 4WD Hilux. Contact no.
17706816.
Sale: Jumbo Tipper ‘11 model.
Contact 17617174/17643462.
Sale/exchange/hire: Volvo
Excavator ‘10. Contact 17172980.
Sale: Bolero single cabin (loan
transferable). Contact 17115090.
Sale: Hilux ‘98 model. Contact
17284270.
Sale: SantaFe. Contact
17803951.
Sale: Tata Teloline (single
cabin) ‘09 model, 6500 km and
one hand drive @ Nu. seven
lakhs (negotiable). Contact
17610418/321382.
Sale: Getz prime. 17589644.
Sale: Tucson 2006 (blue colour
petrol) full option, one hand drive.
Rate 560,000. Contact 17712919.
Sale: Land Cruiser Vx ‘02 model.
Only serious buyers may contact
17110031.
Sale: Navara Hilux ‘11 (3 nos)
& ‘12 (3 nos), Bolero Camper
‘04, Tucson ‘10, SantaFe ‘11, Tata
Hilux Xenon ‘11, Swift Dezire ‘09
(all loan transferable). Contact
17441844/77667979.
Sale: Alto taxi ‘08, Alto ‘06,
Land Cruiser HJ70, Tucson ‘08,
SantaFe ‘07, Surf Hilux ‘92,
Toyota Hilux ‘00 & ‘01, Zen Estilo
‘10. Contact 17441844/77667979.
Sale: Land Cruiser ‘03 &
‘99, Accent ‘10, ‘11 (diesel),
Ford Figo ‘12, Coupe ‘08,
Korando ‘08, CRV ‘10. Contact
17441844/77667979.
Sale: Navara Hilux ‘12 model end
running, seventeen thousand km
run, Call 17115585.
Sale: Maruti Car ‘03 model.
17962964.
Sale: Garment shop, MKTS
building. Contact 17598551.
Rent: 3 bedroom flat near Tata
Showroom. 17119002.
Sale: Grocery shop at Changjalu
with residence. Contact
17742800.
Rent: Serviced furnished
apartment’s rooms with food and
lodging above Memorial Chorten.
Contact 17296261/17367472.
Sale: Restaurant with residence
at Olakha. Contact 17714291.
Sale: Shop below The Journalist
building. Contact 17273156.
Sale: 2 flats available at
Dewathang town, parking
facilitate and twenty four hours
water. Rate 35 lakhs. Contact
17712919.
Sale: 2 bedroom apartment
near Anaconda/Lhaki Hotel,
Phuentsholing. Genuine buyers
contact 77218899.
Sale: Shop at Olakha. Contact
77620345.
Sale: Fully furnished bar and
restaurant with semi theque,
Gedu Zero. Contact 17605766.
Rent: Flat above Supreme
Court (Dechen Phodrang) with
independent lawn, enough parking
space and 24hrs water supply,
from 1st July. Contact 17624243.
Sale: Land at Yusipang. Contact
17284270.
Sale: One acre dryland
at Changkha, Daga (Price
negotiable). Contact 77305630.
For sale: Land in Changzamtog,
Thimphu, 21 decimal ring road
above red building, Gelephu,
5 acres behind Tali Dratshang
under Thromde. Interested call
17128213/17608483.
Sale: 357 decimal dryland near
Zimdra Milk, Phuentsholing
Thromde, suitable for industry
(loan transferable). Call 17115585.
Vacancy: Three experienced
waiters for Relish restaurant &
Bar-B-Q. Salary according to
experience. Contact 17115090.
Vacancy: Marketing
manager (2). Details contact
17117833/17116097.
Wanted immediately: 1
cook & 1 helper at CNR wet
canteen,Lobesa. Contact
17626638/77626638.
Newly Opened: Tip-Top
Dryclean and Laundry next to 8
Eleven super market. Delivery
within 24 hours. Contact
17620406.
Announcement: Contact
Zenith Cargo to carry your goods
from Kathmandu - Bhutan. Call
9803795625/[email protected]
Announcement: Bhutan Ply
Film Face shuttering plywood
at attractive price Nu.1,200/
piece. Flush door plywood and
blockboard are also available.
Contact 05-252213/77394597.
Opportunity: Aspiring singer
who wants to perform to a live
audience at Relish restaurant &
Bar-B-Q will be paid according to
your performance and experience.
Contact 17115090.
Announcement: German
language course available
from June and guide selection
interview on 7th June at
Bhutan International School
of Hospitality & Tourism. For
further information contact
365004/ 17162832/ 17584720.
CLASSIFIEDS
Babesa Bhutan TechVillage in next five-year plan
Gyalsten K Dorji
The government will spend
an estimated Nu 250M to de-
velop the Bhutan TechVillage
in Babesa, in the next five-
year plan, according to the
egovernment master plan.
The Bhutan TechVillage
includes the current five
acres being used for the in-
formation technology (IT)
park, and an additional 13
acres around the park. The
IT park is the first phase of
the Bhutan TechVillage.
The eGovernment master
plan states that the proposed
plan in the 13-acre site is to
expand the current IT park
infrastructure, build an in-
dependent commercial data
centre infrastructure, and
an ITES/BPO (information
technology enabled services/
business processes outsourc-
ing) company campus.
It is recommended that
the PPP (public private part-
nership) model be replicated
for implementation of the
next phase of the Bhutan
TechVillage, but with equiv-
alent or more stake from a
local rather than a foreign
direct investment company.
The IT park is a joint ven-
ture between Druk Holdings
and Investments and the As-
setz Property Group of Sin-
gapore, a development man-
agement corporation focused
on South Asia.
It is also recommended
in the eGovernment master
plan that active involvement
of the labour ministry, the
Royal University, corpora-
tions, and the private sector
have to be ensured by the
government.
It is pointed out in the
eGovernment master plan
that the IT park project is to
convince Bhutanese and the
world about the country’s
comparative advantages.
The current project is the
facilitator for a more ambi-
tious design of the govern-
ment to attract investments
into Bhutan, it is stated. To
achieve this, the additional
13 acres of land adjacent to
the IT park will be developed.
