The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which we have acceded to mainstream in our policies explicates city planning in SDG-11. With a large section of population starting to congregate in the urban areas evident with the 4% annual population growth in Kathmandu itself, it can be easily alluded that the future cities are going to be the centers for economic growth. The way we plan our cities or adjust the land use of existing cities will not only be intrinsic in alleviating urban pollution but play a crucial role in economic conditions as well.
The SDGs attempt to reduce the C02 emissions by 50% and since almost 23% of the global C02 emissions pertain to consumption of transportation fuel, transportation planning, even from the environmental point of view, is certainly going to play a key role in the future. The adherence to SDG-11 wherein the importance of transit based or walkable cities has been clearly stipulated, would not only answer the climate change agenda but also invigorate the economic growth of our cities.
Cities like Atlanta or Denver in the US, Perth in Australia, Barcelona in Europe are more or less similar in economy, but differ significantly in land-use as a result of which the means of transport, their abodes resort to are significantly different. Thus, the population density which significantly impacts residential as well as commercial land use, can be postulated as a key design parameter of transportation network in the future cities. For instance, Barcelona which is a dense city (in terms of residents per area) as compared to most cities in the US have had remarkably smaller figure of transportation fuel consumption per person. This gives a clear picture that fuel based transportation is not a compulsion for economic growth. Thereby, the stereotype that we have blissfully been complacent with, that cars plying on roads represent affluence has to be abdicated.
There can broadly be three types of cities designed in terms of transportation; the ones that use automobiles (electric or fuel based or even automatic vehicles) as primary mode of transport as in the US, or transit cities and finally comes the cities that have walking as the predominant mode of transportation. The latter ones would have to be of higher density both in terms of residents per area and the location of urban infrastructure. While the dominance of car based transport is alleviating in the urban areas even in the US and the cities there are forging towards transit modes in addition to cities like New York recently introducing policies like Congestion Pricing and while more than 50 metropolis in both India and China investing on metro networks, we are making plans for road expansions so as to induce more motorbikes and cars to ply on them, and that is where we go wrong. For cities with high residential density as that of Kathmandu, and spread economic zones, metros would be the most viable option. A financing tool known as “value capture”, the notion of which was already included in the 1st National plan of Nepal, if implemented properly, would ensure making up of a large portion of investment in mass transit. Value capture is a tool that recovers a portion of the escalated value of the private properties as a result of introduction of any public infrastructure. It has proven to be very effective in the development of large metro networks. The growing cities on the other hand shall be considered for being designed as walkable cities. Studies have succinctly depicted that cities which are more walkable have relatively vibrant economies. Pointing out the social benefits of having walkable cities would be quite otiose here.
Academia around the globe are thinking beyond car based transportation planning and are looking for either transit or bicycle or walking modes to make their cities sustainable. On the other hand, we have motorbikes accounting for more than 50% of the traffic count in our cities. As the income escalates, people who are using bikes are certain to switch towards cars and pertaining to the transportation infrastructure in our urban areas we may have to face some appalling conditions relating to traffic, ranging from long hours of congestion to seriously high number of crashes. In order to offset these conditions it is time we emphasize on integrated land use and transportation plans for our cities as land use, population and transportation plans shall be of no avail on their own, in the near future.
Considering the fact that our trade deficit is mostly out of import of oil and that a large section of population will dwell in the cities in future, it is urgent that we think of designing the transportation network of our cities in the best sustainable way. The idea about the desired residential density in any urban area shall play a key role in the days to come.
०००
०००
Sampada Sharma
Stop looking at my skin like it defines me
The amount of melanin I have doesn’t make me a thief
A murderer
A racist
An atheist
Stop acting like you know me when you see the color of my skin
I am not the thief you make me out to be
Not the murderer you think you see
When you open your eyes
And dark skin greets you
People see what they want to see
And hear what they want to hear
They want to believe that we are the murderers
Thieves
That we eat children for lunch
That we are monsters
They can’t open up their eyes and see that it’s just another color
Like red
Like Blue
That it doesn’t matter what color we are
In the end
We all shed tears and we all bleed red
And we all have monsters living inside of our head
So why the hate? Why the anger?
