This corridor has made it easier for the residents of the hilly areas of eastern Nawalparasi, Palpa and rural areas of Tanahun. Ginger, amrissa and oranges produced in the hilly areas have found a market.
What you should know
Dhal Bahadur Gurung, 65, of Boudikali Rural Municipality-6 in eastern Nawalparasi, recalls an incident about 20 years ago. He was injured after falling from a tree and was carried to Pokhara for treatment for two days.
There were no roads and transportation facilities like there are today. Even for basic treatment, people had to be carried on their backs for hours to Palpa, Pokhara, Chitwan or the district headquarters Kawasoti. Those who gave birth or fell from a cliff and bled profusely died without receiving treatment.
‘We had to stay overnight and go to the market to buy food and salt oil. The roads were impassable in the rain. Our settlement was very remote even though it was in a convenient district,’ said Gurung. ‘Due to the lack of roads and facilities, many people here left their homes and migrated to the market.’
According to him, only the elderly who could not go to the market to work were in the village. Now, the situation in this village has changed.
The Kaligandaki Corridor has provided easy access to the district headquarters Kawasoti and the main market of the district for the residents of the hilly areas of eastern Nawalparasi. Due to the lack of construction of the corridor road, the construction of the corridor has made it easier for the locals who were forced to walk for hours to the district headquarters and the main markets of the East-West Highway, Gaindakot, Dalal. From general shopping to carrying patients for medical treatment, the locals have become much easier after the corridor came into operation. The compulsion to come to the district headquarters and return the next day has also been eliminated.
Chiran Garamja Magar of Bulingtar Rural Municipality-2 said that after the construction of the Kaligandaki Corridor, it has become easier to travel to places including Chitwan, Palpa, Pokhara and the district headquarters Kawasoti. After the corridor was operational, there has been an increase in activity in the tourism sector. New markets have expanded. In addition, the agricultural produce produced has started to find a market.
Although the construction of this road, which began in 2064 BS, was delayed, this road has now opened the door to development for remote settlements. After the handover of the 131.7-kilometer road from Gaindakot to Pipaldanda in Palpa under the corridor, it has become easier for the residents of the hilly areas of eastern Nawalparasi, Palpa and rural areas of Tanahun. After the construction of the corridor, ginger, amriso and oranges produced in the hilly areas have found a market. Due to which the attraction of the locals to the agricultural sector has increased.
Locals are happy when the blacktop road reaches remote hilly villages. Now, if we plan and work to take the products of this area to the market, we can become economically strong, said Bishnubir Jargha Magar, Chairman of Bulingtar Rural Municipality-3. From Gaindakot in eastern Nawalparasi, the Korala border crossing of the Kaligandaki River is reached. In between, there are old settlements, historical heritage and natural heritage. However, due to lack of road access, all of them were overlooked. Now that the corridor is operational, it has helped in the economic and social development of the residents of this area.
There is a plan to connect the corridor starting from Gaindakot in the district to Triveni, the only border crossing in Gandaki Province connecting with India. From Triveni, the Triveni-Korala road section will connect to the Kaligandaki Corridor via Chormara in Madhyabindu Municipality, Hupsekot Rural Municipality and Dedgaun in Boudikali Rural Municipality. Which can connect from the Indian border to the Chinese border.
