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Bike-packing? Do you mean we ride, spend the night in a tent and cook our supper—no lodge or teahouse? It sounded wild—but exciting. Shishir, my cycling companion, nodded. He proposed a ride to Gupteswor Mahadev, some 30 km away in Dhading.  

I was skeptical, though; I always keep my riding trips light. The tent and stuff meant heavier backpacks—way out of my comfort zone. But I still gave it a ‘yes’. 

It has been 35 years since I last camped out. Guess what! That time, the first thing my wife and I learned in the morning was that we had chosen, of all places, a cemetery ground to pitch our tent. 

Coming to the present, after Ramkot, the dirt track turned due south. As we climbed on, we got a bird’s eye view of the sprawling town. Terraced rice fields next to the burgeoning houses lent a breath of greenery to the township. Dense Nagarjun hills commanded the northern skyline. 

If early post-monsoon riding has its downside in muddy stretches and unlooked-for rains, it’s also the time lush-green landscapes beckon with open arms.   

Around 1pm, we headed up a steep wooded hill to Nursery Bhanjhyang (pass). At the crest, there was a tin shack that served as an eatery. We were not very hopeful about dal-bhat, our favorite; and indeed, we had to settle for egg-veg-noodle soup.   

As Shishir busied himself with the camera, clicking at random, I scrutinized the dense woods around, trying to single out the species of trees—not very successfully, though.  

At one spot, I noticed a landslip that had taken massive chunks off the greenery from the chain of verdant hills, showing hideous scars—reminding a fair-skinned face of a lady disfigured by burns.  

That was a common sight throughout our trip. What was to blame—deforestation, massive stone-quarrying, land-plotting, newly dug roads, or everything thrown in together? I wondered. 

Voilà, our steaming hot noodle soup arrived and we wolfed it down in a mighty hurry. The host turned out to be a pleasant fellow, forthcoming and conversant. We struck up a conversation and I asked him what trees they had in Nursery Bhanjhyang.  

I got bowled over when he recounted the whole shebang in a single breath: Kafal (bayberry or box myrtle), Katus (chestnut), Rhododendron, Utis (Nepalese alder), Chilaune (Needlewood, Schima Wallichi), Kapur (camphor), Saur (Betula alnoides), Chaamp (Magnolia Champaca), and different species of pine.  

The mention of Seti Kath (wood) caught my interest. “It’s a hardwood used in sickle, hammer, and ax handles,” he said. After a filling meal and an enlightening chat, we hopped onto our saddles again.   

The dirt track got progressively muddier, and trickier. The rustic setting remained unchanged, green with sparse habitation, copses of wood, and rice terraces that dropped to the foothills. We left behind clusters of roadside villages with forested hillsides.  

Next, we stopped at Damdame, a small Tamang settlement, for tea and a brief rest. Our bikes, caked in red mud, looked queer. My Trek’s disc-rotor squealed funny every time I squeezed my brakes—Shishir’s Giant was none the worse. A massive tree stood by the shack, doubling as a tea-shop and living quarters. 

An elderly Tamang lady appeared, and we asked her for tea. She barked the order to two young women, one presumably was her offspring and the other a daughter-in-law. A young lad by the side turned out to be her grandson. I went for a second cup and biscuits while chatting with the old lady. 

Curiosity had me asking the widowed septuagenarian, Dev Maya Tamang, about the hoary tree. She told me it was a Chiuri (Indian butter tree). “It has been there since I was a toddler,” she said. I learned that Chiuri seeds produce ghee.  

Man-o-man, Dev Maya seemed mighty chatty for her age, even had her hair dyed jet-black. She got married when she was just 10. Even her body language created a feel-good vibe. I consider myself a jokester, always up to some wisecrack—but she beat me to it every time.  

After refreshing cups of tea and a lively chinwag at Damdame, we bid farewell to the ladies, particularly the 77-year-old Dev Maya. I’d hit it off well with her the next time we met. 

I had to admit, albeit miles from urban comfort, the village folks were insatiably curious, smiled profusely, got into playful jabs, and carried a remarkable sense of humor even in deprivation. 

The little time spent with the chatty Tamang lady at Damdame made me forget my aching muscles from the long, grueling ride—and off we went again. 

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A 69-km cross-border pipeline with a capacity to supply to Nepal two million metric tonnes of petroleum products a year.

What’s the big deal? Per ancient tales, King Bhagirath brought the river Ganga to Planet Earth from the heavens without much pomp and show.

