DEMOCRACY IN ACTION

“Corporalpunishment according to our education policies is not allowed,” said the Prime Minister, Tshering Tobgay, during the monthly Meet-the-Press session on August 28 in Thimphu. The PM said, “Our laws do not permit corporal punishment, it is a mild way of camouflaging physical assault, it is not allowed and the …

The Ministry of Labour and Human Resources (MoLHR) is looking into shortening the number of days for the National Graduates’ Orientation Programme (NGOP) and also how it can be made more substantive and useful to the graduates. The Minister, MoLHR, Ngeema Sangay Tshempo, during the monthly Meet-the-Press session said the …

A Journalists Association of Bhutan (JAB) study on the situational assessment of Journalists in Bhutan showed that the current media situation in the country is ‘very bad.’ The survey covered 90 journalists working in 16 media organizations and 29 former journalists. The primary objective of the study was to identify …

Lyonchhen Tshering Tobgay was called on by Ms. Lakshmi Venkatachalam, Vice President of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and her delegation at the Gyalyong Tshogkhang on 21st August. Lyonchhen conveyed that he was very happy to receive the Vice President and said that Bhutan would continue to draw inspiration from …

However, mental health is yet to get the desired budget or attention Bhutan’s only practicing psychiatrist, Dr. Damber Kumar Nirola, sees between 25-30 patients daily at the Jigme Dorji Wangchuck National Referral Hospital. There are at least four youth any given day in that group. Most youth suffer from anxiety …

The Ministry of Labour and Human Resources (MoLHR) shared its policy to decentralize employment services to local governments during the 21st Annual Dzongdas’ Conference held in Thimphu. According to the MoLHR, the objectives to decentralization employment facilitation services to local government are to mainstream employment in local government plans and …

Eyewitnesses say about 30 unidentified men, well-armed with guns and khukuris (machete like knives), abducted four people from Norbugang village in Shomphangkha gewog, Sarpang at around 8 pm on August 7. According to a reliable source, no person in the village was physically hurt. There were no theft of material …

Bhutan is set to celebrate the first-ever National Voters’ Day across the country on September 15, coinciding with the International Democracy Day. The Election Commission of Bhutan (ECB) has decided to celebrate the day as part of the resolutions of the Forum of Election Management Bodies of South Asia held …

With the green tax on fuel coming into effect last Thursday, the Road Safety and Transport Authority (RSTA) said that the transportation fare is likely to increase. The Director General of RSTA, Lham Dorji, talking about a hike in bus and taxi fares, said, “We haave already done a bus …

During the seminar on lessons learnt by the five political parties on their ten-day study tour to Denmark on June14, the five party representatives, despite their political differences, shared similar experiences, the feeling of being Bhutanese first. One of the panelists, the Druk Chirwang Tshogpa (DCT) President, Lily Wangchhuk, said …