Till date, the IT park has
been unable to attract a big
name IT company to the park
as planned, however, it has
been able to rope in two mid
sized international compa-
nies. The two companies:
Shaun Communications
Bhutan pvt ltd, and Scan
Cafe, earlier this year signed
lease agreements with the
developer and operator of
the park, Thimphu TechPark
to lease 10,000sqft of com-
mercial space each.
It is estimated in the mas-
ter plan that the development
of the Bhutan TechVillage
will result in a capacity to
recruit more than 3,000 Bhu-
tanese in the IT/ITES sector.
In a recent interview, the
park’s CEO, Mike Holland,
pointed out that at least 500
fresh jobs would be available
at the park by mid-this year.
The department of informa-
tion technology and telecom
estimated that at least 1,000
jobs would be created by the
two companies moving in.
The first phase of the
project comprises 58,000sqft
of office and date centre
space, of which 10,000sqft
has been rented by the gov-
ernment for its private sec-
tor development project, and
20,000sqft by the two com-
panies.
The IT Park was only the first phase of this aspect of the egovernment master plan
ICT
Phase one: The IT park File Picture
the android riddle
q: What do you get when you
cross an automobile with a
household animal?
a: A carpet!
DIVERSION 7*daffynition
ecotip
riddlemeree
todayinhistory
quotefortheday
happybirthday
homegrown
anagram
superstition
beaupeep
MondayMay 20, 2013
KUENSEL
CLUES
ACROSS
1 The posting means trouble in China (7)
4 Bad organisation (5)
7 It may be powder or cream (4)
8 Gold seam provides something pleasing
(8)
10 Prosaic man in the street (10)
12 It’s worn by a woman for a dance (6)
13 An indistinct impression of untidiness
(6)
15 Local appreciation for something new
(10)
18 Turn once set to music (8)
19 Agreed, but not about getting old (4)
20 Notes unusual phonetic accents (5)
21 An illustration no longer large enough (7)
DOWN
1 A doctor with a young dog has to clear a
mess (3,2)
2 They do not believe in going to fresh
fields (8)
3 Unusual goal concerning many (6)
4 Lunch for some, dinner for others (6,4)
5 Animal comes up into current form (4)
6 Plant name one needs to change (7)
9 They must have space to work in (10)
11 Calculating a pudding mixture (6,2)
12 It’s a fixed sort of change (7)
14 How quietly a cat can spring (6)
16 Give someone a painful reminder? (5)
17 I study Russian art (4)
SOLUTION NEXT WEEK
MAY 13 ANSWERS
ACROSS: 1 Achievement, 9 Profane, 10 Smith, 11 Onyx,
12 Dear dear, 14 Nobles, 16 Asleep, 18 Maligned,
19 Stud, 22 Noise, 23 Grounds, 24 On one’s knees.
DOWN: 2 Crony, 3 Ivan, 4 Veered, 5 Mistress,
6 Naivete, 7 Appointment, 8 Chiropodist, 13 Sea
green, 15 Billion, 17 Reigns, 20 Tinge, 21 Down.
Monday’s Cryptic Xwordcaucus election [Politics]
Where machines bring voters to vote for losers; cf.
primary election
goat
Associated with Pan (or the devil
in some religions)
1874Levi Strauss markets blue
jeans with copper rivets, price
$13.50 doz.
Cher [CHERILYN
SARKISIAN LAPIERRE]
1946-
Rocker/Actress
“You talk when you cease to be
at peace with your thoughts.”
KAHLIL Gibran 1883-1931
COMMON Cuckoo(Cuculus canorus)
It is a brood
parasite,
which
means it lays eggs in
the nests of other bird species
Go Green
IN THE GARDEN
For houseplants, try using
water leftover from cooking
instead of running the
faucet again.
Unscramble anagram for the name of a British actor
I glide an arc (6,5) [The latest in a line of James Bonds]
ANSWER:Daniel Craig
KUENSELTO ADVERTISE
call 326191 orfax 326638;
email: [email protected]
TO SUBSCRIBEcall 327463
FOR NEWS call324684/322483
NU PER UNITS OFFOREIGN CURRENCY
as of yesterday
NOTESBuy Sell
US $ 54.00 55.80POUND 82.35 84.65EURO 69.60 71.50YEN (100) 52.70 54.20HK $ 6.95 7.15AUS $ 52.70 54.15SING $ 43.10 44.30
Courtesy BNB
*8 ADVERTISEMENT MondayMay 20, 2013KUENSEL
Bank of Bhutan Limited (BoBL) is pleased to announce the following vacancies for
interested applicants:
Job Title Head Human Resources
Department Corporate Support Department
Slot 1
Grade GM
Minimum Qualification Bachelor’s degree
Minimum Experience 10 years experience with a minimum of 3 years work experience
in HR Management (from corporations or other agencies)
Employment type &
Duration
3 years contract and thereafter renewable based on
performance and requirement of the bank
Monthly Gross SalaryMaximum Nu. 65,000.00 (Nu. Sixty five thousand
only) gross commensurate with no. of years of experience
Interested applicants are requested to submit their applications in the BoB Job
Application form (download from www.bob.bt) and submit to the Human Resource
Division latest by 31st May, 2013 either at Head Offiff ce, Phuentsholing or through
email to [email protected] .
The applicants should fulfill the followings:
1. All Candidates must have attended regular classes and completed minimum
bachelor’s degree;
2. All eligible candidates must meet the minimum education requirement and
number of years of work experience;
Shortlisted candidates will be directly invited for Personal Interview and will be
required to make a short presentation. Details on presentation contents will be
advised at later stage.
Please check www.bob.bt for Terms of Reference and other updates.
Job Title Slot Grade Min.
Qualification
Salary Min.
Exp.
Emp.
Type
Banking
Offiff cer23 OGII
45% in B COM
(H) and 60% in
BBA and BBM
60% in class 12
Basic pay– Nu.
