Poll campaigns eclipse development in Jajarkot

By Bashudev Sharma,Jajarkot (Khalanga), Feb. 17: As the countdown begins for the House of Representatives election slated for March 5, the electoral fervour sweeping across Jajarkot has cast a shadow over ongoing development works. 

Across all seven local bodies of the district, infrastructure projects have ground to a near standstill, eclipsed by the clamour of campaign rallies and partisan mobilisation.

With political leaders and candidates prioritising canvassing over construction, development initiatives once heralded as transformative now languish in neglect. Major contracts signed as far back as 2018 remain incomplete, prompting growing public frustration.  

Contractors, instead of accelerating stalled works, have become the subject of pointed questions from both voters and rival candidates.

Over a dozen motorable bridges remain unfinished, while key strategic routes, including the Mid-Hill Highway and the Jajarkot–Jumla road, continue to progress at a sluggish pace. Roads carved to connect remote settlements remain unupgraded, leaving communities anxious and isolated.

The scars of the devastating earthquake that struck the district two years ago are still painfully visible. Many families, displaced and destitute, continue to reside in temporary shelters, clinging to assurances of reconstruction that have yet to be materialised. For earthquake survivors, securing even two modest meals remains an uphill task.

Hitler Singh Rathaur of Bheri Municipality–3 recounts how families whose homes were reduced to rubble still await meaningful reconstruction efforts. “We survive beneath tin roofs, hoping for change,” he said, lamenting the absence of stable employment and the hardship of subsisting on irregular wage labour.

Despite repeated appeals for swift rebuilding measures, affected residents argue that both local authorities and concerned agencies have failed to translate pledges into tangible action. The result is a palpable erosion of public trust.

Untapped natural resources

In Barekot Rural Municipality–8, Rudra Bahadur Khatri voices concern that promising ventures, including the iron ore deposits of Barekot, the Nalgadh Hydropower Project, and scenic sites such as Thakurji and Saikuvari Lake, have been consigned to obscurity through official indifference. Locals insist that these areas, rich in natural and cultural heritage, could significantly bolster tourism and the local economy if due attention is paid to their development.

Similarly, several historical and religious landmarks across the district remain overlooked. Among them are the nearly 200-year-old Chaité Gumba in Chhedagad–8, the mineral-rich deposits of kyanite and tourmaline in Junichande Rural Municipality, Malika Cave in Chhedagad–3, the Shiva Temple of Kalegaon in Bheri–1, Sangta Cave in Ward–2, the revered Machaina Malika Temple in Ward–6, the historic water mill built during the reign of Jagat Singh Raja in Jagatipur, and the Bhumeshwar Temple in Ward–13.

Despite their cultural and touristic significance, these sites rarely feature in post-election development agendas.

Residents observe a familiar pattern, candidates visit households bearing promises of roads, employment and prosperity during campaign season, only to retreat into silence once ballots are cast. The cycle of lofty assurances followed by prolonged inaction has deepened voter skepticism.

Local voters now urge authorities to prioritise infrastructure, heritage conservation and economic revitalisation beyond the rhetoric of election season. Without sustained commitment, they warn, the district’s immense developmental and tourism potential will remain unrealised.

As polling day approaches, one sentiment echoes through the hills and valleys of Jajarkot: promises are plentiful before the vote, but accountability must endure long after the ballots are counted.