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Himalayan Research Papers Archive

Submissions from 2023 2023.

A Chinese Fallacy of Communist Lynchpin and American Retort in Nepal , Ashis Adhikary

Current Developmental Challenges in Nepal: How Can The Diaspora Help? , Ambika P. Adhikari

Promoting Urban Farming for Creating Sustainable Cities in Nepal , Keshav Bhattarai and Ambika P. Adhikari

Reframing the Buffer State in Contemporary International Relations: Nepal’s Relations with India and China , Bibek Chand

Re-situating the Buffer State in International Relations: Nepal’s Relations with India and China , Bibek Chand

State of Urbanization in Nepal: The Official Definition and Reality , Keshav Bhattarai, Ambika P. Adhikari, and Shiva Gautam

Submissions from 2022 2022

An Anatomy of Nepal's Remarkable Export Decline , Rishi Sharma

A Review of Environmental Vulnerabilities Related to Nepal’s Graduation Process from Least Developed to a Developing Country Status , Ambika P. Adhikari, Keshav Bhattarai, and Basu Sharma

A Review of Nepali Diaspora and their Role in Nepal’s Development and Lessons for Developing Countries , Ambika P. Adhikari

Effect of COVID 19 pandemic on Pharmaceutical Industry in terms of Inventory and Logistics Management , Shubhabrata Basu and Rimu Chaudhuri

Hegemonic Instability? India’s Himalayan Hegemony in Theoretical and Historical Perspective , Philip Hultquist Ph.D. and Prakash Adhikari Ph.D.

Minimizing surface run-off, improving underground water recharging, and on-site rain harvesting in the Kathmandu valley , Ambika P. Adhikari and Keshav Bhattarai

Nature Of Health Insurance Demand In India , Brijesh C. Purohit Ph.D

Summary report of discussions at the forum “Nepali Diaspora Organizations in North America: Achievements, Opportunities, and Challenges”, Coppell, Texas, USA July 2022 , Ambika P. Adhikari

The Continuation of Civil War by Other Means? Post-Conflict Peacebuilding in Nepal, Supplemental Materials , Prakash Adhikari Ph.D., Wendy L. Hansen Ph.D., and Adnan Shahid

The Vortex: A True Story of History's Deadliest Storm, an Unspeakable War, and Liberation , Jason Miklian

Submissions from 2021 2021

An Impact Evaluation of COVID-19 Training Program: Knowledge and Awareness of Public Health Professionals of Province Five, Nepal , Alok K. Bohara, Swati Thapa, Siobhan K. Yilmaz, and Spencer H. McBee

Climate Change and Community Resilience , Mani Nepal, Pranab Mukhopadhyay Dr., Md Rumi Shammin Dr., and AK Enamul Haque Dr.

Colonial Institutions and Civil War Indirect Rule and Maoist Insurgency in India , Shivaji Mukherjee

The Economics of Solid Waste Management and Drainage: A Sustainable Approach for Making South Asian Cities Climate-Resilient , Mani Nepal

Towards Creating Smart Cities in Nepal , Ambika P. Adhikari and Keshav Bhattarai

Submissions from 2020 2020

Covid-19 Pandemic and Nepal: Issues and Perspectives , Basu Sharma and Ambika P. Adhikari

Forest carbon stock assessment in selected red panda habitats in Ilam and Panchthar districts, Nepal , Trilochana Basnet, Niroj Timalsina, Rajesh Bahadur Thapa, Damber Bista, Basant Pant, Bhaskar Singh Karky, and Kai Windhorst

Issues and Perspective on the Covid-19 and Nepal: An Introduction , Ambika P. Adhikari and Basu Sharma

Sustainability, Urban Planning and Development: Sustainable and Self-Reliant Urban Development in Post- Pandemic Nepal , Ambika P. Adhikari and Keshav Bhattarai

Urban Development in Nepal and the Impacts of Covid-19 , Ambika P. Adhikari and Keshav Bhattarai

Value of cleaner neighborhoods: Application of hedonic price model in low income context , Mani Nepal and Rajesh K. Rai

Submissions from 2019 2019

A Pilot Study on Adolescent Mobile Phone Use, Indirect Mental Health Costs and Cultural Context Considerations – REPORT , Siobhan K. Yilmaz and Alok Bohara

Conference Summary Report, International Conference Role of Nepali Diaspora in Higher Education in Nepal , Ambika P. Adhikari, Govinda P. Dahal, Basu Sharma, and Dinesh Gajurel

Diaspora’s Role in Nepal’s Development: Summary of the Forum held at the Nepali National Convention. Baltimore, MD, USA. July 5-7, 2019 , Ambika P. Adhikari, Diwakar Dahal, and Rajendra Khatiwada

Sino-Indian Relations and EU Development Policies in Post-Conflict Nepal , Bibek Chand

Submissions from 2017 2017

Challenging Hegemonic Gender Norms through STEM Education in Nepal , Todd Wallenius and Barbara Grossman-Thompson

Disaster Relief as a Political Tool: Analysing Indian and Chinese Responses after the Nepal Earthquakes , Bibek Chand

The Effect of School Construction on Educational Outcomes among Females: Evidence from Nepal , Animesh Giri and Vinish Shrestha

Violence Against Children in Nyarugusu Refugees Camp: Reporting and Perceptions Across Generations , Erin K. Fletcher, Seth R. Gitter, and Savannah Wilhelm

Submissions from 2016 2016

Extension Service and Farm Productivity in Nepalese Agriculture , Dadhi Adhikari and Naresh Nepal

Submissions from 2015 2015

Education, Health and Inequality: Schooling infrastructure and educational outcomes in Nepal , Vinish Shrestha

How are School Dropout Rates Related to Household Characteristics: Analysis of Survey Data from Bangladesh , Nusrat Farah

Implications of the Dragon’s Rise for South Asia: Assessing China’s Nepal Policy , Bibek Chand and Lukas Karl Danner

Labor market changes and human capital investment: Evidence from migration boom in Nepal , Rashesh Shrestha

Sustainable Livelihood Systems in Nepal: Principles, Practices and Prospects , Ambika P. Adhikari, Govinda P. Dahal, Ishara Mahat, Bishwa Regmi, Kalidas Subedi, and Bharat Shrestha (eds.)

Submissions from 2014 2014

Reversing the Flood of Forced Displacement: Shedding Light on Important Determinants of Return Migration , Prakash Adhikari Ph.D. and Wendy L. Hansen Ph.D.

Submissions from 2013 2013

Can Improved Cooking Stoves Work? The Nepal Chulo Experience , Dipika Gawande, Bijendra Shrestha, and Amarsingh Gawande

Household-level Effects of Electricity on Income , Brandon Bridge, Dadhi Adhikari, and Matías Fontenla

Submissions from 2012 2012

Healthy Mothers, Healthy Children: Does Mothers' Demand for Antenatal Care Matter for Child Health in Nepal? , Nafisa Halim

Papers, Abstracts, and Proceedings of the Seventh Annual Himalayan Policy Research Conference , Vijaya R. Sharma, Mukti P. Upadhyay, Jeffry Drope, Naresh Nepal, and Alok Bohara

Submissions from 2011 2011

Building Community 'Gegran' Beneficiary Group: a case of Lothar Khola Watershed Chitwan, Central Nepal , Ramesh M. Tuladhar

Effectiveness of Some Local Baits for the Managment of Hornets in Apiaries of Kathmandu Valley , Chet Prasad Bhatta and Aananda Shova Tamrakar

Submissions from 2010 2010

An Opportunity to improve Service Delivery in Nepal through Local Governance , Yam Sharma and Abd Muwonge

A Proposal for an Open University of Nepal for Providing Higher Education to the Rural and Marginalized People , Pramod Dhakal, Ambika Adhikari, and Drona Rasali

Conflict Resolution and Institutional Arrangements for Flood Disaster Management on Indo Nepal Fringe: Focus on Kosi Basin , NMP Verma

Economic Growth and Human Development in South Asia: Experience of Selected Countries , Ranjit Singh Ghuman and Amarjit S. Bhullar

Economics of Sedimentation Management in Large Reservoirs , Biswo Poudel

Geographic Isolation and Poverty among Indigenous Peoples in Nepal , Gyanesh Lama, Marth N. Ozawa, and Palsang Lama

Impact of Industrial Environment on Socio-economic Conditions of Mine Workers: A study of Coal Industries in Odisha , Abhaya K. Naik and Krupasindh Pradhan

Local people's perception on Climate Change, its impact and adaptation practices in Himalaya to Terai regions of Nepal , Krishna R. Tiwari, Kashab D. Awasthi, Mohan K. Balla, and Bishal K. Sitaula

Media Contribution in Transfer of Power in Nepal , Binod C. Agrawal

Micro-level Estimation and Decomposition of Poverty and Inequality in Nepal , Mani Nepal and Alok Bohara

Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) and Economic Development of Odisha , Krupasindh Pradhan and Santosh Kumar Munda

Moving out of Chronic Poverty: Community Level Study on Poverty over the Time , S.A.N.C. Samaraweera and N.R. Abeynayake

Prospects of a Trilateral Trans-Himalayan Economic Cooperation Agreement (THECA): China, Nepal, and India , Alok K. Bohara

Protection and comparative advantage of rice production in Bangladesh: A policy analysis matrix , Abu Hayat Md. Saiful Islam and Dieter Kirschke

Swine Flu: A Preliminary Study of the Planning and Policy of Nepal to Combat the H1N1 Pandemic , Rojee Rajbanshi

The Economic Cost of Health Problems due to Indoor Air Pollution at the Household Level in Tamil Nad , B.P. Chandramohan, T.K.S. Villalan, and S. Karthikeyan

Use of Modern Technology in Rural Development — A case study of National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) in Odisha , Abhaya K. Naik and Sukhamaya Swain

Submissions from 2009 2009

E-Prostitutions and its Impact in Society , Rashida Valika

Experience of Nepali Families with Foreign Remittance: Evidence from the Nepal Living Standard Survey , Udaya R. Wagle

Submissions from 2008 2008

Bullets, Ballots and Bounty: Maoist Victory in the Twenty-first Century, Nepal , Mahendra Lawoti

Cooperative Federal Structure: A Workable Political-economy Approach for a New Nepal , Alok Bohara

Determinants of Awareness and Usage of Best Available Local Maternal and Child Health Care Facility by Women in a Selected Rural Area of Nepal , Vijaya R. Sharma and Tirshana Sharma

Determinants of Deforestation in Nepal's Central Development Region , Keshav Bhattarai

Factors Affecting Application of New Public Management Oriented Reforms for Reforming Nepalese Public Administration , Bharat Raj Gautam

Faithful Leisure, Faithful Work: Religious Practice as an Act of Consumption in Nepal , Charis Boke

Financial Management of the Small Municipalities of Nepal: Sustainability Issues , Mahesh Baral

Heritage Conservation in Nepal: Policies, Stakeholders and Challenges , Neel Kamal Chapagain

Natural Disaster and Sickness Shocks: Evidence of Informal Social Insurance from Bangladesh , Pallab Mozumder

POLITICAL CONFLICT AND MIGRATION: How has Violence and Political Instability Affected Migration Patterns in Nepal? , Nathalie Williams and Meeta S. Pradhan

Reproductive Health Services: An Entry Point to Reach Labor Migrants and Their Wives for Providing HIV and STI Services in Nepal , Laxmi Bilas Acharya

Rural Poverty Analysis: A case study of a district of Nepal , Uddhab Bhandary

The Limits of Success? NGOs, Microfinance and Economic Development in Pakistans Northern Areas' , Feisal Khan

The Role of Land Reform in Reducing Poverty Across Nepal , Chandra Adhikari

Towards Developing Indicators of Environmental Sustainability for Kathmandu, Nepal , Ambika Prasad Adhikari

Submissions from 2007 2007

A Community Based Micro Hydro: A Promising Technology for Rural Development in Nepal , Bishwa Koirala

An Assessment of the Causes of Conflict in Nepal , Bishwa Nath Tiwari

Community based integrated natural resource management: Policy options and areas of intervention , Sabita Thapa, John Soussan, Dhruba Pant, Umesh Nath Parajuli, Khem Raj Sharma, and Binod Bhatta

Coping with Unreliable Water Supplies and Willingness to Pay for Improved Water Supplies in Kathmandu, Nepal , Hari Katuwal and Alok Bohara

Domestic Health Hazard and Indoor Air-Pollution: An Approach to Find Alternative Energy Source for Rural Bangladesh to Minimize the Threat , Reazul S.M. Ahsan and Jinia Afrin

Economic Inequality in the Democratic' Nepal: Dimensions and Implications' , Udaya R. Wagle

Effects of Deforestation on Tree Diversity and Livelihoods of Local Community A Case Study from Nepal , Krishna Karkee

Identification of natural resources at watershed level: an initial step of mainstreaming of the Federal restructure in Nepal , Madan Koirala

Inequality, Polarization and Violent Conflict: The Maoist Insurgency in Nepal , Mani Nepal, Alok K. Bohara, and Kishore Gawande

Peoples Perceptions of Green Space Park in Pokhara, Nepal' , Murari Suvedi, Krishna Shrestha, Bishwo Kallyan Parajuli, and Padam Giri

Political Participation and Civic Literacy in Bajung: An Empirical Study with Correlation Analysis , Khadga K.C.

Political predictions in Nepal , Aditya Man Shrestha

Poverty, Inequality, Violent Conflict, and Welfare Loss: Micro-Level Evidence from Nepal , Mani Nepal

Prioritizing and Estimating Hydropower Project Construction Risks: A Case Study of Nyadi Hydropower Project , Kamalesh Panthi

Pursuing Democracy: Explaining Political Transitions in Nepal , Prakash Adhikari and James D. Timberlake

Recruiting Rebels: Indoctrination and Political Education in Nepal , Kristine Eck

"Retainer" Bureaucracy: An Impediment to the Process of Democratic Governance in Nepal , Sucheta Pyakuryal

Rural Vulnerability and Tea Plantation Migration in Eastern Nepal and Darjeeling , Sarah Besky

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The Nepal Institute for Policy Research (NIPoRe) is a Kathmandu-based policy think tank. It generates evidence-based debates on contemporary policy issues in Nepal and Asia for both the public and private sectors. The institution currently works on high policy priority areas through four research centers – the Center for New Economy and Inequality (CNEI), the Center for Strategic Affairs (CSA), the Center for Governance Studies (CGS), and the Center for Human Development (CHD).

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कुनै पनि देशको अन्तर्राष्ट्रिय सम्बन्धका बहुआयामिक पक्ष हुन्छन् । परराष्ट्र नीतिका केही पक्ष स्थायी हुन्छन् भने अन्य पक्ष परिवर्तनशील । तर जस्तोसुकै पक्षका कथन भने समयानुकूल परिवर्तन भइरहन्छन् । यही क्रममा नेपालको परराष्ट्र नीतिका बारेमा हुने (अथवा नहुने) चारवटा महत्त्वपूर्ण विषयको कथनका सम्बन्धमा यो लेख केन्द्रित रहनेछ ।

Economy Fact 5 – Tourism in Post-Covid-19 Nepal

Apr 2, 2024 | Center for New Economy and Inequality

The Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) has recently released the monthly tourism statistics for March 2024, showcasing a remarkable upsurge in tourist arrivals following the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic. In this period, Nepal warmly greeted 128,167 tourists, marking a substantial 28.9 percent increase from the 99,426 tourists received in March 2023, as the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) reported. The tourism sector in Nepal, a vital component of the national economy, encountered significant hurdles during the COVID-19 crisis. The Nepal Rastra Bank data indicates that this sector employs 20 percent of Nepal’s workforce and contributes approximately three percent to the GDP. Post-pandemic, Nepal has observed a consistent rise in tourist numbers, notably illustrated by the positive trend witnessed in March 2024.

Nepal’s Prime Minister Dahal Changes Partners Mid-stream

Mar 26, 2024 | OP-EDs and Columns

Writing for The Diplomat Magazine, Santosh Sharma Poudel argues that Prachanda’s change of partners has more to do with domestic politics and personal interest than influence from neighboring powers.

Regulatory Gaps in Nepal’s Fintech

Mar 18, 2024 | Center for New Economy and Inequality , OP-EDs and Columns

The fintech sector is one of the fastest-growing industries in the world, offering numerous opportunities and challenges for developing countries like Nepal. As Nepal’s digital payment industry is growing, examining the NRB’s current regulatory policies relating to PSPs (E-sewa and Khalti) and PSOs (Nepal Clearing House Limited and Nepal Electronic Payment System) is crucial.

South Asia Bulletin – Vol 2, Issue 7 | March 2024

Mar 15, 2024 | Center for Strategic Affairs , South Asia Bulletin

In February 2024, candidates supported by Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party secured victory in Pakistan’s elections. However, despite this success, Khan’s party is set to be sidelined from power as the second and third-largest political entities have agreed to establish a coalition government. Additionally, a bilateral agreement between the Maldives and India was made to replace Indian military personnel stationed in the Maldives with civilian experts. Notably, the Taliban abstained from participation in a two-day conference organized by the United Nations in Doha, Qatar.

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The Study Report Release on “Nomination and Electability: The Role of Gender Norms in Nepal’s Local Elections”

The Nepal Institute for Policy Research (NIPoRe) released the study report titled "Nomination and Electability: The Role of Gender Norms in Nepal's Local Elections" amid one event in Kathmandu. The...

Webinar – Nepal’s Digitalization Journey | Nepal Competitiveness Index (NCI)

Nepal has seen tremendous growth in the number of internet users in the past decade. The country currently has 95.8 percent (mobile broadband) and 35.5 percent (fixed broadband) internet penetration...

Diplomats’ Forum with H. E. Nona Deprez, the EU Ambassador to Nepal

The Nepal Institute for Policy Research (NIPoRe) is hosting the fourth session of the Diplomats’ Forum on 22 December 2022 with H.E. Nona Deprez, the European Union Ambassador to Nepal. Ms. Sewa...

Research presentation on “Youth’s perspectives on upcoming federal elections in Nepal”

With support from the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES) Nepal Country Office, NIPoRe will host a pre-study report release event on 16 November 2022 in Kathmandu. The final study report on "Youth’s...

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Half century in biodiversity and conservation research in Nepal: a review

• Review Paper
• Published: 29 May 2023
• Volume 32 , pages 2611–2636, ( 2023 )

Cite this article

• Prakash Kumar Paudel 1 ,
• Shishila Baniya 1 ,
• Shyam Sharma 1 ,
• Simrik Bhandari 1 &
• Manoj Pokharel 1  

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Scientific research on biodiversity and conservation generates the knowledge base useful in achieving sustainability targets. The knowledge gap limits our ability to design well-founded strategies and impedes the prospects of addressing myriad conservation challenges. It is therefore important to assess trends and biases in biodiversity and conservation literature to monitor progress and make corrective actions where needed. Nepal is considered among the most biodiverse regions globally, yet little is known about the progress of biodiversity and conservation science. Here we reviewed 1098 articles published over the last fifty-six years (1964–2019) and provide a snapshot of research patterns, trends and gaps in terms research lens, physiography, ecosystem, protected area, taxonomy, ecological focus, funding, research recommendation, and research authorship and collaboration. The results of our study showed a monotonic trend of article publication until 1990, which increased significantly after 1999. There is a growing trend in the number of publications with socio-economic and multidisciplinary lens. Research publications are highly biased in favour of few taxonomic groups, mainly gymnosperms and mammals, with a preponderance of certain species, while other classes of both the plant and animal kingdoms were less studied. There was disproportionately low focus on certain physiographic regions (e.g., high Himalaya, Siwalik), ecosystem types (e.g., wetlands) and non-protected areas. Articles with an ecological focus were mainly exploratory—e.g., describing general distributions—whereas specialized ecological/evolutionary research (e.g., grazing, competition, physiology), except for genetics and climate change, were rare. More than half of the articles were authored only by foreign-based researchers, who contributed up to 89% of published articles, and consistently maintained dominance as corresponding and lead authors. There is a need to realign research efforts and support home-grown researchers with training, funding and institution-building. This requires a concerted commitment by the Government of Nepal, conservation organizations, researchers and academic institutions. There remains a great need for more empirical science to inform decision-making and consequently achieve ambitious national conservation targets.

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Paudel, P.K., Baniya, S., Sharma, S. et al. Half century in biodiversity and conservation research in Nepal: a review. Biodivers Conserv 32 , 2611–2636 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-023-02626-7

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Harnessing a decade of research at the Research Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology in Kathmandu, Nepal: Proceedings of the Fourth International Conference ICBB-2022

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Suvechhya Bastola 1 , Remco Kort 2 , Prajwal Rajbhandari 1

1 department of applied microbiology and food technology, research institute for bioscience and biotechnology, kathmandu, nepal; 2 amsterdam institute for life and environment (a-life), vrije universiteit amsterdam, amsterdam, the netherlands, correspondence: prajwal rajbhandari ( [email protected] ).

BMC Proceedings 2023 , 17(Suppl 3):

Introduction

The Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal is a relatively small country of approximately 150,000 km 2 , but extraordinarily rich in natural resources, including lush plains, hilly woodlands, and eight of the world's ten tallest mountains. The altitudes in Nepal vary from less than 60 m in the lowlands of Terai in the South to the crest of the Himalaya reaching 8848 m in the North. The geographic variations and the latitude gradient, all contribute to the species richness in this region of the world. Nepal represents an important knowledge center regarding the use of various plant species in the form of traditional medicines [1]. However, the majority of the bioresources are poorly characterized and inadequately documented. The scientific applications are numerous: extracts from medicinal plants, and bioactive compounds from soil microbes could serve as antibiotics, anticancer drugs, and nutraceuticals in modern day medicine. Apart from their use in applied medicinal research, natural resources provide in a broad sense invaluable ‘ecosystem services’. These services encompass varied benefits to humans provided by the natural environment, including the provision of food, clean drinking water, and the decomposition of waste. Documented research has become essential in preserving these natural resources. The urgent need for exploration of nations' valuable biodiversity is a major driver for the foundation of the Research Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology (RIBB).

The RIBB was founded in 2011 with the mission to advance the fields of bioscience, engineering, innovation and education by collaborating with academic and other research organizations to conduct high quality research in a world-class academic and professional environment. The RIBB is now one of the leading non-profit research organizations in the field of biotechnology as it conducts high quality research forming an integrated part with the academia in Nepal. The country’s rich natural resources form an essential part of the RIBB’s research focus, as the institute started to explore and study indigenous medicinal plants and soil microbes from the first years after its foundation. Notably, we were the first research group that characterized the genome of the actinobacteria Nonomuraea [2] and Pseudonocardia [3] isolated from a Nepalese mud dauber wasp Nest. Furthermore, we described the molecular structures of non-toxic antioxidant compounds from endophytic fungus Preussia [4] and the soil bacterium Streptomyces [5]. In pursuit of exploring new compounds originating from Nepalese rich biodiversity, we extracted natural antimicrobial and antioxidant compounds for applications as edible coating on fruits and vegetables [6], and encapsulation of essential oils inside hydrogels [7].

RIBB is also addressing local community problems like water pollution and sanitation hazards, which have developed as a consequence of urbanization. Our research carried out in collaboration with Newcastle University, shows how inadequate wastewater management led to public health risks [8]. Similarly, Phutung Research Institute (PRI, Kathmandu, Nepal) in collaboration with University of York and RIBB is developing a portable low-cost Water Assessment System (WAS), which will allow the early detection of fecal contamination [9]. However, to be able to valorize its research efforts, collaborative and multidisciplinary research is essential. Therefore, RIBB has been organizing the “International Conference on Bioscience and Biotechnology” (ICBB) biannually from 2016. ICBB aims to provide a platform for students, established researchers, entrepreneurs, other relevant stakeholders from Nepal and around the world to convene and discuss progress and collaboration on various topics related to bioscience and biotechnology. In the disparate settings of Nepal, ICBB not only focused on the capital city, but rotated among other cities outside Kathmandu in order to incorporate a new audience and research opportunities. The first edition of the conference, the ICBB-2016, was held in Kathmandu with natural products as its major theme. The second edition, the ICBB-2018, took place in Dhulikhel with the focus on biobanking and translational medicine. This was followed up by the third edition, the ICBB-2020, in Pokhara about food and applied microbiology. The fourth edition, the ICBB-2022, entitled ‘A decade in research: Celebrating RIBB’s tenth anniversary’, encompassed a wider variety of research themes. This meeting marked a year-long of various formal and informal events, celebrating the institute's ten years existence on 4 th of July 2021.

The ICBB-2022 meeting was jointly organized by the RIBB and University of Nepal Development Board (UoN-DB). It was co-organized by PRI, Kathmandu Research Institute for Biological Sciences (KRIBS) and Engage Nepal with Science (ENwS). The conference spanned four days and featured Plenary lectures, Invited talks, Oral and Poster presentations. The five main sessions included Session I: Traditional Fermented Food and Nutritional Science; Session II: Biomedicine and Translational Research; Session III: Protein Science and Its Application; Session IV: Water, Wildlife and Environment; Session V: Graduate Student Talks. The meeting was conducted in a hybrid model, where scientists and researchers from 11 countries with 126 in-person participants and more than 500 zoom links were distributed to share scientific knowledge from their field of expertise as well as to celebrate RIBB’s journey of success, challenges and accomplishments.

The first day of the conference was dedicated to two workshops organized in parallel, followed by introductory speeches from the organizers and co-organizers. The plenary session on the second day was conducted by Dr. Max Paoli and Payel Patel from The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS), Trieste, Italy. Similarly, the Plenary session on the third day was conducted by Dr. Alba Abad from University of Edinburgh, UK (Table 1 ).

The proceedings ICBB-2022 included a total of 32 abstracts. These abstracts covered a wide range of research topics under each thematic session. The first session covered probiotics, an emerging concept in the field of functional foods, fermentations for the degradation of mycotoxins, and Nepalese traditional natural fermentations, including nutritional perspectives. The second session covered leading innovative technologies and approaches in the field of biomedicine like antiviral immunity in the case of SARS-COV-2 and precision medicine to control neglected tropical diseases. Metagenomics and Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) in the context of public health in Nepal was also presented in this session. The third session included talks in the water, wildlife and environment including recent topics like tiger genetics carried out in Nepal. The fourth session on protein science covered some recent developments in this field, related to protein-protein interactions, the role of SUPT5H in breast cancer, and engineered living material. Finally, the floor was opened to recent graduates, representing a new generation of Nepalese researchers, for their short talks on their theses and poster presentations, including promising research topics like biopesticides, natural priming of seeds, low-cost polymerase chain reaction technology, and valorization of waste materials.

Since 2016, the Research Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology (RIBB) has been able to successfully organize the International Conference on Bioscience and Biotechnology (ICBB) every two years, which has grown to be an event of international resonance. This conference plays a critical step in creating an international platform for attendees to connect with international partners, collaborate on local projects and thus get opportunities to access various expertise and facilities, through networking. As RIBB reached its milestone of completing 10 years in the field of research, this 4 th edition of ICBB was dedicated to appreciating its prosperous journey. This platform provided an opportunity to reflect on the institute’s past invaluable learnings and successes, and further explore future possibilities of growth and excellence in the field of bioscience and biotechnology. In these years, RIBB has been able to form a consortium of committed, highly trained and competitive group of 15 young principal investigators, more than 100 undergraduate and graduate researchers, and leaders in today’s interdisciplinary and dynamic research environment. The Institute also took this opportunity to acknowledge the contributions of all those who had supported along the way and made the journey possible. Thereupon, 18 inductees for the institute’s RIBB Hall of Fame were honored at the closing dinner gathering.

Furthermore, a new session (Water, Wildlife and Environment) was introduced to acknowledge the importance of the conference environment (Sauraha, a renowned wildlife sanctuary of Nepal). This session included cutting edge technologies used in environmental research and biodiversity conservation in Nepal, opening ways to push interdisciplinary research activities among local research institutes to mitigate environmental and biodiversity challenges. Similarly, ICBB-2022 also introduced the Graduate Student Talks Session, which provided a platform for university students to present their research outcomes to a broader audience including international scientists. The workshop on Public Engagement with school students gave the local students exposure to hands-on scientific activities and provided them an opportunity to interact with local scientists and researchers. Along with that, the workshop also supported their confidence in Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM). The second workshop on WAS demonstrated water quality research to the general public and stakeholders of local communities, also spreading awareness on water pollution. In addition, discussions at the conference led to agreement for an overarching research topic and location for ICBB-2024. The next meeting will take place in Godawari, Lalitpur on the urgent theme of "Planetary Health”, planned as a satellite meeting of the 2024 Planetary Health Annual Meeting (PHAM) hosted by the Sunway Centre for Planetary Health in Malaysia. The ICBB-2022 successfully integrated and provided exposure for the local scientific members residing outside of the capital to international as well as national researchers. As organizers, we are immensely pleased that we were able to continue to this conference to its fourth edition. We take special merit of ICBB-2022 as it was organized amidst the uncertainties of the COVID-19 pandemic in a situation where the world and specially the scientific sector in Nepal was badly shaken and struggling to recover.

Kunwar RM, Bussmann RW. Ethnobotany in the Nepal Himalaya. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine. 2008 Dec;4(1):1-8.

Aryal N, Aziz S, Rajbhandari P, Gross H. Draft genome sequence of Nonomuraea sp. strain C10, a producer of brartemicin, isolated from a mud dauber wasp nest in Nepal. Microbiology Resource Announcements. 2019 Nov 7;8(45):e01109-19.

Aryal N, Aziz S, Rajbhandari P, Gross H. Draft Genome Sequence of the Sattazolin-Producing Strain Pseudonocardia sp. C8, Isolated from a mud dauber wasp nest in Nepal. Microbiology Resource Announcements. 2021 Mar 11;10(10):e00007-21.

Paudel B, Bhattarai K, Bhattarai HD. Antimicrobial and antioxidant activities of two polyketides from lichen-endophytic fungus Preussia sp. Zeitschrift für Naturforschung C. 2018 Mar 1;73(3-4):161-3.

Paudel B, Maharjan R, Rajbhandari P, Aryal N, Aziz S, Bhattarai K, Baral B, Malla R, Bhattarai HD. Maculosin, a non-toxic antioxidant compound isolated from Streptomyces sp. KTM18. Pharmaceutical Biology. 2021 Jan 1;59(1):931-4.

Majhi R, Maharjan R, Shrestha M, Mali A, Basnet A, Baral M, Duwal R, Manandhar R, Rajbhandari P. Effect of altitude and solvent on Psidium guajava Linn. leaves extracts: phytochemical analysis, antioxidant, cytotoxicity and antimicrobial activity against food spoilage microbes. BMC chemistry. 2023 Dec;17(1):1-6.

Shakya N, Budha Chettri S, Joshi S, Rajbhandary A. Utilization of FMOC-3F-PHE hydrogel for encapsulation of Zanthoxylum armatum and Cinnamomum camphora oil for enhancing their antibacterial activity. BMC research notes. 2022 Dec;15(1):1-6.

Pantha K, Acharya K, Mohapatra S, Khanal S, Amatya N, Ospina-Betancourth C, Butte G, Shrestha SD, Rajbhandari P, Werner D. Faecal pollution source tracking in the holy Bagmati River by portable 16S rRNA gene sequencing. NPJ Clean Water. 2021 Feb 18;4(1):1-0.

