Nation

Most promises fulfilled, says DPT government

Figures show many of them are yet to be fulfilled Less than a year to go before the next parliamentary election, the Druk Phuensum Tshogpa (DPT) government says most of its election promises have been fulfilled, especially in the education, health and employment sectors. The prime minister and cabinet ministers updated the reporters on the [...]

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Rural prosperity to be theme for 11th Plan

The theme of the 11th five-year plan will be ‘rural prosperity’, Lyonchhen Jigmi Y Thinley announced yesterday at the 21st Meet the Press. The plan, Lyonchhen said, will focus on rural areas and encourage the Bhutanese people to live and like rural life. Towards that end, the government is planning to create more employment opportunities [...]

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Surprise inspection catch tobacco act defaulters

Two teams of officials led by Bhutan Narcotic Control Authority (BNCA) fined a number of individuals and offices in Thimphu yesterday in a surprise inspection. The two teams collected Nu 30,000 in fines from government as well as private offices for failing to adhere to the Tobacco Control Act of Bhutan 2010. The teams visited [...]

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Report projects high GDP growth rate

Observers say this cannot be possible Participants were taken by surprise yesterday at the launch of Economic and Social Survey of Asia and the Pacific (ESSAP) in Thimphu. The survey done by UN’s Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) has projected Bhutan’s GDP growth to increase from 5.4 percent in 2011 [...]

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Quota gas only for home use, says DoT

Within a month or two, it will be declared illegal for commercial entities to use domestic liquid petroleum gas (LPG) instead of industrial LPG. This will help address the shortage of domestic LPG in the country, the director general of Department of Trade (DoT) said yesterday at the signing of an MoU between the department [...]

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Preparing for disasters in times of peace

A new guidebook is expected to better prepare the schools in Bhutan for disasters. Department of Disaster Management (DDM) has developed a training manual called ‘A Facilitator’s Guide for Disaster Preparedness and Response for Safe School’. The guidebook is aimed at imparting basic knowledge on disaster management such as fire safety, continuity plans for schools, [...]

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Govt.’s current expenditure to increase by 75%

The government’s recurrent expenditure is estimated to increase by 75 percent during the 11th five-year plan period. And that is despite various measures to reduce current expenditure in the last few years. Around 65 percent of the 11th Plan resources is to be allocated for recurrent expenditure, according to the Guidelines for Preparation of the [...]

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Not all is well with urban children

Survey finds children and youth in Thimphu live a hard life As increasing number of young people move to urban centres every year, There is a growing need to create space and opportunities for young people if the yawning gap between the rich and poor is to be closed. This issue came into sharp focus [...]

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Cabinet directs MoWHS to localise construction

The cabinet this week directed Ministry of Works and Human Settlement (MoWHS) to promote the use of local construction materials and locally fabricated and manufactured construction components to create job opportunities and to reduce construction costs. This is the government’s latest measure to ease rupee shortage in the country. The cabinet also directed the ministry [...]

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Study finds high prevalence of disabilities among children

Over 30% of children aged 2-9 has at least one disability Some 30.4 percent of Bhutanese children aged between two and nine years have at least one disability, reveals the draft Two Stage Disability Survey Bhutan 2010-2011. More than one out of five children in Bhutan have at least a mild disability. The survey was [...]

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