The biggest challenge facing any development work is sustainability.
Addressing that in our education-related charity work is Social Business for Education–a business venture that generates income to support mainly education and other community development projects, as identified and deemed important by the community themselves. The fishery we are setting up at Thangpalkot for Raithane School is just that.
In preparation for that, Friday, August 1st, we accompanied our expert consultant Madhav on a trip to the Kulekhani Hydropower Reservoir fishery. The local government and Kulekhani community has run a very successful fishery in the reservoir. At one time, Madhav himself had overseen the project as the Director.
A journey of about 50km each way, it took the whole day owing to the terrible condition of the roads and traffic. As bad as the road was, the scenery was breathtaking. It wound through forests, hill sides and even crossed a couple of passes around 2000 meters. The whole area was green, hilly, idyllic and the people pleasant, cheerful and friendly.
Kulekhani Hydropower Reservoir
About to head out for the inspection with our consultant, local technician and the supervisor.
A row of cages. Each cage is 5m x 5m x 5m, holding anywhere from a few thousand to just a few hundred fish, depending on their age.
A typical cage made of bamboo sticks, drums and a nylon net whose size depends on the fish being raised.
Spacing between cages, essential to ensure free flow of food for the fish from all four directions.
Approaching another cage with floaties.
Close up of a cage with relatively new net. The nets are weighed down by stones tied to each corner.
Inspecting a gill net. The size of the net ensures that only a certain size and above fish are caught.
Close-up of a gill net.
The team.
Secretary of the village, our main and point man in the village, Kumar Sir (on the right), and on-site supervisor-in-training, Mohanji, inspecting the clouds and enjoying the scenery.
The road and the vehicle.
And finally the ominous monsoon clouds above Kathmandu.