Bohora S, Li K, Waiba P, Gautam S, Martins A, Rodrigues RA, Kikstra P, van der Horst M, Martins ER, Krauss TF, Dhakal A. A Low-cost Fresnel Lens Fluorometer to Detect Fecal Contamination in Drinking Water in Realtime. InCLEO: Applications and Technology 2022 May 15 (pp. AM5M-8). Optica Publishing Group.

A1. Workshop on public engagement program at school

Suvechhya bastola 1,2 , alba abad 1,3 , rojlina manandhar 4 , surakshya singh 4 , bibek chandra mahaseth 4 , kamana dawadi 4 , lochan pandeya 4, 1 engage nepal with science, edinburgh, uk; 2 learning lab, research institute for bioscience and biotechnology, kathmandu, nepal; 3 wellcome centre for cell biology, university of edinburgh, edinburgh, uk; 4 department of natural products and green chemistry, research institute for bioscience and biotechnology, kathmandu, nepal., correspondence: suvechhya bastola ( [email protected] ).

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Engage Nepal with Science runs as collaboration between the University of Edinburgh (United Kingdom) and the Research Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology (Nepal) and aims to spread the culture of engaging with science to empower, inspire and build confidence in STEM. We use gamification and ‘learning-by-doing’ as tools to promote engagement and sustained motivation in learning for both students and teachers. Our network of school teachers and RIBB researchers work together towards making science learning more creative and dynamic following the school curriculum.

The hands-on science workshop (that included a group demonstration for soap making along with activities on plant/animal cells, microbes and algae) was organized at School Rise Hostel, Chitwan. 40 students from 7-15 years old and 3 teachers attended the workshop.

Through the soap making demonstration, the students were made aware of the microbial presence in our hands and the importance of hand-washing. Preparation of slides of plant/animal cells was an opportunity to have first-hand experience on microscope handling. Our A zoo in your pond activity allowed the students to observe different samples of water under the microscope. Our Make your own microbe! made students aware of the different features of microbes and the role of those microbes in different human diseases. The microalgae activity replicated the laboratory setup to understand that algae can be used to our advantage to produce iron pills. Practical-based learning enticed students to become curious and were encouraged to think in a scientific, evidence-based way.

Hands on based learning for the students, makes the learning process more enjoyable and long-lasting. The activities inspire students, boost their creativity and support their science learning. These workshops also inspire teachers, build their confidence in science communication and support their science communication skills to make learning of science subjects at schools more creative and dynamic.

A2. Workshop on low-cost and real-time water assessment system (WAS) for the detection of fecal contaminants in water

Anusa thapa 1 , rijan maharjan 1 , pravin bhattarai 1 , suvechhya bastola 1,2 , sishir gautam 1 , sanket bohora 1 , prashant waiba 1 , kezheng li 3 , augusto martins 4 , ricardo a. rodrigues 5 , peter kikstra 5 , marcel van der horst 5 , prajwal rajbhandari 2 , emiliano r. martins 4 , thomas krauss 3 , ashim dhakal 1, 1 biophotonics lab, phutung research institute, tarakeshor-7, kathmandu, 44611, nepal; 2 department of applied microbiology, research institute for bioscience and biotechnology, kathmandu, nepal; 3 department of physics,university of york, york yo10 5dd, uk; 4 são carlos school of engineering, department of electrical and computer engineering, university of são paulo, 13566-590, brazil; 5 amsterdam sensor lab, amsterdam university of applied sciences, 1097 amsterdam, the netherlands, correspondence: ashim dhakal ( [email protected] ).

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To address the lack of real-time and low-cost methods to detect fecal contamination in drinking and household water needed in resource-limited settings, we have developed a Water Assessment System (WAS). WAS is based on a fluorometry of biochemicals emitted by active organisms in fecal matter. WAS has a user-friendly interface which provides the users the level of fecal contamination in water via Traffic light indicators, and also the measured level of contamination. We organized this workshop to survey any existing tools potential users are using, their disposition towards using our current WAS model, the price they are willing to pay, and any other features they would need.

Materials and methods

A total of 56 participants from regulatory agencies such as community managed water suppliers, live-stock farmers, food and beverage sector, environmental sector and general consumers attended this workshop where we had a hands-on demonstration of our prototype for WAS.

94% of participants for household use and 83% from the commercial sector stated that they would want to own a WAS device. 50% of participants were not aware of technologies to test their water in spite of experiencing water-borne diseases every year. While the regulatory agencies participants indicated WAS will be useful, only 56% of these participants wanted to pay for the current version because they already had their own labs for testing water. 57%, 27% and 10% of the participants respectively stated they are willing to pay <50 USD, <100 USD, <250 USD for the current model. However, industrial participants were willing to pay as much as $3,000 if automatic and continuous monitoring was implemented in the current model. More technical users wanted higher specificity to detect certain pathological organisms and harmful ions. While the less technical users indicated that the device display interface should have nepali scripts.

WAS has a good market in the commercial and environmental sector, such as, live-stock farming, food and beverage industry, drinking water suppliers, and wildlife conservation. If we are able to sell at a cost < 250 USD, there is a good market for household users as well.

Acknowledgement

We thank the Diyalo Foundation for their support in developing this technology. This work was supported by EPSRC’s GCRF Grant# EP/T020008/1 & EP/W524165/1; TWAS & SIDA Grant # 18-013.

A3. RIBB’s 10 th year journey: story presentation

Prajwal rajbhandari, department of applied microbiology and food technology, research institute for bioscience and biotechnology, kathmandu, nepal.

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Inception of the Research Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology (RIBB) started at the Department of Biotechnology, Kathmandu University in 2008 (Fall). However, foundation as a research institute was placed on 4 th of July, 2011 at Sinamangal, Kathmandu. We started an institute office with a floor size of 600 sq. feet for writing grants and received our first grant on April 30, 2013, which was for organizing a workshop on dairy waste management. From there onwards we never looked back. Before celebrating the institute's 5 th anniversary, we had already received a few research grants that supported establishing a laboratory for natural product chemistry and soil microbiology to explore Nepalese biodiversity.

After completing 5 years of journey, we decided to provide basic laboratory facilities (equipment and consumables) and working environment to Nepalese scientists and researchers who returned back to Nepal and wanted to continue their research journey. This initiative not only helped the institute grow in broader areas related to bioscience and biotechnology, but also helped train young minds in research before heading for graduate studies. Along with that, we also established two new laboratories to start basic science research in the field molecular biology and cell culture at our second location, in Nakkhu. Looking back on its glorious 11 years, RIBB has been able to establish a sound research culture, collaborated with more than 10 European laboratories, received competitive European funding where 15 young principal investigators started their research career, opened 40 plus job opportunities and trained more than 100 undergraduate and graduate students through research internships and thesis.

Above all, three members of the Nepal Research Alliance (NRA), namely Kathmandu Research Institute for Biological Sciences, Phutung Research Institute and RIBB envisioned a Research Campus named “Biomedicum” which is now initiated at Balkumari to kickstart interdisciplinary research, where scientific expertise, equipment and other common resources are shared under one roof to push research ecosystem in Nepal.

As a research institute, we would like to thank our funding agencies (Korea Green Foundation, RenewableNepal Programme, TWAS, IFS, Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Elsevier Foundation, SfAM, NHRC, NAST, CIM-GIZ, OWSD and British Council) for their support to build a totally new research institute in the field of biotechnology from scratch in Nepal.

A4. Biomedicum: Need for “ecosystem thinking” for development of R&D in Nepal

Ashim dhakal, biophotonics lab, phutung research institute, tarakeshor-7, kathmandu, 44611, nepal.

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Nepal lacks basic elements of a functional innovation, research and development (R&D) ecosystem, such as, funding agencies for R&D activities, legal framework to recognize research institutes or incentivize R&D activities, organized R&D peer-groups, R&D infrastructure, R&D supply chain and R&D human resources. Existing R&D bodies seem to be inefficient and inadequate. Recognizing this need, a handful of young researchers trained elsewhere returned to Nepal with initiative to establish non-governmental and nonprofit research institutes. Eight of those research institutes viz. Annapurna Research Center, Center for Health and Disease Studies- Nepal, Global Institute for Interdisciplinary Studies, Kathmandu Institute of Applied Sciences, Kathmandu Research Institute for Biological Sciences (KRIBS), Nepal Applied Mathematics and Informatics Institute for Research, Phutung Research Institute (PRI) and Research Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology (RIBB) allied themselves informally as Nepal Research Alliance with broad and collective objectives to facilitate collaboration between the themselves, and to formulate a common view-point for recommending Nepal government appropriate policies in order to advance scientific and technological research in Nepal. Thanks to lobbying efforts of the NRA, Nepal Government took initiative to draft and promulgate National Science, Technology and Innovation Policy- 2019 with direct involvement of NRA members. However, the pandemic, and government changes, changes in the leadership in the Ministry of Science and Technology slowed meaningful implementation of the policy. There is a need to revive the activism among the researchers for the development of the R&D ecosystem in Nepal.

However, in spite of the several hurdles during the COVID-19 pandemic, three members of the NRA, namely KRIBS, PRI and RIBB signed a collaboration agreement to come together in a single Research Campus called “Biomedicum”, and share scientific expertise, equipment and other resources. This collaboration has resulted in three collaborative research and co-publications. It exemplifies a collaborative approach and “ecosystem thinking” for development of R&D in Nepal.

A5. University of Nepal – programs & master plan presentation

Arjun karki, university of nepal (uon) development board, kathmandu, nepal, correspondence: arjun karki ( [email protected] ).

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There is a widespread perception and belief that the existing model and practice of higher education in Nepal has not adequately responded to the existing needs and the emerging challenges of the nation. That has also contributed to the exodus of young Nepali students to foreign countries, most of whom get lost there. The proposed University of Nepal (UoN) is an initiative undertaken to address that very issue. The UoN is envisaged to be a top quality, interdisciplinary, research oriented, and autonomous public University in Nepal. During the last five years since the project was initiated, remarkable progress has been made. That includes, but not limited to, defining the overarching conceptual framework for the UoN, academic program planning, engagement and collaboration with the local governments in Nawalparasi, located about 200 Kilometers South-West of Kathmandu, to avail the land for building the UoN Campus. In addition, the government of Nepal has formed the UoN Development Board (DB) with the mandate to undertake all the preparatory work necessary for the establishment of the UoN and launching of its academic programs.

The UoN aims to prepare graduates who are intellectually competent, conscientious, creative, willing to embrace the spirit of citizenship and demonstrate the courage to play a leadership role to bring about positive and transformative changes in Nepal. In order to achieve that goal, the UoN envisages running the liberal arts and sciences based undergraduate programs that helps students not only to better understand themselves and the world around them but also to acquire the critical thinking, communication and problem-solving skills. Graduate programs will also be introduced once the needed infrastructure and faculty strength is consolidated. In addition to knowledge dissemination, new knowledge generation (i.e. research) will be an integral part of the UoN life. In pursuing its mission, the UoN intends to learn and benefit from the relevant global and regional experiences and best practices. It therefore seeks to engage with like- minded partners for the purpose of institutional capacity development as well as the promotion of academic and research collaboration in the time ahead.

A6. Fermentation as a novel approach for the prevention of aflatoxins induced liver cancer

Paul alex wacoo 1 , simon aliker 2 , andrew bukenya 1 , deborah wendiro 3 , joseph f hawumba 2 and ponsiano ocama 4, 1 department of medical biochemistry, school of biomedical sciences, college of health sciences, makerere university, p.o. box 7062 kampala, uganda; 2 department of biochemistry and sports science, school of biological sciences, college of natural sciences, makerere university, p.o. box 7062 kampala; 3 wena biosciences institute p.o. box 26, kamuli, ugand; 4 department of internal medicine, school of medicine, college of health sciences, makerere university, p. o. box 7062 kampala, correspondence: paul alex wacoo ( [email protected] ).

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Aflatoxins-induced liver cancer is a hidden public health hazard requiring immediate action. Particularly in sub-Saharan Africa and East Asia where 83% of the new cancer cases have been reported due to synergistic contribution between aflatoxins and highly endemic hepatitis B infection [1]. Aflatoxins are associated with the food chain right from production to post consumption. A novel strategy to decontaminate aflatoxins before and after feeding is the best hope for mitigating the risk effect of aflatoxin. Probiotic bacteria have been demonstrated to mitigate the risk effect of aflatoxin in food [2] and after ingestion thus providing protection against aflatoxicosis and liver cancer and also ensure access to nutritious, safe and healthy food.

A case-controlled design was used to evaluate the association between aflatoxin and liver cancer. The questionnaire collected demographic information and frequency of consuming aflatoxin high risk foods. Urine collected and urinary aflatoxin M1 analyzed as described by Wacoo et al., [3]. Stools collected and microbiota analysis was done according to Atukunda et al., [4]. Lactic acid bacteria were isolated from stool samples as described by Wacoo et al., [3]

The odds of developing liver cancer were four times higher in the case group than in the control group. Mean urinary aflatoxin M1 levels were generally higher in the case group than in controls. The risk of developing liver cancer (odds ratio) decreased with decrease in the frequency of consumption of maize bread/porridge. Generally, the abundance of Lactobacillus spp. in the case group was higher than in controls. However, levels of Lactobacillus spp. in control were inversely proportional to urinary aflatoxin M1 levels. Lactobacillus spp. in Case groups showed no observable relationship with urinary aflatoxin M1 levels. Approximately, 90% out of 400 of the Lactobacillus isolates demonstrated potential to adsorb aflatoxin. Since, the earlier study demonstrated the potential of Lactobacillus rhmanosus in decontamination of aflatoxin B1 in maize porridge [5], more experiments are being done to screen the isolates for aflatoxin degradation in maize porridge and other food types.

Conclusions

The risk of liver cancer is directly proportional to the frequency of consumption of contaminated maize bread/porridge. The range of Lactobacillus spp in controls is inversely correlated to urinary aflatoxin M1 levels. Lactobacillus spp showed great potential to remove aflatoxin from maize porridge.

Acknowledgements

This work was funded by the Government of Uganda through the Makerere University Research and Innovations Fund (Mak-RIF). The authors acknowledge the assistance of Andrew Bukenya, Simon Aliker, Imelda Namirembe and Caroline Mutesi during participant recruitment, sample collection and analysis.

Consent to publish

The study protocol conforms to the ethical guidelines of the 1975 Declaration of Helsinki (6th revision, 2008) as reflected in a priori approval by the Research Ethics committee of School of Medicine, College of Health Sciences, Makerere University (# REC REF 2020-083) and by Uganda National Council for Science and Technology (no. UNCST HS707ES).

Wu F: The global burden of disease caused by foodborne aflatoxin. WHO Commissioned Report Geneva: World Health Organization Food Borne Disease Burden Epidemiology Reference Group 2010.

Ahlberg SH, Joutsjoki V, Korhonen HJ: Potential of lactic acid bacteria in aflatoxin risk mitigation. International journal of food microbiology 2015, 207:87-102.

Wacoo AP, Atukunda P, Muhoozi G, Braster M, Wagner M, Van Den Broek TJ, Sybesma W, Westerberg AC, Iversen PO, Kort R: Aflatoxins: occurrence, exposure, and binding to Lactobacillus species from the gut microbiota of rural Ugandan children. Microorganisms 2020, 8(3):347.

Atukunda P, Muhoozi GK, van den Broek TJ, Kort R, Diep LM, Kaaya AN, Iversen PO, Westerberg AC: Child development, growth and microbiota: follow-up of a randomized education trial in Uganda. Journal of global health 2019, 9(1).

Wacoo AP, Mukisa IM, Meeme R, Byakika S, Wendiro D, Sybesma W, Kort R: Probiotic enrichment and reduction of aflatoxins in a traditional African maize-based fermented food. Nutrients 2019, 11(2):265.

A7. Nutritional perspective and its consequences in Nepal

Keshab bhattarai, sudhashree adhikari, sattwik nutri-food (a diet therapy and research center), pokhara, nepal, correspondence: keshab bhattarai ( [email protected] ).

BMC Proceedings 2023 , 17(Suppl 3): A7

Nutritional and healthy foods are the basic requirements for the people around the globe to stay healthy and prevent diseases. Nepal as a geographically diversified country with many staple foods are grown. With the development of technology and a busy schedule of life, risk of having chronic diseases are increasing day by day. Globally, adults after the age of 30s are suffering from different types of chronic diseases and the root cause of these diseases are unhealthy food habits.

Case report

Different data shows that chronic diseases are a leading cause of death globally with 70% of global deaths after 2015. Diabetes is the fourth after cardiovascular disease, cancer and respiratory diseases and is responsible for 1.6 million deaths globally. Out of total deaths worldwide, 80% of global diabetes deaths occur in low-income countries due to lack of awareness, undiagnosed and unhealthy food habits. Low income South Asian countries, such as Nepal, have seen a particularly rapid increase in the prevalence of diabetes in the past two decades. Now it is the time to educate people about the importance of optimal nutrition, food, and lifestyle in managing dietary disorders. Over-consumption and under-consumption of macro and micronutrients can cause various diseases. For example, protein deficiency can result in anemia, but the over intake can place more stress on the kidneys that could lead to a cause of renal deterioration. Similar cases were identified in the over or under consumption of different nutrients. From the identified issues above, solving the problem manually based on human decision is difficult and tedious.

Many studies have shown that changing eating behavior and lifestyle can lower the risk of having chronic diseases. The mission of the Sattwik Nutri-Food a Diet Therapy and Research Center is to motivate the people towards changing their lifestyle by providing customized food solutions with locally grown products with modern flavor of cooking and preparation. It has a mission to create an “environment of sustainable food system” that can create a chronic disease-free society.

A8. Microbial composition of milk fermented by designed and natural starter cultures

Remco kort 1,2,3 and wilbert sybesma 3, 1 a-life, vrije universiteit amsterdam, the netherlands; 2 artis-micropia, amsterdam, the netherlands; 3 yoba for life foundation, amsterdam, the netherlands, correspondence: remco kort ( [email protected] ).

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Clinical studies have shown that oral administration of the probiotic strain Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG, a human intestinal isolate, reduces the duration of acute infectious diarrhea, including rotavirus-associated diarrhea [1]. This study aims to elucidate the microbial composition of a variety of fermented milks and investigate the fermentative capacity of a designed starter culture serving as a vehicle allowing the propagation of this probiotic bacterium to confer intestinal health benefits.

We have designed a novel dried starter culture that surmounts the inability of the probiotic model strain Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG to grow in milk.

We have formulated a dried starter culture based on a proteolytic strain of Streptococcus thermophilus that enables the propagation of both strains in milk and other food matrices, including soy, millet and maize [2]. The affordable starter culture is currently used by people in resource-poor communities in Africa to ferment cow’s milk and cereals [3]. We have demonstrated that by using this starter culture, we could integrate health-promoting probiotics into a number of fermented food products. Hereto, we characterized the bacterial community composition of a naturally fermented milk product (lait caillé) from northern Senegal, prepared in wooden bowls (lahals) containing bacterial biofilm that serves as an inoculum for the fermentation process [4]. In addition, we have incorporated our probiotic starter culture containing Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG into the local fermentation process and demonstrated growth of this probiotic bacterium in several different food matrices [5].

We have set up an efficient and practical delivery method for probiotic bacteria in fermented foods by designing a novel starter culture with the potential to confer additional health benefits.

Szajewska H, Kołodziej M, Gieruszczak-Białek D, Skórka A, Ruszczyński M, Shamir R. Systematic review with meta-analysis: Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG for treating acute gastroenteritis in children - a 2019 update. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2019; 49:1376-1384.

Kort R, Westerik N, Mariela Serrano L, Douillard FP, Gottstein W, Mukisa IM, Tuijn CJ, Basten L, Hafkamp B, Meijer WC, Teusink B, de Vos WM, Reid G, Sybesma W. A novel consortium of Lactobacillus rhamnosus and Streptococcus thermophilus for increased access to functional fermented foods. Microb Cell Fact. 2015; 14:195

Reid G, Sybesma W, Matovu W, Onyango A, Westerik N, Kort R. Empowering women through probiotic fermented food in East Africa. J Glob Health. 2020; 10:010330.

Parker M, Zobrist S, Donahue C, Edick C, Mansen K, Hassan Zade Nadjari M, Heerikhuisen M, Sybesma W, Molenaar D, Diallo AM, Milani P, Kort R. Naturally fermented milk from Northern Senegal: Bacterial community composition and probiotic enrichment with Lactobacillus rhamnosus . Front Microbiol. 2018; 9:2218.

Wacoo AP, Mukisa IM, Meeme R, Byakika S, Wendiro D, Sybesma W, Kort R. Probiotic Enrichment and Reduction of Aflatoxins in a Traditional African Maize-Based Fermented Food. Nutrients. 2019; 11:265.

A9. Introducing cutting-edge technology to prevent and control neglected tropical diseases: how far we are?

Braulio m. valencia, viral and immunology systems program (visp), kirby institute, unsw, australia, correspondence: braulio m. valencia ( [email protected] ).

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Precision medicine, targeted therapy, or next-generation sequencing have been restricted to chronic communicable or non-communicable conditions mostly prevalent in developed countries. Technology improvement has considerably reduced costs and complexity, making cutting-edge technologies potentially accessible for low/middle-income settings and applicable to diverse medical conditions, including neglected tropical diseases. In this presentation, examples of cutting-edge applications and their applicability as standards of care in preventing and controlling selected neglected tropical diseases will be discussed.

A PubMed search including “point-of-care” and “infectious diseases” was conducted to identify cutting-edge and affordable technologies to diagnose infectious diseases and characterise biomarkers of severity and outcome.

Studies were mostly based on nucleic acid detection. Despite sample processing and duration were reported as considerably improved, these were pathogen-specific or restricted to locally prevalent pathogens. Few publications tested targeted diagnostic approaches for prevalent pathogens causing syndromic conditions (i.e. acute respiratory infections, STDs, acute gastro-enterocolitis). Only metagenomics was tested as an open-ended diagnostic approach assessed in syndromic conditions as community-acquired pneumonia and meningitis, endophthalmitis, diabetic foot samples, and sepsis. Accuracy and effectiveness, however, showed broad variability depending on the clinical specimen (i.e. respiratory secretions vs. whole blood) and the prevalent pathogens (i.e. bacterial vs. viral). Compared to other nucleic acid tests, metagenomics also demonstrated usefulness in identifying biomarkers of severity or treatment response as antimicrobial resistance or transcriptomic markers of severity. Depending of the specimen type, metagenomics is also suitable to identify host gene variants (i.e. IFN lambda 4 and direct-acting antivirals) previously associated with adverse outcomes.

Including metagenomics as a standard of care is feasible given its diverse applicability on diagnostics, biomarkers, and prognostic purposes. More investigation is required to improve nucleic acid recovery and threshold detection specially for viral pathogens and in heavily contaminated samples or with abundant host background.

A10. Metagenomic next generation sequencing and its utilization in context of public health in Nepal

Nishan katuwal 1 , rajeev shrestha 1,2, 1 molecular and genome sequencing research lab, dhulikhel hospital, kathmandu university hospital, dhulikhel, kavre, nepal; 2 department of pharmacology, kathmandu university school of medical sciences, dhulikhel, kavre, nepal, correspondence: nishan katuwal ( [email protected] ).

BMC Proceedings 2023 , 17(Suppl 3): A10

Metagenomic Next Generation Sequencing (mNGS) is a sequencing approach that allows to comprehensively sample all genetic material present in a given complex sample and compare the genetic material to a global database of all known pathogens, to identify which organisms are present. There are various applications to mNGS in diagnosing infectious diseases, outbreak tracking, infection surveillance, pathogen discovery and many more.

In the context of health, the identification of the causative agent behind any illness is important for developing effective clinical management strategies. However, the characterization of complex infections possess tremendous burden as such infections are difficult to culture and investigate in underdeveloped infrastructures. Additionally, the employment of molecular methods, such as PCR, require prior genetic information on the causative agents, for developing specific primers for detection. Metagenomic Next Generation Sequencing approach, on the other hand, can parallelly identify minute amounts of infections and coinfections, of varying origin in a single investigation. Instead of performing multiple targeted assays, each looking for a specific pathogen, metagenomic approach uses a single sequencing-based method that is capable of identifying most, if not all, microorganisms. It is a very sensitive and rapid method that can promptly assist the selection of treatment regimens for the disease.

Additionally, metagenomics has helped to elucidate strong correlation between antimicrobial resistance and microbiome through discovery of complex microbial communities and their components involved in antimicrobial resistance. It can also be utilized for identification of novel antimicrobial molecules by screening for microbial populations that possess antimicrobial activity against clinically relevant microorganisms.

In Nepal, where public health struggles with proper clinical management algorithms, findings from metagenomic next generation sequencing can provide vital information to the clinicians to develop treatment regimens against any infection and to the public health authorities to develop effective management strategies. Thus, metagenomic next generation sequencing is a vital tool for public health management that can investigate known or novel pathogens, outbreaks and complex diseases.

A11. Understanding the molecular basis for accurate cell division

Maria alba abad, arulanandam arockia jeyaprakash, wellcome centre for cell biology, university of edinburgh, edinburgh, eh9 3bf, united kingdom, correspondence: maria alba abad ( [email protected] ).

BMC Proceedings 2023 , 17(Suppl 3): A11

Cell division is an essential biological process important for the development, growth, and repair of all living organisms. During cell division, the genetic information organised in the form of chromosomes, must be equally distributed to the two newly formed daughter cells. Errors in cell division result in cells with an abnormal chromosome number which is often associated with birth defects and diseases like cancer. An extensive network of protein-protein interactions acting at the constricted region of the chromosomes, known as the centromere, is essential to achieve accurate cell division. Our work aims to understand the molecular mechanisms that ensure faithful chromosome segregation by studying the molecular and structural basis of key regulators and associated protein-protein interactions.

We use an interdisciplinary approach that involves the use of protein biochemistry, biophysical and structural techniques combined with cell biology.

The Chromosomal Passenger Complex (CPC; composed of Borealin, Survivin, INCENP and Aurora B kinase) is a key regulator of error-free chromosome segregation, and its function is tightly linked to its distinct localisation during cell division. During early stages of cell division, CPC localises at the centromere, where it regulates the attachment of chromosomes to the spindle microtubules and the timing of mitotic progression. We have deciphered the molecular basis for CPC interaction with: 1) nucleosomes, the structural unit of eukaryotic chromosomes, and revealed that this predominantly involves Borealin [1]; and 2) Shugoshin 1 (Sgo1), the protector of cohesion at the centromeric region of chromosomes, mediated via Survivin [2]. Disrupting Borealin-nucleosome or Survivin-Sgo1 interactions led to CPC mis-localisation and caused chromosome segregation defects.

Our work establishes that Borealin-nucleosome and Survivin-Sgo1 interactions are essential for proper chromosome association and function of the CPC, and thus for accurate chromosome segregation.

Abad MA, Ruppert JG, Bukuz L, Wear M, Zou J, Webb KM, Kelly DA, Voigt P, Rappsilber J, Earnshaw WC, Jeyaprakash AA. Borealin-nucleosome interaction secures chromosome association of the chromosomal passenger complex. J Cell Biol, 2019, 218 (12): 3912-3925.

Abad MA, Gupta T, Hadders MA, Meppelink A, Wopken JP, Blackburn E, Zou J, Gireesh A, Buzuk L, Kelly DA, McHugh T, Rappsilber J, Lens SMA, Jeyaprakash AA. Mechanistic basis for Sgo1-mediated centromere localization and function of the CPC. J Cell Biol, 2022, 221 (8): e202108156.

A12. Enzyme assay on paper-based analytical devices

Basant giri, center for analytical sciences, kathmandu institute of applied sciences, kathmandu, nepal, correspondence: basant giri ( [email protected] ).

BMC Proceedings 2023 , 17(Suppl 3): A12

Paper-based analytical devices (PADs) are promising low-cost and easy to use platforms for rapid on-site analysis. The PADs fulfil World Health Organization (WHO)’s ASSURED criteria for point of care (POC) devices. They have attracted increasing attention in the past decade because of their unique advantages.

The PADs are commonly fabricated using Whatman filter or chromatography paper or nitrocellulose paper. Colorimetric detection method is one of the widely used methods employed on PADs assays. Often the colorimetric PADs assays are combined with a smartphone for image acquisition and signal reading, analysis, and reporting of the results. The PADs platforms have been shown to be applicable in biomedical & clinical diagnostics, environmental analysis, food and water quality screening and many others. Enzymes assays have been widely employed in PADs methods for the determination of important target analytes such as creatinine, glucose, cancer biomarkers, human hormones, pesticides, food quality markers etc.

In this presentation, I will provide a brief overview of enzyme essays on PADs with examples. In addition, enzyme assays on PADs developed in our lab for the determination of pesticides and milk quality will be explained. One of the challenges of enzyme assays on PADs is the long-term storage of enzymes on the paper substrate at ambient environmental conditions which is essential in POC testing. To address the stability issue, we have developed a sandwich model to retain the activity of enzymes on paper substrates at ambient condition. I will conclude my talk with this sandwich model that helped us retain more than 80% enzyme activity for four months.

A13. EutM shell protein as building blocks for multifunctional biomaterials

Anaya pokhrel 1,2 , sun-young kang 1,2 , sara bratsch 1,2 , claudia schmidt-dannert 1,2, 1 department of biochemistry, molecular biology & biophysics, university of minnesota, minneapolis, mn, 55455, usa; 2 biotechnology institute, university of minnesota, st. paul, mn, 55108, usa, correspondence: claudia schmidt-dannert ( [email protected] ).

BMC Proceedings 2023 , 17(Suppl 3): A13

Bacterial microcompartments (BMCs) are protein-based organelles that encapsulate diverse metabolic pathways inside semipermeable, icosahedral or pseudo icosahedral shells. BMC shell is composed of modular self-assembling proteins, which are valuable targets for bioengineering. EutM shell protein serves as one of the major building blocks for Ethanolamine utilization BMC. EutM assembles as flat hexamers and purified recombinant EutM self-assembles to form 2D-scaffolds. EutM is highly amenable to engineering and tolerates the fusion of diverse N-terminal and C-terminal peptide tags and domains while still self-assembling into robust scaffolds. The EutM shell protein can therefore serve as excellent platform building blocks for the design of diverse functional protein-based nanomaterials.

In one recent application, we took advantage of the engineerability and self-assembling properties of this protein for the design of an extracellular protein matrix for the fabrication of a living biocomposite material capable of self-fabrication and regeneration. As a living component of the material, we engineered Bacillus subtilis to secrete self-assembling EutM scaffolds for functionalization, and cross-linking of cells. B. subtilis was engineered to display SpyTags on polar flagella for cell attachment to SpyCatcher modified secreted EutM scaffolds. A silica biomineralization peptide was genetically fused to EutM to form a silica material with enhanced mechanical properties. We showed that the resulting engineered living material (ELM) can be regenerated from a small piece of the cell containing biocomposite material and that new functions can be readily incorporated by co-cultivation of different engineered B. subtilis strains.

Our work serves as a framework for the future design of more resilient autonomous self-fabricating ELMs. Applications and prospects for EutM engineering in vitro and in vivo for synthetic biology and biotechnology will be discussed.

A14. Overview on genetics and genomics-based research on global health and environmental (biodiversity) studies in Nepal- from Tiger genetics, Aquatic biodiversity assessment using eDNA to viral discovery for determine emerging diseases

Dibesh karmacharya, 1 center for molecular dynamics-nepal (cmdn), biovac nepal and its consortium of research institutions, correspondence: dibesh karmacharya ( [email protected] ).

