Rue govt apathy, bias against non-govt staffers killed in tragic mishap
Razen Manandhar
Kathmandu, December 8[2006]:
Ten weeks after Ghunsa chopper crash Elina Shre-stha, the wife of social worker Bijaya Kumar Shrestha who died in the tragic crash, is looking for someone who could sponsor her son and daughter’s education.
“I thought the government was with me when my husband left us. But two-and-a-half months after the tragedy, it seems to have forgotten his life’s contribution to the state,” she told this correspondent. Elina, who is a housewife, has a 10-year-old son and a five-year-old daughter.
Bijaya Kumar had been engaged with dozens of social organisations in Taplejung in remote north-east Nepal. He was involved in social and economic development and bio-diversity conservation projects in the area, before he died in the ill-fated chopper crash in September.
Bijaya Raj Acharya, 75-year-old father of Dr Bijnan Acharya, Program Development Specialist, USAID, is also looking for someone to take care of his family, as his two younger sons are still studying. Dr Binjan too had died in the crash. He said whatever his son did was for the nation and the government should at least feel that his loss should be compensated.
Dr Sumitra Manandhar Gurung, wife of the country representative of WWF Nepal Program Dr Chandra Gurung, another victim of the crash, too condemned the government apathy. “The government has ignored the voice of the victims’ kin who had undergone mental trauma and were facing economic hardships,” she said.
She added that other than expressing condolence on the demise of conservation heroes the government has done nothing to honour them. Moreover, the victims’ families are yet to receive the insurance money from Shree Air.
The government has already compensated the families of state minister Gopal Rai, whose wife Meena Rai also died in the crash, and other government staffers killed in the tragic mishap. The government staffers were also promoted posthumously.
“We are hurt to see the government discriminating among its citizens,” rued Bijaya Raj Acharya.
The victims’ families are planning to hand over a memorandum to the prime minister seeking government’s due recognition of the victims and compensation for their kin.
Govt told to chip in
KATHMANDU: Families of those killed in the Shree Air helicopter crash in September have urged the government to form a compensation coordination committee to be led by Tourism Secretary Madhav Ghimire. A Cabinet decision on November 7 had endorsed a proposal to provide compensation of Rs 2 million to the family of the late State Minister for Forest and Soil Conservation Gopal Rai and his wife Meena Rai who died in the crash in Ghunsa, Taplejung. The government has already provided the compensation to the late minister’s family and Rs 1 million each to the families of three government officials and two journalists of Nepal Television.
Tourism Minister Pra-dip Gyawali and Tourism Secretary Ghimire had pr-omised the victims’ families the compensation.
However, a government source, requesting anonymity, said the government is considering providing compensation to the families of all those who died in the crash. — HNSGovt told to chip in
Showing posts with label conservation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label conservation. Show all posts
Saturday, December 09, 2006
Monday, November 12, 2001
New scheme to save ancient idols
By Razen Manandhar
Time has changed and the technologies to conserve the ancient monuments should also undergo a worldwide change. So, many international agencies have landed in this country and each of them has taught one or another lesson to Nepali neo-conservationists. Just to name a few are those who built the inner courtyard of the Keshav Narayan Chowk at Patan and Chyasilin Mandap of Bhaktapur. Let’s learn from them.
The Department of Archaeology (DoA), the body that has been entrusted by the government to safeguard the historical monuments of this country, is launching a new project largely to save thousands of idols in the Kathmandu valley. It is just "the thousands" because the department has neither made a complete list of the existing monuments, nor of the stolen ones; so it often quotes foreign heritage experts. Well, the leader of this innovative project has a grand design in his mind to protect the monuments, which will put an end to the decades old saga of priceless idols being stolen from the valley almost every week.
Actually, devising a great plan to launch this new scheme was quite difficult. To make it happen, the enlightened officers of DoA had to travel in one or another country almost every month. They were so busy in attending seminars that they did not remember the topics and outcomes.
The unprecedented scheme will be implemented in three phases: In the first phase, all the ancient idols will be removed from the old and out-of-fashion temples. The department has recently announced a vacancy for the post of plucking officers. Only professionals will be allowed to touch the idols. It would have been better, if the temples had also been preserved, but that needs more money than it is possible for a government body where nobody can escape the Auditor General’s report. Though the authority has not yet imagined how big a warehouse they need to store those idols, the department will manage to keep all of them in its dusty godown.
In the second phase, the newly made fake idols will be reinstalled on those vacant nitches or pedestals of the temples. DoA sources said that the government was ready to spend quite a lot of money to instal fake idols for cultural monument preservation. Local craftsmen will be approached first to copy 200 to 2000 years-old idols. If they can’t install them satisfactorily, international craftsmen will be invited from across the border. If the budget does not allow the authority to have all the replicas of the idols made, they will place colour photographs instead.
The city dwellers have no sense to differentiate between the century old idols influencing the creed, sentiment and culture and the fake idols and photographs. The project manager has a premonition that devotees will love to rest their foreheads on the fake idols and photographs.
The readers might wonder where on earth are the displaced idols supposed to be kept in future. Here is the answer.
In the third phase, all the plucked-out idols will be distributed to royal palaces to make them decorative pieces. Antiques will be kept in air-tight cases of glass, with artistic looks. The cultural property that the UNESCO recognizes as symbol of the local civilization will enhance the value of such luxurious buildings where public access is almost impossible. Even if they can go, they will strictly be prohibited from performing foolish acts like worshipping and asking for blessing.
Authorities say this scheme will also prevent such valuable archaeological objects from being smuggled out.
Time has changed and the technologies to conserve the ancient monuments should also undergo a worldwide change. So, many international agencies have landed in this country and each of them has taught one or another lesson to Nepali neo-conservationists. Just to name a few are those who built the inner courtyard of the Keshav Narayan Chowk at Patan and Chyasilin Mandap of Bhaktapur. Let’s learn from them.
