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I’m a 36-year-old medical doctor and there are lots of times when my job gets to me. First of all, I’m unable to manage time to relax and recharge. I don’t know if I’m not able to manage my schedule properly or if there is indeed very little time for anything else but work in my life. Then, a few weeks back, a patient whom my team and I were treating passed away. It’s not the first time something like that has happened. No one expects doctors to be affected by situations like that. But it’s getting increasingly difficult for me to stay calm. Seeing someone take their last breath disturbs me a lot. I need some suggestions on how I can handle this and keep up with my work at the same time. Please help!—A stressed doctor Answered by Kripa Acharya, counseling psychologist, Happy Minds First of all, I would really like to thank you for coming forward with your issue. As someone who works in the medical field, I know how hard it is to open up about our work related trauma. We try to hide or compartmentalize it even when it bothers us to our core.  Secondly, I want you to acknowledge that it is okay to feel this way. Death is already a difficult situation to deal with, and having to see it frequently can be traumatizing. A doctor’s job requires a lot of empathy, and sometimes when we get attached to our patients emotionally, it can get even more disturbing. But I want to assure you that you can always find a way to balance your mental health, emotions, as well as your work.  The first thing I want you to do is make a work schedule for yourself on a daily basis. Have a set plan for each day. And, in that schedule, include a task that doesn’t require you to be in a serious mode. Plan an activity that will let you relax, shut down your mind for a bit and just enjoy that moment. It can also align with your hobby. Maybe you can set a time for painting, practicing an instrument, or simply playing with children. You can also engage in some light conversations with people around you. But make sure it’s something that takes your mind off work, and lets you relax and goof around to give yourself space from all the work stress, and stick to this schedule.  Making time for therapy can also be a good solution. Maybe take an hour out of your week perhaps. Finding someone to share or listen to what you have been going through can really lift the burden off your chest. In case you don’t have time for therapy, journaling is the next best thing.  Also, find people who have been going through the same thing as you have. Even at your hospital, you might have come across colleagues who have been dealing with similar problems. Find a person like that who can relate with what you are going through. Both of you can share what’s on your minds with each other. This will help you realize that you are not alone in this. It will be like a support group for you and the other person you share your experiences with. This can work as an alternative for therapy if you aren’t able to visit a psychologist. But I do suggest you find some time from work to visit a therapist, especially if your work is really stressing you out. You have to find a way to deal with it before it spirals out of control.  