That was cakewalk. That was a gravity-flow water supply system, modern-day engineers are likely to argue.    

Well, the Homo sapiens of this day and age are a bit different (About the ways of Bhagirath, we don’t know much). We go for easy things. We take things like time, effort and money into account.

Consider the alignment of the pipeline. The pipeline originates at Motihari, at an altitude of 66 meters, passes through Raxaul (78 meters), the Parsa national park in Nepal and culminates at an altitude of 303 meters in Amlekhgunj where Nepal has one of her vital fuel storage and distribution infrastructure.

For a country of eight-thousanders, 300-meter elevation is no big deal. That’s beside the point here. The point to note is the difference in altitude between the pipeline’s start and end points.

What’s more, the government is quite serious about extending the pipeline all the way up, literally, to Kathmandu via Chitwan (Lothar).

Defies logic?

Let’s take Thankot (Kathmandu) as the endpoint of the to-be-extended pipeline.

Even our planners, policymakers, ministers and government officials know that Thankot is way above sea-level. They know that it qualifies to be a mountain of sorts (or do they not?).

It’s quite difficult and costly to transport goods, fossil fuel included, to the hills and mountains. Well, that is what this Hillian read and also experienced in his school days. But this does not mean our mountains should be devoid of vikas (development). As for vikas, successive governments have been as serious as India’s Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, whose rallying cry is ‘Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas’. Yours truly shall not dare translate this gem of a slogan, for his words are all too shallow.

What better way to bring vikas to the mountains than in the form of a cross-border petroleum pipeline?

The skeptics may argue: Why build petroleum pipelines in a country with a good, if not huge, hydropower potential? Pipelines are costly, time-consuming and take a lot of effort.

Why not? Our development-friendly government would like to answer, perhaps.

You see, generating hydropower in Nepal is quite easy. Every Tom, Dick and Harry can do that.

Easy things are what our governments, this government in particular, detest. This government loves challenges. Challenges like transporting fuel and gas to the mountains from almost sea-level points across the border. Such feats give our governments a sense of achievement.

Hard to believe this line of logic? Let’s turn the pages of history of the pipeline project.

With a vikas-premi sarkar in place at Singhadurbar, planning for the 69-km Motihari-Amlekhgunj petroleum pipeline began as early as 2004. The idea was to bring down the cost of shipping fuel (oil and gas are still mostly transported from across the border in tankers) and ensure a smooth supply by reducing chances of supply-related obstructions and disruptions.

Millions of Nepalis not born back then but lucky enough to get a taste of good governance these days will envy millions like yours truly for sure. Why? Because we have grown up and gotten old savoring the yummy flavor of this particular brand of governance. But don’t lose heart, guys. Competent astrologers with friends in high heavens have predicted that the current prime minister will have two more tenures.

Thanks to the pipeline, a mini-Amazon type petro river has been flowing in a country known for streams and mega-rivers like the Koshi, Gandaki and the Mahakali.

With utmost loyalty comparable to the Gurkha soldiers, these water bodies have been fulfilling drinking water, energy and irrigation needs of the neighbor across the border, with a little bit of taming and training, of course. In the coming days, more of our rivers like the Arun and the West Seti will be in the special service of our dear neighbor, thanks to our very own visionary prime minister and his predecessors, who have signed deals to this effect.

These days, certain quarters are busy spreading lies in Nepal. They have been claiming that soaring fossil fuel import bills, going further northwards due to factors like the Russia-Ukraine war, are already having an impact on the Nepali economy. They have been speculating that these soaring bills may land the country into an economic crisis. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Ever the land of milk and honey, we Nepalis have been living happily as ever before. Our trademark smile tells it all.

Don’t believe us? Come, visit us from every nook and corner of this globe and beyond. Check with your very own eyes…

You guys love Nepal and the Nepalis? Want to do us a favor?

Spread the Nepali model of development far and wide.

Emotional Intelligence means being smarter with feelings. This means being able to acknowledge, identify, label and understand emotions in self and others. It means understanding that our emotions affect the way we see ourselves, others and the world and therefore taking this into consideration to understand and regulate our behaviors. 

