Custom Search

Friday, September 19, 2008

Education in Nepal

According to government statistics almost 14% of children of primary-school-age are not enrolled (Government of Nepal 2006a:43-45). Moreover, a major challenge at primary school level is retention. Enrolment figures in class 1 are high, but a large number of these one-enrolled children drop out of school before completing primary level. Furthermore, despite primary school figures showing a positive trend in enrolment, at lower secondary level the number of enrolled children drops significantly, with more than 50% out of schools. Enrolment levels of particular groups, such as marginalised-caste and Muslim communities are still below of others.
Although the gender gap in school enrolment in Nepal has declined, it still exists and increases as children get older. Besides a gender gap, literacy rates vary among regions and districts across Nepal. Interestingly, literacy rates are not per definition lowest in remote areas. The dramatic low enrolment rates in the Terai are caused especially by low enrolment of girls in those areas.
There are two groups of factors that influence the school attendance of children. The first group includes factors like poverty, often increased due to recent change in circumstances at home such as divorce, illness or death of one or both of the caregivers; and discriminatory practices leading to social exclusion. As long as there is poverty and social exclusion, there will always be children out of school. The second group of factors includes those that impede school attendance, but which are never the sole reason for a child to be out of school. These factors, such as work and school quality and accessibility factors such as a convenient location of the school, proper facilities, and the presence of female teachers, should not be underestimated. A combination of such factors does lead to children out of school. If these factors are kept in mind and are tackled appropriately, the strategy may positively contribute to retaining children in schools.
Many children drop out in their early teens after having received a few years of schooling. It is around this age that children are able to contribute to the household's income by working or by getting marries, which is still common in particular communities. These activities still compete with schooling. The school should offer children an environment that is attractive to them and which keeps motivated to attend them daily in order to complete primary level. It is essential to provide supportive incentives aimed at removing direct causes for parents to take their children out of school at this age. This includes affordability incentives, but also asks for a focus on increasing accessibility of (lower-) secondary school, instead of increasing enrolment at primary level only.
Source: http://www.cwinnepal.org/

Children's Literature Promotion Awards Declared


Kavitaram Children's Literature Promotion Venture, Children's Forum Nepal has decided to decorate Mrs. Sharada Adhikari with the Children's Literature Promotion Honour-64. The venture has also declared to honor two organizations Bal Sahitya Pravardhan Kendra Bal Sansar and Tempus International and provide two child-talent awards to two children writers from Udayapur Miss Vinaya Basnet and Miss. Pratibha Khaling.
Writer Sharada Adhikari, born in 021 Magh 3 in Sundarijal, Kathmandu has 13 books published. She also has edited 4 volumes of literary works. She is now involved with Nepal children's Literary society as Secretary, Sajha Prakashan as Board Director, Runu Prakashan as Vice chairperson, Nepal bangmaya Pratishan as secretary, and Padmakanya Campus under TU as professor. Bal Sahitya Pravarthan Kendra Bal Sansar has been promoting the Nepalese children's literature since a decade, organizing books exhibitions, books distributions and promotional workshops. Tempus International has been organizing 6 various national level children's literary writing competitions every year for boys and girls students separately for higher secondary, secondary and lower secondary levels. It has organized two national level competitions in last years for essay and story writings. The two child-talents from Udayapur Miss Vinaya Basnet and Miss. Pratibha Khaling were the first and second winner of the national level story writing competitions-64, for secondary level girl students organized by Tempus International and Read Nepal.
This venture established by Dr. Kavitaram Shrestha in 054, has honored and awarded 10 writers, 11 institutions and 9 child-talents up to now. The honored writers are Mr. Shantadas Manandhar, Dr. Prof. Chudamani Bandhu, Mr. Ramesh Vikal, Mr. Shyam Prasad Sharma, Mr. Janak Prasad Humagain, Mr. Krishna Prasad Parajuli, Devkumari Thapa, Durgalal Shrestha, Victor Pradhan and Vishowmbhar Chanchal. Similarly, the honored institutions are Basu Secondary School Bhaktapur, Budhanilkantha School, Kathmandu, Hindu Bidya Pith, Kathmandu, Subhatara, Secondary School, Lalitpur, Noble Academy, Kathmandu, Chitwan English Secondary Boarding School, Bharatpur, Room To Read, Kathmandu, READ Nepal, CWIN and Ratna Pustak Bhandar. The child talents are Miss Jhamak Ghimire, Miss Bibhuti Singh, Mr. Niraj Balami, Miss Rashmi Amatya, Miss Sleshma Kshetri, Miss. Asmita Panthi, Mr. Udesh Pandya, Miss Anjana Rajbanshi and Nibha Sharma.

