Nepalese Society Research Articles

Domestic Violence against Women

In Nepal, a tiny federal, inclusive secular state with a wide range of cultural traditions, women are treated as second-class citizens and are routinely denied their basic human right to be free from abuse. The benefits and authority bestowed by the complex social structures, which are dominated by men, impose values, practices, morals, habits, and beliefs that compel women to endure men's aggression. Domestic violence is any violence committed by a large group against women who are involved in personal relationships. In Nepalese society, violence against women is still a very severe and taboo issue. The primary goals of the study was to sketch out the socio-demographic profile of Nepalgunj Ward 12 and to pinpoint the root causes of domestic violence against women as well as to gather suggestions for its prevention and eradication. The households were chosen using a planned sample technique. Descriptive statistics were employed in the analysis of the results, including frequency, percentage, and graph. Physical and psychological abuse accounts for 7.5% and 92.5%, respectively, of all domestic violence cases. Traditional violence as it has historically been connected was not reported by the respondents. Violence exists nowhere in the research location, hence there is no dowry-related violence there. The majority of the abuses, or 47.5%, include aggressive acts committed while intoxicated. The majority of abusers engage in violent behavior on weekends. A small percentage of the women beat their partners when they were expecting, and a few of them required medical attention as a result. The study found that the most effective methods for reducing domestic violence are counseling, income production initiatives, adult literacy and awareness training, and the prohibition of alcohol, gambling, and marijuana.

Effect of Women’s Status in Fertility Transition of Nepal

Assessing the relationship of fertility transition with different socio-economic situation of women is the overall purpose of this study. Fertility is primarily natural demographic determinant; however, it is affected by different social, economic and demographic phenomena. This study aimed to assess the changing fertility pattern (TFR and CBR) relating to the socioeconomic and demographic status of women in case of Nepal. Literacy status, health services, employment pattern, age at marriage, foreign migration (social determinants of population change) inequality aspects of women are considered as the socioeconomic and demographic aspects determines the pace of change of fertility rate and measured by the linear regression equation and multiple regression analysis. Quantitative and descriptive analysis is used to demonstrate the relationship examined and assessed through secondary data. The output of the statistical test is found that there is strong negative relationship (more than -0.90) with more than 80 per cent of explaining variability of fertility rate of Nepal by these independent (socioeconomic and demographic) variables. Finally, as literacy rate, age at marriage, economically activeness, life expectancy of female are found in increasing pattern with advancement of Nepalese society, CBR and TFR both are found in decreasing trends along with reduction on gender inequality.

IMPLICATIONS OF COVID-19 PANDEMIC ON DIFFERENT SECTOR OF PEOPLE’S LIVELIHOOD: AN EYE IN CONTEXT OF NEPAL

Being a predominantly agricultural nation, Nepal is dominated by this sector of the economy, which employs thousands of people. When the pandemic hit Nepal, a developing country, there was a concern on a nationwide level since the government was compelled to announce a lockdown that lasted for 4 months employing a variety of tactics, including lockdown, social isolation, quarantine, contact tracking, etc. Because of the lockdown condition, many encountered mental health concerns. When obliged to maintain a specific distance between members of their own family, neuromuscular issues were profound among the people. Therefore, in order to assess the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on Nepal’s way of life the case study was carried out. WHO, MoHP, and other organizations’ publications, as well as other secondary sources of information, served as the sole data foundation for this review. Hence, the worst conditions in Nepalese society were reflected in the 25% income reduction and the 5% job loss rate, both of which have an impact on peoples’ capacity to support themselves. In addition, there was a severe dearth of food, especially seed and fertilizer, which contributed to a food crisis and black marketing. By limiting tourism to Nepal, COVID-19 transformed the educational environment and had a negative impact on the country’s economy. Other diverse effects were observed on remittance and local institutions that COVID-19 has exhibited. Benefits for the environment were also obvious.