The Department of Archaeology (DoA), the body that has been entrusted by the government to safeguard the historical monuments of this country, is launching a new project largely to save thousands of idols in the Kathmandu valley. It is just "the thousands" because the department has neither made a complete list of the existing monuments, nor of the stolen ones; so it often quotes foreign heritage experts. Well, the leader of this innovative project has a grand design in his mind to protect the monuments, which will put an end to the decades old saga of priceless idols being stolen from the valley almost every week.
Actually, devising a great plan to launch this new scheme was quite difficult. To make it happen, the enlightened officers of DoA had to travel in one or another country almost every month. They were so busy in attending seminars that they did not remember the topics and outcomes.
The unprecedented scheme will be implemented in three phases: In the first phase, all the ancient idols will be removed from the old and out-of-fashion temples. The department has recently announced a vacancy for the post of plucking officers. Only professionals will be allowed to touch the idols. It would have been better, if the temples had also been preserved, but that needs more money than it is possible for a government body where nobody can escape the Auditor General’s report. Though the authority has not yet imagined how big a warehouse they need to store those idols, the department will manage to keep all of them in its dusty godown.
In the second phase, the newly made fake idols will be reinstalled on those vacant nitches or pedestals of the temples. DoA sources said that the government was ready to spend quite a lot of money to instal fake idols for cultural monument preservation. Local craftsmen will be approached first to copy 200 to 2000 years-old idols. If they can’t install them satisfactorily, international craftsmen will be invited from across the border. If the budget does not allow the authority to have all the replicas of the idols made, they will place colour photographs instead.
The city dwellers have no sense to differentiate between the century old idols influencing the creed, sentiment and culture and the fake idols and photographs. The project manager has a premonition that devotees will love to rest their foreheads on the fake idols and photographs.
The readers might wonder where on earth are the displaced idols supposed to be kept in future. Here is the answer.
In the third phase, all the plucked-out idols will be distributed to royal palaces to make them decorative pieces. Antiques will be kept in air-tight cases of glass, with artistic looks. The cultural property that the UNESCO recognizes as symbol of the local civilization will enhance the value of such luxurious buildings where public access is almost impossible. Even if they can go, they will strictly be prohibited from performing foolish acts like worshipping and asking for blessing.
Authorities say this scheme will also prevent such valuable archaeological objects from being smuggled out.
Wednesday, October 10, 2001
A private project to renovate three temples at Hanumandhoka
By Razen Manandhar
KATHMANDU, Oct 8 - While government bodies are working in a snail’s pace to preserve the city’s cultural heritage, a non-government organisation has taken the responsibility to renovate three ancient temples at the Hanumandhoka Durbar Square.
The Kathmandu Valley Preservation Trust (KVPT), an NGO working in the field of heritage conservation, has received the permission to renovate the temples of Jagannath, Indrapur and Narayan and beautify the Durbar Square maintaining its archaeological importance. KVPT is spending over Rs. 20 million from different national and international donors.
Among them is the 438-year-old temple of Jagannath, known for its beautiful struts with erotic carvings. Constructed by King Mahendra Malla in 1563, this temple is considered to be the oldest structure that remains intact in the area. Pratap Malla introduced Indian style idols of Jagannath, Subhadra and Balaram in the eastern doorframe of the inner quadrangle of the temple.
King Pratap Malla constructed the temple of Indrapur in 1650 while the temple of Narayan was added in the late 17th century as mentioned in history books.
KVPT had to wait for almost 18 months to get permission from the Department of Archaeology, the prime government body that controls and preserves historic monuments.
It finally got the permission to renovate three major temples of the World Heritage Site a month ago but the Trust waited till the Indrajatra to begin the field works, said Rohit Ranjitkar, an architect of KVPT.
Now that the running around for government permission has finished, the project has already begun its works. And it will take some four years to complete the project, according to Ranjitkar.
"We will do our best to maintain their historical values when we replace the ruined parts with new ones," said Ranjitkar. "Though it will increase the cost by more than two times, we will let the history live in the temples."
Ranjitkar said the project would not bring the whole structures down, as it will only ruin its original beauty.
Most of the temples and buildings of the 12th-century-palace collapsed during the 1934 earthquake and the then Rana Prime Minister Juddha Shumshere painstakingly renovated them from the national treasure.
Pictures taken before the earthquake shows that the Narayan temple collapsed to the foundation whereas only the first floors of other two temples fell down due to the 8 rector scale earthquake, according to Ranjitkar.
He said the barandah of Indrapur, the third floor of Narayan temple and the doorsteps of Jagannath temples are different from the pre-earthquake pictures. "The renovation will try to bring back the shapes of pre-earthquake monuments by using old pictures," said Ranjitkar.
The trust has spent more than a year in documentation of the temples of the Hanumandhoka area. "Such detail documents will be useful even to reconstruct such temples in future and let people understand their value," Ranjitkar said.
KVPT intends to uplift the archaeological environment of the Hanumandhoka Durbar Square - from cleaning to raising awareness for the locals and erecting an information stall either for the tourists or for the locals.
KVPT has the experience of renovating Radhakrishna temple, Kwalakhu Pati, Patukwa Aganchhen, Lakhe Aganchhen and Kulima Narayan temple in the Patan area.
KATHMANDU, Oct 8 - While government bodies are working in a snail’s pace to preserve the city’s cultural heritage, a non-government organisation has taken the responsibility to renovate three ancient temples at the Hanumandhoka Durbar Square.
The Kathmandu Valley Preservation Trust (KVPT), an NGO working in the field of heritage conservation, has received the permission to renovate the temples of Jagannath, Indrapur and Narayan and beautify the Durbar Square maintaining its archaeological importance. KVPT is spending over Rs. 20 million from different national and international donors.
Among them is the 438-year-old temple of Jagannath, known for its beautiful struts with erotic carvings. Constructed by King Mahendra Malla in 1563, this temple is considered to be the oldest structure that remains intact in the area. Pratap Malla introduced Indian style idols of Jagannath, Subhadra and Balaram in the eastern doorframe of the inner quadrangle of the temple.
