The post Satya Mohan Joshi- Nepal’s Litterateur of the Century appeared first on Nepali Sansar.
]]>Joshi (98), currently the Chancellor of Nepal Bhasa Academy, served key positions in his long career. He served as the first Director of Archaeological and Cultural Department, Government of Nepal in 1959. He is one of the Executive Board members of Nepali Art Council and a lifetime member of Royal Nepal Academy.
Joshi contributed a lot to Nepali art and culture by establishing organizations such as Rastriya Naachghar – National Theatre in Kathmandu, Archeological Museum in Taulihawa, Archeological Garden in Patan and the National Painting Museum in Bhaktapur.
Joshi‘s efforts towards the preservation of Nepali folk culture hold special significance and he was the first one to initiate a systemic study on Nepali culture.
For his contribution to Nepali folk culture, Joshi was awarded Nepal’s literary honor Madan Puraskar Award three times for his works, Hamro Lok Sanskriti – Our Folk Culture (1956), Nepali Rastriya Mudra – The Coinage of Nepal (1957) and Karnali Lok Sanskriti – Folk culture of the Far-Western Zone Karnali (1971). He is also a Shrestha Sirpa award holder for his outstanding book Jayaprakash, an epic in Nepali language (Newari).
Joshi is also a poet, dramatist and research analyst, and has more than 60 publications including Karnaliko Lok Sanskriti (a research collection) and Charumati, Sun Keshari, Mahipa: Lakhe, Bagh Bhairab (dramas), among others in various fields.
Joshi’s famous publication, Cultural Policy: A Preliminary Study, features research on properties, heritage and policy related to culture. It also deals with some basic principles of National Cultural Policy, Cultural Diversity and National Culture and a study report on Karnali folk culture.
Despite his expertise in in various fields, Joshi has special place for folk culture in his career.
“Folk culture is my subject and my career started by collecting folk songs. After my first Madan Puraskar, folk culture became a new subject in itself to be analyzed and researched. It was not only folk songs, but also about folk tales, folk riddles, folk lifestyle and its development,” said Joshi in an interview.
During his college days, Joshi used to find his recreation in local love songs sung at Rodhi Ghars, the singing clubs in eastern part of Nepal, which he says, have played a major role in his life.
During his affiliation with village locals, Joshi collected various folk songs in written format and got them published in the monthly paper Aantarang, during which, he met Editor Gopal Prasad Risal. Joshi terms Risal’s role as vital in driving his focus towards folk culture, which made him come out with the award-winning work, Hamro Lok Sanskriti.
Born in 1920 to Shankar Raj and Rajkumari Joshi of Lalitpur District, Nepal, Joshi joined Durbar High School, Kathmandu for schooling. He went on with higher studies and graduated from Trichandra College, a constituent campus of Tribhuvan University in Ghantaghar, Kathmandu with a bachelor’s degree.
Joshi served in government department before he moved to China, following a political change in 1960, where he spent almost five years teaching Nepali at the Peking Broadcasting Institute.
During his stay in China, Joshi did a research on Arniko – a genius sculpture of Malla period, who migrated to China in early 1260 AD, which later helped him in setting up the Araniko White Dagoba Gallery in Kirtipur.
As part of his study on western and eastern literature, Joshi drew a lot of inspiration from the works of Tennyson, Woolworth, Kalidas, Raghubansha and Percy Bysshe Shelley, among others.
In respect to his contribution to Nepali art and culture, the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Government of Nepal honored Satya Mohan Joshi with the ‘Litterateur of the Century’ title on August 23, 2017.
Thanking the government for such recognition, Joshi said, “Diversity of Nepali art and culture should be exposed to the world.”
According to Joshi, outside intervention and influence have changed the habits of Nepal public. “Our culture and lifestyle is changing rapidly. At present, I feel that we have not been able to stand on our own feet. We are forgetting our nationality, identity and fundamental nature and one of the main causes is the situation in the country,” said Joshi in an interview.
Speaking on his overall contribution, Joshi terms his research on Arniko and the Coinage of Nepal as benchmarks for aspiring scholars.
Despite his notable achievements, Joshi limits himself saying, “I have done my part and am happy when friends wish me for a job well done.”
The post Satya Mohan Joshi- Nepal’s Litterateur of the Century appeared first on Nepali Sansar.
]]>The post Govinda KC- More Than a Doctor for Nepalese & A Helping Hand for the World appeared first on Nepali Sansar.
]]>Professionally, Govinda is a renowned orthopedic surgeon and a professor. Whereas in personal life, he is a philanthropist and a social activist.
Govinda is well-known globally for his firm stand towards reforms in the Nepali medical sector and favoring the government medical institutions, notably the state-owned Institute of Medicine (IoM) and Patan Academy of Health Sciences.
Voicing against transparency and political meddling in unrelated matters among others, Govinda has staged 10 hunger strikes in five years between 2012 and 2016, with eight of them being fasts-unto-death. He recently staged the eleventh one.
All his protests were against rampant commercialization of medical sector and providing quality healthcare to Nepalese.
