Daga Gewog

Punakha Dzong

Punakha Dzong, formally Pungtang Dechen Photrang Dzong ("Palace of Great Bliss"), is the second oldest and second largest dzong in Bhutan. Built in 1637–38 by Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal at the confluence of the Mo Chhu and Pho Chhu in the Punakha valley, it served as the seat of Bhutanese government until 1955 and remains the coronation site of every Druk Gyalpo.

Climate of Bhutan

The climate of Bhutan spans tropical lowlands to permanent ice within about 170 kilometres north to south, producing three broad zones — subtropical southern foothills, temperate central valleys and alpine north — each with distinct temperature and rainfall regimes. The country is dominated by the Indian summer monsoon, holds constitutionally mandated forest cover above 60 per cent, and is documented as carbon-negative, yet is also among the world's most exposed high-mountain states to warming, glacial retreat and glacial lake outburst floods.

Kholongchhu Hydroelectric Project

The Kholongchhu Hydroelectric Project is a 600 MW run-of-river facility under development in Trashiyangtse District, eastern Bhutan. The first India-Bhutan hydropower project structured as a joint venture, it is being implemented by Kholongchhu Hydro Energy Limited (KHEL), a partnership between DGPC and SJVN Limited.

Hydropower in Bhutan

Hydropower is Bhutan's most valuable natural resource and largest export, with an estimated potential of 30,000 megawatts. Developed primarily through bilateral partnerships with India, major projects including Chhukha (336MW), Tala (1,020MW), and Mangdechhu (720MW) generate the bulk of government revenue, though the sector's Indian-financed debt and environmental concerns present ongoing challenges.

Gelephu Mindfulness City

Gelephu Mindfulness City (GMC) is a planned special administrative region of approximately 2,500 square kilometres in Sarpang Dzongkhag, southern Bhutan. Announced by King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck on 17 December 2023 and established by Royal Charter on 13 February 2024, it is masterplanned by Bjarke Ingels Group and intended as a carbon-negative economic hub governed by a hybrid legal system drawn from Singaporean and Abu Dhabi law.

Damphu

Damphu (Dzongkha: དམ་ཕུག) is the capital town of Tsirang District in south-central Bhutan, situated at approximately 1,520 metres elevation on a ridge overlooking the Sunkosh River valley. A small but strategically located administrative centre, Damphu serves as the gateway between the highlands of central Bhutan and the subtropical lowlands of the south.

Sunkosh River

The Sunkosh River, known as the Punatsang Chhu in Bhutan, is a major transboundary river draining west-central Bhutan through Dagana and Tsirang districts into India, where it joins the Brahmaputra. The river basin is the site of Bhutan's largest and most troubled hydropower projects, the Punatsangchhu-I and Punatsangchhu-II schemes.

Punatsangchhu Hydroelectric Project

The Punatsangchhu Hydroelectric Project comprises two large run-of-river hydropower plants on the Punatsangchhu (Sunkosh River) in Wangdue Phodrang District, Bhutan: Punatsangchhu-I (1,200 MW, still under construction) and Punatsangchhu-II (1,020 MW, fully commissioned August 2025 and inaugurated November 2025). Originally expected online by 2016-2017, both projects suffered severe delays and massive cost overruns. Punatsangchhu-II was commissioned in phases from December 2024 to August 2025, boosting Bhutan's power generation capacity by 40%, while Punatsangchhu-I remains stalled by geological challenges.

Glacial Lake Outburst Flood Risk in Bhutan

Bhutan's high Himalayan glaciers feed numerous moraine-dammed lakes that are at risk of outburst floods (GLOFs). The 1994 Lugge Tsho GLOF killed 21 people and damaged Punakha Dzong, and subsequent decades have produced one of the most active GLOF-mitigation and early-warning programmes in the Himalaya.

BhutanWiki: 1,000 Articles Milestone

In March 2026, BhutanWiki reached 1,000 published articles, making it one of the most comprehensive open encyclopedias dedicated to Bhutan and the Bhutanese diaspora.

