The Bhutanese Leading the way.
The government calculated Nu 14 bn as the loss of revenue in the 12th plan due to the doing away of the refundable excise duty by India under their new Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime. However, industries say GST will also affect the profit margins of Bhutanese industries and …
Read More »Inability of Jaigaon’s Custom office to upload GST claims on time may hit Bhutanese imports
Ever since the introduction of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) in India, Bhutan’s main trading hub of Phuentsholing and neighboring Jaigaon has been in turmoil, especially with an understaffed and inadequately prepared Jaigaon Land Custom Station. This in fact led to more than 300 trucks being held up at …
Read More »Bhutan’s nuanced position at the Bali declaration
The Bali declaration of 7th September 2017 in the World Parliamentary Forum meeting had 17 points on its stated agenda of Sustainable Development. However, what gathered the attention of the international and regional press was on the sole 10th point naming Myanmar and expressing concern over violence in Rakhine state. …
Read More »12th plan revenue projections hit after hydro delays and GST
The Gross National Happiness Commission (GNHC) along with the Ministry of Finance (MoF) is currently in the midst of reworking the revenue figures for the 12th plan which had earlier been projected at Nu 251 bn out of a plan size of Nu 300 bn. The GNHC Secretary Thinley Namgyel, …
Read More »CEA clears Sunkosh DPR but project implementation still up in the air
India’s Central Electricity Authority (CEA) earlier this year cleared the Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the 2,560 MW Sunkosh reservoir project. This is significant as Indian officials until recently have parried questions on the status of the mega reservoir project saying that the DPR is still with the CEA. Now …
Read More »Bhutan’s diplomatic triumph in Doklam
When the Doklam crisis first hit the international headlines Bhutan’s worst fears had come true with the troops of two effective superpowers, India and China, facing off each other on Doklam, a disputed territory claimed by Bhutan. Bhutan, it seemed, had nothing to gain and everything to lose in this …
Read More »Magazine misrepresents and demeans Bhutan
The latest issue of ‘The Week’ magazine, a national magazine in India, led to a stir among many Bhutanese not only due to its front cover portraying Bhutan as a Takin being licked by a Chinese Panda, but also for its stories on Bhutan claiming it to be in the …
Read More »Final verdict on Dr Shacha Vs Ap SP case gives BNB priority
The final Supreme Court review verdict on the Aum Tandin Bidha and her daughter Dr Shacha Vs Ap Sonam Phuntsho case was delivered by a three judges bench of Chief Justice Tshering Wangchuk, Justice Kuenlay Tshering and Justice Norbu Tshering. The Chief Justice had abstained from earlier cases to avoid …
Read More »First ever surveys confirm below average quality of education
The quality of Bhutan’s education and also the related issue of the inability of educated youth to go beyond government jobs has been two much discussed issues. Two domestic assessments showed that not only is the quality of education in Bhutan below par, but that our students lack adequate application, …
Read More »India’s CEA declines Bhutan’s requests on CBTE
The Bhutanese government around two months ago, through diplomatic channels, sent a letter to the Indian government over Bhutan’s various concerns over the Cross Border Trade in Electricity (CBTE) guidelines issued on 5th December 2016. The CBTE guidelines, though meant to govern electricity trade between India and its neighbors, had …
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