Several readers didn’t agree with my suggestion that the government should pay more money for the land that they are acquiring behind the Tashichhodzong. “Dorji Drolo” favours increasing the land rates only for the original inhabitants of Hejo, but fiercely opposes increases for the others, most of who would have purchased the land at much [...]
It’s autumn. And the Tashichhodzong, when viewed from the North, looks beautiful. Tidy terraced fields, lush with golden paddy present a perfect foreground for Thimphu’s auspicious dzong. Many generations of travelers before us would have, no doubt, taken in almost exactly the same tranquil view. And thanks to the government’s plans to maintain that lovely [...]
According to Business Bhutan, Nu 150 billion worth of Bhutanese lottery tickets were printed illegally every year in the Indian state of Kerala alone. That’s a lot of money by any measure. But to get a proper sense of how much Nu 150 billion really is, consider that our entire GDP is only about Nu [...]
Our government has started to campaign for non-permanent membership of the UN Security Council. Is this a good idea? Take the poll that asks: “Should Bhutan lobby to join the UN Security Council?”
During the last session of the Parliament I asked the prime minister to explain what Mckinsey were doing that couldn’t be done by our own civil servants. Subsequently, I ran a poll that asked you “Are civil servants impressed with McKinsey’s work?” Of the 569 who took the poll, 408 (or 72%) replied with a [...]
I’m impressed at the government’s readiness to abide by the law. Bhutan Today (whose website has been woefully inadequate) had recently reported that: The prime minister has ordered the information and communication ministry to pay about Nu 2.3 million in penalty for not following the environmental impact assessment (EIA) procedures in the construction of the [...]
Earlier this year, in “Mining our business”, I’d explained why it would be unlawful for the government to permit L&T, Gammon and HCC to operate stone quarries for the Punatshangchhu hydropower project. I don’t know for sure, but it looks like L&T, Gammon and HCC are now not operating the stone quarries. That is very [...]
The prime minister, in his State of the Nation address, on employment: I am pleased to report to the Hon’ble Members that a total of 320,900 are now employed. This shows that 96.69% of our workforce is employed leaving an unemployment rate of 3.3%, marking a downward movement for the first time in recent years. [...]
The prime minister, in his State of the Nation address, reporting to the Parliament on foreign relations: My trips to India, Japan and Italy this year were also very useful in deepening our relations with these countries. I agree. But, the prime minister understated his international travel account. The following, in fact, is a record [...]
The projected order of business for the Fifth Session of the First Parliament for Bhutan had, among many others, the following two entries: Thursday, July 1: Presentation of the Annual Report on the State of the Nation, including Legislative Plans and the Annual Plans and Priorities of the Government, to the Druk Gyalpo and to [...]
Tshering Tobgay is a Member of Parliament representing Sombaykha Constitutency in Haa. He is the Leader of the Opposition Party in the National Assembly of Bhutan.
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