Why presume you have others figured out
When you haven’t a clue who you are
Racism is taught not born
So
Don’t presume you know me when you see the color of my skin
I am not racist just because I am lighter than you
I don’t think I am above you
Nature gave us color with privileges of our own
Just remember
Racism was something humans learned all on their own
०००
०००
Subash Bk
If she walk, she may lead
Conquering all the needs.
She is complete in every sense,
She will remain lovely in every tense.
As she is so strong and cute
Take a fight and never stay mute.
In this full world of greed
You are also her bearing seed.
Damn let her walk
Sure she can lead.
०००
०००
“The art of medicine consists of amusing the patient while nature cures the disease.”
– Voltaire
Medicine is the science and art of healing. The beauty of a medical degree is it makes you able to save millions of lives and be an inspiration for millions of people.
To get enrolled for MBBS (in context of Nepal), one should pass the entrance examination held by Institute of Medicine or Kathmandu University School of Medical Science or BP Koirala Institute of Health Science or Patan Academy of Health Science after completing his/her high school level education. The course duration of undergraduate program (MBBS) is 5.5 years. Then the candidate has to pass the license examination of Nepal Medical Council. But the result of recent NMCLE shows that out of 776 candidates, only 189 have managed to pass. That brings the pass percentage somewhere close to 25%.
Medical science demands your keenest attention and a great devotion on studies while pursuing the degree whereas through knowledge on the subject and extreme competency during the practice. This can only be achieved at the expense of an unwavering focus, many sleepless nights of hard work and study and a blazing desire of performing something worth remembering by generations yet to be born!
Though knowledge, experiences and information shapes the nature of human awareness but a significant portion of it is indeed shaped by the society he dwells in. We are socially programmed to believe an idea as truth if a significant portion of people in the community are believing it as truth.
Being a doctor is solely accepted as the definition of success in the contemporary society of ours’. By the age of 7/8 years, a child has dream of becoming astronaut, scientist, musician, artist and many more. By the end of secondary education, he decides to study science. By the end of high school, his first priority is medicine (for majority) either motivated by the desire to earn or for the satisfaction of ‘Great dream of every Nepali parents ‘. But you cannot afford to climb the ladder of success only to realize, when you get to the top, the ladder has been leaning against the wrong wall! However, this situation does not apply to all. Some are truly motivated by the instincts of performing noble deeds and serving people in the best way possible.
The Bhagavad Gita: Chapter-18; Verse-47
śhreyān swa-dharmo viguṇaḥ para-dharmāt sv-anuṣhṭhitāt
svabhāva-niyataṁ karma kurvan nāpnoti kilbiṣham
“It is better to do one’s own work, even though imperfectly, than to do another’s work, even though perfectly. By doing one’s innate duties, a person does not incur sin.” Innate duties are the ones that a person was born for. A subtle voice speaks from the inside, people do feel a calling for something but they ignore it and choose to do the things that are popularly being done by majority of people. Think for a moment, what if Bill Gates was a doctor and Dr. Upendra Devkota, a programmer? Will they be equally successful as they are now? The answer is, “No!”. We all are blessed with something very special and our duty is to sharpen that skill.
In a nutshell, it can be stated that one should not pursue medical career for the mere shake of prestige and money that makes him blind towards his moral duties but should pursue it only if he is truly interested in serving people even in his/her most difficult times.
Remember when friends were the stars of our life?
“Friends, are like stars. You don’t always get to see them, but you know they’re always there.” We not only quoted this overly cliché line every now and then, but actually meant it. Friends, as we put, always watched over us, and we watched over them. The distance was never the problem.
Remember when we compared friends to the stars and lovers to the moon?
