Terai
RelaxRest, wellness, religious and wildlife tourism, for the Indian and Chinese markets.
Lumbini, Tilaurakot, Janakpur, Chitwan, Bardiya, Koshi Tappu
Tourism policy / Nepal
Nepal has three geographies. Its tourism is planned as one.
I research and teach tourism development at Lumbini Buddhist University, where I head the Department of Management. My work argues for a balanced tri-geographic model: the Terai a place to rest, the Hills a place to roam, the Mountains a place to climb, so that visitor value reaches all seven provinces rather than three destinations.
PhDManagement, Lincoln University College, Malaysia, 2025
HODDepartment of Management, Lumbini Buddhist University
MAHospitality Management, University of Birmingham
FirstNepal's first hospitality-integrated degree modality
2025PhD, Management
11+ yrsInstitutional leadership
6Papers, 5 countries
5Degree programmes
01
Three geographies. Three roles. One tourism system.
The frameworkNepal's three belts are not competitors for the same visitor; they are three complementary reasons to come, and to stay longer. Each is developed on its own terms, answering the value-versus-volume question belt by belt.
Hill
RoamRural, cultural, agro- and homestay tourism, and learning-oriented travel.
Homestay networks, short treks, paragliding, agro-tourism, meditation retreats
Mountain
ClimbMountaineering and high-altitude trekking, on a safety-first premium footing.
Sagarmatha, Annapurna, Manaslu, glacier and geo-tourism
Applied with the 5A framework (attraction, accessibility, amenities, activities, ancillary services) and aligned to UNWTO sustainable-tourism goals. Set out in the concept paper Balanced Tourism Development and Promotion in Nepal, Lumbini Buddhist University, 2081.
02
What the evidence says
Seventy years, sixteen periodic plans-
Volume has recovered. Distribution has not.
Nepal closed January to September 2025 at 815,273 international arrivals, roughly 98% of the 2019 pre-pandemic benchmark, while tourism value stayed concentrated in Everest, Annapurna and the Kathmandu Valley.
NTB arrivals data -
Ambition resets instead of compounding.
Across sixteen periodic plans since 1956/57, the 1972 Tourism Master Plan and the interrupted 2016 to 2025 strategic plan, strong opening ambition has repeatedly been undermined by weak continuity between one plan and the next.
Journal of Tourism & Adventure, 2025 -
Carrying capacity is managed after the fact.
354 climbers summited Everest in a single day in 2019, and close to three hundred mountaineer remains have never been recovered from the region: the cost of treating capacity as an outcome rather than a plan.
Journal of Tourism & Adventure, 2025 -
Seasonal income pushes workers out.
Field research in the Solukhumbu corridor documents weak waste-management practice, limited cultural-preservation advocacy among guides, and income volatility that drives porters, guides and residents toward outward migration.
SMC Journal of Sociology, 2025
03
Built and in operation
Six programmes- 01
Learn, Earn, Certify
BHTM modalityStudents accumulate around three and a half years of professional industry experience during the degree itself, certified alongside the academic award.
- 02
Hotel-integrated modality
First in NepalStudents study within five-star hotel environments while working up to 30 hours a week with stipend support.
- 03
Schotel
Campus mergerCollege and resort integrated into a single experience-based campus, through the merger of Arambha Group of Hospitality Ltd. and Western Mega College, Lumbini Province's first hospitality and tourism college.
- 04
BBA-AI Modern Business Academy
UndergraduateAI-integrated business and entrepreneurship education, with computer-based semester examinations and LMS-based experiential learning.
- 05
MBA-HM Mindful Leadership
PostgraduateEthical, industry-oriented hospitality leadership, integrating Buddhist philosophy and mindfulness into management education.
- 06
Industry and academia framework
SystemsWork-based learning systems, vocational and diploma skill programmes, and employability-focused collaboration between universities, hotels and tourism enterprises.
