May_June 2008

ART - ARCHITECTURE - DESIGN 

MAY-JUNE 2008 

www.spacesnepal.com 

SETTING STANDARDS 

Dramatics, Colour & Life 

A Whiff of Tradition 

The Restoratin of Bhaktapur 

Price Rs. 100/-

May - June 2008 

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ADV 

Hotel Raddison 

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ARCHITECTURE 

INTERIOR 

CRAFT 

22 

SETTING STANDARDS 

The Annapurna hotel, designed by Robert 

Weise in 1965, is said to be an example of a 

blend of progressive and traditional 

architecture. Now fourty years hence, its 

legacy lives on, carried by his son - Kai Weise. 

30 

A WHIFF OF TRADITION 

‘The Executive Lounge and Restaurant’ at the 

Tribhuvan International Airport, Kathmandu, is 

a five star facility sprawling over 10,000 

square feet of international luxury and service 

for business class ticket holders. Designed by 

the architectural firm Design Cell, the project 

was completed within a record time of four 

months from concept to implementation. 

38 

TRADITIONAL PROGRESSIONS 

Designer Mike Krajniak believes that all arts 

head towards degeneration if not interpreted 

according to present day technology, 

spirituality and social values. The enterprise 

Red Buddha Folk Arts, conceived by Mike, 

along with Maggie Shah and Jeewan 

Shilpakar attempts to fuse traditional designs 

with modern concepts to arrive at – perhaps 

a modern tradition? 

VOLUME 4 ISSUE 4 

May-June 2008 

ART 

PROFILE 

CONSERVATION 

46 

DRAMATICS, 

COLOUR & LIFE 

Navin Joshi has a passion for 

photography. His photographs are 

simple images of everyday life and 

ordinary subjects but made alive and 

at times even dramatic with the clever 

use of artistic perception enhanced by 

modest digital computer editing. 

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EFFORTS TODAY - DESTINY 

TOMORROW 

Architect Yogeshwor Parajuli has 

dedicated more than three decades 

of his life to the architectural 

profession. Now at the age of 53 - 

a relatively young for a person to 

have garnered so much of 

experiences - believes that sincerity, 

honesty and diligence towards work 

will eventually pay dividends. 

61 

THE RESTORATION OF 

BHAKTAPUR 

While building a home for most 

individuals is a once in a lifetime affair, 

major damage or complete loss of your 

home can be devastating. Do you have 

something that could give you peace of 

mind with respect to safeguarding your 

assets? This is where insurance comes 

to your rescue. 

CONTENTS 

REPORT 

REPORT 

72 

CONSERVATION THE 

RESTORATION OF BHAKTAPUR 

Bhaktapur, a city 15 km from Kathmandu, 

was a thriving centre for trade, especially 

with Tibet until the latter half of the 18th 

century. However, with the construction of 

a highway to the capital Kathmandu, its 

decline, instigated by the resulting low 

economic activity, besides ignorance and 

inadequate administrative system, 

became steady and inevitable - until the 

Bhaktapur Development Project. 

78 

ECONOMIC UPLIFT THROUGH 

HERITAGE CONSERVATION - 

BHAKTAPUR 

Conservation of architectural heritage is 

common in many parts of the world. But, can 

investment in architectural and urban heritage 

conservation foster economic development? 

Can it contribute to poverty reduction? Can it 

dramatically attract more tourists? These are 

most frequently asked questions all over the 

world including Nepal when it comes to 

conservation of cultural heritage. 

16 

NEWS & HAPPENINGS 

46 

GARDEN TIPS 

Yet again, Floriculture Association of Nepal 

organised a Floriculture Trade Fair in 

Kathmandu, which also included the annual 

flower competition. And with the mercury rising, 

Dr. Umed provides tips on how to quench your 

plants thirst in spite of the water scarcity.

ADV 

Hotel 

Annapurnna


EDITORIAL 


8 

" 

" 

See page 

42 

See page 

64 

Does Joshi sound crazy? Or are we too deaf to hear? Whatever may be the case, 

it sounds music to those parched throats of the Valley and no wonder Prayag 

has earned a place of respect and honour in the hearts of those he has served. 

Our walk with him around Patan Durbar Square did add to this fact and as 

Bijay concludes in his article - The Water Bearer - 'With some more people with 

the thirst to improve things quenching our thirst for a better Nepal is not that 

difficult.' 

If readers will remember, we had earlier featured an article on the destruction 

of Tansen Durbar - one of the many unfortunate casualties of the decade long 

insurgency in the country. Unfortunate due to the fact that a part of our history 

was senselessly obliterated without giving regard to what we were and where 

we are heading to. However, as if to make amends meet, the Tansen Durbar is 

now being reconstructed with utmost priority, and in this issue, Ar. Sarita 

Shrestha Maskey, Chief of Housing Section and Reconstruction Unit, DUDBC, 

explains why and what is being done. 

Nepalese architects it seems are coming out of their shell and are no longer 

confined to Nepal only. Following our previous feature on Ar. Tom Crees, now 

based in Sydney, this issue now features a home in Dhaka, 'A Great Geometric 

Sculpture', designed by Ar. Suriti Joshi Kader with her husband Ar. K.M.Saiful 

Kader. 

UNDER 

CONSTRUCTIONS 

Nepal's rich cultural heritage sites are not confined to the Valley alone. 

Lumbini, the birthplace of Lord Buddha, is equally important to us as it is to all 

those following his teachings. This issue also features an article by Ar. Kai Weise, 

who writes about its past, present and future. 

Dr. Bijay and Ar. Sushmita's report, as those in earlier issues, is both informative 

and exhaustive. Their article 'Sanitation Challenges' is their 'hands on' 

experience which we hope will one realise where we are and what can or 

should be done to make our space better and more organized. 

The article on insurance may confuse readers as to why such an article has 

appeared in a design magazine. As stated in my first editorial, 'SPACES affects 

and involves all those within'. The process of choosing a designer, building a 

house and filling it with prized possessions to transform it into a home, is a one 

time affair. And as Raju explains in his article, 'The W's of Insurance', protecting 

our space, something we all treasure to the best of our individual capacity, 

naturally is as important as the design and building process itself. 

See page 

58 

Coming to our announcement regarding the 'Spaces Architectural Award 

2008', the team is working on it and with your support and well wishes, we 

hope that this event will accomplish what we have planned for, i.e., 'To honour 

our past, define the present and forecast the future.' 

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Architectural 

Award 2008 

SPACES IS PROUD TO ANNOUNCE A GRAND ARCHITECTURAL EVENT WHICH WILL 

Honour our past, define the present and forecast the future 

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DO FOLLOW THE COMING ISSUE FOR FURTHER DETAILS


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One of the unique features among the historical and 

religious monuments of the Kathmandu Valley is the 

spout embellished with images of gods and goddesses 

Cover Photo 

Photographs:Ashesh Rajbansh 

Canon EOS-1D Mark II Camera 

f/6.4 @ 1/500 sec ISO 200 


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CONTRIBUTORS 

Ar. Kai Weise, the son of Ar. Robert Weise, 

studied architecture at the Swiss Federal 

Institute of Technology. He has been working 

along the Himalayas for the past 15 years as 

an Architect and Urban Planner. Over the past 

few years he has also been serving as UNESCO 

Consultant for World Heritage Sites and 

lecturing on Conservation Planning. 

Ar. Arun Pant completed his bachelor’s in 

Architecture from Nagpur University and 

Masters in Urban Planning from the University 

of Illinois at Urbana Champaign. He is a 

partner in Design Cell and is involved in 

designing and managing the various projects 

of the firm. Occasionally, he is involved with 

student work and lectures in the architectural 

and planning colleges in Kathmandu. 

Ar. Yogeshwar K. Parajuli is currently the 

Managing Director of TAEC Consult P. Ltd., a 

multidisciplinary engineering consulting firm 

operating since 1977. After his graduation in 

1977 from Chandigarh India, he joined the 

Bhaktapur Development Project carrying out 

the comprehensive urban renewal, 

conservation and development of medieval 

town, Bhaktapur for about a decade. As 

consultant he has been Team Leader/ Principal 

Design Architect, Project Director for a 

number of large scale architectural, urban 

planning, civil engineering projects. 

MANAGING EDITOR 

PUBLIC RELATIONS 

ASSOCIATE EDITOR 

CHIEF-MARKETING & SALES 

EXECUTIVE-MARKETING & SALES 

PHOTOGRAPHY / 

PRODUCTION CONTROL 

CONTRIBUTING ART EDITOR 

ACCOUNTS 

ASSISTANT 

PUBLISHED BY 

GRAPHIC DESIGN/ 

COLOUR SEPARATION 

PRINTED AT 

DISTRIBUTION IN NEPAL 

DISTRIBUTION IN INDIA 

Uday Sunder Shrestha, B.E, B. Sc. 

Prakash Bahadur Amatya 

Bijay Shrestha 

Krishna Shrestha 

Nijima Shrestha 

Ashesh Rajbansh 

Kasthamandap Art Studio 

Rajesh Dali 

Narayan Ale Magar 

IMPRESSIONS Publishing Pvt.Ltd., 

Kupondole, Lalitpur, P.B. 227, DPO 

Lalitpur 

Ph: 5544606. 5526040 

(Regd. No 30657/061-62) 

Digiscan Pre-Press, Naxal, 

Kathmandu, Ph: 4436817 

Format Printing Press, Hadigaon, 

Kathmandu, Ph: 4422160 

R.B. Newspaper Traders 

Ph: 4232784 / 4215652 / 4216658 

M.L. & Sons 

Shivaji Stadium Complex, 

Shaheed Bhagat Singh Marg, 

New Delhi-110001 

Ph: 0091-01-32421262, 23362688 

SPACES is published six times a year at the address above. All rights are 

reserved in respect of articles, illustrations, photographs, etc. published in 

SPACES. The contents of this publication may not be reproduced in whole 

or in part in any form without the written consent of the publisher. The 

opinions expressed by contributors are not necessarily those of the publisher 

and the publisher cannot accept responsiblility for any errors or omissions. 


Dr. Umed Pun is an ornamental horticulturist 

running Himalayan Flora Enterprises in 

Godavari. He is at present involved in growing 

ornamental plants, exotic cut flowers, foliages 

and orchids and is also a garden consultant 

working with several architectural design 

firms. He has been sharing his expertise with 

SPACES regularly. (Garden Tips) 

Sampada Malla is the winner of 'Travel 

Writer of the Year 2005' awarded by Nepal 

Tourism Board. She regularly writes for 

leading English and Nepali magazines and 

has also published an anthology of Nepali 

stories called 'Anayas Eddin'. Sampada has 

been regularly writing for SPACES and is 

currently working as the program coordinator 

for Sarvanam Theater Group. (Chanting Divine 

Prayers) 

Those submitting manuscripts, photographs, artwork or other materials to 

SPACES for consideration should not send originals unless specifically 

requested to do so by SPACES in writing. Unsolicited manuscripts, 

photographs and other submitted material must be accompanied by a self 

addressed return envelope, postage prepaid. However, SPACES is not 

responsible for unsolicited submissions. All editorial inquiries and 

submissions to SPACES must be addressed to editor@spacesnepal.com or 

sent to the address mentioned above. 

Kathmandu: 

Birgunj: 

ADVERTISING & SUBSCRIPTIONS 

IMPRESSIONS Publishing Pvt.Ltd. 

Ph: 5544606, 5526040 

email: market@spacesnepal.com 

Kishore Shrestha, Hotel Kailash, Adarsha Nagar. 

Ph: 522384, 529984. 

email: hotelkailash@wlink.com.np 

Dharan/Biratnagar: Parbati Shrestha, Dharan - 05 

Ph: 025-5-21164 

9842054110 

India: 

India: 

Vishal Sunder Shrestha, Nepal Curio House, 

16 Nehru Road, 

Darjeeling-WB . Ph:54973 

Tanvi Shrestha, 253 Hudson Line, North Delhi 

Ph: 9953393171


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LETTERS 

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New Gallery for Contemporary 

Sculptures 

The article on Thakur P Mainali in your last 

issue (Mar/Apr 08) was very interesting. At 

the same time your magazine is very 

informative too. I have opened a small 

gallery for contemporary sculptures called 

"ART SPACE" in Baryo Fiesta at Naxal (next 

to Mike's Breakfast} and plan to exhibit the 

works of great sculptors like Mainali, , 

Pravin Shrestha , Pramila Giri, Om Khatri, 

etc. As SPACES relates to art besides 

architecture and design, I would like to 

invite SPACES to celebrate its opening. 

Kindly inform us as to whom to contact. 

