Category - Science and Environment

Footprints on forest floors, Fingerprints on satellites: The Chepang Story

April 27, 2025
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Opinion, Science and Environment

In 1977 AD, Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands visited Tiger Tops Hotel in Chitwan to attend the WWF-1001 Club program, coordinated by then-Crown Prince Gyanendra Shah.During that visit, King Birendra was shown the dire condition of the Chepang community. When a Chepang leader said, “Your Majesty, we are your subjects (Praja),” the King agreed. That same year, a grand Chepang conference was held for the first time in Jyamire, Makwanpur district. Princess Princep Shah, then the central president of the Nepal Red Cross Society, declared, “From today, you are not Chepang; you are Praja (subjects).’

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Restoring Chitwan’s grasslands

April 25, 2025
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Opinion, Science and Environment

Gobinda Prasad Pokharel

The Chitwan National Park is home to 92 percent of Nepal’s greater One-horned Rhino population. The latest rhino count of 2021 reports 694 out of 752 individuals. To sustain mega herbivores like the rhino, grasslands play an important role by balancing the natural ecosystem and providing food and shelter. The rhino, Tiger and the Bengal floricans and other species are thriving inside these grasslands, which support a large number of rare and endangered species. Grasslands help to maintain a balanced ecosystem in nature by providing nutrients and water, and also acting as carbon sinks.

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काठमाडौं उपत्यकाका वनस्पति चिनाउने पुस्तक

March 16, 2025
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Opinion, Science and Environment

काठमाडौं उपत्यकाका नागार्जुन, शिवपुरी,ककनी-टोखा, सुन्दरीजल-चिसापानी-साँखु, गोदावरी-फूलचोकी, हात्तीवन-चन्द्रागिरी, साँखु-नगरकोट-नाला, गोकर्ण, सूर्यविनायक, वाग्मती करिडोर क्षेत्रको वनस्पतिको विवरण समेटिएको यो पुस्तक निकै नै उपयोगी छ ।

वनस्पति विज्ञानको अध्ययन र अनुसन्धानमा नेपालको उपस्थिति निकै नै कमजोर छ । सीमित स्रोत साधनका कारण वनस्पति विज्ञान अध्ययन र अनुसन्धान गर्नेहरू घट्दो क्रममा छन् । नेपालका वनस्पतिविद्हरू मातृभूमि छाडेर विभिन्न देशलाई कर्मभूमि बनाउन बाध्य छन् ।

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Addressing monkey menace in Nepal

July 2, 2023
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News, Science and Environment

The ongoing issue of the monkey menace in Nepal has sparked debate among policymakers and stakeholders on conflict mitigation.

Some advocate for budget allocation as a solution, thinking funding will reduce the problem. Others suggest alternative farming practices, while some argue that vasectomy procedures for male monkeys could be more effective.

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Question arises as EIA report claims absence of fish species in Budhigandaki Hydropower project area

June 13, 2023
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News, Science and Environment

Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report for the 81 MW Budhigandaki Hydropower Project claims that there is no any fish in the project area. This has raised concerns among the experts.

The EIA report which was approved by the Ministry of Energy and awaiting approval from the Ministry of Forests and Environment of Nepal is in debate and has created skepticism.

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Queen’s rest of the life in the Zoo

April 26, 2023
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News, Science and Environment

This story is about a Man-Eater tigress that have been rescued in the western part of Nepal in Kanchanpur district. This tigress has killed a 42 years old female while she was cutting fodder near a local canal. The woman was dragged by the tiger at the time of cutting grass. Her body was found in a swampy place on the next day of the attack.

National Park office deployed four elephants in search of the tiger with wildlife technician in order to dart the Man eater. Previously the tiger has also killed a man in Indian Side according to the officials.

The Story of Maharani Tigress was published in Front Page of Kantipur Daily n 24th April of 2024 with my byline

The tiger was later captured and it was taken to the Central Zoo of Nepal. The 5 years old tigress will be kept with a male tiger in the zoo. The male tiger was given name Maharaja, The king. As she will be in the captivity with Maharaja, she was given name Maharani, the Queen.

I wrote this story and was published in Ekantipur online on 23rd April of 2023. Later a print version was published on the 24th April in Kantipur Daily.

The details of the story is in the link :
https://ekantipur.com/news/2023/04/23/168225756197388677.html

Starship- The vehicle to Mars

April 15, 2023
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Science and Environment

This story tells about the mars rover. Elon Musk, the founder of SpaceX is preparing a vehicle which will take the human beings into mars. Currently he is experimenting this spacecraft.

I wrote this featured story which was published in Kantipur Daily Paper on 12th April, 2023.

News Cutting Starship Mission published in Kantipur Daily

This story tells about the Mars Mission and Elon Musk investment and research activities of his Space Company and the current development of the spacecraft.

Read the original story published in Ekantipur at : https://ekantipur.com/news/2023/05/12/168385617969334674.html

Premonsoon rainfall like winter in Nepal

March 24, 2023
Gobinda Pokharel
Science and Environment

Gobinda Prasad Pokharel

This year, Nepal experienced a dry winter. Nepal experienced a dry winter from October 24th, 2022, to February 26th, 2023. Researchers have warned of the rise in wildfires and decrease in productivity due to less rainfall in the winter. With the start of the pre-monsoon, we are experiencing rainfall all over the country.

March, April, and May are the pre-monsoon months in Nepal. At this time, local winds are more active, resulting in precipitation, thunderstorms, and lightning in the evening and afternoon for several hours. The intensity of rainfall is high during the premonsoon, which lasts for only a few hours. If it rains in Bhaktapur, it may or maynot rain in Kathmandu during the premonsoon within a small distance. So, the rainfall is not uniform across the country during the premonsoon.

In the past few days, there has been low and moderate rainfall across the country. The rain has positive impacts for the farmers. The characteristics of the recent rainfall did not match those of the pre-monsoon. It feels like winter rainfall with low and moderate rainfall and cold temperatures.

he total 248 rainfall measurement stations, 113 recorded rainfall. Similarly, on March 19th, 177 stations recorded rainfall, 210 on the 20th March and on September 22, 71 stations recorded rainfall. A maximum of 93.5mm of precipitation was recorded in those stations. Nepal’s average premonsoon precipitation record data (1991–2020) is 226.2mm.

This year’s El Nino has affected the winter rainfall in Nepal. After El Nino ended, Nepal experienced westerlies during the premonsoon. That’s why were are experiencing cold in this march due to this effect and character of rainfall.

More in My News Published in the ekantipur of 23rd March. The print version of this story is published on the 24th of March of 2023 at Page 11 in Kantipur Daily.

 

 

Lesser Adjutant Storks are Declining in Nepal

October 30, 2022
Gobinda Pokharel
News, Science and Environment
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Lesser Adjutant Storks of Nepal are declining due to haphazard Land Plotting, Unplanned Urbanization, cutting down of tree species, habitat destruction, etc.
This story is based on a Field Visit to Urlabari Municipality of Province 1 of Nepal. A previous study showed that there used to be 15 colonies but now there are only colonies left in my visit.
I cross-checked the identification done by Dr. Hem bahadur Katwal, he also verify that the current colony number is 2 in this region.
I write the status of these species in Urlabari and acrosss  the country based on previous research studies and recent papers on this farmland bird.
My news report on this species is published in Kantipur Online on 30th October 2022.
Here is the news link: Lesser Adjutant storks are declining in Nepal