South Asia: Pakistan and the Himalayan States - Dragons and Tigers: A Geography of South, East and Southeast Asia - page 208

For example, Drukair (Royal Bhutan Airlines), is possi-
bly the smallest national airline in the world with its two
planes. However, rural-to-urban migration and natural
increase in the capital city of Thimpu has resulted in a
100 percent growth in its population since 2001. T Today, ,
Thimpu has close to a million residents.
Bhutan' s King Jigme Singye Wangchuck has pointed
out that for his people, “gross national happiness'' super-
sedes “gross national product.'' Although there is some
small-scale industry in the south, including chemicals,
cement, and wood products, the majority of Bhutan' s
inhabitants work directly with the land.

and Asian elephant. A greenbelt and an elephant corridor
have been created along the Indian border.
Nepalese have resided in Bhutan since the nine-
teenth century . In the mid-twentieth century , many of
Nepal' s soaring population have illegally migrated across
the border, settling in the southern lowlands of Bhutan
alongside the existing Nepalese community . When
Bhutan conducted a census in 1988, it discovered that
ethnic Nepalese made up an unspecified but significant
proportion of the total population. The former kingdom
of Sikkim had already been overrun by Nepalese and, for
protection, elected to join India. Bhutan' s king did not
want a repeat performance in his realm.
In an effort to salvage Bhutanese culture, the king
launched Drignam Namzha , a “traditional values and eti-
quette'' policy that promoted Dzongkha in the schools
and required all people to wear traditional Bhutanese
dress on certain occasions. In 1985, it instituted the
Citizen Act, which requires that all residents prove their
historical roots in the country .
From 1990 to 1992, 100,000 illegal immigrants were
expelled: 70,000 to Nepal, and 30,000 to India to join the
4 million Nepalis already there. Again, the problem was
not solved, and numerous incidences of violence and
human rights abuses occurred thereby drawing the atten-
tion of the United Nations. In 2009, the first batch of
Nepalis left for UN-supervised refugee camps in eastern
Nepal. The remaining 86,000 signed up for resettlement
in the West—mostly in the United States.
Even with sustainable development policies, Bhutan
has numerous social and environmental problems.
Poverty , disease, illiteracy , high infant mortality , and low
life expectancy are universal. However, Bhutanese
women have more freedom and power than in most
other South Asian societies. Environmental problems are
increasingly widespread and are similar, if not as intense,
as in other Himalayan communities.

“Gross National Happiness”

The philosophical basis of life in Bhutan is upheld
by a Buddhist precept that stresses both spiritual
and emotional fulfillment. It also emphasizes that
people have necessary material necessities and a re-
spect for natural order. Consequently , the king-
dom' s development policies focus on enrichment of
people' s lives. Meeting basic needs, increasing social
and economic choices, ensuring cultural preserva-
tion and environmental protection are fundamental.
Bhutan' s ruler and his Drukpa subjects are very
concerned about the precarious state of their Bud-
dhist culture and the endangered state of their
physical environment in light of modernization.
Consequently , tourists are limited to 3,000 a year
and must be on guided tours that are very expen-
sive for most people.Eighty percent of the popula-
tion participated in Bhutan' s first election in 2008,
which swept the “Peace and Prosperity Party” into
power.

Sixty percent of the land is designated as forested,
and sustainable forestry is national policy . Nevertheless,
reforestation programs are not keeping up with deforesta-
tion. Fuelwood consumption is high in Bhutan—among
the world' s highest. A lumber industry introduced in the
1960s has been curtailed and farmers are given free tree
seedlings to plant on private lands. Unfortunately , the
logging industry , legal and illegal, continues.
Large tracts have been set aside as floral and faunal
preserves. With its array of biomes, Bhutan houses the
world' s only population of golden langur and some of the
few remaining populations of one-horned rhino, tiger,

Mountain Development
and Eco-Destruction

Magnificent, awesome, challenging—such descriptors
belie the reality of the Himalayas' geological instability
and eco-vulnerability . In this oft-perceived “barren
wasteland,'' millions struggle daily to eke out a living.
Long subject to earthquakes, landslides, and flash
floods, Himalayan populations more and more are con-
fronted by problems related to environmental fragility
and degradation.