Barely Surviving: the Karnali River and Forest Corridor

This article was published on Republica - popular Nepali national daily. Link to this article  http://www.myrepublica.com/portal/index.php?action=news_details&news_id=56687 Please note that the views expressed here are personal.

“Let a female tiger in India make love to a male tiger in Nepal,” sang Bhadai Tharu, a local conservationist from Bardia. His song underlines an important fact. Like all other species, tigers too need genetic diversity in order to survive. Inbreeding reduces their chances of survival and with the added complication of climate change, how do we ensure that Indian and Nepali tigers meet?

One way to do it is to create conservation corridors to preserve habitat connectivity, enabling wildlife to move from one place to another. The corridor concept started to gain currency with Nepal’s conservationists during the mid-1990s. Before that, conservation efforts tended to focus on important species such as rhinos and tigers. A fortress-style approach was used, with national parks and protected areas set up to ‘contain’ the wildlife. The corridor concept forms part of the landscape approach to conservation, which works to address the challenges of habitat fragmentation and habitat isolation by looking at the broad interconnectedness of ecological systems. The approach also seeks to promote integrated ecosystem management that takes into account the socio-economic, political, and cultural needs of local communities. The Terai Arc Landscape was the first to be recognized by the government in April 2001. Corridors play a crucial role in the landscape approach as they provide trans-boundary connectivity for wildlife as well.

Although four such trans-boundary corridors already exist and are recognized by the Nepal Government, there is an urgent need for an additional corridor to connect Bardia National Park in Nepal to Katerniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary in India. This will be called the Karnali River and Forest corridor. The corridor will follow the western tributary of the Karnali River, which branches out from Chisapani Bazar in Baliya VDC and covers an area of 14,618.5 hectares.

Photo Credit: WWF, Hariyo Ban Program/Pallavi Dhakal

As the name suggests, this will be the first river and forest corridor in Nepal, facilitating the movement of both terrestrial and aquatic animals, notably the threatened Gangetic dolphin and gharial populations. The corridor provides both north-south and east-west connectivity which will be of particular help in the western stretches of the Churia hills. This additional corridor will also shore up protection for the entire Karnali River ecosystem in combination with the Khata corridor which lies to the east.

Both the (existing) Khata corridor and the (proposed) Karnali corridor facilitate the north-south movement of mega species such as rhinos, tigers and elephants. "If we do not intervene immediately, the long term viability of the narrow strip of forest that still exists in the Karnali corridor is put into question," says Dr. Shant Raj Jnawali, Biodiversity Coordinator for the USAID funded Hariyo Ban Program. Dr. Jnawali’s fears are well-placed given the many challenges the area is facing, the most serious of which is the massive encroachment of forest land and river beds in the southernmost section of the corridor near the Nepal-India border. This wholesale encroachment has almost caused the corridor to be split in two.

The ongoing development of infrastructure presents further challenges. The east-west Mahendra  Highway passes  through  the Karnali  corridor  at  Baliya VDC, fragmenting a major patch of forest in the Churia hills and a narrow  strip  of  forest  in the Terai. The ongoing World Bank supported Rani Jamara Kulariya irrigation canal project also bisects the forest corridor.  This physical barrier will have direct impacts on the north-south movement of wildlife. The canal will eventually pass through almost all of the corridor-adjoining VDCs in Kailali district. A hydropower project has been proposed upstream of the corridor on the Karnali River at Chisapani and if ever built, would very seriously affect the ecosystems in both the corridor and Bardia National Park. The proposed Indian funded Hulaki Highway connecting Nepalgunj and Dhangadhi, if constructed, will pass through the lower part of the corridor, fragmenting the habitat further and threatening the very existence of wildlife in the area, let alone their free movement.

Photo Credit: WWF, Hariyo Ban Program/Pallavi Dhakal

"While national development is essential, we need to be careful, because this is a corridor of international importance. Any infrastructure development in this corridor should be designed in such a way that it will have minimum impact," says Santosh Mani Nepal, Director of the Policy and Support Program at WWF Nepal. “WWF Nepal strongly recommends that the government either elevates the part of the Hulaki Highway where it passes through the corridor, or runs it underground,” he continues. “This is essential for the safe movement of wildlife, and for safeguarding the ecological functionality of the corridor.”

An Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) seeks to evaluate the effects that a project will have on the surrounding environment; it also recommends steps to be taken to minimize negative effects. One can only wonder about the recommendations made by the EIA carried out for the canal and highway projects. Considering that in Nepal, highways have been routed through national parks and other protected areas, let us hope that the EIA carried out for the Karnali projects are not being used simply to justify project interventions.

The many successful conservation efforts being carried out by different organizations in the Karnali corridor will be unable to address critical ecological issues without strong government support. The corridor must be conserved by strong community engagement, supported with robust policy back-up. The participation of local communities in conservation initiatives is after all imperative.  If only there were more local heroes like Bhadai Tharu to save the Karnali river and forest corridor. He has achieved so much in the neighboring Khata corridor which is well-maintained by local communities. And his passion for tigers continues, despite losing an eye in the tiger attack. “Let us not break the love between the Indian and the Nepali tigers,” he sings, “let us not block their free passage, let them meet and make love.”

अमर न्यौपानेको सेतो धरती

Seto Dharti by Amar Neupane
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

खोई कहाँ बाट यस किताबको समीक्षा लेखुँ | आँखाबाट आँसु झार्दै किताब पढ्न शुरु गरे | अमर न्यौपानेले सार्है मिठो र सजिलो भाषामा लेखेका छन् यो किताब | हाम्रो रूढ़िगत संस्कृति र पारंपरिक सोचका कारण महिलाले भोग्नु परेका पिंडा, विशेषगरी बाल्बिध्वाका संघर्ष र जीवनका बारेमा सार्है मार्मिक र प्रेरणादायी ढङ्गमा लेखेका छन् | मैले यस पुस्तकका पात्र तारा, पवित्रा र यमुनाका कथाबाट बिशेष गरेर जीवन र समयको महत्व बारे बुझे |जीवन छोटो लामो जे भने पनि, समय रोक्न सकिन्न, हेर्दा हेर्दै मान्छे बच्चा देखी जवान र बुढो हुन्छ | ताराले जब पवित्राको जीवनको बारे मा थाहा पाउछिन्, उनले पछि पवित्रलाई घृणा नगरी श्रद्धाले हेर्छिन् ... किनभने वास्तवमा जीवनको सहि आन्नद तेस्को भोग गरेर मात्रै हुने रहेछ, जीवनलाई बुझ्ने तरिका पनि तेही नै रहेछ | हरेक कुराको लागि जीवनमा एउटा समय आउछ, तेस बेला त्यसको सहि उपयोग गर्नु नै हाम्रो धर्म रहेछ |

ताराले पवित्राको जीवनलाई यसरी विश्लेषण गर्छिन् .... "आफै रित्तिएर, खुईलिएर उमेर र समय ताप र राफले उडाएर लैजाने जीवनको रङ्गहरुलाई उनले कति कुशलतापूर्वक उपयोग गर्न जानेकी | करारी त्यसो गर्न सकेकी? उनले के भोगिनन् ? ....... वास्तवमा भोगेर नै जिन्दगीका दागहरु मेटिने रहेछन् क्यारे |"

अन्तयमा :

..धर्तिमा नँया मान्छेहरु आउदै पुराना मान्छेहरु जाने क्रम चलिरहेछ | हेर्दा हेर्दै हेर्ने आँखालाई नै पुरानो बनाएर एउटा बालक किशोर हुन्छ, किशोर जवान हुन्छ, जवान प्रौढ हुन्छ प्रौढ बुढो हुन्छ | तर,बुढो प्रौढ हुँदैन, प्रौढ जवान हुँदैन ...



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Misunderstanding

You deny, I doubt
You explain, I’m confused 

You shout, I scream
You beg, I retreat 

I assume, I cry
You defend, you try 

I condemn, I curse
You blame, you label 

I’m shaken, I’m hurt
You’re angry, you’re upset 

I reflect, you regret
I give up, you give in 

Now both grieving and repenting 
But none commencing or complying

With broken heart
And broken relation

What did we get, with this aggression!

