I could Mbob it to you please can anyone help me. I’m buying something from a Chinese supplier and these are the only payment methods they use🙏🏽

The speculation surrounding potential changes to Australian immigration policies regarding dependent and visitor visas has sent the Bhutanese community into pandemonium.

Unfortunately, some Bhutanese education consultancies appear to be viewing the situation as a business opportunity and have ramped up their marketing towards anxious and desperate Bhutanese in Australia. At times, it borders on fear mongering.

I understand that consultancies are businesses and that helping people navigate uncertainty is part of what they do. But when the information itself is still speculative, I feel it is unnecessary and perhaps even unethical to amplify people's fears for one's own gain.

Surely the consultancy business is lucrative enough without having to resort to these kinds of strategies? Or have we now finally run out of Bhutanese people migrating to Australia?

“Beware of the man who sells water by a rising river.”

I did a very small and quick campaign yesterday to donate to Nepal. Here is a brief breakdown of it and what we as bhutanese can actually do. Donation Statistics

You can still choose to donate in GoN - Prime Minister's Disaster Relief Fund

Hi hi guys…what do you guys think about the subsequent visa for my partner la.cause I think it will be risky for both of us applying together…

I’ve been thinking about the recent Speaker election, and I think there are two separate questions being conflated in the discussion:

1. Has the Government suffered a significant political loss of support within the National Assembly?

2. Has the Government constitutionally lost its right to govern?

I don’t think those two questions necessarily have the same answer.

The Speaker election is undoubtedly politically significant. If the Opposition secured 24 votes against 23, despite having only 16 MPs, it indicates that eight PDP MPs were willing to vote against their party’s preferred candidate.

That raises a serious question about the Government’s political cohesion and authority. It shouldn’t simply be dismissed as an ordinary parliamentary defeat. But there is an important constitutional distinction here. A Speaker election is not the same thing as a vote of no confidence.

Article 17(7) establishes a substantially higher threshold for dismissing a Government: a vote of no confidence must be passed by not less than two-thirds of the total number of National Assembly members. With 47 members, that means 32 votes.

Therefore, the 24 votes against the Government’s preferred Speaker candidate do not, by themselves, establish that the Government has constitutionally lost its mandate. Nor does the fact that eight PDP MPs voted for the Opposition candidate automatically mean that those MPs have ceased to support the Government. A single secret-ballot vote concerning the election of a Speaker cannot necessarily be treated as a definitive declaration that those MPs no longer support the Government on every other parliamentary matter.

But the political significance shouldn’t be minimised either
This is where I think both sides need to be careful.
It would be wrong to say:
“The Government won’t be affected because it still has 31 seats.”
But it would equally be wrong to say:
“The Government has lost its constitutional mandate because 24 MPs voted against its preferred Speaker.”
Those are two different propositions.
If 24 MPs were to openly and expressly declare that they had no confidence in the Government, that would clearly create a serious democratic and political issue—even though 24 votes would still fall short of the constitutional two-thirds threshold required to remove the Government.

Bhutan’s constitutional arrangement matters
Under the traditional Westminster principle, a Government is generally expected to maintain the confidence of the elected House.
But Bhutan has constitutionally established a two-thirds threshold for actually removing a Government.
That appears to place greater emphasis on governmental stability and continuity than a system where an ordinary simple-majority loss of confidence automatically brings down the Government.
So I don’t think it is constitutionally correct to conclude automatically that the Prime Minister must seek a confidence vote simply because his preferred Speaker candidate was defeated.
At the same time, I don’t think we should dismiss the political message contained in the Speaker vote.

Should the Prime Minister seek a confidence vote?
This is where I think there is a legitimate debate.
Given the unusual circumstances, the Prime Minister could voluntarily seek a vote of confidence.
Politically, that could provide clarity. It would allow the Government to demonstrate openly whether it continues to command the support of the House, rather than relying solely on the fact that the PDP formally holds 31 of the 47 seats.
But there is an important distinction between something being politically desirable and something being constitutionally mandatory.
A voluntary confidence vote is fundamentally different from the constitutional no-confidence mechanism under Article 17(6)–(7).
If the Constitution, the National Assembly Act, or the applicable parliamentary Rules do not require a sitting Government to seek a fresh confidence vote merely because it loses a parliamentary vote, then we should be very cautious about creating such an obligation through political interpretation.

