'Neither is there road, nor communication', lament residents of villages below Lipulekh

By Narendra Singh Karki, Darchula, Sept 3: Local residents of Chhangru and Tinker villages in Byas rural municipality ward no 1 in Darchula district have been facing severe hardships for the last three weeks in absence of road and communication services.     

Both the villages, located at the an altitude of approximately 3,200 metres above the sea level and within the distance of 10 km, border India and China.     

Normal lives of local residents have become acutely difficult after rain-triggered landslide in Chhangru on August 13 washed away the foot trail in multiple sections of the path and disrupted communication services in both villages.     

In lack of foot trails and paths, locals in both villages are left to rely nearby Indian pass for access to each other villages.     

Tinker folks usually migrate to lower land in November-December to escape biting cold. However, with no safe and reliable pathway available, locals are worried how they will migrate this fall, mentioned Binod Singh Budhathoki, Secretary of ward no 1.     

Budhathoki further raised the concern that the damaged foot trails have made it increasingly difficult to transport food supplies to the village.     

"Locals are currently feeding on the existing old stock of food items. If the condition of the road remains the same, there is likelihood of food crisis in the locality," panicked Budhathoki.     

Ruling out prospect of receiving budget immediately for the road repair from any sector, he cautioned that if the road is not maintained on time, not only local residents but also security personnel would face serious difficulties in travelling.     

"If anyone here falls ill, there is no way out to take them to the nearest healthcare facilities," he said anxiously.     

Astik Tinkari, local resident, lamented that Tinkar village has been left without telephone services for the last three weeks.     

He said that the locals like him are compelled to use security personnel's communication equipments just to send messages to their relatives.     

Another local resident Birendra Tinkari highlighted the woes facing Tinker folks and said that although the Nepal Telecom service at Chhangru is functional at the moment, Tinker's villagers are entirely without communication access.     

There are 70 households in Tinkar. The local residents had migrated to Kuncha in last May-June.     

Armed Police Force's BOP and Nepal Police are stationed at Chhiyalek.     

Binod Singh Kunwar, Vice-Chairperson of ward no 1, said that there is an urgent need for budget allocation to restore roads in Tinker.     

"Food for locals and security personnel must be transported through roads within Nepal's territory. A road must be constructed through our own land," Kunwar emphasized.     

He dismayed that while the basic needs of citizens are unmet, the border issues are stirred up time and again, only to leave the local residents to suffer.     

Likewise, tourism activist Himalaya Bhatta highlighted the need for accelerating the infrastructure development in Chhangru and Tinker villages to practically reinforce Nepal's claim over the territory stretching from the Om Parbat to Limpiyadhura.     

He argued that when development works gain momentums, then it would make Nepal's presence on the ground visible thereby substantiating Nepal's ownership over those territories.     

Similarly, Ashok Singh Bohora, Chairperson of ward no 1, said that temporary wooden bridge have been built over Nampa River, Tinker River to facilitate movements for people in Chhangru and Tinkar at present.     

While some section of the flood-damaged foot trails have been reopened, he noted that the routes are not suitable for transportation of livestock. (RSS)