Pushpanjali 

9851099835 

PRESS RELEASE March 2008 

Invitation to all architects of the world: 

Contribute in the 

making of the future of architectural thought: 

World Architecture Community, launched on 

March 1, with 200 honorary members 

including Hans Hollein, Mario Botta, and 

Fumihiko Maki, is probably the first 

interactive database created to provide an 

opportunity for all local practices to become 

internationally recognized. Unique features 

of this portal enable all members to 

contribute in the making of the future of 

architectural thought by submitting, 

discussing, editing, rating, sharing their 

work. www.worldarchitecture.org 

Contributing articles 

How can I contribute something to your 

magazine from UK! Please let me know. 

Sunil Shrestha, ASK group, UK 

sunu_ask@yahoo.co.uk 

(Contributions related to 'Art, Architecture 

& Design' can be sent to 

editor@spacesnepal.com - ed) 

Featuring Interior Graduates 

As SPACES has been promoting Nepalese 

graduates who have excelled in architecture, 

I wonder if SPACES could similarly help to 

promote interior design graduates too. 

Rashmi Chitrakar 

Student of Interior Design, Kantipur College, 

Baneswor. 

Encourage Infrastructure 

Development 

SPACES seems to be improving with every 

issue. Congratulations! The article on 

'Sanitation Challenges' by Dr. Bijay K. 

Shrestha /Ar. Sushmita Shrestha in the 

Mar/Apr 2008 issue was very informative 

and those related to infrastructure 

development should be encouraged for a 

developing country like Nepal. It was also 

interesting to read about the 

'Reconstruction of Tansen Durbar' by Ar. 

Sarita Shrestha Maskey. And yes, the idea 

of a 'National Architectural Award' was 

long overdue. Incidentally, an article on 

new techniques for swimming pools in 

Nepal would be interesting too. 

B K SETHIA 

ATC-Kathmandu 

Value of SPACES 

I am glad and proud to say that I have all 

the issues of SPACES since all of them are 

collector's pieces. However, none of them 

have been purchased fresh from the stands 

but rather from a hawker at a throwaway 

price. According to the hawker, he gets the 

copies from star hotels who do not seem to 

realize its value. It would be better if these 

hotels donated SPACES to a local library or 

educational institutions, so that it would be 

available to those who will appreciate its 

value as a reference material. 

Rabin Rachalica, Green Team Bhaktapur 

rachalica@gmail.com 

Progressive Path 

Thank you for featuring my design 

and giving me the opportunity to 

share my thoughts with your 

readers. I noted that another one 

of my buildings was prominently 

profiled but with no mention of 

my name as the architect. It was 

the article with the "Empire 

Heights" building interiors by the 

John Sanday Interior Team. I have 

attached some earlier photos that 

might be of interest. 

Keep up the quality of your publication which is excellent … however, you would need Nepal 

to get onto a much more progressive path for the full benefits to be achieved I would think? 

Will the upcoming elections help in this? 

Tom Crees 

Cox Richardson,Level 2, 204 Clarence Street, Sydney NSW 2000 

tom.crees@cox.com.au www.cox.com.au 

Empire Heights - First sketch study - Oct 1999 

Help ! 

We are looking for an old traditional house with a spacious compound. Can u help? 

Binita Joshi binita11@hotmail.com 

I own a wonderful Maithili piece by S.C. Suman and would love to purchase another. Is it 

possible to contact S.C. Suman? (My brother, Mike Gill lived in Kathmandu for years and 

knows him I think.) 

Ellen Gill Pastore 

egillpastore@mac.com 

(S.C. Suman can be contacted at artistsuman@hotmail.com - ed) 

Hi. I am trying to get in contact with Dr Umed Pun , Phd . 

Justin Newcombe, New Zealand 

justin@landscapesafari.co.nz 

(Dr. Umed Pun can be contacted at umedpun@gmail.com - ed) 

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CEEA introduces ABB 

Amid a function to launch ABB 

products in Nepal, Cosmic Electrical 

Engineering Associates Pvt. Ltd. 

(CEEA) organized a meet of architects, 

engineers and contractors at the Hotel 

de la Annapurna on 14 March 2008. 

According to the Product Manager of 

ABB, Mr. Dev Chandra Kuril, ABB 

(www.abb.com) is a global leader in 

power and automation technologies 

that enable utility and industry 

customers to improve performance 

NEWS AND 

HAPPENINGS 

while lowering environmental impact 

and operates in around 100 countries. 

Also at the function, Mr. Mahesh 

Mahato, MD of CEEA, gave a brief 

introduction of his company. CEEA, 

established in 2000, is a services 

oriented organization with marketing, 

consulting, contracting, trading, 

installation & servicing of all types of 

electrical, electronics, 

communication, HVAC, computer 

systems and accessories. 

BE SMART with 

Fahim 

The 28 of March 2008 saw a grand new 

entry of bathroom-ware products into 

Nepal. Fahim Sanitary Wares Ltd., a 

sister organization of Shamanta group 

of Bangladesh, literally blew themselves 

in with their attractive products 

displayed by equally attractive models 

at the Soaltee Crown Plaza. The 

products, marketed by Create Bath P. 

Ltd. of Kathmandu, were launched 

amid invited guest related to the 

building construction market and was 

inaugurated by the Bangladesh 

Ambassador to Nepal, Mr. Imtiaz 

Ahmed. At the function, the 

Ambassador pointed out that such 

ventures between business communities 

of both countries will further boost and 

expand the trade and commerce 

relations between Bangladesh and 

Nepal. 

At the function, Mr. Faiz Ullah Khan, 

CEO of Fahim Sanitary Wares Ltd., 

stated that Fahim is one of the largest 

export oriented industries in this sector 

in Bangladesh and have been exporting 

their products to India and Spain. With 

technical assistance from SACMI IMOLA 

of Italy, the company uses only the top 

most quality of raw materials which are 

imported from European countries. The 

prices are competitive ranging from Rs. 

8040.00 to Rs. 11,156.25 for a set of 

water closet and wash basin. 

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NEWS AND HAPPENINGS 

PASSING 

THROUGH 

Pramila Bajracharya, a member of 

Kastamandup Art studio, exhibited her 

impressions at Park Gallery on the 

memories she collected during her 

visit to the beautiful island country of 

Sri Lanka. The exhibition was 

inaugurated by His Excellency Mr. 

Sumit Nakandala, Ambassador of Sri 

Lanka to Nepal on the 25 th of March, 

which continued till the 6 th of April. 


17 

Nirantar Kulla 

Dhoka 2007 

The first time I banged my head on the door, 

Mom caressed my pain. 

The second time I banged my head on the door, 

Father advised me to be careful. 

The third time I banged my head on the door, 

I decided to build a taller door. 

- excerpt (translated) from one of the poems at the book 

launch 

Giving continuation to the earlier Khula Dhoka, 

Siddartha Art Gallery hosted a book launch and 

exhibition of door paintings at the Nepal Art 

Council from 13 th till 27 th March, titled Nirantar 

Khula Dhoka, Continuous Open Doors. At the 

launch, contributing poets recited their poems 

which spoke of the need for political 

reconciliation and lasting peace in the country. 

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Floriculture Trade Fair - 2008 

With the objective to promote 

floriculture business in Nepal, 

Floriculture Association of Nepal 

(FAN) organized a floriculture trade 

fair in the exhibition 

hall of Brikuti Mandap, 

Kathmandu. The annual 

event, which ran for four 

days from April 2 nd to 

the 5 th , had a total of 

sixty-two stalls of 

different commercial 

floriculture enterprises 

exhibiting their 

products, which 

included seasonal 

flowers, exotic plants, 

cut flowers, dry flowers, 

orchids, compost fertilizers, flower 

bulbs, seeds, gardening tools and 

pesticides. 

The event kicked off with an 

inauguration chaired by the newly 

elected FNCCI President, Mr. Kush 

Kumar Joshi, who commented that as 

this industry had a very high export 

potential, the government’s 

facilitation for such provisions should 

be seriously addressed. Also in the 

event, the FNCCI President gave away 

prizes and commendations to the 

winners of the Floriculture 

competition held under eleven 

different categories. FAN was 

established in 1992 with ten founding 

members to promote the floriculture 

business in Nepal and has been 

organizing such trade fairs every year 

since 1993. 

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PETALS 

From the 9 th till 23 rd of March, Neera Joshi 

Pradhan exhibited her new series of 

acrylics and water colour paintings titled 

“Petals” at the Park Gallery, Lazimpat. The 

exhibition is the artist’s attempt to freely 

express her feelings and her inner state of 

mind rather than depicting what flowers 

actually are. “I have attempted to explain 

what I have seen in the nature of the petals 

and if the viewers have also observed the 

same things then I have done my job,” 

shares the artist who for the last ten years 

has been painting on the floral theme. 

ADV 

Sana Hstakala 

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The Unspoken 

Tantric motifs, auspicious symbols and local scripts on 

canvas were the images used at an exhibition at the 

Siddartha Art Gallery. Inaugurated on the 20 th of March 

by the Bangladesh Ambassador to Nepal, the exhibition 

of paintings by Madan Chitrakar was the artist’s reaction 

to the recent political changes in the country. 

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ARCHITECTURE 


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Hotel de l’Annapurna designed by Ar. 

Robert Weise in 1965, set an early 

standard for modern architecture in Nepal. 

The beginning (1963 – 1965) 

“Understandably the 

trend at that time was 

rather in favour of the 

progressive spirit, but it 

soon balanced and the 

resulting blend of 

architecture came to be 

acknowledged as being 

Nepalese. An early 

example was the 

Annapurna Hotel, the first 

‘modern’ tourist hotel 

which opened in July 

1965”, (Weise, 1984). 


SETTING 

STANDARDS 

Ar. Kai Weise 

The beginning (1963-1965) 

It was in 1963 that work started on establishing a modern hotel to cater to the 

budding tourism industry. “The originally planned 40-room hotel was a low-cost affair 

without air-conditioning, without room-telephones and room-music system, etc.”,(Weise, 

19 July 1965). As the project commenced however, numerous additions and changes 

were made; 20 rooms were added, service and shop building increased, equipment 

and parts of the interior and furnishing were imported and the estimated 12 lakh 

project ended up costing 40 lakhs. 

The completion of the project was held up due to the delay in arrival of the 

transformer from England via Calcutta as well as the supply of furniture from BKK 

(Balaju Kashtha Kala). “During the past rice planting season, BKK was left with as few 

as six carpenters. Hence BKK suffered as much as we did at the site from shortage of labour. 

Now, the important fact for us is that it would have been against the interest of Her Highness 

(Princess Helen Shah) to pay double and triple daily wages simply to complete works 

whereas the hotel opening was postponed anyhow due to the electric supply not being 

available on time”, (Weise, 19 July 1965). Then when the rain started, the road was closed 

to traffic after a couple of diesel trucks got stuck in mud holes all along the way to Balaju. 

Consequently, the traffic was diverted via Swayambhu, but also this road was out of service

ARCHITECTURE 

Shortcomings regarding carpenter work (especially doors) or plaster work in the Hotel… 

for the fact that none of these workers have ever received solid disciplined training in their trade. 

…. not one of these workers has ever seen such a building before, yet it was built by them. 


within a few days time. For weeks, these 

roads were not repaired to become motorable 

for normal traffic. Even now, only jeeps can 

drive to Balaju. Such circumstances were 

the main reason for delayed production 

beside of the fact that raw materials and 

finished goods could not be brought over 

the roads for weeks. Many times the Hotel- 

Truck was sent to Balaju but returned before 

reaching Balaju because of the damaged 

road.” (Weise, 23 August 1965) 

The challenges of construction works 

in the 1960’s can only be imagined if 

we consider that even today we come 

across shortages of materials and skilled 

workers. The situation when 

constructing the Hotel can be 

somewhat perceived by reading 

through some of Ar. Robert Weise’s 

letters. “… shortcomings regarding 

carpenter work (especially doors) or plaster 

work in the Hotel… for the fact that none 

of these workers have ever received solid 

disciplined training in their trade. It was 

said by some that the Annapurna is the 

most beautiful building in Nepal. …. not 

one of these workers has ever seen such a 

building before, yet it was built by them. 

On the other hand, if the hotel project should 

have been a training centre for carpenters, 

bricklayers, plasterers, painters, flooring 

specialists, etc., all these workers would, 

according to Swiss or German standard, be 

in training for three to four years. Now 

instead of running a Hotel with roughly 

worked doors, plaster, paint, floors etc., we 

would be halfway through with the 

training course”, (Weise, 23 August 1965) 

Material procurement was a major issue. 

This was described in an article written 

by Ar. Robert Weise in the Swiss WERK 

Magazine in February 1967. The local 

supply of construction materials was 

restricted to low quality chimney bricks, 

sand with high mica content, hand 

broken stone aggregate, marble, slate 

and wood from the saw mills in the Terai. 

Everything else needed to be imported 

and transported by truck or ropeway. 

The cost of materials were: bricks Rs. 