What are you going to do?

Saraswati Subedi mysteriously dead in her home in Anamnagar! Sita raped and robbed off her hard earned money by a security personnel at the TIA! But these are just few recent incidences, there have been worst cases in the past.

WOREC reports 443 cases of rapes annually in Nepal ( i.e. roughly 3 girls in every 2 days) but this is a low number given that many girls do not report rape cases due to shame and humiliation. There is up to ten years of imprisonment given the severity of a rape case by the Nepalese law but most often this is not acted upon and rapists are running free secured by a meager fine amount.

The most hilarious part of our Muluki Ain 2020 BS is that if a prostitute is raped a fine of NRs 500 is enough. For marital rape only 3 months imprisonment. It is as though a prostitute and a wife are less affected by the same heinous act. However one exemplary part about our law is the Defense of Chastity where a rape victim has the right to defend her chastity against the assailant, in course of which she may even kill the assailant within one hour and wont be liable for his death.

It is about time we understand what kind of laws protect females of this national and whether these existing laws provide justice to the heinous crime called RAPE. Perhaps the laws need revisiting or perhaps the laws need to be acted upon severely. Either way, first we need to know what laws exist, so that we can stand up and speak about it!!

The Non-Conformists

Sex is natural to all of us. It is in our being. However, in our culture discussing about it is a stigma. In the very words of Osho who approaches Sex as a science, ‘It is our life source. And the more we try to repress sex the more power it will have over us’. Not that I am propagating sex or Osho, however, one might argue as to why something so fundamental cannot be discussed out in open? 

The ‘social animals’ that humans are, we have our  habits, desires, beliefs as well as sexual attitudes and behaviours shaped by the very society into which we are born. This explains the reason as to why approach to sex in South Asia is different than in the Middle East and the West. While the West is more open about sex, the Middle East frowns and the Asian countries are tight-lipped about it. It exists but almost like a ghost. In our society whether you are a man or a woman, talking openly about sex brings disgrace. However, since our social and cultural norms endorse Men as the privileged gender in the normative sense, they do have the opportunity to get exposed to information and exchange opinions about sex. Women can undoubtedly do so as well but they would certainly be ostracized if they didn’t choose their audience wisely. 

Seema Pandey, 24, from Nepal blames the patriarchal structure for forbidding women to enjoy sex by categorizing those who show interest towards it as ‘bad or promiscuous’. Many times it is the notion of virginity before marriage that controls the expression of sexuality in women. The cultural and religious upbringing can stifle sexual explorations and even load people with feelings of shame and being impure. And many times this is how a young Nepali girl feels.  

Nouran Hassan from Egypt adds , “It is okay for men to have sex before marriage and they get away with it -- there is no hymen that breaks when they lose their virginity nor do they get pregnant should they end up having unprotected sex.”  Also, it is assumed that the women's appetite for sex is low because of which women remain silent about their sexual needs. They mostly submit to the desires of men instead of satisfying their own. Many do not even know what orgasm is and fewer know that they can even have multiple orgasms or are capable of female ejaculation. 

However, though this might stay true in wider sense, we have seen that things are changing especially in urban Nepal. The sexual revolution that had started in the west seems to be seeping slowly. Today in a married relationship, sex is discussed beyond procreation to something that is beautiful, something that gives both physical and emotional intimacy. We also see that the younger generation is being more open about their sexuality. There is even the realization among girls that having sex before marriage is not an act of eternal damnation. 

22–year-old student Sita (name changed) says, “I lost my virginity when I was 17. It was my first and so was my boy friends’, we struggled but we enjoyed the sex.” Like Sita there are many young couples in Kathmandu and major cities of Nepal who admit to having intimate relationship. Another 26-year- old girl adds, “Why should I have to wait? If guys can do it when they are unmarried why can’t I? Besides, I don’t think men care much these days if you are a virgin or not. It is my right to enjoy sex with the person I love - before or after marriage”. 