The sky still looked beautiful without the moon, but never, never without the stars. The seemingly less bright stars never bothered us; we knew that the stars were, in reality, way bigger than the moon; always have, always will.
But that was before the moon outshone the stars. Before we grew tired of counting the stars, and settled for the moon, before we considered the stars as mere background of the sky, and the moon as the heart of the stage. That was, before we started ignoring our friends we’d known for years, just to have extra time for our silly, romantic love. That was before we took our stars for granted, because, oh well, the stars aren’t going anywhere, are they?
Remember when friends were the stars of our life?
That was before our moon, the one we held in our highest priorities, started sorting out their priorities for something else. Before we started realising that full moon comes only once a month, before we learnt to fully appreciate the stars on the new moon night. That was when we realized that friends will always be the stars, but maybe we weren’t good stargazers enough.
° ° °
Remember when pinky promises were enough?
We held out in front of each other our right hands; a little shaking, but never doubtful. Then we’d entwine our pinky with theirs, and that completed the procedure of what we called, ‘a promise for life’. We used to take promises so seriously, at least as serious as a 6-year old could get.
Remember when we said ‘I promise’ and meant it?
Those were the times when breaking a promise was the last thing we’d want to do, when something as silly as a pinky promise had such huge effect on us. When we were scared of lying, party because we thought it would make our nose grow, and partly because, well, a lie hurts people’s feelings, right? Those were the times we never, ever betrayed our friends.
But that was before we started crossing our fingers to get away with any promise, any lie; before we started searching for loopholes. That was before we realised that lying doesn’t make your nose grow. Before our ‘white-lies’ turned into ‘half-truths’ into ‘modified-truths’ into pure, downright lies. Before we didn’t bat an eye while betraying our friends, because let’s face it, who takes a pinky promise seriously anymore?
Remember when a pinky promise was enough?
That was before we started lying to ourselves, convincing ourselves that a small lie won’t hurt.
That was before we realised that what goes around, comes around. That while we were so busy stabbing our friend’s back, we had- unbeknownst to us- a decent amount of knives stabbed on ours too.
• • •
Remember when friends came before anything?
Maybe they still do. Maybe, some friends are still an extension of our family, and at the same time, an escape from the family.
But that was before we made other friends, before the other friends took over our old friends. Before we started classifying our friends: childhood friends, mutual friends, colleagues, classmates, rich friends, friends that help in studies, friends with good contacts, friends that come handy when bored, friends to hang out with, friends with benefits, etc. etc. That was before we mistook every other person, except family and lover, for a friend.
Remember when friends were everything to us?
That was before friendship got adulterated, before things like ambitions, politics, competitions, jealousy, came between friendship. Before we knew the meaning of ‘third wheel’, and ‘love triangle’, and ‘friends-turned-strangers’. Before we relied on facebook to remind us about their birthday.
Before wishing them on birthdays and new years felt like an obligation, before maintaining the friendship felt like an obligation.
Remember when we actually had real friends?
Of course we do remember, because that was when we ‘grew up’.
That was before we scanned through the dictionary for the definition of a friend, and took it way too literally.
(IPA): /fɹɛnd/Friend, noun [ C ]
A person who you know well and who you like a lot, but who is usually not a member of your family…
My verses cut themselves half
Struggling to abound the meaning they wanna carve
What mind percepts as a fine art
The begotten words fail to portray even a part
Yet, somehow, my pen manages to scribble
Gushing out its fluid sufficing my endeavours
Though meandering thoughts are difficult to replicate
It perfectly depicts how inside of our nerves are implicated
That the red, blue or black glints are the
bloodsheds I couldn’t bleed
That which was stuck inside of me, with every inkshade, was freed
So, even it’s a meaningless prose that I carve
Though my words stumble and fall apart
I will continue to summon up myself and
pick up my shaft
And, pursue on fabricating my being into a sculpted craft.