DASNR
International
Student of the Week

Home Country:
Nepal

Nepal is a landlocked nation in South Asia. It is bordered by the Tibet Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China to the northeast and India to the south and west; it is separated from Bhutan by the Indian state of Sikkim and from Bangladesh by a small strip of the Indian state of West Bengal, known as the "Chicken's Neck". The Himalaya mountain range runs across Nepal's north and western parts, and eight of the world's ten highest mountains, including the highest, Mount Everest are situated within its territory.

The modern state was formed with the Unification of Nepal on December 21, 1768. Prior to 2006, Nepal was a kingdom and the only nation with Hinduism as its official religion. Its recent history has involved struggles for democratic government with periods of direct monarchic rule. Since 1995, Nepal has suffered from a civil war between government forces and Maoist guerrillas of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist). As a part of a peace process to end civil war and restore democracy, on May 18, 2006, Nepal was declared a secular state by the Interim Parliament of Nepal. On December 28, 2007, the interim parliament passed a bill and declared Nepal to be a federal democratic republic.

For a relatively small country, Nepal has a diverse landscape, ranging from the humid Terai plains in the south to the mountainous Himalayas in the north, which make it a major tourist destination. Hinduism is the predominant religion of the Nepali people, but the country also has a strong Buddhist tradition; Lumbini, the birthplace of the Buddha Siddhartha Gautama is located in the southern part of the country bordering India. The capital Kathmandu is the largest city in the country. The official language is Nepali and the state currency is the Nepalese rupee. Nepal's flag is the only national flag that is not quadrilateral in shape; its shape is a double triangle.

Nepal 's gross domestic product (GDP) for the year 2005 was estimated at just over US$39 billion (adjusted to Purchasing Power Parity), making it the 83rd-largest economy in the world. Agriculture accounts for about 40% of Nepal's GDP, services comprise 41% and industry 22%. Agriculture employs 76% of the workforce, services 18% and manufacturing/craft-based industry 6%. Agricultural produce——mostly grown in the Terai region bordering India——includes tea, rice, corn, wheat, sugarcane, root crops, milk, and water buffalo meat. Industry mainly involves the processing of agricultural produce, including jute, sugarcane, tobacco, and grain. Its workforce of about 10 million suffers from a severe shortage of skilled labour. The spectacular landscape and diverse, exotic cultures of Nepal represent considerable potential for tourism. (Source: Wikipedia)

Mukti Ghimire
April 14, 2008

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

From the Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology

This week’s international student of the week is Mukti Ghimire. He is a Ph.D candidate in Entomology in the Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology. Mukti was born in Chitwan, a city located in the south central part of of Nepal; he speaks three languages, Nepali, English, and Hindi.

Mukti came to OSU in fall 2001 as a master’s student in the Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology. He graduated in summer 2004 and then enrolled for a Ph.D at the same department. Mukti is going to obtain his doctorate degree in May 2008. His research topic focused on Reproductive Performance of the Parasitoid Bracon hebetot Say (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) on Various Host Species of Lepidoptera.

In 2004 he attended a conference in Chiang Mai, Thailand. He has presented his research at both National and International conferences. In 2007 he went to Montreal, Canada to present his current research work. He just got a position as a research associate in the department of Entomology at Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge.

During the six years at OSU Mukti, as well as his wife and two children, have been very active in different student’s activities with International Student Organization, the Nepalese Student Association, and the Family Resource Center. Mukti served as President for the Nepalese Student Association during the academic year 2004-2005 and he was awarded by International Student Organization with the Outstanding President of the year.

Mukti came from a family of five children, he has two brothers and two sisters, and he is the oldest among them. Mukti is married to Shobba Ghimire, they have two children, a Son Bibek Ghimire who is junior at the Stillwater High School, and a daughter Rachana Ghimire, who is in 7 th grade in the Stillwater Middle School. Mukti's mother came last fall to visit them for about six months.

In his free time Mukti likes to play volleyball and racquetball; he also likes watching OSU games and traveling.

Before Mukti come to the States he went to the Wageningen University in the Netherlands for MS in crop sciences. Then he came to USA to obtain advance graduate education and academic trainings in Entomology. Mukti selected OSU because the graduate program in Entomology is one of the best in the Nation.

Mukti future’s plans are to work as a post-doctoral fellow for few years in order to get more experience in the field of Entomology and Pest Management, and then he is planning to go back to Nepal to serve as an Entomologist in Nepal Agriculture Research Council where he had been working for approximately 10 years before joining OSU.

Advisor: Dr. Thomas W. Phillips

Mukti’ advice to students: “Make friends, do not hesitate to talk with the people that’s the way we learn everyday.”

Interview by: Sandra Rodríguez

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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