15,300/- with 20%
Banking Allowance
and 5% Fixed
Allowance
Fresh Regular
Banking
Assistant15 AG II
40% in any
Bachelors Degree
50% in class 12
Basic pay- Nu.
11,240/- with
30% Contract
Allowance
Fresh Contract
for 5
years
Interested applicants are requested to submit their applications in the BoB Job
Application form (download from www.bob.bt) and submit to the Human Resource
Division latest by 15th June, 2013 at Head Offiff ce, Phuentsholing. An application
fee of Nu. 100 will be charged on submission of application.
The applicants should fulfill the following:
1. All eligible candidates must meet the minimum education requirement;
2. For Banking Offiff cer, all candidates fulfilling the criteria will be invited for
BoB Written Examination. After the Written Examination (WE), top 115
candidates will be shortlisted for second selection process (Group Discussion)
and then thereafter top 69 candidates will be further shortlisted for the final
selection process (Personal Interview).
3. For Banking Assistant, there will be no written examination. The top 75
candidates will be shortlisted for Group Discussion and thereafter top 45
candidates will be further shortlisted for final selection process (Personal
Interview);
4. Candidates with tied score shall not be given the same position but ranked
based on academic marks.
Please check www.bob.bt for Terms of Reference and other updates.
!"#$%&’%() *+$,’($) -$+$) &(+’) %’#
!"#$%&"’’(%)*+ ’",*")*"-./*(%0.!1
!""#$"%&’()*+,+-.*&/0%12DGPC/CHP/CCD/01/2013
Chhukha Hydropower Plant, Druk Green Power
Corporation Limited invites sealed bids from eligible
Bhutanese bidders for the work “Resurfacing of road
including repair of potholes and construction of
V- shaped drain from ‘O’ Tashigatshel to Butterflr yflfl
Valve Chamber”.
Bid documents shall be on sale from 20/05/2013 to
19/6/2013. Bids shall be received up to 1500hrs on
or before 21/6/2013 and shall be opened on the same
day at 1530hrs.
Interested bidders may obtain the complete set of
bidding documents upon payment of non-refundable
fee of Nu. 1,000/- (Ngultrum one thousand) only
as cost of bidding document from Mr. Budhiman
Tamang Executive Engineer, Technical Support
Unit, Chhukha Hydropower Plant, Druk Green
Power Corporation, Chhukha.
The bidding documents can also be downloaded from
Druk Green’s website (www.drukgreen.btg ) free of
charge. Bidders downloading the bidding document
from the website should register themselves by
intimating Mr. Budhiman Tamang, Executive
Engineer, Technical Support Unit, Chhukha
Hydropower Plant, Druk Green, before the
deadline for submission of bid, its intention to submit
the bid on the basis of downloaded documents.
No requests for sending the bidding document by
post or by Courier Service shall be entertained.
Superintending Engineer (CHP)
You can access our newspaper YY
electronically.
Anywhere... anytime
This has following advantages over traditional
format:
Environment friendly Timely delivery
Easier storage
An effiff cient full text search
And many more…
GET your KUENSEL delivered to your computer
SUBSCRIBE NOW and pay only
Nu. 500 for a year
For more details contact our Circulation
Department @ 00975-2-327463 (O)
+975-2-324688 (PABX)
!KUENSEL
ADVERTISEMENT 9MondayMay 20, 2013
KUENSEL *!"#$%#&’"($)&*#+(,-.(/-",
0"/-1%&2,3-/-,+&4%,$%#/ , /, ,$!"#$%&’#()*&+ ,-$%$%.-)/%00%’12
80413/05/E8
Chief Engineer Project Dantak on behalf of President of India invites tender from the eligible contractors for the following works:
Name of works: Supply and stacking of stone Boulder 15-20 cm, stone metal 40mm, stone chips 20mm and coarse sand dry for permanent
works between km 17.900 and km 38.363 (new location) on road Confluence-Drugyel-Dzong under 19 BRTF (P) Dantak inside Bhutan
Cost/time of work Details of tender documents
a) Cost of work Rs. 190.08 lakhs a) Cost of tender Rs.2,000/-
b) Period of completion 240 days b Availability of tender documents On or after 01 June, 2013
c) Earnest money Rs. 265,080/- c) Submission of tender Upto 1200hrs (BST) on 24th June, 2013
Note: Full notice of tender, any change in above details, tender document (including eligibility criteria) and other details may be obtained from
BRO website:www.bro.gov.ing or central public procurement portal www.eprocure.gov.inp g . For any queries, please contact with HQ, Chief
Engineer (P) Dantak Telephone: 00975-2-351082/351086/351088, fax 00975-2-351285.
EE (Civ) NFSG
SSW
For chief Engineer
!"#$%#&’"($)&*#+(,-.(/-",0"/-1%&2,3-/-,+&4%,$%#/ , /, ,$
!"#$%&’#()*&+ ,-$%$%.-)/%00%’1280411/06/E8
Chief Engineer Project Dantak on behalf of President of India invites tender from the eligible contractors for the following works:
Particular of work a) Cost/Time of work Details of tender document
Handling and conveyance of cement from Ex
M/s Cement Manufacturing company Ltd.,
Lumshnog, Distt Jaintia Hills or any other
Factory in Meghalaya to 63 RCC (Darranga), 64
RCC Dett Tamulpur and Dett Deosari under 47
BRTF Project Dantak in the state of Assam
a) Cost of work Rs.71.90 lakhs a) Cost of tender Rs. 1000/-
b) Period of
completion
275 days b) Availability of tender
documents
On or after 28th
May, 2013
c) Earnest money Rs. 107,850/- c) Submission of tender Upto 1200hrs
(BST) on 18th
June, 2013
Note: Full notice of tender, any change in above details, tender document (including eligibility criteria) and other details may be obtained from
BRO website:www.bro.gov.ing or central public procurement portal www.eprocure.gov.inp g . For any queries, please contact with HQ, Chief
Engineer (P) Dantak Telephone: 00975-2-351082/351086/351088, fax 00975-2-351285.