85/- per 1000 (not counting broken 

bricks), roof sheets Rs. 2/- per sft 

(measuring finished roof size), cement 

Rs. 26/- per 50 kgs paper bags and 22/ 

- in gunny bags delivered to site. 

Negotiations were under way to build 

three cement factories (German and 

Russian projects), a large scale saw mill 

(American project) and a brick and tile 

factory (Chinese project). Under these 

circumstances, the Hotel was designed 

to reflect a modern style with local scale. 

It is also interesting to note that the floors 

were not concrete slabs but constructed 

of wooden joists and planking. 

1965 

Plan Section 

1965 

Lobby 

1965 

Portico 

1965 

Reception 

Hotel de l’Annapurna started operating on 

30 July 1965. “The first guests have 

enjoyed a hot meal and a hot bath exactly 

12 hours after the main electric supply was 

provided by means of a 50 KVA 

transformer. There was comparatively little 

trouble despite the tremendous task of 

operating the Hotel without prior testing of 

the overall electric system, water supply 

system… Kathmandu residents, local and 

foreign, as well as tourists, appreciate the 

exterior and interior architecture of the 

Hotel. Everybody is aware of the difficulties 

involved to establish such a Hotel under 

the prevailing circumstances. It is now 

really very important that this impressive 

début is followed up with an equally 

impressive reputation in any other aspect”, 

(Weise, 11 August 1965) 

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ARCHITECTURE 


24 

Early Extensions (1966 – 1970) 

With the hotel’s opening, further extensions were 

rapidly carried out. In 1966 a new larger kitchen 

was constructed and the dining room extended 

towards the west. Soon the 60 original rooms were 

insufficient and an extension of 30 rooms was 

constructed towards the south of the main block. A 

staff quarters building was also added towards the 

southern end of the compound. By the end of the 

1960’s the Coffee Shop and Annapurna Arcade 

buildings were constructed along Durbar Marg (at 

the time single storey structures). 

Hilton Project Bird’s Eye View 

The 60 original 

rooms soon became 

insufficient and a 

further 30 rooms 

were soon added by 

the end of the 60’s. 

Plans for Hilton (1970 – 1974) 

The Hilton chain of hotels was 

interested in taking over the Annapurna 

and was planning to enlarge the hotel 

to over 230 rooms. The preliminary 

designs of the impressive project were 

prepared by April 1970 and was further 

detailed out including interior layouts 

and finishes..Unfortunately this 

project was not implemented. The 

design work that went into this project 

was however the basis for the design of 

the much acclaimed Hotel Malla which 

was designed and constructed between 

1970 and 1972. 

Although the Hilton project fell 

through, further extensions were 

planned to cater to the visitors who 

would be arriving for the coronation of 

King Birendra in 1975. A Coronation 

Wing was planned towards the north 

of the main block in a similar design to 

the previously constructed blocks. 

However this project also was not 

implemented. 

spacesnepal.com

West Wing Extension 

(1974 – 1990) 

During the period 1974 to 1990, and in 

lieu of the Hilton project, a more low 

key extension was planned. A contract 

was signed on 1 August 1974 for a further 

60 room addition to the existing 90 

rooms. The West Wing project however 

expanded to include 82 rooms, a new 

lobby, a new enlarged kitchen, a 

restaurant and banquet hall. Further 

facilities were added such as a large 

swimming pool and a laundry / fitness 

centre block with tennis courts on the 

roof. This phase of construction which 

was completed in 1977 gave the hotel 

its present form. 

West Wing Extension Perspective (1977) 

West Wing with Swimming Pool (1977) 

ARCHITECTURE 

March-April May - June 2008 

25 

Various plans were prepared in the 

1980’s to add facilities to the hotel. A 

conference hall to the north and a 

banquet hall to the south of the main 

building were also planned but were 

however not implemented. 

The Taj Years (1990 – 2004) 

The Taj Group took over the management of the Annapurna in 1990, which also 

ended Robert Weise’s association with the hotel. Over the next 14 years hardly any 

improvements were carried out to the hotel. The lobby was extended with a structure 

added towards the swimming pool. The west wing façade and various rooms were 

renovated. However the work that was carried out during this period shows that 

the Taj management had little understanding of the unique identity of the hotel and 

had no intention of preserving its character. The façade of the west wing was defaced 

to look like some second rate hotel in Delhi, with its red sandstone bands around 

the windows. The facility was run down to the extent that it lost much of its reputation. 

The façade of the West Wing was defaced 

after the Taj Group took over the 

management, making it look like some 

second rate hotel in Delhi. 

A change could be felt soon after Mr. Kapil 

Rana took on the post of Managing 

Director. Efforts were made to break the 

deadlock between the Owner and the 

Managing Company, leading to the 

preparation of an overall ’Renovation - 

Restoration – Extension Plan’ towards the 

end of 2002. However, when the plan was 

presented to the Board in January 2003, 

Taj rejected it and proposed their own 

plan that they had got prepared by Ar. P.G. 

Patki from Mumbai; the same architect 

who designed the Hyatt Regency near 

Bauddha. This conflict came to an end 

when one fine day in December 2004 the 

Taj management suddenly departed. 

spacesnepal.com

ARCHITECTURE 


26 

Revival 2005 

It was decided to immediately begin work on implementing 

the Master Plan. The renovation of the Coffee Shop building 

was seen as the most feasible and the size made it possible 

to begin work without delay. 

The design for the Coffee 

Shop renovation was 

completed and the bidding 

for Contractors took place 

in September 2005. Work 

commenced in December, 

however as the finishes 

were stripped off and the 

main structure laid bare, it 

became clear that the 35 year 

old concrete did not have 

many years of life left. The 

structure would need to be 

rebuilt. 

The main challenge of the project was to 

design the façade and volume of the 

building which needed to retain the hotel’s 

identity. 

1965 1977 1984 2006 

Within the next few weeks, 

the project was redesigned 

as a four storey structure with a basement. The ground floor 

was reserved for the Coffee Shop, which over the decades 

had gained an excellent reputation. The first floor was to be 

for the Ghar-e-Kabab, another well known restaurant for 

Indian cuisine (the Ghar-e-Kabab was temporarily moved 

to the new hotel lobby however was not moved back to the 

Coffee Shop building.) The basement was planned with 

provisions for future parking, however a ramp for just the 

25 odd cars was not feasible. The main challenge of the 

project was to design the façade and volume of the building 

which, though a floor higher than the main hotel building, 

needed to retain the hotel’s identity. The design needed to 

take the essence of the previous designs done by Ar. Robert 

Weise and reinterpret it in within the contemporary context. 

The main challenge of the project was to design 

the façade and volume of the building which, 

though a floor higher than the main hotel 

building, needed to retain the hotel’s identity. 

The design needed to take the essence of the 

previous designs done by Ar. Robert Weise and 

reinterpret it in within the contemporary context. 

More than a dozen schemes for the elevation were detailed 

out. Construction had started in April 2006 and was 

progressing rapidly. However the elevations were finalized 

only in October when time ran out and construction couldn’t 

be halted. The project was completed by December of the 

same year and the Coffee Shop opened on 24 December 2006. 

The reconstruction of the Annapurna Arcade commenced 

immediately thereafter. Phase One was completed within 

the year. Phase Two has begun and should be completed by 

April 2009. The Annapurna Arcade is legally not part of the 

hotel, however physically is closely linked to the hotel 

facilities. The design of the Annapurna Arcade therefore had 

to follow the concept of the Coffee Shop building, however 

adapted to its own function, location and scale. 

spacesnepal.com

ARCHITECTURE 

The Annapurna arcade being physically linked to the hotel 

had to follow the concept of the Coffee shop building. 


27 

The renovation of the Coffee Shop building started in April 2006 and opened 

its doors in December the same year. 

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28 

ARCHITECTURE 

The Master Plan 

The Master Plan which was initially prepared in 2002 has 

undergone some changes however the approach and essence have 

been retained. The first phase was the reconstruction of the Coffee 

Shop building which was completed in December 2006. This was 

followed by the two phases of reconstructing the Annapurna 

Arcade (not legally part of the Hotel) which will be completed by 

April 2008. The second phase which would start in October 2008 

includes a banquet hall and conference facilities as well as a multistorey 

’knock down’ parking. Further phases are in the process 

of being detailed out focusing on the main hotel building. 

The two most important attributes of Hotel de l’Annapurna are 

its location and its long standing identity. The hotel’s location 

gives it a strategic prominence, since Durbar Marg has over the 

years become the most stylish part of the city. The hotel’s four 

decade long history and identity has been closely linked to its 

architectural style, which is a refreshing modernity with a local 

touch. This identity is being retained in the architectural style of 

the phase-wise renovation, reconstruction and extension of the 

hotel. 

The hotel’s location gives it a strategic 

prominence since Durbar Marg has over the 

years become the most stylish part of the city. 

The hotel in 2008 

Main Entry Façade 

Reception and Lobby 

Swimming Pool 

spacesnepal.com

ARCHITECTURE 


29 

The Master Plan planned in 2002 

has undergone some changes 

without losing its approach and 

essence. 

A suite in the hotel 

Ar. Robert Weise’s (1929 -1996) career in 

Nepal started from 1957 with humble 

designs of cheese factories, godowns and 

staff quarters, while on a two year 

assignment with the Swiss assistance (SATA) 

for the Ministry of Agriculture. However 

before his tenure ended, he had progressed 

to various private projects which included 

designs for the royal family as well as a 

proposal for the Nepal Bank building in 

New Road, Kathmandu. However, it was 

not these but the three year contract as 

Architect-in- Chief for the preparation of 

the Master Plan of the Tribhuvan University 

Complex and the design of its Library 

Building and Science Block, which 

prompted Robert decided to stay back in 

Nepal, leaving the shelter of the Swiss 

government. From then on till the late 

1980’s, Robert’s designs attempted to 

bridge the modern style of architecture he 

had learnt as a student, as well as his 

experiences with European architecture in 

the late colonial period of Western Africa, 

to the context of the Kathmandu Valley. 

Notable among the many completed 

designs are the extension of the Royal Hotel 

(Bahadur Bhawan converted by Boris 

Lissanevitch), Hotel Annapurna, Fishtail 

Lodge in Pokhara, Hotel Malla, Army 

Headquarters, SOS Children’s Village in 

Sano-Thimi, Hotel Yellow Pagoda in 

Kantipath (now Nabil Bank), Geodatical 

Observatory in Nagarkot, Japanese 

Embassy Staff Quarters in Jawalakhel, Soviet 

Embassy, besides a number of residential 

buildings. In recognisance of his 

contribution towards the exemplary works 

of preserving Nepali cultural identity in 

modern buildings, Robert was commended 

by the Royal Nepal Academy in 1979. 

However, in spite of providing service to the 

country for 30 years, he was always 

condemned by younger architects as a 

foreigner and it was always a struggle for 

him to extend his visa. 

S 

References 

Weise, R. Letters dated 19 July 1965, 11 August 1965 and 23 August 1965 

Weise, R. Article in Werk, February 1967 p.106-107 (in German) 

Weise, R. Interview in Rasmi, December 1984 p.108-121 

Reference: Architect Robert Weise – 

The Life, The Work, The Times by Ar. 

Kai Weise, SPACES (Sep – Oct 2005) 

spacesnepal.com

INTERIOR 


The transformation from a drab and 

terminal-like atmosphere to a gleaming and 

sophisticated one is instantaneous 

30 

A Whiff of 

Tradition 

Uday 

Sunder Shrestha 

spacesnepal.com

INTERIOR 


“We have been requested by passengers, especially the elderly ones, to add a 

massage chair to the facilities,” says Ishwari K.C., Manager Airport Services of the 

Executive Lounge. And going by the Lounge’s immediate popularity and demand due 

to the increasing rate of movement of international flights, Navin Mohan Ranjit, 

Company Secretary of Radisson optimistically adds in, “Not one - probably a line of 

them very soon.” 

31 

'The Executive Lounge and Restaurant' at the Tribhuvan International Airport, 

Kathmandu, is a five star facility sprawling over 10,000 square feet of international 

luxury and service for business class ticket holders. "You know how it is with the 

system here. It took us almost three years of haggling and negotiations with the 

civil aviation authorities to convince them and finally clinch the deal to set up this 

establishment," informs Navin. Located on the second floor of the international 

terminal, the Executive Lounge is accessed through the departure hall of the first 

floor next to the immigration counters. The entrance to the Lounge is not directly 

visible from the hall as one moves from the immigration to the security check. 

With just a small signboard indicating the Lounge, it is almost easily missed if not 

for an employee of the Lounge, standing nearby probably saying, "Don't pass us by." 

The entry foyer and 

reception sets the mood of 

things to come. 

spacesnepal.com

INTERIOR 


32 

The transformation from a drab and 

terminal-like atmosphere to a gleaming 

and sophisticated one is instantaneous 

as one enters the wide, floor hinged 

clear glass doors. Polished granite floor, 

a small reception desk decked with a 

bouquet of fresh flowers and a 

contemporary ceiling fixture emitting 

blue light inscribed within a suspended 

square wooden grid sets the mood of 

things to come. 