Practicing emotional intelligence doesn’t have to be complicated. Here are 10 simple ways of showing up with emotional intelligence on a daily basis:

1. Notice how you are feeling and label it. Is it anger or annoyance? Are you feeling serene or is it ecstasy? When we label our emotions, they have less power over us. Naming an emotion means using the cognitive part of our brain, which helps us shift from reacting blindly to thinking things through. Think of it in terms of a map. To successfully navigate your journey, you will need to know where you are and where you’d like to go.
2. Separate the stimulus from the cause. Someone didn’t show up on time? Sure, that is the stimulus. But what really made you feel annoyed? Perhaps you wanted assurance that your time would be respected? Once you are aware of the needs behind the feelings, you can strategize better to attain positive outcomes.

3. Stop classifying emotions as ‘good’ or ‘bad’. Emotions aren’t good or bad. They are data about our needs. When you feel something unpleasant, ask yourself: What am I feeling? What message is this emotion giving me about myself?

4. Ask for feedback from a trusted person: what is something about me that is obvious to others but I can’t see clearly? This feedback loop will help you reduce your blind spots. 

5. Do a Rose/Thorn/Bud reflection everyday. Identify what was pleasant (Rose), what was unpleasant (Thorn) and what you are looking forward to (Bud). If you do this quick exercise everyday, you’ll start to see a pattern emerge. Recognizing this pattern can help you become self-aware.

6. Learn to see with your eyes. What this means is that when something bothers us, our brains tend to come up with a narrative. When this happens, it will be hard to see clearly. Ask yourself: what really happened? For example, your brain might say ‘he ignored me’. Seeing with your eyes is acknowledging that the other person did not wave back at you. Did the person really ignore you or was something else going on for them? Test your assumptions.

7. Ask yourself often: Does this need to be said? Do I need to say this? Do I need to say it now? Taking a pause allows us the space to respond rather than react in the heat of the moment. Time away offers perspective.

8. Connection before correction. Unless the other person feels heard, it will be difficult for them to hear our point of view. Instead of playing the ‘Who is Right’ Game, listening to underlying feelings and needs can help us resolve differences peacefully.
 

9. Emotions tend to shorten our attention-span . As a result, we might end up acting in ways that take us further away from our desired outcomes. A good question to ask ourselves often is: what do I really want? Once we are clear about our needs, we can then come up with different strategies to meet those needs.

10. Define your values and keep revisiting them everyday. Whenever you act in alignment with your values, congratulate yourself. On days when you fail to do so, remind yourself that there is another opportunity to show up in a way that is aligned with the kind of person you wish to be. Rather than being blown by winds of circumstances, becoming aware of our values can help us lead our life with integrity and purpose.

Emotional Intelligence is an on-going practice. If we can incorporate one or more of these actions on a daily basis, we can have better relationships at home and at work. 

The author is co-founder of My Emotions Matter, an education initiative that helps individuals and teams learn the mindset and skills of Emotional Intelligence. Learn more at myemotionsmatter.com

In the literature on foreign policy, two key issues are often cited. One, no foreign policy develops in isolation but is expanded from domestic policies. Two, national security is and should be any government’s main responsibility, even as the country’s real security depends on national unity.

After an intense national debate, discussions and political blame games, the Nepal government finally decided not to participate in the US government’s State Partnership Program (SPP). To bring uniformity in communication and harmonization in foreign policy agenda, the government has also decided to channel all correspondences to foreign missions and countries through the foreign ministry.

Both these are welcome steps. The main lesson of the SPP controversy is that it is important to build national consensus on sensitive issues such as national security and foreign policy. Otherwise, foreign powers get to influence the country’s major stakeholders in their favor.

The way the SPP issue was handled in Nepal also revealed many fault lines in our approach and communication. Nepal Army, which is primarily responsible for Nepal’s security, came into controversy because of its non-coherent communication with the public, revealing an institutional weakness.

Given the changing world order to multipolar power centers, Nepal is likely to be dragged into more security and foreign policy dilemmas. There was a similar dilemma a few years back over whether to participate in BIMSTEC’s joint military training.

Nepal still has to rely on foreign assistance or loans to support about 30 percent of its general expenditure and 100 percent of its capital expenditure. It thus needs a balanced approach to development and security. On development assistance, Nepal needs to open its arms for cooperation by keeping its national development goals at the center. On the other hand, with the exception of training and technical assistance on security matters, it needs a policy of non-alignment. It should give a clear signal to all major powers that Nepal doesn’t want to be in any security camp.

The ongoing war in Ukraine is almost a proxy war between Russia and the West. Russia is projecting itself as a leader of anti-American forces, much as it did during the Cold War. Last week, at the International Economic Forum in St. Petersburg, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the end of the US-dominated unipolar world.