One of the most concerning issues for Nepal right now is climate change and every anomaly that comes attached to it. The weather is uncertain, several lands remain barren, and most of all, pollution has gone off the charts. With the federal election coming up, the public does expect to see some mention of climate change and ways of addressing its effect in parties’ manifestos. True, this time, there are a lot of changes that could be seen in the politics of Nepal. After the win of Balen Shah, several independent candidates have decided to run in the federal election. And new parties like the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), which have promised to eschew the old political culture, have gained considerable limelight. But none of these candidates or parties—both new and old—have nuanced and informed views on climate change and addressing its impacts. While several of these parties and candidates have committed to working on these issues in case of winning the election, most of those commitments are either surficial or far-fetched, say the experts. Talking about impracticality, when analyzing the manifesto of the RSP, some of their promises seem impossible to follow through. “They have mentioned putting a zero tax on electric vehicles (EV), which is impossible, as it is one of the sources for our revenues,” says Vijay Kant Karna, a political analyst. Bhushan Tuladhar, environmentalist, echoes Karna’s sentiment. He says that with that big of a change, the country will have to work on making proper roads suitable for EV, a proper supply of electricity, feasible workshops, and most of all, enough charging stations. “It is too much to do at once,” he says. “They could have instead promised to raise the tax on fossil-fuel run vehicles to encourage people to buy EVs and gradually move up the ladder than do everything at once.” The party has further mentioned establishing a Sewage Treatment Plant which will be used to clean up the sewage coming from every household, and also mandate every manufacturing industry to establish a chemical waste treatment center before the industrial waste is dumped into the river. Though the plan is good and can be realized, Karna says, he is worried about the age-old tendency of Nepali political parties and their leaders reneging on the election promises made to their voters. Established parties like the Nepali Congress, CPN-UML, and CPN (Maoist Center) have barely scratched the surface of climate issues on their manifestos. Congress has promised to work on making Nepal net zero by 2045. But that is already a global commitment made by Nepal. “Why not commit to something that could be addressed within the next five years?” says Karna. The commitments made by the UML and the Maoists are similar and perfunctory in nature, lacking in imagination. Both parties talk about nature and environmental protection. “If you study their manifestos, these parties are using heavy words and hollow jargons to deceive voters,” says Bishnu Dahal, political analyst. Many experts are critical of the political parties regarding their climate change pledge because of their decision to cut down almost 2.4m trees in the name of building an international airport in Nijgadh, which is a home for sati sal trees dating back to 400 years. Had the tree felling plan gone ahead, it would have resulted in the loss of several rare flora and fauna, causing an irreversible disturbance in the ecosystem. “How do we believe that they are pro-nature and pro-environment protection when they made a conscious decision to destroy the forest in Nijgadh?” asks Karna. The parties have also failed to address the closest matter at hand: reducing pollution in the capital city. “Going through all these manifestos, what disappoints me the most is that none of them have mentioned a single thing about dealing with the pollution even in the capital city,” says Dahal. While the RSP  does state that they will be coordinating with India to prevent inland pollution issues, Tuladhar says their priority should be reducing pollution in Kathmandu. Climate expert Madhukar Upadhya says, “If the parties were so concerned about the environment, why is there no mention of promoting ropeways instead of roads?” A study done by Ropeway Nepal shows that Nepal has the capacity to cater up to 2,000 ropeways, which would cost much cheaper than making a highway on the same route. Feasibility tests have been done on 62 of those possibilities, but Nepal only has five operational ropeways for human transportation and somewhere around a dozen gravity ropeways for goods’ transportation. With this potential, Nepal could easily shift to a ropeway system, which would decrease the use of fossil fuel-run transportation at an affordable cost. “But none of the parties have done any research on mitigating the climate change effect,” says Upadhya. “They have used climate change as an excuse to make their manifestos a bit more fancy.” Dahal agrees with Upadhya. “These manifestos are highfalutin, flights of fancy, utterly removed from reality.” Dahal says that parties are more focused on having the same solution for the many impacts of climate change. “Our country is geologically diverse. Solutions that work in the Tarai might not fit for the problem in the hill or the mountain regions.” Upadhya says the parties have not consulted experts or relied on research papers to come up with climate pledges in their manifestos. “These are uninformed pedestrian strategies.” Karna goes on to venture that the parties do not have any knowledge about climate change. Meanwhile, Tuladhar remains cautiously optimistic. “There is at least the mention of the terms like ‘climate’ and ‘nature protection’, which you would not find in past election manifestos,” he says. “We could still expect some change if the political parties actually work on some of the practical commitments they have mentioned.” Key points on parties’ manifesto regarding climate change  Nepali Congress

• Will work on the global commitment of achieving net zero carbon by 2045 and a roadmap of the green economy will be developed
• Will establish Climate Change Research Center

• Will work on forest and environment protection
• Will ensure policies for climate adaptation and disaster management

• Will formulate rules for nature protection and climate change effects’ mitigation
• Will create an environment-friendly sustainable infrastructure in the rural areas

• Will imply zero tax on electric vehicle
• Will research for alternatives to plastic