Ingeniously lighted handrail 

defining the profile of the 

staircase as viewed towards the 

entry foyer below. 

"There has been a small deviation from 

the original plan regarding the furniture 

layout," says Navin. The small deviation 

turned out to be a corridor like space, 

designated as the handicapped lounge 

next to the staircase leading up to the 

main lounge and restaurant. The 

designer's attempt to amplify this small 

space with large mirrors on the wall 

seemed smothered by the oversized 

sofas each trying to push the other out. 

Small but comfortable seating 

arrangements would surely have made 

this space more functional and seem less 

congested. 

However, if one overlooks the 

handicapped lounge and heads for the 

staircase, the sense of anticipation 

remains, highlighted more so by the 

ingeniously lighted handrail defining 

the profile of the staircase. The dimly lit 

staircase ends onto a landing where one 

tends to be slightly confused as to where 

to turn to, if not for the smart lady at the 

nearby reception desk. The right of 

course leads to the lounge and the left 

towards the restaurant through a small 

vestibule and corridor. 


The main lounge comes as a bit of an 

impressive surprise, probably due to the 

contrast of the tunnel-like straight 

flight dimly lit staircase devoid of any 

decorations besides the lights, opening 

out to a relatively large open sparkling 

space flooded with natural light, which 

unfortunately is so strong that it takes 

a while to take in and appreciate the 

surroundings. However, gradually, and 

as intended by the designers, ones 

attention is drawn towards the row of 

windows through which huge planes 

lined up on the tarmac can be viewed.

INTERIOR 


33 

The handicapped lounge is 

conveniently located at the main 

entry level. 

The transformation from a drab and terminal-like atmosphere to a gleaming and 

sophisticated one is instantaneous as one enters the wide, floor hinged clear 

glass doors. 

The main lounge comes as a bit of an 

impressive surprise due to the tunnellike 

straight flight staircase opening out 

to a relatively large open sparkling 

space flooded with natural light. 

spacesnepal.com

INTERIOR 


34 

The pattern on the walls hints at 

traditional forms and colours while at 

same time maintains the overall concept 

of fine luxury. 

As intended by the designers, ones 

attention is drawn towards the row of 

windows through which huge planes lined 

up on the tarmac can be viewed. 

Still, the vast difference in internal and 

external light intensity, intensified by 

the external glare makes it visually 

uncomfortable to the eye during 

daytime, which will probably induce 

visitors to opt for sofas facing away from 

the windows towards the rather 

unnecessary and monotonous large 

storage space for luggage. 

The pattern on the walls, a sample 

introduced in the lower level entry 

foyer and handicapped lounge, is 

carried over and profusely used here. 

The combination of the blue textured 

cloth, slanting mahogany finished 

veneered panels and yellow coloured 

walls lined with hidden incandescent 

yellow lights, hints at traditional forms 

and colours while at same time 

maintains the overall concept of fine 

luxury. "Radisson demands perfection 

in everything. While we see only the 

dust on the glass, they want the rear 

cleaned too," informs Ishwari, pointing 

at a water colour painting of a serene 

Buddha by David Douglas titled, 

'Buddha's Grace'. And this is only one of 

spacesnepal.com

INTERIOR 


35 

Paintings and artefacts depicting 

local culture are strategically 

dotted along the walls of the 

lounge and restaurant. 

The meeting room serves those on the 

move and business can be wrapped up 

between connecting flights without having 

to staying overnight. 

the many paintings and artefacts 

depicting local culture, strategically 

dotted along the walls of the lounge and 

restaurant. A finely sculptured stone 

replica of Vishnu Vishwarup at Changu 

Narayan and a framed mandala, as well 

as a small but elaborately decorated 

Khukuri and a silver prayer wheel are 

some of the depictions thought out. 

Seating is as promised - comfortable and 

relaxing - and of course with delicious 

snacks and beverages, both alcoholic 

and non-alcoholic, does complete the 

package. A smoker's lounge at the far 

end, considerately designed for 

consistent smokers, is enclosed in a 

floor to ceiling clear glass partition 

which isolates the smoker, yet keeps 

him visually connected with his 

company. The meeting room next to the 

smokers lounge, supported by a 

compact secretarial support, serves 

those on the move and business can be 

wrapped up between connecting flights 

without having to staying overnight. 

The clear glass partition is repeated here 

too, although the element of 

connectivity with the external lounge 

may not seem too logical besides giving 

continuity to the adjacent smokers 

lounge. The most relaxing area of the 

lounge of course seems to be the long 

transit restroom at the other end of the 

lounge with its soft backlight on the blue 

soft textured walls and large reclining 

sofas enticing the weary traveller to let 

his/her hair hang down. 

The restaurant on the other hand seems 

to be subdued as compared to the main 

lounge. The walls seem almost bare with 

Seatings are as promised - 

comfortable and relaxing. 

spacesnepal.com

INTERIOR 


The smoker's lounge at the far end 

enclosed in a floor to ceiling clear glass 

partition isolates the smoker yet visually 

connects with exterior lounge. 

36 

The most relaxing area of the lounge is the long transit restroom with its 

soft backlight on the blue soft textured walls and large reclining sofas 

The restaurant though not as elaborate as 

the main lounge nonetheless looks spic and 

span with its floral granite topped tables. 

spaced out niches, which seem a bit too deep, almost 

hiding the black and white copies of sketches by the 

late G. Douglas, a famous and renowned artist from 

Darjeeling. The table tops are floral patterned granite 

encased in a wooden frame while the counter, which 

is usually the centre showpiece of restaurants, is simple 

and without elaborate designs. To make up for 

simplicity, the half wall partition at right angles topped 

with glass seems try to compensate for the relatively 

lack of designs. However, although this partition also 

imparts a sense of privacy to those seated within, it 

has visually constricted the restaurant area besides 

becoming a visual obstruction to the service control 

from the counter. In totality, the restaurant though 

not as elaborate in size nor visually exciting as the 

main lounge, nonetheless looks spic and span, 

probably indicating the customer to finish his 

business and move on to make way for the next one. 

"We need business now," states B.K. Shrestha, M.D. of 

Radisson Hotel, Kathmandu. Yes, and as with all 

businesses, a good product with the appropriate 

marketing must always sell. And sell it surely will, 

what with eleven airlines already being serviced by 

the Lounge, the Tribhuvan International Airport at 

Kathmandu can now boast of a showpiece of 

international standards. 

S 

spacesnepal.com


37 

spacesnepal.com

INTERIOR 


38 

Executive Lounge 

and Restaurant 

TRIBHUVAN INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT 

KATHMANDU 

Text: Ar. Arun Dev Pant 

Design Brief 

The Client wanted an international 

level executive lounge for business class 

ticket holders in order to woo the 

growing number of airlines that have 

started operating in Nepal. The lounge 

was to project a contemporary and 

luxurious feel while keeping some 

identity of the country. The brief also 

included the reestablishment of the 

airport restaurant – a much needed 

facility for all travellers who have to go 

through the long delays that 

characterizes our air travel – the design 

was to be clean and elegant with a 

sense of spaciousness that is often found 

in airports around the world. 

Design Response 

Over ten thousand square feet of designed 

space to be implemented in less than 

three months meant that the design and 

detailing would have to take into 

cognizance the time factor. The main 

effort would be in setting the image of the 

respective areas, arriving at a conceptual 

sketch that reflects the desired image and 

converting the sketch into workable details 

given the time constraints. Less than a 

month was available for the design and 

construction drawings and it was 

imperative to freeze space planning and 

desired outlook early on. Yet, as it often 

happens in many projects, some main 

circulation patterns and available spaces 

were changed towards the end of the 

construction phase. However, in totality, it 

is felt that these changes were successfully 

handled and have been smoothly 

integrated into the project. 

Plan of entry foyer with 

handicapped lounge 

Plan of main lounge 

and restaurant 

spacesnepal.com

INTERIOR 

Business Lounge 

The entrance to the facilities is on the departure floor waiting hall after the 

immigrations. A foyer and reception hall that also houses the handicapped 

lounge greets the traveller. It was felt that this foyer should set the tone of 

having arrived in a distinct environment, significantly different in the look and 

feel from the rest of airport yet not completely alien to the building. The 

brickwork and ceiling have been generally undisturbed to provide this sense of 

continuity. The staircase has been redone with a focus on a novel backlit railing 

design with that guides the customers to the floor above. A foyer on the top is 

placed at the junction of the passage to the restaurant and business lounge. The 

reception at the entry of the business lounge opens to a view towards the 

windows and airport runway with curving granite floors defining the walkways. 

Plush single and two-seater sofas are arranged on the carpeted lounge floor 

with bevelled blue reflecting glass top tables. The décor is dominated by 

mahogany veneered tapering central pillar with a gridded partial ceiling as 

well as the tapered wall panels. This is a contemporary take on traditional 

Nepali wood frames and also serves to house quality artefacts such as a stone 

replica of the frieze from Changu Narayan, stone mandalas, carved wooden 

struts as well as metal sculptures. The idea was that the travellers view the 

finest examples of Nepali art and sculpture. The lounge flows across the open 

dining and pantry with refrigerated counters towards another seating area 

which also houses a partitioned space which is designated as the smoking 

section. The facilities for the travellers include a meeting hall, secretarial 

services area, computer workstations. The toilets have been refurbished to meet 

the current standards. The windows facing the runways provide a continuous 

view of the airplanes and serves as focal point from all parts of the lounge. The 

secondary windows to the rear looking down into the departure hall are 

screened with vertical textured blinds to give a sense of privacy and exclusivity 

to the lounge. A third hall has been provided for longer stay travellers with 

reclining leather sofa chairs with the option of dimming the interiors to provide 

for a restful space. 

The décor of the lounge is 

dominated by mahogany 

veneered tapering central pillar 

with a gridded partial ceiling as 

well as the tapered wall panels. 


39 

Restaurant 

The restaurant was designed to allow for windows of the runway to dominate the décor 

while retaining a sense of simple elegance within. The seating has been divided into three 

major zones – a built in sofa seating area along the wall, a semi partitioned area in the 

centre to give a sense of privacy and to break up the large hall, and individual tables that 

allow for flexibility of creating larger groups of seating along the periphery. A combination 

of niches, recessed lights, Nepali artefacts and prints of faces of Nepal are sprinkled 

throughout the interior. The colour tones and materials are selected to impart a bit of 

warmth to the place without making it overly plush and luxurious. In addition, a small area 

has been allocated near the exit of the kitchen area to set up small buffet tables for larger 

groups including for passengers from cancelled flights. LCD TV panels have been liberally 

provided in the interior theme which allows for both entertainment channels and flight 

information. 

A large kitchen and preparation area have been added to the back of the house area. This 

kitchen is quite sophisticated as it would have to handle the large volumes of passengers and 

would be quite occupied in times of flight cancellations and delays. In addition, the 

frequent bandhs that plague the country would mean that large storage areas would be 

necessary to ensure smooth operations. A closed 

circuit TV system has been installed in all parts of 

facility for security purposes which allow the 

management and operations staff to monitor 

both passenger and staff activities. 

The colour tones and materials, 

as well as the combination of 

niches with recessed lights 

highlighting the Nepali artefacts 

and prints of faces, are selected 

to impart a bit of warmth to the 

restaurant without making it 

overly plush and luxurious. 

Consultant: Design Cell Pvt. Ltd. 

Team: Sanjaya Pradhan, Arun Pant, Amit 

Rajkarnikar (Designers) 

Ujjwal Satyal (Kitchen Consultant) 

Rajiv Thapa (Electrical Consultant) 

Nest Interiors (Contractor) 

spacesnepal.com

CRAFT 


Amalgamations of traditional and 

contemporary designs bestow a 

traditional feel as well as reflect 

modern day culture. 

40 

Mid morning sunlight bounces off Mike's cheerful face as it streams through the 

small windows of the lounge at his peaceful haven in Nagpokhari. Enjoying the 

warm playful acts of the sun, he begins our conversation with a persuasive thought, 

"I find a lot of Nepalese switching into Western lifestyles without looking back at 

their rich traditions. I wish they could interpret their traditions to create a new 

contemporary way of life, fusing the old with the new and thereby honouring the 

past by mixing it with a contemporary way of life". 

