While we keep lamenting the loss of our idols and other artefacts to theft, it is a pity that we are not taking good care of those that are in our possession.

Centuries-old statues, artefacts and stone inscriptions lie in a state of neglect in police stations, dumped in some corner together with junk such as old vehicles. An investigation carried out by the THT has revealed that archaeologically important artefacts are languishing in some dark corner of at least five police circles in Kathmandu. This is nothing but showing indifference by the government and concerned stakeholders, including the common people, for our rich cultural heritage. The police themselves are at a loss as to how the statues and other artefacts have landed up at the police stations. It's a pity that the police stations don't keep an inventory or record of when and where the artefacts were found or brought in. Many of them are said to have been brought by people for protection immediately after the devastating 2015 earthquake. Others were dismantled during road expansion or encroachment of places bearing the inscriptions. One would have expected the statues and inscriptions to be reinstalled after the restoration of temples and heritage sites.

Surprisingly, that is not happening.

Some of the statues and artefacts are rare and hold immense archaeological value, such as the statue of Lord Brahma installed at the Gaushala Police Circle.

Since Hindu religion forbids the making of statues of the Creator of the Universe, it could be the only idol of Brahma, crafted by Nepali tantrics for conducting tantric rituals at the Pashupatinath Temple. A stone inscription dating from the 17th century installed by Pratap Malla near the Dallu River bridge is now with the police station at Swoyambhu. Inscriptions, whether of stone or copper or other materials, are a valuable source of information, and their disappearance would obliterate knowledge that help to link up different facets of our history. Were it not for the inscription on the Lumbini Pillar that Emperor Ashoka installed in 249 BC, it might have been difficult to pinpoint the exact location of Lord Buddha's birthplace.

We cannot allow our heritage to be gathering dust in the police stations for long. The government, Department of Archaeology, National Museum as well as the locals must come together to decide what to do with them and have them return to their rightful places. If that is not feasible, why not develop an archaeological garden to display the artefacts, as suggested by noted culture expert Satya Mohan Joshi, to protect our rich cultural heritage and also boost tourism? Even museums cannot display their entire collection.

Patan Museum, for instance, has more than 7,000 historical and archaeological artefacts in its collection, of which only about 300 are on display. If the government is short of funds to come up with such an archaeological garden, it could rope in private partners under the public-private partnership (PPP) model, which is gaining popularity worldwide in heritage conservation. Only when we the people and the government show serious concern about preserving our heritage that there will be a stop to the theft and destruction of our precious artefacts.

Mega solar projects

The 49th meeting of Investment Board Nepal (IBN), chaired by Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, on Tuesday granted permission to carry out feasibility studies of two mega solar projects in Sudurpashchim Province, which is lagging far behind in terms of generating energy either from hydropower or other renewable sources. As per the IBN, MS Central Electronics Ltd has been permitted to carry out the feasibility studies on the proposed 225-megawatt solar project at Amargadhi Municipality in Dadeldhura and 125-megawatt solar project at Dipayal-Silgadhi Municipality in Doti district.

The total estimated cost for these two mega solar projects is above Rs 23 billion. The feasibility studies are expected to take about 12-15 months. It will require around 10,000 square metres of land to generate 1 megawatt of energy from a solar plant. It means it would require around 3.5 million sq.m, or 6,890 ropanis of land, to generate 350 megawatts of energy from the two proposed mega solar projects. If the feasibility studies prove to be commercially viable and they come into operation within the deadline, the solar projects will be a game changer in developing the energy-starved far-western region as a major energy hub with possibility of its export to India.

A version of this article appears in the print on February 10, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.