Where’s the policy on Samvat?
Gyan Ram Shrestha
National luminary Shankhadhar Sakhwa Pratishthan
Chairman
The Government of Nepal has now officially decided to formally use the Nepal Sambat in government documents. In such a situation, there is a need to be clear in point as to what level the use of Nepal Sambat has reached that it has got national recognition. The Newa community, especially the Newa community of the Kathmandu Valley, was led and participated in the Nepal Sambat campaign or the Bhintuna movement. This is not just a campaign of the Newa community. Even now, there is a misconception among many that it is the Sambat of the Newar community. That is why every year when I go to meet the Prime Minister, I have been asking the question that the Nepal Sambat campaign can be called the Sambat of the Newa community only on the basis of the leadership of the Newa community. All the four who established the Communist Party of Nepal belong to the Newa community. The people who founded the Nepali Congress are also from the Newa community. I have asked the current Prime Minister and senior leaders who have become Prime Ministers why the party established by the Newas can carry but Nepal Sambat cannot be carried by them. What has made it difficult for the Prime Minister to make the use of Nepal Sambat widespread at the government level? What has prevented him from taking a decision in this regard? In response, every Prime Minister has said that he will do concrete work in this regard. It is not that the Nepal Sambat campaign has not achieved anything. However, we are getting those achievements in installments. Again, we told the government that the achievements received in installments were not enough. It is necessary to formulate a national Sambat policy regarding the use of Nepal Sambat. What is the government’s approach regarding the use of Nepal Sambat?
We have been asking the government again and again. At least, there is a need for a separate policy regarding Samvat. We have been saying this ever since Padma Ratna Tuladhar was the supreme leader of this movement. However, the demands from the state are being fulfilled piecemeal. Sometimes the Nepal Sambat has been given national recognition, sometimes it has been recognized by the government, sometimes it has declared Shankhadhar as a national luminary, sometimes it has said a holiday and sometimes a task force has been formed. From 25 years ago till now, we have received six or seven government decisions on the issue of Nepal Sambat. Dr. When Baburam Bhattarai was the Prime Minister, a task force was also formed on Nepal Sambat. The task force also submitted the report, but the government was reshuffled before studying the report. The people have not yet come to know what is in the report. The government should accept the Nepal Sambat. This is our request. A meeting of the Council of Ministers had decided on the day before the New Year (Kartik 27, 2081) to use the Nepal Sambat in government work. However, that decision was not published in the gazette. The cabinet will take a decision but it will not be published in the gazette. After that, we went to Singha Durbar to find out what decision was taken. The decision was taken on the basis of a vertical order. The decision made on the basis of a vertical order would not be published in the gazette. The process had to be completed by the ministry and with the consent of the law ministry. We have also met the bureaucracy and the prime minister on this issue. We have not asked for the budget or any other material material, but we told the prime minister that it will be enough to publish the decision of the cabinet in the gazette. If it is published in the gazette, it will be easier for the bureaucracy to work. This is all we have asked for. That is, our only demand is that the decision taken by the government should be formalized.
Similarly, we have been asking the government to monitor the use of Nepal Sambat in government offices. Various government offices, offices, and bodies are currently using Nepal Sambat. But is there any problem in its use? Is there any way to make it easier? Or is there a situation that no one has used? It is necessary to monitor it. We are happy with the achievements made so far. However, it is not enough. For this, there is a need to move forward legally by making a policy related to Sambat. Mainly, the government should take ownership of the Nepal Sambat. Currently, we have made an app to view the Nepal Sambat calendar with zero investment from the government. Only after the government invests in the use of Nepal Sambat, the date and date of Nepal Sambat will all the people know about it. This will help a lot in understanding Nepal Sambat. After that, the use of Nepal Sambat will increase further. We have a history in front of us that the Nepal Sambat movement has been very helpful in overthrowing the Panchayat regime. The current rulers did not understand this even though they understood it. The rulers need to think seriously about what will happen if the Nepal Sambat movement accelerates tomorrow. If we look at the activities of various countries, including Bangladesh, it cannot be said that this is not the case. Therefore, it is necessary to consider the Nepal Sambat as the era of the nation. Since we grew up reading and using the Bikram Sambat from a young age, we could not bring the use of Nepal Sambat. If education about Nepal Sambat is given from school now, its use will be easy like using Bikram Sambat now. For this, there is a need to provide education and awareness. If we teach good things
, its acceptability will also be easy. We learn what is taught. Since the Rana era, Nepal Sambat has not been taught. Therefore, we did not learn. In 2056 B. S., Shankhadhar Sakhwa was declared a national luminary. Now, at the school level, the biography and history of the place are taught. The biography of Shankhadhar is kept in the 6th grade Nepali. After that, in class 5 and 9, the founder of Nepal Sambat, Shankhadhar Sakhwa, has been placed. This did a lot of work to spread the publicity of Shankhadhar Sakhwa among the masses. However, we have been saying that the issue of place was not included. Through Shankhadhar Sakhwa, knowledge can be given about nationality, poverty alleviation, social welfare services, etc. Under the leadership of Thimi Layamha Pucha, we have expedited the construction of statues of Shankhadhar Sakhwa, the founder of Nepal Sambat, in various places. At present, there are statues of Shankhadhar Sakhwa in 28 places across the country. Respect for the statue of Shankhadhar Sakhwa inspires us to move forward on the path of public welfare.
प्रतिक्रिया दिनुहोस्
