Friday, June 06, 2014

Letter to my dear Mother


My dear Mother, Kunzang Pelden


My dear Mom,
The words that I have in my heart are inexpressible in paper. Even then, the time and situation has compelled to outcast my words to pay homage for your great deeds for last more than two decades. Since, the day I was born in the family, gave you tremendous and terrific pressures. You struggled and suffered for me. My childhood life was calmly nurtured and helped me, to grow well like other kids around. I personally thank you, my loving mother for invaluable and priceless love and care that rendered as a mother.

After few years, I was sent to school, to learn contemporary teaching from the teachers. You have admitted me in school, prepared lunch for me every day, dropped me to the school, washed my clothes and, etc. Mother, you have continuously encouraged me and shared intellectual knowledge viz. Driglam Namzha (Etiquettes), courtesies, decorum, modesty, and many more, which in return enhanced my knowledge, other than school or bookish knowledge. Due to your support, help and assistance, I am proudly standing on my foot now, in terms of knowledge that gained and learned from my beloved teachers. I am the product of you, and it is only fitting that your great deeds are humbly thanked, and which will not erase from my heart.

Mother, you made me alert of how much important our life is. Being a kid, I was given extra care for numerous years. You made me understand the real meaning of the life. You made me well honored and ideal man in the society.

Despite, being backward in terms of wealth, you, my dearly loved mother encouraged pursuing higher studies in private school. Your great helps and deeds facilitated me in extracting more knowledge from teachers and experts. Thus, I could shape my life to certain level with extended hopes and aspirations. My dreams and goals go expanded where I urge myself to go ahead with positive philosophies. The knowledge I gained from studying in schools and college, institution and others, made my life affluent and prosperous.

Without your positive philosophy, I would have not grown up with such impressive knowledge but rather I would have left in the village without having going to school for studies. Your tremendous help, being mother have valued more than whatever others endeavored. Your valuable advises and comments when I was in lower classes aided me in every step that I took to reach today. Though you are illiterate, but you knew the facts about modern education’s benefits. So, I would like to pay my heartfelt thank to you, my much loved Mom.  

My bottomed and immense thank and gratitude is always for you, my beloved Mother. You worked hard, suffered a lot to pull me up, and served with touching heart to shape my life collaborating with beloved father. Your magnificent and brilliant supports are also sculptured on my heart. Your continuous assistance and aids are unforgettable in my life, which made my life fruitful.

Your encouragements and advices proved invaluable in inspiring a novice to embark on the studies and personal life. You have also taken keen interest in assuring the necessary intellectual resource input in terms of village based culture and traditions, our etiquettes and decorum.

Therefore, I will never forget you, my dearly loved Mother. You engaged in making my life affirmative and activist. So, Thank You, Mother for everything that you deed to me.

God always bless you, my beloved Mother. Long live my beloved mother.


Yours Loving Son


(Dendup Gyembo)
Paro, Western Bhutan

Thursday, June 05, 2014

Environment/Green/Pedestrian Day


Druk Wangyel Lhakhang and beautiful environment of Dochula

Our country is the birth place of Gross National Happiness (GNH). GNH states Four Pillars and Nine Domains. One of the important pillars is ‘Conservation of Environment’. We celebrate Social Forestry Day on 2nd June, every year coinciding with Our Fourth Dragon King, His Majesty Jigme Singye Wangchuck’s coronation Day, which is also one of the steps that we are taking forward to conserve our pristine environment.

Well, we all are living in the midst of the ENVIRONMENT, but do we know what environment really means? According to the Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, the environment is, “the air, water and land in or on which people, animals and plants live”. To my point of view, the environment is fresh and clean nature in and around us where we lived in ever since we are born. The environment gives life to us.

Our pristine vicinity in and around us are gorgeous and tremendously inexpressible in black and white. Owing to pleasant environment around us, we the people of Bhutan and the world as a whole, get fresh air to breath, moderate place to live and so on. Our country today has approximately 70.46 percent forested areas, which is our ENVIRONMENT. We all know that we are born in beautifully landscaped country in the world. This is how our ENVIRONMENT is significant for the people in the world.

Our environment which is tremendously overwhelming and fastidious to see it is visited by thousands and lakhs of tourists from around the world. We get foreign aids which help or insisting to protect our attractive environment. From environment, we the people of world get fresh air and clean place to live in. Therefore, we are solely responsible to heed our environment for the future of younger generations. 

