Obituary: Mr Wangdu Phuntsok Gonsar [Tuesday, 14 September 2010, 9:38 a.m.]

Mr Wangdu Phuntsok Gonsar

Dharamshala: Mr Wangdu Phuntsok Gonsar, a former civil servant of the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA)  who made great contributions in the field of education of Tibetans in exile, passed away on 5 August 2010. Born in Gyanor, Shelkar, Western Tibet on 24 February 1954, he was among the few selected students to have the opportunity to enroll in a private school on scholarship in Branleigh Towers Cambridge Academy. In December 1973, he graduated from Sherwood College in Nainital, in northern India. Mr Wangdu Phuntsok completed a special six month’s training program on political management in 1977. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1978, and Master of Arts degree through correspondence from Delhi University in 1996. From 1989 to 1993, Mr Phuntsok served as the Educational Project Officer. He was awarded with a certificate of merit for his exemplary service for taking the overall responsibility of the Planning Commission in 1992 when the CTA first drafted the first long-term plan for the CTA. He was responsible for managing and guiding Namgyal Higher Secondary School (NHSS) from a tentative beginning to a top ranking high school affiliated with the Nepal Higher Secondary Education Board. He was deputed as the Director of the school in 1993. He worked in SOS Tibetan Homes Foundation in Mussoorie from 1977 to 1989 as a Project Coordinator and Assistant Director of the school. Mr Wangdu Phuntsok was conferred with  numerous awards, such as recognition for his 25 years of service to the Tibetan community in the field of education by the  Department of Education in 2004. On 12 July 2009, Mr Jhalanath Khanal, President of the ruling party of Nepal CPN-UML presented  Mr Phuntsok with an award for the outstanding school academic achievement.He received appreciation from Office of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Department of Education, Department of Religion and Culture, Department of Health of the Central Tibetan Administration and from various other institutions and organizations. He is survived by his wife, Chemi Dolkar Gonsar, sons Tenzin Sonam Gonsar and Palden Dorji Gonsar, and daughter Ngawang Youdon Gonsar.