By Our Correspondent
Humla, Apr. 4: Braving a long journey through hostile snowcapped mountains and rugged terrain, a delegation of 25 residents from Limi Valley arrived in Simkot, the district headquarters of Humla. With alarming food scarcity problems at all of Limi’s three high-altitude villages, Halji, Jang and Til, the group led by the Namkha Rural Municipality –Ward No. 6 Chairperson Paljor Tamang have come to Simkot to table their concerns.
“We had to weather harsh conditions while crossing the Nyalu La Pass, which is about 5,000 metres above the sea level. It’s the only route connecting the isolated Limi to Simkot,” said Thilne Tamang, one of the delegation members. Of now, Limi, which was once at the heart of a thriving caravan trade between India and Tibet, has been facing food scarcity. The Valley’s uncultivable lands, harsh weather conditions and lack of trade along the Taklakot border point are some of the reasons contributing to this, as per Tamang.
Taklakot in China’s Purang County, 30 km from the Nepal border, has a booming economy and has been acting as the source of income, goods and employment for several people of Limi. The Limi locals have been relying on the bustling markets and construction sites of Taklakot for a long time. However, the China government sealed the border in January 2020 to prevent the spread of the coronavirus and is yet to resume movement.
Chiring Chamjut Tamang of Jang village also joined the delegation to take Limi’s problems to the local authorities. "Residents of Limi had never had to face food scarcity until now. The pandemic has dealt a severe blow and we want the government to provide relief package and help our humble villages in this time of crisis,” she explained.
Without the COVID-19 restrictions, Limi would have got its food supply from the Taklakot border. But with the border showing no indication of opening its doors anytime soon, the locals have been forced to seek help from the government.
“The Valley residents have already run out of the ration procured from the Food Management and Trading Company Limited last October. Food crisis has engulfed the three villages because we haven’t been able to import food from China for over a year,” added delegation leader and Ward Chairperson Tamang.
No more than 147 households inhabit this harsh but spectacular Limi Valley. With an estimated population of 1,200, the Valley locals have been barely getting by so far. “But we can’t keep on going like this,” said Tamang, who, along with his team, is preparing to take their concerns to the government through the Chief District Officer.
Chairperson of the Rural Municipality Bishnu Bahadur Lama said, “The Rural Municipality will deliver the food to Limi bearing the cost of travel if the Food Management & Trading Company Ltd. provides food packages to the district headquarters.
Apart from food crisis, the delegation has also come up with other issues to discuss. “We have come here to discuss four development projects that can be carried out at Limi including the construction of telephone towers,” informed Chairperson Tamang.