Much of the changes we see today have to be credited to education and exposure. Education can play a vital role in providing guidance and confidence to women as well as men regarding sexual behaviour and attitude.  Especially for women, sex education is very important, particularly because they have the risk of getting pregnant. Bipana (name changed), 24, says that she has many friends who are young and are sexually active. But when it comes to taking precaution, many of them know very little. She claims to have witnessed couple of her friends going through abortion and the entire psychological trauma. For this reason too, it is necessary for young people to have knowledge on safe sex before engaging  in sexual activities. Unprotected and unsafe sexual behaviour is neither good for an adult or a young person. 

Though things are changing in Nepal, we should understand that in each society the sexual norms are rooted in the complex network of its laws, traditions and norms. Similarly, a change in sexual behaviour can also affect these very cultural and social norms that we might have benefited from. Consequently, no sexual revolution will do much good if it does not take heed of the historic and cultural intricacies. 

On the other hand, if there are disparities imposed by these exact norms then certainly, as the pattern suggest, there will be resistance and change sought. Females from urban Nepal are coming out of their conventional shell. Many though shy to admit are involved in sexual acts before marriage and no matter how much we try to smother this reality it will prevail. They admit openly to loving and enjoying sex as much as men. The key now is to act less like a hypocrite and more like a human. By acknowledging this change and by educating them about sex, we keep our younger generation safe and less susceptible.

The Normality of Subtle Discrimination

I have to admit I don’t like walking in the streets of Kathmandu at all. No I am not being snobbish; I have my reasons to feel precarious about the streets even in the daylight. As an adolescent I recall crying to my mother for all the eve-teasing I’ve had to endure. My self-esteem was broken and it took me a while to renew my confidence. I blamed my oddly tall Nepali height only to later learn that I was wrong. Yesterday, I thought I would go for a walk. I was rather positive given that this year I was not splashed with even one water balloon in Holi nor were any of my friends. And after months of stay in London and years of avoiding the streets of Kathmandu as a media person in Nepal, I thought things would have changed. To my dismay it is yet the same.

Even today while walking, a random person will dash close to compare his height and flaunt a reckless sexual remark. Such understated yet powerful discrimination that can have adverse impact on those affected is deep rooted in our society. It comes from the very way we are raised and educated and how we as a society fail to respond to these discriminatory incidents. Forgive me if I project that all men are like this. I’d be a stark fool if I say so. There are plenty of good men whose support cannot be understated. I have seen men respecting women as equals and fighting for their rights when needed and most importantly competing with them as contemporaries. We need men like this especially in our patriarchal society and I wish there were more of them. 

One might argue that things have changed and I agree. Overt and blatant discrimination is much reduced. Besides, such direct prejudices worry me far less than some more subtle, subconscious ones. Convert discrimination that are invisible on the surface is very prevalent. No matter how much we try to avoid, it propels in our work space, home, lifestyle and our culture. What disturbs me even more is the very fact that we women ourselves tend to promote this. For example, we sub-consciously equate “distinguished” with “men”. I realized myself that when I had to list prominent media personalities in Nepal, I ended up with a male list. Given that there are many talented female media professionals how did this happen? The same thing happened with many of my other female friends who are doctors, engineers and bankers. How can we get mad at men for not treating us as their counterparts when we ourselves don’t! Women in general should first stop judging other women as not equals and we ourselves should also not devalue our own potential and self-image.


I have learned, after being offensively groped in a street festival, physically molested on my way to school and verbally abused in front of my friends in a rafting trip that women in general especially in a society such as ours need to be smart and intense. This is not an exceptional story my friends and I would feel offended should you sympathize. If at all, let’s acknowledge and educate ourselves. Understand that it is our sisters and daughters who suffer and importantly through the behaviour of our own father and brother. These maliciously motivated occurrences are endless. A mid-aged man will sickeningly stare at your chest making you feel uneasy, a group of teenagers will throw an undignified statement, an onlooker will whistle or sing a cheesy song and a seemingly innocent man will try to fumble you as you pass by. And what do we do? The very fact that we in general have accepted such behaviour as mundane and natural makes me believe that we have internalized the culture of patriarchalism. Such ignorance reiterates the patriarchal system that creates and expects certain codes of behaviour that denies feminine identity—denies, the very fact, that such an identity might even exist. 

