# Karna Shakya

_Nepalese writer_

Canonical: https://diginpl.com/people/karna-shakya
Last updated: 2026-10-31

> Karna Shakya (Nepali: कर्ण शाक्य) (born in April 2, 1943) is a Nepalese environmentalist, conservationist, hotel entrepreneur, writer and philanthropist. Shakya is a forester by academic qualification. He served as a wildlife officer and pioneered in establishing the first National Park in Nepal. He resigned from his government job, entered the tourism business in 1970, and now owns a chain of eco-friendly hotels in major touristic cities like Kathmandu, Pokhara, chitwan and Lumbini.

## Quick facts

- **Born:** 2 April 1943 ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q17018840#P569))
- **Place of birth:** Kathmandu ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q17018840#P19))
- **Citizenship:** Nepal ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q17018840#P27))
- **Occupation:** writer; businessperson ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q17018840#P106))

## About

In 1998, the old neoclassical garden in Keshar Mahal was to be demolished for the construction of a commercial center. However, on the advice of Karna Shakya, Minister of Education Arjun Narasingha KC stopped the demolition work at once and declared it open to the public with a new name, Garden of Dreams.

## Early life and education

- Shakya holds AIFC postgraduate in Forestry from the Indian Forest College, Dehradun, India in 1967. ([samriddhi.org](http://www.samriddhi.org/userfiles/pdf/entrepreneurs-stories/karna-shakya_KGH.pdf))

## Career

- Shakya is a founding chairman of KGH Group of Hotels. ([books.google.com](https://books.google.com/books?id=8AzxBi3mcfEC&pg=PA315&lpg=PA315&dq=%22the+fathers+of+tourism+in+Nepal,+Karna+Shakya,+who+has+just+published+his+biography%22))

_Cited sentences quoted from Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Karna_Shakya&oldid=1374997697), CC BY-SA 4.0._

## Questions

**When was Karna Shakya born?**  
Karna Shakya was born on 2 April 1943 in Kathmandu.

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## Sources

- [Wikipedia (English): Karna Shakya](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karna_Shakya) — [CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)
- [Wikipedia (Nepali): कर्ण शाक्य](https://ne.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E0%A4%95%E0%A4%B0%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%A3_%E0%A4%B6%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%95%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AF) — [CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)
- [Wikidata item Q17018840](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q17018840) — [CC0 1.0](https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/)
- [Image: Karna Shakya.jpg by Mukesh Shrestha (CC BY-SA 3.0)](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Karna_Shakya.jpg)
- [Wikipedia (English), revision used for cited facts: Karna Shakya](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Karna_Shakya&oldid=1374997697) — [CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)
- [samriddhi.org: Story of an Entrepreneur: Mr. Karna Shakya (Owner, Kathmandu Guest House)](http://www.samriddhi.org/userfiles/pdf/entrepreneurs-stories/karna-shakya_KGH.pdf)
- [books.google.com: Designing Information and Organizations with a Positive Lens](https://books.google.com/books?id=8AzxBi3mcfEC&pg=PA315&lpg=PA315&dq=%22the+fathers+of+tourism+in+Nepal,+Karna+Shakya,+who+has+just+published+his+biography%22)

## Licence and attribution

Text from the Wikipedia article Karna Shakya, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page's text is shared under the same licence. Facts from Wikidata (CC0). Image: Karna Shakya.jpg — Mukesh Shrestha, CC BY-SA 3.0.

## Cite this page

"Karna Shakya". DigiNepal. Last updated 31 October 2026. https://diginpl.com/people/karna-shakya. Retrieved 7 November 2026.