A two-day Conference on Children's Literature


A two-day Conference on Children's Literature and Journalism was held at Bharatpur-7 Chitwan on August 1 and 2, 2008. Organized by Kalpabrichha Chitwan and facilitated by Children's Literature Foundation Nepal (CLFN) the program was attended by more than 100 students from various schools in the district.
On the inaugural day, author and journalist Kartikeya Ghimire oriented the participants with norms and essences of children's journalism and trained the trainees on preparation of wall magazines. Towards the close of the day, a competition of preparing wall magazine was organized among the group.
On the second day, author and story-teller Mahesh Paudyal told two stories and kept the audience spell-bound for about two hours. He also trained them on short-story writing.
Sagar Karki, the chairman of Kalpabriccha Chitwan gave away the prizes and certificates to the participants in the concluding session.

Ketaketi Book Club Observes First Anniversary




September 14, 2008

The Ketaketi Book Club Nepal, established by Children's Literature Foundation Nepal (CLFN) in August 2007 to help needy and underprivileged children of various communizes in Nepal, is one year old now. The annual program was celebrated on September 14, 2008 at a program in Kathmandu amidst children of various classes and communizes.

Established with an objective to help under-privileged, and civil war affected children with books and basic study materials, the club undertook a number of philanthropic projects. The beneficiaries of its projects include government school children belonging to parents, whom the twelve year long civil war uprooted from their native places and forced to live in slum-settlements in Kathmandu in the midst of abject poverty. In the course of a year, the Ketaketi Book Club has been able to circulate as many as 200 books on various disciplines among the children. A press release from the office of the Club claims that many children have started authoring stories and poems in Nepali, some of which have been published in the children's column of the local newspapers and magazines. The club also collected old books and study materials from the children of well-to-do parents and distributed to as many as 103 underprivileged children this year to ensure a continuity of their study.

Even at present, there are many more children in Nepal who are barred by poverty from attending schools since their parents cannot afford. Governmental efforts alone have not been adequate, and organizations like the Ketaketi Book Club are coming forth to deliver the society out of such an appalling social reality.

Farcical Speeches


On the occasion of Children's Literature Conference Dhading on September 13, 2008, we spoke a lot on children's rights. Speaking about children from well-embellished stage, raised above the ground in a very comfortable government hall was really pleasing. We were excited, and equally excited was the CDO of the district. We talked of a Nepal of our dreams, where every child shall go to school, and every one love and respect. After the program we were taken to a hotel, where rooms had been booked for our night stay.

Tired, we rang the bell, and ordered cold drinks and snacks. Within five minute a child of around ten walked in with both of his hands packed up with our stuffs. He moved in, placed the snacks on the table and gently said, "Sir, Khaja!" Khaja is what we say in Nepali for snacks.

His voice went straight into our hearts and reminded us of the program during the day. We did not however say anything. The child moved out.

Thereafter every bell we rang was answered by the child. Our foods and water came with him. He collected the used dishes and the left over. When we could no longer bear, one of our team member said, "Bhai, you are so small; why do you work in a hotel?"

The child did not speak a word. He looked at us in turn and moved out.

There are thousand children in this country, who cannot answer this question. We are also equally helpless in seeking answers? Can we all join hands and do something?

I want to be the Prime Minister…


[Ganesh Dhungana of Dhading Bensi was awarded with Kartikeya Child Talent Award 2065. In fact, Ganesh is the icon of everyone's eye in his locality. He is the pivot around which the whole network of students and youths works. My friend Mahesh Paudyal 'Prarambha' talked with him after the Award Distribution]

Prarambha: Congratulations Ganesh, how are you feeling?
Ganesh: Fine thank you. Many years back, ghazal writer Gyanuwakar Poudel had told me about this every award. Today, surprisingly, it came to me.
Prarambha: What are the types of activities you are involved in?
Ganesh: Social work and literature. I coordinate and lead Youth Network Dhading. I began publishing when I was in class VII. Writing made me a youth leader. Writing is my mother, and leading is my father.
Prarambha: What do you write?
Ganesh: Basically I write poems. My first collection 'Baal Boli' was published in 2003, when I was in the seventh class. The very next year, I published "Aawaj Mutuko" , also a collection of verses. The third collection "Timro Aagaman" catches moments of pain when a family breaks. Presently, I am readying another collection of poem, to be published jointly with Sagar Karki, my bosom friend from Chitwan. Occasionally, I also write articles on youth and children related issues. You know, a lot of problems have arisen among youths these days.
Prarambha: Like…
Ganesh: Like drug addiction, drinking and teenage pregnancy. My Goodness, how rampant has all these things become in my district. Give gives me a lot of pain.
Prarambha: What do you think is the reason behind the perversion of these youths?
Ganesh: Conservative family cultures. It is a reaction you know. They are not understood at home, and their changing needs according to their ages are forcibly curbed. In reaction, they become delinquent. This is my understanding about the problem.

