Voters who had reached places like Kathmandu, Nepalgunj, Surkhet, and Taklakot in China during the winter months have not yet been able to return to their villages due to the closure of roads due to heavy snowfall.
What you should know
There are only 10 days left for the election of members of the House of Representatives. As the election approaches, the country is in a race to promote and attract voters. Work is underway in the district to transport election materials, ballot papers, and recruit employees.
However, candidates and voters have not been able to reach the mountainous villages of Karnali Province. The mountainous areas of Humla, Dolpa, and Mugu in the province are without voters. Voters who have reached places like Kathmandu, Nepalgunj, Surkhet, and Taklakot in China have not yet been able to return to their villages due to heavy snowfall. Candidates have also not been able to reach their villages for election campaigning due to the snowfall.
Voters have not been able to reach their villages due to the closure of the roads due to snowfall in Nyalu and Nara Lakes due to the closure of the roads due to snowfall. According to him, the locals of Halji, Jang and Til villages of the ward had left the village to escape the cold. They have not been able to return yet due to the road closure. ‘Out of 672 in the village, only 20 percent are voters,’ he said, ‘We had told the Election Commission to find an alternative. There has been no hearing. I wonder how the election will be held when there are no voters.’
Election materials and staff have been flown to the Himalayan village by helicopter. He said that even though the materials are available, there are concerns about how the election will be held due to the lack of voters. "The road to Nyalu, which is 5,000 meters high, and Nara Lake, which is 4,600 meters high, has been completely closed due to the snowfall," he said. "Voters who were trying to reach their villages for the elections have also not been able to return."
Village council chair Dhawa Samduk Gurung informed that out of 11 polling stations in Shey-Phoksundo, Dolpa, voters could not go to 8 of them due to snowfall. He said that there is little chance of voters who have fallen into the cold and returned to their villages. Karmarong rural municipality chair Tshiring Kyapre Lama of Mugu said that most of the villages from wards 1 to 4 did not have voters. He said that if the weather does not improve further, it will be difficult to vote.
Candidates in this area are also having a hard time going door-to-door due to the snowfall. They have not been able to reach all the villages for door-to-door. Rashtriya Swatantra Party (RSWP) candidate Tashi Lhanjom from Humla has not been able to reach her village Limi. She said that she has not been able to reach the village yet due to heavy snowfall. She said that she is waiting for improvements as the district administration has said that efforts are underway to clear the road.
Humla Chief District Officer Tek Kumar Regmi said that discussions are ongoing to clear the road blocked by snowfall. He said that a technical study is being conducted on opening a land route from Yari on the Simkot-Hilsa road section as it is not possible from Nyalu Lake at present. The discussion will focus on what to do based on the weather report during the election period.
Election materials have been delivered to Humla, Dolpa and Mugu by Nepali Army sky trucks. Election materials were delivered from Surkhet using Nepali Army helicopters. While preparations are underway to transport the necessary materials and personnel for the election to the relevant locations using helicopters, voters have not been able to reach the villages.