Benokraitis (1997) notes that subtle sex discrimination is what to many people are `normal', `natural', or `acceptable' behaviours and responses. For example we know women are eve-teased by men and this is something normal in our society. However, just because you are a man does not mean you have the right to tease a woman and just because you are a woman doesn’t mean you should tolerate it either. This subject of gender discrimination has been discussed on various lengths by many different experts and scholars. It is covered so much that we feel like it is overrated. But the fact is ‘gender discrimination’ subsists. We just need to open our eyes and see our surroundings in a different light. May be if we retake a second glance and question ourselves ‘perhaps I overlooked it in my first pass?’ possibly then we would see. Accordingly, the first thing to do as individuals either male or female would be to acknowledge that there is a problem and then only can we take the next step to solve it altogether. 

It took music to find Native love in London

(This article was published on the Living Magazine. You can also find this article on http://living.com.np/feature_detail.php?a_id=431)

Photo Credit: Karuna Gurung

It was definitely a much colder night than usual in London, I thought and regretted having said yes to Chanda. My fingers were feeling numb for I was holding the phone trying to Google direction to the Japanese restaurant called Akasiro. This was where the secret Nepali gig was happening and since it was my very first native gathering in London, I was looking forward to it. However, I also had another dinner plan later in the night with college friends; so I was a bit frantic. It had been more than an hour already and we were still going round in circles in Piccadilly Circus. I felt hopeless, knowing that I would have to make my friends wait for dinner and also disappoint Chanda for having to leave early. After a good amount of walking and disagreeing, we did eventually find the place.

The entrance had a note with a rough handwriting indicating that it was a private party. The place was rather small so we directly headed to the basement. At a corner, a few musical instruments and speakers were being set up while at the other end, young Nepali were murmuring bashfully in Nepali and British English. I thought to myself that I would leave soon but the night had something else in store.

Slowly the artists began to arrive and the crowd grew in number. People began to sit on the floor to accommodate newer arrivals without any word being whispered to them. Thirty minutes in and we were all behaving like a big family, bonded by the very fact that we were Nepali, gathered for a good laugh and a good traditional music.

The gig commenced with Nattu aka Nottie star telling her story through jokes and songs. A talented young girl with a smoothing vocal whom I believe is also better suited for a stand up comedian. You can find her in YouTube, she is hilarious. There were many other talented performers from London that night like JPT rockerz, Sonam Lama, Karuna feat Yellow Ink, and Bhunatic & Mastamind. They all sang various songs. And while Nabin Gurung was crooning Narayan Gopal’s Kehi Mitho baat gara we all seemed to have drifted to a small village in Nepal.

Although earlier I sensed a haughtiness of some kind in the crowd, I understand now that it possibly came from the very fact that most of these Nepali are descendents of the brave Gurkhas who have long been serving the British Army. Recognised for their bravery, ferocity and strength of character, I felt a sense of pride being in their presence. We all felt some kind of affinity for one another based on our common ancestry. The sense of connection among us was very intense and the best part of it was that it all came so easily. The fact that we were Nepali in a foreign land sharing similar culture and language is what connected us. After all, how much of what we really are is based on roots and that can take quite a struggle to change.

Being in Nepal we have a propensity to overlook many good and important things our heritage carries. We tend to take for granted our culture, tradition and customs and are easily attracted by western lifestyle and philosophy. Perhaps, Nepal is not the best country in the world and yes it might have its share of problems. However, it should not take us away from our land to remind us about its significance or an outsider’s fascination towards our country to acknowledge its uniqueness.


My greatest lesson out of this small gathering was, no matter how dysfunctional or messy we might think our country is, it is where our identity is attached to and that can never change. This feeling was reflected among the faces of the non-resident Nepali that night. We talked nostalgically and romantically about our proud legacy which we hardly did when back in Nepal.

I recall that night and remember the unique faces, faces that I had never seen before and yet retain the pleasant feeling of solidarity. I know for a fact that at that moment in space we all felt special being Nepali and the love and pride for our root was as high as the peak of Mount Everest, and it took a small Nepali gig in London to remind us that.