As my eyes trail towards an exhibition of unique and lovely artefacts designed by 

Mike, he questions, "Isn't it true that Nepalese have seldom dared to alter the 

traditional and intricate designs of their precious artefacts (almost as if they are 

sacred) into slight contemporary variations?" Putting forward an example, Mike 

states that the design of an Aankhijyaaal (traditional Nepali window) developed 

many centuries ago, till today, remains much the same, "Many may ask - why is 

there a need to tamper with the designs of such beautiful works of art? We should 

however realize that these wonderful reminders of the past, though intricately 

crafted, were for daily usage several hundreds of years ago. The idea is not to change 

but to further develop them for modern use and taste. These beautiful artefacts need 

to fuse with the present, thereby giving them a new life and meaning." According 

to Mike, a rich heritage of the past can coexist with an ongoing development of 

Traditional Progressions 

Sampada Malla 

Mike Krajniak, founder member and 

designer of 'Red Buddha Folk Arts' believes 

that all arts head towards degeneration if 

not interpreted according to present day 

technology, spirituality and social values. 

spacesnepal.com

CRAFT 


41 

spacesnepal.com

CRAFT 


42 

a 'new heritage' which present day 

craftsmen will pass on to the next 

generation. All the arts (including folk 

art and crafts) are the very soul of a 

culture. Some of them head towards 

degeneration or even extinction if they 

don't keep interpreting the culture 

according to present day technology, 

including spiritual and social values. 

"Other countries such as Thailand, 

India, Vietnam and Japan are doing a 

wonderful job of keeping their 

traditions alive by adapting them for 

contemporary use," informs Mike. One 

of the reasons behind the inception of 

'Red Buddha Folk Arts' was to contribute 

towards addressing this burning issue 

which till this day goes unnoticed by 

the general public. 

Red Buddha Folk Arts specializes in 

carpentry, wood carvings and paintings 

including fusion art through ceramics and 

pottery. 

Mike, founder member and designer of 

the organization, while pointing 

towards a traditional looking pillar, 

says, "This pillar is an amalgam of 

traditional and contemporary design. 

While it bestows an aesthetic and 

traditional feel, it also reflects certain 

aspects of modern day culture. It is 

relatively cheap to make and is not 

heavy because it is made from veneer 

wood. It can even be disassembled for 

easy delivery (by mini-van) to local 

customers. Convenient packing will 

also reduce risk of damage during 

shipping to other countries." The 

uniquely constructed pillar which is a 

reminiscent of the traditional Nepali 

pillar has been transformed into a 

contemporary design and evokes a fresh 

feeling to its onlookers. 

Shifting his gaze towards another piece 

of furniture, Mike throws a question at 

me, "Does this cabinet remind you of 

anything?" I reply immediately, "Yes, it 

seems like a Tibetan cabinet to me. I have 

seen it in many places of Nepal, 

especially on my recent trek to Lukla 

where mostly Sherpas reside." With a 

witty smile, he says candidly, "But a 

person familiar with Tibetan cabinets 

would not necessarily agree. Though 

the façade and certain elements of the 

designs of this cabinet are vaguely 

similar to the Tibetan style, the floral 

paintings are more Nepalese in nature. 

In traditional Tibetan cabinets, the 

paintings are often associated with gods 

and spirituality." Here again, a fusion of 

traditional and contemporary design 

can be savoured. "This cabinet is one of 

my favourite pieces at home. I have 

placed it in my kitchen and the 

microwave oven rests on top of it. I can 

store utensils inside its spacious 

storage," marks Maggie Shah, another 

founder member of the enterprise and 

current board member of the 

spacesnepal.com

CRAFT 

"Fusion is simply mixing two things in such a way so that 

when it is mixed, a new look emerges. 


Mahaguthi Craft Shop at Kupondol. 

"Guests visiting my house admire it so 

much that they want it in their homes 

too. It has helped tremendously in 

making my kitchen look beautiful." 

According to Mike, the idea of fusing 

the traditional and modern generated 

during his arrival in Nepal in 1982. Says 

he, "When I came to Nepal, I was 

amazed to see such rich and diverse 

culture and art with very impressive 

folk traditions. I was also influenced by 

Buddhist art. What attracted me most 

was the fact that Nepal has so many 

unique arts and crafts to offer to the 

world." Defining his perspective on 

fusion art, he states, "Fusion is simply 

mixing two things in such a way so that 

when it is mixed, a new look emerges. 

Perhaps a new tradition is in the 

making I constantly fuse western and 

Nepali traditions to create something 

innovative." Showing me a latch from 

a cabinet door, Maggie adds, "This 

simple brass piece taken from taken 

from a jewellery motif is now 

transformed into a handle. Other 

component parts for furniture pieces 

have been inspired from traditional 

wood carvings or hand woven carpets. 

This is fusion art." 

Born in Michigan, Mike spent his 

childhood in an artistically stimulating 

environment. His father was a 

carpenter and Mike learnt the trade at 

an early age. "But my father did not want 

me to be a carpenter. He felt that this 

profession had no future," Mike 

reminisces. But his interest towards art 

made him pursue a degree in industrial 

design despite his father's wishes. After 

gaining abundant work experience in 

the field of art in countries like 

Bangladesh and Philippines, Nepal 

proved to be his ultimate destiny. He 

worked for Nepal Women's 

Organization and Association of Craft 

Producers and was actively involved in 

creating new horizons for Nepali arts 

and crafts. "We developed paper crafts 

with a new perspective - painting, 

printing and even sometimes using 

Lokta paper to wrap lidded wooden 

boxes. The experimentation never 

stopped. We also taught women the 

process of screen printing and block 

printing," Mike recalls. In 1985 he 

imported an improved manual 

machine to spin wool, "The traditional 

machine that women used for the same 

purpose was very tedious and slow. 

Today, this improved spinning wheel 

is very much in use," he says. 

After working for many years in Nepal, 

Mike suddenly left for America to pursue 

a Master's Degree in psychotherapy. He 

was fifty seven years old, then. "After 

working with Nepali women for fifteen 

years, I began to see just what it meant 

to be a Nepali woman - to maintain a 

house, family, fields and sometimes inlaws. 

And, at the same time go 

somewhere and work for a living within 

a male-dominated society. It was 

incredible. I wanted to know how much 

mental stress she goes through. And 

soon I realized that making money was 

not the only important thing for her. 

She wanted to break out of her isolation 

and mix with society and fuse her 

untapped skills with a desire for a better 

life," he says thoughtfully. 

Red Buddha Folk Arts is only two years 

old. It mostly specializes in carpentry, 

wood carvings and paintings but has 

recently started creating fusion art 

through ceramics and pottery. 

Researching the various potentialities 

Maggie Shah, another founder member of 

the enterprise, is proud to be the owner of 

cabinet designed by Mike which she says 

has helped to make her kitchen beautiful. 

Mike discusses with his team on how the 

new designs can be implemented to make 

the final product appear more alluring and 

beautiful. 

43 

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CRAFT 


Jeewan Shilpakar, the third founder member of 

the trio forming Red Buddha Folk Arts, has been 

involved in making traditional handicrafts for many 

years and is the one who implements and 

transforms Mike's creative designs into reality. 

44 

We carry the traditions forward not just by copying them but also 

developing them to be unique and representative of our time." 

of Nepalese traditional artefacts and 

developing new contemporary forms 

is a major activity of the firm. Like most 

producers in Nepal, it manufactures 

furniture according to the needs and 

requirements of individual customers. 

Jeewan Shilpakar, the founder member 

of Red Buddha says, "I have been 

involved in making traditional 

handicrafts since many years. It is also 

my family occupation. But working 

with Mike is a different experience. We 

sit together and discuss how we can 

create new designs of the traditional 

artefacts. I implement his creative 

inputs to make the final product appear 

alluring and beautiful. I like his colour 

combinations the most." However, he 

also relates various experiences where 

he faced difficulty to translate Mike's 

design into reality. "But, we have always 

turned out as winners finally," he marks 

with a twinkle in his eyes. 

features, furniture, screens, small tables 

and fine art paintings," Mike informs. 

He expects to build more contacts and 

showcase the firm's abundant 

potentialities through the exhibition. 

Over the years of his stay in Nepal, Mike 

has witnessed a drastic change in the 

lifestyle of the people here. "Their 

keenness to transform the country into 

a key player in the 21st century has 

made them more materialistic. 

However, they have great potential and 

I am very pleased to share my skills with 

them," he opines. Mike nonetheless is 

of the opinion that Nepal needs to 

expand its rich arts and crafts and 

present it to the modern world, "Here, 

the old traditions are so preserved that 

they find difficulty in adapting to the 

future. It's good to have respect for what 

our ancestors have left behind. But one 

day, we too will join our ancestors. 

Contemporary designed doors and pillars 

What will we leave behind for the future 

generations? We build on the past for 

a better future. We carry the traditions 

forward not just by copying them but 

also developing them to be unique and 

representative of our time." 

We talk more about the richness of 

Nepal and suddenly I feel lucky to be 

born in such a beautiful country. As the 

interview wraps up and I walk towards 

the exit, I turn back to wave goodbye to 

him but Mike is already busy looking at 

his creations fondly, buried in umpteen 

thoughts. I don't want to disturb him. 

As the warm sunlight continues to frame 

him with a golden glow, I recall what he 

had said earlier, "Our ancestors have 

given us much but what will we give to 

the future generations to help them 

further identify their uniqueness in a 

world that is constantly changing? Will 

they proudly remember us?" S 

The products that Red Buddha Folk Arts 

offer ranges from cabinets, shrines, 

altars, stools to windows, pillars, deities 

and even Thangka paintings. It is 

holding an exhibition on the coming 

May 9 at Imago Dei Cafe at Nagpokhari. 

"It will showcase a variety of interior 

settings that will include architectural 

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45 

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ART 


46 

Dramatics, 

Colour & Life 

Uday Sunder Shrestha 

What influences a person and coerces him to do 

something can be different for different people. 

For Navin, it was the simple statement by Irving 

Penn, 'Photographing a cake can be art,' which 

drove him to opt for photography as a medium 

of expression, in spite of being born into an artist's 

family. Son of the late well-known artist, R.N. 

Joshi, Navin grew up surrounded by his father's 

paintings, which also probably guided him to 

pursue a career in Communication Art from the 

JJ School of Art and Architecture in Mumbai. 

Now 12 years hence, Navin is an established 

'Creative Director' in the world of Nepalese visual 

communications and his passion for 

photography, matured with time, has become 

stronger by the day. His earlier photographic 

exhibitions, 'Colour from the world around us' 

and 'Three Men's Perspectives', in 2001 and 2002 

respectively, were termed then as 'Far more 

artistic than virtually any touristy pictures'. 

These photographs were a collection of simple 

images of everyday life and ordinary subjects, 

but made alive and at times even dramatic with 

the clever use of artistic perception enhanced by 

modest digital computer editing. Professional 

cameras were very expensive then and the mid 

ranges were not professional enough. At the same 

time, Nepal had not really updated to the digital 

world. Navin's courage and daring to experiment 

with an analog SLR to produce such photographs 

does call for commendations. 

spacesnepal.com

ART 

Pictures of the 2001 exhibitions 


47 

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ART 

Pictures of the 2002 exhibitions 


48 

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ART 


Fast forward to 2008, and Navin still uses his old faithful - the 35 mm SLR analog 

camera of the Nikon C90 series - the reason being of course the cost factor. However 

Navin is happy that the mid ranges are now available that are comparatively easy 

on the pocket too and hopes to go digital from 2009 onwards. 

49 

However, the perception remains the same - probably more focused - and with 

technology growing in leaps and bounds, the production too made easier than 

before, skipping the tedious method of slide processing, scanning through 

professional scanners rearranging on the computer and then on to the final print. 

The subjects as before are again of everyday life. Nonetheless, the end product 

amazes one with its dramatics, colour and life. 

Pictures of new set 

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ART 


50 

Navin is also fascinated by architectural subjects. The simple 

door, a stack of wood, a crumbling building, and even a simple 

green sari, can be brought out to its own beauty with a good 

composition. One needs to have an eye for such things - like 

saying 'Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder.' 

It is not that Navin is totally alien to digital work. All his 

commercial products are digital and he is pleased with the 

end product since there is a greater possibility of 

experimentation. Navin humbly professes that with 

photography getting more and more technical, it gets 

exhausting to keep updated and hence prefers outsourcing 

since there are more professional people working on it. And 

with better studios offering better colour balancing, Navin 

agrees that "The future is surely digital now!" 

S 

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51 

spacesnepal.com

PROFILE 


52 

As prominent architect, Yogeshwor 

Parajuli settles for an interview, the 

first thing I notice is the aura of calm 

self-assurance and dignity that 

surrounds him. Simplicity 

personified, his humble nature is 

perhaps one of the major reasons 

that has helped him to achieve many 

milestones in the field of Nepalese 

architecture. Youthful even at the age 

of 53, there is no stopping him as he 

aims to transcend higher and with a 

devotion of more than three decades 

of his life in this field Parajuli has 

carved out a niche for himself. 

