Micro Gets Big

THOSE completely sold to the idea of big hydel plants may not be impressed much by the news that micro hydels are gaining popularity. But for the thousands of people who are benefitting from the spread of micro hydel technology across Nepal’s hills, these small plants developed from the ubiquitous ghatta (traditional water mill) that Nepalese have been using for centuries, mean a lot. Over 1,300 micro hydropower plants dot Nepal. People have benefitted with the newly-found hydropower as communication facilities and small industrial entrepreneurship like agro-processing become possible. Women have more time now thanks to reduction in their daily toil. Less number of trees are felled because part of energy needs are met by the hydel plant. Micro hydels are still pooh-poohed by the votaries of big hydels and big dams, the argument against it being that given Nepal’s needs, the process is too slow, that big hydels bring energy to a large number of people quickly. What is conveniently forgotten is that compared to big plants micro hydels are entirely operated and maintained by the local people. The cost is relatively manageable. Comparatively much less outside assistance is required in their installation. Once they are up and running, local people can be trained to ensure its upkeep.

The above has been proven by the experience of a number of organisations which are involved in promoting micro hydels in Nepal’s hills. One of the development programmes in this field uses micro hydropower as the entry point of development and poverty alleviation in the remote mountainous districts. A good thing going for the micro hydropower development is that the equipment for the plant installation like turbines, peltric sets, penstock pipes and so on are manufactured in Nepal itself by Nepalese, thereby avoiding dependence on the foreign markets. Trainings like a month-long training for micro hydro operators that started in Kathmandu the other day go to increase the technical manpower that the country needs in this field. Considering how many VDCs and districts of Nepal remain out of the developmental mainstream for the simple reason that there is no electricity in the areas, it would not be a bad idea for a greater number of development projects to give a thought to promote micro-hydropower, something tested and tried with success. If more organisations chip in, the micro hydel phenomenon can only get bigger.

Laudable Initiative

IT is indeed very heartening to note that a foreign-based non-profit social organisation which, among others, is working to introduce, develop and promote Nepal’s tourism industry, will be opening the first Nepal Tourism Information Centre (NTIC) on November 15, 2000 in London, the United Kingdom. For one, it will be the very first such an information centre to be opened outside Nepal till date. More interesting still is that the initiative has been taken up by a non-governmental organisation, the Friends of Britain and Nepal-Nepal Tourism Organisation (FBNNTO). The proposed NTIC, to be located in the heart of London, will undoubtedly play an important role in introducing, developing and promoting Nepal as one of the leading tourism destinations in Britain. It’s not that Britain and the British people need to be familiarized about Nepal and the Nepalese people. Nor, for that matter, about Nepal’s unique tourism sites. As per last year’s tourist arrival records, about 35,000 British tourists paid a visit to Nepal. This record itself proves that Britain and the British people are indeed familiar with Nepal, the Nepalese people and the country’s tourism sites. For this, we may have to give due credit to the over 180-year-old beneficial relations between Nepal and Britain.

However, this is not to say that we should leave it to the long and friendly ties subsisting between the two nations to entice more British tourists to come to Nepal. For, of late, the urgency to open a tourism information centre to help popularise Nepal as a tourism destination among the friendly British people has been keenly felt not only by the concerned authorities but also by all those organisations and personnel related to the tourism sector. Britain, without any doubt, is one of the major tourist destinations of the world. Yet, at the same time, increasingly more British people are travelling abroad every year due to Britain’s robust economy. As such, the need for Nepal to attract more tourists from Britain is always there. Moreover, although the over 180-year-old Nepal-Britain relations are still going strong, thanks to the unique bilateral pact that allows Nepalese to serve in the British Army, what should not be assumed here is that the younger generations of the British society are also familiar of the over 18-decade-long Nepal-Britain history. And, needless to point out, these younger generations of British society are potential Nepal visitors. As such, it looks to reason on the part of the concerned authorities and the nation’s tourism sector to join hands to forward due encouragement to the FBNNTO in its laudable initiative.