BMC Proceedings 2023 , 17(Suppl 3): A14

We conducted several genetics and genomics-based research to understand biodiversity and disease dynamics in Nepal through projects like the Nepal Tiger Genome Project [1], the Nepal Fish Biodiversity Project [2] and the PREDICT Nepal Project [3] (emerging disease research). The Nepal Tiger Genome Project (NTGP), a two-year (June 2011- 2013) research project, built a genetic database of wild Bengal tigers of Nepal. Nepal Fish Biodiversity Project (2016-2019) worked on building fresh water fish genetic databases by using novel environmental DNA (eDNA) based genomic tools. PREDICT was Nepal’s longest running One Health virus surveillance program (2012-2020). This project systematically collected human and animal samples from both rural and urban wildlife interfaces to detect, track, and understand the emergence of new zoonotic pathogens from wildlife and animals (livestock, poultry) that could pose a threat to human health.

With the NTGP, the Center for Molecular Dynamics Nepal (CMDN) built the necessary infrastructure and laboratory capacity to conduct conservation genetics work in Nepal. PCR and sequencing laboratory were set up to conduct Nepal’s first non-invasive based genetics study of the Bengal tigers. With the Nepal Fish Biodiversity project, CMDN built Nepal’s first genomics laboratory with installation of a next generation DNA sequencing machine. CMDN developed field and lab protocols to conduct environmental DNA assessment of river (fish) aquatic biodiversity, thereby profiling fish species from 2 different major river systems. CMDN also developed non-invasive viral discovery molecular techniques to understand emerging diseases in collaboration with the University of California-Davis.

Using non-invasive genetics through NTGP, Nepal was able to build the region's first comprehensive Bengal tiger genetic database, giving greater understanding of tiger’s population size, sub-population interactions and gene flow and providing molecular forensic capability to track poached tiger parts by assessing their source of origin. We were able to develop eDNA technology to detect and identify fish species using just water samples; we now have an extensive fish species database of two major river systems of Nepal. This information is now being used to do environmental impact assessment for hydropower development. We conducted seasonal, concurrent sampling of animals and humans in rural and urban communities as well as year-round, hospital-based syndromic sampling in clinical patients of Nepal. Altogether, 26,217 samples were collected from 3,293 animals (bats, birds, rodents and nonhuman primates) and 2,048 humans during eight years of the project. These samples were screened for five viral families—paramyxo, corona-, influenza, filo, and flaviviruses. We were able to detect 119 unique RNA viruses that could potentially cause diseases in humans.

Nepal Tiger Genome Project, 2013, Center for Molecular Dynamics Nepal

Nepal Fish Biodiversity Project, 2019, Center for Molecular Dynamics Nepal

PREDICT Nepal Project, 2020, Center for Molecular Dynamics Nepal, UC Davis

A15. Tryptophan-like fluorescence (TLF) for real-time detection in drinking and environmental water samples in Nepal

Anusa thapa 1 , suvechhya bastola 1,2 , sishir gautam 1 , sanket bohora 1 , prashant waiba 1 , rijan maharjan 1 , prajwal rajbhandari 2 , thomas krauss 3 , ashim dhakal 1, 1 biophotonics lab, phutung research institute, tarakeshor-7, kathmandu, 44611, nepal; 2 department of applied microbiology and food technology, research institute for bioscience and biotechnology, kathmandu, nepal; 3 department of physics,university of york, york yo10 5dd, uk, correspondence: anusa thapa ( [email protected] ).

BMC Proceedings 2023 , 17(Suppl 3): A15

A real-time, portable and low-cost detection method for the detection of fecal contamination in drinking water has been in demand, especially in developing countries. Studies [1,2] have demonstrated correlation between the intensity of Tryptophan-like Fluorescence (TLF, Excitation/Emission = 280 nm / 350 nm) from environmental water samples to the number of colony forming units (CFUs) of TTCs (thermotolerant coliforms) present in the water sample. In this work, we validate that TLF-fluorometry is applicable for detection of fecal contamination for the range of water samples collected from various important sources in the Kathmandu valley by analyzing their microbiological and UV-fluorescence properties.

Material and methods

We collected 157 randomized water samples from the Kathmandu valley. Samples from the river water (58), underground water (24), refill jar water (21), mineral bottled water (25), lab-grade water (6) and municipal-supplied household water (23) were tested for their respective TLF (ppb) and number of TTC (CFU/100mL).

We were able to classify the corresponding range of TLF in the WHO risk level for fecal contamination, TTCs (CFU/100ml). For the respective low-risk, intermediate, high and very high-risk WHO risk categories, we observed the mean TLF (ppb) of 2.9, 9.6, 12.3 and 155.4 with corresponding standard deviations 4.2, 13.8, 20.0 and 212.5.

We provide the range of TLF measurements for classifying water samples from Kathmandu Valley according to WHO risk categories with a confidence level of 68% .

We would like to thank Nepal Academy of Science and Technology (NAST), Biotechnology Department, for providing us with Milli Q lab grade water. This work was supported by EPSRC’s GCRF Grant # EP/T020008/1 & EP/W524165/1.

Cumberland S, Bridgeman J, Baker A, Sterling M, Ward D. Fluorescence spectroscopy as a tool for determining microbial quality in potable water applications. Environmental technology. 2012 Mar 1;33(6):687-93.

Sorensen JP, Baker A, Cumberland SA, Lapworth DJ, MacDonald AM, Pedley S, Taylor RG, Ward JS. Real-time detection of faecally contaminated drinking water with tryptophan-like fluorescence: defining threshold values. Science of the Total Environment. 2018 May 1; 622:1250-7

A16. Antibiotic resistance surveillance and molecular characterization of ESBL and Carbapenemase genes present in bacteria isolated from fruits and vegetables sold in Kathmandu

Jenny shah 1,2 , ashish bhusal 1,2 , bishnu marasini 2 , era tuladhar 2 , mitesh shrestha 1, 1 department of applied microbiology and food technology, research institute for bioscience and biotechnology, kathmandu, nepal; 2 national college, khusibu, kathmandu, nepal, correspondence: mitesh shrestha ( [email protected] ).

BMC Proceedings 2023 , 17(Suppl 3): A16

Antibiotic resistance has become a global threat. Resistant bacteria can spread between individuals, animals, and the environment. Foods can serve as a vehicle for transmitting antibiotic resistant bacteria, especially the fresh fruits and vegetables which are often eaten raw can become a source for food borne illness.

A total of 40 samples including fresh fruits and vegetables were collected from vendors around ten major hospitals and seven major market places in Kathmandu. Samples were transported in sterile condition to the laboratory where they were washed with MRD (Maximum Recovery Diluent) separately, followed by 3 hrs. incubation. Bacteria were then isolated by using spread plate technique in MacConkey and VRBG (violet red bile glucose) agar. Gram staining followed by different biochemical tests were performed for the preliminary identification of bacteria. Antimicrobial susceptibility test was done using twenty different antibiotic discs by disk diffusion method. Polymerase chain reaction was carried out for the detection of ESBL and Carbapenem genes.

Of the 162 isolates from different samples, 60 (37%) were identified as ESBL producers and 7 (4%) were identified as carbapenemase producers. Among these, blaTEM (19), blaSHV(2), blaOXA(2), blaIMP(1) and blaNDM(1) were found.

In conclusion, fresh produce and fruits could be one of the potential sources for transmission of antibiotic resistant bacterial pathogens.

The study was supported by the International Foundation for Science (IFS).

A17. Nanophotonic waveguide integrated evanescent upconversion spectroscopy for biomedical applications

Ankit poudel, pravin bhattarai, rijan maharjan, ashim dhakal, 1 phutung research institute, kathmandu, nepal, correspondence: ashim dhakal ( [email protected] ).

BMC Proceedings 2023 , 17(Suppl 3): A17

Enormous progress has been made in demonstrating various applications of nanophotonics. This emerging application of PICs demands a broad optical wavelength range. SiN waveguide system has proven to be the prominent candidate in that regard [1]. Furthermore, nanophotonic waveguide enhanced Raman spectroscopy has recently been demonstrated [2]. Nanophotonic waveguides can be used to evanescently excite and collect upconverted signals. Fascination of upconversion in Rubrene molecules [3] at near infrared (NIR) wavelengths makes it an ideal choice for analysis.

Devices and methods

We designed nanophotonic circuits optimized for SiN as core material and SiO 2 as substrate with refractive index(n) 2.05 and 1.45 respectively, keeping the upper surface open. We conducted a modal analysis using the Finite Difference Eigenmode (FDE) solver for optimization.

Theoretical analysis

In nanophotonic waveguides, confinement of light in a sub-nanoscale enhances the spontaneous emission rate of particles which are in close proximity, suggested by E. M. Purcell in 1946 [4]. Using this as a fundamental principle we calculate the specific conversion efficiency μ 0 of the waveguide.

The specific conversion efficiency (μ 0 ) calculated on top of the cladding with a function of increasing width of the waveguide. μ 0 decreases with the increasing width of the waveguide which corresponds to the increasing model confinement of the field in the core region thereby decreasing the evanescent field interaction with the analyte. Also, the TM polarized mode generally performs better than the TE polarized mode leading to a higher evanescent interaction with the analyte.

Here we have devised a theoretical and experimental model for the evanescent upconversion in SiN nanophotonic waveguides. We used FDTD simulation interface to achieve accurate simulation of SiNOI circuit passive components. We used a cross section of 300 x 520 nm 2 SiN waveguide for λ 0 = 800 nm. We anticipate that this type of device can add new functionality to the silicon photonics ’tool-kit’ for various biosensing applications.

Blumenthal J. D, Heideman R, Geuzebroek D, Leinse A and Roeloffzen C. Silicon Nitride in Silicon Photonics, in Proceedings of the IEEE, 106, no. 12, pp. 2209-2231, Dec. 2018, doi: 10.1109/JPROC.2018.2861576.

Dhakal A. Nanophotonic Waveguide Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy, Ghent University. Ghent, 2015-2016.

Cheng Y. Y, Khoury T, Clady G. R, Tayebjee M. J, Ekins-Daukes J. N, Crossley M. J, & Schmidt T. W. On the efficiency limit of triplet–triplet annihilation for photochemical upconversion, Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics, 12(1), 66-71, 2010.

Purcell M. E. Proceedings of the American Physical Society: Spontaneous Emission Probabilities at Radio Frequencies, Physical Review. American Physical Society (APS), 1946.

A18. Extract of C. parqui reduces the proliferation of triple negative breast cancer cells MDA-MB-231 in vitro

Asbin b. chand 1 , pragati pradhan 1 , deena shrestha 2 , bijay bajracharya 2 , rajani malla 1 , roshan lal shrestha 2 , jivan shakya 3, 1 central department of biotechnology, tribhuvan university, kirtipur, nepal; 2 centre for health and disease studies, kathmandu, nepal; 3 central department of microbiology, tribhuvan university, kirtipur, nepal, correspondence: asbin b. chand ( [email protected] ).

BMC Proceedings 2023 , 17(Suppl 3): A18

There has been a constant demand for targeted therapies against cancers as cancer represents a global burden to both the health system and economy [1]. Most clinically used anticancer drugs trigger cytotoxicity through apoptosis, DNA damage, genome instability and mitotic catastrophe. Nepal’s diverse ecological landscape is favorable for many medicinal plants rich in a diverse range of compounds that may have anti-cancer effects. Thus, we screened selected medicinal plants of Nepal for their anticancer efficacy.

Plant samples were collected from various regions of Nepal. Crude methanolic extracts were prepared from dried leaf parts and vacuum evaporated for storage until further experiments. Qualitative phytochemical screening followed by quantitative estimation of total flavonoid content (TFC), total phenolic content (TPC) and antioxidant property were carried out using standard protocols. Cell proliferation inhibition assay was used for cytotoxicity assay and Annexin V positive cells were sorted using FACSCalibur. Triple Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC) cell line, MDA-MB-231 was used as a cell line modal.

Quantitative estimation yielded the highest concentration of TPC in Eucalyptus alba bark extract (422.37 ±9.34 mgGAE/gm crude extract). Similarly, quantitative estimation of TFC yielded its highest concentration in Ageratina adenophora (156.94±0.7 mgQE/g crude extract). Anti-inflammatory potential was assessed by DPPH free radical scavenging activity and showed that Eucalyptus alba bark extracts had IC 50 value as low as 0.046 mg/mL. However, few plant extracts such as Solanum nigrum and Cestrum parqui (C.parqui) did not show DPPH radical scavenging activity. While treatment with C. parqui extract inhibited proliferation of MDA-MB-231 cells by more than 50%, other plant extracts had null effects on cell proliferation. Interestingly, treatment with extract from Tinospora cordifolia showed enhanced cell proliferation. In accordance with the cell proliferation inhibition results, C. parqui induced the highest percentage of cell death via apoptosis (68.7%) at 24 hrs which upon prolonged co-incubation proceeded to necrosis. Similarly, E. alba leaf extract also induced apoptosis in approx. 61.7% of the MDA-MB-231 cells during 24hrs co-incubation which proceeded to necrosis upon prolonged co-incubation.

We conclude that high flavonoid compounds do not correlate with reduced cell proliferation in TNBC cells. C. parqui and E. alba leaf extracts were found to inhibit cell proliferation significantly. Surprisingly, this study demonstrated that the Tinospora cordifolia methanolic extract stimulates cell proliferation by more than 40%. Currently, we are investigating the active compound responsible for inducing cell death in C. parqui extract.

The work was supported by The World Academy of Sciences, Grant no. 19-281 RG/BIO/AS_G.

Bray, F., Ferlay, J., Soerjomataram, I., Siegel, R. L., Torre, L. A., & Jemal, A. (2018). Global cancer statistics 2018: GLOBOCAN estimates of incidence and mortality worldwide for 36 cancers in 185 countries. CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians , 68 (6), 394–424. https://doi.org/10.3322/caac.21492 .

A19. In-vitro insecticidal activities of native Bacillus thuringiensis combinations against the tomato leaf miner, Tuta absoluta

Bibechana dhital 1,2 , kushal thapa 1,2 , bishnu marasini 2 , era tuladhar 2 , mitesh shrestha 1, 1 department of applied microbiology and food technology, research institute for bioscience and biotechnology, kathmandu, nepal; 2 national college, kathmandu, nepal.

BMC Proceedings 2023 , 17(Suppl 3): A19

Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) is one of the most used microbial control agents for commercially important agricultural insect pests owing to its highly efficient insecticidal property and safety in use. Cry proteins are one of the primary proteins responsible for its insecticidal properties. The purpose of this study was to analyse insecticidal activities of native Bt against common insect pests like tomato leaf miners ( Tuta absoluta ).

To this end, one hundred and forty-four soil samples were collected from various parts of Nepal for Bt isolation. From these, 12 isolates were confirmed as Bt based on their colony characteristics, gram staining, endospore staining, observation of crystal proteins when stained with amido black and 16s rRNA sequencing. Crystal protein diversity was observed through SDS-PAGE. Compatibility assay was carried out to develop combinations of bacteria that would be used for insecticidal assay. In this way, four (three non-redundant and one with repeated bacteria) combinations were made, each containing four bacterial isolates.

Varied results were obtained for each of the combinations for insecticidal assay, with highest (80 %) mortality being observed for Combination 1.

Hence, we can conclude that the combination of different strains of Bt had a synergistic effect on insect mortality, which could help us to address the rising resistance of the insects against the most preferred single bacteria method.

The study was supported by Applied Microbiology International (formerly Society for Applied Microbiology).

A20. Phytochemical assessment by GC-MS and pharmacological potentials: comparative study of Allium hypsistum and Allium przewalskanium

Deepak kumar shrestha, ajay singh, department of chemistry, school of applied & life sciences, uttaranchal university, dehradun, uttarakhand, india-248007, correspondence: deepak kumar shrestha ( [email protected] ).

BMC Proceedings 2023 , 17(Suppl 3): A20

Allium hypsistum (common name-jimbu) and Allium przewalskanium (common name-lamboo) are popular herbs which are commonly used spices and traditional medicines in high altitude area of Nepal, India and China; however, chemical profiling and experimental therapeutic evidence are still unsettled [1]. This study is focused to assess chemical constituents and selected pharmacological properties- antidiabetic, lipid lowering and antioxidant activities of ethanolic extracts of Allium hypsistum (EEAH ) and Allium przewalskanium (EEAP).

The aerial parts of the plants collected shade dried for 15 to 21 days at RT. The extracts were prepared from soxhlet extraction method and their GC-MS analysis was carried out using Agilent 7890A GC-Agilent 5975C inert MSD with triple axis detector [2]. Antidiabetic and lipid lowering activities were evaluated by daily exposure of 500mg/kg body weight of the extracts in streptozotocin (STZ) induced diabetic albino mice. The fasting blood glucose level (BGL) was measured after 72hrs of STZ administration (baseline) and, at 7th day and 14th day from the baseline. The lipid profiling (total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), high density lipoprotein (HDL), low density lipoprotein (LDL) and very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL)) was estimated at 14th day [3, 4]. Further, in vitro antioxidant activities of the extracts were measured by their TPC (Folin-Ciocalteu assay) and % RSA (DPHH scavenging assay) [5].

GC-MS analysis of EEAH detected six different compounds; phenol- 2,4-bis (1,1-dimethylethyl), 2-fluoro-5- (trifluoromethyl) acetophenone, 2,4,5,5, 8a-Pentamethyl-6,7,8,8a-tetrahydro-5H-chromene, didodecyl phthalate, phthalic acid- ethyl pentyl ester and phthalic acid-isopropyl propyl ester. Simultaneously, three compounds were identified in EEAP, they are; methyl salicylate, toluene and cylclobutene-2-propenylidene. Some of these compounds were already illustrated with their pharmacological activities in previous study [6], however, 2-fluoro-5- (trifluoromethyl) acetophenone, didodecyl phthalate, phthalic acid-isopropyl propyl ester and cylclobutene-2-propenylidene are not well studied for their pharmacological applications. In both EEAH and EEAP, there were significantly decreased ( p <0.01) in blood glucose level (BGL) of diabetic induced mice at 7 th and 14 th day exposure. On the 7th day, EEAH showed 37.04% reduction whereas EEAP showed 26.92% reduction in BGL. Similarly, on the 14th day, 51.41% reduction by EEAH and 36.70% reduction by EEAP were observed in BGL. Moreover, exposure of EEAH and EEAP to the diabetic mice till 14 th day, serum lipid profiles (TC, TG, HDL, LDL and VLDL) were found to be improved while comparing with the control groups of mice (diabetic control and normal control). In vitro antioxidants, TPC were found to be 172±9.23 mgGAE/100mg in EEAH which was significantly higher ( p <0.01) than EEAP (122±1.15 mgGAE/100mg). Similarly, DPPH activity of EEAH (59.44±1.27%RSA) was found significantly higher (( p <0.01) than EEAP (39.53±0.42).

From GC-MS analysis, some promising chemical constituents with the pharmacological activities were identified in EEAH and EEAP; however, some of them are still unknown for their pharmacological roles. Both extracts showed significant reduction in BGL and improvement of lipid profile in diabetic induced mice. Similarly, the extracts exhibited in vitro antioxidant activities. Interestingly, EEAH showed significantly higher pharmacological potentials than EEAP. Hence, both EEAH and EEAP were found to be promising sources for phytomedicine with their pharmacological activities.

Nepal, R.c., Status, Use and Management of Jimbu (Allium spp.):A Case Study from Upper Mustang, Nepal. 2006

Olivia, N.U., U.C. Goodness, and O.M. Obinna, Phytochemical profiling and GC-MS analysis of aqueous methanol fraction of Hibiscus asper leaves. Future Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences, 2021. 7(1): p. 59.

Srivastava, A.K., A. Mukerjee, and A. Tripathi, Antidiabetic and antihyperlipidemic activities of Cucumis melo var. momordica fruit extract on experimental animals. Future Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences, 2020. 6(1): p. 92.

Pochhi, M., Evaluation of Antidiabetic potential and Hypolipidemic activity of Coccinia indica (leaves) in Diabetic Albino rats. Asian Journal of Medical Sciences, 2019. 10(4): p. 49-54.

Chernukha, I., et al., Antioxidant effect of ethanolic onion (Allium cepa) husk extract in ageing rats. Saudi Journal of Biological Sciences, 2021. 28(5): p. 2877-2885.

Miri, S.M. and A. Roughani. Allium species growing in Iran: Chemical compositions and pharmacological activity. in Proceedings of the First National Congress and International Fair of Medicinal Plants and Strategies for Persian Medicine that Affect Diabetes, October. 2018.

A21. DNA barcoding of coffee varieties grown at coffee development center, Gulmi, Nepal using ITS2 gene sequence

Shreejan pokharel 1 , samsher basnet 2 , anish basnet 3 , ashmita mainali 3 , sadikshya rijal 3 , asmita shrestha 3 , gyanu raj pandey 3, 1 national biotechnology research center, national agricultural research council, lalitpur, nepal; 2 national entomology research center, national agricultural research council, lalitpur, nepal; 3 shubham biotech nepal pvt. ltd., bharatpur-29, chitwan, nepal, correspondence: gyanu raj pandey ( [email protected] ).

BMC Proceedings 2023 , 17(Suppl 3): A21

Nepali coffee is labeled as specialty coffee in several foreign markets and is noted for its organic certification and fair-trade practices [1]. Despite the long history of coffee plantations in Nepal, the taxonomic study has not been conducted to date, and genetic diversity is unknown. Instead of the conventional method of identification based on morphological characteristics, the most efficient method which can be used for species identification is the molecular method involving a short sequence known as barcode. ITS (internal transcribed spacer) region of nuclear ribosomal cistron shows a high level of intra-specific variability and thus, is often used for intra-specific discrimination in angiosperms [2].

Young coffee leaves samples (n=25) were collected from the Coffee Development Centre (CDC) and stored in poly bags at -80 °C for DNA extraction. DNA was extracted using Doyle and Doyle method [3] with some optimizations. Extracted DNA was evaluated by using 0.8% agarose gel electrophoresis at 70 V for 1 hr. ITS region of extracted DNA was amplified by using PCR and sequencing was carried out using a sequencing primer. Pairwise comparisons of obtained sequences were performed using the maximum likelihood method model and analyzed in MEGA X.

The BLASTN analysis showed that the coffee samples (n=25) had 100% similarity to C. Arabica. There were three major cultivars of C. Arabica ; Typica, Bourbon, and near to Java and Typica.

In this study, Maximum-likelihood phylogenetic Tree generated from ITS sequence data has been successful in discriminating the coffee species. We recommend researchers to use ITS as a phylogeny reconstruction tool for intra-species discrimination in coffee samples.

Acknowledgment

The authors thankfully acknowledge Coffee Development Center for providing the research funding and Shubham Biotech Nepal Pvt. Ltd.for supporting with research facilities and space.

National Tea and Coffee Development Board: Government of Nepal. (2022). [https://www.teacoffee.gov.np/]

Kress, W., Wurdack, K., Zimmer, E., Weigt, L., & Janzen, D. (2005). Use of DNA barcodes to identify flowering plants. Proceedings Of The National Academy Of Sciences , 102 (23), 8369-8374. doi: 10.1073/pnas.0503123102.

J. J. Doyle and J. L. Doyle, “Doyle_plantDNAextractCTAB_1987.pdf,” Phytochemical Bulletin, vol. 19, no. 1. pp. 11–15, 1987.

A22. Valorization of whey-rich dairy wastewater by microalgae cultivation

Basanta k chaudhary 1,2 , bibek c mahaseth 1,2 , kamana dawadi 1,2 , lochan pandeya 1,2 , nasla shakya 1 , sanjaya lama 1, 1 department of plant physiology and environmental sciences, research institute for bioscience and biotechnology, kathmandu, nepal; 2 kantipur valley college, kumaripati, lalitpur, nepal, correspondence: sanjaya lama ( [email protected] ).

BMC Proceedings 2023 , 17(Suppl 3): A22

Microalgae are highly diverse, rapidly proliferating, photosynthetic, aquatic microbes with cell biomass rich in carbohydrates, protein, lipids and various other bioactive molecules of commercial interest [1, 2]. The primary microalgae-based biorefinery process includes; species-strain selection, cultivation, harvesting, and processing into targeted products [1, 3]. The cultivation stage significantly contributes to the total cost of biorefinery [4]. The growth medium is one of the crucial cultivation parameters that can be optimized to reduce production costs [2]. One of the emerging studies to achieve the sustainability of large-scale production involve nutrient recovery from the waste resources such as nutrient-loaded wastewater [5].

This study investigated the growth of microalga Chlorella sp. (obtained from RIBB culture collection) in cheese whey compared to standard Bold’s Basal Medium (BBM). The cheese whey was obtained from the local dairy farm, which is generally discarded or underutilized as a waste by-product. The optimum growth (based on cell counting and total chlorophyll content) analogous to BBM was observed in 20 % (v/v) diluted cheese whey (CW). The dry cell weights of 0.80 g/L and 0.69 g/L were obtained for CW and BBM on the 12 th day of culture. The growth characteristics in CW were replicated in scale-up (18 L) batch cultivation. The Chlorella sp. biomass from the scale-up culture was harvested and dried to obtain a fine-grained dry powder. The dry biomass was supplemented (1 % and 2 % (w/v)) in the MRS media used for the culture of Lactobacillus sp. (obtained from RIBB culture collection). The supplementation of Chlorella sp. dry biomass (2 % (w/v)) enhanced the growth of the Lactobacillus sp. A higher growth rate (0.09 hr -1 ) and shorter doubling time (8.15 hr) were observed in Chlorella- supplemented MRS compared to MRS alone (0.07 hr -1 and 10.57 hr). Additionally, high β-galactosidase activity was detected in the dry Chlorella -supplemented Lactobacillus culture. Thus, this study explored the potential of resource recovery from the dairy waste stream for the microalgal cultivation and application of the biomass to enhance the growth of industrially important probiotic species such as Lactobacillus .

Foley PM, Beach ES, Zimmerman JB. Algae as a source of renewable chemicals: opportunities and challenges. Green Chemistry. 2011;13(6):1399-405.

Rizwan M, Mujtaba G, Memon SA, Lee K, Rashid N. Exploring the potential of microalgae for new biotechnology applications and beyond: A review. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 2018; 92:394-404.

Gifuni I, Pollio A, Safi C, Marzocchella A, Olivieri G. Current Bottlenecks and Challenges of the Microalgal Biorefinery. Trends in Biotechnology. 2019;37(3):242-52.

Daneshvar E, Sik Ok Y, Tavakoli S, Sarkar B, Shaheen SM, Hong H, et al. Insights into upstream processing of microalgae: A review. Bioresource Technology. 2021; 329:124870.

Li K, Liu Q, Fang F, Luo R, Lu Q, Zhou W, et al. Microalgae-based wastewater treatment for nutrients recovery: A review. Bioresource Technology. 2019;291:121934.

A23. Bacillus cereus in ready-to-eat foods available in Kathmandu

Charu arjyal 1 , sagarika manandhar 2, 1 department of microbiology, padma kanya multiple campus, tribhuvan university, kirtipur, nepal; 2 department of microbiology, tri-chandra multiple campus, tribhuvan university, kirtipur, nepal, correspondence: charu arjyal ( [email protected] ).

BMC Proceedings 2023 , 17(Suppl 3): A23

The food items that do not need to be prepared significantly except reheating or completing the cooking procedure are referred to as ready-to-eat foods [1]. Like other food items, ready-to-eat food items can also harbor microorganisms and can cause the transmission of foodborne microorganisms into the human body, if not handled and stored properly. Bacillus cereus is more known to cause ‘fried rice syndrome’, along with different types of food poisoning caused by the emetic toxin or enterotoxin producing microorganism [2]. The aim of this study was to assess the ready-to-eat food samples available in Kathmandu and detect if Bacillus cereus were present.

The study period was from February 2021 to January 2022 during which the convenient sampling method was employed to collect 240 ready-to-eat food samples from different food outlets in Kathmandu. The food samples were grouped into three main categories- rice dishes (plain rice, fried rice, biryani), bakery items (pizza base, patties, and other bread items), and dairy items (cheese, cream, yogurt). The samples were processed following the standard microbiological procedures and the bacterial isolates were identified as Bacillus cereus with the help of different biochemical tests.

Out of 240 food samples (80 each from the three categories) analyzed, 40% of the samples showed the presence of Bacillus cereus and was most prevalent in bakery items followed by rice dishes and dairy items (50%, 42.5%, and 28% of the samples tested showed the presence of Bacillus cereus respectively). One of the Bacillus cereus isolates was an emetic toxin-producing type as detected from the phenotypic analysis. The contamination of Bacillus cereus ranged from 1.64 log cfu/g (colony forming units/gram) to 6.83 log cfu/g and 20.8% of ready-to-eat food samples were found to be potentially hazardous (>5 log cfu/g), because of the potential toxin-producing ability of the contaminant bacteria.

It is therefore imperative to maintain appropriate standards during the preparation, packaging, storage, and transport and regular monitoring of ready-to-eat food items to prevent any food poisoning incidents.

This research was funded by the University Grants Commission, Nepal as part of a Small RDI (Research, Development and Innovation) Grant, 2076-77, SRDIG-76/77-S&T-4. The authors are grateful to the Departments of Microbiology, Padma Kanya Multiple Campus and Tri-Chandra Multiple Campus and to Mr. Saroj Paudel of Nepalese Farming Institute, Kathmandu.

Food Safety Authority of Ireland. Guidelines for the interpretation of results of microbiological testing of ready-to-eat foods placed in the market; 2020. 3p. ISBN: 0-9539183-5-1

Ross, R. Live Science [Internet]. New York: Future US, Inc.; 2019 [Updated 2019 May 1; cited 2021 May 26]. Available from https://www.livescience.com/65374-bacillus-cereus-fried-rice-syndrome.html

A24. Co-circulation of Orientia tsutsugamushi , Anaplasma , and Leptospira bacteria among febrile patients in southern Nepal

Adesh baral 1 , prakriti karki 1 , minu singh 1 , binod rayamajhee 1 , pradeep oli 2 , anurag adhikari 1, 1 kathmandu research institute for biological sciences, lalitpur, nepal; 2 sagarmatha diagnostic and polyclinic, nepalgunj, bheri, correspondence: anurag adhikari ( [email protected] ).

BMC Proceedings 2023 , 17(Suppl 3): A24

In Nepal, febrile illness is one of the most common reasons for seeking medical attention. However, the limited capacity of diagnostic and microbiological laboratory facilities thus results in many unreported cases of fever with unknown origin. Among the reported febrile cases, the Malaria, Dengue and Salmonella are among the top diagnosis, whereas recently the tick-borne pathogens including the Rickettsia spp. (typhus) has been attributed to a significant fraction of such diagnoses in Nepal. This study aims to utilize a polymerase chain reaction-based assay to identify the circulating tick-borne pathogens among febrile patients from South-West Nepal.

This study utilized Malaria, Dengue, and Salmonella negative acute febrile patient’s whole venous blood to extract, amplify and partially sequence the 47kDa and 56kDa region of Orientia tsutsugamushi , groEL gene of Anaplasma , and rpoB gene of Leptospira to identify the contemporary phylogenomic of these tick-borne bacteria. Then, the phylogenetic tree construction and analysis of the sequenced genes were done using Mega-X software.