Our country is filled with trees and shrubs, swift flowing rivers and streams, fresh and clean air, many species of animals and birds due to beautiful environment around. As a result of swift flowing rivers, our hydro power projects are generating huge amount of money and many are coming up soon. There are many protected areas, where numbers of species of plants and shrubs are preserved, many endangered animals and birds, and many more are conserved.

Snow fall in high altitude
To conserve environment and to mark World Environment Day, our country celebrate Pedestrian Day. No movement of vehicle for a day, which will minimize unwanted air or gases that are produced from engines of the vehicles, which impairs environment a lot.

On the World Environment Day, I commit myself not to harm environment by cutting down trees and plants, etc. I will preserve it for the younger generations and beauty of the country. I will conserve environment to fulfill one of the four pillars of the Gross National Happiness (GNH).

Happy Environment or Green Day!

Wednesday, June 04, 2014

Happy Birthday Your Majesty, Gyeltshuen



On the joyous occasion of 24th Birthday, I wish Your Majesty a very Happy Birthday. Your Majesty’s love and care for the people of Bhutan will always be our inspirational ways that will always be cherished. We the people of Bhutan, always pray for LONG LIVE of Your Majesty. Happy Birthday, Gyeltshuen.

Sunday, June 01, 2014

THE IMPORTANCE OF THE SOCIAL FORESTRY DAY, 2nd JUNE



His Majesty the 4th King
 The celebration of the Social Forestry Day has significant importance in our country. We celebrate the day to mark Our Beloved King His Majesty Jigme Singye Wangchuck’s Golden Reign. It is an occasion to offer our heartfelt gratitude to our visionary monarch under whose benevolent leadership; our country is enjoying unprecedented socio-economic developments. We the people of Bhutan live healthier, happier and more fulfilled lives.

His Majesty being a nature conservationist declared early in his reign that Bhutan must maintain 70 percent forest coverage for all time to come. The National Assembly members later endorsed this policy and it is now enshrined in our constitution. It will continue as the guiding principles for all future development in our country. Today, the forest covered area is about 70.46 percent. Hereafter too, we should work hand in hand and maintain forest covered areas more than that of today.

The people’s participation in such social works should be highly appreciated. The people’s participation would help conserving forested areas henceforth. To recognize the people’s participation is the key conservation and development of the forest resources. In 1979, a Royal Decree was issued to involve local people in planting trees on their own or communal land, which would help conserve forest. This marked a paradigm shift in forest management from the tree oriented approach to people-centered forest resources management. The existing law not only enables citizens to take part in planting but also guarantees them ownership of the trees they plant. This would directly or indirectly help conserve forest areas in the country.

Today, our forest areas are under great pressures from various aspects such as forest fires, human-induced environment impacts, urbanization, soil erosion and many more. These give tremendous pressures on forested areas and shrubs. The forest covered areas are lost in previous years due to infrastructural developments, forest fires and other related threats in past few years.

Recently, thousands of acres of forest areas are lost to forest fires in eastern Bhutan including number of houses. The numerous forest fire incidences are reported with report of lost of several acres of forested areas. When thousands of forested areas are destroyed by forest fires, soil erosion, and other direct and indirect threats will lead to ‘Climate Change’. Today, climate change is one of the much debated issues in the world and in our country.

Officials planting trees during Social Forestry Day
Since year 1985, His Majesty the King Jime Singye Wangchuck’s Coronation Anniversary has been observed as Social Forestry Day. The essence of celebrating Social Forestry Day is to remind us how important forests are to our economic and ecological well being. We all have a sacred responsibility to ensure that this gift of nature is passed on intact to our generations. The Social Forestry Day also aims to foster and inculcate love for plant and nature by human beings (us). It is indeed very important that we become environmentally conscious citizens.

The Social Forestry Day is marked on 2nd June every year to plant trees and remind us with importance of forest and His Majesty’s benevolent reign for more than three decades. With this people of Bhutan including various officials, students and local communities, etc. will jointly plant trees for social benefit and to enhance forest cover all over the country. It is also the day to mark coronation of our Fourth Dragon King, Jigme Singye Wangchuck.

Therefore, on the very auspicious day (the Coronation of Fourth Dragon King and Social Forestry Day), I on behalf of the citizen of our country and on my own behalf would like to wish His Majesty the Happy coronation day and offer communal prayers for LONG LIVE OF FOURTH DRAGON KING. I also urge one and all to be mindful of our sacred responsibility and to take active part in the tree planting program as we observe the Social Forestry Day. I wish successful Social Forestry Day. May it increases in you, the appreciation and love for our life long giving forests.

Long Live Our Fourth Dragon King and Happy Planting Trees!