King Pratap Malla constructed the temple of Indrapur in 1650 while the temple of Narayan was added in the late 17th century as mentioned in history books.
KVPT had to wait for almost 18 months to get permission from the Department of Archaeology, the prime government body that controls and preserves historic monuments.
It finally got the permission to renovate three major temples of the World Heritage Site a month ago but the Trust waited till the Indrajatra to begin the field works, said Rohit Ranjitkar, an architect of KVPT.
Now that the running around for government permission has finished, the project has already begun its works. And it will take some four years to complete the project, according to Ranjitkar.
"We will do our best to maintain their historical values when we replace the ruined parts with new ones," said Ranjitkar. "Though it will increase the cost by more than two times, we will let the history live in the temples."
Ranjitkar said the project would not bring the whole structures down, as it will only ruin its original beauty.
Most of the temples and buildings of the 12th-century-palace collapsed during the 1934 earthquake and the then Rana Prime Minister Juddha Shumshere painstakingly renovated them from the national treasure.
Pictures taken before the earthquake shows that the Narayan temple collapsed to the foundation whereas only the first floors of other two temples fell down due to the 8 rector scale earthquake, according to Ranjitkar.
He said the barandah of Indrapur, the third floor of Narayan temple and the doorsteps of Jagannath temples are different from the pre-earthquake pictures. "The renovation will try to bring back the shapes of pre-earthquake monuments by using old pictures," said Ranjitkar.
The trust has spent more than a year in documentation of the temples of the Hanumandhoka area. "Such detail documents will be useful even to reconstruct such temples in future and let people understand their value," Ranjitkar said.
KVPT intends to uplift the archaeological environment of the Hanumandhoka Durbar Square - from cleaning to raising awareness for the locals and erecting an information stall either for the tourists or for the locals.
KVPT has the experience of renovating Radhakrishna temple, Kwalakhu Pati, Patukwa Aganchhen, Lakhe Aganchhen and Kulima Narayan temple in the Patan area.
Monday, July 30, 2001
The show [of Kumari] and gaze o’ th’ times
By Razen Manandhar
A cheerful little girl, Priti Shakya of Itumbahal, gave continuation to the almost 720 year old tradition of choosing a flawless girl as the protector goddess, by entering the doorways of the artistic Kumari House at the now largely ceremonial Hanumandhoka royal palace two weeks ago.
After several examinations and final recognition from the king, the granddaughter of renowned traditional artist Siddhi Muni Shakya was made Kumari, a living representative of the royal deity Taleju. On July 10, she replaced the former Kumari, Amita Shakya, who "protected" the country for 10 years, some two and half months earlier than scheduled.
The world worships stones, carved into different shapes as saviours of mankind. They visualise all manifestations of Gods in the stones but the world finds it hard to accept a living person, with equal respect and love, as a god or goddess - this is human nature. They cannot accept anyone being celebrated in the same way a piece of stone may be. But Nepal might be the only country where a naive, little girl is. The girl is believed to represent the family goddess of the royal Taleju dynasty as a living incarnation with power to secure the throne s and the people’s prosperity. She is known as Kumari, the virgin one.
History has not yet traced the origins of the Kumari tradition. So far the chronicles argue that it started as early as in the time of a twelve-century ruler Gunkam Dev, to whom the credit of making this Kathmandu city goes. A chronicle, narrated by Daniel Wright in 1966 says that he instituted Indra Jatra festival by erecting the images of Kumaris. Further, Mary Slusser writes in her book Nepal Mandala that manuscripts written in 1280 and 1285 AD describe the method of choosing, ornamenting and worshipping Kumari.
There are several Kumaris in the Kathmandu Valley. Theoretically, each Bihar or the monastery should have one but many of them today have discontinued this tradition mostly due to lack of patronage. Kumaris can be found in Kwa Bahal, Kilagal, Tokha (Kathmandu). Sulimha-tol, Hakhaa Bahal, Bungamati (Patan), as well as Chaturvarna Mahavihar (Bhaktapur) among others.
Above all, the Kumari at Hanuman Dhoka holds the principal position for she is given an artistic house - Rajlakxmi Kul Vihara - with elegant woodcarvings and beautiful wall paintings. Her chariot procession during the festival of Indra Jatra is celebrated where the presence of the ruling monarch is a must. He receives ‘tika’ from her on his forehead and carries her divine sword to "recharge" the power of ruling for the next year.
According to Historian Dr. Chunda Bajracharya, till the Rana rule, the kings used to watch the festival from the stone paved platform in front of the Kumari House and follow the procession in a horse chariot.
The prime Kumari is selected from eighteen Viharas of Kathmandu. The girl must be born from "pure" Shakya families and free of blemishes. She is supposed to possess 32 "special signs" showing her divine nature. It is said that the candidate children are taken to a special dark room for a strenuous test, in which the little children has to sit in front of giant buffalo heads in puddles of blood where images of different unearthly creatures come and go in the oil lamp-lit chamber. The one, who can sustain the ghastly atmosphere bravely is selected.
However, Juju Bhai Shakya, the husband of the Kumari’s caretaker husband rules out any such criteria. "The only basis of selection are the family background, her physical characteristics and the stars. The jataa, or the birth-chart, prepared with detailed information of her birth stars, is sent to the astrologers for examination. If they permit it, she becomes the god," he says. He adds that a similar ritual is performed every year during the Dashain festival.
Chitaidars are hereditary caretakers of the Kumaris who live in the Humari House with the family. It passes from mother-in-law to the eldest son-in-law. She takes care of the god-child everyday. Bathing, doing make-up, feeding and also bringing other children in to play with the Kumari is her responsibility. The Kumari can play all day within her quarters but she is not allowed to go out of her residence except for 13 times in a year, during special festivals. The rule is that she should not even get the slightest of injuries. Any sort of bleeding, including menstruation would disqualify her from being a goddess.
