Matane sat down after 29 years

It was not someone's wedding, vowing ceremony. Padamprasad was going to plant rice by playing the naumati baja. Prior to 2052, the tradition of regular planting was stopped after the Maoist armed conflict.

'As the youth left the village, when there was a shortage of manpower for farming, planting stopped, planting was a thing of the past, arable land became barren,' Padam Prasad said, 'I started it again because that tradition should not be lost.'

He had also roped 5 bullocks, 29 ropahars, 21 bouses and 7 bades for planting along with the Naumati playing team. After feeding all the teams, Padam Prasad went down to Bensi Khet. After 15 minutes, Larko with local Ramite reached Matane Bensi located in Fidim-5 to see the Bethi which is going to be held after 29 years.

As soon as Naumati began to rain, the planters started to collect seeds towards the paddy bed, the farmers came and worked on sowing and planting, while some of them started to collect the mud by using rakes and plows. Lakshmi, the son of Padam Prasad, offered seeds of paddy, invoking Seme, Bhume and Goddesses, wishing for a good harvest. Then it started, splashing mud, dancing and singing to the rhythm of Naumati.

The fields were filled with a crowd of people. At around 2:30 pm, everyone gathered and had the lunch brought from the village in Dunatpari. After a short rest, the same sequence continued. The excitement of planting the fields continued till evening.

'I did this by collecting Zenten money so that the current generation would also know the Bethi tradition,' said Padam Prasad, who spent his senior citizens' allowance, adding, 'From next year, I want to see my sons beti for as long as I live.' In the 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th wards, planting was done only by using bethi first.

When I sat down on Tuesday, the senior citizens who came to see Ramita were reminiscing about the fun they had in their days, while the children along with the youth were enjoying themselves as if it was strange. Bethi was the first experience for most of the young generation. "We had heard about Bethi, but we were not able to see it, today we were able to participate directly, it was very fun," said Yamanath Nepal, a local. Planter Vishnudevi Bhattarai was also happy to be able to participate in planting with a cane for the first time after 24 years of coming to Fidim after getting married.

Not only common people around Fidim but also local representatives came to see Bethi. Fidim municipality chief Mitra Prasad Kafle thanked Padam Prasad for planting with sticks.

The town chief was happy with Padam Prasad for preserving the endangered Bethi culture and awakening collective spirit among the farmers with entertainment. Padam Prasad believes that paddy production will also increase when planting is done by plowing with naumati. He says, 'The production will definitely increase this year because the paddy is covered in mud trampled by many people and oxen.'