Dashain has already arrived in every household. Everyone wishes to eat good food and wear new clothes. But for the landless (sukumbasi) families living in Banahara Camp of Shuklaphanta Municipality–11, near the East-West Highway in Kanchanpur, such wishes have remained only a dream. At a time when even managing two meals a day is a struggle, Dashain has only added to the suffering of the camp residents.
Recalling her past hardships, Mathudevi Damai, 65 who has been living in the camp, said, “We don’t have land to earn a living from, my age is declining, and daily wage work is not always available. With just one day of labor in a week, it is extremely difficult to manage even our morning and evening meals.” During Dashain, the desire to enjoy good food and wear new clothes remains, but for the families in Banahara camp, the lack of money has turned such wishes into despair. Their days continue in the same hardship. At present, only the elderly, women, and children are left in the camp, as most of the youths have gone to India for work.
Even though Dashain has arrived, the youths have not returned. According to camp resident Deumati Devi Bohara, they have informed that they will only come back during Tihar, as they have no earnings at present. This has left the current Dashain dull and joyless for the families in the camp. When children or the elderly fall sick, there is not even anyone available to take them to the health post. It has been more than a year since residents last bought new clothes, and enjoying special festive meals is out of the question. For them, simply managing morning and evening meals is considered a big relief.
The huts along the banks of the Banahara River are covered with tarpaulins provided by donor organizations. However, the heat inside the tarps becomes unbearable, forcing many families to sleep under the bridge at night. According to resident Ranjit Rawat, some spread rope cots while others lay sacks on the ground, but sleepless nights are common as mosquitoes bite continuously. With no bedding or blankets, they somehow make it through the night. Two months ago, fearing floods, the families had shifted to the roadside along the highway, but they have since returned to their old settlement where the problems remain unchanged.
Likewise,Camp resident Dal Bahadur Bohara said that families have been sleeping under the bridge for years, yet no one has paid attention to their plight. Despite repeatedly appealing to ward and municipal offices for mosquito nets, tarpaulins, and flashlights, their voices have gone unheard. Although local representatives initially promised to address their problems, they have now remained silent.
In Banahara camp, 28 families have already submitted applications to the Land Problem Resolution Commission seeking land and housing, but no settlement has been finalized. For nearly two decades, landless families have been surviving in makeshift huts in Banahara. Like every year, this Dashain too has arrived not with joy, but with deeper wounds of hardship for these families.
National News Agency