IndoDaily Home Page
WOOD PILE
Nepal community fights to save sacred forests from cable cars
Nepal community fights to save sacred forests from cable cars
By Anup OJHA
Taplejung, Nepal (AFP) Feb 21, 2025

They appear tranquil soaring above Himalayan forests, but a string of cable car projects in Nepal have sparked violent protests, with locals saying environmental protection should trump tourism development.

In Nepal's eastern district of Taplejung, the community has been torn apart by a $22-million government-backed project many say will destroy livelihoods and damage ancient forests they hold as sacred.

Across Nepal, five cable car projects have opened in the past two years -- and 10 more are under development, according to government figures.

Critics accuse the government of failing to assess the environmental impact properly.

In January, protests at Taplejung escalated into battles with armed police, with four activists wounded by gunfire and 21 officers injured.

The protests calmed after promises construction would be suspended, but erupted again this week, with 14 people wounded on Thursday -- 11 of them members of the security forces.

"We were in a peaceful protest but hired thugs showed us kukris (large knives) and attacked us -- and we countered them," protest committee leader Shree Linkhim Limbu told AFP after the latest clashes.

He vowed to continue demonstrations until the project is scrapped.

Around 300,000 Hindu devotees trek for hours to Taplejung's mountaintop Pathibhara temple every year -- a site also deeply sacred to the local Limbu people's separate beliefs.

In 2018, Chandra Prasad Dhakal, a businessman with powerful political ties who is also president of Nepal's Chamber of Commerce and Industry, announced the construction of a 2.5-kilometre-long (1.5-mile) cable car to the temple.

The government calls it a project of "national pride".

- 'Butchering our faith' -

Dhakal's IME Group is also building other cable cars, including the 6.4-kilometre-long Sikles line in the Annapurna Conservation Area, which the Supreme Court upheld.

The government deemed the project a "national priority", thereby exempting it from strict planning restrictions in protected areas.

The Supreme Court scrapped that controversial exemption last month, a move celebrated by environmentalists.

But activists fear the project may still go ahead.

Taplejung is deeply sacred to local Mukkumlung beliefs, and residents say that the clearance of around 3,000 rhododendron trees -- with 10,00 more on the chopping block -- to build pylons is an attack on their religion.

"It is a brutal act," said protest chief Limbu. "How can this be a national pride project when the state is only serving business interests?"

Saroj Kangliba Yakthung, 26, said locals would rather efforts and funding were directed to "preserve the religious, cultural and ecological importance" of the forests.

The wider forests are home to endangered species including the red panda, black bear and snow leopard.

"We worship trees, stone and all living beings, but they are butchering our faith," said Anil Subba, director of the Kathmandu-based play "Mukkumlung", which was staged for a month as part of the protest.

The hundreds of porters and dozens of tea stall workers that support trekking pilgrims fear for their livelihoods.

"If they fly over us in a cable car, how will we survive?" said 38-year-old porter Chandra Tamang.

The government says the cable car will encourage more pilgrims by making it easy to visit, boosting the wider economy in a country where unemployment hovers around 10 percent, and GDP per capita at just $1,377, according to the World Bank.

"This will bring development," said resident Kamala Devi Thapa, 45, adding that the new route will aid "elderly pilgrims".

- 'Massive deforestation' -

The cable cars symbolise Nepal's breakneck bid to cash in on tourism, making up more than six percent of the country's GDP in 2023, according to the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC).

Beyond the Pathibhara project, the government's environmental policy is in question -- in a country where 45 percent is forest.

More than 255,000 trees have been cut down for infrastructure projects in the past four years, according to the environment ministry.

"Nepal has witnessed massive deforestation in the name of infrastructure," said Rajesh Rai, professor of forestry at Tribhuvan University. "This will have severe long-term consequences".

Unperturbed, the cable car builder assures his project will create 1,000 jobs and brushes aside criticism.

"It won't disturb the ecology or local culture," Dhakal said. "If people can fly there in helicopters, why not a cable car?"

The argument leaves Kendra Singh Limbu, 79, unmoved.

"We are fighting to save our heritage," he said.

It has split the community, local journalist Anand Gautam told AFP.

"It has turned fathers and sons against each other," Gautam said. "Some see it as progress, others as destruction".

Related Links
Forestry News - Global and Local News, Science and Application

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters
Tweet

RELATED CONTENT
The following news reports may link to other Space Media Network websites.
WOOD PILE
Colombian deforestation picks up after record low level
Bogota (AFP) Feb 20, 2025
Land grabbers in Colombia destroyed a forested area the size of Hong Kong last year in the South American country that had vowed to eradicate deforestation by 2030, the government said Thursday. After falling to a record low in 2023, deforestation claimed 107,000 hectares last year - a 35-percent increase but still the second-lowest level on record, according to Environment Minister Susana Muhamad. "The increase is obviously not good news, but it must be seen in historical context," said Muhama ... read more

WOOD PILE
Surprise Chinese naval drills caused dozens of Australian flight diversions

Search for doomed MH370 resumes 11 years after disappearance

Trump considering 'alternatives' to Boeing for Air Force One contract

Airman dead, another hurt in shooting at Air Force base in New Mexico

WOOD PILE
The last carriage horses of Indonesia's capital endure harsh lives

Tesla rolls out advanced self-driving functions in China

Aston Martin cuts jobs as weak China demand weighs

China's EV maker XPeng eyes doubling global presence by year's end

WOOD PILE
EU vows to slash red tape but stick to climate goals

Japan sets new 2035 emissions cut goal

COP30 president urges most 'ambitious' emissions targets possible

Climate activists defend 'future generations', appeal lawyer says

WOOD PILE
China's CALB announces European battery plant in Portugal

SLAC to advance fusion target technology through DOE FIRE Collaboratives

Unlocking the secrets of fusion's core with AI-enhanced simulations

NRL's Mercury Pulsed Power Facility Celebrates 20 Years of Research Excellence

WOOD PILE
GE Vernova advances UK SMR development with new supplier agreements

Bangladesh calls for continued Russian nuclear collaboration

French nuclear giant Orano triples profits

Kazakhstan inks first deal to supply uranium to Switzerland

WOOD PILE
Illuminating the Inner Workings of the Proton

New Findings on Atomic Nucleus Structure and Potential Dark Forces

DSKY Moonwatch Nears Full-Scale Production with Support from Space Industry Icons

From photons to protons Argonne scientists advance high-energy particle detection

WOOD PILE
Asian markets mixed after latest Trump tariff threat

Bolivia inaugurates steel plant built with Chinese loan

Beijing says China, US should show 'mutual respect' on trade tensions

Hong Kong to slash public spending, civil service jobs

WOOD PILE
'Turks, Kurds want the war to end': MP involved in talks

Jailed PKK leader working on Turkey-Kurd peace plan: lawmaker

Jailed PKK leader working on Turkey-Kurd peace plan: lawmaker

Turkish pro-Kurd MPs meet veteran Kurdish leader in Iraq

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.