History of Dagana Dzong

Dagana Dzong, formally known as Daga Trashiyangtse Dzong, is a frontier fortress in southern Bhutan built in 1651 on the orders of Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal. It has served as an administrative and monastic centre for the Dagana district for over three and a half centuries.

Medicinal Plants of Bhutan

Bhutan's rich biodiversity supports a traditional medicine system known as Sowa Rigpa ("the science of healing"), which uses over 200 medicinal plant species to produce more than 100 poly-ingredient formulations. Integrated into the national healthcare system since 1967, Bhutanese traditional medicine is practised through 65 hospitals and health units, with all medicines manufactured by the state-owned Menjong Sorig Pharmaceuticals.

Land Confiscation in Southern Bhutan: Legal Mechanisms and Documented Cases

The confiscation of Lhotshampa land in southern Bhutan during and after the 1990s crisis was carried out through a series of interlocking legal instruments including the 1985 Citizenship Act, the census process, the Land Act, and coerced "voluntary migration" forms. This article examines the specific legal mechanisms used, the documentation requirements imposed, and the scale and consequences of the confiscation program.

History of Trashigang Dzong

Trashigang Dzong, built in 1659 on a clifftop overlooking the Drangme Chhu and Gamri Chhu rivers, is the largest dzong in eastern Bhutan. Constructed on the orders of Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal to consolidate Drukpa authority over the eastern regions, it has served continuously as a centre of administration and religious life for over 360 years.

Dagala Gewog

Dagala Gewog is a high-altitude gewog in Thimphu District, Bhutan, named after the Dagala Range. Known for the Dagala Thousand Lakes Trek, alpine meadows, and yak herding, the gewog covers 85 square kilometres and supports a small community of approximately 178 households whose livelihoods depend primarily on livestock.

Bhutanese Community Gardens

Bhutanese community gardens are agricultural projects established by resettled Bhutanese refugees in cities across the United States, Canada, Australia, and other countries. Rooted in the agrarian traditions of southern Bhutan, these gardens serve as spaces for food production, cultural preservation, social connection, and therapeutic engagement with the land, while also contributing to food sovereignty and nutritional well-being in resettlement communities.

Sarpang Town

Sarpang is the administrative headquarters of Sarpang District in southern Bhutan. Located approximately 32 kilometres west of Gelephu in the subtropical lowlands, the town has served as a seat of governance for the southern region since the establishment of the Lhotsham Chichab office in 1955.

Lingzhi Yugyal Dzong

Lingzhi Yugyal Dzong is the highest-altitude fortress in Bhutan, perched at approximately 4,150 metres above sea level on a steep hillock in the Lingzhi region of northern Thimphu District. Originally constructed between 1667 and 1680 during the reign of the third Druk Desi, Chogyal Minjur Tenpa, the dzong commemorated Bhutan's victory over Tibetan-Mongol invasions and served as a critical northern border defence. Severely damaged by earthquakes in 1897 and 2011, it was reconstructed over nearly seven years and reconsecrated on 5 October 2024.

Trekking Routes in Bhutan

Bhutan offers some of the most spectacular and least-crowded trekking routes in the Himalayas, ranging from gentle day walks through glacial valleys to the legendary 25-day Snowman Trek — widely considered the most difficult long-distance trek in the world. This comprehensive guide covers seven major treks with distances, durations, elevations, costs, permit requirements, and practical planning advice.

Forced Eviction of Lhotshampa (1990-1993)

Between 1990 and 1993, the Royal Government of Bhutan carried out a campaign of forced evictions that displaced over 100,000 ethnic Nepali-speaking Lhotshampa from southern Bhutan. The expulsions involved military operations, arbitrary arrests, torture, and the coercion of citizens into signing "voluntary migration forms". The displaced Lhotshampa fled to refugee camps in Nepal, where many remained for over a decade before being resettled in third countries. The events constitute one of the most significant episodes of ethnic cleansing in modern South Asian history.