Father of modern Bhutan During his 20-year reign that ended in July 1972, the fundamental reorientation of Bhutanese society began. Wangchuck not only achieved the reorganisation of society and government, but also consolidated Bhutan's sovereignty and security. He mobilised resources from the international donors as aid. Wangchuck's strategy was to broaden the source of aid by developing relationships with other countries. Bhutan joined the Colombo Plan in 1962 to obtain international aid. However, India became the main source of financial and technical assistance. He was a deft and farsighted planner in the sense that he modernised Bhutan without destabilizing its culture and tradition. Wangchuck brought modern techniques and methods to preserve and promote the
culture of Bhutan, yet at the same time, he introduced Western science and technology.
Political and social reforms In the context of Bhutan, there were small groups who were bonded labourers. They would work on the farms of the aristocratic and prominent families. In return, they would receive food, lodging and clothes. As soon as he became the King, labourers who worked on the royal lands were made into tenants and sharecroppers instead of indentured labourers. Later, similar indentured labourers were set free in other areas of the country, especially in some parts of
Eastern Bhutan, where they were concentrated. In 1953, Wangchuck opened the
National Assembly of Bhutan in 1953 in
Punakha Dzong. Along with the promulgation of Thrimzhung Chenmo, a mechanism to implement and enforce laws was needed. Wangchuck decided to open the judiciary, first with the appointment of Thrimpons (judges) in districts, and then finally to the High Court, which was set up in 1968. These administrative and social reforms were prior to any economic modernisation programmes. In 1955, he intensified the conversion of commodity taxes to cash taxes by assessing land for cash taxation.
Culture and education The king paid considerable policy attention on preserving
Bhutanese culture so that Bhutan could always perpetuate itself as a culturally distinct nation, in particular with a flourishing
Buddhist culture. He commissioned Buddhist monuments, including a large statue of the Buddha near the parliament building in Thimphu, as well as ornate copies of Buddhist texts such as the
Kangyur and Tengyur. In 1961, motor road transport reached
Thimphu. The systematic envisioning of the economic future of Bhutan through FYPs was put into practice in 1961. The idea of budgeting and programming on a five-year basis is a legacy from that period. The construction of roads expanded vigorously to the end of Jigme Dorji Wangchuck's reign; by his death, more than 1200 km (750 miles) of road had been built in the country. ==Death==