As the cold weather has started to increase, the people of Byas have started leaving their homes and moving down to the valley since the beginning of Mangsir. The locals of Byas Rural Municipality-1, Chhangru and Tinkar, where the Sauka community resides, are moving down to the valley (Khalanga). The people of the Sauka community speak the (Rang) language. Since the past, the community, which lives in Byas Rural Municipality-1, Tinkar and Chhangru villages for 6 months in the summer, migrates to the district headquarters, Khalanga for 6 months in the winter. Migration is called ‘Kuncha Sarnu’ in the Sauka community language.

Omkar Tinkari, a local of Tinkari, said that with the onset of winter, people are moving from Thatthalo to the district headquarters, Khalanga, to escape the cold. This year's Kuncha migration has started from 1 Mangsir. The Sauka community enters Nepal from Sitapul in Byas and Pulghat in the district headquarters, Khalanga. Some families from Chhangru and Tinkari villages of Byas Rural Municipality-1 have already reached the district headquarters via India.

Traditionally, this community, along with children and livestock, descends from the Himalayan region during the cold season, said Ashok Singh Bohara, ward chairman of Byas Rural Municipality-1. Out of 140 households in Chhangru, 75 families and out of 71 households in Tinkari, 35 families migrate to Kuncha twice a year. At present, most of the families have already descended. Only a few are left to descend from Byas. Bohara said that most of the families came down from the valley through India and 3 families came through Nepal.

Since there is heavy snowfall in winter, the Sauka community has a tradition of going down to Khlanga every year for 6 months of winter and returning to Chhangru-Tinkar after the summer. Chamaksingh Tinkari, a teacher at Moti Mahila Sangh Primary School, said that the Kunchas who climbed the mountain from the valley in Baisakh started going down to Khlanga after the cold weather set in. He said that the Saukas have a tradition of taking their children and livestock to the Himalayan region every year and coming down from the valley.

Chhangru village.

Mohan Singh Tinkari of Tinkar, Byas Rural Municipality-1, said that moving the Kunchas of the Sauka community is difficult because they have to obtain a permit to use the Indian road. Along with humans, permission for livestock should be obtained from the Indian government. Permission for transporting livestock is granted after the quarantine of livestock is checked. After the permit is approved by the Indian SDM based on the recommendation of the government body here, the local Sauka community is allowed to move their kuncha via the Indian route.

Since the kuncha moved in Baisakh descends into the valley in Mangsir, this community is forced to carry all the necessary rations for livestock and people, including all the provisions, from here until Mangsir. After moving from here to Byas, they trade towards Taklakot in Tibet. A multi-trip permit is made by the District Administration Office for trade in Taklakot.

Tinkar village.

Darchula Chief District Officer Anil Poudel said that he has requested the local administration of India for coordination and cooperation since the kuncha of the Sauka community is coming to the district headquarters via the Indian route. Chhangru village is 90 kilometers from the district headquarters Khalanga and Tinkar settlement is more than 100 kilometers away. These villages are inhabited by ethnic groups including Bohara, Aitwal, Lama, Budhathoki, Tinkari, and Kalyal. Their relationship is tri-national.

Dual migration

Due to the lack of a school in Byas, people from the Sauka community are forced to migrate between Khalanga and Byas. Earlier, there was a school in Byas from kindergarten to eighth grade. Earlier, the school used to move to Byas along with Kuncha, but now schools do not move from the district headquarters to Byas. Ambika Aitwal, principal of Kailashpati Basic School Chhangru, which is operating in the district headquarters, said that families with school-age children are forced to migrate to Byas and Khalanga.

As students stopped going to Thatthalo villages, schools in Chhangru and Tinkari of Byas have recently been operating in the district headquarters. Until 2072 BS, students up to the infant class used to go to Chhangru and Tinkar with Kuncha. The school is teaching in the district headquarters after the students stopped going to the village with Kuncha, says the headmaster Aitwal. Currently, Kailashpati of Chhangru in Byas Rural Municipality-1 and Moti Mahila Sangh Basic School of Tinkar village are in the district headquarters, Khalanga. The school has stated that there are few students from Chhangru and Tinkar in these schools.

One crop per year

Since Chhangru and Tinkar villages are located in the high Himalayan region, only rain-fed farming is practiced here. There is no crop due to snow accumulation in the fields for 6 months in winter. Therefore, the locals of Tinkar and Chhangru plant crops including urad, nappal, phapar and potatoes during the rainy season. After climbing the mountains from the valley in Baisakh, they start farming and return to the valley after entering it in Kartik. Since the yield is low, they carry food grains from the local valleys when they stay in the mountains for six months. Narayan Tinkari, a local of Tinkar, said that the temperature here is below zero even in warm weather.

Footpath opened, no connection to the road network

A footpath connecting Chhangru and Tinkar villages has been opened by constructing a path in the Dopakhe, Bayali and Tambaku areas of Byas Rural Municipality. Byas Rural Municipality has stated that the path was constructed under a contract agreement signed by the rural municipality in the last fiscal year 2081/82.

In the last and current fiscal years alone, the federal government has spent Rs 5.5 million and Byas Rural Municipality Rs 5 million on the construction of the Dumling-Byas road. Crores of budget have been spent by the federal, provincial and local governments on the construction of the footpath connecting Byas, which has been completely closed for about a decade and a half. Binod Singh Kunwar, Vice-Chairman of Byas Rural Municipality, said that the road was operationalized by constructing roads in the Dopakhe, Bayali and Tambaku areas with the federal and local budgets in the last fiscal year.

He said that even though the budget for the construction and maintenance of the footpath towards Nepal has been received every year, it has not been utilized properly. He said that the footpath is always repaired from Dumling onwards, but it has been damaged in the same year, so the footpath has not been improved.

When Nagendra Prasad Rijal was the Assistant Minister of State and Bahadur Singh Aitwal, a local of Byas Chhangru, was the Minister of State, the horse-drawn carriageway connecting Byas was constructed. Local Vasudev Aitwal said that the horse-drawn carriageway of Byas was in operation from that time until the 1960s. When there was a good road towards Nepal in 2040/45 BS, Indian citizens also used this road when moving to Byas.