Understanding the Utilization of Skills by Returnee Workers in Rupandehi District

This qualitative research study aims to understand how returnee workers' skills are being converted into sustainable earnings by the application of the gained knowledge in different economic activities. The study uses a field survey of returnee workers in Rupandehi District, Nepal, and includes detailed discussions with key stakeholders in the study area. Returnee workers have gained language skills, technical skills, and management skills. These skills are being utilized in different economic activities, including agriculture, tourism, and small businesses. However, returnee workers face challenges related to social reintegration, including cultural differences and a lack of social support. The study recommends that the government should provide support for returnee workers to help them reintegrate into society and utilize their skills effectively. The study's findings are important because they highlight the need for effective utilization of the skills and knowledge gained by returnee workers to promote sustainable economic growth in Nepal. The study also emphasizes the importance of social support for returnee workers to facilitate their reintegration into society. The study's recommendations can help the government and other stakeholders to develop policies and programs that support returnee workers and promote sustainable economic growth in Nepal. Keywords: Returnee workers, Skill utilization, Sustainable earnings, Social reintegration, Economic activities, Nepalese society

Technological Barriers to Adoption of Induction Stoves in Bhaktapur, Nepal

The relevance of providing access to clean cooking solutions is linked to several associated co[1]benefits that contribute to a wide range of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Most of the households in urban areas of Nepal use liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) for cooking purposes along with a gradual introduction of electric induction stoves. The main objective of this research is to identify the technological barrier to the adoption of induction stoves. Primary data were collected from 300 households of Bhaktapur Municipality and Madhyapur Thimi Municipality in March 2021. The result shows that a total of 27 percent of households use induction stoves. Twenty six percent of households did not know about induction stoves and 47 percent of household were aware of induction stove despite not owning one themselves. The finding suggest that the need for special utensil and unable to cook multiple foods at a time are the major technological barrier to the adoption of induction stoves. The research also identifies that elevated initial costs and an inconsistent electricity supply pose significant barriers to the widespread adoption of induction stoves. The chi-square test further established a statistically significant relationship between ranking of barriers and the adoption of induction cooking. An awareness program should be launched to penetrate the use of induction stoves in Nepalese society. The study also suggests a reliable supply of electricity so that the consumer can rely completely on induction stoves for household cooking.

Role of Security Forces in Disaster Management with references to Nepalese Security Forces

This article is based on the role of security forces in disaster management with references to Nepalese security forces Disasters are the serious disruption of the functioning of community or society. Nepal is a country highly vulnerable to natural disasters having a crucial effect on human life. There is an international practice to call out security forces in catastrophic situation for risk management. Nepalese society is highly dependent towards Security forces in the time of disasters. The study seeks to assess the role played by Nepalese security force in managing the disasters. The study follows qualitative approach with descriptive in nature to find out desired objective. Both primary and secondary data have contributed to find out the role of Nepalese security forces in disaster response and preparedness. The findings shows Nepalese security forces have demonstrated their skill and knowledge to counter both natural and man-made disasters to save life of people. The role is discussed in three phase i.e. Pre-disasters, during disasters and After Disasters. It shows that security forces are mostly concentrated in Search and rescue activity. Managing Disasters are multi-sectored work with collaborative efforts. The research stressed investing in Security forces for training and developing in order to build a capable rescuer. It is necessary for government of Nepal to take appropriate steps for job specialization in search and rescue in order to motivate and complement security forces. Also, a clear goal, vision, guidance and coordination within all sectors should be amplified.