EE (Civ) NFSG
SSW
For Chief Engineer
You can access our newspaper electronically.YY
Anywhere... anytimeThis has following advantages over traditional format:
Environment friendly Timely delivery
Easier storage An effiff cient full text search And many more…
GET your KUENSEL delivered to your computer
SUBSCRIBE NOW and pay only Nu. 500 for a year
For more details contact our Circulation Department # 00 975 2 327463 (O) 00 975 2 324688 (PABX)
!KUENSELK
*10 REGION MondayMay 20, 2013KUENSEL
Imran Khan blames
rival for killingImran Khan, the leader of Pa-
kistan’s PTI party, has blamed
one of his political rivals for the
killing of PTI vice-president
Zahra Shahid Hussain.
She was shot dead outside
her home in Karachi by gun-
men on a motorcycle.
On his Twitter feed, Mr
Khan said he was holding the
leader of Karachi’s dominant
MQM party, Altaf Hussain,
responsible for her death - a
claim the MQM has strongly
denied.
It comes as Karachi votes
in a partial re-run of Pakistan’s
general election.
Police are investigating
whether Mrs Hussain’s killing
was the result of an attempted
robbery or a politically moti-
vated murder.
Her funeral will take place
later on Sunday at a mosque
in Karachi.
Doctors at Karachi’s Jinnah
Hospital said their initial ex-
amination showed two bullet
marks on her body.
A full post-mortem report
is expected within 24 hours.
Mr Khan said Mr Hussain,
who is in self-imposed exile in
London, had “openly threat-
ened PTI workers and leaders
through public broadcasts”.
He said he was also holding
the British government respon-
sible, as he said he had warned
them about Mr Hussain.
Mr Khan tweeted his accu-
sations from his hospital bed,
where he is recovering from a
back injury sustained during
a fall at an election rally in La-
hore.
Last week, police in Lon-
don confirmed they were in-
vestigating complaints that Mr
Hussain had broken UK laws
by issuing threats in a speech
he made the day after the vote.
In response to accusations
of electoral fraud, he is alleged
to have threatened his accusers
with violence.
Mr Hussain says that his
remarks were taken out of
context.
He has lived in the UK since
1991, saying his life would be at
risk if he returned to Pakistan.
Sunday’s electoral re-run in
Karachi was ordered after Mr
Khan’s party accused the MQM
of widespread vote-rigging and
intimidation.
The MQM - which took
most of the seats in Karachi -
denies any irregularities and
is boycotting the vote, which
is taking place under tight se-
curity.
Voter turn-out appears
slow but steady.
The PTI is hoping to win
the vote and make inroads in
Pakistan’s commercial capital.
Whatever the outcome of
the re-run, it will not overturn
the result of last week’s vote,
in which conservative leader
Nawaz Sharif secured an un-
precedented third term in
power.
Tthe MQM is seen as a per-
petrator - as well as a victim - of
violence in Karachi,.
Since the 1980s, it has won
every election it has contested
there.
But it also stands widely ac-
cused of ruling Karachi by fear
and through vote-rigging.
The general election on 11
May marked the first transition
of power from one democrati-
cally elected government since
the creation of the state of Paki-
stan in 1947.
However, the campaign
was marred by violence in
which about 150 people were
killed across the country.
Mrs Hussain was shot
by gunmen on a motorcycle
outside her home in Kara-
chi’s upmarket Defence area,
the family neighbourhood of
assassinated Prime Minister
Benazir Bhutto.
The MQM (Muttahida
Qaumi Movement) is sup-
ported mainly by Muslim
Urdu-speaking people whose
families moved to Sindh prov-
ince at the time of the partition
of India in 1947.
Voting in Karachi on 11
May was disrupted by a bomb
attack outside the office of the
ANP party, in which 11 people
were killed and more than 40
injured.
The bombing happened in
the Landhi district of Karachi,
where Taliban militants are
known to be active.
BBC
Zahra Shahid Hussain
60s
r
PAKISTAN
China Premier Li Keqiang in IndiaChina’s Premier Li Keqiang is
travelling to India in the first
stop of his maiden foreign trip
since taking office.
Upon his arrival in Delhi,
Premier Li will hold talks with
Prime Minister Manmohan
Singh, followed by dinner at
the Indian leader’s residence.
Border tensions and trade
ties are expected to be among
the issues discussed by the two
men.
The neighbours are the
world’s two most populous
countries.
Beijing hopes the visit
will help build trust and a
new strategic partnership to
the benefit of both countries,
China’s official news agency
Xinhua said.
Delhi thought “very high-
ly” of Mr Li’s decision to make
India his first foreign stop
and the aim of the talks was
to “enhance trust”, Indian for-
eign ministry spokesman Syed
Akbaruddin said.
A decades-long border
dispute flared up last month
after India accused Chinese
troops of crossing the coun-
tries’ de facto border in the
Himalayas.
The dispute over the ter-
ritory in the Ladakh region
has dogged the two countries
since the 1950s.
Boosting trade ties is also
expected to dominate the
talks. China is already one of
India’s top trading partners
and both countries have al-
ready agreed a new $100bn
(£65bn) bilateral trade target
for 2015.
Premier Li will spend three
days in India before travelling
on to Pakistan, Switzerland
and Germany.
BBC
The shooting happened on the eve of a highly contested vote
India has welcomed the Chinese premier’s decision to make it his first foreign stop since taking office in March
DIPLOMACY
* HOME 11MondayMay 20, 2013
KUENSEL
DRUK FERRO ALLOYS LTD., PHUENTSHOLING
“ABRIDGED AUDITED BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31 DECEMBER 2012”
PARTICULARS AS AT AS AT
31/12/2012 (Nu.) 31/12/2011 (Nu.)