There are numerous stories behind the origin of the tradition of worshipping Kumari. One says that an ancient king, Pratap Malla, used to play dice in his secret chamber with Goddess Taleju, the royal goddess and also seek advice in ruling the country. One night, perverted lust shadowed his mind and immediately the omniscient goddess vanished from his sight. Taleju, however, advised him in the dream that the king might select a Buddhist girl in whose body the Hindu goddess could dwell. The king followed the advice and received the power to rule from the goddess through the girl.
Jaya Prakash Malla, the last king of the Malla dynasty, was warned by the Kumari that his time of tenure would end soon and was asked to provide her with a permanent residence. He had the beautiful Kumari House built in just six months and also started the tradition of chariot procession along with two living attendant gods Ganesh and Bhairav - this gave him an extra 12 years on the throne.
As the girl reaches 12, or sustains any injury, she is sent to her home after a special ceremonial pooja. She starts her family life normally - studying, marrying and conducting a career as well – afterwards, but she is generally called by the name of Kumari, rather than her own name.
The tradition has continued, no political change or natural calamity has ever affected the unbroken chain. However, the set traditions are being modified along with time. Amrit Man Shakya, the father of the former Kumari, worked hard to grant formal education to her inside her residence and also urged the government to provide her with monetary allowances.
Today, he is grateful to the god for providing him with this opportunity.
The 84 year old Hira Maiya Shakya, the eldest among living former Kumaris did not know that studying was even necessary. She lives with her 87 year old husband at Bijayeshori.
But the parents today put emphasis on the child’s education. Rina Skhaya, the present Kumari’s mother said she was ready to send her daughter to become the goddess as the priests said that the girl would still get a proper education.
Twenty-two year old Rashmila Shakya, a Kumari till 1992, is now a modern girl. The career-conscious girl is now waiting for the results of the Intermediate Science examination. "That was quite fun. Playing and playing and no working at all," she said, remembering her merry childhood.
Juju Bhai Shakya of Kumari House says, the Kumari in position receives Rs. 6,000 as allowance, Rs. 1000 for education and plus much more. After retiring, they get life allowance of Rs 3,000.
About the present state of the Kumari tradition, Naresh Bir Shakya, a central member of Shakya Foundation said that the tradition of Kumari is at stake due to the people’s prejudiced attitude towards it.
"Some throw conservative rumours against it and others attack it with human rights propaganda, without even finding out the truth. But the tradition will continue as long as the Shakyas are ready to send their daughters to be Kumaris and I don’t think it will ever stop," he said.
The list of the former kumaris so far possible collected
1. Hira Maiya Shakya Wotu 1922-1923 BS married 0 children
2. Chini Shova Shakya* Lagan 1923-1931 married 2 daughters
3. Chandra Devi Shakya* Asonchuka 1931-1933 married 2 daughters
4. Dil Kumari Shakya Lagan 1933-1942 married 3sons ,1 daughter
5. Nani Shova Shakya Ombahal 1942-1949 married 4 sons,2 daughters
6. Kayo Mayju Shakya* Kwahiti 1949-1955 married 1 son,1 daughter
7. Harsha Laxmi Shakya Naghal 1955-1961 married 2 sons
8. Nani Mayju Shakya Naghal 1961-1969 married 1 son, 2 daughters
9. Sunina Shakya Ombahal 1969-1978 married 1 son, 1 daughter
10. Anita Shakya Sikamoobahal 1978-1984 unmarried
11. Rashmila Shakya Kwahiti 1984-1991 unmarried
12. Amita Shakya Asanbahal 1991-2001 unmarried
13. Priti Shakya Itumbahal 2001 unmarried
* passed away
The names of the Kumaris of earliers days could not be found.
Courtsey: Durga Shakya, Kumari House
( Published in Sunday Post, The Kathmandu Post on 2001/07/29)
Monday, July 23, 2001
Saving local architecture in monument zones
By Razen Manandhar
The cliché description of Kathmandu Valley as ‘the city of temples’ is incomplete because it is not only the temples but also the surrounding private residential houses that make the city a city of matchless cultural heritage. Without the beautiful, traditional and homogenous setting of the residential houses around the monuments, the protected temples would be incomplete and never deserve the title of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Site does not mean the individual palaces, temples or stupas but the whole setting of the city. The protected monuments — i.e. the royal palaces of Kathmandu, Lalitpur and Bhaktapur, the temples of Pashupatinath and Changu Narayan and the stupas of Swoyambhu and Bouddha— however are only the focus of the whole city.
The state of the centuries-old traditional buildings, that tell the legacy of the indigenous architecture of the valley, in the core of the Kathmandu Valley has been a matter of deep concern for the world conservationists. The government has enough projects, either on paper or in reality, to conserve the palaces, temples stupas and other monuments of religious or historic significance but few steps have been taken to keep the private houses of immediate surroundings of the monuments intact.
However, conserving such houses is not as simple as that with the nationalized monuments. Along with time, the socio-economic life and needs of the urban citizens have also changed. That is why, those old buildings made with traditional "datchi appa" bricks, carved windows and doors, and tiled roof are being replaced with concrete buildings, against the essence of the laws and regulations. The citizens obviously will not live in those outdated mud-and-brick houses unless they are guided to the significance of obtaining such historical houses. The conservation of inhabited monuments need cooperative efforts both from the residents as well as the government authorities.
Being an ancient city does not mean being dead — evolution is a natural and irrevocable process. Apart from that, the residents of such historic buildings have a responsibility of preserving the specimen of the gone generations. They must learn to be proud of their great grandfathers for allowing them to live around the monuments of universal importance. Living there means being involved in protecting the priceless palaces and shrines and welcoming the tourists too. In the present context, most of the houses belong to the Newars, who are noted for their deep-rooted love and attachment to the conservation of tangible and intangible cultural heritage. They should not escape from their hereditary responsibility.
Living in the monument zone and not obeying the special rules is not fair. Those who want to live in western-style buildings can also leave that precious areas and shift to suburbs in the peripheries of the city (though this is not a solution). Examples of the European cities illuminate that urban development should follow spatial patterns also. Rather than dismantling old buildings, the citizens should put effort to develop newer residential areas around the core city. In this way, the heritage would remain unaltered and at the same time, the city would expand and give more room for the growing urban population.
