Skip to main content

Let's mean it - June is here once again


We are already into the month of June. And this means June 2 is here again. Back then, it was celebrated as Coronation cum Social Forestry Day. It was a national holiday; a wonderful day to plant tress. But with time, we have scrapped the day from our national holiday list. This is a serious blow to the nation, I think. We are not lamenting the loss of an additional day off here, but we lament the loss of our tree planting opportunities. Of course schools still participate in the plantation exercise. And that's good. But we need the day to remind ourselves the importance of tree plantation. We need reminders; otherwise we forget. Just saying we are conserving our forest for all times to come while on the other hand we continue felling trees after tress, truly shows our heightened hypocrisy.   

Even if we celebrate the Coronation Day in November now, June 2 (in its own right) deserves to be a public holiday. And the reasons are amply clear. People of a country that lays immense emphasis on conservation of forest and other natural resources, rightfully deserve to be constantly reminded of the importance of conserving our natural resources and planting trees. And tree plantation is not the job of schools alone. Once we graduate from our schools or colleges, we are not offered the opportunity to involve in such useful activities.

Whoever is responsible, please kindly consider restoring June 2 as the public holiday. Let's create nationwide awareness and for once let's truly mean what we say. Yes, let's mean what we say!  

Comments

  1. Kuenga DendupJune 2, 2011 at 10:59 PM

    Charo,
    You are right! Forget about other departments/ government agencies, even the schools are deprived of opportunity that we used to have in the past. To day, only the class eight students and the class teachers were involve in tree plantation in our school. We other teachers were just running our usual classes. I feel sad like you.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Drukpa bhumoJune 3, 2011 at 1:41 AM

    i like what you have written....something very true.
    the number of trees are decreasing every year so i think it is very important to plant trees and conserve our forests.

    ReplyDelete
  3. George SmithApril 2, 2012 at 3:03 PM

    Trees provide numerous aesthetic and economic benefits but also incur some costs. You need to be aware that an investment is required for your trees to provide the benefits that you desire.

    long island tree care

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

So what do you think?

Popular Posts

When they are ready

The Ministry of Education discovered 890 'underage' children admitted in schools across the country in 2019. Thus, the ministry in May 2019 issued a notification revoking the admission for these children.  Majority were in urban centres.  Desperate, parents and the affected schools requested the government to intervene. They also requested the government to consider lowering the enrolment age to five years.  Currently, in Bhutan a child can legally go to school only when s(he) is six years old.  And that policy was strictly followed a few years ago to the extent that some schools refused to admit children even if they were short of a few weeks. So, parents, mostly in urban areas, resorted to faking their children's ages. Many parents were guilty of adding years onto their children's actual ages. However, most parents, we are told, managed to correct their 'mistakes' later.  Faking a child's age was rampant...
2 comments
Read more...

The Vanishing Currency of a Bhutanese Village

Growing up in rural Bhutan, the richest people in the village often had very little cash. They were known as chukpo , 'the ones with cattle'. And no one asked how much money a person had in the bank. No one or only a countable few had bank accounts, anyway. Wealth was measured in fields, cattle, grains, and the ability to carry a family through the seasons. Cash existed, but it played only a small role. Most exchanges happened through barter. Rice for chillies, soya beans for Sichuan peppers, cheese for eggs. I still remember that a ball of homemade cheese was worth two fresh eggs. Nobody needed a calculator because people simply knew. The most remarkable part of the system was the exchange of labour. During sowing and planting seasons, families needed extra hands, yet labour was rarely paid in cash. If I spent three days helping on your farm, you spent three days helping on mine in return. No contract was needed to be signed. No money changed hands. Wealthier households so...
2 comments
Read more...

Community of Bhutanese Bloggers Conceived

And finally it happened. I must say that it was by far the most attended Bloggers Meet. In the past we had bloggers agree to attend and cancel at the very last minute. But on June 24, 2015 – almost 100% of bloggers, who confirmed came. I would like to thank everyone for keeping his/her words, especially those who had to come all the way from Wangdue or Paro. Thank you! 35 Bhutanese bloggers met in Thimphu. We were honored to have the presence of senior bloggers like Aue Yeshi Dorji and Dasho Sangay Khandu. The meeting assumed more significance because of their presence. Equally, we were happy to have many young bloggers in whom we see so much enthusiasm and potential. On top of many things that transpired during the Meet, one of the most significant outcomes was the unanimous decision reached to form a formal group of bloggers, a platform aimed at encouraging and inspiring more bloggers around the country. The members decided that we will call it Community of Bhutanese Blogger...
16 comments
Read more...