SOURCES OF FUNDS:
Share Capital: 289,776,200.00 289,776,200.00
Secured Loans 142,087,379.44 138,183,677.83
General Reserve 4,805,651.56 2,538,572.91
Current Liabilities and Provisions 148,427,283.17 139,065,284.78
585,096,514.17 569,563,735.52
APPLICATION OF FUNDS:
Fixed Assets (Net Block) 312,135,322.51 367,000,841.48
Capital Work In Progress 5,294,958.29 3,224,295.80
Current Assets, Loans & Advances 267,383,987.91 198,884,556.41
Miscellaneous Expenses
(to the extent not written off or adjusted)
Preliminary Expenses 26,169.21 47,104.58
Share Issue Expenses 256,076.25 406,937.25
585,096,514.17 569,563,735.52
PROFIT & LOSS ACCOUNT for the year ended 31st December 2011
Particulars For the year ended For the year ended
31/12/2012 (Nu.) 31/12/2011 (Nu.)
Realisation (Net) 862,259,889.17 788,416,833.72
Cost of Production 788,331,062.42 691,968,028.67
PROFIT/(LOSS) FOR THE PERIOD 73,928,826.75 96,448,805.05
Tax paid for earlier years 221,146.10 6,029.19
Profit or (Loss) for the previous year - -
Profit after adj. of Op Profit/(Loss) 73,707,680.65 96,442,775.86
Corporate Income Tax @ 30% 22,178,648.00 28,447,081.73
Profit after Tax 51,529,032.65 67,995,694.13
Proposed Dividend 49,261,954.00 66,648,526.00
Transferred to General Reserve 2,267,078.65 1,347,168.13
The audited accounts for the year 2012 have been adopted during the 8th AGM of the Company held on 22 February 2013.
On behalf of the Chairperson & the Board of Directors Chief Executive Officer
The pinch of a price hike for powerNidup Gyeltshen
Bhutan Power corporation’s
proposal to revise domestic
energy rates will increase bills
by more than 100 percent for
low voltage users like house-
holds, according to calcula-
tions by a private research
firm.
For medium voltage users,
like mine processing plants
and plywood factories, it is a 99
percent increase; and for high
voltage users like steel and ce-
ment plants, it is a 38 percent
increase.
So basically, assuming
the same amount of energy is
used, what is being paid today
during the winter months will
be equal to what would be re-
quired to be paid in the sum-
mer months, if the new tariff is
approved as it is.
For medium voltage users,
which require a minimum of
a megawatt of energy, they
would be required to pay
an additional Nu 662,072 a
month. (see graph)
In other words, if a me-
dium voltage factory today
pays Nu 67,000 a month, its
monthly bill after the revision
would be Nu 1,330,000 (Nu
1.3M) a month.
Similarly a high voltage
factory, using one megawatt
(MW) of energy at any point
of time, would be required to
pay an additional Nu 345,000
a month.
Considering a steel indus-
try requires 16MW, the addi-
tional amount of money would
be Nu 5,500,000 (Nu 5.5M) a
month.
Some steel manufacturers
interviewed said that the fac-
tories would not be able to run
for more than a few months, if
the revision is approved.
“I’ll be raising this issue
during the public consulta-
tion,” said an industrialist, who
did not want to be named.
ELECTRICITY
An event to promote medical tourism in Thailand was held on May 17 at Tashi Taj in Thimphu by the Tourism Authority of Thailand and Druk Air. The services provided by hospitals in Thailand entailed a range of medical treatments, beauty, wellness and other aesthetics.
Picture story:
*12 DZONGKHAG MondayMay 20, 2013KUENSEL
VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENTHOTEL PARK HAVEN, PHUENTSHOLING
Sl # Post Slots Remarks
1General
Manager1
Graduate in Hospitality Management with minimum 3 years management
experience, preferably in the Hospitality Industry
2 Accountant 1Trained with tally and other accounting software, minimum of 3 years
working experience, preferably in the Hospitality Industry
3 Chef 2Diploma in food production with minimum 3 years experience in Multi-
Culinary cooking
4 Receptionist 2 Class XII with strong language and computer skills
5 Bell Boy 2 Class VIII, preferably a minimum of one year working experience
6 Housekeeper 5 Class VIII, preferably with a minimum of one year working experience
7 Laundry 2 Working experience of minimum 2 years
8 Steward 6 Class XII, trained with hotel experience and strong communication skills
9 Bartender 2 Class X, minimum of 2 years experience in bartending
10 Cook 2Minimum of 2 years working experience, preferably in the hospitality
industry
11 Cook Helper 2
12 Dish washer 2
13 Janitors 2
Please submit your CV to D.C Complex (Basement offi ce)or email [email protected]
with your CV and other relevant documents attached latest by 15th June, 2013.
For further enquiries, contact 77387232/77466971/05-252321.
Nirmala Pokhrel,
Pemagatshel
While some Pemagatshel vot-
ers were impressed with Peo-
ples Democratic Party’s pledg-
es, some remained sceptical
about its promises as they were
with the other political parties.
This was the mood among
voters after sitting through Peo-
ple’s Democratic Party presi-
dent Tshering Tobgay’s pres-
entation of his party and what
it stood for yesterday at former
prime minister Jigmi Y Thinley’s
constituency, Nanong-Shumar.
A former civil servant,
Choeny Dorji, 45, said the man-
ifestos of both Druk Phuensum
Tshogpa and PDP were promis-
ing, but wondered if they would
be able to render those service
if they were elected.
He, however said, human-
wildlife conflict being a major
challenge in most villages,
neither of the two parties had
discussed the issues, or how
they would address it.
“It may be a minor thing
for them but since more than
80 percent of Pemagatshelpa
depend on farm produce, it is
everything for us,” he said.
Some voters said every
party they came across were
making some pertinent pledg-
es.
Before going ahead sharing
PDP’s manifestos and pledges
PDP president informed some
60 voters of Pemagatshel gath-
ered at Nangkhor High School
auditorium of the importance
of campaigns and how seri-
ously voters should take it.
Having said that, Tsher-
ing Tobgay, assisted by PDP’s
Nanong-Shumar candidate
Jigme Drukpa in translating
what he spoke in Dzongkha
into Sharshopkha thanked all
voters for having come to lis-
ten to him speak from far flung
rural villages.
“As much as your farm
work, it is important for you to
attend this meeting and under-
stand the four parties’ promises
and manifestos,” he said.