Some of the prominent demands raised and addressed by Govinda’s hunger strikes include end of political interference, appointment of Dean in IoM, suspension of various officials of Tribhuvan University, suspension of the parliamentary committee directive on granting affiliation to new colleges, implementation of the Medical Education Association’s recommendations, protest against Kathmandu University officials for their violation of cabinet decisions, establishment of medical colleges in rural areas, education at free-of-cost/ nominal fee in medical, nursing & paramedical colleges and impeachment of CIAA Chief Lokman Singh Karki.
Govinda’s activities received a mass following from all sections of the society, especially the youth.
The most notable achievement is the recent agreement between Govinda and the Government of Nepal, which is a result of his eight fast-unto-death. Accepting Govinda’s demand, the government agreed to open at least one medical college in each of the (future) federal provinces. The agreement also has a 10-year moratorium on the construction of new medical colleges inside the Kathmandu Valley.
In 2015, the Government of Nepal has entered into a 11-point agreement with Govinda, which underlines:
Govinda did his part as a responsible being with his humanitarian activities, by offering services to public in times of natural calamities, across Nepal and globally. During the process, he never sought financial assistance from any government or NGO and financed his own way. He preferred to spend his salary for the services across remote areas of Nepal.
Govinda spends two weeks of vacation, provided to him by TUTH annually, in travelling to remotest villages of Nepal to serve and conduct health awareness camps. Some of his well-known international visits include a three-week stay in Bhuj region of Gujarat, India post-earthquake, a 20-day stay in Northwest Pakistan to serve quake victims, and a two-week stay in Myanmar to help cyclone victims, among many others.
Govinda KC was born on March 25, 1957 in Ramechhap, Janakpur Zone of Nepal. He studied at IoM to become a Health Assistant at the institute. With the support of the Ministry of Education’s scholarship, he went on to pursue MBBS course at Rajshahi Medical College, Bangladesh, after which, he returned to Nepal and served in Bir Hospital. He then moved to Dhaka University to pursue M.S and finally became an orthopedic surgeon.
Govinda’s life took a turn at IoM after he joined the institute as a volunteer in 1994, leaving Bir Hospital. He eventually grew to become a professor specialized in child orthopedics, and the institute became a big platform for his future course of action.
Govinda KC (60) is still a bachelor and lives within the hospital quarters. He has dedicated his life to students, patients and social activities. There is a growing consensus in Nepal over the nomination of Govinda for the Nobel Peace Prize Award.
Through his activities, Govinda transformed the lives of millions of Nepalese and became a ray of hope for those in need and proper support.
Transparency International Nepal honored Dr. Govinda KC with the National Integrity Award, at an event held in Kathmandu on the occasion of the International Anti-Corruption Day.
The post Govinda KC- More Than a Doctor for Nepalese & A Helping Hand for the World appeared first on Nepali Sansar.
]]>The post Ojha- A Nepali Scientist Who Discovered Water on Mars appeared first on Nepali Sansar.
]]>The day was so special for Nepalese and remained a proud moment for the country, forever, as a young Nepali planetary scientist, Lujendra Ojha, was also in the group of NASA research scientists who played a pivotal role in research on Mars.
Ojha was then a 25-year-old PhD student of planetary science department at the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta.
It was at the age of 21, Ojha spotted possible flow of saltwater on Mars. He was an undergraduate at the University of Arizona when he discovered the presence of water on mars, with compelling evidences on current & seasonal water flow.
Ojha’s revelations excited the scientific community, raising hopes on possible presence of life on the red planet.
Apart from being a scientist, there is another side of Ojha that portrays him as a guitarist in a heavy metal band called ‘Gorkha’. Besides being busy in the world of space science, Ojha wishes to continue his musical journey as a guitarist.
Ojha’s roots are traced to Mahadevsthan VDC, Doti of far-western Nepal. He was brought up in Kathmandu. Basically, a music-lover, Ojha identified his passion in life when he was studying at Kathmandu’s Galaxy Public School. It was Hawking’s ‘A Brief History of Time’ that changed Ojha’s thought process to pursue space sciences.
Ojha, along with his parents, moved from Nepal to the United States in 2005, at the age of 14. He joined Tuscon High School, and within few months of joining, he became part of a heavy metal band as a guitarist, along with friends. Post high school Ojha enrolled at the University of Arizona where his father Tank was working as a Geologist.
Tank says Ojha picked up his interest in earth and planetary science from the field trips he did in the remote areas of Nepal.
Over the years, Ojha emerged as a space scientist gaining wide reputation across the scientific community. He has more than a dozen peer-reviewed research papers published. He was widely recognized for his research works and discoveries related to space.
Starting with Group Achievement Award: HiRISE Science Team from NASA, Ojha received wide recognition across his career, so far.
Be it receiving ‘Special Recognition Award’ from the Office of the Governor, Arizona- a southwestern US state, ‘Research Excellence Award’ from the National Science Foundation in 2015, ‘Team-X Merit Award’ from the Lunar and Planetary Institute in 2013, ‘First Place in Physical Science Research’- Annual Student Showcase (2012) & Honorary Presidents Award (2011) from the University of Arizona, Ojha really achieved a notable reputation in a short span, that too at a very young age.
Above all, he says, “With the profound knowledge that I am a unified mind and body composed of stardust, I am not doing science, I am merely trying to understand my genesis and share that knowledge.”
The post Ojha- A Nepali Scientist Who Discovered Water on Mars appeared first on Nepali Sansar.
]]>