Among thirty-six febrile participants in the study, 16 were positive for O. tsutsugamushi 47kDa in-house PCR, however, only 14 were positive for O. tsutsugamushi 56kDa in-house PCR. Among thirty-six suspected patients for typhus, all patients’ samples 36/36 were positive for Scrub Typhus Detect TM IgM Rapid Test. Among the total febrile patients, two patients tested positive for Anaplasma sp. groEL gene PCR (2/36), and also two of those patients were positive for Leptospira sp. rpoB gene PCR. The phylogenetic analysis of the partial genome of O. tsutsugamushi 47kDa gene (GenBank accession: OL770337-OL770352) showed a close relation with Karp-UK strain (14/16), as well with CRF93-Thailand strain (1/16), and Karp-Thailand strain (1/16). Similarly, phylogenetic analysis of O. tsutsugamushi 56kDa gene (GenBank accession: OL770323-OL770336) showed close relation with Gilliam-Bangladesh strain (5/14), Karp-Bangladesh strain (4/14), Gilliam-UK strain (2/14), Shimokoshi-Taiwan strain (2/14), and with Vietnam strain (1/14). We also show that the patient derived groEL gene of Anaplasma (GenBank accession: OL770355 -OL770356) was closely related to D-GB-gro-8-South Korea strain (2/2), and rpoB gene of Leptospira (GenBank accession: OL770353-OL770354) was closely related to Linhai 56609-China strain (2/2 of the patients).

This study shows for the first time that the Karp, Gilliam, and Shimokoshi strains of Orientia tsutsugamushi are circulating in southern Nepal. Additionally, this is the first study to identify the co-presence of Anaplasma , and Leptospira in the febrile symptomatic patient. Further genotype and serotype screening study for these bacteria among febrile patients is a current need so as to identify the tick-borne bacterial disease burden among Nepalese population.

A25. Adsorption of Dimethylarsinic acid (DMA) from aqueous solution on iron aluminum-based adsorbents

Naina byanjankar, tista prasai joshi, environment and climate study laboratory, faculty of science, nepal academy of science and technology, khumaltar, lalitpur, nepal, correspondence: naina byanjankar ( [email protected] ).

BMC Proceedings 2023 , 17(Suppl 3): A25

The involvement of anthropogenic activities including mining and application of pesticides in agricultural fields has been a contributing factor for increasing the concentration of methylated arsenic in water sources, posing a serious threat to the environment and human health. Therefore, removal of methylated arsenic from water applying an efficient method is required. Treatment of water using adsorption techniques has been mostly used being cost-effective, the release of the low amount of residues, easy operation and regeneration capability. The study was carried out with the objective of preparing an iron aluminum-based adsorbent for the adsorption of dimethylarsinic acid from an aqueous solution.

The adsorbent prepared were characterized using X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), zeta potential, and particle size to determine their structural properties. The adsorption capacity of the prepared adsorbent was determined by application of adsorption kinetics, adsorption isotherm, and effect of pH which was compared with single metal oxide alumina.

The XRD pattern of Fe-Al showed few crystalline peaks indicating the adsorbent to be slightly crystalline whereas alumina was amorphous in nature. The results of the adsorption isotherm showed the adsorption capacity of Fe-Al and alumina increased with the increasing concentration of DMA. The adsorption capacity of Fe-Al and alumina was found to be 2.44 mg/g and 1.33 mg/g respectively. The adsorption of DMA increased rapidly in the initial stage and slowed down with increasing time periods. Adsorption of DMA onto Fe-Al and alumina was more favorable at pH 5.0 and pH 6.0 respectively. The interaction characteristics of DMA and adsorbents were analyzed by applying FTIR analysis.

Fe-Al showed higher removal capacity than alumina thus Fe-AL adsorbent could be effective for the removal of DMA from aqueous solution.

A26. Low-cost Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) technology for the detection of DNA amplicons

Prashant waiba 1 , pravin bhattarai 1 , mitesh shrestha 2 , ashim dhakal 1, 1 phutung research institute, kathmandu, nepal; 2 department of applied microbiology and food technology, research institute for bioscience and biotechnology, kathmandu, nepal.

BMC Proceedings 2023 , 17(Suppl 3): A26

The design of Pagoda PCR is gleaned from the OpenPCR concept. The reliability of PCR results is dependent on how precisely the intended amplicons are amplified during the thermocycling process [1]. In Pagoda PCR, a single Peltier module is used with a commonly available CPU cooler fan to heat and cool the thermal block during heating and cooling cycles while, and a separate heating strip on the lid ramps up the temperature to 200°C. A simple desktop interface is developed using html and linked to ESP8266 WIFI module through Arduino IDE, so that any computer connected to the device defined IP address can access the console which enables the user manually set the PCR protocols.

Key systems driving the temperature regulation include a Hebei TEC1-12710HTS Peltier module, resistive heating element, and a cooling fan from a commercial PC. The temperature control system of the device includes an aluminum thermal block which was heated and cooled with a PID loop [2], with instant temperature measurement performed with an NTC thermistor. The temperature is also controlled efficiently by the lid which prevents the water condensation on the lid, and evaporation of samples.

Results and discussion

A test of four samples was run for ITS1/4 gene amplification. The protocol in the machine was set to Initial Denaturation at 95°C for 2 min followed by 35 cycles of Denaturation at 95°C /30 sec; Annealing at 56°C/50 sec, and Extension at 73 °C/140 sec. Then, a final extension was performed for 5 minutes at 73°C, ending with a 4°C hold. After the thermocycling, the amplified product was separated in Agarose Gel Electrophoresis (1%) along with a reference ladder DNA (N3231S). An amplicon of size 700bp was visualized under UV transilluminator which validated the reliability of PagodaPCR performance as a thermocycler.

Nepal Academy of Science and Technology, Research Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology, NinjaPCR, Pawan Bioscientific, and Mr. Suman Basnet.

WEIER HEINZULRICH, GRAY JOEW. A programmable system to perform the polymerase chain reaction. DNA. 1988;7(6):441–7.

Kiam Heong Ang, Chong G, Yun Li. PID control system analysis, design, and Technology. IEEE Transactions on Control Systems Technology. 2005;13(4):559–76.

A27. Degradation of potato peels using amylase and pectinase producing fungal strain in electrochemical cell and byproduct analysis

Puja bhatt, jarina joshi, central department of biotechnology, tribhuvan university, kirtipur, nepal, correspondence: jarina joshi ( [email protected] ).

BMC Proceedings 2023 , 17(Suppl 3): A27

Potato peels are the most abundant waste in Asian households. Degradation of the waste using amylase and pectinase producing fungal strain in Microbial fuel cell (MFC) can be a sustainable and economic strategy for solid waste management and hence alternative electricity generation [1]. Microorganisms or enzymes can be utilized to generate electricity in microbial fuel cells (MFCs), which has been known for several years [2].

Fungal strains were isolated from soil and then tested for production of amylase and pectinase enzymes. Potato peel sample was processed and physical characterization was done. Microbial fuel cell was constructed using a finely pasted potato peel waste sample in anode and acetate buffer in cathode. MFC operation was done using different concentration of sample in anode and various catholytes in cathode for enhancement of electricity production. The electrode was modified by coating of the graphite electrode with MWCNT, which was used as an anode in the OCV generation [3]. Each experiment was done in triplicate. The Microbial fuel cell electrical performance was examined and analyzed by oxidation and reduction peaks in cyclic voltammetry (CV) technique [4]. Sugar analysis in sample and byproduct analysis after MFC operation was done by HPLC using suitable mobile phase and concentration of each compound was determined [5].

A fungal strain Isolated from soil showed both amylase and pectinase activity and molecular characterization of isolated strain was done which was found similar with Aspergillus niger. Potato peel waste had pH 6.51± 0.08, Total suspended solid (TSS) 21.4±1.27%, moisture content 78.6±1.26%, ash content 11.68±7.05%, volatile suspended solid (VSS) 88.31±7.056%, chemical oxygen demand (COD) 10.24±0.12 mg/g, reducing sugar 1.061±0.64 mg/g, ammoniacal-nitrogen 0.01±0.01 mg/g and phosphorus 0.015±0.017 mg/g. Similarly, potato peels contained iron 0.167mg/g, copper 0.007 mg/g, zinc 0.007 mg/g and manganese 0.005 mg/g but lead and nickel was not found. Open circuit voltage (OCV) generation was highest while using KMnO4 in catholyte (505±18 mV). Microbial fuel cell in fed batch was also performed by adding 10% of sample in every 24 h, and clearly improved result was obtained in this operation. Power density was determined using 100 ohm and 1000-ohm external resistors which was found 119±7 W/m3 and 42±9 W/m3 respectively. From Microbial fuel cell operation at optimized condition removal rate of COD, ammoniacal-nitogen, reducing sugar and total suspended solid were found to be 37.69%, 67.72%, 72.64% and 65.95% respectively. The Microbial fuel cell electrical performance was examined and analyzed by oxidation and reduction peaks in cyclic voltammetry (CV) technique. Sugar analysis in sample and byproduct analysis after MFC operation was done by HPLC from which concentration of glucose was found 0.87±0.06 mg/g of sample. Similarly, among all organic acids highest amount of citric acid was found (3.04±0.11 mg/g of sample).

Finally, this research conveys that the use of enzymes produced by fungal strain can be a novel alternative approach in bioelectricity production and is beneficial in management of solid waste also, as it does not require separate pretreatment.

We would like to thank Prof. Dr. Krishna Das Manandhar from Central Department of Biotechnology, Tribhuvan University, Kirtipur for his support during the research period.

Singh, B., Singh, J., Singh, J. P., Kaur, A., & Singh, N. (2020). Phenolic compounds in potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) peel and their health-promoting activities. International Journal of Food Science and Technology, 55(6), 2273–2281. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijfs.14361

Wang, C. T., Liao, F. Y., & Liu, K. S. (2013). Electrical analysis of compost solid phase microbial fuel cell. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, 38(25), 11124–11130. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2013.02.120

Abdulla, S., Mathew, T. L., & Pullithadathil, B. (2015). Highly sensitive, room temperature gas sensor based on polyaniline-multiwalled carbon nanotubes (PANI/MWCNTs) nanocomposite for trace-level ammonia detection. Sensors and Actuators, B: Chemical, 221, 1523–1534. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.snb.2015.08.002

Venkata Mohan, S., Mohanakrishna, G., & Sarma, P. N. (2010). Composite vegetable waste as renewable resource for bioelectricity generation through non-catalyzed open-air cathode microbial fuel cell. Bioresource Technology, 101(3), 970–976. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biortech.2009.09.005

Bio-Rad. (2012). Aminex HPLC Columns ®. Bulletin 6333 Rev A US/EG, 7–10.

A28. Isolation, antifungal activity, physiological features, and growth potential of native Trichoderma spp. on alternative substrates

Rozina giri 1, 2 , sagun k.c. 1, 2 , sanju tamang 1, 2 , surakshya singh 1, 2 , nawanit kumar mahato1, ashok bhattarai 3 , mitesh shrestha 1, 2, 1 department of applied microbiology and food technology, research institute for bioscience and biotechnology, kathmandu, nepal; 2 kantipur valley college, kumaripati, lalitpur, nepal; 3 praramva biotech pvt. ltd. kathmandu, nepal.

BMC Proceedings 2023 , 17(Suppl 3): A28

Biological Control Agents (BCAs) have recently gained huge traction owing to their potential for becoming a healthy and environment-friendly alternative to toxic chemical pesticides. Trichoderma is one of the most used BCAs owing to their global distribution and broad range of antagonism against various phytopathogens as well as plant-growth promoting activities. Owing to the geographical and climatic variability, it is useful to utilize the native local resources.

Trichoderma spp. were isolated using serial dilution techniques from soil collected from various parts of Nepal. Dual culture was performed against phytopathogens. Effect of nitrogen on Trichoderma growth was checked. Similarly, the effect of Carbendazim was assessed for both Trichoderma as well as the phytopathogens. Finally, Trichoderma cultivation was done in various alternative substrates.

Six native Trichoderma species present in soil from Chitwan, Dhapakhel, Godawari, Phulchowki, Pokhara and Simtal were isolated. Similarly, during dual culture against two phytopathogens Fusarium oxysporum and Alternaria alternata , strain from Pokhara showed the highest antagonistic activity of 62.71 % and 55.19 % respectively. There was a gradient effect of nitrogen on Trichoderma growth, with higher concentration inhibiting the growth. The fungicide Carbendazim inhibited all Trichoderma species as well as Fusarium oxysporum while had limited effect on Alternaria alternata at all used concentrations (0.1 %, 0.15 %, and 0.2%). Similarly, the mass multiplication of Trichoderma sp. on various alternative liquid (Potato Dextrose Broth, 3 % Molasses, and 20 % Whey) and solid (wheat, inner flesh of sugarcane bagasse, whole sugarcane bagasse, and rice husk) substrates showed excellent growth, with the highest growth observed in 20 % whey and rice husk.

Hence, we found that the isolated Trichoderma sp. could be grown utilizing low-cost, alternative agricultural byproducts.

A29. Fluorescence properties of organic contamination in water

Sishir gautam 1 , suvechhya bastola 2 , anusa thapa 1 , prashant waiba 1 , sanket bohora 1 , prajwal rajbhandari 2 , thomas krauss 3 , ashim dhakal 1, 1 phutung research institute, kathmandu, nepal; 2 department of applied microbiology and food technology, research institute for bioscience and biotechnology, kathmandu, nepal 3 university of york, york, uk, correspondence: sishir gautam ( [email protected] ).

BMC Proceedings 2023 , 17(Suppl 3): A29

Increased anthropogenic inputs in the water body have dramatically changed the loads and compositions of dissolved organic matter (DOM) in urbanized streams, which has a negative impact on the water. As such, it is imperative to monitor water quality regularly. Existing methods for identifying the contaminant species are not only expensive and time consuming but also require skilled manpower, consumables and resources [1,2]. The interaction of light with DOM is a function of its chemical makeup; thus, fluorescence spectroscopy can provide information about the amount and type of DOM in a water sample. The purpose of this study is to explore fluorescence properties of water as a screening and continuous water quality monitoring technique, to develop a rapid low-cost water testing technology.

Fluorescence signal from the water sample was measured using a PhotoMultiplier Tube (PMT) based fluorescence spectrometer. The setup consists of a UV LED (Thorlabs M275L4) light that excites the sample at 275 nm wavelength. The fluorescence from the sample is filtered by band-pass filters with the pass band at 350 +/- 30 nm and focused onto the PMT. The fluorescence from the other face of the cuvette is coupled to an optical fiber which guides the light to a CCD spectrometer that records an emission spectra.

Humic-like fluorescence (HLF),420 nm peak, is a dominating fluorescence signal in the underground water while tryptophan-like fluorescence (TLF), 350 nm peak, is the dominating fluorescence in the urban Bagmati river water. Drinking water that is purified and sealed, has very little fluorescence without any TLF or HLF peak.

We also observed significant TLF signals from the organic compounds like amino-acids, starch, nucleic acid and alcohols. From this, we can infer that the fluorescence signal at 350 nm wavelength can also be used to track organic contamination in water.

TLF and HLF are indicators of organic matter contamination, which may be from sewage, farms, chemical spillage, and massive microbial activity in the water body. The relative simplicity of sampling and fluorescence analysis allows for quick monitoring of water quality.

This work was supported by EPSRC’s GCRF Grant# EP/T020008/1 & EP/W524165/1; TWAS & SIDA Grant # 18-013. Additionally, I would like to thank Phutung Research Institute’s Suman Basnet, Pravin Bhattarai, and Rijan Maharjan for helpful discussions.

Sorensen, J., Diaw, M., Pouye, A., Roffo, R., Diongue, D., Faye, S., Gaye, C., Fox, B., Goodall, T., Lapworth, D., MacDonald, A., Read, D., Ciric, L. and Taylor, R. In-situ fluorescence spectroscopy indicates total bacterial abundance and dissolved organic carbon. Science of The Total Environment. 2020;738: p.139419.

Ward J, Lapworth D, Read D, Pedley S, Banda S, Monjerezi M et al. Tryptophan-like fluorescence as a high-level screening tool for detecting microbial contamination in drinking water. Science of The Total Environment.2021;750:141284.

A30. Genetic polymorphisms of genes involved in host immune response to dengue severity in Nepalese population

Chetana khanal, sabita prajapati, machchhendra thapa, ramanuj rauniyar, krishna das manandhar, correspondence: chetana khanal ( [email protected] ).

BMC Proceedings 2023 , 17(Suppl 3): A30

In dengue, an endemic country like Nepal all four serotypes (DENV1-4) of dengue virus (DENV) is found to be prevalent causing dengue fever and its severe form dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) and dengue shock syndrome (DSS). The severity of the disease is determined by virus serotype, host immune, and genetic status which if known, can help in early disease management. The individual's genetic makeup differs from place to place around the world, which might be the reason for one population being more susceptible and the other being resistant to the virus. Study is focused on the severity marker prediction which might help in the early diagnosis of severe dengue cases

A study on the severity-determining marker is being carried out in endemic areas in human samples, as there is no appropriate animal model mimicking the DHF/DSS as in humans. Genetic Marker was detected by Single nucleotide polymorphism detection by ARMS PCR.

Statistical analysis of the clinical parameters of all the case samples was performed to classify the samples in dengue hemorrhagic (DHF) 53%, severe dengue (DS) 14%, and Dengue fever (DF)33%. Serotyping by Real-time and Nested PCR showed the co-circulation of DENV-2 in the year 2019. Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) of four different genes were identified using amplification refractory mutation system PCR using allele-specific primers for TNF-α (+308A/G), IFNG(+874A/T), IL-10(819C/T,1082 A/G) and FCgRIIa. CT genotype of TNF-α was observed in 60% of the case population, in the case of Interleukin-10(819 C/T,1082 A/G) CT and AG genotype was seen in most of the study population 71% and 62% respectively. For IFNG(+874A/T), AT(45%) genotype was followed by AA(40%) whereas only 15% with TT genotype was reported. In case of FCgRIIa, a heterozygote genotype AG variant was detected in all study populations.

As the population size was small, the role of SNPs in severity could not be exactly predicted but the study provides future insight into predicting the role of these biomarkers in susceptibility, progression, or protection of disease.

A31. Mining envelope domain iii of dengue virus for recombinant tetravalent dna vaccine candidate from nepalese samples

Machchhendra thapa, sabita prajapati, chetana khanal, ramanuj rauniyar, sishir gautam, tinmaya rai, krishna das manandhar, correspondence: machchhendra thapa ( [email protected] ).

BMC Proceedings 2023 , 17(Suppl 3): A31

Dengue is a mosquito-borne infection caused by the Dengue virus (DENV) which leads to diseases in humans from mild dengue fever to severe Dengue. All four serotypes (1-4) of dengue viruses can infect humans. Once infected the risk of development of severe dengue during secondary infection due to Antibody Dependent Enhancement (ADE) increases which results in enhanced virus entry and greater virus replication. It is also one of the challenges in vaccine development and thus acceptance. So there is an urgent need for a dengue vaccine that induces long-lasting protection for all four serotypes of dengue while avoiding the immune enhancement of viral infection. The envelope region has been widely studied for vaccine development. Among Domain I, II, and III of the envelope region, Domain III remains the choice of interest due to its reduced risk of Antibody Dependent Enhancement (ADE) in dengue infection. Considering EDIII as a candidate instead of a whole envelope might address the solution to existing problems of dengue vaccine in use and it might eliminate the risk of ADE.

In the present study, we aim to identify all four serotypes and amplify serotype-specific EDIII regions. Further, we aim to fuse the EDIII region of all four dengue virus serotypes to make a single recombinant tetravalent ED III dengue vaccine construct for its subsequent use as a novel vaccine candidate. Further, we aim to perform insilico analysis of the vaccine candidate.

We amplified and sequenced the Domain III of serotype I and serotype II and retrieved the Domain III sequence of serotype III and serotype IV from the NCBI database. Insilico analysis of the tetravalent construct showed the protein consists of 400 amino acids with 11 epitopes present in the protein. And protein was classified as mixed protein.

Based on the analysis, the tetravalent construct can be a potential vaccine although EDIII represents only a fraction of the envelope protein, the removal of other epitopes that elicit non-neutralizing, cross-reactive antibodies should reduce the risk of developing ADE and disease progression to DHF or DSS.

A32. Efficacy of biological treatments against root-knot nematode ( Meloidogyne spp.) in okra ( Abelmoschus esculentus L.) at Nawalparasi, Nepal

Kritika adhikari 1 , gaurav adhikari 1,2 , susmita sigdel 1 , santosh marahatta 1, 1 agriculture and forestry university, rampur, nepal; 2 department of natural products and green chemistry, research institute for bioscience and biotechnology, kathmandu, nepal, correspondence: gaurav adhikari ( [email protected] ).

BMC Proceedings 2023 , 17(Suppl 3): A32

Root-knot nematode ( Meloidogyne spp.) is an important soil-borne pathogen affecting several vegetable crops including Okra. A pot trial was carried out in the vegetable zone, Danda, Nawalparasi East from February to June 2021 to assess the management strategy against root-knot nematode in Okra var. Arka anamika under field conditions.

The experiment was carried out in Randomized Complete Block Design with seven treatments replicated thrice. The treatment consisted of Neem cake, Trichoderma viride, Abamectin, Pseudomonas fluorecsens , Trichoderma viride + Spent Mushroom Substrate (SMS), A-Arya 009, and control.

All the treatments showed significant results in percentage disease reduction (p < 0.001) compared to the control treatment. Abamectin (69.57%) was the most effective at reducing the root infection followed by neem cake (56.52%) Pseudomonas fluorescens (47.83%), Trichoderma viride + SMS (34.78%), and Trichoderma viride (34.78%) while the least reduction in disease was recorded in A-Arya 009 (17.39%). The highest yield advantage over control was recorded in Neem cake (45.45%) followed by abamectin (38.22%), Trichoderma viride + SMS (32.28%), Pseudomonas fluorescens (32.02), Trichoderma viride (31.67%), and the least yield improvement was recorded in A-Arya 009 (15.77%). A significant negative correlation (p < 0.001) was found between gall index and total yield implying heavy losses with the progression of root infection.

The study concluded that neem cake and Abamectin as an effective biological treatment for managing root-knot nematodes and improving the yield of Okra.

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A qualitative study on gender inequality and gender-based violence in Nepal

• Pranab Dahal 1 ,
• Sunil Kumar Joshi 2 &
• Katarina Swahnberg 1  

BMC Public Health volume  22 , Article number:  2005 ( 2022 ) Cite this article

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Gender inequality and violence are not mutually exclusive phenomena but complex loops affecting each other. Women in Nepal face several inequalities and violence. The causes are diverse, but most of these results are due to socially assigned lower positioning of women. The hierarchies based on power make women face subordination and violence in Nepal. The study aims to explore participants' understanding and experience to identify the status of inequality for women and how violence emerges as one of its consequences. Furthermore, it explores the causes of sex trafficking as an example of an outcome of inequality and violence.

The study formulated separate male and female groups using a purposive sampling method. The study used a multistage focus group discussion, where the same groups met at different intervals. Six focus group discussions, three times each with male and female groups, were conducted in a year. Thirty-six individuals, including sixteen males and twenty females, were involved in the discussions. The study used constructivist grounded theory for the data analysis.

The study participants identify that a power play between men and women reinforce inequality and increases the likelihood of violence for women. The findings suggest that the subjugation of women occurs due to practices based on gender differences, constricted life opportunities, and internalization of constructed differences among women. The study identifies that interpersonal and socio-cultural violence can result due to established differences between men and women. Sex trafficking, as an example of the outcome of inequality and violence, occurs due to the disadvantageous position of women compounded by poverty and illiteracy. The study has developed a concept of power-play which is identified as a cause and consequence of women's subordination and violence. This power play is found operative at various levels with social approval for men to use violence and maintain/produce inequality.

The theoretical concept of power play shows that there are inequitable power relations between men and women. The male-centric socio-cultural norms and practices have endowed men with privilege, power, and an opportunity to exploit women. This lowers the status of women and the power-play help to produce and sustain inequality. The power-play exposes women to violence and manifests itself as one of the worst expressions used by men.

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Violence against women is identified as an attempt by men to maintain power and control over women [ 1 ] and is manifested as a form of structural inequality. This structural inequality is apparent with greater agency among men [ 2 ]. The differences between sexes are exhibited in the attainment of education and professional jobs, ownership of assets, the feminization of poverty, etc., and these differences increase the risk of violence towards women [ 3 ]. The global estimate identifies that thirty percent of women experience physical and/or sexual violence during their lifetime, illustrating the enormity of this problem [ 4 ]. From a feminist perspective, lending ideas of patriarchy [ 5 ] and gender performativity [ 6 ], the understanding of gender roles prescribed by male-dominated social structures and processes helps further explore the violence and abuse faced by women [ 7 ]. According to Heise [ 8 ], men who adhere to traditional, rigid, and misogynistic views on gender norms, attitudes, and behaviors are more likely to use violence towards women. The individual and collective attitudes of men toward different established gender norms, and their reproduction explain men’s use of violence toward women [ 9 ]. It is known that gender norms influence violence, but at the same time violence also directs and dictates gender performance with fear, sanction, and corrective measures for enacting respective prescribed gender functions [ 10 ].

It is difficult for women subjected to violence to enjoy legitimate rights, as most of the infringement of their rights and violence takes place inside a private sphere of the home [ 11 , 12 ]. Violence against women is the major cause of death and disability for women [ 13 ] and globally a major public health concern [ 14 ]. Establishing gender equality is fundamental for fostering justice and attaining sustainable development [ 15 ]; moreover, violence against women has to be acknowledged as a fundamental abuse of human rights [ 16 ]. A report on global violence has identified that violence against women exists at all levels of the family, community, and state. The report recommended the development of frameworks for respecting, protecting, and fulfilling women’s rights [ 17 ]. Fifteen years later, a review of the same identifies that violence continues with impunity, reaffirming violence as a major obstacle to the attainment of justice [ 18 ].

The inclusion of the gender lens to violence against women has provided more contextual evidence to explore these processes of violence. This requires the identification of unequal power relationships and an inquiry into the differences-producing various gender stereotypes [ 19 ]. This analysis of violence requires an understanding of behaviors that promote women’s subordination and factors that favor men to sustain these malpractices [ 8 ]. A closer look at the male-centric structural arrangements embedded in the social, political, and economic organization of life reveals that these structures provide lesser access and lower accountability toward women, promote systemic subordination, and create hierarchies, resulting in the increase of violence against women [ 20 ]. This unequal gender power relationship reinforced and manifested by social approval of men’s authority over women is found operative at multiple levels and helps to produce diversities of inequalities and violence [ 21 , 22 ].

The inequalities faced by women in Nepal majorly stem from socio-cultural, economic, and religious factors and influencers that define traditional roles and responsibilities between men and women [ 23 ]. The inequalities are more evident and pronounced in settings exhibiting prominent patriarchal norms restricting advantages and opportunities for the majority of women [ 24 ]. Women in Nepal are restricted inside their homes, have lesser access to life opportunities, and have limited or no involvement in decision-making on important issues directly affecting their lives [ 25 , 26 ]. Figures indicative of women’s inequalities in Nepal suggest that one-third of women have no education, fifty-two percent of women are involved in non-paid jobs, and women are less likely than men to own a home or land [ 27 ]. The men in Nepalese society are positioned higher and are expected to be the breadwinner and protectors of their families. Most of these men intend to earn respect and obedience from women and are socially expected to discipline women to achieve it [ 28 ]. Many societies across the world including Nepal, recognizes violence as a private affair requiring discussion only within a family. This has led to a serious underreporting of violence committed toward women in Nepal [ 29 ]. The national gender data in Nepal is scarce, the available Nepal Demographic Health Survey 2016 identifies that since the age of fifteen, twenty-two percent of women and seven percent of women experience physical and sexual violence, respectively in the past twelve months [ 27 ].

The contributing factors for violence against women in Nepal include the lower social status of women, illiteracy, economic dependency, patriarchal society, sex trafficking, alcohol-related abuse, dowry-related violence, infidelity, extramarital affairs of husband, unemployment, and denial of sex with husband [ 30 , 31 , 32 ]. Nepalese women have been repressing violence with silence due to the fear of breaking relationships, receiving less love and affection from family, fear of social norms by going against men, lack of faith in the justice system, and the threat of increased violence [ 33 ]. Women and girls in Nepal are sex trafficked to various countries. Sex trafficking in Nepal is prevalent due to persistent gender inequality, violence, stigma, and discriminatory socio-cultural structures; however, the actual extent of sex trafficking is still undetermined [ 17 , 34 , 35 ].

The recent trends in Nepal with the increasing number of out-migration of men for employment have provided women with temporary autonomy, and a shift in the gender roles. Earlier research has identified that migration of male spouses has provided a resistance to the power dynamics for women on the other hand it has limited their mobility, required them to share decision-making with household structures, face continued social vigilance on the money received from remittance, and get central attention with their personal sexual lives [ 36 , 37 ].

Morang district lies in the eastern region of Nepal. A district profile report based on a census survey [ 38 ] identifies that the place is inhabited by a close to a million population, out of which ethnic groups ( close to forty percent) live in the district with a majority (seventy-eight percent) of its population living in the rural areas. Tharu an ethnic group is one of the dominant population in the study area and all study participants for this study were from same Tharu population. A close to thirty-six percent of women in the district are illiterate and the average age of marriage is eighteen years. The report identifies that only twenty-three percent of women engage in economic activities apart from agricultural work and less than fourteen percent of women head the household. Almost eighty percent of the population in the district practice Hinduism.

This study is a part of a large intervention project and it was focused to establish a qualitative baseline of the gender status in the study area. This study aimed to explore participants’ experiences and understanding of gender inequality, violence against women, and information on sex trafficking in the Morang district of eastern Nepal. The selection of sex trafficking topic was motivated to assess the respondents’ general understanding of one of the consequences of inequality and violence faced by women. The study focused to explore factors that help to produce and sustain the practice of gender inequality and violence against women in the local community.

Participants

This study was part of a larger control-comparison project that used Forum Theatre interventions to promote gender equality, reduce violence against women, and increase awareness of sex trafficking [ 39 , 40 ]. The participants for the focus group discussion included the intervention population from one of the randomly sampled intervention sites. A multistage focus group discussion [ 41 ] was used involving the same participants discussing various emerging topics at different periods. The participants were recruited voluntarily during an earlier quantitative data collection for the project. The study used a purposive sampling method for the selection of participants. The local field staff at the study site facilitated the recruitment of the participants. The study formulated separate male and female groups. A total of six focus groups, three each with male and female groups were conducted over twelve months. Two inclusion criteria were set for participation. First, the participants had to be part of the population of the larger study. Secondly, they had to witness and/or participate in the Forum Theatre interventions conducted in between the study. The set inclusion criteria served a dual purpose of understanding the causes of inequality and violence and further helped to develop and determine the efficacy of participatory Forum Theater intervention for awareness-raising among the study intervention groups [ 39 ].

A total of thirty-six participants consisting of sixteen males and twenty females joined the discussions. The first discussion consisted of eight participants each from groups while the second and the third discussion missed two female and four male participants respectively. The majority of the participants were 20–29 years old. Tharu, an ethnic community of Nepal, is a dominant population in the study area, and all the participants belonged to the same Tharu community. Only one female participant was unmarried, and a single married male participated in the discussions. All participants were literate, with four males completing a bachelor's level of education. Seven female participants had education below the high school level. The nuclear family with parents and their children was the major family type identified in both male and female groups. Table 1 provides the detail of the participants.