Prarambha: How did your career as a writer begin?
Ganesh: When my brother's poem 'Kalam' was published in a local newspaper many years back, I was inspired. Later, my teacher Nabin Bandhu Pahari caught my hands and taught me with love. There is no one, who knows me more than Nabin Sir. I also want to remember my teacher Rajendra Pratap Shah and Devi Prasad for their constant guidance.
Prarambha: Why do you write?
Ganesh: It gives me company when I am alone. Secondly, I am always among senior intellectual whose very company keeps inspiring me to write.
Prarambha: Is your family happy with you? May be they had other hopes with you.
Ganesh: They are perfectly happy. Yes, my father had wanted me to study science. On that day after my SLC when I was slated to go to Kathmandu with my father for admission to a science college, I ran away from home and admitted myself to Nilakantha Higher Secondary Dhading as a student of Humanities. My dad was initially upset. But now, he is happy with my progress. My mother has always been happy with me. In fact, my mother made me what I am today.
Prarambha: What is your aim in life?
Ganesh: I want to enter politics. I want to be the Prime Minister of this country. My aim might sound ridiculous now, but if I work hard, it is not impossible.
Prarambha: In fact, it is not. Lastly, you are working for children. How comfortable are you with children?
Ganesh: O, I love them so much. Children of my locality run to me and share their family woes. I tremble to remember my long childhood days in a hostel. It was a terrible time. I advocate both love and freedom for children.
Prarambha: Thank you for your time, and good luck for coming days.

District Level Poem Competition in Nuwakot


September 9, 2009

Nuwakot District Level Poem Competition was held at the premises of Shakti Higher Secondary School, Madanpur, Dangmai, Nuwakot. Organized by Shakti Youth Centre Madanput, the program was participated by 15 students from various schools from the district. Bhagawati Pandey of Shakti Higher Secondary School won the first prize comprising of 3500 rupees and a certificate.

The program was basically facilitated by Children's Literature Foundation Nepal. Two of the Foundation's official, Mr. Kartikeya Ghimire, Vice President and Mr. Mahesh Paudyal, General Secretary walked all the way from Barahi, Nuwakot throw a trail of around ten kilometers on foot along a hilly topography amidst rain fluctuating between drizzles and torrents to attend the program, judge the participants, and give away the awards. It the first time the village saw a literary event of that magnitude.

Other dignitaries to attend the grand literarily events were Byakul Maila the author of the National Anthem, Mr. Pushkar Lohani, Senior Author and Mr. Shreeram Shrestha, social worker and writer and, Mr. Raj Kumar Baniya, journalist.

Children's Literature Conference Held in Dhading



September 14, 2008

The Youth Network, Dhading, along with Children's Literature Foundation Nepal and District Children's Welfare Committee Dhading organized a one-day Children's Literature Conference at Dhading Bensi on September 13, 2008. The conference was inaugurated by Mr. Drona Pokharel, Chief District Officer Dhading.

Senior Children's Litterateur and Journalist Mr. Kartikeya Ghimire, and writer Mahesh Paudyal oriented 67 school children on the techniques of story writing. Model story telling, consisting of eclectic selections from the work of native and foreign writers formed the central attraction of the program.

On the occasion, Kartikeya Child Talent Award 2065 was jointly awarded to Mr. Sagar Karki of Bharatput –7, Chitwan, and Mr. Ganesh Dhungana of Dhading Bensi, Dhading The Chief District Officer Dhading Mr. Drona Pokharel gave away the awards that contained citations and cash sums of twenty-five hundred and one rupee each.

Sagar is the chairman of Kalpabrichha Chitwan, an organization of children, involved in many social and creative activities in and out of the district. He has authored two books of verses so far, and the third is ready for publication. Ganesh is the main coordinating mind behind the functions of Youth Network Dhading, and is actively involved in social works, journalism and literary activities. His first volume of verses 'Baal Boli' [Children's Voice] was published in 2003 when he was in the seventh class. The second collection 'Aawaj Mutuko' [The Voice of the Heart] came out the next year, and at present, he is planning a collection jointly with Sagar Karki of Chitwan.

The award was established by author and journalist Kartikeya Ghimire in the year 2058, and since then, it has constantly been going to children of extraordinary talent and potentials.