The CPN (Maoist Center) unveiled its election manifesto last week, where it advocates for a directly elected president and fully proportional election systems. With these propositions, the party says the current governing and electoral systems, embraced by the constitution, are hindrances to Nepal’s growth and stability. And it is not just the Maoist party batting for a new model of government and election. Janata Samajbadi Party Nepal, too, has proposed the same thing in its election manifesto. The Maoist Center and Janata Samajbadi have both suggested making amendments to the constitution to introduce presidential and fully proportional election systems. The Nepali Congress, which takes pride in portraying itself as a staunch supporter of parliamentary system of government, has also hinted at amending the constitution in its manifesto to ensure balance of power and prosperity. Constitutional expert Chandrakanta Gyawali says the talk of changing the existing government and voting systems in the election manifestos of these parties smack of the betrayal of the trust people have placed on these political parties. “The parties have barely implemented the constitution since it was promulgated. Where did this talk about amending the constitution come from?” Gyawali adds: “These are the same parties that endorsed the constitution and its provisions. They will be deceiving the voters if they are really considering changing the government and election systems, which have been barely implemented.” The constitution was approved by more than 90 percent members of the Constituent Assembly in 2015. Experts say the constitution is not even 10 years old and it has not been exercised properly to determine whether it is good or not. “To change the system of governance, which was determined by the people of Nepal, will only invite instability. It is the political parties who need to change,” says Nilamber Acharya, one of the drafters of the constitution. “The parties are trying to hide their own incompetence by faulting the constitution and the system of governance.” The Maoist Center has termed the current system of governance a failure and proposed amendments to the constitution to ensure political stability, peace and prosperity. It has also described the current mixed electoral system as costly and corruptible, which has caused disenchantment among the masses. Other political forces like Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP), CPN (Unified Socialist) Nepal Independent Party have also claimed that the current constitution is limiting the country from achieving political stability and economic growth. RPP has called for a directly elected prime minister and scrapping federalism, while Unified Socialist has called for doing away with the mixed electoral system. “These are impractical issues that should not be in an election manifesto,” says Gyawali. “An election manifesto should contain those issues that the respective party will do, or things it will improve in the next five years.” Furthermore, in order to amend the constitution, a party must have a two-thirds majority in parliament, which not a single party contesting the November 20 elections is likely to secure. Constitutional expert Bipin Adhikari says the election manifestos of the parties are removed from the current reality and the existing state of affairs. “To amend the constitution, you have to have a strong government, the opposition should also approve of it, and, most importantly, there should be a popular mandate,” says Adhikari. “All these things are impossible with the way these parties are contesting the polls as electoral allies. They are simply trying to confuse the people with the talks about changing the governance and electoral systems.”

Asterdio is a software outsourcing company established in 2016. It serves as a technology and design partner, with a workforce of more than seventy specialists, for its client companies. The company provides a full spectrum of solutions for developing custom software, including web and mobile development, product design, DevOps services, quality assurance, and branding and identity design. For years, Asterdio has been helping clients in need of PHP and JavaScript development, which makes it a real powerhouse when it comes to these technologies. “We believe in the power of design,” says Binit Sharma, CEO of Asterdio. “In order to fulfill our client's goals, we foster a welcoming environment where professionals have access to the tools needed to create the finest digital experiences.” Sharma studied IT in Malaysia and worked at a few start-ups there before returning to Nepal in 2014. “I worked for a couple of businesses here as well, but I was never satisfied,” he says. “I've always been passionate about new technology and product design. So I started Asterdio six years ago. ” Sharma founded Asterdio concurrently with his first startup, Basobaas, a digital marketplace for real estate. Asterdio has two operational models. The first is project outsourcing, and the second is human resources. Project outsourcing is managing the entire project for a specified period of time, delivering the finished product after usually starting from zero. The second is outsourcing human resources, like frontend engineer and quality assurance engineer, to its clients. Although the company is based in Nepal, the majority of its clients are based abroad. Sharma says though Asterdio mostly works with international clients, which generates a significant number of remittances, managing them is challenging due to a lack of adequate government rules.  “There are several challenges, mostly arising due to political instability and a lack of regulations and policies in the industry.’’  In the global technology market, Sharma says Nepal is almost insignificant for outsourcing.  “This is due to our lack of experience in the field. International clients often choose India, Vietnam, or China to outsource their operations,” he says. “The other issue is the migration of young people to foreign countries.”  Asterdio got into its stride during the covid lockdown. The company was among the few companies capable of implementing work-from-home policies.  “As a tech business that mostly deals with foreign clients, we already had work-from-home policies. So implementing them during the lockdown wasn't particularly difficult,” says Sharma. “In fact, we got two of our most important clients during the lockdown.” Sharma says one should do adequate research in order to start a business, and it can be a product for Nepal or abroad.  “A balance should be maintained between the product's quality and how the company markets itself,” he says. “A person who wants to start a successful business in Nepal needs to be persistent and must not give up easily.”