Truck Literature from the Drivers’ Perceptions: A Syntactic Analysis

This study has explored truck literature: the texts commonly found on buses, trucks, jeeps, motorcycle and taxis. The research has also explored the phenomena behind the use of truck literature: the love of the nation, upward mobility, faith over God, parental influence, life and death, success and failure, union and separation, tears and laughter, ups and downs all connected to their life world. Likewise, this research focuses on the narrative analysis of the texts found on Nepali vehicles. The data derived from the interviews with the drivers and their family members, and observation of the events happened on the parking lots, roads, and market places in the cities of Beni, Baglung, Kusma and Jomsom. Poetic verses, serenades, sayaries and muktaks were collected from the walls of the vehicles. There were eight participants in this study. Mainly, there were two types of data: interview and narratives of the drivers and their family members, and the texts commonly printed on the walls of the vehicles. In this study, fifty-eight texts derived from the field were analyzed. While analyzing data; the thematic approach of data categorization were followed by drawing themes from the data. The texts collected from the field were multilingual in nature as Nepali, Hindi and English. As such, they were multicolored, catchy fonts, and mixed up the words from different languages using the linguistic means of transliteration, code-switching and symbolic adjustments. This analysis offered a profound understanding of the drivers’ experiences and perception within Nepalese society.

Inter-religious Harmony Between Hindu and Muslim Religious Communities of Miya Patan of Pokhara

Most Hindus see Muslims as the opposing faith to their own, although Hindus attend Muslim celebrations and Muslims attend Hindu festivals in Pokhara. Muslims in Pokhara dress in Nepali attire, which is not Islamic, and communicate in Nepali rather than Urdu or Hindi, which are peculiar to Muslim fundamentalism. Religious harmony is always vital for maintaining peace and harmony in a multi-religious country like Nepal. Despite the fact that Nepal is a secular country with a Hindu majority, Muslims are important and integral parts of Nepalese society. Unlike neighboring nations, there have been no severe religious riots or confrontations between Hindus and Muslims up to this point. When two cultures meet and interact, religious ideas will be transferred. The Muslims of Miya Patan have never contemplated a separate identity or attempted to break from society. They are quite proud of their national identity and identify more as Nepalese than Muslims. For ages, the Muslims of Pokhara have coexisted peacefully with their Hindu neighbors. This study attempts to explain the underlying causes influencing religious harmony in a multi-religious community of Miya Patan of Pokhara. In order to address the problem of study, discussion, in-depth interview and library research methods are applied. It is based on qualitative research method. It underlines the importance of components responsible for religious harmony in Pokhara. The findings may inspire other minority religious groups to maintain solid relationships in different parts of the country.

Study of Nepali Sculptures Reveals Hindu-Buddhist Religious Harmony in Nepal

In a multi-religious country like Nepal, religious harmony is essential for sustaining peace and calmness. Religious discord in society may result if religious concord is not addressed. Despite the fact that Nepal is a secular country with a Hindu majority, Buddhists remain crucial and inseparable elements of Nepalese society. They have lived in religious harmony in Nepal. At the period, there were no religious riots or tensions between Hindus and Buddhists. According to the Principle of Religious concord, when two cultures meet and interact, religious ideas will be exchanged, with the dominant culture prevailing. Harmony in cultures and customs evolved in Nepal for a variety of reasons. Because of their social acceptance and respect in society, Buddhists have become a vital part of it. Buddhism is seen as a component of Hindu philosophy by Hindus, and vice versa. In recent years, however, they have sought to differentiate themselves by religiously violating decades of peace and harmony. The purpose of this research is to examine the critical factors that contribute to religious harmony in a multi-faith society, as well as the reflection of religious harmony in Nepali sculptures. An in-depth interview and library research technique are used to investigate the topic of religious harmony. The goal of this article is to examine the underlying factors that lead to religious harmony in a multi-religious community, as well as its reflection in Nepali sculptures. This study also looks at the elements that influence harmony in the setting of Nepali sculptures. As a result, the conversation strives to foster long-term religious harmony between Nepal's Hindu and Buddhist religious communities. The findings may motivate them to keep strong connections.

