History

BFBS Gurkha Radio in Nepal was established in 1997 in Kathmandu after the closure of BFBS Nepali Service in Hong Kong, the same year as the sovereignty of this crown colony was handed back to China by Great Britain. Hong Kong was the home base of Gurkha soldiers for many years and BFBS Nepali Service was their only medium to connect home thus it was an integral part of their lives.

In order to maintain this important link with home and also to provide entertainment to Gurkha soldiers and families, serving in Brunei and the United Kingdom, BFBS Gurkha Nepal came into existence. It was then known as BFBS Kathmandu and Mr Kishore Gurung, a veteran broadcaster, was its first Station Manger. The main objective of BFBS Kathmandu then was to support BFBS Brunei and UK by providing news by fax and various entertainment programmes and materials. Later in November 2003, BFBS Gurkha Nepal became a fully fledged radio station when it began to broadcast via satellite to these locations.

Objective

BFBS Gurkha Nepal’s main object is to keep Gurkha soldiers informed about what's happening in their motherland, and to entertain them and their families wherever they are serving. Currently the main impetus is to serve the boys deployed to Afghanistan on operational tours. Our motto is to ‘Serve the Servicemen’.

Composition

BFBS Gurkha Nepal has a team of dedicated broadcasters and support staff, freelancers and part-time reporters from around the country. Mr Binod Dhoj Khadka, an army veteran of 22 years of Gurkha service, with an additional 12 years of radio experience, leads the team of highly qualified and experienced journalists, radio jockeys (RJs) and established entertainment personalities of Nepal who have made their names in their own right. BFBS Gurkha Nepal is very keen to bring in the very best available in the market to cater for all tests of ardent BFBS listeners around the world.

Future

BFBS Gurkha Nepal goes from strength to strength. Our aim is to maintain a high standard of dedicated programming in the future. We are expanding in the area of news by bringing in professional journalists and establishing our own news team with ample news bulletins throughout the day. We have also launched a weekend chat & entertainment show presented by the Rhythm Brothers to cater for and suit the need of young listeners out there.