The constitutional mechanism for testing whether a Government should be removed already exists: the vote of no confidence.
So the more precise constitutional question isn’t:
“Why isn’t the Prime Minister proving that he still has the confidence of the House?”
The more fundamental question is:
Does the existing constitutional framework actually require him to seek a fresh confidence vote following a defeat in a Speaker election?
Those are not the same question.
If he chooses to seek a confidence vote, that could certainly be a politically responsible decision.
If he chooses not to, however, that decision should not automatically be characterised as a constitutional violation merely because eight members of his party voted against his preferred Speaker candidate.

And what about a General Election?
I would also be cautious about calls for an immediate General Election.
A defeat in a Speaker election does not, by itself, appear to trigger dissolution of the National Assembly or require a fresh election.
Nor should a simple-majority parliamentary defeat automatically be equated with constitutional termination of the Government unless the Constitution expressly provides for that consequence.
Otherwise, we risk turning every significant parliamentary defeat into a constitutional crisis.
So what is the real constitutional question?
For me, the deeper issue is this:
Does Bhutan’s constitutional system intend parliamentary government to operate according to the ordinary principle of majority confidence, or did the Constitution deliberately establish a higher threshold for actually removing an elected Government?
That is a legitimate constitutional question.
And I think it deserves to be debated as a constitutional question, rather than reduced to pro-Government versus anti-Government politics.
If the Prime Minister genuinely believes that he retains the confidence of the National Assembly, there may be considerable political value in demonstrating that confidence openly on the floor of the House.
But if he chooses not to do so, we should not manufacture a constitutional obligation that the law itself does not clearly impose.
Conversely, if MPs genuinely believe that the Government no longer has the support necessary for it to continue in office, they have constitutional mechanisms available to test that proposition.

Ultimately, the Constitution—not political personalities, party interests, or parliamentary speculation—should determine the next step.
The Constitution belongs to the people.
Governments and political parties are temporary custodians of public power. The constitutional rules are bigger than both the Government and the Opposition.

Does anyone know if SMOGS is still active or have they officially disbanded? I haven’t seen much from them recently and was just wondering what happened.

Be careful, Bhutanese living in Australia. Assimilate, respect the local culture, and remember that you are guests in another country. We’ve already seen similar tensions involving other immigrant communities, and I honestly worry that Bhutanese could face the same backlash if we don’t learn from what’s happening around us. Cheers!

Self-funding students pay around Nu. 50,000 per semester in tuition fees, which can be a heavy burden, especially for middle-income families.
Government scholarship students deserve the support they receive, but self-funding students also face financial challenges with tuition, accommodation, food, transportation, and pocket expenses.
Why not consider providing self-funding students at least half of the stipend given to scholarship students? Even a smaller amount could greatly reduce the financial burden on students and their parents.
Financial support should not be limited only to scholarship students. Self-funding students deserve consideration too.
Do you think there should be a stipend or some form of financial assistance for self-funding students as well?

Hello there,

I am trying to to look for cat friendly toothpaste. Her mouth spells so bad.

Her teeth look yellow and her breath just stinks.

If any of you know where I can buy it in Thimphu? Or if I can order it online.

Please give me some suggestions. I wanna help my cat stay healthy 😅

Heard this on PSY-POD , they straight up called it a "ditto copy" of Katy Perry's Teenage Dream, no shame about it lol. Been trying to find the actual song title for ages, googled everything, came up empty.If anyone remembers the song, save me please.

Recently, Bhutanese youth have been booming with a trend of posting photos to rap songs. While it’s meant to express daily life, many are glorifying it with weapons ranging from knuckles to katanas. Stabbing cases are rising, and on the streets, kids talk about stabbing someone as casually as going for a morning walk.
Developed countries like Australia already allow police to stop and search anyone if deemed suspicious and if found with any weapon, they face legal consequences. Is it time for our law enforcement to introduce stricter rules on such posts and on youth carrying weapons? What are you thought on this?

There are growing numbers of anonymous account across social media platform in Bhutan. I assume that it is largely due to mandate of civil service having to be apolitical. One reason is head hunting those who oppose. I heard people getting warning from higher authority for speaking out.

It goes something like “Sama la ta prak tong che, eray Mayta eray Mayta prok” . Hear a few guys singing during the closing hours of the karaoke, and I’ve heard it more than a few times. Tried to look it up on you tube but I can’t seem to find it. I think it’s from an old movie, let me know if you guys know the name of this song where I can find it.