Should PDP be elected, he
said they would empower peo-
ple for all important work at the
grassroots levels.
Citing an example, he said
when a pipeline was broken
or a road was damaged, rather
than informing the govern-
ment which would sit on the
issues for sometime before
doing something to resolve it,
people would be given the au-
thority to resolve such issues on
their own.
PDP, he said would keep
aside Nu 2M budget annually
for each gewog so they would
be used for gewog develop-
ment activities.
Nanong-Shumar candidate
Jigme Drukpa translating the
presidents pledge said, many
farm roads in the country have
remained unused because they
were damaged.
“If it’s not usable when it
is most needed, then what’s
the point of the newly cleared
farm road,” he translated for
Tshering Tobgay. “We’ll ensure
all farm roads are pliable even
during rainy seasons.”
Providing two helicopters
services for emergency health
services, black-topping farm
roads until gewog centres and
providing power trillers to
every chiwog were some of the
other promises the president
made.
If given the opportunity to
govern, he said five years would
be enough for PDP to bring
development or fulfill their
promises unlike the former
government which still had
many unfinished work.
“An elected government’s
tenure is for five years and not
more to keep works unfin-
ished,” he said. “Unfinished
promised-works within a stipu-
lated term of a government is a
shortfall on the part of a politi-
cal party.”
Tshering Tobgay also said
that during the former govern-
ment’s term, problems that
never existed in the past arose
such as the Rupee crises, cor-
ruption, debts and credits.
“These issues emerged as
a result of the carelessness of
the DPT government,” he said.
Even if not elected as to
govern the country, he said the
party would be privileged to
serve as the opposition again.
“But we need little more
seats in the Parliament,” he
said. “Our opposition party
was the weakest in the world
in terms of numbers, yet we
served the best we could be-
cause of your supports.”
The meeting that began
at 9am with about 60 people
ended two hours later, by which
time 40 more Pemagatshel vil-
lagers had joined the gathering.
On prime political opponent’s home groundPDP president lists his commitments and also points out the former government’s flaws during its five-year tenure
But we need lit-
tle more seats in
the Parliament”
Tshering TobgayPDP president
‘‘
PDP president Tshering Tobgay campaigns in Nanong-Shumar
Q&A 13*Monday
May 20, 2013KUENSEL
“We are in the business of minding our own business”
Exactly two weeks after the disqualification of the party from contesting the ongoing primary round of assembly elections, Kuensel speaks to Bhutan Kuen-Nyam party president Sonam Tobgay on issues that
transpired following the event.
QWhat now for BKP as a political party?
BKP’s political mission goes beyond qualifying the Letter of Intent or winning an election. The party has been formed resulting out of a past connection among its candidates and supporters. The acute agony will pass after coming to terms with the recent outcome, because our intentions are genuine and desires sincere. BKP is not for political expedi-ency but after moral lead-ership.
Having said this, the legal status of BKP re-mains unchanged and the party will remain active in the public domain. The Party’s secretariat will function full time and will support whichever party comes to power. We will start investing in building a responsible team to return in the 2018 elections.
QWhat about its candidates?
We are a committed team and, with the turn of recent events, the un-spoken bond has become even stronger. Everyone in the Kuen-Nyam family has shown their true charac-teristics and wisdom that is beyond par-ticipating in an elec-tion. And for BKP to be a success story in the Bhutanese political his-tory, these are the core values and characters that BKP torchbear-ers would have to have. Candidates and supporters of BKP
are encouraged to stay together as a united team, but understandably five years is a long time and some might choose a dif-ferent journey.
QWhat has the party been up to since
it was disqualified for the primary round of elections?
We have been holding continuous party meetings in order to explain and comfort our families, party workers and supporters not to get disheartened with our disqualification. Series of meetings with our party coordinators from the various con-stituencies is still ongoing. Meeting our youth and women support groups are happening as I write. As clichéd as it may sound, BKP is out but not down.
QIf offered, will the party or its candi-
dates consider joining one of the two political parties that make it to the general round of elections?
BKP has a fresh idea to redefine politics
as sacred and
noble. To this effect, we’ll continue to work hard in the next five years to come back to participate the elections and give our supporters an extra choice. At an individual level, it’s every candidates personal choice to exercise his/her belief to contest from another party, if a ticket is offered. For me, I’ll remain with BKP to ensure success in the next election.
QYour thoughts on reports that
some parties that are campaigning in the primary round have no candidates representing their constituencies.
It’s the responsibility of the concerned institution to look into it and not for BKP to point fingers. We’re in the business of minding our own business. Just because we couldn’t make it to the primary round, doesn’t mean that we’ll look for faults in others. This is what BKP does not stand for, and we’re not here to derail the process but to support a success-ful election.
Having said this, one must underline that names of candidates, reflected in the Letter of Intent, must and should be present in the primary round of elec-tions, and will only change if the returning officer so decides at the time of filing nominations, in the event the party qualifies to the general round of elec-tions.
QThere were allegations that
money play was one of the reasons for BKP
losing its only Gasa candidate to
another party on the day
of filing the letter of intent. What really
happened at that crucial hour?
BKP has values im-bibed in all of us to respect and value dha-damtse and ley-jundre at all times. This basic essence of cause and effect are timeless Buddhist Bhutanese val-ues that have been passed on to us from our forefa-thers. This is what makes us the sons and daughters of Pelden Drukpa. There’s little one can do, if a par-ticular candidate from Gasa at the eleventh hour decides to join another party, citing his basic fun-damental right to choose the party of his choice. However, the candidate must be mindful that he has abused his fundamen-tal right at the cost of BKP and its supporters. Having said this, BKP does not have any regret letting go off of such a person.
The nation must also realise that one party’s senior members visited our party office unan-nounced on many occa-sions at that crucial hour accompanying the Gasa candidate, prompting anything but unpleasant sparks to falter democ-racy. To this, my team and I remained calm and tolerant, disallowing polity in Bhutan from getting dirty and ugly. For BKP, the national interests must prevail above the political party, respecting the Con-stitution of the Kingdom of Bhutan.
