Chure locals still rely on watermills to crush grains

By Our Correspondent

Sarlahi, Aug 26 : Locals in Sarlahi's northern Chure area are still eating grains that have been crushed in Pani Ghatta (watermill).

Due to the lack of electricity supply in the area, people are using the traditional watermills for threshing grains in the remote parts of the Church.

Watermills have been operating in Kalinjore, Parwanipur, and Narayankhola areas of the district, near the river. 

Bikas Blon of Ishwarpur Municipality-12, Kalinjore in Pipaldamar, said that due to lack of electricity in the village, corn, wheat, millet, and other grains are threshed at the watermill.

The watermill is being operated on the bank of Banke Khola in Pipaldamar. Residents of Chure settlement of Bardiwas Municipality in Mahottari, across the Banke Khola, have also brought grains to beat in the watermill in the area.

According to locals, it is delicious to eat grains crushed in the watermill. "We have always eaten grains crushed in a watermill and it has a different taste from the grains bought in the market," said Kaziman Dong of Pipaldamar. "We are used to crushing the gains in the watermill, the good taste lingers in our tongue."

There are a few watermills in the settlement of the Chure area, but not as many as before. Most of the watermills in the area have been closed after electricity reached the village below the Chure area and an electric mill was put into operation. Dudharaj Bomjan of Lalbandi Municipality-15, Shir Kalinjore, said that in his area they also eat grains crushed in the watermill. 

Bomjan said, "Electricity has gradually started to come to the Chure area, now the mill will be operated by electricity here too!"

Tam Bahadur Ghising, Ward Chairman of Hariwan Municipality-1 in the Chure area, said that after the electricity has reached the village, the watermill and Dhiki jato (husk lever and traditional grinder) gradually disappeared.

"Watermill is operating in one or two places in Chure area, otherwise even the husk lever and traditional grinder have started disappearing," Ghising said. He said, "When everyone started looking for ease, such traditional technologies have started disappearing."