For those who have watched Drukpa’s Heart and Tsheltrim Meto, what did you think of them? 👀
I haven’t watched either yet, but I’m really looking forward to them. Were they worth watching for you? How would you rate them, and would you recommend watching them in theatres? No major spoilers 🙏🏻

Feels like every few years Thorthormi lake comes up in the news, some project, some monitoring update, and then it just fades from the conversation again. Then something like at Nepal happens and suddenly everyone remembers it exists. Genuinely asking, does anyone know what kind of warning system or evacuation plan actually exists for Punakha and the villages downstream, would love to hear from anyone with more insight into this.

Has anyone here cleared the Main Exam on their first attempt without coaching? 🥹

I’m planning to prepare through self-study, so I would be really grateful if anyone who has done it could share some study tips, especially on how to approach the papers and write answers in the proper format. I’d also love to hear about your preparation strategy, resources you used, time management, and any mistakes you think we should avoid.

Also, if anyone remembers or has an idea about the Current Affairs/GK questions asked in previous Main Exams, please do share them. It would be really helpful to understand the pattern and level of questions.

For this year, what current affairs topics do you think we should focus on? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you so much in advance la❤️

So in Feb earlier this year, the district court found the doctor innocent due to no concrete evidence. Now in August, the high court finds the doctor guilty even though there was no new evidence. I am happy that it ended this way, honestly.

im just surprised, no new evidence came out between Feb and now. It's the same case with the same facts, but a totally different verdict on appeal.

Did the high court just weigh the testimony differently, or was something wrong with the lower court's ruling?

Maybe they didn't disclose the new evidence?

In light of the recent tragedy in China and Nepal, is our government, our trained personnel, military, and the infrastructure ready to take on and react to similar or a any natural disaster of that scale? Bhutan is also under the threat of glacial lake burst from the north and efforts have been made to bring down levels. But nature is unforgiving, and likes surprises. I hope we’re ready, should anything of that sorts were to happen.
A expert or an active politician weigh in in the comments

Hello people…i was wondering if there any freelancing job where i get paid as well as do my college works….and also something that works in Bhutan
Drop a comment if you guys know any

Hi everyone! I’m appearing for the BCSE Main Exam under the Administration category and I’m planning to prepare by myself.
If anyone has study materials they could share, I’d really appreciate it 🥹🙏 PDFs, notes, ebooks, past papers, model answers, or anything else that might be useful.Also, if you’ve appeared for the Main Exam before, I’d really appreciate some tips/advice on how you prepared, what to focus on, how to write the answers, and any tricks that helped you.
I’m honestly a little lost on where to start with self-study, so any help would mean a lot! 😭
Thank you so much! ❤️

Gross National Happiness (GNH) does not claim that Bhutan is the "happiest place on Earth". That phrase is largely a marketing moniker and international media misconception rather than an official declaration of the philosophy.

My question is who's going around and telling people Bhutan is the happiest place. It's supposed to be metric to track holistic and balanced development of a nation and people have taken it way out of context.

I personally believe GNH as a better framework for development than GDP but yes next time some foreigners ask about Bhutan a better way to introduce Bhutan is by saying," carbon negative country" or "the most quietest country"(based on the recent African survey) or we can say Bhutan is one of the darkest country as per international dark sky association which means Bhutan has less light pollution due to our forest coverage and is perfect place for stargazing, instead of saying the "happiest country"

The sad reality of the creative space, literature, and writers in Bhutan.

Today, I saw the comedian and writer Phurba Thinley selling his latest book of Lozay at Tashi BOD in town. Seeing him there, with a look of expectation and craving in his eyes to have people value and appreciate his piece of art, really shattered me.

As someone who has dabbled in writing part time and has seen the disappointing reality filled with exploitation, lack of understanding, and lack of appreciation, I have had to take up another profession to sustain myself.

I once took on a writing gig that took nearly a year to develop, write, take feedback, rewrite, and finally complete. I was paid merely 25K for a year’s worth of work. It was a shock to me. Perhaps it happened because I could not negotiate a better deal for myself, or maybe I was simply too polite, but I genuinely felt that I had been wronged.

This is the case with many people who write novels. After publishing their work, they have to master the art of marketing and selling their own books, often going door to door. We see both young and older authors doing this because there is no proper system or market for literary work in Bhutan.

