DEMOCRACY IN ACTION

Bhutan’s cultivated land declined by more than 5,000 hectares between 2021 and 2024, while the availability of several key food commodities and nutrients also showed a downward trend, according to the country’s first Food Balance Sheets (FBS) Report. The report was launched on July 15 2026. The FBS Report 2021-2024, …

Beyond Grade VIII, Students Will Still Need to Travel Elsewhere for Higher Secondary Education For children growing up in the remote highland community of Merak, continuing education beyond primary school has often meant leaving behind their families, homes, and familiar surroundings. After completing Class VI, students previously had to move …

The Wangdue Phodrang District Court has sentenced a 51-year-old man from Samtse to three years and six months imprisonment after finding him guilty of two counts of child molestation committed against his two stepdaughters. The judgment, passed on 6th July 2026, convicted Dophu of child molestation, a fourth-degree felony, for …

Bhutan recorded a strong rise in tourist arrivals during the first six months of 2026 compared to the same period in 2025, with every month recording higher visitor numbers than the previous year. According to the data, the country welcomed 10,627 tourists in January 2026, more than double the 5,000 …

The National High Level Committee on Super El Niño Preparedness convened its second meeting on Friday to review Bhutan’s preparedness for the potential impacts of a projected Super El Niño event. The Committee reviewed national preparedness measures covering agriculture and water resources, essential commodity stockpiles, household water security, forest fire …

Project records 13.62 percent physical progress, stays on schedule despite geological challenges, supply disruptions and workforce shortages The Khorlochhu Hydropower Project has entered a new stage of implementation with the award of the Electro-Mechanical and Hydro-Mechanical contracts in June 2026, marking a transition from predominantly civil construction to an integrated …

A 17-year-old student of class 10 from Dechencholing Higher Secondary School was found dead at her residence in Thimphu on 12th  June 2026. According to sources, the student had been absent from her midterm examination on the same day, prompting an internal check by the school. During this process, it …

Hotel owners have raised concerns that the Economic Stimulus Program (ESP) Interest Support Scheme provides greater benefits to businesses that are already able to meet their full loan repayments. Under the scheme, hotels that can repay 100 percent of their monthly loan instalments qualify for the maximum interest support from …

As the Thromde elections for the post of Thimphu and Phuentsholing Thrompons close in, there seems to be minimal participation in the common forums hosted in each demkhong of the Thromdes. It is an important election that determines Thromde leadership and management for the next five years, and yet, while …

The Detailed Project Report (DPR), including full engineering designs for the Gelephu–Tareythang Road and Bridges Project, is expected to be completed by late 2026, with construction tentatively scheduled to begin in mid-2027 according to the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport (MoIT). Responding to a question during the 29th Meet-the-Press session …