Locals of Bhajani-5 compelled to swim or pay to access the market of their municipality

Dhangadhi: Bhajani-5 of Kailali, Jogi Choudhary of Lalbozhi Karmdev travels across the Kandra river from Kathepul to reach the headquarters. A minimum of Rs 50 per day should be paid to the local government. Bhim Vick, a local, has received the contract from Bhajani municipality to operate a ferry and the wooden bridge in winter. He charges 10 rupees per person and 30 rupees for those who travel via the bridge on bicycles and motorcycles.

Residents of Lalbozhi cannot visit Bhajani Bazar without swimming in the floodwaters in the Bhajani Municipality area. For the residents of Lalbozhi, Bhajani, the center of the municipality, is also a market for purchasing daily necessities. Lalbozhi's secondary level and campus students also have to use the ferry in the rainy season and the bridge in the winter.

Residents of Lalbozhi have to pay at least 1,000 to 1,500 per month just for crossing the bridge, Birkh Bahadur Saud said. ``1500 per month is too much for us who work in agriculture,'' he said. Locals dream that after the construction of the concrete bridge, they will get rid of the money they have to pay for the river crossing.

The local residents have benefited more from the company that took the bridge construction contract than the municipality. Large vehicles should be made to cross the river instead of the bridge. Locals say that while riding through the river, they collect money from vehicles. It has been more than a decade since the bridge was constructed in Kandra. The middleman is the reason why the bridge is not built on time. It is about 75 km from Tikapur to Dhangadhi via Hulaki Highway. Going through Mahendra Highway takes a little longer.

Bintiram Chaudhary of Tikapur says that the Hulaki highway could not be used due to the lack of a bridge in Kandra. He said that he had to live in Kailari Rural Municipality because of his job and said that he had to pay the money for river crossing when he returned home one day a week.

Bhajani Municipality has given Kandra River and other subordinate rivers under contract. Boats have been operating since fishing in the contracted river. According to the municipality, the contract for one financial year is working as an internal revenue source.