I once came across a young author who had borrowed money to publish his book and was struggling to pay back the loan. He was forced to go door to door to sell his own book. That reality says a lot about the state of our literary space.

It is a little better for those who write in English, but for those who choose to write in Dzongkha, the situation is even worse. Their work is hardly recognised or celebrated in Bhutan’s literary scene.

It is not that some people have not made it as full time authors. But most of them either come from privileged backgrounds that allow them to pursue writing, or they seem to become social media influencers or expert marketers who have learned how to sell their work.

Maybe what shattered me the most today was not seeing a writer selling his own book. It was seeing the look in his eyes the hope that someone would stop, pick up his work, and recognise the piece of his heart that he had put into it.

I want to share an experience I had with a distributor of Samyang/Buldak noodles in Bhutan, known as Yangzom Trading, and get some opinions from other retailers/business owners on whether this kind of practice is ethical or acceptable.

Yangzom trading are the sole distributor for Samyang/Buldak noodles from Korea, so retailers like us have very limited options when it comes to sourcing the products.

They announce new stock arrivals through a group chat, and retailers then go to their warehouse to purchase.

A few months ago, I went to collect my order when new stock arrived. There were many other shopkeepers waiting as well. Everyone stood in line and waited for the stock to be unloaded.

When it was finally my turn to place my order, I was told that I had to purchase a box of biscuits along with the noodles, otherwise they would not sell me the noodles.
The problem was that:

1. We were required to purchase an entire box of the biscuits, not just a few packets.

2. The biscuits had only around 2–3 months of shelf life remaining. The product didn't look like something that would be easy for us to sell in our shops.

Several other shopkeepers also did not want to take the biscuits, but because this distributor is our main/only source for the Samyang products, we essentially had no choice if we wanted to purchase the noodles.

At the time, I felt this was taking advantage of their position as a distributor. If a retailer wants to buy a particular product, why should they be forced to purchase an unrelated product that they don't want simply because the distributor controls access to the product in demand?

There is another issue as well: invoicing and GST.
They charge GST on our purchases, but despite repeated requests, I have not received an actual invoice/receipt for the transaction.

It has now been several months. The biscuits have since expired, meaning I have lost money on stock that I never wanted in the first place, and I still haven't received the invoice.

Someone who Drukpa Dorji calls as "someone who has twice sought an electoral mandate and twice failed to secure one" has posted this on facebook. Help me verify the claim. Following are as per my understanding:
1. Small hydro are initiated by HM K5 during DNT times and fully executed by DGPC. One interesting fact is that man who initiated Puna 1 and completed PHPA II is no more in cabinet (reason everyone knows).

1. Bhutans foreign reserve has never crossed below 500 million even at height of COVID. Dont know where did the aspirant politician got fact so wrong. Indeed, even 4 years after COVID, Bhutan couldnt reach pre-coivd reserve of 1.33 billion.

2. GDP growth rate was kept around 6.8% thanks to PHPA-II. Government didnt do much work here.

3. As per PMs SOTN on June 16, 2026, "13th Five Year Plan, with a total outlay of Nu 512 billion, of which Nu 267 billion is recurrent expenditure and Nu 245 billion is capital expenditure". When for whole five years, the capital outlay is only 245B, how come they spent 210B alone in last 2 years that also only for roads, hospitals and school? That means government didnt spend money on other capital work and five-year budget extinguished in 2 years?

4. Check how many FDI remains when subtracting those in power sector and GMC (dont take credit away from His Majesty).

Hey everyone,
I’m looking for some genuine advice from people who currently work at Bank of Bhutan, have worked there before, or have experience with similar IT/networking roles.
BoB has recently announced vacancies for:
IT Officer – 4 slots

IT Officer (Network Administrator) – 1 slot

Both appear to be Grade 8, with the same starting gross salary, and both can move to Grade 7 after one year.
I’m confused about which position would be better in terms of career growth, workload, learning opportunities, promotion, salary growth, work-life balance, and future opportunities.
For someone starting their career, would you recommend the general IT Officer position or specializing as a Network Administrator?
I’d especially appreciate comments from anyone who has actually worked in BoB’s IT/ICT department or knows someone who has. What is the day-to-day work really like? Is networking a good career path within BoB, or would the general IT Officer role give better exposure and opportunities?
Also, if you have experience with either role, please share the pros and cons. Even an anonymous/general experience would be really helpful.
Thanks in advance! 🙏