Bhutan Government pays five hundred thousand in a day to the Government.

On 9 August, 2009, a report compiled by Phuntsho Wangdi revealed that Bhutan government pays Nu.500,000 to government of India every day just as an interest for borrowing Rs 5 billion from India to meet the rupee requirements in the Bhutanese economy. This figure is quite alarming looking at the present economic growth, strength and the financial capability of Bhutan. The only source of income for Bhutan is through hydro power, which is highly driven by the nature. No one can say that what may happen to this natural resources with the global climate change at an alarming rate. It is therefore, the responsibility of the new government to think well, look at from different angles on the implications of such borrowings and take the step. Otherwise, we may never know the future implications of such steps taken. "Think Twice Before We Leap"

Bhutan Government pays five hundred thousand in a day to the Government.

On 9 August, 2009, a report compiled by Phuntsho Wangdi revealed that Bhutan government pays Nu.500,000 to government of India every day just as an interest for borrowing Rs 5 billion from India to meet the rupee requirements in the Bhutanese economy. This figure is quite alarming looking at the present economic growth, strength and the financial capability of Bhutan. The only source of income for Bhutan is through hydro power, which is highly driven by the nature. No one can say that what may happen to this natural resources with the global climate change at an alarming rate. It is therefore, the responsibility of the new government to think well, look at from different angles on the implications of such borrowings and take the step. Otherwise, we may never know the future implications of such steps taken. "Think Twice Before We Leap"

Human Resource Management: In Reality

Favourtism and nepotism are the two most cache words used in the Bhutanese Bureaucracy.Fortunately or unfortunately it is true to certain extent.Bhutan Civil Service Rules (BSCR) was documented to address the issue but it failed to a large extent. Then came Position Classification System (PCS). It has numerous clauses and rules protecting the rights of the employee, the principle of right people for the rght job. But it was in all paper and never turned into reality meaning practice. In fact this document created more confusions among the agencies and Human Resource Managers, the employees and the Royal Civil Service Commission(RCSC) the very organization responsible for bringing the document. RCSC did try saying that this is a document which ensures better transparency, accountability and efficiency. However, it has been almost four years in implementation yet still nobody seems to appreciate it. Rather it has always been in a controversial issue and still remains and looks will remain the same if the present trend continues. With the establishment of democracy, it is further expected to increase due to political influence. At least at the moment, the government agreed to be a zero tolerance to corruption is some sort of relief to some but in reality, it will exist as far as human existence is there. No government, no polices, no principles, not with even the most dedicated citizens holding these post can root out the trend of favouring their own traits. This is because every human is believed to be born with some patch of dark spot and ego which overcome the good qualities in us. The only difference is how much we can actually control out evil qualities. Thus, in nutshell, no human resource management classes, conferences, workshops, trainings, public advocacy etc. will bring a complete and ideal situation of human resource management in any organization or to any employee.

Human Resource Management: In Reality

Favourtism and nepotism are the two most cache words used in the Bhutanese Bureaucracy.Fortunately or unfortunately it is true to certain extent.Bhutan Civil Service Rules (BSCR) was documented to address the issue but it failed to a large extent. Then came Position Classification System (PCS). It has numerous clauses and rules protecting the rights of the employee, the principle of right people for the rght job. But it was in all paper and never turned into reality meaning practice. In fact this document created more confusions among the agencies and Human Resource Managers, the employees and the Royal Civil Service Commission(RCSC) the very organization responsible for bringing the document. RCSC did try saying that this is a document which ensures better transparency, accountability and efficiency. However, it has been almost four years in implementation yet still nobody seems to appreciate it. Rather it has always been in a controversial issue and still remains and looks will remain the same if the present trend continues. With the establishment of democracy, it is further expected to increase due to political influence. At least at the moment, the government agreed to be a zero tolerance to corruption is some sort of relief to some but in reality, it will exist as far as human existence is there. No government, no polices, no principles, not with even the most dedicated citizens holding these post can root out the trend of favouring their own traits. This is because every human is believed to be born with some patch of dark spot and ego which overcome the good qualities in us. The only difference is how much we can actually control out evil qualities. Thus, in nutshell, no human resource management classes, conferences, workshops, trainings, public advocacy etc. will bring a complete and ideal situation of human resource management in any organization or to any employee.

Today's News for my Blog: Greenhouse gas emission

Stagnant water in hydroelectric dams is known to emit high levels of greenhouse gases (GHGs) such as carbon dioxide and methane from submerged rotting vegetation. “I recognise the fact that we have no other choices but to go ahead with the projects as planned. However, I hope that the government has looked into all aspects of the project in order to ensure that maximum benefit is derived from all the damages we are going to cause,” said a BO source. “There would be small climatic changes due to the dam,” said an advisor to the National Environment Commission, Dasho Paljor Jigme Dorji. “I hope the project is taken on an informed choice.” As a GHG, methane is known to be 20 times more potent than carbon dioxide. “The extent to which such an impact occurs will vary,” said the Executive Director of Royal Society for Protection of Nature, Lam Dorji. The height of the Punatsangchhu dam is 136 metres with a back flow of 10 km. According to Lam Dorji, in comparison with another project of this scale in lowlands, Punatsangchhu dam would emit lesser GHGs as the location of the project in the mountains allows efficient outflow of water and steep slopes on either side prevent large areas from being submerged. He said that, the issue of the dam’s GHG emission had not been raised for lack of factual data. “Gauging the GHG emission from the dams in Bhutan remains a plan for RSPN,” he said. The Joint Managing Director of Punatsangchhu phase I, Phuntsho Norbu, said care was always taken before the dam was filled with water. He added that, since the project is run-off the river scheme, there weren’t big chances of large deposits of submerged materials. Reservoir induced seismicity Another concern about the dams around the world is reservoir induced seismicity (RIS) or earthquakes caused by dams. The most widely accepted explanation of how dams cause earthquakes is related to the extra water pressure created in the small cracks and fissures in the ground under and near a reservoir. When the pressure of the water in the rocks increases, it acts to lubricate faults which are already under tectonic strain, but are prevented from slipping by the friction of the rock surfaces. Ambient stress field conditions, availability of fractures or faults, hydro-mechanical properties of underlying rocks, geology of the area, dimensions of the reservoir and nature of lake level fluctuation are some of the factors that affects RIS. “In general, it is extremely difficult to draw any quantitative analysis of probable dangers of reservoir induced seismicity based on the dam height and extent of reservoir,” said a Geophysicist of Geological Survey of Bhutan, Dowchu Dukpa. However, he said that, with availability of advanced technology, building a dam in earthquake prone regions like the Himalayas need not, in itself, be dangerous if all the aspects of seismic shaking are well understood and incorporated in the design. “It is rather impossible to predict accurately whether Punatsangchhu dam will cause earthquakes or how strong the tremors are likely to be,” he said. “A good understanding of the geo-tectonic setting of the dam and the vicinity area will help in assessing the nature of reservoir- induced seismicity from the dam.” Currently, Bhutan does not have a national earthquake station to monitor seismic activities and accurately delineate faults in the region prone to earthquakes. According to Dowchu Dukpa, the need for an earthquake station is critical for understanding the general seismo-tectonic characteristics of any region. He said availability of seismic data over a long time was of paramount importance to carry out any seismic hazard assessments. “Installation of local seismic monitoring equipment at the area of interest is the standard procedure to better understand the nature of reservoir induced seismicity at that particular site,” he said. By Kuenzang C Choden Retrieved from http://www.bhutanobserver.bt/2009/bhutan-news/08/punatsangchhu-dam-a-concern.html