The focus group discussions were conducted in January 2017, April–May 2017, and January 2018. The discussions were conducted in a place recommended by the participants. An isolated place in an open setting at the premise of a local temple was used for conducting all discussions. The participants were briefed about the objectives of the discussion and written consent was obtained for their participation. Verbal consent was taken for the audio recording of the discussions. Each participant was assigned a unique numerical code before the discussions to ensure anonymity during recording, note-taking, and analysis. The discussions averaged ninety minutes during each session. The discussions were conducted with the same participants and no new participants were added during the follow-ups. A single male and female participant were missing in the second follow up and two male participants missed the final follow-up. The reason for missing participants was due to their unavailability as they were out of the village due to personal reasons.

The discussions were conducted in the Nepali language. The first author moderated all six discussions, a support field staff member took the notes, and the last author observed the discussions. The audio recordings were translated into English, and the transcriptions were checked with the recordings to verify accuracy. The field and the discussion notes were used during various stages of data analysis. The notes provided information on the discussion setting, as well as the verbal and nonverbal expressions of the participants. The notes helped to assess the impressions, emphasis, and feelings of the participants during the discussions.

The discussions used pre-formulated discussion guides with open-ended questions on inequalities, gender practices, violence, and sex trafficking. The guiding questions were based on the theoretical premise of discrimination, patriarchy, oppression, hegemony, and participation of women. Three separate discussion guides were developed for each of discussions. The guides were developed by the first and last authors. Probing was done on several occasions during the discussion to gain more clarity on the issue. Cross-checking among the participants and between the groups was done to triangulate received information. Any topic deemed appropriate for discussions and/or any unclear issues identified during the initial data analysis came up subsequently in the discussion guide during the follow-ups.

Data analysis

This study used the constructivist grounded theory method. This method adheres to a constructivist philosophical approach wherein both researchers and participants mutually co-construct the meaning of a phenomenon [ 42 ]. This interaction is important since it helps to impart the meaning of shared experiences [ 42 ]. The constructivist grounded theory made it possible to (re) discover gender issues, important for both the researcher and the study participants. This method allowed the study to progress with responsiveness to emerging issues with an in-depth exploration of the identified issues. This clarity was achieved through repeated interactive discussions, analysis of explanations, and sharing of emergent findings with the study participants.

The audio recordings were translated and transcribed into English. Six transcripts from discussions were initially analyzed using a line-by-line coding process. The coding process helped with the fragmentation of data through interactive comparisons. Fifty-two initial codes such as gender differences, restricting women, alcohol-related violence, underreporting of sexual violence, coping, etc. were identified. The later stage of focused coding helped to achieve categorized data, providing logical sense to the developed initial codes. Three focused codes, namely, the subjugation of women, violence, and chasing dreams were formulated during the analysis. The abductive reasoning from the codes, memos, and discussion notes helped to develop the theoretical concept. The development of conceptual abstraction involved an iterative comparison of the data, codes, categories, memos, and discussion notes.

The constant communication between the authors during the stages of data analysis such as the formulation of codes, explanations of concepts, and categories helped to refine the analysis. The shared experiences of the participants and the description of the data collection and analysis included substantial details, enabling comparisons for future research and application to other similar contexts. The reliability of the study is warranted by the theoretical saturation [ 42 ] achieved by this study. This is supported by prolonged engagement with the study participants with communication on the emerging findings, and triangulation.

Reflexivity has a greater significance for the constructivist approach. The first and the second author of Nepalese origin were aware of the socio-cultural norms, stereotypes, values, and stigmas associated with gender in the local context. This helped the study to ascertain the depth of inquiry within the acceptable local normative limits. The non-Nepalese author, familiar with the study participants and Nepalese contexts, witnessed the discussions as an observer. The prior knowledge of the authors helped to critically assess different schemas, perspectives, and explanations shared by the participants. The universality of gender inequality and violence against women and its re-examination in the local context helped the authors to build upon existing knowledge by providing contextual explanations. The diversities among the authors and research participants established a basis for co-creating the perceived and observed realities.

The section below describes the participants’ perceptions and understanding of inequality and violence. The section contains subheadings that were derived as themes in the data analysis. The first theme subjugation of women; discusses how norms, beliefs, and practices produce inferior status and positions for women. The second theme domestic and gender violence; provides a narrative of interpersonal and socio-cultural violence present in the study area. The theme of chasing dreams; discusses the process of sex trafficking as an outcome of violence. The theoretically abstracted concept of power-play identifies the cause for the generation of power imbalance producing inequality and the use of violence by men.

Subjugation of women

The subjugation of women reflected practices and beliefs imparting positional differences for women and their social situation compared to men. The participants shared a common understanding that belief systems adhering to male supremacy have positioned women in a lower status. They provided examples of social practices of male supremacy such as males being considered as the carrier of a family name, legacy, and heritage, while women were referred to as someone else’s property. The socialization of the idea that girls will be married off to a husband and relocate themselves to their homes was identified as the major reason for instilling and perpetuating early gender differences. The participants mentioned that discriminatory practices and seclusion have situated women at the bottom rung of the gender hierarchy, establishing them as socially incompetent individuals or groups. Moreover, they inferred that selective preferences provided preparatory grounds for inequalities, and they remain attached to women throughout their lives. The participants provided examples of unequal access to education and life opportunities as a practice of selective preferences occurring in the community. They mentioned that socialization with these discriminatory beliefs and their practice helped to develop specialized gender roles from an early age. The participants provided an example of how gender intersected with mobility and resource generation in the community, it was clear from the discussions that this has restricted women inside homes but provided freedom and opportunities for men. A female participant expressed,

A woman from a poor family is more than willing to work and support her family. But she is not allowed by the men in the family to work outside of the home.

The participants informed that differences between the sexes were visible for women from a young age. Sharing practical examples from the community, the participants from both groups stated that girls received education mostly in low-cost government and community schools, while boys were enrolled in expensive private schools. They raised concerns that this selective investment for education, cited as the ‘building block of life’ by the participants, installed lesser capacity, and negotiating abilities in girls. A female participant stated,

There are differences in educational opportunities for boys and girls in our community. Family provides more support for a boy’s education by enrolling him in private schools, while a girl mostly gets her education in a community school together with engagement in household work.

The discussions revealed that women required several male anchors for their survival during their various stages of life. The participants provided examples of the shift of anchors for women which traversed from a father to a husband during marriage and later to the male child during her old age. They believed that this tradition of transferring women’s identity established men as a higher social category and stripped women of their individuality and identity. A male participant added,

Women have to remain dependent on men throughout their lives, first with their fathers and later with their husbands. They remain completely dependent as they are not economically active. This makes men believe that they have higher authority.

The female participants provided an example of marriage to illustrate how someone else’s decision-making had been affecting women’s lives. A participant explained that women were held responsible for household activities after marriage and any support for career progression or education was restricted despite her desire for its continuation. It was inferred that women had to drop their hopes and aspirations as the husband and his family made decisions for them. The female participants agreed that this continuous exposure to the ideas of male supremacy makes them start to believe and internalize the idea that women have lesser cognitive abilities and intelligence compared to men. A female participant stated,

Men and women certainly have different mental abilities. Men think and act differently often in a smart way compared to women.

The participants from both groups expressed that youth in the community were developing flexible attitudes and beliefs towards gender roles and responsibilities. They agreed that both young men and women were observed altering their roles and responsibilities shifting from traditional gender ideologies. The participants expressed that instilling these fluidity and flexible approaches in the older generation was impossible as they strictly followed traditional beliefs and practices. Few of the female participants admitted that at times young women also fail to accommodate the situation and reap benefits from available opportunities. The discussions revealed that a few of the women in the community received opportunities for independence and economic empowerment. These women had received entrepreneurial training and various skill development activities for sustaining livelihoods with practical skill-based training in tailoring, beautician, and doll-making. The female participants expressed that opportunities for independence and growth slipped away from them due to a lack of family support, financial constraints, and self-passivity. They explained that starting a business required approval from a family which was difficult to obtain. Moreover, if women made a self-decision to start up on their own, they lacked the initial capital and had to rely on men for obtaining resources. The participants further explained that the denial of men to support women were majorly due to the fear that norms of staying indoors for women will be breached and economic independence may enable women to have a similar financial footing as men. The participants stated that self-passivity in women emerged due to their engagement in household multiple roles, dependency upon males, and lack of decision-making power and abilities. A female participant summed it up by stating,

Some of us women in the community have received entrepreneurial skills training, but we have not been able to use our skills for our growth and development. Once the training finishes, we get back to our household chores and taking care of the children.

The female participants admitted that acceptance of belief systems requiring women to be docile, unseen, and unheard were the reasons for this self-passivity. The female participants resonated that the external controlling and unfavorable environment influenced by practices of discriminatory norms and beliefs developed self-passivity for women. A female participant expressed the cause and consequence of self-passivity as,

Women have inhibitions to speaking their minds; something stops us from making our position clear, making us lose all the time.

The discussions identified that gender norms were deeply engraved in various social interactions and daily life, and any deviance received strict criticism. The participants shared common examples of sanctions for women based on rigid norms like restrictive movements for women, social gossiping when women communicated with outsider men, prohibition for opinion giving in public, and lesser involvement during key decision-making at home. The participants shared that norms dictating gender roles were in place for both men and women with social sanctions and approval for their performance. A male discussion participant who occasionally got involved with cooking which was a so-called “women’s job” faced outright disapproval from his female relatives and neighbors. The male participant stated,

If I cook or get engaged in any household jobs, it is mostly females from the home and neighborhood who make fun of me and remind me that I am a man and that I should not be doing a woman’s job.

The foreign migration of youth looking for job opportunities has affected the Tharu community. It was known that a large number of men were absent from the community. The participants stated that women in such households with absent men had gained authority and control over resources, moreover, these women have been taking some of the men’s roles. The participants disclosed that these women had greater access and control over resources and were involved in the key decision-making positioning them in a relatively higher position compared to other women. It was known that this higher position for women came with a price, they were under higher social vigilance and at higher risk of abuse and violence due to the absence of ‘protective men’. It was known that women's foreign employment was associated with myths and sexist remarks. The participants shared that women had to face strict social criticisms and that their plans for livelihood and independence were related to an issue of sexual immorality and chastity. The participants from both groups strictly opposed the norms that associated women with sexual immorality but lamented that it continues. A male participant provided an insight into the social remarks received by women if she dares to go for foreign employment,

If a woman wants to go for a foreign job, she is considered to be of loose character. The idea that she is corrupt and will get involved in bad work will be her first impression of anyone.

Although the participant did not explicitly describe what bad work referred to as but it was inferred that he was relating it to sex work.

Domestic and gender violence

The participants identified violence as control, coercion, and use of force against someone will occurring due to unequal status. They primarily identified men as the perpetrators and women as the victims of violence. They explained that two types of violence were observed in the community. The first type occurred in an interpersonal relationship identified as physical, emotional, and sexual violence. The second type, as explained by the participants had its roots in socio-cultural belief systems. They provided examples of dowry exchange and witchcraft accusations for the latter type. The participants identified women as primary victims and listed both men and women as the perpetrators of both types of violence. They reported that physical violence against women by men under the influence of alcohol was the most commonly occurring violence in the community. The participants from both groups confirmed that wife-beating, verbal abuse, and quarrel frequently occurred in the community. It was known from discussions that alcohol consumption among men was widespread, and its cultural acceptance was also increasing episodes of violence. One of the female participants clarified further,

The most common violence occurring in our society is wife-beating by a husband under the influence of alcohol. We see it every day.

The participants reported the occurrence of sexual violence in the community but also pointed out that people refrained from discussing it considering it a taboo and private affair. The participants had hesitation to discuss freely on sexual violence. During the discussions, participants from both groups informed only of rape and attempted rape of women by men as sexual violence present in the community. Despite repeated probing, on several occasions, none of the participants from either group brought up issues and discussions about any other forms of sexual violence. Participants from both groups confirmed that stories about incidents of rape or attempted rape emerged only after cases were registered with the local police. The participants presumed that incidents of rape and attempted rape were not known to the wider community. A female participant stated,

Sexual violence does occur in our community, but people mostly do not report or disclose it, but they tend to keep it amongst themselves and their families.

The participants explained the identity of the rape perpetrator and victim. They identified the perpetrator as a rich, influential, and relatively powerful man from the community. The victim was portrayed as a poor and isolated woman which lesser social ties. It was known from the discussions that most of the rape cases in the community were settled with financial negotiations and monetary compensations for the victim rather than finding legal remedies. It can be inferred that the victimization of women intersects with gender, wealth, social stature, and affluence. The participants feared that this practice of settlement of rape with money could make rape a commodity available for the powerful, rich, and affluent men to exploit and victimize women. A male participant clarifies,

Recently, a man in his sixties raped a young girl near our village. The victim's family was ready to settle with monetary compensation offered by the rapist, but the involvement of the community stopped it and the rapist was handed over to the police.

The participants shared available coping mechanisms against violence practiced in the community by women. It was learned that the victim of household violence mostly used community consultation and police reporting to evade further violence. They divulged that community consultation and police reporting resulted in decisions in favor of victim women, directing abusive husbands to show decency and stop committing violence. The fear of legal repercussions such as spending time in police custody and getting charged under domestic violence cases was understood as the reasons for husbands to stop abuse and violence. The discussions revealed that women who file a formal complaint about their husband’s violent behavior could face an increased risk of violence. The participants disclosed that sharing such incidents publicly brought shame to some of the men and increased their anger, and often backlashed with increased violence. The participants in both groups stated that not all women in the community reported violence. They identified that women tend to be quiet despite facing continuous violence due to the fear of encountering more violence and to keeping their families together. A female participant clarifies,

Lodging public complaints against the abusive husband can sometimes escalate the violence. The husband’s anger for being humiliated in public must be faced by the woman inside the closed doors of the house with more violence and the men’s threat of abandoning the relationship.

The participants stated that socio-cultural violence against women in dowry-related cases was widespread and increasing. The dowry exchange was explained as a traditional practice with the family of the bride paying cash and kind to the groom's family. The participants clarified that the practice of dowry in the earlier days must have been an emergency fund for the newly wedded bride in a newer setting. According to the participants, the system of dowry has now developed and evolved as a practice of forced involuntary transfer of goods and cash demanded by the groom’s family. The discussions disclosed that the demands for dowry were increasing with time and failing to provide as promised immediately resulted in violence for the newly wedded bride. The participants described that dowry-related violence starts with taunts and progresses to withholding of food, verbal abuse, and finally, physical violence. They added that perpetrators of such violence were both men and women from the groom’s family. They stated that due to poverty not all bride families in the community were able to supply all demanded dowry which has exposed a large number of women to face dowry-related abuse and violence. The discussions also informed of a newer trend among girls by demanding goods during their wedding. It was shared that this new emerging trend had increased a two-fold financial burden on the bride’s family with heavy marriage debts. The male participants when questioned about the dowry demands cunningly shifted the responsibilities towards family and stated that it was not the groom but their families who were making such dowry demands. The discussions verified that dowry practice was so engraved in the community that it was impossible to even imagine a marriage without any dowry. A male participant reflected,

If I marry without any dowry, my family, neighbors, and all whom I know would consider that I am insane.

The participants also discussed and identified harmful traditional practices present in the community. The participants informed a common practice of accusing women of as witches existed in the community. It was mentioned that women faced witchcraft allegations in different situations. They provided examples of witchcraft allegations in common situations such as when someone’s cow stops producing milk when a child has a sore eye, when someone is bedridden due to sickness for days, or when a woman undergoes a miscarriage, etc. The participants stated that women accused of witch were always elderly/single women living in seclusion, poverty, and with fewer social ties. They also shared that the witch doctors, who ascertain whether a woman is a witch or not, were surprisingly mostly always men and hold higher status, respect, and social recognition. The consequences of being labeled as a witch, as explained by the participants, haunted victim women with torture, name-calling, social boycott, and extremes of physical violence. The participants informed that inhumane practices such as forceful feeding of human excreta prevailed during the witch cleansing sessions. A female participant explaining the witchcraft situation stated,

Witchcraft accusation is very real in our community; I know someone who has tortured his mother, citing reasons for his wife being childless. The old woman was called names, beaten, and later thrown out of the home.

The participants felt that men’s use of violence and its legitimization primarily existed due to gender hierarchy and internalization of the belief that violence was the best method to resolve any conflict. They inferred that men’s use of violence was further reinforced by women's acceptance and belief that violence had occurred due to their faults and carelessness. The female participants shared examples of common household situations that could result in an episode of violence such as women cooking distasteful food, failing to provide timely care to children and the elderly due to workload, and forgetting to clean rooms. These incidents make women believe that violence majorly occurred due to their mistakes. Furthermore, the participants believed that this self-blaming of the victim resulted due to constant exposure to violence and a non-negotiable social positioning of women for raising questions. The participants stated that beliefs instilled by religion increased the likelihood of victimization for women. They explained that religious practices and ideologies required women to refer to their husbands as godly figures, and a religious belief that anything said or done against husbands was a disgrace bringing sin upon her and family positioned women in an inferior position. A male participant added,

We belong to a culture where females worship their husbands as a god, and this might be an important reason for men to feel powerful as a god to exploit and abuse women.

The discussions put forward the idea that the existence of discriminatory beliefs, reinforcement of such beliefs, and a blind following of such practices produced differences and violence. The male participants acknowledged that the idea of male supremacy not only produced violence but also established a belief system that considered violence as an indispensable way to treat deviated women. One male participant stated this idea of male supremacy and privilege as,

The language of the feet is essential when words fail.

The participants also discussed violence committed toward men by women. The male participants burst into laughter when they stated that some men were beaten by their wives when they were drunk. The male participants admitted that intoxication reduced their strength and they got beaten. The female participants, on the other hand, assumed that women hit intoxicated men due to frustration and helplessness. They further clarified that the act of husband beating was a situational reaction towards men who had spent all of their daily earnings on alcohol. They stated that women with the responsibility to cook and feed family find themselves in an utterly helpless situation by the irresponsible drinking behavior of men. The male participants shared incidences of violence against men due to foreign migration. It was revealed in the discussions that some of the migrating men’s wives had run away with remitted money, abandoning marriage, and breaking up the family. The male participants identified this as a form of victimization of men, furthermore, the spreading of rumors and gossip caused emotional instability in those men. The female participants confirmed that some returning men failed to find their homes, property, money, and/or their wives. The discussion participants in both groups identified that this practice was on the rise in the community. It became apparent from the discussions that this increasing trend of women running away with the money and breaking away from family was a personal issue requiring social remedies.

Chasing dreams

The participants referred to sex trafficking as the exploitation of women, arising from poverty, illiteracy, and deceit. Explaining the causes of trafficking, the participants stated that women living in poverty, having dreams of prosperity and abundance were tricked by the traffickers making them victims of sex trafficking. The participants mentioned that women who had dreams larger than life and yearned for a comfortable and luxurious life in a short time were at a greater risk for sex trafficking. The participants from both groups resonated that the traffickers had been manipulating the dreams of poor women and deceiving them into trafficking. A female participant elaborated,

Women in poverty can be fooled easily with dreams. She can be tricked by a trafficker by saying I will find you employment with good pay abroad, and she gets into the trap easily.

A male participant further clarified,

Women readily fall into fraud and trickery shown by the traffickers who assure of luxurious life with foreign employment and this bait often leads to sex trafficking.

They identified that false hopes for foreign jobs were primarily used as an entry point by the traffickers to trap potential victims. Besides, they stated that some traffickers tricked women with false romantic relationships and marriages to win over their trust enabling traffickers to maneuver women as they wished.

It was identified that traffickers were not always strangers but known and familiar faces from the community, allowing the traffickers to gain the victim’s trust. The discussions divulged that traffickers strategically chose women who were less educated and poor. The participants explained that sex trafficking mostly occurred among women from a lower caste (the caste system is hierarchy-based in Hindu society which is determined by birth and unchangeable). They further explained that if one of these lower caste women went missing, it seldom raised any serious concerns in society, making these women easy targets for the traffickers. The discussions revealed that life for the survivors of sex trafficking was difficult. They identified that the survivor had to face strong stigmas and stereotypes which further increased their risk for re-victimization. The participants explained that the social acceptance of the trafficking survivors was minimal and finding a job for survival was very difficult. It was reported that social beliefs, norms, and practices were rigid for sex trafficking survivors and provided lesser opportunities for complete social integration. A female participant stated,

The story of a sex-trafficked woman does not end after her rescue. It is difficult for her to live in society, and this increases her chances of being a further victim.

The discussions in both groups highlighted that education and awareness were important for reducing sex trafficking. The participants felt that securing a livelihood for women was essential, but they identified it as a major challenge. The female participants recommended the use of education and awareness for reducing sex trafficking. They demanded effective legal actions and stringent enforcement of the law with maximum punishment for offending sex traffickers. They mentioned that the fear of law with maximum punishment for culprits could help decrease cases of trafficking.

The theoretical concept of power play

The discussions identified that gender inequality and violence against women occurred as men possessed and exercised greater authority. The participants explained that the authority emerging from male-centric beliefs was reinforced through established socio-cultural institutions. It was known that oppressive practices toward women in both public and private life have led to the domination and devaluation of women. The differences between men and women were known to be instilled by evoking discriminatory beliefs and due to internalization of them as fundamental truths by women which further helps to sustain these created differences.

The concept of power-play developed from the study has its roots in the belief systems and was found constantly used by men to maintain created differences. The power-play rise due to patriarchy, guiding discriminatory norms and unequal gender practices. These norms and practices in the canopy of patriarchy positions women inferior to men and impose control and restrictions. The power play possessed multi-dimensional effects on women such as creating further barriers, restricted life opportunities, the need for men-centered anchoring systems, and exclusion from the public arena. The power play gains its strength from the strict enforcement of stereotypical practices and committed adherence to gender performances. This leads to internalization of subordination as a natural occurrence by women. These further isolate women putting them into several non-negotiating positions. The power play at an individual level provides restrictive movement for women, barring them from quality education and other life opportunities, and is exhibited in alcohol-related assault and sexual violence. At the structural level, this power play limits women from economic opportunities, access to resources, and decision-making, and induces socio-cultural inequality exhibited in dowry and cases of witchcraft. The socio-cultural acceptance of power-play allows men to use violence as a misuse of power and use it as an effort to maintain authority. The use of power-play for committing violence was identified as the worst display of exercised power play.

Figure  1 describes the concept of power-play developed from the study. The power-play model is based on discussions and inferences made from data analysis. The model provides a description and explanation of how women are subjected to inequality and face violence. The concept of power play derives its strength from the subjugated status of women which are based on selective treatment, self-embodiment of inferiority, imposed restrictions and due to lesser life opportunities. The power play gain legitimacy through social approval of the status differences between men and women and through social systems and institutions majorly developed and favoring men. The status difference between men and women and its approval by developed social institutions and processes give rise to the concept of powerplay. It identifies that status differences allow men to gain and (mis)use power play not only to maintain differences but also enable men to use violence. The use of power-play exists at both interpersonal and cultural levels. Further, the model elaborates on influencers causing subjugation of women, display of power-play, and violence. The model identified that lodging public complaints and seeking legal remedies are the influencers that suppress violence against women. The influence of Forum Theater was perceived to have greater influence for victim, perpetrator, and bystanders. The influencers that aggravate violence are fear of further violence, the nature of the interpersonal relationship, alcohol-related abuse, and remaining silent especially on sexual violence. The cultural violence mentioned in the model refers to dowry and witchcraft-related violence and stands as systemic subordination. In the model, sex trafficking is depicted as one of the outcomes of inequality and violence faced by women majorly occurring due to deceit and fraud.

The theoretical concept of power-play developed in this study identifies that inequality produces violence and violence further reinforces inequality, creating a vicious circle. The power play situates hierarchy based on gender as the primary cause and identifies violence as an outcome of this power asymmetry. The authority to use power by men is received by social approval from embedded structures and institutions. The functioning of associated structures and norms is designed and run by men helping to perpetuate the dominance and subjugation of women. The study identifies that both interpersonal and socio-cultural violence emerges due to the positional differences and use of power. The study found that an element of control exists in interpersonal violence. The findings show that few victim women in the community took advantage of consultations and rely on the law to evade and /or cope during the occurrence of interpersonal violence. A large number of victims women however suffer silently as they are unable and unwilling to take a stand on violence due to their perceived positional differences and strict norms following. The study finds that violence originating from socio-cultural systems is widely accepted and no established means of control exists. The practice of heinous acts against a fellow human during witchcraft allegations and dowry exchanges is prohibited by the law of Nepal but is widespread. This situates that practices which are based on belief systems are more effective than prevailing national laws which try to stop them. Sex trafficking as a form of sexual violence use deceit and fraud against women. Poverty and illiteracy compel women to search for alternatives, and they become easy victims of sex trafficking when their dreams of a better life are manipulated by the traffickers. The false promise of a better life and highly paid job put women in a non-negotiating position with traffickers. The cherished dream of escaping the prevailing status-quo of oppression, subordination, violence, and poverty mesmerizes women to take risky decisions, falling into the risk and trap of sex trafficking.

The socio-cultural norms are the unwritten script of social operatives and functioning. These social norms function as codes of operation and are a major determinant for behavior and interactions between people [ 43 ]. The study has found that these norms were skewed, and most favored men, giving rise to status differences and producing inequalities for women. This is observed with lesser life opportunities, lower participation in decision-making, and a constant need to anchor women. This further helps men to maintain their hierarchical positional status and use violence. The subjugation of women does not occur in a linear process, it is influenced by the internalization of discrimination resulting in lower self-esteem, suppression, and domination of women based on norms and unequal practices. Earlier research has identified that norms and beliefs encourage men to control women, and direct them to use force to discipline women which increases the risk of violence occurrence [ 44 , 45 ]. An earlier study shows that traits of masculinity require men to become controlling, aggressive, and dominant over women to maintain status differences [ 46 ]. The study confirms that men upon receiving both normative and social approval for using violence against women can do so without hesitation.

Violence against women in Nepal mostly occurs inside the home and is only reported when it reaches higher levels of severity. The acceptance of violence as a private affair has restricted women from seeking support and discourages them from communicating their problems with outsiders [ 47 ] this increases more likelihood for men to use violence. The study finds issues related to sex and sexual violence is a taboo and are seldom reported. The study could only identify cases of sexual assault registered with the police and other cases known to the wider community as sexual violence. A community with known incidents of rape may have other cases of abuse, harassment, incest, forceful sexual contact, etc. Failure to report incidents of sexual violence infer that a large number of women could be suffering in silence. Earlier research identifies that increased stigmatization associated with sexual violence, and fear of seclusion cause reluctance in victims to report or seek support [ 48 ]. This silencing of victims provides men with greater sexual control over women [ 49 ] increasing more likelihood of use of violence. Gender-based inequality and violence intersect structures, institutions, and socio-cultural processes, making inequality and violence visible at all levels. The dowry-related violence and witchcraft allegation intersect interpersonal and structural violence. This cultural violence forces women to be a victim of lifelong abuse and trauma. The intersecting relationship between gender norms, social structures, and individual is so closely knitted that it produces varieties of inequality and violence at all levels [ 50 ]. Emotional violence in this study only emerged as a type of violence, during discussions in both groups. It did not emerge as a major concern for the participants except for dowry-related violence and violence against men. The intertwined nature of emotional violence and its occurrence with each abusive, exploitative, and violent situation may have influenced the participants understand it as a result, rather than as a specific type of violence.

The power play between sexes was found in synchronicity with the established norms and prevailing stereotypes, helping to perpetuate gender power imbalance. The gender system is influenced and governed by norms and the social arena becomes the site of its reproduction through the interaction and engagement of people. This interaction provides approval to the institutions and processes that are based on constructed differences between men and women [ 51 ]. The power, as identified by Fricker [ 52 ], controls a social group and operates and operates through the agent or established social structures. A man can actively use the vested power to either patronize and/or abuse women while passively women’s internalization of social settings and embedded norms can put them docile. The social controls as reported by Foucault [ 53 ] work with the embedded systems of internalization, discipline, and social monitoring and uses coercion rather than inflicting pain. The internalization of status differences among women as indicated by the study confirms this schema of social control. The dominance of men over women with patriarchal beliefs establishes the significance of male-centered kinship. This requires women to constantly anchor with men providing grounds for inequalities to perpetuate further. This idealizes men and reinforces the belief that women are non-existent without their presence. The requirement for male anchorage has an attachment to prevailing structural inequality. The family property and resources are mostly controlled by men and it usually transfers from father to son limiting inheritance to women [ 51 ]. These glorified idealizations of men's competence as described by Ridgeway [ 54 ] idealize men as individuals with abilities, status, power, and influences. The need for women to rely on men as anchors, fear of going against the norms and social sanctions explains the positional difference and show that men possess greater competencies. The internalization of men-centric superior beliefs by women occurs due to self-passivity and devalues women creating false impressions of their abilities. The gender roles and responsibilities were strict for both sexes but provided greater flexibility, privilege, and opportunity for men. Earlier studies in congruence with this study find that socio-cultural expectations limit women from deviation, and strictly adhere to their prescribed role and expectations [ 55 , 56 ] providing an upper hand to the men. The unequal social positioning of women, as defined by a few of the participants, can help define men's use of violence. As inferred by Kaufman [ 57 ], the disadvantageous position of women and support from the established structures enable men to use aggression and violence with considerable ease. The concept of power-play derived from this study also reflects that inequalities not only create hierarchies, putting women into a subordinating position but also legitimize norms of harmful masculinity and violence [ 57 , 58 , 59 , 60 ] creating a vicious cycle of inequality and violence. The concept of power-play developed by this study requires further exploration of gender relations, injustice, and patriarchy to identify multiple operatives of power with an outcome of inequality and violence.

Strengths and limitations of the study

The study followed the same participants over a period, which helped the study to achieve clarity on the topics through constant engagement. The data collection and the initial data analysis of the study were conducted by the same person, which reduced the risk of misrepresented findings. The study used follow-up discussions, which provided an opportunity to meet the participants again to resolve any ambiguities. The constant engagement with the participants helped to develop rapport and trust, which is essential to enable meaningful discussions. The study gathered rich data for developing the theory of power play in the Nepalese context. The study has attempted to explain the interplay of men’s use of power play, gender inequality, and violence against women, which, in itself, is a complex, but important issue. The study helped to develop a platform by identifying a level of awareness and needs for a Forum Theatre intervention study, a first of its kind in Nepal.

The major limitation of the study is that it was conducted with only one of the ethnic populations of Nepal; thus, the findings from this study cannot be generalized to a completely different setting. However, the transferability of the study is possible in a similar setting. The incidences of inequality and violence shared by the participants were self-reported, and no other means of verification were available to crosscheck those claims. The differences among the participants both in and between groups based on education and marital status might have influenced the study participants to understand, observe, and experience the phenomenon. The possibility of social desirability bias remains with the study, as a constant engagement with the study participants might have influenced them to answer differently. Furthermore, the discussions were conducted in groups, and participants might have had hesitation to bring up any opposing views. The study relied on collecting information on social norms and individual experiences and the perceptions of the study participants. It cannot be claimed that the study is devoid of any data rigidity as participants were free to choose what they wanted to share and express.