Girl Students' Attitude towards Abortion and Abortion Services in Nepal

Varieties of social artifacts affect attitudes of adolescent girls towards abortion and abortion services in Nepal. Prevalence of Hindu religious beliefs and traditional socio-cultural norms and values in the existing Nepalese societies, people feel much uncomfortable in the performance of abortion among adolescents. This study explores the attitude of adolescent girl students in our community schools regarding the aforementioned services. The study mainly bases on primary data gained from 250 adolescent girl students of our community schools. It also shows the picture regarding attitude towards abortion and its services of the adolescent's girl students. For such a multi-cultural and religious nation, the traditional values, norms and beliefs have been affecting to perform the services. The result exhibits that almost 61 percent of the respondents trust the existing socio-cultural norms and values that affect the attitude towards abortion and its services, while 57 percent of them believe religious norms and beliefs affect the services. In the same way, only 43 percent of the respondents show confidence in prevailing abortion facilities. This shows that majority of the respondents do not believe on the existing abortion services. A large number of the participants respond that post abortion care is necessary after performing abortion. However, about 74 percent of the respondents believe unnecessary pregnancies should be terminated adopting safety measures rather than letting them to give birth. Resultantly, this study leads us, due to the effects of modernization, globalization and mechanization; adolescent girls in Nepal are in the growing tendency to take abortion performances positively. For this, various activities like awareness campaign, curricula, training and seminar, and media campaign to the marginalized and underprivileged sections work for the decrease of abortion ignorance.

Emergence of Nepalese English: A Case of Short Stories

The wide use of English language around the globe in the recent decades has generated different varieties of English language with their own distinctive features; one of such varieties is Nepalese English. Several English literary texts written by Nepalese writers along with different other factors are contributing to establish Nepalese English as a different variety of English. Analyzing six English short stories written by three Nepali writers, this article examined the Nepalese English used in the short stories to find out their distinctive features. The stories were analyzed and interpreted using interpretative research paradigm. After the analyses, it was found that there is code mixing and code switching (Nepali and English) in the stories; Nepali names are given to the characters to give real flavor of Nepaleseness and the short stories reflect the Nepalese societies in terms of the condition of women, development, education and employment.

Reification of Bourgeois Ideology in Bhattarai’s Muglan

This paper aims to explore how innocent Nepali youths reify the elitist bourgeois ideology of the Nepalese society that forces them to go to Muglan, a term, denoting foreign country for Nepali people, and confront unexpected blows there in Govinda Raj Bhattarai’s novel, Muglan. Reification signifies the ideology and perception of people residing in a capitalist society. The study of the impact of reification demonstrates the reality of a society. Bhattarai is critical to the way Sutar Kanchha, the protagonist of the novel, obsessed with the dominant capitalist ideology, goes to Bhutan to earn. But he gets robbed there and he is forced to do tough physical labor like an animal. To survey terrific effects of the dominant capitalist ideology of the Nepalese society over the life of the poor Nepali people, the research paper applies neo-Marxist insights, with special focus on Louis Althusser and Antonio Gramsci. The chief finding is that Bhattarai is critical to persisting capitalist ideology of the Nepalese society that forces innocent Nepali youths to leave their country just for survival. But, in turn, they get robbed and are compelled to work like slaves in the cruel Muglan. It is expected that researchers intending to explore on Nepali literature from the neo-Marxist perspective will find the paper a useful reference.

Resistance Against Deprivation of Females in Niharika’s Chreeharan

This research paper aims to explore resistance of chief female characters, Satyawatee, Gandharee, and Draupadi, in Nilam Karki Niharika’s novel, Cheerharan, against the deprivation of economic, social, and cultural rights of women in the male-dominated Nepalese society. Satyawatee and Gandharee are victimized by patriarchy and portrayed as submissive. But Draupadi resists against the victimization of women in the novel. In an identical way, some women have internalized sexism in Nepalese society while others have objected to this. Draupadi, the chief character of Cheerharan, acts as an adamant feminist to revolt against the treatment of Nepali women as the inferior sex. The theoretical tools taken to explore the assumed truth are the feminists’ ideologies developed by such radical feminists as Simone de Beauvoir and Virginia Woolf. The study demonstrates that Cheerharan is the depiction of the pathetic condition of the Nepalese women which has not changed significantly from the ancient time to the present time. The chief finding of the paper is that Satyawatee and Gandharee, like most of Nepali women, know the ill practices of men but can’t resist against them because they take the socialization process for granted; while Drupadi, like a bold modern Nepali woman, reacts against the ill-practices of males towards females. It is assumed that the researchers intending to explore Nepali literature from the feminist perspective can take the paper as a reference.

