Thimphu, March 23:

For years, the remote Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan boasted that it was mostly concerned with Gross National Happiness (GNH) — and now it’s really going to try to actually measure it.

The idea of focussing on Gross National Happiness rather than Gross National Product (GNP) was the brainchild of ex-king Jigme Singye Wangchuck, who sought to steer Bhutan into the modern world while preserving its unique identity.

Now with the pressures of globalisation and materialism mounting, and the tiny country set for its first-ever elections tomorrow, officials are looking at calculating just how happy the kingdom’s 670,000 people are. “We may call it the Bhutan Development Index or GNH Index,” said Karma Tshiteem, the head of Bhutan’s planning commission — which was earlier renamed the Gross National Happiness Commission.

“It is not antithetical to economic growth but growth should reflect what people want,” Tshiteem said of the GNH concept, which stresses a range of criteria for national well-being. “Environment, culture and tradition are the aspects that are important to Buddhist people,” Tshiteem said.