Managing Director of TAEC Consult 

P. Ltd., Parajuli is a founder member 

of Nepal Medical College, National 

Society for Earthquake Technology - 

Nepal (NSET), Shree Satya Sai 

Shikchya Sadan, Tokha and a life 

member of Society of Nepalese 

Architects (SONA). 

Efforts today - 

His sheer commitment and 

dedication to deliver his best and his 

gratitude towards his country, among 

many other qualities, make him an 

inspirational icon to all young 

aspirants. He believes in actions 

more than words. He also feels that 

when someone’s passion becomes his/ 

her profession, success will be 

achieved eventually. A man of 

principles, Parajuli wants to attain 

spiritual satisfaction in any work that 

he does. 

destiny tomorrow 

Sampada Malla 

spacesnepal.com

PROFILE 

Life itself is temporary so why do you need a 

permanent job? 


Please highlight on your 

educational background. 

I studied until S.L.C in Durbar High 

School and completed I.S.C from 

ASCOL, along with Dr. Baburam 

Bhattarai, who is much in the news now. 

After which I went to Chandigarh, India 

under the Colombo Plan Scholarship 

and completed bachelors’ degree in 

architecture in 1997. Finally, I did a 

postgraduate training in Architectural 

Conservation from Rome in 1980 A.D. 

Why did you choose to study 

architecture? 

where I met E.Wissinger, the German 

team leader of the project. Wissinger 

offered me a job as an architect planner 

in the project, to which I flatly refused, 

explaining that I had already applied in 

Lok Sewa Ayog. On hearing my refusal, 

he then simply asked, “Mr. Parajuli, life 

itself is temporary so why do you need 

a permanent job?” His question 

impressed me so much that I took back 

my initial decision and immediately 

accepted the job. 

Tell us about Bhaktapur 

Development Project and your 

achievements from it. 

53 

I was always fascinated with 

buildings and wanted to be a building 

engineer since my childhood. 

Architecture was unheard of at that time. 

Unfortunately, due of my marks, I could 

not study engineering and so, as a 

second option, I chose to study 

architecture which eventually became 

my profession. During my college days, 

my favourite subject was “housing 

design” and I would always score the 

highest marks in it. 

BDP (A.D 1977-1986) was a joint 

project of the Government of Nepal 

(then HMG) and the Federal Republic 

of Germany. It aimed at ‘Integrated 

Urban Renewal and Development of the 

Historic Town of Bhaktapur.’ The 

project worked mainly on the 

preservation of the built environment, 

housing improvement, development 

control and public education, 

awareness and training in Bhaktapur. 

After completing your education 

in Chandigarh, you came back to 

Nepal. Did you start working 

immediately? 

Yes, as with all young blood, I was very 

passionate to contribute to my country 

and wanted to start work immediately 

on my return from India. After a few days 

of my arrival, Lok Sewa Aayog 

published a vacancy of five seats for 

architects. I applied for the job but 

continued searching for other 

vacancies too. One day, solely out of 

interest, I went to observe the 

Bhaktapur Development Project (BDP) 

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54 

I chose BDP because it was a multi sector 

cost effective project. It is one of my 

favourite projects so far. During the 

project, I learnt about the importance 

of cultural sensitivity in architecture. 

My biggest achievement is the book that 

I wrote about BDP, “Bhaktapur 

Development Project: Experiences in 

Preservation and Restoration in a 

Medieval Town”. 

After working for two years in 

BDP, you went to Rome to do a 

postgraduate training in 

Architectural Conservation. How 

did it help you in your 

profession? 

While working in BDP, I noticed that 

the historic buildings restoration and 

conservation implied its complete 

destruction and then building it again. 

This was the restoration and 

conservation concept applied then in 

Nepal. My training in Rome changed 

that. I acquired insights to different 

theories and philosophies on 

conservation and that conservation 

techniques differ with the status of each 

historic object. As part of the training, 

field visits were made to countries like 

Italy, France and Germany, which 

further helped me in my profession. 

After I returned back to Nepal, it was 

initially difficult for me to change the 

traditional methods and apply the 

international philosophies that I had 

learnt from the training. 

It can be seen in conservation 

projects, that different types of 

materials having little or no 

relation with the history and 

traditions of cultural heritage 

are being used to renovate them. 

How do you analyze this trend? 

I feel that they should be used only if 

there is no other alternative. The first 

principle of conservation is to use 

related modern technologies with 

minimum intervention in order to 

extend the life of cultural heritages. For 

example, if a monument’s life extends 

by replacing two jhingati tiles by new 

ones, then we must do only that and 

not change the whole of the roof tiles. 

However, in Nepal, we have tendency 

to renovate more if we have more 

money. This damages the cultural and 

archaeological integrity and values. 

Therefore, if this principle is followed 

seriously, more heritages can be 

conserved with lesser money, which 

will also compel the conservation 

architect to become more creative to be 

able to address this issue accordingly. 

In 2000 A.D, you presented a 

paper on earthquake engineering 

in the 12 th World Conference in 

New Zealand. What does a 

layman need to know to protect 

him from earthquakes? 

Firstly, it is important to understand 

that earthquakes do not kill but unsafe 

buildings do. Therefore, it is imperative 

that buildings are made earthquake 

resistant. A simple added detailing for 

earthquake resistance in the building 

structural design can be tantamount to 

saving lives at a mere increase of about 

7% in the building cost. In terms of 

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awareness with regard to earthquakes, 

NSET sponsors earthquake prevention 

programs which are aired every week 

by FM stations. 

You were associated as the 

‘National Team Leader’ for 

developing the concept, 

framework, etc., of the first 

building code for Nepal (NBC) in 

A.D 1992. What is the basic 

concept for its development? 

Nepal lies in a very active seismic 

zone, where unfortunately only 5% of 

the total buildings are engineered 

structures. Keeping this fact in mind, 

NBC has divided buildings into four 

categories, a system which is unique as 

compared to other countries. The first 

one is ‘state of the art design’ where 

buildings are constructed with designs 

are brought in from foreign countries 

having building codes different from 

ours. Such designs need to comply with 

minimum requirements of Nepal’s 

earthquake building code before it can 

be approved and implemented, for 

The responsibility of the 

architect does not end 

with building design with 

a design it, forget it 

attitude. Completed 

projects must be 

reviewed so that future 

designs can be 

improved upon. In 

addition, buildings must 

be made maintenance 

friendly for it to last 

within its lifetime. 

example, the new American Embassy 

building. The second category states 

that all government buildings need to 

have an engineered design. The third 

category is the code of conduct for local 

engineers and technicians while 

constructing public and private 

buildings. These buildings will be 

considered legal if it is proved to the 

Municipality that the codes have been 

followed. The final category addresses 

construction of traditional buildings 

with traditional materials. 

You are presently the Managing 

Director of TAEC Consult P. Ltd. 

What is the ongoing projects of 

the firm? Also, tell us about 

your favourite projects 

completed under TAEC. 

We are at present working on a part 

of the Outer Ring Road Project besides 

the Sub Regional Transport Facilitation 

Project funded by ADB. This ADB project 

is the construction of a dry port in 

Bhadrapur. My most satisfying projects 

so far are the Nepal Red Cross Society’s 

Headquarter Building Complex, the 

Karnali Bheri Integrated Rural 

Development Project and the Pokhara 

Airport project. A proposed design for 

the entrance gate to Biratnagar is also 

dear to my heart, although it was never 

implemented. 


55 

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PROFILE 


56 

What are the general 

constraints faced by architects 

of Nepal? 

importance and value of architecture. 

Over the years, the architectural 

profession has evolved wonderfully. 

colours, textures, scale, compositions 

and proportions are wonderful and 

appealing. 

Architecture involves three major 

aspects: utility, beauty and safety. Since 

most clients are utility oriented and 

have cost constraints, we need to work 

within a limited boundary and at the 

same time maintain aesthetic beauty 

besides following the NBC. As for 

introducing new construction 

materials and technologies, the market 

is so small that it becomes commercially 

unviable. However, I am happy that 

people today are more aware about the 

You have travelled to many 

countries like Sweden, New 

Zealand, India, Thailand, China 

and Hong Kong. What are the 

unique features of Nepali 

architecture as compared to 

other countries? 

I think the architecture of the Malla 

period is unique in the world 

architectural scene. I especially like the 

Dattatraya Square of Bhaktapur. The 

What are the new arenas that 

architects should explore to 

widen their horizons? 

We should start researching on 

alternative building methods, cost 

efficient technology and new 

construction materials. The 

responsibility of the architect does not 

end with building design with a design 

it, forget it attitude. Completed projects 

must be reviewed so that future designs 

can be improved upon. In addition, 

buildings must be made maintenance 

friendly for it to last within its lifetime. 

We also need to be interdisciplinary in 

our profession. For example, my wife is 

an architect but she later studied 

sociology. Presently, she works in the 

field of Gender and Disaster 

Management at NSET. 

Finally, what are your views on 

young upcoming architects of 

Nepal? 

The new generation architects are 

undoubtedly more talented, creative 

and hard working than those of 

previous generations. Their biggest 

challenge however is to survive in 

today’s very competitive global market. 

Nonetheless, I strongly believe that our 

efforts of today will become the destiny 

of tomorrow. Our prime duty is to work 

honestly, sincerely, and with diligence, 

so that one day, our society and the 

nation will definitely recognize our 

skills. Let us not grumble about things 

that we do not have but let us act on 

achieving them and contribute 

something to the society. 

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57 

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REPORT 


58 

ECONOMIC UPLIFT THROUGH 

HERITAGE CONSERVATION 

Bhaktapur 

Ar. Yogeshwar K. Parajuli 

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REPORT 

Conservation of architectural heritage 

is common in many parts of the world. 

But, can investment in architectural and 

urban heritage conservation foster 

economic development? Can it 

contribute to poverty reduction? Can 

it dramatically attract more tourists? 

These are most frequently asked 

questions all over the world including 

Nepal when it comes to conservation 

of cultural heritage. 

Most, including policy makers in the 

government, are reluctant to accept the 

fact that development and conservation 

can go together. This is evident from the 

low priority this sector receives in the 

national development budget. For 

example, in the fiscal year 2004/2005 

(2060/61) Department of Archeology 

(DoA) and other conservation related 

institutions together were allocated less 

than 0.6% of the national share of the 

development budget for conservation 

and management of country’s cultural 

heritage. Corresponding figures for the 

same period for the Department of 

Education (DoE), Department of Health 

(DoH), and Department of Roads (DoR) 

were 5.1%, 1.1% and 17.7% 

respectively. The figures including 

administrative and operation costs for 

DoA, DoE, DoH and DoR were 0.02%, 

14.42%, 4.93%, 9.4% respectively. 

Even bilateral and multilateral donors, 

as well as other financing institutions 

(ADB, WB), with the exception of 

UNESCO, have not recognized cultural 

heritage conservation as a potential 

sector for their major assistance. It is 

rather considered to be a secondary or 

tertiary activity related to urban 

(infrastructure) development or 

tourism promotion as evident in 

bilaterally funded urban development 

projects. 

“To improve the living conditions of 

the people of Bhaktapur” was the 

officially stated objective for Bhaktapur 

Development Project (BDP), which was 

the basis for granting bilateral 

assistance by Federal Republic of 

Germany. BDP in 1974, endeavored to 

achieve the stated objective by 

judiciously working out and 

implementing strategies for overall 

urban development, infrastructure 

improvement and economic 

promotion, complementing the 

conservation and preservation needs of 

the town. Only 12.7% of the project 

fund was utilized directly for 

conservation and restoration of 

monuments. The rest was allocated for 

overall urban infrastructure 

improvement and development. The 

perception has not changed even today. 

For example, the World Bank’s most 

recent Poverty Assessment report does 

not consider heritage conservation and 

tourism development as an important 

pillar for poverty reduction (World 

Bank 2006). 

However, during 1993 and 2000, 

Bhaktapur Municipality continued to 

focus on the area of conservation 

initiated by BDP and on an average, 

spent 57% of its development budget 

for heritage conservation and 

management. 

If conservation of built historic and 

urban heritage is to compete for a larger 

share in the national and local 

development budget of developing 

countries, it must be able to demonstrate 

a visible economic return. The case 

cannot compete on the basis of abstract 

values like architectural, aesthetic, 

cultural, historic, documentary, 

archaeological, political, spiritual, 

symbolic etc., which may form a normal 

basis for relatively developed countries. 


59 

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REPORT 


60 

Bhaktapur 

Bhaktapur is located some 15 km from 

Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal. 

According to the 1971 census, the 

population of Bhaktapur municipal area 

was 40,112 (110,157 for Bhaktapur 

District) with an average household size 

of 5.9 persons. The present population 

of Bhaktapur is 72,543 (2001 census) 

and is spread over an urban area of about 

7 sq.km; its population density ranging 

between 300 per hectare to 600 per 

hectare in the urban core. 