04
Conferences and panels
Nepal, India, Italy, Japan, Vietnam-
2026PanelistReligious Tourism and Sustainable Development: Buddhist pilgrimage circuits, tourism infrastructure, community livelihoods and SDG-aligned modelsSession IV of Global Diplomacy and Regional Cooperation: India and Nepal Partnership in Buddhist Heritage. Heritage tourism and community-centred destination development as instruments of regional cooperation.India and Nepal Partnership in Buddhist Heritage, New Delhi
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2025PresenterCase Studies of Tourism as Soft Power: How Countries Leverage Tourism to Enhance International RelationsTourism as a tool of cultural diplomacy and international engagement, presented at the 18th N.E.W.S. Conference and Vice Chancellors' Symposium with the University Grants Commission and Nihon University.18th N.E.W.S. Conference, Lumbini Buddhist University
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2025PresenterGautama Buddha: The First Traveler, his journey as the foundation of transformative travelLBU and ITAM Symposium 2025, with expert panel participation on the preservation and contemporary relevance of Buddhist heritage.LBU and ITAM Symposium, Lumbini
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2024PresenterA Study of the Schools in Rupandehi District from the Perspectives of Their Learning Delivered to Response Society, Nation, and Individual Learners29th ITAM International Conference on IT Application and Management.29th ITAM, University of Cagliari, Sardinia
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2018PresenterSignificance of Training on Food, Food Safety, Hygiene, and Sanitation20th ITAM conference on Co-creation and Innovation. Preventive food safety practice, employee training and HACCP-based systems as determinants of service quality.20th ITAM, Kindai University, Osaka
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2018Co-authorRole of Knowledge Management in Nepalese Five-Star Hotels: A Study with Reference to Hotel Radisson19th ITAM conference. Organisational culture, IT, human resources and knowledge-sharing as determinants of hotel efficiency.19th ITAM, Dong A University, Da Nang
05
Research
Doctoral work, publications, service
Doctoral thesis, 2025
Impact of Guest Complaints and Service Recovery Strategies on Customer Satisfaction in Star Hotels of Lumbini Province, Nepal
Hospitality service quality and customer satisfaction. Its findings became the basis for the work-based learning systems now running at Lumbini Buddhist University.
Lincoln University College, Malaysia
Peer review and academic service
- 2026Peer reviewer, Academos Journal, Vol. 2 Issue 3, sustainable tourism development research
- 2025Session moderator, India and Nepal Buddhist Heritage: A Common Legacy, Embassy of India, ICCR and Lumbini Buddhist University
- 2024Faculty Development Training with the University Grants Commission, Nepal and Lumbini Buddhist University
Publications
- 2024Gautama Buddha: The First Traveler, Exploring his Journey as the Foundation of Transformative Travel and its Impact on the Development of Modern TourismKorea Data Strategy Society
- 2022Accountability on Guest Perceptions of Hotel Employee for Sustainable TourismKorea Data Strategy Society, with Sateesh Kumar Ojha
- 2018Significance of Training on Food, Food Safety, Hygiene and SanitationKorea Database Society
06
Background
Education, roles, competenciesEducation
- 2025PhD in ManagementLincoln University College, Malaysia
- NowMA, International Relations and Peace StudiesLumbini Buddhist University, Nepal
- 2012MA, Hospitality ManagementUniversity of Birmingham, United Kingdom
- 2009Bachelor in Hotel ManagementNepal Academy of Tourism and Hotel Management
Positions held
- 2023HOD of Management, Assistant ProfessorLumbini Buddhist University, Lumbini, 2023 to present
- 2014PrincipalWestern Mega College, Butwal, 2014 to 2022
Competencies
Institutional planningCurriculum developmentTourism policy
Destination product developmentStakeholder managementExecutive coordination
Academic supervisionConference managementTeam leadership
Strategic communicationOrganizational developmentWorkforce training
Get in touch
Open to partnerships, policy work and speaking.
Industry and academia collaboration, curriculum and workforce development, destination planning, and conference panels on sustainable and Buddhist heritage tourism.