The Majhi community of Nuwakot celebrated the Ladi festival for the first time on Tuesday. Tej Bahadur Majhi, the leader of the community, said that the fishermen from all over the district gathered collectively and organized the 'Pratham Ladi Festival and Prakriti Puja' program to help protect the extinction.
"In the past years, the fishermen used to drive boats to cross the rivers and streams, but the occupation of the fishermen has disappeared through Tuin, Zholunge Bridge, and Paki Bridge," he said, "Even the occupation that used to make a living by catching fish is now a greedy situation."
Ladi, the biggest festival of the Majhi community, is celebrated every year on the third Tuesday of the month of February. Vidur municipality of Nuwakot, Bagmati province allocated a budget to celebrate the festival, and fishermen from all over the district united and celebrated the festival collectively.
Rajan Shrestha, mayor of Vidur, said that a budget has been provided to collectively celebrate the culture of going out of their homes and returning to the banks of the river for worship.
The central president of Nepal Majhi Women's Upliftment Association and former Bagmati Pradessabha member Rita Majhi said that due to the excavation of the Khola River, the profession of Majhi is in crisis. He demanded that part of the revenue collected from natural resources should be spent on the welfare of the Majhi community. Objecting to the public holiday given by the state government, only the Majhi community was given, he said that public holidays should be given to all castes to understand the importance of the festival.
On that occasion, an exhibition of riverside dwellings, furlungs, nets, dhadia, balchi, ghauka, hookah, weapons, transportation, clothing, costumes was made. Radhika Majhi, president of Nuwakot Majhi Mahila Utthan Sangh, said that support is expected from three levels of government at the local level.
According to Nepal Majhi Sangh Nuwakot, there are currently 308 women and 326 men in 111 households in Nuwakot. Their main residence is in the area around Trishuli and Tadi river.