Between the 12 th – 15 th century, 

Bhaktapur was the capital of a unified 

Kathmandu Valley Kingdom, which got 

disintegrated in 1484 AD. Most 

architectural masterpieces and 

outstanding monuments, including 

Bhaktapur Durbar Square, Taumadhi 

Square and Dattatrya Square were 

erected during this period. These 

monuments have now acquired not 

only national significance but also an 

international value since their being 

included in the World Heritage Sites list. 

An inventory (1975) of major to 

moderate monuments of architectural 

and cultural significance reveals that 

the town of Bhaktapur has 172 temples, 

monasteries and mosques; 172 Patis 

(Public shelters); 27 Sattals (Public inns); 

19 Maths (Priest Houses); 152 Inars 

(Wells); 34 Pokharis (Ponds); 77 Hitis 

(Sunken Stone Water Spouts); 5,550 

Private buildings (30% of which have 

an architectural value while 62% an 

urbanistic value). 

The intangible cultural heritage of 

Bhaktapur includes seasonal and 

annual festivals, the traditional prayers, 

hymn (Bhajans), prayer groups (Dafas), 

local trusts (Guthis) and folk dances that 

make the city living and vibrant. Bisket 

Jatra and Gai Jatra are the most 

important festivals celebrated in 

Bhaktapur. 

Pre- BDP Socio-Cultural and 

Economic Conditions 

Pre-BDP Bhaktapur, in the early 1970s, 

ethnically 99.6% Newar and religiously 

over 97% Hindu, was a very cohesive 

society, and stratified in the “Varna’ 

caste system. While this system 

continues to define ones occupations 

and life in Bhaktapur, the system has 

changed as a result of modern 

education. Bhaktapur’s literacy figure 

(about 19%) during this period was the 

lowest among the 16 municipalities in 

Nepal. 

About 66% (76.7% for rural Bhaktapur) 

of the municipal population was 

engaged in agriculture. The average 

income per household (5.9 persons, 2.9 

earners) was Nrs. 361 (US$ 40.0 @ Nrs. 

9.0 to one US$). Apart from agriculture, 

many farmers also engaged in other 

activities during off (farming) season. 

They include sectors such as pottery, 

construction, weaving, cap making, 

handicrafts, wood carving, furniture 

making etc. A survey carried out during 

the pre-BDP period showed that: 

(a) About 450 families (with about 

1,200 working members) were 

engaged in pottery making. 

However, only about 15% of their 

household income was accruing 

from pottery making; 

(b) About 5,000 (2,000 improved types 

and 3,000 traditional types) cloth 

weaving handlooms were in 

operation. Mostly women were 

engaged in weaving/ making 

traditional clothes. But gains were 

minimal as middlemen mostly 

provided looms and raw materials; 

(c) Bhaktapur produced around 2.5 

million Nepali caps a year, 

engaging 6,000 persons at one time 

or other; 

(d) Very few (about 25 families) were 

engaged in the production of curd/ 

yoghurt. 

After the early cultural development 

period, Bhaktapur’s development in the 

last century was constrained by the lack 

of infrastructure development. As 

Kathmandu started to develop and 

modernize in the early 1960s, 

development of Bhaktapur was limited 

by road access to the capital. The city, 

once highly developed, started 

deteriorating with inhabitants even 

starting to migrate to Kathmandu 

because of better job opportunities. The 

devastating earthquake of 1934 

provided the initial jolt, leading to 

serious deterioration of its 

infrastructure, including important 

monuments and architecturally 

significant private residences. With the 

condition of the city getting worse and 

monuments starting to deteriorate, the 

city became dirtier and unsanitary. 

Bhaktapur then had no proper sewage 

or drainage system, which was further 

aggravated by the growing population 

in the city (including migrants from 

surrounding hills). 

In 1975, about 75,000 tourists visited 

Nepal. Out of that number, some 35,000 

tourists handled by organized travel 

agents visited Bhaktapur. In addition, it 

is also estimated that individual low cost 

travelers ranging from 3,000 to 9,000 

also came to Bhaktapur. The main 

attractions included the arts and 

architecture (Durbar, Taumadhi and 

sometimes Dattatreya square); daily life 

and street scenery (pottery making 

area); short stretch of street depicting 

traditional cityscapes. 

According to the tour organizers, 

tourists visit in the town lasted for about 

one hour on average. The reasons for 

such short stays were: inadequate 

shopping facilities; non-existent toilet 

facilities; only one tourist restaurant; 

no tourist hotels (only second grade 

lodges were available); unavailability 

of professional trained local tourist 

guide; communication problems of 

language ability (English); little 

information and few booklets were 

available specially focusing on other 

than historic monuments for 

individual tourists; tourists without 

spacesnepal.com

guide had difficulty moving around the 

city; 

Bhaktapur Development 

Project (BDP) 

Bhaktapur Development Project was 

part of a bilateral assistance (of about 

US $ 9 million excluding the cost of 

technical assistance support in the form 

of expatriate specialists) from the 

Federal Republic of Germany to Nepal. 

Technical assistance for the project was 

provided through the German GTZ and 

was implemented between 1974 and 

1991. BDP’s objective was “to improve 

the living conditions of the people of 

Bhaktapur” (Parajuli, 1986). To reverse 

the process of the general decline of the 

town and to preserve its rich 

architectural heritage, BDP set out to 

achieve its stated objective by 

judiciously working out and 

implementing strategies for overall 

urban development, infrastructure 

improvement and economic 

promotion, complementing the 

conservation and preservation needs of 

the city. Only 12.7% of the project fund 

was utilized directly for conservation 

and restoration of monuments, the rest 

was allocated for overall urban 

infrastructure improvement and 

development. During 1974-85, BDP 

prepared plans, programs and directly 

implemented the comprehensive 

conservation and development 

activities. From 1985 to 1991, the 

project withdrawal phase took place, 

sectoral agencies were provided backup 

technical and financial support to 

enhance their capacities to continue 

and expand the program 

implementation. Elected Municipal 

authority finally took over in 1992 with 

the responsibility for continuation and 

expansion of key conservation and 

development activities. 

Specific features of the conservation and 

development efforts and activities 

included: 

(a) Formulation and implementation 

of urban development strategies, 

plans, programs encompassing 

various sectors including housing, 

transportation, water supply, 

sewerage and waste disposal; 

(b) Restoration and preservation of 

important heritage sites such as 

temples, ponds, public baths etc,; 

(c) Economic promotion activities 

such as handicrafts and cottage 

industries and their marketing, and 

services and trade; 

(d) Tourism development, through (i) 

promoting the exhibition of open 

air activities, including Bhaktapur 

festivals such as Gai Jatra; (ii) 

improving the road surface of the 

traditional lanes included in the 

tourist route with regular cleaning 

service; (iii) restoration/ 

preservation works along these 

streets and lanes; (iv) three main 

monumental zones to be restricted 

to pedestrian use (v) traditional 

dance for tourists to be performed 

in appropriate courtyards, squares; 

(vi) a sound and light show to be 

introduced in the durbar square; 

(vii) opening of new handicraft 

centers and the future use of 

restored buildings to be oriented to 

meet the needs of tourism; (viii) 

additional restaurants to be opened, 

promoted; (ix) a guidebook laying 

emphasis on the social life to be 

made available; (x) sign boards to 

be placed to facilities orientation; 

(xi) telephone and taxi service to 

be established for tourist; (xii) a 

tourist information center to be 

opened in key entry point; (xiii) an 

urban tax/ levy to be raised on each 

tourist coach. 


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Table 1: Key Beneficiaries from Tourism/ Economic Promotion Related Enterprises in Bhaktapur 

S.N. 

Caste 

% of population 

Pottery 

Traditional 

handmade/ carved 

bricks 

Masks 

Thanka painting 

Sales 

outlets 

Carved wood 

items 

Prodn. 

center 

No. of enterprises 26 5 16 19 32 60 61 57 11 10 57 578 86 

1 Brahmin 1.8 

2 Chhathari 15.6 

3 Panchthari 4.6 

4 Jyapu 47.6 • 

5 Prajapati 11.7 • • 

6 Chipi 5.2 • 

7 Craftsmen 7.7 • • • 

8 Untouchables 3.2 

9 Newar-Buddhists 2.2 • 

10 Non-Newar 0.4 • • 

Textile (traditional 

cap, clothes) 

General curio/ 

handicrafts shops 

Note: ˜ Maximum benefit (traditional occupation too) (Source: Field observation/ survey: March 2005) 

º Partial benefit (newer entrant in the sector) 

Tourist restaurants 

Tourist Lodge/ 

hotels 

Furniture making 

Public vehicles 

Brick kilns 

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Main Beneficiaries 

Data compiled from various 

conservation sites under BDP between 

1974 - 80 when force account system of 

construction was followed, revealed 

that 370,713 person-days of 

employment were generated. 

Depending upon the intricacy of the 

object under restoration, between 40- 

50% of the project cost went for labor 

payment. US$ 85,9306 (@ Nrs. 10.60 to 

US$ 1.0) was the recorded expenditure 

in conservation sites during the same 

period. As wage rates were very low 

during the initial phase of the project, 

one job was created for every 2.32 US$ 

spent. Corresponding figure today shall 

not be less than US$ 7.5 per job. 

Table no. 1 indicates present status of 

tourism/ economic promotion related 

enterprises Vs key beneficiaries within 

main caste system. 


Key Findings 

There has been a distinct and visible 

improvement in the overall economic 

status and quality of life of the people of 

Bhaktapur in comparison to 1975. 

According to a survey among locals, 

which included owners of hotels and 

handicraft outlets, the BDP was a 

‘turning point’ in Bhaktapur’s 

development and the project acted as a 

catalyst in engendering various 

developmental activities, including 

improvement through a sustainable 

approach on BDP initiated activities 

being gradually mainstreamed and 

taken up by the Municipality and the 

Bhaktapur community. It had changed 

significantly from being seen as a dirty 

city to being one of the cleanest and best 

organized cities in the Valley. This has 

helped to increase the number of 

domestic as well as international 

tourists visiting Bhaktapur. 

The Bhaktapur Municipality was 

awarded the prestigious UNESCO 

PEACE PRIZE for 1988-1999 in 

recognition of its endeavor to safeguard 

the town’s cultural heritage. Bhaktapur 

has also been granted the standing 

membership of the ‘Organization of 

World Heritage Cities (OWHC)’. The 

Government of Nepal has initiated 

necessary steps to declare Bhaktapur a 

‘Cultural City’ of Nepal, bestowing 

national recognition for what it has 

achieved and is pursuing. 

After the enhanced image of Bhaktapur, 

the absolute number and percentage of 

tourist visiting Bhaktapur has increased 

in comparison to that in 1970. As per 

the Fiscal Year 2000/ 2001, some 

180,053 tourist (up from 35,000 and 

over 45% of tourists visiting Nepal) 

visited Bhaktapur and increased its 

share of 1.6% of foreign exchange 

earnings in comparison to only 0.16% 

contribution in the 1970s - a tenfold 

increase in foreign exchange.

Other significant impacts of post BDP 

include the following: 

In-migration: The non-Newar 

population has increased from 0.4% to 

11.6% due to in-migration. People have 

moved in because the town now offers 

better economic opportunities. 

Occupational structure: It is gradually 

shifting from agriculture (76.7% of 

district, and 65.8% of urban population 

in 1971) to secondary and tertiary 

sectors. (41.44% of district and 

approximately 30% of urban in 2001 

census) 

Education: More than 10,000 students 

(50%) now go to relatively expensive 

private schools. In 1975, none went to 

such schools, as only government 

schools existed. The percentage of 

school-going-age children going to 

school has increased from 60% to 90%. 

Only 27.2% population of Bhaktapur 

town was literate in 1975. The figure 

now is 67%. 

Increasing number of tourism related 

enterprises: There have been dramatic 

increase in tourism related enterprises, 

including curio shops (from 12 to 212), 

wood carving workshops (from 1 to 60), 

furniture industry (from 20 to 57), 

tourist restaurants (from 1 to 11), tourist 

lodges (from 1 to 10) etc. 

Latrine: In 1975, less than one percent 

of the households had individual 

latrines. Now more than 90% have the 

facility in their dwellings as compared 

to the national average of 46.8 % and 

national urban average of 78.1% 

Average annual HH income: HH with 

annual average income between US$ 

50-100 has increased from 5.8% to 12%. 

Similarly, HH having average annual 

income range between US$ 1,000-2,000 

has also gone up from 5.8% to 22% 

between 1975 to 1999. 