Study implications

The study explains gender practices, norms, violence against women, and sex trafficking in Nepal. The study helps to increase the understanding of how gender systems are operative in the daily lives of the Tharu community in the Morang district of Nepal. Future studies can explore the established linkages of interpersonal and socio-cultural violence. Like the complex link existing between gender inequality and violence against women, interpersonal violence and socio-cultural violence cannot be studied in isolation. The study provides an opportunity for future research on exploring how changing norms have been altering the position and victimization of women. The study finds that changing gender norms and responsibilities have, on the one hand, provided agency and empowerment for women, but on the other hand, they have also increased their risk of being a victim, an area that requires further exploration. The study has identified that constant engagement with the study participants through follow-up studies ensures the richness of data, which can be useful information for a future research study design. The study can be helpful for policy development, social activists, leaders, and researchers as it discusses prevalent gender oppressions and victimization, which need to be addressed. The findings from the study can be helpful for dialogue imitation and for designing intervention projects aimed at providing justice and equality to women.

The study identifies the presence of gender inequalities and violence against women in the study area. The positional differences based on norms, institutions, and practices have assigned greater privileges to men. The concept of power-play devised by the study ascertains the maintenance of gender hierarchy to produce inequality further and victimization of women. The subjugation of women based on the social-cultural process, embedded belief systems, and norms prevent women from life opportunities and dignified life. It situates men at the highest rung of the gender and social ladder providing a comparative advantage for men to use power. Violence emerges as men’s use of power play and as a strategy for the continued subjugation of women. Sex trafficking as a consequence of inequality and violence has its origins in illiteracy and poverty with women falling prey to the deceit of traffickers. It is important that dreams for progression provide motivation for women to develop further but at the same time, dreams should not be exchanged with trickery and fraud offered by the traffickers. Awareness and attitudinal changes are imperative to challenge unequal norms, and practices, and reduce the risks of sex trafficking. This can help to develop negotiations for power-sharing which helps to reduce inequality, violence, and preparedness in chasing dreams. Changes at both individual and societal levels are necessary to develop a collective action for establishing belief systems and practices providing women with an equal position and reducing the risk of violence.

Availability of data and materials

The datasets generated and/or analyzed during the current study are not publicly available due to privacy but are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful to all the focus group discussion participants. The authors are indebted to Bhojraj Sharma, Deekshya Chaudhary, Subham Chaudhary, and Dev Kala Dhungana for their coordination and facilitation in reaching the discussion participants.

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PD, SKJ, and KS were involved in the study design. PD and KS developed the discussion guides. PD was responsible for the data collection and the data analysis. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Dahal, P., Joshi, S.K. & Swahnberg, K. A qualitative study on gender inequality and gender-based violence in Nepal. BMC Public Health 22 , 2005 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-022-14389-x

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Editorial comment

(30 March 2023) How inclusive is the Nepali state? Let's ask the 2021 census!

Since 1990, the Nepali state has committed itself in its constitutions to multiethnicity, multilingualism and religious diversity in its society. This reality was reaffirmed in the current constitution of 2015. At the same time, another commitment was added, namely that of ending the existing unequal participation of diverse social groups in the state. In 2006, during Jana Andolan II, this had been one of the most urgent concerns of the people and had subsequently been declared a priority goal by all political parties. Yet this concern was not entirely new in 2006. It had been raised by members of disadvantaged groups as early as 1990, but had not really been heard. The Nepal Janajati Mahasangh, now Nepal Adivasi Janajati Mahasangh, the alliance of representative organisations of ethnic groups, was still in its infancy at the beginning of the 1990s. Similar representations of the interests of the Madheshi and Dalits were more or less nowhere in sight. Historical manipulations of the census In order to be able to estimate the extent of the participation of the various population groups today, one must first know how high the population share of the respective groups is in the total society. Until now, a look at the published data of the census, which has been published more or less regularly every ten years since 1911, has provided information on this. For a long time, the last well-founded census with detailed data on ethnic groups/castes, languages and religions had been the 1961 census, which was compiled immediately after Mahendra's royal coup in 1960 and was still largely free of the manipulations of the panchayat system. The party-less royal panchayat system focused on faking a cultural unitary state in the decades that followed. The impact of this policy can be seen in the published data of the 1971 and 1981 censuses. The number of ethnic groups listed constantly decreased, as did the number of mother tongues and their speakers. At the same time, the pretended number of practising Hindus rose to almost 90 per cent. The evidence for the obviously fake data was provided by the censuses after the democratisation of 1990, according to which the proportion of Hindus fell to around 80 per cent (2001). The proportion of native Nepali speakers fell from 58.4 per cent (1981) to 44.6 per cent (2011). While 44 mother tongues were counted in 1952/3, their number dropped to 17 (1971). In the 2011 census, 123 mother tongues were then listed by name. All this was to be seen as a positive development with regard to the appropriate inclusion of all social groups. Shortcomings of the 2021 Census And now the census of 2021, whose data was published barely one and a half years after it was collected. However, if you look for the latest data on the aforementioned social and cultural areas, you will be surprised to find that there are absolutely no figures. This did not even happen under the royal panchayat system, although this system actually aimed at avoiding such data. At best, a justification is provided by point 13.5 of the introductory notes of the new census, which states: "People’s aspirations and expectations have been elevated by the new Constitution. Issues of identities and capturing government’s attention are high. As a result, some interest groups tried to manipulate the respondents’ independent answers and dictated the enumerators to write a particular response. But this was independently verified and a press note was released from the CBS no fying all the concerned parties for possible legal action if they did not seize campaigning with prejudice. Moreover, a number of interest groups especially related to caste/ethnicity, religion and language have shown serious concern on census results and presented their specific demands which need to be dealt with higher government or political level." This explanation is very significant in many respects. First of all, the very special importance of identity is emphasised. This can only be emphatically confirmed. It gives people a very individual personal position in the multi-ethnic, multi-lingual and multi-religious state of Nepal. Beyond that, however, it also has very special political and administrative significance. Let's just take the right to vote, which in the proportional system refers to the very figures published in the census for percentage allocation. The figures must also be made public in order to comply with the inclusion regulations in the political and administrative sphere. Then the above quote goes on to say that some vested interests have tried to manipulate the data collection in this regard. Nepal's constitution guarantees the fundamental right to information. If the CBS makes such allegations in such an important document as the census report, then these vested interests must be named and legal action must be taken immediately. While the CBS speaks of having threatened such legal action, it remains unclear whether it has been initiated. In this context, there is talk of "concerned parties". Does this refer to political parties or to "groups" in general? The next sentence talks about "interest groups related to caste/ethnicity, religion and language", which obviously had concerns about such social data. Who are these groups and what are the reasons for their concerns? The bottom line is that, while passage 13.5 of the introductory remarks to the census explains problems encountered during the survey, it does not explain why, for the first time, the census does not include any data on ethnicity, languages and religions. In view of the special political, electoral and administrative significance of such data, the Census loses quite considerably in value, however good and informative the data now published may be. Here, the public interest of the population and the state is clearly to be valued higher than possible reservations of certain groups or individuals. So to return to the initial question: What has been achieved so far of the inclusion promised by all political parties in 2006? For this, the public would not only have to be provided with new basic social data on ethnicity, languages and religions, but the respective proportion would also have to be shown for all possible areas of public life. It would be one of the most important tasks of the census in general to provide such data. In order to recognise that male Khas Arya, especially Bahun, hold many times the posts and functions in the state system that are appropriate to them on the basis of their population share, new census data is not necessarily needed. But it is also important to recognise changes in the field of inclusion. This is also and especially important for classifying possible positive changes with regard to traditionally excluded population groups. So the vague hope remains that the missing data will still be supplied. There is no indication of this. Such data should actually be taken into account and integrated in the tables already published. But this is hardly likely to happen. Only then would it be possible to see whether the various social groups in the areas covered by the census are affected or involved differently. The question remains: Are there specific reasons why the social data were swept under the table? Possibly, they could prove the failure of the previous inclusion policy and, on the other hand, give impetus to demands of the excluded groups to remedy deficiencies.

(19 February 2023) Let's celebrate National Oligarchy Day!

In Nepal, they celebrate Democracy Day for three days, whatever there is to celebrate. 72 years ago, the then King Tribhuvan returned to Nepal from exile in India and promised the people democracy, which is still celebrated today. In reality, of course, it was all stink and lies, as we all know. In the years that followed, the monarchy did everything it could to regain and secure its absolutist power, which ultimately ended in the almost 30-year-long party-less Panchayat system. The last king, Gyanendra, who was deposed in 2008, has just once again proposed a cooperation between the monarchy and political parties, for the "preservation of democracy", as he explained. The question remains why an institution that has been rightly abolished is allowed to speak at all; this only exacerbates the crisis. What is celebrated today as democracy is in reality an oligarchy of a few ageing politicians, all of whom have failed repeatedly, but who still consider themselves irreplaceable. Twice since 1951 it looked like democracy would prevail: in 1990 after the first people's movement (Jana Andolan I) and in 2006 after Jana Andolan II and the ending of Gyanendra's coup. The new constitution of 2015 was the work of the top politicians of the major parties and brought no real democratic advantage for the people; it served primarily to secure the power of the aforementioned party elites. In recent weeks, symbols and ideals of Nepali history that had long been hoped to be overcome have been repeatedly celebrated. On 11 January, for example, the birthday of Prithvi Narayan Shah, the founder of modern Nepal, was officially celebrated for the first time in years. This may have been a gesture towards the increasingly vocal supporters of a return to monarchy and the Hindu state. After all, the party that had taken up this unconstitutional cause had to be integrated into the allegedly Maoist-communist government for reasons of securing power. The Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) was founded in 1990 as a rallying point for the top politicians of the party-less royal Panchyat system, has split and merged again and again, and is bobbing along in elections in low single-digit percentages. So much only for the significance of this party. Prithvi Narayan deserves credit for unifying the country to a certain political greatness with his brutal campaigns of conquest. Otherwise, Nepal would probably not exist today. However, he did not do this out of great political foresight, as is repeatedly claimed, but simply for reasons of personal power and economic advantage. But this nation-wide seizure of power by the Shah dynasty of Gorkha also had very serious disadvantages for the people in the conquered areas, which are generally kept quiet: Destruction of traditional local land tenure rights, granting of ethnic land to supporters of the monarchy, suppression of ethnic and regional cultures and languages, integration of these groups at a lower level into the Hindu caste system, to name but a few. This laid the foundations for the unitary state later sought by King Mahendra and his son Birendra: one language, one religion, one culture, one ethnicity, all united by the glorious bond of attachment of the "subjects" to the Shah monarchy. The next big celebration this year was the anniversary of the Maoist uprising on 13 February. Prime Minister PK Dahal has now declared it a National Holiday for the first time because of the glorious achievements of the uprising. The uprising, which was marked by heavy losses and serious crimes and human rights violations by both Maoists and state security forces, has brought few significant changes, some of which are increasingly being challenged: Secularism, federalism, republic. The social inclusion promised by all political parties in 2006 is more distant than ever. Thousands of victims of the uprising continue to wait in vain for justice. Only a few perpetrators from the time of the uprising have been convicted so far. It is significant that one of those perpetrators has now been pardoned as part of the usual action on the occasion of Democracy Day. And so now, three-day celebrations of democracy, that is, the rule of the people. These people have recently expressed in elections what they want and what they do not want. For example, they have made it clear that they no longer want this old failed guard of male Khas Arya politicians, including those of the previous ruling alliance, who had tried to maintain their power through extreme anti-democratic manipulation of the electoral system, or those who in 2020/21 had accepted the destruction of Nepal's parliamentary system in order to maintain their personal power. Only the PR system allows a statement on the status of the political parties and here the losses of the three big parties were clear: Nepali Congress -7%, CPN (UML) -6.3%, CPN (MC) -2.5%. At the same time, parties that offered themselves as alternatives experienced a huge boost. Unfortunately, after the elections, some of these alternative forces turned out to be renewed kingmakers to keep the failed old politicians in power, instead of finally forcing them to make a generational change. Nepal has already experienced something similar after the 2017 elections, when the Bibeksheel Sajha Party managed positive approaches of an alternative political force before its leader Rabindra Mishra then outed himself as a monarchist, who is now a member of the RPP. Positive approaches like those of the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) obviously lose their impact as soon as the traditional power merry-go-round of the ruling oligarchy takes effect. Thus, Nepal now has a prime minister whose party received just 11 per cent of the vote and which won at least some of the direct mandates only thanks to the manipulative electoral alliance of the then ruling parties. So Dahal is prime minister thanks to the direct votes of, for example, traditional NC voters, but this has forced it into opposition, which this party, in turn, does not see that way. Democracy in Nepal supposedly does not need an opposition. At the same time, the strings in the background of the current government are pulled by KP Oli, who two years ago led Nepal's political system to the brink of ruin. It took his removal by the Supreme Court to stop him and his state president who was loyal to him. And Oli would not be Oli if he did not focus everything on his quick return to power. A year and a half ago, Dahal had played a decisive role in Oli's downfall, allegedly because he no longer considered him tenable. Now, however, the post of prime minister was more important to Dahal than his blather of yesterday. But Dahal was to pay dearly for his post. Oli insisted on about a third of the ministerial posts for his party. In addition, he wanted all important new state posts to be reserved for the UML. At some point, Dahal must have realised that he was only a puppet in Oli's power game. Since Dahal knows better than anyone else how to fly his flag with the wind and to throw away yesterday's promises, the signs within the governing coalition are now pointing to a storm. Oli and Dahal have agreed that the post of prime minister should switch to Oli after two and a half years, however this is to be handled legally, but constitutional rules do not interest Nepal's failed top politician anyway. Of utmost importance for Oli is that he then has a state president at his side who will rubber-stamp his every potential executive decision unchecked, as Bidya Devi Bhandari has willingly done repeatedly. So Oli still needs this post of state president for his party to have the state machinery more or less under his control. Within no time, Oli would then be back where he was dishonourably dismissed in 2021. Why the latter did not have further political consequences for him remains incomprehensible anyway. If the election of a new state president were in the interest of the country and its people, then this choice would fall on a neutral personality from the realm of civil society. But as it is, it is once again an important element in the power game of the failed political elites and parties. Nepal remains an oligarchy and not a democracy. So let's celebrate National Oligarchy Day!

(25 December 2022) The dishonesty of Nepal's top politicians Free and fair elections are the best non-violent way for the citizens of the country to express their views to the politicians and their parties. Despite tremendous manipulation and restriction of the freedom of choice through the formation of electoral alliances, especially those of the ruling parties, the voters managed to express a few things clearly;     - They did not want "business as usual".     - They did not want the same old failed politicians.     - They wanted a generational change in political responsibility. And the signals were clear. The electoral alliance of the five governing parties was voted out because it could no longer obtain the number of MPs needed to form a government. The main opposition party CPN (UML) led by former two-time prime minister KP Oli also lost not only 36 direct mandates compared to 2017, which was probably due to the electoral alliance of the ruling parties, but also 6.3 per cent of the PR votes, which was a significant drop in terms of voters' favour. Similarly, the CPN (MC)'s support dropped again by 2.5 per cent to only 11.1 per cent of the PR vote, a trend that has continued unabated since 2008. Presumably, this party was only able to win many of its 18 direct mandates thanks to the electoral alliance, in which the other participating parties asked their voters to vote for the candidate of the Maoist party. And what was the reaction of the ageing leaders of these three parties to the clear statement of the voters? They saw themselves as winners despite their defeats, a phenomenon that is not entirely untypical after elections worldwide. A compromise solution might have been to transfer the responsibility to a younger generation. With Gagan Thapa, a certainly suitable candidate had come forward. But the old, failed top politicians rigorously ignored this option. Instead, the parties in the Deuba government, for example, tried to bring other parties on board in order to come up with the number of MPs needed to continue the government. At the same time, a fierce battle began between two top leaders of the ruling coalition, PK Dahal and SB Deuba, for the post of the future prime minister. Meanwhile, the opposition leader KP Oli pretended to accept defeat and to remain in opposition. In reality, however, he did not miss any opportunity to drive discord into the government coalition by repeatedly calling for a coalition of left parties, preferably under his leadership. These power struggles over the new government formation had one thing in common. They showed that the top politicians of the three big parties were once again not concerned with the welfare of the state and society, but solely with fulfilling their own personal claims to power. In this respect, PK Dahal's statement on 25 December that he now had to change sides because SB Deuba had broken his promise when he refused to accept Dahal as the new prime minister is striking. Yet the voters had expressed that they no longer wanted either of them. It is shocking that Dahal justifies his switch to the Oli camp by saying that he was cheated by Deuba. But how should the voters who voted for the candidates of the ruling alliance feel, even if these candidates came from parties they would never have voted for if their freedom of choice had not been so restricted by the agreements of the top politicians of the alliance? So now a politician whose party was elected by just 11 per cent of the electorate, and thanks to the direct mandates won by his alliance pledges came a distant third, allows himself to be made prime minister at the head of a completely different coalition. If anything is fraud, it is surely this, and it is fraud against the electorate! Now Nepal gets a new prime minister who long ago testified that he was responsible for 5,000 deaths during the Maoist insurgency. For long, he has not held any top office. Nepal's top politicians, regardless of party, usually only accept the office of prime minister for themselves. Otherwise, they prefer to pull strings in the background. So now someone who has pleaded guilty to a capital crime has taken over the highest executive office. This is only possible because KP Oli, with his 78 MPs, supports Dahal as prime minister. In view of Oli's past, the legitimate question remains how long this will be. At the same time, Oli is also an extremely questionable figure after all that he afforded himself in 2021. Both parliamentary dissolutions at the time were unconstitutional, as the Supreme Court has confirmed, but Oli still does not accept this. At least the second parliamentary dissolution was nothing but a coup, which was only made possible thanks to the active support of the state president. It is also questionable to look at the other parties that want to participate in the new government. There is, for example, the RPP, which fundamentally rejects secularism and federalism and instead strives for a return to the Hindu state and monarchy, i.e. a clearly unconstitutional proposal. And in general, the question arises how such a party and a party that calls itself revolutionary-Maoist can sit together in a government. Then there are three parties that were elected to parliament by many voters primarily because they had contested as alternative political forces, notably the Rastriya Swatantra Party, which got only 0.4 per cent less PR votes than Dahal's CPN (MC), but also the two regional parties, Janamat Party and Nagarik Unmukti Party. These three parties are now actually admitting to ensuring the stay in power of old failed politicians. Do these parties actually believe that they can initiate the changes they promised to their voters from within the government? Not one of the top politicians of the major parties has ever explained why he had to become prime minister. What they have all been spreading is merely empty phrases that are out of touch with reality and have been delivered monotonously for years.

(27 November 2022) Attempt of a first election analysis The national and provincial elections have been held and have sent shock waves. Despite massive manipulation in the nomination of candidates, continued blatant disregard for social inclusion, utopian and fairytale-like election manifestos and the subversion of democratic principles, the eternally same and long since repeatedly failed ageing party leaders have not succeeded in deceiving the electorate once again. The top politicians were only concerned with one thing: they wanted to have their personal position of power confirmed once again by the elections so that they could continue their state-destroying power struggles for five years afterwards. All according to the motto: Keep it up, it has always worked so far.

But it didn't this time. The voters were, to put it bluntly, fed up and taught the top politicians and their parties a lesson. The fact that this did not turn out even more clearly is due to various circumstances. For one thing, the insane electoral alliances led to the competition between the parties in the constituencies, which is typical of a democratic system, being considerably restricted. Voters could no longer decide freely. They had to be satisfied with the candidates that the party leaders had chosen for them, basta! Or else they had to resort to a protest vote. In some constituencies, a not inconsiderable number of independent candidates have favoured the re-election of prominent top politicians. The nationwide cadre system of the major parties also had a supportive effect on incumbent politicians. Another plus for them is the so-called Constituency Development Fund, through which only directly elected MPs can specifically promote development projects in their constituencies and thus already work towards re-election during the ongoing legislative period. Finally, it is also worth mentioning the effort to weaken or exclude potential competitors through accusations or even lawsuits already in the run-up to the elections. Sometimes, the Election Commission seems to have supported such processes while turning a blind eye to the misconduct of many established politicians. Unfortunately, even a week after the elections, not even the FPTP votes have been fully counted. Regarding the PR system, only constantly updated figures are published on the Election Commission's website, although it is precisely here that percentage figures could already reveal a trend. If you want to get this one, you have to calculate the expected PR seats yourself. It is therefore too early to draw up a comprehensive analysis, but some things can already be clearly seen. First, there is the winner of the 2017 elections, the CPN (UML), whose chairperson had announced in his grandiloquent manner that his party would emerge from the elections with an absolute majority of seats. In 2017, the party had won 121 of the 275 seats in an electoral alliance with the CPN (MC). This time, it will be about 40 MPs less, mainly due to losses in the FPTP system. But even in the proportional system, the party is expected to drop by about six percent to just over 27 percent. In this system, however, the CPN (UML) remains ahead with about the same lead over the Nepali Congress (NC) as five years ago. So, under the PR system, the NC also loses about six per cent compared to 2017. Hence, it is only in the PR system that one can make out the status of the parties among the electorate. The FPTP system this time was all about manipulation by the electoral alliances. Thus, the declared aim of the alliance of the five ruling parties [NC, CPN (MC), CPN (US), LSP and Janamorcha Nepal] was to ensure a continuation of the ruling coalition after the elections by means of their electoral alliance. For this purpose, the re-election of as many leading politicians of the coalition as possible was to be made possible. This plan has obviously failed. Thanks to candidate manipulation, at least the NC was able to gain almost as many seats in the FPTP system as the CPN (UML) lost compared to 2017. Together with the seats from the proportional system, the party is likely to have around 90 MPs in the new House of Representatives. For a governing majority of at least 138 MPs, the other four governing parties would thus have to bring in around 50 more MPs, but it does not look like that will happen. Pushpa Kamal Dahal's CPN (MC), still an alliance partner of the CPN (UML) in 2017, is the second big loser of these elections. The number of its FPTP seats will be halved compared to 2017, with an expected 18. Just as a reminder: as early as 2008, voters had placed great hope in this party and gave it exactly 50 per cent of the 240 direct mandates at the time. Since then, the party has been declining from election to election, which is certainly also due to the fact that it has forgotten almost all of its former ideals. In the PR system, too, it will drop by another two percent, with only about eleven percent. In total, this will probably mean 33 seats in total. Madhav Kumar Nepal's CPN (US), which emerged from the CPN (UML), is contesting elections for the first time. The election results make it clear that this party has not yet reached the electorate. Although it is the third strongest party in the ruling coalition with 10 direct mandates, it fails to clear the three-percent hurdle in the PR system. The Loktantrik Samajbadi Party (LSP), which recently replaced the Janata Samajbadi Party (JSP) in the ruling coalition, has only four direct seats, while Rastriya Janamorcha has only one direct seat, as in 2017. These two parties did not win PR seats either. From this point of view, a continuation of the current governing coalition seems at least difficult, if not impossible. Four parties can be described as election winners due to their significant gains. First and foremost is the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), founded by Rabi Lamichhane in June 2022. It has won eight direct mandates and, thanks to a good eleven per cent of the PR votes, is expected to win another 15 seats through the PR system. As the party's name suggests, it wants to establish itself independently of the political quagmire of the major parties, and this seems to have resonated with the electorate, despite all the defamation campaigns against this young party. KP Oli nevertheless describes the emergence of this party as a trivial matter. The question arises whether this expresses arrogance or sheer shock. The winner from among the established parties is the RPP, which many had already seen as a outdated model in 2017 in view of only one direct mandate and its failure to clear the three-percent hurdle in the PR system. In 2022, the party won seven direct mandates and, thanks to six per cent of the PR votes, has a total of 15 MPs. The party stands for a return to Hindu state and monarchy, a clearly unconstitutional aspiration. The improved popularity in the PR system is probably largely due to a protest against the manipulations of the major parties. However, the mere six percent or so of the PR vote also makes it clear that the RPP's aspirations do not enjoy broad popular support, contrary to what is claimed at rallies of this party. The two smaller winners of these elections are based in the Tarai. One is CK Raut's Janamat Party (Referendum Party). Raut has long advocated an independent Madheshi state in the Nepali Tarai, which of course also contradicts the constitution. Although Raut's movement did not always establish itself with greater militancy, the state often dealt with him quite harshly. In 2019, the then Prime Minister KP Oli concluded an agreement with Raut, which, according to Oli, meant that Raut would distance himself from his separatist aspirations. This was countered by Raut's immediate formation of his Janamat Party, which, as its name suggests, wants to achieve the creation of a Tarai state not through militancy but through a referendum. CK Raut has now won the direct mandate in his constituency with a large majority. More than 2.5 per cent of the PR votes are also remarkable. The party is also winning a number of seats in the provincial elections, which will not be discussed further here. The second smaller party from the Tarai that successfully attracted attention in the elections is the Nagarik Unmukti Party (NUP). In the PR system, like the Janamat Party, it achieved a good 2.5 per cent of the votes and also three direct mandates. It was equally successful in the provincial elections. The party was not officially registered until January 2022. Its initiator is Resham Chaudhary, who is currently serving a life sentence. He is considered a prime suspect in the Tikapur riots, in which eight policemen and a child were murdered in 2015. Chaudhary was elected to the House of Representatives in 2017, although he was officially in hiding. His appeal against his conviction and its rejection by the Dipayal High Court has been pending before the SC for some time. He had wanted to run himself in 2022, which was rejected. The rise of the two aforementioned Tarai parties can be seen in the direct context of the decline of the two successful Tarai parties of the 2017 elections. The Rastriya Janata Party (RJP) and the Sanghiya Samabadi Forum (SSF) managed to win 5.45 per cent of the PR votes each and a total of 33 assembly seats at that time. In the intervening period, the two parties even merged to form the Rastriya Janajata Party Nepal (RJPN), which meant a strong presence of the Tarai people in parliament. At times, Baburam Bhattarai, who had won a direct mandate through his Naya Shakti Party, also became involved in this party. The infighting among the top leaders of the major parties in recent years also left its mark on the Tarai politicians. First, the RJPN broke into the Janata Samajbadi Party (JSP) and the Loktantrik Samajbadi Party (LSP). Initially, the JSP became a member of the ruling coalition. When this party felt disadvantaged in the electoral alliance, it switched to an alliance with KP Oli's CPN (UML). Within the government coalition, the LSP then took its place. In the end, it became apparent that the top politicians of the Tarai parties were also primarily concerned with their own power and chances of personal re-election and not with the concerns of the people they claimed to represent. They have now been taught a lesson by the electorate in the parliamentary elections. The share of the PR vote fell by more than 1.5 per cent for the JSP and by a good 3.5 per cent for the LSP. The JSP lost six seats, the LSP 13, the latter even failing to clear the three-percent hurdle. In the Tarai, too, people seem to be voting more consciously. It remains to mention that the Nepal Majdur Kisan Party was able to defend its direct mandate in Bhaktapur. Five independent candidates were also elected. This, too, may be seen as a sign of voter dissatisfaction with the major parties and their misguided and, in some respects, anti-democratic policies. What do the elections mean for political stability? What might a future government look like? The new House of Representatives will include twelve parties and five independents. In 2017, only five parties had more than one MP; this time there are nine. The then governing coalition of CPN (UML) and CPN (MC) did not bring any political stability to the country, despite a near two-thirds majority in parliament, but rather exacerbated the chaos and infighting. Rational coalition governments with a clear majority of MPs are not in sight at all this time. Only a coalition of NC and CPN (UML) could have a majority of about 60 percent of the MPs. But such a coalition makes no sense whatsoever if it is led by the failed prime ministers of the previous legislature, who might then also want to take turns in office. If the voters have expressed anything definitively, it is that they want a new beginning with fresh faces in positions of responsibility. The RSP was also so successful because it relied on a much younger generation of politicians. At best, it can be criticised for not having considered the aspect of social inclusion much better than the established parties (for example, only 12 women among 131 direct candidates). But this party is still very young and this should not be overrated here. Calls for a generational change have also been on the agenda of the numerical winner of these elections, the NC, for some time. Immediately after his re-election, Gagan Thapa, a younger politician, laid claim to the office of the future prime minister. Within the party, several politicians from the old guard will challenge his claim. Apart from the incumbent Prime Minister and party president Sher Bahadur Deuba, these are at least Ram Chandra Poudel, Shekhar Koirala, Shashank Koirala and Prakash Man Singh. With a turn towards the younger generation, there may finally be options for a more hopeful political future of the country.

(21 October 2022) The declared ideals of 2006 and today's political impasse

The scorn of Nepali politicians knows no bounds. The top leaders of the ruling coalition, for example, repeat in monotone that their electoral alliance is necessary to preserve the constitution, stability and prosperity. Yet, the ruling coalition has failed miserably on all these three aspects in a similar manner as the Oli government before it.

In reality, the leaders of all the major parties are only concerned with securing their re-election. If only one candidate from the camp of an electoral alliance stands in a constituency, his chances of re-election increase enormously. Only independent candidates can counteract this speculation, if voters realise in sufficient numbers that the same failed top candidates cannot be re-elected under any circumstances in the interest of the country, the people, democracy and the constitution. Another complicating factor is that this alliance system extremely reduces the number of potential alternative candidates of a party. Only the same old and long-since failed people are up for election.

None of the so-called top politicians respects the constitution and laws. Indeed, they obviously do not even know them. Should they intentionally violate them, they would have to be brought to justice immediately. Their behaviour would be highly malicious and therefore not covered by any passage in the constitution and subordinate laws.

The failed "top politicians" are a collection of male, predominantly high-caste politicians who want nothing to have to do with their own slogans of 2006, namely advocacy of social inclusion, democracy, federalism and secularism. For all of them, only their own very personal interests in power and all the privileges that go with it count.

16 years have passed since 2006. There can be no talk of social inclusion at all. It may have been in evidence at the time of the first Constituent Assembly election in 2008, but it was systematically dismantled thereafter. Even the inclusion provisions of the interim constitution were fundamentally disregarded. With the adoption of the new constitution in 2015, this was taken further in a decisive way. For example, the provision of the interim constitution to respect inclusion in the selection of direct candidates, which was never respected anyway, was removed altogether. Their proportion, mostly hand-selected males from predominantly so-called high Hindu castes, was increased at the same time. Only 110 of the 275 MPs are now elected by the people through the proportional representation system (PR). The latter is increasingly misused by top politicians in a nepotistic manner to infiltrate relatives, associates and friends into parliament. Since hardly any women are nominated as FPTP candidates, the prescribed 33 percent share of women in parliament must be ensured via the PR system. For example, putting the prime minister's wife on the PR list guarantees her safe election to parliament. In view of the fact that most of the FPTP candidates are men from the Tagadhari castes or Khas Arya (societal share of these men = 15 per cent), it seems downright grotesque that another 30 per cent Khas Arya are elected to parliament via the PR system. In this way, an adequate inclusion of "all" social groups, as pompously promised by the top politicians in 2006, will never be achieved. They don't even want this, and in 2006 they only talked about it like so many other things that they still pompously promise today but never really mean.

Democracy means the rule of the people. The alliance politicians declare in all seriousness that they are standing up for this when they form an alliance. In reality, however, this is a paternalism of the voters. They are obviously to be declared too stupid to recognise which politicians are best suited to represent their interests and the needs of the state. Therefore, the alliance politicians take this agony of choice away from them. Voters are only supposed to cast their votes for the common candidate that the top politicians have previously negotiated in weeks of discussion, regardless of which party that candidate belongs to. That is not democracy, that is oligarchy and the dumbing down of voters.

