Remote Banke Residents Face Hardship Due to Lack of Infrastructure and Administrative Access

Banke. Residents of the remote Baskhali limestone quarry area in Raptisonari Rural Municipality are forced to travel approximately 24 kilometers to reach their ward office.

Local leader Tulsiram Tharu from Baijapur stated that it takes at least four hours to reach the Rapti Sonari-4 Baijapur ward office from areas located near the Indian border, including Baskhali, Chunbhatti, Khairbhatti, Kuntepani, Maheshpur, Gurdangaudi, Juruwa, and Lower Baskhali.

“Due to the lack of roads, we are forced to walk for four hours to access services at the ward office,” Tharu said. “Since the people here have not been able to experience the presence of the local government, a separate ward should be established for easier access to services.”

According to him, the situation for residents in the remote Gurdangaudi and Khairbhatti areas of Raptisonari Rural Municipality is dire. People in this region remain deprived of basic services. While the distance from the ward office to Khairbhatti is about 14 kilometers, Maheshpur, located on the Indian border, is an additional 10 kilometers away.

Ward Chairman Minraj Khadka acknowledged that providing services to the Khairbhatti area is difficult because it is remote and far from the ward center in Baijapur. He noted that while there have been informal demands to establish a separate ward and polling station for the area, which has 350 households and approximately 400 voters, the issue has not yet been formally addressed.

The lack of roads forces residents to travel on foot. The area also faces significant challenges in health, education, and drinking water. Khadka, who also serves as the rural municipality spokesperson, stated that if a formal request is made to establish a ward office and polling station in a more accessible location, he will present it to the executive committee to initiate the process.

The region lacks health posts or easy access to medical services, forcing residents to travel long distances for minor illnesses and leaving pregnant women in high-risk situations. The state of education is also critical, with children forced to walk long distances to school, leading to high dropout rates.

Banke Chief District Officer Dil Bahadur Tamang stated that establishing a polling station is not a problem. He noted that if a formal decision regarding ward division is made by the executive committee, he will coordinate the necessary steps to move forward.