The day Jestha 18 would be remembered from now on, for the nation has lost a visionary leader, passionate entrepreneur, a youth activist and a social worker, Mr Ujwal Thapa, who has lost his life at a premature age of 44 after losing the battle with Covid-19 illness.
This news shook the majority of youths who looked up to him regarding his peerless efforts in changing the perspective of politics, leadership and entrepreneurship in Nepal.
Who is Ujwal Thapa?
Ujjwal Thapa was a silver lining to the dark cloud of politics in Nepal. He was the President of Bibeksheel Party Nepal, where he showed himself as an exemplary person in politics and leadership. Sometimes, by protesting in Maitighar Mandala demanding the efficient health services for the people and sometimes, by raising voices against the strikes and political impotence of the government in leadership.
A Guardian for Entrepreneurs
More than a politician, he was a visionary entrepreneur whose initiatives like- Entrepreneurs For Nepal (E4N), IT Entrepreneurs for Nepal and WordPress Nepal have been distinctive platforms for the majority of youths in Nepal to level up their networking and entrepreneurial capability.
Having a Bachelor’s Degree from Bennington College, USA, he returned to Nepal in order to start his own business in the IT sector. In this regard, he co-founded an IT solution company named Digital Max Solution in 2003.
Along with that, he started a Facebook group named “IT Entrepreneurs for Nepal” in 2012. The main motive behind it was to guide and support the youths in the IT sector for pursuing their career in IT jobs and businesses. Today, this group has more than 26,000 members.
In addition to that, his community Entrepreneurs for Nepal has been an umbrella community for many of the aspiring entrepreneurs to gain support and leads for their startups and ventures since its inception in 2007. With a member count of more than 119,000 people, this group was acclaimed by The Boss Magazine in 2009 that reads, “Entrepreneurs for Nepal – Let’s create opportunities in Nepal”.
His initiation- WordPress for Nepal has been a home to many freelancers and a helping hand for many youths to start their own business or get a job in the IT sector. Entrepreneurs for Nepal, IT Entrepreneurs for Nepal and WordPress Nepal were the groups where he, along with his founding members instilled the vision of changing the dynamics of development through a mix of entrepreneurship and technology.
Nepal Lost a Visionary Leader
The news of his untimely demise was not what everybody was ready for. People were giving their prayers for his speedy recovery while he was struggling with his fight against the Covid-19 in the bed of Mediciti Hospital. To this loss, many young entrepreneurs, IT personnels, activists, writers, who knew him and had at least heard about him expressed their heartfelt condolences indicating that his vision is not in vain.
His co-founding member for E4N and a close friend, Asutosh Tiwari writes,” “Ujwal is a rare man who — with no expert degrees, no mainstream political party support, no electoral victory to his name, and no previous high-paying job credentials — comes perhaps once in a generation in a country like ours. There are people who have authority and power. And there are people like Ujwal who have courage and influence. I see an enormous heartfelt outpouring of support, affection, love and concern for him in this light.”
Founder of Sastodeal Amun Thapa writes,” Ujwal dai has been with me in every step of my journey; passively observing and helping in every way possible. I also got to see him lead a few dozens to tens of thousands. An entrepreneur himself, sacrificed everything he had and surrendered to the nation to ignite new hopes.”
Basanta K. Dhakal, one of the moderators of E4N writes, “ We met a few times during admin meetings of E4N to discuss how to take the group ahead. I have met him hardly 10 times in total. Though he was affiliated with a political party, he never talked about politics with me. Instead, he used to ask: “Isn’t it high time you should start your own business? I still don’t have an answer to this question. I didn’t know him that closely, since ours was a professional relationship. All I knew was he was quite a humble person, and a visionary guy. “
His Efforts Won’t Go in Vain
Yesterday, there were more than 650 people in the Clubhouse who paid a tribute to Ujwal Thapa and expressed their personal experiences with him. After a long time, Nepalese were mourning upon the death of a political figure. The expectation of many regarding his participation in the leading position in politics could not be fulfilled. But, the selfless efforts of him in making youths believe in their dreams of changing the nation through innovation, activism, entrepreneurship and technology have made him a people’s person. A humble person who has devoted his whole youth in giving back all his learning to the society and nation at large, Mr Thapa had revived the faith of many youths towards vision led politics and leadership. A technocrat by degree, politician by career, and a leader by vision, Ujwal Thapa would always be remembered.
Our team expresses heartfelt condolences and wishes the strength for his bereaved family to overcome this grief. We are sure that, his efforts won’t go in vain. For, there are many Ujwal Thapas who are ready to contribute in their own ways in the field of IT, business, leadership or social service. May his soul rest in eternal peace.