The idea of federalism was brought up in the 1990s by stakeholders of the Janajati groups and the then insurgent CPN (Maoist). Considering the fact that Nepal had hitherto been an extremely centralised state and that numerous regions and social groups were not really participated, this proposal seemed rational and later found its way into the basis for discussion in the Constituent Assembly. When the top politicians realised that the proposals put forward on the federal state threatened their privileges and state control, they increasingly took over the constitutional discussion themselves. Their disagreement on the issue of federalism ultimately led to the failure of the first Constituent Assembly. It was only with the change of majority in the second Constituent Assembly that the NC and CPN (UML) were able to push through their ideas of the federal state, which were more oriented towards the system of the Development Regions of the Panchayat period and denied any historical and ethnic reference even in the naming. Then, when the constitution was adopted, the inclusively elected representatives in the assembly were not allowed to introduce the concerns and ideas of the social groups they represented anyway.

Article 3 of the 2015 Constitution defines Nepal as a multi-ethnic, multi-religious, multi-lingual and multi-cultural state. Such a state cannot possibly be linked to the religion, language and culture of a single one of these social groups. In this respect, it was obvious to declare Nepal a secular state. A look at the history of modern Nepal from the days of Prithvinaran Shah to the last days of the monarchy makes it clear that the close linkage with Hindu political ideas and ideals has been one of the main causes of social inequalities, discrimination and participatory exclusion. Despite the now official commitment to secularism in the constitution (Article 4), there are repeated calls for a revival of the Hindu state. These come not only from those circles that are party-ideologically committed to this albeit unconstitutional idea, such as the RPP groups, but there are also a number of politicians within the major parties who occasionally flirt with this idea and closely link their notion of Nepali nationalism to Hindu ideals. The best example of the latter has been provided by former Prime Minister Oli on different occasions. This may also be related to the fact that most top politicians belong to a cultural environment that is closely linked to Hindu values and ways of thinking and lack necessary understanding of the multi-ethnic society. If adequate social inclusion had taken place since 2006, democracy, federalism and secularism would certainly not be questioned today.

(24 October 2021) Worsening of the national crisis

The crisis of the Nepali state is progressing. After the coup-like dissolution of parliament twice and his removal by the Supreme Court, KP Oli with his CPN-UML continues to "successfully" prevent parliament from working. His successor as prime minister, Sher Bahadur Deuba (Nepali Congress, NC), is still not getting anything done after more than 100 days in office. A partly anti-democratic approach and cracks are also emerging in this government, the latter not least because of the possible signing of the MCC agreement with the USA, strongly advocated by Deuba.

With his appointment of a brother-in-law of the Chief Justice (CJ) as minister, Deuba has also brought the Supreme Court under criticism. Assurances by the CJ that he strongly advised Deuba not to do so look implausible. The Bar Association is on the barricades, as are the CJ's colleagues in the Supreme Court. The judiciary has been permanently damaged.

The NC party convention, which legally should have taken place by March 2021 at the latest, keeps being postponed. The upcoming party convention of the CPN-UML also seems to be experiencing problems. All four major parties are showing that they are not willing to learn. According to schedule, new elections are due in autumn 2022 at all three levels of the federal system. Moving them up significantly has long been called for by the CPN-UML and is now also being discussed by the ruling parties.

But no matter when they are actually held, nothing is likely to change in the messy situation. The old and long-since failed leaders of all parties do not want to give up a millimetre of their power and control. In the NC, only veteran politicians, some of them 75-76 years old, are fighting for the leadership of the party for the next five years and, of course, for their candidacy for prime minister next year. Oli claims to have set in motion a huge rejuvenation process in the CPN-UML, but has enforced that the maximum age for election as party president and for candidacy for prime minister is 70. He himself will be 70 in February, so he is on the safe side. Meanwhile, the question of whether Oli has any legitimacy for state and party office after his attacks on parliamentary democracy, the constitution and the rule of law remains undiscussed.

Pushpa Kamal Dahal's CPN-MC has forgotten all its once revolutionary claims. It has become a mainstream party whose leaders have long been concerned primarily with their own profit and power influence. The ideals they stood for in the ten-year militant uprising no longer count. Not only the Maoist fighters who put their lives and health at risk for these ideals feel betrayed, but also all those who had hope for the promised social and political changes and who in 2008 voted the Maoist party as by far the strongest political force in the first elections to a Constituent Assembly. Nothing is left and nothing will come.

What remains of the major parties is the recently formed CPN-US (Unified Socialist) led by Madhav Kumar Nepal, which recently split from the CPN-UML. This party is still too young to really classify it. At best, one can see that even in this new party, the traditional patriarchal orientations have been preserved in the nominations to the various party bodies. At most, it will be interesting to see how many votes the two moderate communist parties, CPN-UML and CPN-US, will lose in the next elections. In 1998, the CPN-UML had already split over personal power claims. In the 1999 parliamentary elections, the two groups together received the most votes for the first time, but in the fight for seats in the then single-majority system they took the decisive votes from each other and helped the NC to an absolute majority of seats despite losing votes.

The question remains: What will the next elections bring for the country and for the people? All indications are that the voters will once again have no real choice. They will probably only be allowed to decide which of the numerous failed high-caste male top politicians they will vote for. Hopeful younger politicians of both sexes and with a view to balanced social inclusion will probably continue to be few and far between. The old heads in all parties will ensure that. It already seems certain that no party will win an absolute majority of seats. And Nepal has not been able to cope with such a situation so far.

(10 October 2021) Will everything be better with PM Deuba?

Exactly 90 days ago today, Sher Bahadur Deuba was sworn in as Prime Minister for the fifth time. The background is well known. KP Oli had tried to cover up his incompetence in an authoritarian manner. Several breaches of the constitution, repeated contempt of court and subversion of basic democratic norms ultimately left the Supreme Court with no choice but to remove Oli. Previously, Oli saw no reason to resign, neither in a clear vote of no confidence by the House of Representatives, nor in the explicit provisions of the Constitution, nor in the crumbling support within his own party.

In a democratic state, these would be ample reasons to deny KP Oli the right to hold political office for all time to come. But Oli does not care about any of this. Internally, he has preferred to divide and possibly weaken in the long run his CPN-UML, which had developed into a formidable left force over the past decades - definitely not to Oli's credit. At the national level, even after his ouster, he has continued his efforts to destroy parliamentary democracy. Most notable here is the continuous blockade of both houses of parliament, sometimes enforced with considerable militancy. With hollow slogans, Oli and his closest confidants are trying to give the impression that an overwhelming electoral victory for the CPN-UML in the next elections is beyond all doubt. Actually, a clear age limit was supposed to initiate a rejuvenation process in the party. But in a recent amendment to the constitution, Oli ensured that the age limit with regard to running for political office was only set at 70. In February 2022, Oli will turn 70; before that, of course, he wants to be confirmed as party leader for another five years at the party convention in November and then also be his party's top candidate in the upcoming parliamentary elections in 2022.

For about a year, Oli as prime minister had blocked the legislative work of the people's elected representatives because he could be less and less sure of majority parliamentary support for his increasingly abstruse policies. With the help of the president, who was compliant with him in every respect, laws were no longer passed by parliament, but were signed by Oli and then by the president in the form of ordinances. Oli's latest coup was the second dissolution of the House of Representatives despite an explicit interdict by the Supreme Court. In doing so, the PM and President knowingly and single-mindedly disregarded the fact that a majority of the members of the House of Representatives had expressed in writing their support for replacing Prime Minister Oli with Sher Bahadur Deuba. Only another Supreme Court ruling could put an end to their unconstitutional action.

So, Deuba has been Prime Minister for three months now. On 18 July, he was confirmed in office by a narrow two-thirds majority of MPs in a vote of confidence. What has changed since then? In short, remarkably little. It was clear that Deuba's power would depend on support from several opposition parties or party factions.

In his vote of confidence, he had even received some votes from the Oli faction of the CPN-UML. At that time, the Supreme Court had explicitly ruled out negative consequences for voting in a way that deviated from the party line. But after that, the Political Party Act of 2017, in which top politicians had given priority to a party line constraint over a free vote of conscience by MPs on votes, was again in effect. In the worst case, the party leadership can revoke the status of MPs who disobey the party leadership's voting instructions. All that is needed is a simple notification to the secretariat of the House of Representatives. In order for a party's faction to split from the parent party without the MPs losing their parliamentary status, it had to get at least 40 per cent of the MPs behind it.

This arrangement was critical for Madhav Kumar Nepal's UML faction MPs. They could not support Deuba, nor could they possibly agree to an amendment to the Political Party Act in parliament. However, without such an amendment, they could not separate.

In this situation, Deuba resorted to the method previously practised by Oli and rightly criticised harshly. Deuba abruptly ended the session of the House of Representatives, changed the number of MPs required for a party split to 20 per cent by ordinance signed by the president, and reconvened the parliamentary chamber. Shortly after, the faction of MK Nepal split as CPN-US (Unified Socialist). As the opportunity was favourable, the faction around Mahanta Thakur also split from the Janata Samajbadi Party-Nepal (JSP-N), which also supported Deuba, under the name Loktantrik Samajbadi Party (LSP). Soon after, the Deuba government withdrew the ordinance amending the Political Party Act, so the law is again in force in the form it was before the party splits. Deuba had, after all, achieved what he wanted. With the parties supporting him, he could now hope for the necessary majority of MPs in votes. But this had nothing to do with democracy and constitutional procedure.

Even after this "clarification" of the majority situation, however, it was to take weeks before Deuba could complete his rudimentary cabinet - four ministers had been sworn in together with him, and later Narayan Khadka was also added so that he could represent Nepal at the United Nations General Assembly. The reasons now lay in the dispute between the coalition partners over the respective number of ministerial posts and the division of the portfolio.

It was only 88 days after he was sworn in that Deuba was able to complete this process. His cabinet now comprises 25 people, 22 ministers and three ministers of state. His NC has nine ministers and one state minister, while the CPN-MC, as the second strongest coalition party, has five ministers. The CPN-US and the JSP-N each have four ministers and one minister of state; after protests, the NC had given another ministerial post to the CPN-US.

The fact that there are five women in the cabinet this time can be seen as a positive development to a limited extent. This corresponds to a share of 20 percent. This is the highest figure, at least since the Council of Ministers was limited to a maximum of 25 persons by the new constitution. However, Nepal has set itself a target of at least 33 per cent women at all levels of the state, so this is still a long way off.

The high proportion of members of the Newar caste of the Shrestha is striking. They make up about one percent of the population. As Newars, they actually belong to the Janajati groups, but in the Hindu hierarchical thinking of the state elite on the basis of the Muluki Ain of 1854, they are classified as Tagadhari (bearers of the sacred string), to which above all the Bahun, Thakuri and Chhetri belong. Including the Shrestha, the Council of Ministers once again includes 16 Tagadhari (64 per cent, share in the total population around 30 per cent). In this respect, therefore, little has changed compared to previous governments. The Janajati are only reasonably represented according to their share of the population if the Shrestha are also assigned to them. The Madhesi are only involved through the JSP-N and are also slightly under-represented. Surprisingly, once again there is a Dalit as a minister (through the CPN-MC) Since about 12 per cent of the population is Dalit according to the 2011 Census, this continues to be an extremely blatant exclusion.

Of course, it is difficult to put social participation in the Council of Ministers in relation to social shares. In view of the traditional imbalance, however, one can still speak of a continuation of the previous personnel policy. At most, it is still noticeable that the share of Bahuns in the Council of Ministers has declined significantly compared to the Oli government, although they continue to be overrepresented. Perhaps this is also related to the fact that the prime minister himself is a Chhetri this time. Given their population share, to have not more than two Bahuns in the Council of Ministers would be appropriate.

The completion of the cabinet was overshadowed by another affair. Even before the final nomination and swearing-in of ministers, there were strong rumours that Chief Justice Cholendra Shamsher JB Rana was trying to gain influence over the composition of the executive. There were already strong protests from the media, civil society and lawyers about this mixing of the judiciary and the executive.

Unfortunately, the ministerial list reinforced these initial fears. Gajendra Bahadur Hamal, a brother-in-law of the Chief Justice, was appointed Minister of Industry, Commerce and Supplies. He was not even a member of parliament and came from the district level of the Nepali Congress, so if in doubt, he would have had to become a member of parliament within six months if he wanted to retain his post. Another shadow fell on him because he had clearly advocated a return to the Hindu state in the past. But he is not alone in this in the NC; even general secretary Shashanka Koirala has repeatedly expressed this view. In view of the escalating turmoil, Hamal resigned from office on the second day after his swearing-in.

There is fierce criticism over the composition of the Council of Ministers both within the NC and the JSP-N. Deuba, in any case, has already amply demonstrated that he has not changed compared to previous terms. Clearly, he is well on his way to his fifth failure as prime minister.

(5 July 2021) Constitutional crisis : Can it be solved?

Corona infection numbers may temporarily decline. However, in view of the unchanged low tests, the lack of vaccines and the global developments, it is to be feared that a third wave will soon hit. The vaccination optimism spread by Prime Minister Oli seems misplaced.

Meanwhile, the political situation is escalating. The Supreme Court has already rejected unconstitutional measures of the Oli government in various cases. Perhaps outstanding is the decision that the personnel change in the Council of Ministers was clearly defined as unconstitutional, thus reducing the Council of Ministers to five members. Oli could have easily read this in Article 77 (3) of the Constitution before making his decision. Presumably, however, he does not see himself as an interim prime minister at all.

Yet Oli should not even be an interim prime minister after the elected MPs of the people in the House of Representatives withdrew their confidence in him. Due to the disunity of his political opponents, no alternative prime minister could initially stand for election. Therefore, President Bidya Devi Bhandari appointed Oli to continue in office as interim Prime Minister. As such, according to Article 76, he would have had to seek another vote of confidence in the House of Representatives within 30 days. Had he lost this one too, his time as prime minister would have been history.

However, the situation changed within a few days with the nomination of a new candidate for prime minister through a list signed by 146 of 265 possible MPs. Realising that he no longer had a chance to maintain his power through legal means, Oli staged a coup with the active support of President Bhandari. Oli declared that he had even more MPs behind him than Sher Bahadur Deuba, the candidate of the opposition forces, of course without a list of signatures, because this was not possible at all in terms of numbers.

Bidya Devi Bhandari declared the situation as unclear, although she only had to ask the House of Representatives for a vote. In order to avoid any more opposition from the House, she, in consultation with KP Oli, dissolved the parliamentary chamber again, set new elections for November 2021 and reappointed Oli, who already had lost the confidence of the people's representatives, as interim prime minister until these elections. In explaining this action, Oli cited contradictory or unclear provisions of the Constitution and the Political Parties Act. Oli claimed that in a democracy, elected representatives are not allowed to vote according to their conscience, but must respect party discipline. In other words, according to Oli, democracy is not a rule of the people, but a rule of the parties. This is complicated by the fact that all of Nepal's political parties lack democratic structures and processes. They are all controlled by a very small group of mostly male Bahuns (recruited from six percent of the total population). These small party elites determine party policy and the voting behaviour of their MPs.

Even more serious is the fact that the respective party leaders are given an almost absolute power. All major parties are characterised by factionalism. As a rule, the party chairman is the top politician who has the most members behind him at the two highest party levels. The party chairman is then largely free to decide on personnel appointments as well as on the party's political stances. Resistance comes at most from the other factions within the party if he does not take them sufficiently into account in personnel policy.

In this sense, KP Oli sees himself as an almost absolutist ruler over his CPN-UML. His "world view" came into crisis when last year many MPs of his then still united party NCP opposed him and eventually even wanted to replace him as chairman and prime minister with another person from his party. This situation was aggravated when the Supreme Court annulled the merger of CPN-UML and CPN-MC. This meant that the CPN-UML was still the strongest party in parliament, but had lost its absolute majority. This majority was further reduced when the intra-party factions of MK Nepal and JN Khanal continued to oppose Oli and flirted with supporting a joint opposition prime ministerial candidate. Some of them then also signed the list submitted to the president.

Since then, Oli has been clamouring that it is undemocratic for MPs of his party to disregard his directives as chairman and support the opposition candidate. This aspect will also play a role when the Supreme Court has to decide in the next few days on the renewed dissolution of parliament and the machinations of Oli and Bhandari.

It is to be hoped that the Supreme Court will decide in favour of preserving democracy, the constitution and the rule of law. It will not be able to avoid better defining the understanding of democracy. It is also not acceptable for the Supreme Court to make the opposition candidate prime minister as is demanded by some lawyers on the plaintiff's side. This is not a task of the court, but of parliament. The Prime Minister must be elected solely by the elected representatives of the people by secret ballot and without party coercion. This alone is democracy! The Supreme Court should therefore order an immediate restoration of the House of Representatives..

This is a personal analysis of the legal situation. The bottom line, however, is that the question remains whether Nepal will find its way back to political rationality without new elections. Without a radical democratisation of the parties and the status of MPs, a weeding out of the failed old political guard and a much better social inclusion based on federalism and secularism, however, new elections will not change much .

(24 May 2021) Proposals for an immediate rescue attempt of the people, the constitution and democracy Step 1 : The Supreme Court has already made it clear to KP Oli and President Bidya Devi Bhandari that a prime minister has no right to dissolve the House of Representatives for the sole purpose of retaining power, but must adhere precisely to the provisions of Article 76 of the Constitution. It should therefore be easy for the SC to immediately confirm this to the two of them once again. The utter disregard for the pandemic suffering of the people on the part of the Oli government alone calls for utmost urgency. To seek elections in this situation borders on attempted manslaughter. Oli, but certainly also the leaders of the other parties, have already contributed greatly to the renewed escalation of the pandemic with their calls for mass meetings on the streets at the beginning of the year. Step 2 : After the SC has restored the House of Representatives as soon as possible, the opposition must immediately, and without further discussion and infighting in parliament, move a motion of no confidence against Oli and elect a new prime minister. Without the opposition taking action itself, Oli will not budge. He has proved that sufficiently. Sher Bahadur Deuba has exposed numerous flaws and mistakes in the past over the course of four terms in office, but he is the leader of the second strongest party in the House of Representatives and Oli must be removed from power immediately to prevent him from doing worse. Step 3 : As small a national government as possible should be formed under the leadership of Deuba, in which the portfolios should be filled according to competence and not according to party affiliation. The priority tasks of this national government should be thoughtful measures to contain and combat the pandemic. In addition, an annual budget must be prepared and passed by parliament without delay. Finally, all ordinances enforced by Oli in bypassing Parliament and signed by the President, must be immediately repealed and, where necessary, replaced by legislation passed by Parliament. Several ordinances enforced by Oli may have long since become invalid under Article 114 anyway, as Oli unconstitutionally prevented their discussion and decision by the House of Representatives during its first session after the reconstitution. Step 4 : If the majority situation in both Houses of Parliament appears sufficient, consideration should also be given to initiating impeachment proceedings against President Bidya Devi Bhandari for her repeated and increasing disregard for her outstanding obligation to respect and uphold the Constitution. Instead, she has blindly supported the man to whom she owes her presidency in the first place in his often unconstitutional and unlawful efforts to maintain personal power. Step 5 : KP Oli has disregarded many requirements of the constitution. These included, for example, the implementation of the federal state and the appointment of many constitutional bodies. In the few commissions that were actually created, he disregarded the Constitution's requirement for an inclusive composition and instead selected in a nepotistic manner. The federal state was actually created to decentralise and contribute to better social and regional inclusion. However, Oli's policy since he took office has meant more of a backward-looking centralisation. He virtually increased his efforts to keep all power under the control of the central government. Above all, there is still a lack of clear fiscal regulations and demarcations, which are an essential prerequisite for greater autonomy of the provinces and the local level in connection with the fulfilment of their intended tasks. With these steps, the national government and the reinstated House of Representatives should be fully busy until the next elections due in autumn 2022. Moreover, many laws are hanging in parliament because Oli has simply not allowed them to be discussed and passed. In parallel, however, the political parties should also make a serious effort by then to finally introduce democratic structures and equal opportunities in their own ranks. How would it be, for example, if at least the already existing, albeit still insufficient, laws in this regard were finally applied? It would also be necessary to make inclusion according to gender and ethnicity mandatory when nominating candidates for the next elections. This should come from the party base and not from the national party leadership. Only then would the people of Nepal finally have a real choice in the election.

(8 March 2021) Has the Supreme Court thought through its latest decision to the end? The SC's decision to judge the May 2018 form of merger of CPN-UML and CPN-MC into the NCP as illegitimate resolves some of the conflicts that have been simmering for weeks between the two factions of this ruling NCP, but at the same time it creates new problems and contradictions. The SC has to face the accusation that it has allowed the decision on the case filed by Rishi Ram Kattel's NCP, which was already officially registered and licensed under that name in 2018, to stew for more than two and a half years. At the same time, the Election Commission must be aware that it should never have registered the ruling NCP under that name at that time, according to the existing law. Already on 14 June 2018, there had been a first complaint against the new registration of the ruling party under the name NCP at the SC. However, that case was about the failure to meet the statutory requirement of at least 33 per cent women. Moreover, despite an appeal by the Kattel group, the EC had reaffirmed its decision on the party name on 26 October 2018. Following Kattel's complaint, the SC called on the EC and the ruling party for comments on 11 December 2018. It seems that the ruling party always had the bonus on its side, although the legal position was clearly in favour of Kattel's party. With its present judgement, the SC has finally done justice, but there are doubts whether the judges were aware of the consequences of their late judgement. The judgement implies that the ruling party is once again considered non-merged, that its original components CPN-UML and CPN-MC have been revived. This, however, has consequences that once again manoeuvre Nepal into an extremely precarious situation. One problem, for example, is that there is a party led by Gopal Kiranti which has since been registered and admitted to the EC under the name CPN-MC. A lawsuit by this party has already been announced. This is also likely to be a problem from a jurisdictional point of view. Does Kiranti's party now have to give itself a new name, although its current party name was unoccupied when it registered? Or must the original CPN-MC now adopt a new name, thereby losing any historical identification? There are also problems within the UML, as over the last year the internal split of the ruling NCP into an Oli faction and a Dahal and Nepal-led faction have caused the boundaries between the original UML and the CPN-MC to shift. There are no longer camps within the ruling party that could be so easily transformed back into a CPN-UML and a CPN-MC according to their early 2018 compositions. PM Oli once again sees himself as the big winner in the whole mess and is already mocking and ridiculing the defecting politicians of his original UML because he believes that they now automatically belong to the CPN-UML again, but that they no longer have a chance to split the party there because they need 40 percent of the party's MPs to do so. However, he fails to realise that his long overdue democratic removal as prime minister by parliament does not require a prior split of the UML. Members of his party may also vote against him in a vote of confidence or a vote of no confidence. This is perfectly normal in a democratic state. However, the SC's decision has solved one problem abruptly: the Election Commission no longer has to worry about the legality, names and symbols of the two factions of the ruling party. On the other hand, as already indicated, the EC will have to face new problems. The Election Commission itself has contributed decisively to this with its wrong decision in 2018. Meanwhile, the old, thoroughly failed top politicians of the parties represented in parliament are once again lacking any political culture and knowledge of democratic rules of the game. On the one hand, Prime Minister Oli, who is still in office, is trying by all means and flimsy moves to prevent the ordinances he has pushed through Parliament, with the active help of the President, from being discussed and then inevitably withdrawn in Parliament. The leaders of the opposition - and that means all parliamentarians except for the small remaining bunch of Oli - must once again be reproached for their continued inability, or rather unwillingness, to put aside their personal interests and ambitions for power and finally put a deserved end to the Oli-archy. What is the use of the completely justified re-establishment of parliament if it is not used for this purpose at its very first session? Nepal quo vadis with these politicians?

(2 March 2021) State and democracy still in danger despite SB decision!   On 23 February 2021, the Supreme Court finally delivered its long-awaited verdict on the constitutionality of Prime Minister Khadga Prasad Sharma Oli's dissolution of the House of Representatives on 20 December 2020 in cooperation with President Bidya Devi Bhandari. The Supreme Court's upholding of the unconstitutionality was a victory for democracy and confirmed for all time to come that Nepal's prime ministers have no right to dissolve parliament purely to satisfy their personal power needs. This breathed life back into the 2015 Constitution, which was thought to be dead after all. Oli's action can be considered a coup d'état.

A constitutionally and democratically oriented prime minister would have drawn the only possible moral conclusion from this verdict and would have resigned. Oli obviously does not belong to this category of politicians. He clings to his office and declares that he will never resign. After all, he is the best and most successful government Nepal has ever had; only he knows where he sees evidence for this. As he did before the court verdict, he ridicules the breakaway faction of his inner-party rivals Pushpa Kamal Dahal and Madhav Kumar Nepal with the greatest possible scorn because they would never manage to win the majority of votes in parliament necessary for his ouster. At the same time, he surrounds himself with the aura of a potential martyr whose life is endangered by his rivals.

Apart from the clear immorality of Oli's behaviour, the question arises how it is possible that a prime minister whose faction only has about a quarter of the members of the House of Representatives behind him is nevertheless not forced to resign by the remaining representatives of the people. The explanation lies in the equally lacking morality and democratic attitude of the opposition leaders. All top politicians are also primarily concerned with personal power, not with the people and the nation, be they called Dahal, Nepal, Deuba, Paudel or whatever. They are all unwilling to put aside their personal ambitions for power to get Nepal's democracy back on track.

A second factor mentioned in this context is the unclear situation within the NCP. Both factions insult each other with accusations that go beyond any framework of politeness and exclude each other from the party. Yet an official split of the NCP has never been carried out. Both factions are demanding that the Election Commission recognise them as the legitimate NCP under that very name and with the electoral symbol of the sun. Although early parliamentary elections are off the table for the time being thanks to the court ruling, at some point the Election Commission will have to make a decision and the two factions will have to make a clear separation.

However, they both clearly do not want the latter, as they are aware that the split is likely to make a parliamentary majority for the communists impossible in the long run, as was the case after the 2017 elections. Although the Nepali Congress (NC), as the main opposition party, has not been able to gain many points despite the Oli government's numerous advantageous proposals, the party is likely to win significantly more direct mandates again if the NCP splits. Oli's then CPN-UML was also just ahead of the NC in percentage vote share in 2017. Already within the NCP, the Oli group is the smaller faction today. Oli's failures on almost all fronts of governance, his authoritarian and in many cases human rights-suppressing policies, and most recently the utterly senseless waste of taxpayers' money through the unconstitutional dissolution of parliament and the forced preparation of early new elections are likely to cost the Oli faction further votes. In any case, if the NCP were to split, the votes in favour of that party in new elections would be split between two parties. This too would probably play into the hands of the NC.

These considerations have now also reached the top politicians of the Dahal Nepal faction. Since it has become clear that neither of the two opposition parties, the NC and the Rastriya Samajbadi Party Nepal (RSPN), is prepared to support a vote of no confidence against Oli in the reinstated parliament as long as the NCP's internal party relations have not been clarified, there have been tentative considerations to restore the NCP's unity after all. But that would mean accepting all of Oli's misconduct and continuing to accept him as prime minister and party leader. That would indeed be a change of mind that would be difficult to convince rationally and democratically minded people in Nepal of.

The very misery of Nepali democracy, which is particularly evident in the current crisis, has a lot to do with the lack of democratic structures in the parties. All parties are extremely centrist and oriented towards a few leaders, who in turn usually form factions within the party over time. Whoever makes it to the top level of the party is almost impossible to get out of it, no matter what he is guilty of and how miserably he fails in the fulfilment of his tasks; all prime ministers of the last few years can be cited as examples here. This is also due to the fact that the lower party levels have hardly any influence on the top party levels. The top politicians decide to a large extent on the composition of the two highest party bodies and are careful to ensure that the proportion of their clientele is maintained there. Even in the nomination of candidates for parliamentary and provincial elections, the decision-making power lies largely with the central party leadership. This is the same for all parties. It also contributes to the fact that at least the upper levels of the party are far from reflecting the composition of society: In extremely patriarchal Nepal, men dominate quite predominantly, especially those from the Bahun and Chhetri circles. Given the aforementioned party structures, it is not to be expected that this will change quickly.

Another significant aspect is the inability to realise justice in relation to past crimes or misconduct, or strictly speaking, the denial of such justice. Here, too, all parties are involved. If one takes the massive international call for justice for the victims of the Maoist insurgency alone, it is clear that many of today's top politicians had to bear responsibility at that time, whether as direct participants such as the former Maoist leaders or as state politicians who were responsible for the deployment and conduct of the security forces.

Only two examples should be mentioned here. Pushpa Kamal Dahal declared some time ago that he was responsible for the deaths of around 5,000 people as the then head of the Maoists. But that does not stop him from continuing to aspire to leading state and party offices. It does not even occur to him to take responsibility before a court.

A second example is Sher Bahadur Deuba, the chairman of the NC and four-time prime minister. He paved the way for the Maoist insurgency when, as prime minister in 1995, he militantly yet unsuccessfully tried to suppress the initial organisation of the Maoist party in mid-western Nepal. In early 1996, he refused to even discuss the 40 demands of the Maoists, although most of them were completely rational and many dealt with the state policy guidelines of the then constitution, which the government paid little attention to. In 2001, Deuba then pushed through the mobilisation of the army against the Maoists, which led to a complete escalation of the conflict. The fact that in 2002 he also called on King Gyanendra to dissolve parliament, thus dealing a death blow to the political system of 1990, is also worth mentioning in view of Oli's current misconduct.

Against this background, it is legitimate to ask whether the current party political leaderships are not mainly responsible for the permanent crisis and the constant setbacks of Nepal's democracy. If one answers this question with a yes, one should discuss how Nepal can move towards a better democratic path. However, it should not be enough to replace the old failed leaders with a new generation. This generational change must be accompanied by a complete renewal of the political parties, whereby in the multi-ethnic state of Nepal, adequate social inclusion is finally needed.

(23 February 2021) Democracy is still alive in Nepal! For a good two months, Prime Minister Oli could pretend that he was an absolute ruler, that he was above the Constitution and any legislation. Like Oli, his closest henchmen and his defenders proclaimed in the Supreme Court that the prime minister had every right on his side. Early elections in April and May would be completely out of the question. Now the Supreme Court has finally delivered its verdict. In the end, it was very quick and unequivocal: the dissolution of parliament and all of Oli's machinations in recent months were unconstitutional. Parliament must be reconstituted and convened within 13 days. This is the verdict that everyone convinced of democracy and the rule of law had expected from the Supreme Court. Thanks be to the court for putting all this in such a clear form. What is missing now is the accounting of Oli as a person. In relation to him, the ruling means that Oli's actions cannot be described as anything other than a coup. This must result in the harshest measures against him personally and also against all those who justified his actions with hair-raising justifications in court. The statements maliciously violated better knowledge. Let us hope that those responsible at the top of the other political parties finally come to their senses and are able to democratically elect a new government into office. It will be their task in the remaining one and a half years to complete the numerous shortcomings of the Oli government with regard to the implementation of the constitution and a socially inclusive and secular federal state.

(3 February 2021)   Even 45 days after the dissolution of parliament by Prime Minister KP Oli and President Bidya Devi Bhandari, the proceedings on the constitutionality of this action continue in the Supreme Court. Meanwhile, the submissions of the lawyers of the plaintiff sides have been completed. Since Monday, the lawyers of the government side have had the floor.