On the occasion, the Children's Literature Foundation Nepal (CLFN) also displayed children's books in order to inculcate the habit of reading among children of rural area. Taking in account the difficult economic condition of the children, the foundation made every book available to them at a nominal price of ten rupees. The collection included books as costly as the one priced Rs. 85. A great enthusiasm to buy books was detected among children. The CLFN representative who distributed books among children had extensive interaction and counseling with the potential readers, and took an assessment of their interest and the type of publication they are looking forward to. More than two hundred children from rural localities visited the stall.

Thursday, February 14, 2008

Gorkha: A Symbol of Unity & Beauty

Friends! Do you have any special wish or dream? Go to the temple of Manakamana in Gorkha and pray to the Goddess. She will make your dream come true. The cable car service from Cheres to Manakamana not only entertains us, but also gives us a lot of excitement and pleasure.
Gorkha, the ancestral home of the Shah dynasty, is situated at a distance of 131 kilometers to the west of Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal, at an altitude of 1135 meters. Scholars believe that the district is named after the Hindu deity Gorakhnath. According to another source, the district had many kharkas or grasslands and the name Gokha developed as a corrupted form of kharka.
The total area of the district is 3610 square kilometers. The total population, according to the National Census 2001 AD, is 2,88,134 consisting of 1,34,407 males and 1,53,727 females. In this district sourrounded by Dhading in the east Tanahun to the south, Manang and Mustang to the west, and Tibet to the north, there are 66 village development committees and one municipality.
The old Royal Palace of King Prithvi Narayan Shah is situated on the top of a hill some thirty minutes walk from the main town. The Gorkha Durbar is visible from all around amidst the panoramic views of the surrounding valleys and the Manaslu range. The small town of Gorkha is famous as the original place of the Gorkha soldiers, known throughout the world for their bravery.
The Gurung and Ghale settlements in the northern part of the district really draw the attention of the tourists. Every year, a large number of domestic and foreign tourists visit the district to view its beauty, study its history, and express their wishes to Goddess Manakamana.
The district has been blessed by nature with fertile soil and very friendly environment for the growth of fruits and vegetables. The oranges of Gorkha are world-famous.

Dr. Achhyut Mani Acharya

A medicine man, visiting seven temples in seven daybreaks? How does it sound? There is more to come. With stethoscope and surgical instruments at hand, he recites Gita and picks invaluable spiritual and philosophical teachings of the great Lord Krishna. "I don?t eat anything till I feed corns to the bevy of pigeons that visit my courtyard every morning." This is his love for souls; this is his faith in the divinity of creation.
Dr. Achhyut Mani Acharya, a sixty six years old pediatrician, is a complex book in himself. He has so many inspiring facets of his personality. This is how he recollects his early life.
"I passed my babyhood in and around Chabahil, playing with lifelong friends like Ramesh Vikal and Vinod Dhungana. I recollect how the latter stole a coin from his father and fed bread to his group, when we were studying together at Padmodaya High School. Later, his father caught and named us "Pauroti gunda" (bread pirate)

" I lost my mother when I was two. I was never intimate with my father. Till I was grown up, I never knew who my father was. Once I even beat a man for asking me about my father when I believed, I had no any father. I used to call my father Dai and did not know that he was my progenitor. Emotionally too, we were never close. My grandmother took all my care and inspired me to pine for something great in life. She is the source of all my intellectual and spiritual health. She gave me the Gita which taught me how to look at the world."
"That was a wonderful time. It was haven. Although we lived in poverty and scarcity, we all knew and loved each other. True equality prevailed then. Everyone was everyone's near and dear one. The Bagmati carried pure water, where we would swim and quench our thirst. We could even pick up coins if they fell in it. Compare it with today's Bagmati. Impossible!"

"I had a literary talent but my profession as a doctor didn?t allow me to nurture it. Bal Krishna Sama gave me an award once and called me 'future poet'. Laxmi Prasad Devkota was my teacher and I used to pass times hearing his poems. Bhimnidhi Tiwari is another name, who encouraged me in literature.
Dr. Achyt loves old people and children. A large portion of his earning goes to the orphanages and old age care centers around the city. He visits them regularly, examines and treats them free of cost, distributes food, sweets and clothing.
He does not believe in accumulation of wealth. Spiritual fulfillment is in his priority. He believes that our great cultural and spiritual legacies should not corrode. Life, like the one we see in the west, is monotonous and tedious, because it has no spirituality in it, he believes. Life is a divine gift to do something for the country, for the family and for the society. Wealth is ephemeral, earn name and fame though the service of humanity. Learn to be happy with the little you have.