In the early days of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, China’s position was to find a mutual solution to end the war, but more recently, China is focusing on strengthening its security and trade ties with Russia. In a phone call on Putin’s birthday, Chinese President Xi Jinping is said to have assured Russia of  security assistance. Recently, a new Amur River crossing has been opened to boost trade ties between Russia and China with the goal of carrying more than two million people and four million tons of cargo annually. China has increased its gas imports from Russia by 40 percent, while the European Union, the US, Canada and other countries have banned the purchase of Russian oil. Analysts say growing cooperation between Russia and China is creating a strong anti-US pole, while Russia's invasion of Ukraine could also set a pretext for China’s invasion of Taiwan.

In a few years, China and India, Nepal’s two neighbors, are set to become the world’s first and second economic powers. In recent times, in its national security agenda, the US has been prioritizing the Indo-Pacific region to check China’s global dominance. In a global power competition, both China and the US are trying to forge strategic, security, trade, and other partnerships in Asia and the Pacific.

‘The Pivot to Asia’, ‘The Policy of Strategic Rebalancing to Asia’ and ‘The Trans-Pacific Partnership for the Asia-Pacific Regional Cooperation’ were initiated by the United States under President Obama. In 2018, President Donald Trump announced an ‘Indo-Pacific Strategy’ aimed at curbing China’s growing dominance in the South China Sea. The US, India, Japan and Australia also revived the Quad (The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue) in 2017 to curb China’s growing influence in the region.

China, meanwhile, has pushed for trade and security agreements with 10 Pacific nations, including Fiji, Samoa, Tonga, Kiribati, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, Niue and Micronesia, to counter US and Australian strategic, security and economic influence in the Pacific.

In East Asia, China has close ties with Cambodia and Myanmar, and Cambodia has even provided a base for the Chinese navy. Southeast Asian countries such as Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, which have close economic and trade ties with China, are nonetheless at odds with both the US and China over their security.

Prior to the announcement of the Indo-Pacific Strategy and the revival of Quad, military training and technical assistance were considered normal. In Asia, Bangladesh, Maldives, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia, Philippines, Vietnam, and Mongolia have benefited from SPP. Nepal Army has traditionally been engaged with China, India, US, UK, and Pakistan on education, joint military training activities, exchanging experiences and knowledge and high-level visits.

To engage in these activities is one thing, to be a strategic partner of a global power’s military alliance-like mechanism is another. Given Nepal’s unique geopolitical position, its coming under the umbrella of any one power will not only destabilize domestic politics but also increase the danger of Nepal becoming a playground for foreign powers.

In the global competition for dominance, the major powers are also vying to increase their partnerships by packaging foreign aid, trade, transit and security assistance. The Indo-Pacific Strategy was initially a security strategy, but is now becoming more comprehensive with focus on trade, economic and other cooperation. China is also putting together a trade and security agreement with the Pacific countries.

Now, what kind of help do we accept and what kind do we reject? Although the MCC compact was a purely development project, the growing polarization between China and the United States had a direct impact on its approval. Given its need for development assistance and its geopolitical location, the country needs to redefine its policy of non-alignment. Nepal, in fact, should adopt a policy of alignment and cooperation with all major powers on its development, prosperity and progress. On the other hand, Nepal should strictly adhere to a policy of nonalignment on any security and defense partnerships.

Another important lesson from the SPP controversy is that Nepal should focus on strengthening its civil-military relationships. Nepal Army was blamed for the SPP fiasco by politicians, including former prime ministers and ministers. Civilian supremacy over the military also depends on the strategic, security and technical knowledge and skills of the two sides. In Nepal, the army has been pursuing military diplomacy for years on its own and most of the military's proposals, including budgets and promotions, have been formally approved by the civilian leadership, without much oversight and discussion.

Political leaders’ blaming of the military and the army’s inability to defend itself highlights Nepal’s weak military-civilian relationship. Going forward, policy issues, such as security and foreign policy, should be decided at the political level, while technical matters, such as training and knowledge exchanges, should be decided at the military leadership level.

The latest government decision seems to have put a full stop on SPP controversy, but a key question remains: How could we effectively communicate Nepal’s decision not to be a part of SPP without jeopardizing the traditional military and development ties with the US? One option could be to organize a high-level all-party meeting to discuss the government’s decision and forge national consensus on Nepal’s position and messaging on national security issues.

The author is a member of the board of directors at the Institute of Foreign Affairs, Nepal