Gorkhapatra photojournalists Thapa and Shahi awarded

BY A STAFF REPORTER,Lalitpur, Apr. 27: Kabita Thapa and Manoj Ratna Shahi, photojournalists from Gorkhapatra, were awarded at the 5th National Photojournalism Award 2025, organised by the National Forum of Photojournalists (NFPJ Nepal) in Lalitpur on Saturday. Shahi received the Tourism and Culture Photojournalism Award, while Thapa was awarded the Women Photojournalism Award. The ceremony was held on the occasion of the National Photojournalism Day.

Speaker Devaraj Ghimire emphasised the importance of photojournalism, describing it as a way to ‘depict live history and capture it for the centuries.’ He acknowledged the role of photojournalists in documenting real stories from society, which serve to guide the nation toward a better future. Speaker Ghimire praised photojournalists for archiving the history and movements of the country through their lens.

The event also recognised other notable winners. Dipendra Dhungana from Naya Patrika Daily received the Daily Life Photojournalism Award, while Skanda Gautam from The Himalayan Times was honoured with the Political Photojournalism Award. Rajiv Hengaju from the Nepal Army won the Independent Photojournalism Award, Abhishek Maharjan from Annapurna Post received the Entertainment Photojournalism Award, and Chandra Bahadur Ale from OnlineKhabar.com was awarded the Economic Photojournalism Award.

In addition to the national winners, province-level awards were presented to outstanding photojournalists from each of Nepal's seven provinces. They include Sujan Bajracharya from Koshi, Ram Sarraf from Madhes, Navin Paudel from Bagmati, Prem Thapa from Gandaki, Madhav Prasad Aryal from Lumbini, Amrit Kumar Budhathoki from Karnali and Lokesh Saud from Sudurpaschim.