Karnali Plight

Karnali is a victim of historical neglect of the far west, more so than the remoteness and ruggedness of the region. Even today, 40% of the people here are undernourished, far behind the rest of the country. 

Nothing has changed in 20 years. Nepali Times carried a feature story in July 2003 about how Karnali had stopped waiting for farway and uncaring Kathmandu. 

Excerpts from the report published on issue #153 11-17 July 2003:

The infant mortality rate in Mugu, Humla, Jumla is almost double the national average, only three out of a 100 women are literate, and life expectancy at birth is only 40 years. Poverty is higher here than anywhere else, with per capita income only two-third of other parts of the country earn.

Geographer and former minister Harka Gurung remembers visiting the districts of the Karnali basin nearly 40 years ago when he was vice-chairman of the National Planning Commission (NPC). “The only achievement has been that now the people of the Karnali know what needs to be done, and are willing to get it done,” he says. But they need help from the centre.

It is not only physically that Karnali is removed from Kathmandu. There is a psychological distance as well. It costs more to fly to Jumla from Kathmandu than to fly to New Delhi. Kathmandu’s attention also seems to be more focused on what happens to Bhutani Nepalis than Nepalis of the Karnali. For decades, people here have been resigned to this apathy, and got used to not expecting anything from the centre.

This void has been exacerbated by the Maoist insurgency which has further isolated the five Karnali districts from the rest of the country. Telephone and postal services destroyed during the insurgency have still not been rebuilt. Airports, the only way in and out, have been destroyed and airlines are refusing to fly until security is guaranteed.

From archive material of Nepali Times of the past 20 years, site search: www.nepalitimes.com