QDespite absence of candidates in Gasa,
you still decided to sub-mit your letter of intent to ECB. Did you expect the Commission to be considerate?
Yes, we expected that ECB officials will be guided by adequate wisdom in the scrutiny process, and be able to look beyond the pitfalls of numbers as the only disqualifying criterion. BKP worked hard
like all political parties and the nation has collectively realised our sincerity in terms of redefining politics that is so real and achiev-able in our context.
QWhat do you mean when you said there
was a need to revisit the process of scrutinising the Letter of Intent following your party’s disqualification.
Recent development with apolitical candidates in the LOI and some par-ties listing 49 candidates vis-à-vis 47, no show of candidates in the com-mon forums has clearly revealed certain loopholes in the electoral laws and its interpretation. For example, implementing only the “candidates’ qualification criteria” in the primary round, and the “disqualification criteria” in the general round, bears no blessing towards a meaningful political party participating in elections. These are some of the concerns BKP would like to initiate with relevant institutions after the elec-tion process is completed. It’s no quality to remain good only before the law, because no law is perfect to foresee every situation; that is why we require peo-ple to act intelligently.
QWhat would you tell the Bhutanese
electorate when they go to the polls?
People should actively participate by ensuring that the voter turnout re-mains unaffected because of BKP’s non-participation. Such an opportunity comes once in five years and, therefore, a responsi-ble use of the golden gift is based on competent leadership, team composi-tion and experience. As far as possible, an unbiased choice must be made.
*14 DZONGKHAGMondayMay 20, 2013KUENSEL
Fuel Prices
*Prices as of May 19
(In Nu)Dzongkhag Diesel Petrol Kerosene LPG
Thimphu 49.80 60.57 15.04 491
Bumthang 49.66 61.81 16.92 515
Trashigang 48.25 62.90 16.19 501
P/Ling 48.34 58.85 13.86 450
FLIGHTS
DrukAirDate Route Flight No. Departure ArrivalMay 21 Bangkok to Paro, via Dhaka KB 127 06:50 am 09:50 amMay 21 Paro to Bangkok via Bagdogra KB 130 10:00 am 04:50 pm May 21 Paro to Kathmandu KB 400 07:00 am 07:55 amMay 21 Kathmandu to Paro KB 401 08:45 am 10:20 amMay 21 Kathmandu to Paro KB 401 08:00 am 11:10 amMay 21 Paro to Kolkatta KB 210 07:20 am 08:00 amMay 21 Kolkatta to Paro KB 211 08:40 am 10:20 am
Tshokhana avoids a near disasterTragedy was luckily averted when a sand-laden ten-wheeler truck went off road
Tenzin Namgyel, Punakha
Had it not been for the elec-
tric pole in front of the house,
which bore the brunt of the
impact, tragedy might have
struck a two-storeyed tradi-
tional home in Tshokhana,
Punakha.
On Saturday afternoon a
10-wheeler trailer truck loaded
with sand rolled backwards on
the steep approach road from
the Natural Resources Devel-
opment corporation limited’s
(NRDCL) sand depot and
fell below the road to where
a small settlement is home to
12 families.
According to police, the
trailer had fallen 145 feet hit-
ting three cypress trees on
the way down, and crashing
into the electric pole in front
of a two-storeyed Bhutanese
house. The electric pole
slammed onto one end of the
roof, and the walls and tim-
ber structure suffered minor
cracks.
“Had there been no elec-
tric pole, the truck would have
crashed into the house and
crushed us to death,” Pema,
who babysits for a tenant of
the house, said. “It felt like
an earthquake. It was really
scary.”
Pema said, fortunately, all
five children were seated for
lunch when the truck hit the
pole. “Usually children would
be out for play, but that day
they all had gathered in for
lunch,” said Pema.
The depot, located on
the banks of the Punatsang-
chu river, is connected to the
Wangdue-Thimphu highway
through a half km approach
road built in 2008 by the cor-
poration to transport sand.
The owner of the house,
Kinely Wangmo, said poor
road conditions and the steep
slope of the approach road
have always posed a threat to
the settlement below. “There
have been many cases, when
the trucks had to stop in mid-
dle of the road and unload to
be able to pick up.”
Kinley Wangmo said they
had written to the NRDCL
for the road improvement. “A
pitch road would make traffic
safer,” Kinley Wangmo said.
“But their interest is only to
sell sand.”
Tenant Rinzin Phuntsho
said, if there was a gate at the
junction below the Wangdue-
Thimphu highway, it would
help regulate the flow of traf-
fic. “There are too many trucks
rushing down in high speed,”
he said, adding the trucks
move in and out even at night.
“Imagine if there’s an accident
at night.”
Sigay 73, who is mostly
at home looking after her
grandchildren, said that every
time I hear a strange sound of
a truck, I gather the children
and rush out of the house. “If
there’s a pick up problem on
the slope, it’s an indication of
the risk, so we have to be alert,”
Sigay said.
Everyday, between 100 and
130 trucks ply on the approach
road to collect sand from the
depot. NRDCL employees at
the depot said they don’t allow
trucks to carry excess load. “It
could be because of slope that
the trucks aren’t able to climb
up,” one of the employees said.
On trucks moving late in the
evening, the employees said it
was because the loading time
crossed beyond 5 pm. The
challans are issued before 5
pm.
Landowners, who lost
six decimals to build the ap-
proach road, were not com-
pensated. “Only those, who
lost more than 10 decimals of
land, were compensated,” a
landowner said.
