Where dream of Nepalis sharing Dashain happiness with families get shattered

Sher Bahadur Singh 

Bhimduttanagar - News of Nepali migrant workers being looted on the Nepal-India border en route to home for the Dashain festival celebrations is not anything new. 

Just a couple of days ago, Nir Bahadur Thapa of Geetanagar, Chitwan came into contact with the Nepal Police in semi-conscious state with the complaint of being looted of his cash and other accessories at Gaddachauki along the Nepal-India border in Mahendranagar of Kanchanpur. 

He was robbed of his all property--cash Rs 67 thousand, a mobile set and garments-- before crossing the border into Nepal. 

Dream of many Nepali migrant workers like Nir Bahadur returned home from India for celebrating the Dashain with their families got shattered as they were looted on the way. Though such incidents have been frequent since years, no measures have been taken yet from the government level to minimise this. 

On Monday alone, five Nepalis were looted at Kichha of Uttarakhand while they were on their way home. They were robbed of Rs 300 thousands in total. 

Incidents of forced looting of Nepali or by offering tainted substances to them on Indian territory are frequent. There are continuous reports of Nepali migrant workers being looted at different parts along their ways to home ranging from Ananda Bihar Buspark of New Delhi to Bhimduttanagar. They continue to fall prey to looters mainly along the border areas. More disappointing is that Indian police and customs employees allegedly try best to cut their pockets which are already empty. What an irony is this? 

A local of Bhimduttangar narrates his experience this way, "Indian Seema Suraksha Bal (SSB) does not trouble Nepalis much, but employees of Indian customs offices behave as if they are stationed there to loot the Nepalis. They give Nepalis mental torture as well." 

Nepali workers returned home after losing everything in possession and getting their dream of exchanging happiness with the families shattered do not get even consolation from the local administration. 

Incidents of looting on the border have not gone down despite the claim of police stationed at Gaddachauki who say such incidents have gone down these days. 

Nepali workers getting looted en route to home has been like their fate. They are not safe even on Nepali territory as looters follow them up to here. At recent time, Dev Bahadur Rana, Dalbir Rana and Nandaram Rana of Marma, Salayan were looted at Brhamadev Market at Bhimdutta Municipality while on the way to home from Paudi Gadwal of Uttarakhand. 

India has been the choice and probably most accessible labour market for a large number of working class people in the far and mid-west Nepal. 

Despite these all reports, District Police Office, Kanchanpur's Deputy Superintendent of Police Gyan Bahadur Sethi claimed that of late the incidents of looting along the border have come down and they are in coordination with the Indian border security force( SSB) trying to control incidents of crime taking place along the border area. 

Yesterday alone five Nepalis were looted in India by fellow Nepalis, but the site is at some 80 kilometers into India from the Nepal border, he added.