Our Representative Our Right

Kalinchowk Rural Municipality is located in the northeastern part of Chitwan district, encompassing both the flatlands (Terai) and hilly geography. New Padampur is a location within the Chitwan National Park expansion area, which was established through the relocation of Old Padampur. It is a settlement with a significant population within the municipality. Padampur area is the main residence of indigenous Tharu community. Chepang community resides in the mountainous region of the municipality. In this municipality, which is located in the hilly region, has progressed in the development of physical infrastructure such as roads, drinking water, and healthcare access. After the establishment of the municipality government, various issues related to education, healthcare, water supply, transportation, food, and other similar problems are being addressed and resolved more effectively. The discussion held between Binod Regmi, the Mayor of Kalika Municipality, and Dipendra Adhikari, the representative of INSEC, is as follows:

What is the state of education in this municipality?

The municipality has been giving a high priority to education by consistently allocating budget ensuring that children in the rural and hilly areas are not deprived of educational opportunities. If a child is found to be out of school, the municipality is committed to addressing their family’s socio-economic issues and finding solutions and create an environment where regular attendance in school is encouraged and supported. The municipality has ensured that there is no shortage of educational materials used in teaching, the physical infrastructure development of schools and necessary training to teachers .If any child of the municipality comes to me saying that they are not able to study, that child will not be deprived of the opportunity to study. We believe that investing in children’s education will yield fruitful results in the future. The municipality is making continuous efforts to ensure the continuity in students’ education.

What about health infrastructure?

There is Kalika Hospital in Ward No. 6 of the municipality. There is a good arrangement of doctors and treatment materials. The hospital’s own ambulance is in regular operation. Previously, there was compulsion for residents of the municipality to go to Bharatpur or Ratnanagar for general medical treatment. However, it is not necessary for the residents to do so. Health institutions have opened in villages.Intermediate health and emergency primary health care services are available in the village.The transformation in education and awareness has led people to embrace modern treatment methods over traditional and superstitious remedies. In the village areas, traditional healing practices, such as consulting a Dhami Jhankri, were commonly used for treatment in the past. However, that is not the case recently. Modern medical practices, visiting hospitals, and utilizing medications can be seen.

Has the public achieved minimum facilities of Human Rights?

The basic necessities of a human being are food, clothes and shelter. In our municipality, there are people living in temporary shelters as well as those living in permanent houses worth millions.We have created a supportive environment to those people who work hard and live in the jungle and temporary shelters by building houses. We are working with non-governmental organizations to improve the standard of living of the people. The municipality is making investments in education, healthcare, and transportation for the Chepang community, who are economically disadvantaged and illiterate. We are making efforts to educate them on how to “spread a net for fishing” rather than “providing them with fishes”. We hope that there will be rapid transformation in the living standards of the impoverished population. Due to the mountainous geography, the land here is steep. There is no productivity because of the scarcity of fertile soil and irrigation. People are relying only on one crop and utilizing terraced fields to support their livelihoods. We are making efforts to create additional sources of income and provide opportunities for self-employment and skill development to enhance livelihood options for those living in such conditions. Child marriage is still prevalent in the minority Chepang community. The municipality has been conducting programs at the ward level to address the issue of child marriage. They are actively raising awareness about the negative aspects of child marriage in every household. It is more appropriate to invest in the education of children rather than marrying them at a young age and therefore we are investing on their educational development.

 

Has the human rights-friendly legislation been formulated so far?

Even though we have formulated laws without explicitly labeling them as human right- friendly, the laws are human rights-friendly. We remain vigilant to ensure that our work in development does not have any negative impact on the society, values, and culture of this place. In collaboration with INSEC, which is working in the field of human rights, a human rights education campaign has been conducted in some schools of the municipality. Under a project framework INSEC has selflessly raised questions regarding fundamental concerns of human rights. In a regular review within the city, the problems identified by the human rights group formed by INSEC have been discussed. The service facilities and rights that citizens should obtain as human beings have been addressed through various programs and plans. We are aware about their rights to food, housing, and cultural rights. In the coming year, we will be conducting programs on human rights education in schools under the municipality’s jurisdiction.

How is the plan selected?

Currently the ward has reached to the local level and the plan selection for the next year is being carried out. The ward Chairperson and other people’s representatives have reached out to the public to gather their opinions and perspectives. Services and development work carried out by the ward are implemented autonomously. If the ward is unable to find a solution, the municipality takes leadership and carries out the work.The plans requested by the ward get priority.We have worked to ensure the inclusive representation of the citizens of the respective wards to implement such plans. We have given priority to the participation of Dalit , women and minority communities.