Nawang P Phuntsho

It is difficult working in a service industry.  Most often we end up disappointing our customers because our works get delayed unnecessarily. Some works are just within our fingertips but again there are proper channels to be routed through. If you don’t follow, then you end up being the melting pot of all the blames in the world if something goes wrong in the end. This is responsibility. And by being extra careful, our customers become frustrated. Why not? Anyone would be.  But again this is only way for us save our head. This is the only way to protect ourselves with regulations in our favor. What about our customers and their faith in us? They are the reason why we are there. It all boils down to being responsible and being responsible enough to take some calculated risks to offer better customer service. But are all customers trustworthy? Is it worth taking some risks? Who would act us our shields? Customers want faster services and regulations demand us to follow st...

We have shown that we are capable. Our private papers are testimony to this. Initially no one thought it was possible to sell newspapers other than Kuensel. But now Bhutan already boasts of four privately run papers. And we are made to understand that some more are in the offing. This is very good news to us all. Other papers should take this as an opportunity  to work harder and better themselves.  But for now private Bhutanese channel is what everyone wishes for. This in turn should give very good competition to BBS. And unless we have a channel choice, we might have to continue watching hourly news programs and hearing shooting non-stop public announcement that sometimes stretch more than five minutes. What do we want in the new channel?  Definitely, Bhutanese people want to have new, unique and better programs and updated news, live reporting. Because right now we are made to feel that even if their building is on fire, BBS newsreaders will continue reading the pr...

And today driving a car is not luxury at all. First, you don’t have money, but you need something to drive you around and the only option left is to avail loan from a financial institution. If you are lucky, you get the money after a great hassle. This is good because that’s how banks earn revenues for the government and you are part of that revenue-making process. Second, you now have the borrowed money, you book a vehicle and once it is ready, you bear the burden of paying some extra borrowed money as tax. That’s good too because it contributes to the nation. Hopefully, a small fraction of this revenue reaches every mouth in the country. Third, you have to take this weird and nonsensical putting-in-the-box test to have the documents to drive, which is also good because if everyone is allowed to drive without driving license, we will have even a ten-year old boy from powerful family on the wheels.  And lastly, you pay the burden of paying to park your cars. I understand the com...

For the first time in the history of the country, Bhutanese people can now pursue their Masters degrees at Sherubste College, the country’s first premier college. According to the news released by the college, it proposes to start offering Masters in English, Economics and Mathematics. Good news to us all. We should be proud of it because this shows the level of confidence the college has attained. And we are really proud that the college has dared to take this initiative. Congratulations to the college administration and Royal University of Bhutan for daring to dream thus. Hopefully, now most Bhutanese aspiring to upgrade their qualification can do so without having to go far from their families. Those that have gone abroad should be in a position to share with us how inconvenient it is being away from one’s family members. But now that problem will be solved. But when most of our people are unwilling to get their Masters from India, will our people be ready enough to take chance in...

Before this Monsoon ends, some graduating students from colleges under the aegis of RUB would find themselves joining some companies in the country, provided that they impress the interviewers and some form of luck is in their favor. Some corporations in Bhutan find themselves saving a lot of time, money and effort going through a hectic recruitment process, thanks to the campus recruitment initiative. It is proving to be beneficial both to the graduates who are offered the jobs on the spot and the companies that hire them. It is beneficial to the graduates in a sense that they no longer have to search for a job in an already shrinking job market and that as soon as they finish their studies, they have jobs; thereby reducing family pressure. And for the companies that hire them, apparently they no longer have to go through a nightmarish recruitment process, but they still get to hire the best candidates – a win-win situation! There are chances, however, that some students would end ...

We thought the government has dropped the plan of increasing tax on import of vehicles last year. But it seems they never have. They did it again. And so quietly this time! They did it with a difference this time though with cylinder capacity as the basis. We said it last year and we still think the policy will affect people in the lower income bracket. People in the civil service and in power can still purchase expensive cars with government quota system. For them there will be hardly any difference with the increased tax policy. For that reasons, they will keep quiet. In fact they are. And for now, it seems without a study trip to USA or Australia for a few years, our dream of driving expensive cars would remain just a waking dream. Even a small car like Alto would be 5% more expensive henceforth. Thanks to policy Bhutanese people will now be ever healthy and fit . Hopefully, this goes a long way in combating air pollution and city traffic congestion.    For air and nois...

I have this problem with toenails for quite some time now. For some reasons, they started entering my tender flesh instead of its normal outward projection. And it is painfully difficult to remove them.  Maybe that is something to do with the amount of weight I am putting on. But that’s content another story. Same problem came again last week. It was too late to go to hospital. But the pain was unbearable. I went to a hospital across the border. After having registered myself with Rs. 150, I waited for the ‘doctor’ to finish his business with another patient. After fifteen or so minutes, I was called in. The doctor’s room was not bigger than my kitchen or bathroom. There was a small table.   I showed him my swollen toenail. He told me it can be removed easily. He went outside. “I will have to do a mini-operation here,” he looked at my toes, when he came in. “It will cost you Rs. 650.” Okay! “Doctor, is there any other way? I don’t want you to cut ...

in hope of finding you I have crossed Black Mountain riding on the wings of ara swimming in triple-X-Rum whispering words of Changta whiskey and Tiger-beer and now that you are here  I am crossing high Black Mountains riding on the wings of ara swimming in triple-X-Rum whispering words of Changta whiskey and Tiger-beer some things never change

This week was really seven "junk" days for my writing and my blog.  But this morning I was just wondering what really constitutes junks -well, besides all kind of noodles, soft drinks and potato chips that the authorities have mentioned last time. I am worried because they said they were not willing to have public consultation or take the expertise of professional dietitians, but would come up with a list based purely on "common sense". Now that's really something. DRC officials must be really cracking their heads by now. Now what about French fries? Will they tax potatoes or vegetable oil? What about momos or samosas? What about phaksha-sikam? What about delicious chowmein or alodum?  Just a junk thought.