It is striking that the latter, in contrast to the lawyers of the plaintiff side, hardly refer to the constitution in their justification of Oli's and Bhandari's action. This is probably due to the fact that the Constitution does not really provide a justification. Thus, the defenders of the Oli government declare that such action is perfectly normal for a parliamentary democracy. Or they claim that Oli's action was necessary to preserve Nepal's sovereignty and nationalism.

One has to think several times about what lies behind these arguments. According to the constitution, Nepal's sovereignty lies with the people. The representatives legitimately and democratically elected by the people are the members of the House of Representatives. They therefore represent the sovereign people in Nepal's parliamentary system.

Dependent on this House of Representatives is the executive power. The representatives of the people elect a Prime Minister, who then forms a Council of Ministers to carry out and coordinate the official business of the country. To be elected, the prime minister needs the approval of a majority of the MPs within the House of Representatives. If a party has a clear majority in the House of Representatives, that party's top candidate is usually confirmed as prime minister, as provided by Article 76 (1) of the Constitution. If no party has an absolute majority, the candidate additionally needs the votes of one or more other parties, according to Article 76 (2).

When KP Oli was elected Prime Minister in February 2018, his CPN-UML did not have an absolute majority in the House of Representatives. Oli was therefore elected under Article 76 (2) as he was also still elected by CPN-MC MPs who had already formed an alliance with CPN-UML in the elections. Therefore, as required under Article 76 (4), Oli faced a vote of confidence in the House of Representatives within 30 days, in which he received almost 75 per cent of the votes. This whopping majority was further consolidated two months later when the two parties merged to form the NCP. Now, in a parliamentary democracy, it can happen that over time the approval a prime minister receives from parliament or even within his own party changes. This is a perfectly normal democratic process. The reason may be, for example, that the prime minister has pursued bad policies and has not fulfilled his duties in the necessary manner. It can also be that inner-party rivals have their own claims to power and therefore question the office of prime minister. These are all processes that occur in every democracy.

In such a case, it is the task of a prime minister to prove that he or she still has the confidence of the representatives of the sovereign people. In accordance with the basic principles of a democracy, this is done by the prime minister asking the House of Representatives for a vote of confidence. If he wins this, he automatically remains in office and his opponents have failed. If he loses the vote, he is automatically voted out and another candidate must seek the majority of MPs. In addition, his political opponents can also bring a vote of no confidence in parliament on their part. If a prime minister sees no chance of winning the vote of confidence in parliament from the outset, he can of course resign right away. These would have been the only options for the hard-pressed Prime Minister Oli in December 2020 at the latest. In fact, he should have faced these democratic options much earlier in order to avert greater damage to Nepal's state and society, especially in times of pandemic.

But Oli seems to understand and interpret the constitution and democracy differently. He probably sees parliament as representing the sovereign people only until they have elected the prime minister. After that, sovereignty passes to the latter. This is evidenced by Oli's dealings with parliament over the past three years. When parliament was active, important laws were often simply not passed. Time and again, Oli bypassed parliament by issuing ordinances in close cooperation with the president when parliament was not in session. This was easier for him, because then he was not bound by any votes and could push through what he liked.

The amendment to the Constitutional Council's decision-making procedure on 20 December was tantamount to a constitutional amendment by ordinance. The dissolution of the House of Representatives just five days later was a stab in the back for Nepal's fledgling democracy. It turned the constitution's provisions on sovereignty upside down. The Prime Minister, dependent on Parliament and accountable to it in every respect, dissolved the elected body of representatives of the sovereign people to preserve his personal power and impose policies that marginalised his political opponents. The argument of Oli's lawyers now before the Supreme Court that he had no other choice to preserve sovereignty, which is actually that of the people, is probably understood only by himself and his most adamant supporters. And the argument of preserving nationalism bodes ill. For months, Oli has presented himself as a Hindu fundamentalist. That would be the last thing Nepal needs now.

Oli and Bhandari undoubtedly bear the main responsibility for the escalation of the political and constitutional situation. But one should not absolve Oli's inner-party opponents, as well as the top politicians of opposition parties, from a more or less large share of the blame. In particular, in the context of the disputes on the streets and in the media, no real separation is discernible on all sides between the question of the legitimacy of Oli's steps and their own respective ambitions for power.

(10 January 2021)   The unresolved legal situation continues unchanged , while PM Khaga Prasad Sharma Oli continues to intensify his campaign for the new elections he has called for the House of Representatives.  He accuses the four former chief justices, who had clearly declared themselves on the unconstitutionality of the dissolution of parliament, of interfering in an ongoing court case and attempting to influence the Supreme Court. Meanwhile, he himself continues to claim every right to call his action constitutional; that the House of Representatives will not be reinstated under any circumstances and that the elections will be held as announced. But such words from the mouth of the Prime Minister, of course, have nothing to do with influencing the decision of the judiciary.

At the same time, Oli is trying to keep the state apparatus under his unrestricted control. Thus, in order to preserve the appearance of democracy, the winter session of the remaining parliamentary chamber, the National Assembly, was convened on 2 January, but on 10 January Oli had the session ended again after only four meetings. The fact that he spat on the floor of the National Assembly on this occasion makes it clear what he thinks of this democratic institution. Also, why does Oli need a legislature at all when Nepal has such an able and powerful PM? This way, Oli can pass laws, as he wants them, by ordinance and have them signed by his president. He has repeatedly used this as an ideal way in the past almost three years of his tenure.

Meanwhile, demonstrations against Oli's unconstitutional actions (here called so with no hidden agenda of influencing the court out of full conviction) are taking place in all corners of the country. Meanwhile, Oli also likes to have such demonstrators arrested by the police. At his own election rallies, the wearing of black masks is strictly forbidden, as this could be a symbol of protest. Even black breathing masks have to be removed. What does Oli care about protective measures against the spread of the pandemic? Any other kind of demonstration is also prevented at such events. In Dhangadhi, for example, a group of young people were arrested because they wore appropriate shirt inscriptions to remind people of the continuing lack of investigation into the rape and murder of Nirmala Pant and demanded justice. Since the crime, there have been accusations that the highest political circles are deliberately preventing the investigation.

Finally, the camp of the advocates of a return to monarchy and the Hindu state must unfortunately also be addressed. The anniversary of Prithvinarayan Shah's birth is a welcome occasion to remember the founder and military unifier of modern Nepal. While it is true that Nepal owes it to this Shah king that it still exists today as an independent state and has not been absorbed into the Indian Union, it must also be remembered that the policies of Prithvinarayan Shah and his successors are responsible for the system of patriarchy, inequality, exclusion and discrimination that makes it so difficult today to transform Nepal into a modern democratic state.

Significantly, ex-king Gyanendra once again spoke out today, pretending that his main concern was the preservation of the country. What is meant by this was made clear by Kamal Thapa, the chairman of the RPP, when he once again called for a return to monarchy and the Hindu state. Criticism of today's supposedly democratic politicians is made easy for the monarchists these days. Oli and the other so-called top politicians are well on their way to destroying the country. But they are only completing what the monarchy could not complete before. Only a younger charismatic generation of politicians from among Nepali citizens with a commitment to inclusion, democracy and secularism and an aversion to theocracy and overrated political ideologies can save the country!

(8 January 2021) How similar things are : When the US president incites his most diehard supporters to initiate a coup from above against the state and democracy for the purpose of retaining power, statesmen all over the world condemn his action.  Not so PM Khadga Prasad Sharma Oli and his government in Nepal. Why should they, Oli has behaved similarly to Trump after he could no longer hold on to power through democratic means. Trump has the American parliament stormed, which was about to confirm his ouster, Oli dissolves the Nepalese parliament so that the democratically elected representatives of the sovereign people there cannot deprive him of executive power.The latter, by the way, is a legitimate democratic right of parliament. Yet Trump in the US and Oli in Nepal have, in four respectively three years of failed politics, provided ample grounds for voting out or removing from executive power. What is missing in Nepal is a binding decision by the Supreme Court. Despite numerous shortcomings, the Nepali constitution speaks clearly about Oli's actions. Numerous constitutional experts and leading jurists have taken a clear stand. Objections and justifications have already been explained. Why does the Supreme Court not come to a judgement immediately? Every day seems valuable in this case. Democracy and the nascent federal state are in danger of collapsing if the constitutional issue is not resolved quickly. The political parties are already in an election mode, so to speak. Although they continue to protest pro forma against Oli's actions, this seems more like a means to an end. Ultimately, the leaders of the different party-political camps are concerned with personal power. They have always been willing to use any means to achieve this. Thus, Oli travels the country and declares to his remaining supporters at mass meetings (What does he care about the pandemic?) that everything he has done has been done on the basis of the constitution; the new elections are coming as he ordered; this cannot be reversed at all. Thus, Oli also decides on the rule of law of his actions. He does not need a Supreme Court for this. His current journey through the country is already pure election campaigning. Let us hope that he will at least pay for the costs of the trips and the events; they have nothing to do with his PM office.

The Dahal-Nepal faction of the NCP continues to pretend that its primary concern is the withdrawal of the dissolution of parliament. In keeping with the media, its leaders position themselves in a strictly hierarchical order at the forefront of the sit-ins on the streets. However, since it became clear that the other parties are not willing to join them in protest actions, the focus for Dahal and Nepal has also shifted more towards new elections. The visible sign at the moment is the effort to be recognised by the Election Commission as the legitimate NCP with a view to the future. Although the main opposition party NC continues to protest against the dissolution of parliament independently of the Dahal-Nepal group, its leader Sher Bahadur Deuba has already repeatedly expressed that he is hopeful of becoming prime minister for a fifth time through possible new elections, after all he has only failed miserably four times. Meanwhile, Oli as well as Dahal and Nepal are courting Deuba, as new majorities are needed to form a government in the event of a restoration of parliament. One party whose votes could also play a role in this is the Janata Samajbadi Party - Nepal (JSPN), as the third strongest faction in parliament so far. This party is also protesting against Oli's actions, but is also shying away from joint action with the other demonstrating parties.

Of the other parties, the RPP should be mentioned here, although this party seems completely insignificant in view of the election results of 2017. The problem is that this party of die-hards is trying to use the chaos caused by Oli and the NCP to promote a return to monarchy and the Hindu state through mass demonstrations.  Their leaders are proving that they have clearly not understood the history and society of Nepal. The demand for such a step backwards is unlikely to be successful, but it further exacerbates the current chaos. (Tsak Sherpa)

(6 January 2021) The political crisis continues . Today, the Supreme Court began hearing the 13 constitutional petitions that followed the dissolution of parliament by Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli and President Bidya Devi Bhandari. Of the 5 judges of the Constitutional Bench, Hari Krishna Karki has retired. He had been accused of bias as he had served as Attorney General during the first Oli government. The trial is scheduled to resume on 13 January 2021.

Meanwhile, both infighting between the two factions of the NCP at all levels of the federal system and protests by other parties continue unabated. Both NCP groups are showering accusations on each other and trying to damage the other group and push it out of power. For a long time now, this dispute has been endangering the very foundations of the entire state, especially since the leaders of the two factions seem to be mainly interested in their personal ambitions for power.

PM Oli is continually escalating into a defence of the legality of his actions. In the meantime, he is even claiming that this was a purely political measure on which the Supreme Court is not even entitled to judge.

One can only hope that the Supreme Court will reach a verdict on the constitutionality of the dissolution of parliament as soon as possible. In a democratic state, a prime minister has only two options if his government loses its majority: resignation or at least a vote of confidence in parliament. The elected representatives of the sovereign people sit in parliament. Oli owes his office only to the election by this Parliament, which alone has the right to deprive the PM of legitimacy. The dissolution of the House of Representatives, avowedly for Oli's personal retention of power, is therefore tantamount to a coup d'état.

But even if the Supreme Court reverses the dissolution of parliament, there remain legitimate doubts that this parliament will last much longer. The top politicians of the two factions have already destroyed Nepal's democratic system too much. There will be no stable governing majorities either at the central level or in the provinces after a possible restoration of parliament. In any case, the question of legitimacy remains. At the top of all the major parties are ageing leaders, some of whom have already failed several times or whose legitimacy to exercise power is at least questionable because of their political past. As a logical consequence, even if the House of Representatives is reinstated, there will probably be early elections sooner or later. However, with the current, largely over-aged party leaders, even these could be forgotten. Given the large parliamentary majority, the Oli government would have had a unique opportunity to stabilise Nepal politically and advance the country's development. Oli has miserably squandered this opportunity.

Meanwhile, the Corona pandemic continues to affect all aspects of life. But that does not seem to interest the politicians of all parties at all. The daily announced case numbers may seem low compared to western industrialised countries, but the value of the numbers mentioned is doubtful in view of the extremely low number of daily tests. While in most countries of the world the numbers of infections and deaths are steadily increasing or at least have remained at a high level for weeks, the numbers in Nepal continue to fall unabated. And this despite the fact that the Oli government continues to do absolutely nothing to control the spread of the pandemic.

Related Websites: Nepal Research Human Rights Forum Nepal (HURFON) Nepal Research Videos Nepal Research Languages Nepal Observer (ISSN 2626-2924) Hewa-Nepal Sherwa mi

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What Are Americans’ Top Foreign Policy Priorities?

Protecting the u.s. from terrorism and reducing the flow of illegal drugs are top issues overall, but democrats and republicans have very different priorities, table of contents.

• Differences by partisanship
• Differences by age
• Acknowledgments
• The American Trends Panel survey methodology

Pew Research Center conducted this analysis to better understand Americans’ long-range foreign policy priorities. For this analysis, we surveyed 3,600 U.S. adults from April 1 to April 7, 2024. Everyone who took part in this survey is a member of the Center’s American Trends Panel (ATP), an online survey panel that is recruited through national, random sampling of residential addresses. This way nearly all U.S. adults have a chance of selection. The survey is weighted to be representative of the U.S. adult population by gender, race, ethnicity, partisan affiliation, education and other categories. Read more about the ATP’s methodology .

Here are the questions used for this analysis, along with responses, and its methodology .

Americans have a lot on their plates in 2024, including an important election to determine who will remain or become again president. But the world does not stop for a U.S. election, and multiple conflicts around the world as well as other issues of global prominence continue to concern Americans.

When asked to prioritize the long-range foreign policy goals of the United States, the majority of Americans say preventing terrorist attacks (73%), keeping illegal drugs out of the country (64%) and preventing the spread of weapons of mass destruction (63%) are top priorities. Over half of Americans also see maintaining the U.S. military advantage over other countries (53%) and preventing the spread of infectious diseases (52%) as primary foreign policy responsibilities.

About half of Americans say limiting the power and influence of Russia and China are top priorities. A recent annual threat assessment from the U.S. intelligence community focused heavily on those countries’ strengthening military relationship and their ability to shape the global narrative against U.S. interests.

Fewer than half of Americans say dealing with global climate change (44%) and getting other countries to assume more of the costs of maintaining world order (42%) are top priorities. The partisan gaps on these two issues are quite large:

• 70% of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents say climate change should be a top priority, while 15% of Republicans and Republican leaners say this.
• 54% of Republicans say getting other countries to assume more of the costs of maintaining world order should be a top priority, compared with 33% of Democrats.

About four-in-ten Americans see limiting the power and influence of North Korea and Iran as top priorities. (The survey was conducted before Iran’s large-scale missile attack on Israel on April 13.) And about a third say the same about the U.S. being a leader in artificial intelligence, a technology that governments around the world are increasingly concerned about .

When it comes to goals that focus on international engagement, like strengthening the United Nations and NATO or finding a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, fewer than a third of Americans mark these as top foreign policy priorities.

Related: Fewer Americans view the United Nations favorably than in 2023

Only about a quarter of Americans prioritize promoting human rights in other countries, leading other countries in space exploration and reducing military commitments overseas. And similar shares say supporting Ukraine (23%) and Israel (22%) are top issues.

At the bottom of this list of foreign policy priorities are promoting global democracy ( a major policy push from the Biden administration ) and aiding refugees fleeing violence around the world – about two-in-ten Americans describe these as top concerns. These assessments come amid a recent global surge in asylum claims . Still, in Center surveys, democracy promotion has typically been at the bottom of Americans’ list of foreign policy priorities, even dating back to George W. Bush’s and Barack Obama’s administrations .

Overall, a majority of Americans say that all 22 long-range foreign policy goals we asked about should be given at least some priority. Still, about three-in-ten Americans say supporting Israel (31%), promoting democracy (28%) and supporting Ukraine (27%) should be given no priority.

The long-range foreign policy priority questions were also asked in 2018 and 2021, and since then there have been some significant shifts in responses:

• Since 2018, the public has become significantly more likely to say limiting the power and influence of China (+17 percentage points) and finding a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict (+11) are top foreign policy priorities.
• Americans have also increased the emphasis they place on limiting the power and influence of Russia, particularly in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine (+8 points since 2021).
• On the decline since 2018 are strengthening the UN and aiding refugees (-8 points each), reducing foreign military commitments (-6), and promoting and defending human rights in other countries (-5).
• Preventing the spread of infectious diseases is down 19 percentage points since 2021 – during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic – and about back to where it was in 2018.

These are among the findings from a Pew Research Center survey conducted April 1-7, 2024.

The survey of 3,600 U.S. adults shows that foreign policy remains a partisan issue. Republicans prioritize the prevention of terrorism, reducing the flow of illegal drugs into the country, and maintaining a military advantage over other nations. Meanwhile, Democrats prioritize dealing with climate change and preventing the spread of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs), but also preventing terrorist attacks.

There are also stark age differences on many of the policy goals mentioned, but for the most part, young adults are less likely than older Americans to say the issues we asked about are top priorities. The exceptions are dealing with climate change, reducing military commitments overseas, and promoting and defending human rights abroad – on these issues, 18- to 29-year-olds are significantly more likely than older Americans to assign top priority.

Even with these priorities, foreign policy generally takes the backset to domestic policy for most Americans: 83% say it is more important for President Joe Biden to focus on domestic policy, compared with 14% who say he should focus on foreign policy.

Americans are even less likely to prioritize international affairs than they were in 2019, when 74% wanted then-President Donald Trump to focus on domestic policy and 23% said he should focus on foreign policy.

Americans’ foreign policy priorities differ greatly by party. The largest divide, by a significant margin, is the 55 percentage point gap between Democrats and Republicans on dealing with global climate change (70% vs. 15%, respectively, see it as a top priority).

Supporting Ukraine, aiding refugees, reducing the spread of diseases, protecting human rights, and strengthening the UN are also issues on which Democrats are at least 20 points more likely than Republicans to prioritize. For example, 63% of Democrats say reducing the spread of infectious diseases is a top priority, compared with 41% of Republicans.

Republicans prioritize supporting Israel, reducing the flow of illegal drugs and maintaining a military advantage over other countries – among other security and hard power issues – significantly more than Democrats do. For example, more than half of Republicans (54%) say getting other countries to assume more of the costs of maintaining world order should be a top focus in foreign policy. Only a third of Democrats say the same.

The priority assigned to several issues is divided even further by ideology within parties. Take support for Israel and Ukraine as examples. Supporting Israel is generally a higher priority for Republicans than Democrats, but within the Republican Party, 48% of conservatives say it’s a top concern, while 18% of moderates and liberals agree. Previous Center research shows that conservative Republicans are especially likely to favor military aid to Israel .

Supporting Ukraine, something Democrats emphasize more than Republicans, is a top priority particularly for liberal Democrats (47%), while about three-in-ten moderate and conservative Democrats agree (29%). Democrats have also shown more willingness than Republicans to provide aid to Ukraine in its conflict with Russia.

Generally, the partisan differences on the importance of several foreign policy issues have gotten smaller since 2021 , when most of these questions were last fielded. This is especially true for items related to the relative power of major countries, like the U.S. maintaining a military advantage and limiting the power and influence of both Russia and China.

However, finding a solution to the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians – a priority that saw no partisan difference at all when it was last asked about in 2018 – has an emerging partisan gap today. The share of Democrats who call this a top priority has more than doubled, while the share of Republicans has changed little.

Age differences persist on foreign policy issues. Older Americans prioritize most of the issues we asked about at higher rates than those ages 18 t0 29.

On four issues, there is at least a 40 percentage point gap between Americans ages 65 and older and young adults ages 18 to 29. The oldest Americans are more likely to prioritize reducing the flow of illegal drugs, limiting the power and influence of China and Iran, and maintaining a U.S. military advantage.

Those in the oldest age group are also more concerned than their younger counterparts on an additional 11 issues, ranging from support for Israel to U.S. leadership in space exploration.

For their part, young adults are more likely to say dealing with global climate change, reducing U.S. military commitments overseas, and promoting and defending human rights in other countries should be top foreign policy priorities.

Even starker patterns appear when looking at partisanship within two age groups – adults ages 18 to 49 and those 50 and older.

Among Democrats, older adults place particularly high priority on supporting Ukraine, strengthening NATO, and limiting the power and influence of Russia amid its war with Ukraine. Older Democrats are also more likely than younger ones to prioritize preventing the development of WMDs, curbing the spread of diseases, strengthening the UN and promoting democracy around the world, among other issues.

Among Republicans, those ages 50 and older are more likely than those ages 18 to 49 to prioritize supporting Israel, limiting the power and influence of Iran and China, getting other countries to assume more foreign policy costs, reducing the amount of illegal drugs entering the U.S., preventing terrorism, and maintaining a military advantage.

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A growing share of Americans have little or no confidence in Netanyahu

Fewer americans view the united nations favorably than in 2023, rising numbers of americans say jews and muslims face a lot of discrimination, younger americans stand out in their views of the israel-hamas war, how u.s. muslims are experiencing the israel-hamas war, most popular, report materials.

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Jet propulsion laboratory, building community, tools and skills, interplanetary connections, news media contacts.

At the agency’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, interns from Cal State LA are learning key skills studying the origins of life.

What does wastewater management in Los Angeles have to do with the search for life on Mars? Eduardo Martinez certainly didn’t make the connection when he was pursuing a master’s in civil engineering. Not at first. Then his professor pointed him toward an internship opportunity at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory for astrobiology, the study of life’s origins and the possibility of life beyond Earth.

That professor, Arezoo Khodayari of California State University, Los Angeles, helped Martinez understand the chemistry common to both fields. Soon, Martinez saw that just as phosphorous, nitrogen, and other chemicals in wastewater can fuel algal blooms in the ocean, they can potentially provide energy for microbial life on other planets.

“Once I got a taste of planetary science, I knew I needed more,” said Martinez, who did the internship while finishing his degree at Cal State LA, where more than 70% of students are Latino and few have historically participated in NASA research. “If not for JPL, I would have stopped with my master’s.” Now he’s pursuing a doctorate in geosciences at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

The inspiration that connects both fields lies at the core of a new NASA grant. Khodayari and Laurie Barge, who runs JPL’s Origins and Habitability Laboratory , have received funding for up to six paid JPL internships over two years. The intent is to help develop the next generation of space-minded scientists from the students at Cal State LA.

The grant — one of 11 recently awarded to emerging research universities by NASA’s Science Mission Directorate Bridge Program — helps underrepresented students learn more about astrobiology and perform NASA-sponsored research.

“As a large employer in Southern California, we have a duty to invest in our local communities,” Barge said of JPL’s role in the effort. “It makes NASA and its science more accessible to everyone.”

Barge and Khodayari have been informally collaborating for 10 years, designing experiments to try to answer questions in their respective fields. Of the four Cal State LA interns Barge has hosted so far, two — including Martinez — have been lead authors on published research papers.

“It is a great accomplishment to publish in a prestigious, peer-reviewed journal, especially as the first author,” Khodayari said. “It’s inspiring to see students from Cal State LA, which is primarily a teaching institution, provided research opportunities that result in these kinds of journal publications.”

She notes that many of her students work multiple jobs, so a paid internship means they can focus entirely on their studies without sacrificing essential income. And, Khodayari added, “they get exposure to a field far from their reality.”

In Barge’s lab, dark, fingerlike mineral structures grow in beakers of cloudy liquid meant to simulate oceans on early Earth — and possibly on other planets. By studying how these structures form in the lab, scientists like Barge hope to learn more about the potential life-creating chemical reactions that take place around similar structures, called chimneys, that develop on the ocean floor around hydrothermal vents .

“We learned so much in Laurie’s lab,” said Erika Flores, Barge’s first Cal State LA intern. “Not only are you working independently on your own projects, you’re collaborating with other interns and even other divisions at JPL.”

The middle of five children, Flores was the first in her family to graduate from high school. She initially attended University of California, Berkeley but felt isolated. After returning home, she earned her bachelor’s degree and began studying with Khodayari at Cal State LA.

Although she decided not to become a planetary scientist – “I considered it, but I didn’t want to spend another five years on a Ph.D.; I was ready to get a job” – Flores credits the JPL internship with helping her overcome a case of impostor syndrome. Equipped with a master’s that she completed during her internship, she now works for the Los Angeles County Sanitation Districts, overseeing 13 pumping plants that route wastewater to treatment plants.

Like Flores, current Cal State LA intern Cathy Trejo wants to improve the world through clean water. She’s studying to be an environmental engineer, with a focus beyond wastewater.

But she was excited to see the parallels between Earth-bound science and planetary science during her internship. Learning to use mass spectrometers has even inspired her. NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover has a mass spectrometer, the Sample Analysis at Mars instrument, that measures the composition of different gases.

“Understanding the instruments we use on Mars has helped me better understand how we study chemistry here on Earth,” Trejo said.

She is fascinated that cumbersome lab instruments can be miniaturized to be taken to other planets, and that scientists are beginning to miniaturize similar instruments that could identify pollutants at Superfund sites.

Barge isn’t giving up hope that Trejo will stick with planetary science, but she’s just happy to help a budding scientist develop. “I hope these student research opportunities offer an appreciation for planetary exploration and how our work at NASA relates to important questions in other fields,” she said.

Andrew Good Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. 818-393-2433 [email protected]

Karen Fox / Alise Fisher NASA Headquarters, Washington 301-286-6284 / 202 358-2546 [email protected] / [email protected]

2024-050      

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Advanced cell atlas opens new doors in biomedical research

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have developed a web-based platform that offers an unprecedented view of the human body at the cellular level. The aim is to create an invaluable resource for researchers worldwide to increase knowledge about human health and disease. The study is published in Genome Biology.

Simultaneous measurement of numerous biomolecular variables, known as multi-omics, enables deep and comprehensive profiling of human biology. The new Single Cell Atlas (SCA) is based on analyses of thousands of human tissue samples from 125 different adult and fetal tissues. The researchers combined eight cutting-edge omics technologies, including single-cell RNA sequencing, whole-genome sequencing, and spatial transcriptomics to map and localise genes expressed in the tissue.

The platform provides unique insights into individual cell properties and their interactions within tissues. The extensive collection of data is freely accessible through the platform's website.

"The Single Cell Atlas not only saves time and resources but also fosters a collaborative environment for scientists from diverse fields, paving the way for new discoveries and innovations," says the study's first author Lu Pan, researcher at the Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden.

Looking ahead, the team plans to refine the SCA by introducing more detailed analyses and annual updates. These enhancements will fill gaps in tissue representation and expand the sample size, allowing for more precise research.

"The creation of the SCA marks a significant step forward in biomedical research," says the study's last author Xuexin Li, researcher at the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology (previously at the Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics), Karolinska Institutet. "Our goal is to continually enrich the atlas, making it an invaluable resource for understanding human health and disease."

The research was done in collaboration with China Medical University and several other international collaboration partners in The Single Cell Atlas Consortium. The study was financed by Karolinska Institutet and the KI Network Medicine Global Alliance (KI NMA). Coauthor Volker Lauschke is CEO and shareholder of HepaPredict AB, co-founder and shareholder of PersoMedix AB, and discloses consultancy work for Enginzyme AB. The other authors declare that they have no competing interests.

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Materials provided by Karolinska Institutet . Note: Content may be edited for style and length.

Journal Reference :

• Lu Pan, Paolo Parini, Roman Tremmel, Joseph Loscalzo, Volker M. Lauschke, Bradley A. Maron, Paola Paci, Ingemar Ernberg, Nguan Soon Tan, Zehuan Liao, Weiyao Yin, Sundararaman Rengarajan, Xuexin Li. Single Cell Atlas: a single-cell multi-omics human cell encyclopedia . Genome Biology , 2024; 25 (1) DOI: 10.1186/s13059-024-03246-2

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Researchers detect a new molecule in space

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New research from the group of MIT Professor Brett McGuire has revealed the presence of a previously unknown molecule in space. The team's open-access paper, “ Rotational Spectrum and First Interstellar Detection of 2-Methoxyethanol Using ALMA Observations of NGC 6334I ,” appears in April 12 issue of The Astrophysical Journal Letters .

Zachary T.P. Fried , a graduate student in the McGuire group and the lead author of the publication, worked to assemble a puzzle comprised of pieces collected from across the globe, extending beyond MIT to France, Florida, Virginia, and Copenhagen, to achieve this exciting discovery. 

“Our group tries to understand what molecules are present in regions of space where stars and solar systems will eventually take shape,” explains Fried. “This allows us to piece together how chemistry evolves alongside the process of star and planet formation. We do this by looking at the rotational spectra of molecules, the unique patterns of light they give off as they tumble end-over-end in space. These patterns are fingerprints (barcodes) for molecules. To detect new molecules in space, we first must have an idea of what molecule we want to look for, then we can record its spectrum in the lab here on Earth, and then finally we look for that spectrum in space using telescopes.”

Searching for molecules in space

The McGuire Group has recently begun to utilize machine learning to suggest good target molecules to search for. In 2023, one of these machine learning models suggested the researchers target a molecule known as 2-methoxyethanol. 

“There are a number of 'methoxy' molecules in space, like dimethyl ether, methoxymethanol, ethyl methyl ether, and methyl formate, but 2-methoxyethanol would be the largest and most complex ever seen,” says Fried. To detect this molecule using radiotelescope observations, the group first needed to measure and analyze its rotational spectrum on Earth. The researchers combined experiments from the University of Lille (Lille, France), the New College of Florida (Sarasota, Florida), and the McGuire lab at MIT to measure this spectrum over a broadband region of frequencies ranging from the microwave to sub-millimeter wave regimes (approximately 8 to 500 gigahertz). 

The data gleaned from these measurements permitted a search for the molecule using Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) observations toward two separate star-forming regions: NGC 6334I and IRAS 16293-2422B. Members of the McGuire group analyzed these telescope observations alongside researchers at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (Charlottesville, Virginia) and the University of Copenhagen, Denmark. 

“Ultimately, we observed 25 rotational lines of 2-methoxyethanol that lined up with the molecular signal observed toward NGC 6334I (the barcode matched!), thus resulting in a secure detection of 2-methoxyethanol in this source,” says Fried. “This allowed us to then derive physical parameters of the molecule toward NGC 6334I, such as its abundance and excitation temperature. It also enabled an investigation of the possible chemical formation pathways from known interstellar precursors.”

Looking forward

Molecular discoveries like this one help the researchers to better understand the development of molecular complexity in space during the star formation process. 2-methoxyethanol, which contains 13 atoms, is quite large for interstellar standards — as of 2021, only six species larger than 13 atoms were detected outside the solar system , many by McGuire’s group, and all of them existing as ringed structures.  

“Continued observations of large molecules and subsequent derivations of their abundances allows us to advance our knowledge of how efficiently large molecules can form and by which specific reactions they may be produced,” says Fried. “Additionally, since we detected this molecule in NGC 6334I but not in IRAS 16293-2422B, we were presented with a unique opportunity to look into how the differing physical conditions of these two sources may be affecting the chemistry that can occur.”

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