ACCIDENT
… their (NRDCL)
interest is only
to sell sand”
Kinley Wangmo House-owner
‘‘
For topical discussions
log on to
www.kuenselonline.com
Narrow escape: The trailer was stopped from crashing in the house by an electric pole
*HOME 15MondayMay 20, 2013
KUENSEL
Good Day
Bad Day
laza
sogza
shedza
ZAKAR
TOMORROW’S
WEATHER
MAY 20, 2013
For Thimphu:Sunrise : 5:10AM Sunset : 6:46PM Source: Meteorology Division, DHMS, MOEA
Pemagatshel Samdrukjongkhar
Trashigang
Trashigyantse Lhuentse
Mongar
Zhemgang
Bumthang
Trongsa
Sarpang Tsirang
Wangduephodrang
Gasa
Punakha
Thimphu
Chhukha Dagana
Paro
Haa
Samtse
High Low
26 18
High Low
23 12
High Low
21 10
High Low
22 12
High Low
16 5
High Low
27 13
Phuentsholing
High Low
33 22
Tempa Wangdi
Stepping into one of the biggest
constituencies, in terms of vot-
ers, Druk Chirwang Tshogpa
(DCT) president informed
that she was “ready” for prime
ministership.
The party, Lily Wangchhuk,
on her campaign trail, also said
has enough ministerial candi-
dates.
She told the small group in
Trashigang that showed up on
May 19 that, if not for the con-
fidence she had in herself, she
would have never been able to
initiate DCT in the first place.
“If I have the strength to
lead a party, I definitely am
competent for the prime min-
ister’s post,” she said.
Lily Wangchhuk said DCT
was a versatile mix of young
and dynamic members, with
everyone fit for ministerial
posts.
Given a chance, her party
would tackle people’s issues
with equal dedication as any
other political parties.
NA ELECTIONS
DCT is as competent as any partySays its president on the campaign trail in Trashigang
If I have the
strength to lead
a party, I defi-
nitely am com-
petent for the
prime minister’s
post”
Lily WangchhukPresident, DCT
‘‘
“In fact, more than the rest
of the parties,” she said.
“I know my candidates are
young novices, but remember
children from humble family
background would understand
your issues more than anyone,”
she said.
Saying that people should
also give new political parties a
chance, the president said they
can, perhaps, form the most ap-
proachable government.
Despite seeing around 80
voters at the campaign, al-
though the dzongkhag had a
big number of registered voters,
Lily Wangchhuk said she was
happy with the voter turnout
since it was very late.
DCT Kanglung-Samkhar
constituency candidate, Tsh-
ewang Tobgai, said those, who
stayed back for the meeting,
were the ones who genuinely
wanted to hear their party
president.
“But I’m quite unhappy
with the small crowd because
people should at least attend
campaigns of all the presi-
dents,” he said. “We won’t force
people to vote for us just for at-
tending the meeting.”
The hall was filled with
people, mostly supporters
from Bikhar, who were closely
related to its candidate.
“Many didn’t come because
people, after associating with
one party, alienate themselves
from attending other parties’
meetings,” he said.
DCT president Lily Wangchhuk in Trashigang
*16 HOME MondayMay 20, 2013KUENSEL
Printed and published by Kuensel Corporation Limited, PO Box 204, Tel: 975-2-322483/324688, Fax: 975-2-322975, www.kuenselonline.com ISSN 0259 1499
CMYK
Picture story: Five students of the registered 50 will be selected to represent the country at World Children’s Baseball Fair in Japan this August. A joint baseball coaching program by BOC, JICA and JOCV started on May 18 at the Thimphu athletics ground. A recent survey carried out during Olympic day celebrated on May 2 at Gedu showed baseball among the top five sports that Bhutanese children wished to experience in next Olympic day.
Picture story: Team Fourth Year United won the inaugural season of Sherubtse Premier League, where 11 teams had participated. Photo courtesy – Sherub Dorji, Sherubtse Collage
Picture story: Kelki school boys and girls teams win the Thimphu Thromde inter-school volleyball championship, the finals of which was played on May 18 at Kelki school court. A total of 24 teams participated in the championship.
Tashi Phuntsho.
Drukstar FC beat Druk United
FC 4-1 in the opening match of
the A division club tournament
played at the Changlimithang
yesterday.
The first goal came in the
26th minute. Drukstar striker
Tashi Dendup calmly received
a pass from defender Yeshi
Samdruk and landed it at the
back of the net.
Then Drukstar continue
to pile pressure on their oppo-
nents going forward in num-
bers but the score remained 1-0
at half time.
Drukstar continued to con-
trol the game in the remaining
45 minutes and slotted three
more goals to round up the
match.
Chimi Dorji bagged one in
54 minutes, and three minutes
later the Druk United defence
gave away another to Yeshi in
the 57th minute.
Druk United FC slowly
fought back but could not
convert their attempts. Biren
Basnet, in the 65th minute,
scored a consolation for the
team and that was the end of
Druk United.
Avinash sealed the win for
Drukstar in the 78 minutes and
ensured the three points.
Tomorrow at 5.30pm Thim-
phu City FC will play Dzongrig
FC.
Dechen Tshering, Mongar
Villagers in the remote gewog
of Gongdue and Silambi in
Mongar are happy at the mere
sight of transmission wires
reaching their village.
If the wires are here, they
said, the electricity supply
should not be far behind.
Power officials said the vil-
lage should receive electricity
by the end of July.
To speed up electrification
work, the local contractor has
hired a helicopter from Nepal
to transport electric equipment
to the Kheng region, which oth-
erwise is a days walk, 44 days
more if it is with the electrical
equipment.
Each equipment weighs
about 430kg.
Villagers have been using
solar and kerosene lamps for
lighting their homes.
More than 100 house-
holds of two chiwogs of Pam
and Damkhar under Gongdue
gewog will be lit up.
Gongdue gewog has more
than 300 households of which
three chiwogs were electrified
last year.
Likewise, electrification
works in Silambi, which has five
chiwogs of Nagor, Gyalgong,
Silambi, Daag, and Wama are
also in full swing. The gewog,
which has more than 300
household had the helicopter
make 41 trips in three days to
drop 28 transformers and other
electrical equipment.
The contractor claimed to
have paid more than Nu 2.8M
to hire the helicopter, which
began work on May 17.
Gongdue, Silambi to be lit up in July
POWER
FOOTBALL
A helicopter has been hired to hasten electrification works
Drukstar FC trounced Druk United FC
Like us on www.facebook.com/kuensel