Perception of Abortion and Abortion Services among Girl Students in Nepal

This research examines the perception of secondary level girl students on abortion and abortion services in the context of Nepal. This study employs primary data obtained from 250 adolescent girl students of community schools and bases on descriptive research design using quantitative method. The result reveals that 90 percent of the girl students possess the information of abortion and abortion services while only 80 percent of them have its legal knowledge. Nearly 87 percent of girl students of community schools show their awareness on safe abortion services while remaining others do not have any information about it. The major factors which cause adolescent girls to perform abortion include health of mother, poverty and undesirability of children. The data also exhibits that 72 percent of the respondents chose doctors as the best service providers followed by health assistants (19.2%) in Nepalese societies. It again shows that the skillful health workers are the choices for those who want to get abortion service. Likewise, majority of the respondents show their belief in government hospitals as safer places for this service. Since it came into legal practice in Nepal, many adolescent girls have been performing abortion practices regardless of using proper knowledge, counselling and professional skills. Observed as a sinful act in our community in the previous years, abortion has been taken as a common practice, today.

Contributions of Guthi System for the Protection of Heritage

The main objective of this article is to illustrate the roles of the Guthi system in Nepalese society. The paper discusses the contribution of Guthi system for the protection of heritage in the Kathmandu Valley. Effects of technological advancement on the ability of the Guthi system to preserve and maintain tangible and intangible cultural heritages of Nepal are yet inalienable aspects of the research. The Guthi system seems to have been focusing on the preservation of the religious, cultural, and social services along with organizing and performing rituals, Jatra, festival, chariot, worshiping deities, promotion, and protection of temples and monasteries. The establishment of the Guthi system was based on the social and cooperative promotion of such cultural and religious aspects. This system has endured a number of centuries the backbone of Nepalese culture and community. Guthi endowments were/are given to religious and charitable institutions. Lands are granted in order to maintain temples, hold religious ceremonies, support the population, and so on.

Effectiveness of teachers’ professional development in Dalits’ opportunities for capability development in Nepal

ABSTRACT In this article, I analyse non-Dalit teachers’ outlooks by positioning them within a culturally complex caste system, considering its influence on Dalits’ education. Nepalese society is ruled by a caste system, where non-Dalits–Brahmins and Kshatriya are considered pure and powerful, and Dalits are viewed as impure and powerless. This multi-dynamic caste system promotes social truths that are accompanied by educational prosperity for non-Dalits and deprivation for Dalits. This study involves six teachers in in-depth interviews, twenty-four students in focus group discussion, twenty-four students in video elicitation and a total of thirty-nine teachers and students in observation. The work of Amartya Sen, Pierre Bourdieu, Raewyn Connell, and Nepalese scholars are key to the theoretical framing of this research. The study found that non-Dalit teachers are not critically reflexive of their caste-based prejudiced attitude and dispositions, which eventually reproduces unjust school education. Instead of blaming teachers, the study concludes that professional development did not offer opportunities for teachers to be critically reflexive of their teaching habits.

Migration and Gender Dynamics of Irrigation Governance in Nepal

Nepal has a long history of irrigation, including government and farmer-managed irrigation systems that are labor- and skill-intensive. Widespread male migration has important effects on Nepalese society. How institutions such as Water Users’ Associations (WUAs) respond and adapt, is therefore critical to the understanding of rural transformation and the likely impact on gender equality, food production, and rural livelihoods. This paper examines the effects of male migration on institutional change in WUAs, women’s roles, technological change, and outcomes affecting effectiveness of irrigation systems based on a mixed methods study, combining a phone survey of 336 WUA leaders from all provinces in Nepal with qualitative data from case studies in 10 irrigation systems. Results indicate WUAs have adapted rules to increase women’s participation, and to monetize the contributions for maintenance. Women exercise agency in whether and how to interact with WUAs. Mechanization has reduced the need for some male labor, though the ability to mechanize is limited by hilly terrain and small plot sizes. Overall, systems are adapting to male migration, with relatively low idling of land or labor shortages causing deterioration of the systems, though there are concerns with the high levels of women’s labor burdens.

