KATHMANDU: With just a week left before one of Nepal’s biggest festival, Dashain, Nepalis across the country and abroad are returning home to celebrate with their families. But in the far-western region, a different scene is unfolding as many are heading across the border to India in search of work.
In previous years, the Gaddachauki border point in Kanchanpur would see thousands of Nepalis streaming home from India to mark the festival. This year, however, officials and locals say more people are leaving than arriving. Entire families, including school-aged children on holiday, are making their way into India to find seasonal work.
On Tuesday, 30-year-old Karan Thapa of Jorayal Rural Municipality-2 in Doti was spotted at Gaddachauki with his wife and children. He said he had no choice but to head to Himachal Pradesh for labor work.
“It’s hard to even manage two meals a day at home. Without money, how can we celebrate Dashain?” he said. “If I earn enough, I’ll return for Tihar, but this year we won’t be able to observe Dashain at home.”
Thapa explained that since his children are on holiday, the entire family is traveling together to work in apple orchards across the border. He is not alone. A group of 25 from Bajilek in Doti has also left for Himachal Pradesh. Among them was Meena Devi Thapa, who said her family had no alternative.
“There is no work in our village. In Shimla, there is apple-picking work right now, so we are going there. We’ll return home for Tihar with the money we earn,” she said.
Another villager, Bal Bahadur Thapa of Bajilek, echoed the same hardship. Carrying his children along, he said the decision to leave during the festival season was forced by poverty. “Dashain cannot be celebrated without money. There are no jobs here, so what else can we do? We plan to work for a month and then return for Tihar,” he said.
Every day, hundreds of people from Sudurpaschim and Karnali provinces are crossing the border under similar circumstances. For many, India remains the primary destination for employment. Krishna Seral from Bauniya in Kailali said he, too, was leaving with his parents to join them in Himachal Pradesh during the school holidays. “My father and mother already work in India. Since schools are closed, I am also going to work there,” he said.
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