In the last two decades, the government has hardly done anything more than imposing laws and regulations to curb the deterioration of the masterpieces. The laws, formulated in 1956 and amended several times, does bind the house owners with ties. But how long the authorities can control the natural urban growth only with the help of the laws which are considered as impractical by the target groups?
Instead of imposing laws and trapping the residents in inevitable administrative complications, the government authorities should convince the citizens and raise public awareness. But for that, the officers must understand the value and feel the responsibility; only then some productive results can come out.
The residents should be given some incentives for living in such buildings. The subsidy on the paper is not enough to encourage them. The historic buildings can be sources of income: The houses can be used as restaurants, bed-and-breakfast guest houses and even as private souvenir shops. The history of the buildings will enhance the reputation of the service providers and also add pleasure for the visitors.
The threat imposed by UNESCO World Heritage Centre upon the Site of Kathmandu Valley to list the Kathmandu Valley in the Monument-in-Danger list is not new. In the international conference of UNESCO at Cairns (December 2000), the Kathmandu Valley was "the focus of public attention". It is not the monuments, mostly renovated with the help of international assistance, which worries the international experts, but the surrounding houses are the crux of the danger. Fourteen years after the valley was crowned with the World Heritage Site listing, Nepal’s steps to conserve the monument was far from satisfactory, so, the 16 Recommendations of the 1993 Joint Mission, the 55 Recommendations and Time-Bound Action Plan resulting from the 1998 Joint Mission were slapped on the Nepalese government. That also
became little prolific in Nepali context.
Article VIII.32 of the Cairns report concentrates on Kathmandu Valley and pinpoints the state of such public buildings. It says: "No new plans had been put forth by the Nepalese authorities to redress the persistent and continued deterioration of the materials, structures, ornamental features, and overall architectural coherence in most Monument Zones." The concerned officer there drew the Committee’s attention to the state of conservation of the site, highlighting the fact that in general, publicly-owned historic monuments were in good condition, but the problem lay in the urban fabric within the Monument Zones.
The Committee reiterated its deepest concern for the state of conservation of the Kathmandu Valley, where urban encroachment and alteration of the historic fabric in most of the seven Monument Zones composing the site have significantly threatened its integrity and authenticity.
The report also unveiled the level of knowledge of the observer of Nepal. The observer informed the Committee that they (the Nepali government authorities) were unaware, until 1992, of the World Heritage conservation standards, hence the errors made. That means we were enjoying the privilege without knowing the essence of it.
While the world level conservationists are showing their concern on the state of the private buildings of our old and transforming city, it is high time to take it seriously and produce some visible results in the near future. Our "lip-service" attitude of the government officials have annoyed the international experts living and observing the conservation works here. The feature of the indigenous architecture must be conserved soon, at least to maintain the sympathy we have been given by the world organizations. Otherwise, luck may not favour us in 2002 and being slapped with the Monument-in-Danger list, that we never want, will be unavoidable.
The cliché description of Kathmandu Valley as ‘the city of temples’ is incomplete because it is not only the temples but also the surrounding private residential houses that make the city a city of matchless cultural heritage. Without the beautiful, traditional and homogenous setting of the residential houses around the monuments, the protected temples would be incomplete and never deserve the title of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Site does not mean the individual palaces, temples or stupas but the whole setting of the city. The protected monuments — i.e. the royal palaces of Kathmandu, Lalitpur and Bhaktapur, the temples of Pashupatinath and Changu Narayan and the stupas of Swoyambhu and Bouddha— however are only the focus of the whole city.
The state of the centuries-old traditional buildings, that tell the legacy of the indigenous architecture of the valley, in the core of the Kathmandu Valley has been a matter of deep concern for the world conservationists. The government has enough projects, either on paper or in reality, to conserve the palaces, temples stupas and other monuments of religious or historic significance but few steps have been taken to keep the private houses of immediate surroundings of the monuments intact.
However, conserving such houses is not as simple as that with the nationalized monuments. Along with time, the socio-economic life and needs of the urban citizens have also changed. That is why, those old buildings made with traditional "datchi appa" bricks, carved windows and doors, and tiled roof are being replaced with concrete buildings, against the essence of the laws and regulations. The citizens obviously will not live in those outdated mud-and-brick houses unless they are guided to the significance of obtaining such historical houses. The conservation of inhabited monuments need cooperative efforts both from the residents as well as the government authorities.
Being an ancient city does not mean being dead — evolution is a natural and irrevocable process. Apart from that, the residents of such historic buildings have a responsibility of preserving the specimen of the gone generations. They must learn to be proud of their great grandfathers for allowing them to live around the monuments of universal importance. Living there means being involved in protecting the priceless palaces and shrines and welcoming the tourists too. In the present context, most of the houses belong to the Newars, who are noted for their deep-rooted love and attachment to the conservation of tangible and intangible cultural heritage. They should not escape from their hereditary responsibility.
Living in the monument zone and not obeying the special rules is not fair. Those who want to live in western-style buildings can also leave that precious areas and shift to suburbs in the peripheries of the city (though this is not a solution). Examples of the European cities illuminate that urban development should follow spatial patterns also. Rather than dismantling old buildings, the citizens should put effort to develop newer residential areas around the core city. In this way, the heritage would remain unaltered and at the same time, the city would expand and give more room for the growing urban population.
In the last two decades, the government has hardly done anything more than imposing laws and regulations to curb the deterioration of the masterpieces. The laws, formulated in 1956 and amended several times, does bind the house owners with ties. But how long the authorities can control the natural urban growth only with the help of the laws which are considered as impractical by the target groups?
Instead of imposing laws and trapping the residents in inevitable administrative complications, the government authorities should convince the citizens and raise public awareness. But for that, the officers must understand the value and feel the responsibility; only then some productive results can come out.
