By Shashi P.B.B. Malla The youth of the country are leaving in droves – it is more of an exodus! This ‘youth drain’ is of two kinds: first, the able-bodied skilled and unskilled labour; and second, those going abroad for further education and training. Whereas the skilled and unskilled labour – the “brawn drain – will ultimately return home, currently they are not part of the workforce and do not contribute to the national economy. In the countryside, whole villages are without the youth and are only populated by the very young or old people. Soon there will be no one in agriculture, animal husbandry and forests. A very bleak prospect indeed! The exodus of young people for education and training abroad – the ‘brain drain’ -- is also alarming. Their families and the state have invested heavily in their school and college education and now they are leaving, never to return – only perhaps to get married or on family visits. This is a serious loss of manpower and will have negative repercussions in the social and economic development of the country. Many are, of course, disgusted with the political direction the country has taken since the transition of the country to “Loktantra”. There is little hope that things will change for the better. With more and more of our youth opting for greener pastures, i.e. temporary or permanent migration, other sectors of the state will also suffer. Then the law of diminishing returns will come into force. In the educational sector, diminishing pupils and students will also mean less educators and cancellation of subjects because of a dearth of students. Instead of progress, we will have standstill The health sector will also suffer – the patients as well as the health providers. In the meantime, the so-called leaders and the political parties do not recognize the danger signs flashing. They are too busy with high politics and their scheming games. However, the ‘brain drain’ is only one aspect of the problems facing the country. The malaise is multi-sectoral and multi-dimensional. Consequently, the whole body politic must be cleaned inside out! K.P. Sharma Oli of the CPN-United Marxists-Leninists is no doubt highly pleased with himself for bringing about a sudden change in ‘alliance politics’. Lotus Flower or Pushpa Kamal Dahal-Prachanda is also pleased as punch for extending his tenure at the pinnacle of power. However, all good things finally come to an end – even for the Maoist Supremo. To achieve this, is now the life mission of the rebuffed Sher Bahadur Deuba. To have been discarded in such a dastardly manner is definitely not to the liking of the ‘Tiger of Dadeldhura’, who will now do his utmost to make the oracle’s forecast come true – a sixth term as PM. Should the Nepalese people comply with this miserable destiny? If things are going to get at all better – including stemming ‘the brain & brawn drain’ – we have to consider that there will be no change in our country until and unless there his complete change. There is, however, a ray of hope: the forthcoming street protests of the Rashtriya Prajatantra Party [aptly called ‘National Democratic’].  The writer can be reached at: shashipbmalla@hotmail.com. The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect People’s Review’s editorial stance.