Disrupting power through reflexivity: new possibilities for researchers and teachers working with Dalits in Nepal

ABSTRACT Sociologists of education have shown that schooling tends to favour the most powerful groups and that even well-intentioned researchers can run the risk of perpetuating some of the very power structures we seek to critique. In this paper we explore how a male, Brahmin researcher from Nepal (the highest caste group in Nepalese society) attempted to disrupt power in researching the educational experiences of the lowest caste group – the Dalits – in one public school in Nepal. Drawing on ethnographic data generated in the field, alongside feminist theorising about reflexivity and power in research, we illuminate daily events in the life of a government school in Nepal that worked to reproduce power, including interactions that were witnessed between a range of actors in the field. We consider how the researcher’s reflexivity enabled him to recognise power and attempt to disrupt it. We argue that the focus on the “how” of research – with power at the forefront of our thinking – can lead to seeing things in the field in new ways, with the potential to influence future research and teaching in the Nepalese context in order to work towards justice for Dalit students.

Nepalese Society is Becoming More Attracted to English: Just as Iron is Attracted to Magnets

Just as globalization has affected Nepal's various political, social, and economic sectors, so has its impact on education. Over the last 50-60 years, the influence of English as a foreign language in the Nepalese education system has been increasing. The attraction of English has increased in such a way that it has become like a tradition to learn English before own's mother tongue. Not only in school, but parents are also eager to teach English to their children from home. Parents are constantly trying to improve their child's English. The psychology that a child becomes omniscient if he knows English is affecting everyone. Nepalese society is being influenced by the fact that foreign culture and English are more civilized than their mother tongue and culture. Globalization is currently adversely affecting the Nepalese education system. The English-only education system has not been able to explain the importance of their own language and local knowledge. With the development of the mentality that language is only for a good job and a prosperous life, the mentality that English should be learned anyway has taken root in Nepalese society. This paper has also tried to present the growing attraction of English education in Nepalese society from different perspectives. Textbooks, medium of examination, question papers, giving a lot of opportunities to students who know English have drawn everyone towards English. This paper presents the problems, solutions, and suggestions in four different sections. In the first section, the early stages of English education in Nepal are discussed. In the second section, the influence of foreign languages ​​on the original language and culture is discussed. Third, the fact that English influence has increased in emotional expression and daily life is presented in graphs and bars. The final section includes research findings, solutions, and suggestions.

Role of Nepali Army in Promotion and Preservation of Nepalese Art, Culture, and Traditions

The Nepali Army was founded initially as the Gorkha Army around 450 Years ago. Since its inception, the Nepali Army as the nation's largest organization has not only been ensuring our territorial integrity but has also been connecting multi-ethnic, multi-lingual, multi-religious, multi-cultural Nepalese society in a common thread by preserving its rich tangible and intangible cultural heritages along with the associated traditions. In this regard, this study predominantly illuminates the fact that modern-day Nepal has been shaped through the sacrifices of the Nepali Army and their histories are interwoven altogether. This research illustrates that the Nepali Army has been preserving and promoting Nepalese art, culture, and tradition for centuries both in times of peace and war. Despite socio-economic and political shifts in the nation's history over time, the Nepali Army has remained resolute in its spirit assimilating various cultural transplants within the organization promoting cultural relativism. Within this frame of reference, this study primarily aims to unfold major hurdles the Nepali Army is currently facing in the conundrum of operational and ceremonial duties along with the impacts of modern world issues, such as digitization and modernization. To fulfil objectives, this study follows a qualitative research methodology. It analyzes data collected from various primary and secondary sources and analyze it to draw out relevant inferences. I explore the military institution's roles to promote arts and cultures based on quantitative data with qualitative analysis.