The residents should be given some incentives for living in such buildings. The subsidy on the paper is not enough to encourage them. The historic buildings can be sources of income: The houses can be used as restaurants, bed-and-breakfast guest houses and even as private souvenir shops. The history of the buildings will enhance the reputation of the service providers and also add pleasure for the visitors.
The threat imposed by UNESCO World Heritage Centre upon the Site of Kathmandu Valley to list the Kathmandu Valley in the Monument-in-Danger list is not new. In the international conference of UNESCO at Cairns (December 2000), the Kathmandu Valley was "the focus of public attention". It is not the monuments, mostly renovated with the help of international assistance, which worries the international experts, but the surrounding houses are the crux of the danger. Fourteen years after the valley was crowned with the World Heritage Site listing, Nepal’s steps to conserve the monument was far from satisfactory, so, the 16 Recommendations of the 1993 Joint Mission, the 55 Recommendations and Time-Bound Action Plan resulting from the 1998 Joint Mission were slapped on the Nepalese government. That also
became little prolific in Nepali context.
Article VIII.32 of the Cairns report concentrates on Kathmandu Valley and pinpoints the state of such public buildings. It says: "No new plans had been put forth by the Nepalese authorities to redress the persistent and continued deterioration of the materials, structures, ornamental features, and overall architectural coherence in most Monument Zones." The concerned officer there drew the Committee’s attention to the state of conservation of the site, highlighting the fact that in general, publicly-owned historic monuments were in good condition, but the problem lay in the urban fabric within the Monument Zones.
The Committee reiterated its deepest concern for the state of conservation of the Kathmandu Valley, where urban encroachment and alteration of the historic fabric in most of the seven Monument Zones composing the site have significantly threatened its integrity and authenticity.
The report also unveiled the level of knowledge of the observer of Nepal. The observer informed the Committee that they (the Nepali government authorities) were unaware, until 1992, of the World Heritage conservation standards, hence the errors made. That means we were enjoying the privilege without knowing the essence of it.
While the world level conservationists are showing their concern on the state of the private buildings of our old and transforming city, it is high time to take it seriously and produce some visible results in the near future. Our "lip-service" attitude of the government officials have annoyed the international experts living and observing the conservation works here. The feature of the indigenous architecture must be conserved soon, at least to maintain the sympathy we have been given by the world organizations. Otherwise, luck may not favour us in 2002 and being slapped with the Monument-in-Danger list, that we never want, will be unavoidable.
Sunday, June 10, 2001
After eight years, World Heritage Site beckons visitors
[Sundari Chowk]
By Razen Manandhar
LALITPUR, June 8 - A period of eight years is too long for any beautiful heritage site to remain closed for common people and tourists citing renovation works. But not by the standard of Department of Archaeology (DoA), which has closed Sundari Chowk or the Royal Bath, one of the best parts of Patan Durbar Square, a site in the World Heritage List.
The Sundari Chowk or ‘the beautiful courtyard’, constructed in 1627 AD by King Siddhi Narsimha Malla, was used as a bathing place for the Malla kings and their families. At the centre of the courtyard, is a water sprout with a replica of Krishna Mandir. The Chowk is flanked by scores of stone idols of Hindu deities for the kings to pray gods after their bathe. Surrounded by magnificent wood pillars, door and windows and adored by finest woodcarving, the Chowk in itself is a symbol of art and splendour.
Founder president of Tourist Guides Association of Nepal (TURGAN) Dwarika Das Rajbhandari says, without access to the Chowk, visitors are denied of the grandeur view of the Patan Durbar Square. "We ought to show them this historical treasure that we have."
But the tourists have no options but to go through the old pictures in the guide books and wander what a beautiful opportunity it would have been to be in the historic site.
Mandankini Shrestha, Chief of the Durbar Protection Office, a wing of the DoA says that the Chowk is closed for conservation works. According to her, the DoA decided to close the 375-year old courtyard’s door for visitors because it was crumbling down and there was no project to renovate it. She reiterated the same old reason: "We lack budget for such a grand project."
In 1996, DoA and UNESCO jointly carried out a feasibility study for the renovation works, which billed the project cost at 265,800 US dollars.
Besides, she added that lack of security was another reason behind closing down of the courtyard. "The other problem is security. The courtyard has no security staff from army or police for one of the mighty World Heritage Sites," she said.
Mayor of Lalitpur Sub-metropolitan City, Buddhi Raj Bajracharya has been arguing the government to open the courtyard since several years.
"I had asked the DoA , the concerning government body, to open the ancient courtyard for the locals and visiting tourists. I even proposed to spend one or two million rupees to renovate it if necessary, but they refused it," said Bajracharya.
The conservation experts suspect that several artefacts could have been stolen from the World Heritage Site by now. They say there are security lapses since the nearby Ward Police Office was removed from the Durbar Square.
The courtyard was documented in detail in 1993, which lasted for 15 months, with the support of United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) headquarters. Hariratna Ranjitkar, a conservationist, who was also involved in the project, said that though people were not allowed to climb upstairs then, the courtyard was okay and people came and went freely there.
"We worked as per the project and left it open. But after the completion of the project the courtyard was closed. I see no reason why the tourists and local people should be prevented from visiting such a beautiful place", he says.
Rajbhandari also thinks that the Chowk should be opened for tourists since they pay Rs 200 as entrance fee to enter the Patan Durbar Square.
By Razen Manandhar
LALITPUR, June 8 - A period of eight years is too long for any beautiful heritage site to remain closed for common people and tourists citing renovation works. But not by the standard of Department of Archaeology (DoA), which has closed Sundari Chowk or the Royal Bath, one of the best parts of Patan Durbar Square, a site in the World Heritage List.
The Sundari Chowk or ‘the beautiful courtyard’, constructed in 1627 AD by King Siddhi Narsimha Malla, was used as a bathing place for the Malla kings and their families. At the centre of the courtyard, is a water sprout with a replica of Krishna Mandir. The Chowk is flanked by scores of stone idols of Hindu deities for the kings to pray gods after their bathe. Surrounded by magnificent wood pillars, door and windows and adored by finest woodcarving, the Chowk in itself is a symbol of art and splendour.
