Those who return home on Dasain go back to Almora after sowing the wheat and return home in Chait to bring in the wheat and in the New Year for the Bisu festival.
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Balhadur Saud of Ramaroshan rural municipality-5 of Achham was in a hurry at Gaddachouki checkpoint. He hails from Almora in Uttarakhand, India and is returning home to celebrate Dasain. He is in a hurry because the early morning bus is leaving. He was collecting his friends to reach Mahendranagar from Gaddachouki crossing and meet the bus.
'We are returning home to celebrate Dasain, we have returned home after working for two/four months and collecting Dasain expenses,' Saud said, 'Dasain is busy in the village, even from home they are telling us to come early.' 21 other people of Ramaroshan who went with him have also returned home. It has been five/six years since Saud started going to Almora for labour. Before that, he has reached various places including Delhi, Mumbai. He has been going to Almora regularly for the past few years. According to him, wages are available in various types of work including road construction and house construction. That's why he goes regularly.
After planting in June, his annual schedule of going to Bageshwar with his friends from the village has already been made. Locals here return home on Dasain and go back to Almora after sowing wheat, then return home in Chait to bring in wheat and for the New Year Bisu festival. "I am not happy without going to India even to collect small household expenses," Saud said, "I worked for two/four months, and then returned home." After finishing farming work at home, we go there again to work.'
In the past few days, the crowd of Nepalis returning home for Dasain has increased. Nepalis are returning home from different parts of India. Some of them come on foot, carrying heavy loads on their backs, while others come in vehicles. "We have come to celebrate Dasain with our family," said Divas Founja of Surkhet, who was returning home from Bageshwar, "It is like our tradition, we always return home on Dasain." He also works as a wage laborer in various construction works in Bageshwar. His family including his brother Chitra Bahadur works in Bageshwar. Now everyone is back together for Dasain.
After the start of Navratri, the pressure to return home has increased even more at the border. For the past few days, around 1,000 Nepali workers have been returning from India through the Gaddachouki border crossing every day. A similar crowd was seen when entering Uttarakhand and Himachal for employment after planting in June/July. There are more of them returning now. With the increase in the number of people returning home from India at the border, it gives the impression that Dasain has arrived.
Citizen assistance cell has been set up at the checkpoint for returnees. But the passengers are cheated by the transporters on both sides of Nepal and India. Those who are returning to the country are accustomed to the intention of the vehicle traffic that charges more fares, charges even small items and leaves them in the middle of the road. Although the fare from Gaddachouki to Mahendranagar is 50 rupees, the auto dealers charge up to 100/200 and 4/500. Passengers are forced to pay double fare openly in front of the security personnel.