Tourist spending in the town: In five 

Methodology and Limitations 

Requisite data to compare with those generated by BDP in 1975 was 

collected from primary as well as secondary sources. Both qualitative and 

quantitative tools have been used for the study. Quantitative data were 

gathered from the secondary sources such as project reports, other 

relevant literature and HH survey conducted by Living Environment Survey 

of 1999 for ADB funded urban water supply project in the Katmandu 

valley. However, the HH survey had very limited value for the study as it 

suffered from very limited sample size (1.0 %) and purpose bias. Various 

qualitative tools used for the study to collect the primary data include 

field observations and verifications, interactions and discussions with key 

informants. It was not possible for an individual to conduct sample survey 

covering the 12,133 HHs. Tracer study of some entrepreneurs initially 

supported by BDP was also made. 

Due to existing conflict, various forms of coercive donations, tightening 

tax laws and recent 40-50% drop in tourist arrival (during field survey, 

March 2005), concerned entrepreneurs and stakeholders were not 

forthcoming in sharing positive aspects of their enterprises, which is 

basically related to heritage tourism in Bhaktapur. 

Anilji, 

Please leave a space or at least two pictures for this article besides as 

above. Pics shall be of the durbar square 

years between 1996- 2001, tourists 

visiting the town have spent an 

estimated amount of US$ 18.25 million 

(@ average 400 tourists per day spending 

US$ 25.0 per four-hour stay). This 

amount has gone directly to the 

Bhaktapur inhabitants as it was spent 

for lunch and handicrafts in the 

establishments owned by natives. 

Increasing number of handmade brick 

kilns: Before 1975, efficient rotational 

type of handmade brick burning kilns 

was non-existent. BDP supported the 

establishment of the first such kiln as 

huge quantities of bricks were required 

for conservation and infrastructure 

development sector. Now there are 86 

such kilns with an annual turn over of 

US$ 100,000 - 150,000 and a profit 

margin between 30 - 40%. Each kiln 

generates regular employment for 60 

native Bhaktapur dwellers. 

Traditional hand carved brick 

production units: BDP supported the 

establishment of the first of such units 

in 1975. There are now five such units 

with an annual turnover of US$ 150,000 

- 300,000 and a profit margin of 40 - 

50%. Each of them employ 8 - 10 regular 

staff, who are mostly either from within 

the family or relatives, and a further 40 

- 50 other seasonal workers for brick 

making and carving with 50% of them 

observed to be females. The bricks have 

markets even in Europe. 

Wood carving units: The first such unit 

was established by BDP in 1975/ 76 with 

120 carvers as members of a 

cooperative. It employed 30-50 carvers 

during off (farming) season. Now, more 

than 60 such establishments are 

operating in Bhaktapur albeit in smaller 

scale employing 5-7 members of the 

family and relatives. 

What Made It Click? 

The BDP initiated important and 

comprehensive urban reforms 

designed to improve the living 

conditions of Bhaktapur people. After 


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revisiting the objectives and strategies 

of the prepared Bhaktapur Town 

Development Plan (BDP), and recalling 

personal experiences and observations, 

the following lessons can be derived. 

A modest and achievable goal was set for 

tourism and economic promotion. It 

simply aimed to increase the length of 

stay of tourist from one hour to half a 

day by creating appropriate enabling 

environment (tourist restaurants in 

conservation zones, handicraft centers, 

opening up new areas of the town). 

A balanced strategy of conservation and 

development was pursued. 

Conservation policies and programs 

were targeted for long-term social and 

economic benefit of the town. 

Development of the town and urban 

infrastructure improvements were 

made complimentary to conservation 

needs. Priority was given to conserve 

the whole square/ monumental zone 

rather than one particular significant 

monument of national and 

international importance. As a result, 

the town has become the most 

preserved and the cleanest town in 

Nepal from the most backward and the 

dirtiest one. 

There was an appropriate commitment and 

action for investment in conservation 

(from 12.7% by BDP to 57% by 

Bhaktapur Municipality) and resources 

generation. The decision to enforce 

tourist entrance fee for the whole town 

was made by the Municipality for the 

first time in Nepal; BDP’s 

recommendation was to levy fee to 

tourist coaches entering the town. This 

decision has generated a substantial 

revenue for the town 

in the developed countries with built 

heritage treasures? A comprehensive 

study undertaken by a team of 

Norwegian Parliament within selected 

European Union Countries has also 

come up with more or less similar 

findings. According to this study, 6-10% 

of tourists’ daily expenditure is a direct 

income to heritage conservation sites; 

investment in conservation of 

monuments creates 26% more jobs than 

Motorway/ Expressway Projects 

and16% more jobs than New Building 

Projects; every direct employment in 

heritage sector creates additional 26.7 

jobs indirectly in the sector while for a 

car industry, it is 6.3 indirect jobs. In 

France, 15% of revenue from tourism is 

attributed to historic buildings like 

Palaces, Castles, and Monasteries etc. 

Conclusion and 

Recommendations 

The study has established that 

investment on thoughtfully conceived 

and planned conservation and 

development project can really trigger 

the economic development in the long 

run. If implemented well and with a 

strong commitment, it can bring about 

a positive change with an improvement 

in the quality of life of the people. 

Conservation of historic heritage pays 

in the long run 

• It provides direct employment at 

local level; 

• It supports small scale local 

enterprises; 

• Conservation work provides 

income directly where it is needed, 

while most other investment feeds 

relatively wealthier; 

• Conservation is seed money for 

sustained and long-term income 

from tourism. 

National Development Policy Makers 

and Donors: 

• Heritage conservation must be 

recognized as a means of economic 

uplift 

• A balanced approach of 

CONSERVATION 

& 

DEVELOPMENT is a must 

• Conservation is important, but 

creative management assumes 

greater role for sustainability 

• Object and the context both need 

emphasis in framing conservation 

approach. 

Historic Building owners, stakeholders: 

• Historic buildings/ quarters are 

economic asset, not liabilities 

• Do not abuse, use/ convert them 

into economic asset (learn from the 

best practices of the other countries 

too) 

The European Experiences 

The investment made in heritage 

conservation, particularly when 

integrated with urban infrastructure 

development has been a success story 

in Nepal. What has been the experience 

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REPORT 


66 

Hukum Sunder 

The 

Restoration of 

Bhaktapur 

The period between the 16th and the 

18th century is often referred to as the 

‘Golden Age’ for Nepalese art, 

architecture and craftwork in the 

Kathmandu Valley. During this period, 

the three Malla city-states of the Valley 

- Bhaktapur, Patan and Kathmandu – 

although constantly feuding, vied to see 

who could build the most artistic and 

beautiful structures and monuments. 

This competitive spirit honed the craft 

of building with bricks, timber, stone 

and mud, resulting in the creation of 

the magnificent Durbar Squares, 

temples and shrines which were not 

only aesthetically outstanding but were 

at the same time adapted to the local 

climate and functionally integrated into 

the building as well. 

However, as happens many a times and 

in so many areas, the old crafts begin to 

die out with modern materials and 


construction methods replacing the 

increasingly expensive traditional 

construction materials and techniques. 

At the same time, the advancement in 

scientific and technological 

achievements catalyze the desire in 

people everywhere in the world to seek 

for better housing, sanitation, social 

amenities and opportunities for 

employment. 

In the case of Bhaktapur, a city 15 km 

from Kathmandu which was a thriving 

centre of trade, especially with Tibet 

until the latter half of the 18 th century, 

the construction of a highway to the 

capital Kathmandu resulted in it being 

by-passed by the new trade routes. Its 

decline, instigated by this low 

economic activity besides ignorance 

and inadequate administrative system, 

hence became steady and inevitable. 

Fortunately, a determined effort was 

made to reverse and remedy this 

deterioration. ‘To improve the living 

conditions of the people of Bhaktapur,’ 

the Bhaktapur Development Project 

was launched as a venture of the then 

His Majesty’s Government of Nepal 

(HMG) with assistance from the Federal 

Republic of Germany which was 

represented by the German Agency for 

Technical Cooperation. 

Bhaktapur Development Project (BDP) 

Before the project started in 1974, 

Bhaktapur had 40, 000 inhabitants and 

an area of 250 acres with two-thirds of 

its population being employed in 

agriculture, resulting in frequent 

seasonal unemployment. The average 

income of a family was about US $ 40 

and illiteracy amounted to 74 percent. 

Living conditions were poor. Physical 

infrastructures like drinking water, 

sewage disposal and toilet facilities were


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nonexistent. Housing conditions were unhealthy characterized by 

damp, dark and draughty rooms, leaky roofs and dilapidated walls. 

Public buildings and temples were not poorly maintained and new 

houses were constructed out of concrete with flat roofs and corrugated 

sheets. 

The unique historical value of Bhaktapur was the direct reason for 

the conception of BDP. However it was realized that in a complex 

urban system such as Bhaktapur, isolated measures are not effective 

enough. Hence with its integrated approach to urban development 

in a historic and traditional town, BDP aimed to make Bhakatapur 

a better place to live in through improvements in infrastructure and 

by building up skills and organizations which would eventually 

make people independent of the project. This integrated approach 

included orientation towards basic needs of the inhabitants; 

orientation towards certain underprivileged groups to involve them 

in the development process; institutionalization of the project to 

incorporate it into the existing administration; involvement of all 

relevant sectors within the project; due consideration of regional 

aspects; and simultaneous planning, implementation and evaluation 

to ensure a continuous feedback so that planning could be controlled 

and adapted to new and unforeseen development trends. 

The project which lasted for 17 years (1974 – 1991) was implemented 

in phases and if considered to be a success, it will have achieved 

three objectives – the strengthening of an age-old culture by a sensible 

blending of old and new techniques; the economic revival of a 

declining town; and the creation of a large number of jobs. 

References: 

· Bhaktapur Development Project, Experiences in preservation 

and restoration in a medieval town (1974 – 1985) – Yogeshwar 

K. Parajuli 

· Bhaktapur – A Town Changing – Ane Haaland 

· Integrated Urban Development: The Example of Bhaktapur – 

Kurt Sturzbecher in collaboration with Claus-Dieter Aresin 

S 

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GARDEN TIPS 


70 

Summer gardening 

and how you can quench your plants thirst effectively! 

Dr. Umed Pun 

Marigold 


Summer is hot and dry in most part of 

Nepal. A beautifully developed and 

maintained garden could be a good 

space to retreat to from the heat and 

enjoy the evening. Summer flowering 

trees (Silver oak, Gul mohur) and shrubs 

(Coral tree) and shady trees (Camphor) 

in the garden can add colour and 

provide much needed shade in summer. 

Besides, inclusion of several beautiful 

summer seasonals (Marigold, Petunia, 

Snap dragon etc) can make your garden 

colorful and vibrant. However, the 

biggest challenge is to prevent the plants 

from water stress. The following 

approach should be considered to 

combat stress of plants in summer. 

1. Weeding: All unwanted plants, 

such as weeds or plants other than the 

desired one should be removed. 

Growing of unwanted plants in the area 

where your plants are grown competes 

for the same source of nutrients and 

water. Hence, removal of unwanted 

plants reduces loss of nutrients and 

water. 

2. Mulching: Placement of dried 

leaves in whole or cut into smaller 

pieces or barks around the trunk of plant 

is called mulching. This covers the 

exposed soil around the trunk or small 

plants and reduces water loss and weed 

growth. This is a very effective 

technique to reduce water loss. It also 

enriches soil with organic nutrients due 

to decomposition of organic matter 

used for mulching. 

3. Watering: Water is most of the time 

in short supply, whether it is in 

Kathmandu or else where. It is very 

essential to use water very judiciously 

and application of water should be done 

in the evening. Where possible, 

wastewater from kitchen can be 

collected and used for watering plants, 

thereby saving precious drinking water. 

4. Placement of plants: Plant 

preference for open or shady location 

depends on its type. For example, 

Azaleas prefer partially shady location. 

Its root system is shallow and therefore 

when grown in open location it needs 

more water than when grown in shady 

location. Hence, proper placement of 

plant is very important.

GARDEN TIPS 


Floriculture Trade Fair - 2008 

71 

Welcoming the spring of 2008, Floriculture Association of Nepal (FAN), yet again 

successfully organized a floriculture trade fair in the exhibition hall of Brikuti 

Mandap, Kathmandu from April 2nd to the 5th. The exhibition was a riot of colours 

of different flowers and plants, with each stall trying to outdo the other to showcase 

their beautiful products. The fair was also host to a competition, which focused 

more on orchids this year, were as follows: 

1 Best Seasonal Flower 

2 Best Ornamental Plant 

3 Best Flowering Plant 

4 Best Landscape 

5 Best Flower Arrangement 

6 Best Stall 

7 Best Orchid Flower (Standard) 

8 Best Orchid Flower (Intermediate) 

9 Best Orchid Flower (Miniature) 

10 Best Cut Flower Producer for 2063 

11 Consolation Prize 

Best Seasonal Flower 

Best Ornamental Plant Best Flowering Plant - Azalea Best Landscape Best Flower Arrangement 

Best Stall 

Best Orchid Flower 

Standard 


Intermediate 


Miniature 

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ADV 

Kitchen Concept 

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May_June 2008

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