Founder president of Tourist Guides Association of Nepal (TURGAN) Dwarika Das Rajbhandari says, without access to the Chowk, visitors are denied of the grandeur view of the Patan Durbar Square. "We ought to show them this historical treasure that we have."
But the tourists have no options but to go through the old pictures in the guide books and wander what a beautiful opportunity it would have been to be in the historic site.
Mandankini Shrestha, Chief of the Durbar Protection Office, a wing of the DoA says that the Chowk is closed for conservation works. According to her, the DoA decided to close the 375-year old courtyard’s door for visitors because it was crumbling down and there was no project to renovate it. She reiterated the same old reason: "We lack budget for such a grand project."
In 1996, DoA and UNESCO jointly carried out a feasibility study for the renovation works, which billed the project cost at 265,800 US dollars.
Besides, she added that lack of security was another reason behind closing down of the courtyard. "The other problem is security. The courtyard has no security staff from army or police for one of the mighty World Heritage Sites," she said.
Mayor of Lalitpur Sub-metropolitan City, Buddhi Raj Bajracharya has been arguing the government to open the courtyard since several years.
"I had asked the DoA , the concerning government body, to open the ancient courtyard for the locals and visiting tourists. I even proposed to spend one or two million rupees to renovate it if necessary, but they refused it," said Bajracharya.
The conservation experts suspect that several artefacts could have been stolen from the World Heritage Site by now. They say there are security lapses since the nearby Ward Police Office was removed from the Durbar Square.
The courtyard was documented in detail in 1993, which lasted for 15 months, with the support of United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) headquarters. Hariratna Ranjitkar, a conservationist, who was also involved in the project, said that though people were not allowed to climb upstairs then, the courtyard was okay and people came and went freely there.
"We worked as per the project and left it open. But after the completion of the project the courtyard was closed. I see no reason why the tourists and local people should be prevented from visiting such a beautiful place", he says.
Rajbhandari also thinks that the Chowk should be opened for tourists since they pay Rs 200 as entrance fee to enter the Patan Durbar Square.
Sunday, March 25, 2001
Guthi Sansthan set to lease religious land
By Razen Manandhar
KATHMANDU, March 24 - Guthi Sansthan (GS), the Trusts Corporation, is all set to lease four plots of land, that has religious and archaeological importance, for commercial purposes in the Kathmandu Valley.
GS decided on March 6 to lease three plots of land at Pakanajol and one of Siphal inviting through a public notice for private individuals or firms to apply for setting up structure for commercial purposes.
Saroj Thapaliya, engineer at GS, said that it is leasing the land to generate income from these plots of land that so far were going to waste.
Locals fear that these four plots of land too could meet similar fate faced by another such land leased out by GS.
A 193-year-old Shiva temple and its surrounding 14 anaas area opposite of Paknajol Sorhakhutte Pati, that was leased by GS is now being used as storage for kerosene and cooking gas by Durga Devi Amatya who pays "minimal rent" to GS.
This has blocked the devotees from visiting the temple. Worse, a semi underground tank has been built and the temple has turned into a warehouse.
The temple was constructed around 1807 by a government officer, Bhotu Pande, who played an important role in Nepal-Tibet-China war. Historical documents state that he constructed a Shiva Linga, Mahadev temple, pond, platform, road, rest-house surrounding a temple, and his own statue in that area. He had allocated around 70 ropanis of land for continuation of rituals in the temple and its renovation.
However, the whole area has been occupied by residential houses these days. There was a pond some 15 years ago on which the squatters have built private houses. A part of the pond was "donated" to Lekhnath Sahitya Sadan. Now, the area is used as a bus park.
Besides, a water spout is being covered by piles of garbage and plastic bottles and the path to the spout is blocked by kerosene containers. Ward police office and several private houses have been built between the two temple areas.
Ram Bir Manandhar, chairman of Ward No 16 of Kathmandu Metropolitan City, said that the ward office has been trying to rescue the temple from the kerosene oil seller for years but GS has been supporting the lease and Department of Archaeology is not taking any action. "This can one day cause a big damage to the archaeological site," he said.
"Guthi Samsthan is meant to protect the monuments, not to destroy them. While it is not protecting the leased area, it is again trying to make money out of the land that has cultural value for the local people," he said. "This tradition of destroying our culture by leasing the land for commercial purpose should be stopped."
He added that such areas should be used as open space, either as widened roads or gardens or parks for the growing population of the metropolis.
Department of Archaeology presented a report to then Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture in May 8, 2000, after the minister’s instruction to survey the area, following the ward office’s memorandum to the prime minister and the minister, to evacuate the temple premises.
An officer of Department of Archaeology said it wrote several times to GS to conserve the monument site but it never reacted.
KATHMANDU, March 24 - Guthi Sansthan (GS), the Trusts Corporation, is all set to lease four plots of land, that has religious and archaeological importance, for commercial purposes in the Kathmandu Valley.
GS decided on March 6 to lease three plots of land at Pakanajol and one of Siphal inviting through a public notice for private individuals or firms to apply for setting up structure for commercial purposes.
Saroj Thapaliya, engineer at GS, said that it is leasing the land to generate income from these plots of land that so far were going to waste.
Locals fear that these four plots of land too could meet similar fate faced by another such land leased out by GS.
A 193-year-old Shiva temple and its surrounding 14 anaas area opposite of Paknajol Sorhakhutte Pati, that was leased by GS is now being used as storage for kerosene and cooking gas by Durga Devi Amatya who pays "minimal rent" to GS.
This has blocked the devotees from visiting the temple. Worse, a semi underground tank has been built and the temple has turned into a warehouse.
The temple was constructed around 1807 by a government officer, Bhotu Pande, who played an important role in Nepal-Tibet-China war. Historical documents state that he constructed a Shiva Linga, Mahadev temple, pond, platform, road, rest-house surrounding a temple, and his own statue in that area. He had allocated around 70 ropanis of land for continuation of rituals in the temple and its renovation.
