Attractive, long-lasting and versatile, Nepal's Lokta paper is widely used and highly sought after both in the country and abroad. From official government documents to lamp shades, Lokta is a paper for all seasons.
Recently, while on a visit to a government office in Kathmandu, I'd happened to comment on the dreary stacks of paperwork that make up such an integral part of the operations in such places. I'd wondered how these files and documents survived all that rough handling and neglect. It was a friend who'd made me wise to the fact that government offices here use a specific type of paper, popular especially for its durability. I didn't know it at the time, but what she was referring to was 'Lokta' paper.
