Former Kamaiyas in Banke still struggling for decent living standard

Nepalgunj –Seventeen years have passed since the government had abolished the Kamaiya system from the country; the former Kamaiyas have been still struggling for better livelihood. This system pervasive in the western and far-western Tarai districts at the time was about the practice of hiring bonded laborers. 

Banke is among those districts having the history of Kamaiya system and it was declared the zone free from Kamaiyas with the District Land Reform Office providing a total of 1,825 Kamaiyas with the land ownership certificates in 2009. 

But to date, former Kamaiayas are finding it hard to live a decent life as bases sufficing to fulfill their basic needs are yet to be created, Freed Kamaiyas Land Rights Struggle Committee chair Pattu Tharu said. 

The then government had provided them plots of land from 84.65 square meters to 1,693.15 square meters at Binauna, Baijapur and Titihiriya by categorizing them into four groups. But some of them are landless now their land was swept away by floods from the local Rapti river. 

As stated by Office chief Prem Bahadur Doylayal, a process has been initiated to address the issues of those former bonder laborers who had been rendered landless by the disaster. But those whose land is safe complained that it was not enough for them to meet their daily requirements and live a better life. They expect the government to come up with an additional package to lift their status in overall.---