However, the whole area has been occupied by residential houses these days. There was a pond some 15 years ago on which the squatters have built private houses. A part of the pond was "donated" to Lekhnath Sahitya Sadan. Now, the area is used as a bus park.
Besides, a water spout is being covered by piles of garbage and plastic bottles and the path to the spout is blocked by kerosene containers. Ward police office and several private houses have been built between the two temple areas.
Ram Bir Manandhar, chairman of Ward No 16 of Kathmandu Metropolitan City, said that the ward office has been trying to rescue the temple from the kerosene oil seller for years but GS has been supporting the lease and Department of Archaeology is not taking any action. "This can one day cause a big damage to the archaeological site," he said.
"Guthi Samsthan is meant to protect the monuments, not to destroy them. While it is not protecting the leased area, it is again trying to make money out of the land that has cultural value for the local people," he said. "This tradition of destroying our culture by leasing the land for commercial purpose should be stopped."
He added that such areas should be used as open space, either as widened roads or gardens or parks for the growing population of the metropolis.
Department of Archaeology presented a report to then Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture in May 8, 2000, after the minister’s instruction to survey the area, following the ward office’s memorandum to the prime minister and the minister, to evacuate the temple premises.
An officer of Department of Archaeology said it wrote several times to GS to conserve the monument site but it never reacted.
Friday, December 08, 2000
Private construction encroaches historic site
By Razen Manandhar
LALITPUR, Dec 6 - Despite the locals’ protest, a concrete house is being built, on war footing, encroaching a 2000 years old stupa site, directly opposite to the Lalitpur Sub-metropolitan City (LSC) office, say locals.
Anil Rajbhandari, a local resident of Lalitpur ward No. 3, has already built a concrete foundation and possibly a basement, too which is just a metre away from the Ashoka Stupa.
"We protested against this construction a month ago at LMC office," said Shyam Maleku Shrestha, a 76 year-old local resident. "But we don’t know what is going on between the owner of that land and municipality. But, they are not stopping it, though this is taking place under the nose of the municipality office," he added.
According to Shrestha, the house also encroaches upon a 240-year old historic rest house (Sattal) site, which holds ritual importance during the festival of Akshaya Tritiya and Indra Jatra.
An officer at the Department of Archaeology (DoA), on condition of anonymity, said that he rejected the construction proposal when the land owner came to seek permission a week ago. But, the owner later approached another officer and had the proposal approved "under strange circumstances," he said.
He also adds,"The building owner had faced several orders to stop construction in the past, whenever he tried to build it."
He also informed that the house owner had tried to obtain similar approvals number of times in the past but each time his bid to construct a house was foiled by DoA and the municipality.
However, Buddhi Raj Bajracharya, Mayor of LSC said, the building doesn’t encroach the historical site and also has not violated the rules and standing laws. "Those who oppose may have some vested interest," he added.
Bajracharya, however, informed that LSC had not given permission to the owner for the basement construction.
Documents at LSC show that Rajbhandari got the permission in September 1999. The blue print of the building bears signatures of the mayor, executive officer, acting engineer and representative of DoA.
Acting engineer at LSC Map Approval Department Badri Tamrakar said that LMC gave permission to build the house because the builder has followed all the criteria and also had the permission from the DoA, which is vital in such a sensitive region.
Historian Hari Ram Joshi said that finding ancient objects in that area is not unusual. "Excavation in that area would bring many important facts regarding the history of the stupa. But it is a shame that the government gives permission not only to build a house but also to dig a deep basement in that area."
He also recalled that, seventh century objects were found while building Nepal Telecommunication Corporation building at Naxal and a subway crossing at Bhotahity but the government did not stop the constructions.
LALITPUR, Dec 6 - Despite the locals’ protest, a concrete house is being built, on war footing, encroaching a 2000 years old stupa site, directly opposite to the Lalitpur Sub-metropolitan City (LSC) office, say locals.
Anil Rajbhandari, a local resident of Lalitpur ward No. 3, has already built a concrete foundation and possibly a basement, too which is just a metre away from the Ashoka Stupa.
"We protested against this construction a month ago at LMC office," said Shyam Maleku Shrestha, a 76 year-old local resident. "But we don’t know what is going on between the owner of that land and municipality. But, they are not stopping it, though this is taking place under the nose of the municipality office," he added.
According to Shrestha, the house also encroaches upon a 240-year old historic rest house (Sattal) site, which holds ritual importance during the festival of Akshaya Tritiya and Indra Jatra.
An officer at the Department of Archaeology (DoA), on condition of anonymity, said that he rejected the construction proposal when the land owner came to seek permission a week ago. But, the owner later approached another officer and had the proposal approved "under strange circumstances," he said.
He also adds,"The building owner had faced several orders to stop construction in the past, whenever he tried to build it."
He also informed that the house owner had tried to obtain similar approvals number of times in the past but each time his bid to construct a house was foiled by DoA and the municipality.
However, Buddhi Raj Bajracharya, Mayor of LSC said, the building doesn’t encroach the historical site and also has not violated the rules and standing laws. "Those who oppose may have some vested interest," he added.
Bajracharya, however, informed that LSC had not given permission to the owner for the basement construction.
Documents at LSC show that Rajbhandari got the permission in September 1999. The blue print of the building bears signatures of the mayor, executive officer, acting engineer and representative of DoA.
Acting engineer at LSC Map Approval Department Badri Tamrakar said that LMC gave permission to build the house because the builder has followed all the criteria and also had the permission from the DoA, which is vital in such a sensitive region.
Historian Hari Ram Joshi said that finding ancient objects in that area is not unusual. "Excavation in that area would bring many important facts regarding the history of the stupa. But it is a shame that the government gives permission not only to build a house but also to dig a deep basement in that area."
He also recalled that, seventh century objects were found while building Nepal Telecommunication Corporation building at Naxal and a subway crossing at Bhotahity but the government did not stop the constructions.
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