Prithvi Jayanti (Nepali: पृथ्वी जयन्ती, lit. 'Birthday of Prithvi Narayan Shah'; also known as the Nepal Ekikaran Diwas (Nepali: नेपाल एकीकरण दिवस, romanized: National Unification Day) or National Unity Day) is an observance annually celebrated on 11 January to commemorate the birth of King Prithvi Narayan Shah, who was the first king of unified Nepal. In the mid-18th century, he set out to unify the small kingdoms which would become present-day Nepal. During the observance, many people add a garland to statues of Shah, participate in the parades, and remember his contribution to Nepal. Prithvi Jayanti was celebrated as a public holiday from 1951 until its abolishment in 2006. However, some local governments in Gorkha District and Nuwakot District have declared Prithvi Jayanti to be a public holiday. In 2023, the government declared it as a national holiday.[1]
Recently, Shah had also imposed a blockade on the kingdom which hurt the East India Company's trans-Himalayan trade with Tibet and China as they used the route that went through Kantipur.[4] The company accepted the request and sent Captain Kinloch who met Prithvi Narayan Shah's forces at the Battle of Sindhuli in 1767.[5] The battle proved to be disastrous for the company, Kinloch fled with approximately 800 soldiers out of almost 24,000.[4] After this Shah managed to conquer the valley and proclaimed himself as the King of Nepal on 25 September 1768.[6] After Prithvi Narayan Shah's death, the Unification of Nepal campaign was continued notability by Prince Bahadur Shah, Queen Rajendra, and Bhimsen Thapa.[7][8] At its greatest extent, the Kingdom of Nepal extended from the Sutlej River in the west to the Teesta River in the east.[9]
In 2021, the Nepal Police and pro-monarchy supporters clashed injuring some, as they were trying to put garlands on the statue of Prithvi Narayan Shah in a restricted area outside Singha Durbar.[18][19] People are usually divided on celebrating Prithvi Jayanti.[10][20] Some feel without Prithvi Narayan Shah's unification campaign, Nepal would have been a colony of the British Empire.[10] Others say some people seeking the restoration of the Kingdom of Nepal and restoring the Shah's significance would "revert to an era where both caste and cultural dominance had the overt backing of the state".[20] In 2022, Rajendra Prasad Lingden, Chairman of Rastriya Prajatantra Party, sent a memorandum asking Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba to declare Prithvi Jayanti as a public holiday, and the party has also told they would start a nationwide protests if their request was not met.[21] The same year, Bibeksheel Sajha Party said Prithvi Jayanti should be celebrated as Nepal Day and supported idea of declaring it as a public holiday.[22] In 2023, Owing to pressure from the pro-monarchy Rastriya Prajatantra Party as RPP had proposed the Prithvi Jayanti holiday as a precondition for its support to the Pushpa Kamal Dahal-led government,[23] the government declared it as a national holiday.[1]
In December 2021, a committee representing the Nepal Academy, the Nepal Academy of Music and Drama, and the Nepal Academy of Fine Arts and Cultural Corporation was formed to celebrate the 300th Prithvi Jayanti in 2022.[29] On 9 January, the committee will organise a book and painting exhibition, next day there will be a talk program, and on the last day on 11 January, there will be cultural processions and program.[29]
^ abBasnyat, Prem Singh (18 August 2019). "The battle of Sindhuli". My Republica. Archived from the original on 16 December 2021. Retrieved 16 December 2021.
^Bādala, Bheshajaṅga (1997). The King Versus the People. Nepal Tiger Publications. p. 2. Archived from the original on 16 December 2021. Retrieved 21 December 2021.
^Bhattarai, Krishna P. (2009). Nepal. Infobase Publishing. p. 113. ISBN978-1-4381-0523-9. Archived from the original on 16 December 2021. Retrieved 21 December 2021.
_(cropped).jpg)