Details of voters who have descended to the valley to escape the winter from three local levels in Upper Dolpa, located in the northern part of the Himalayan district of Dolpa, are being collected to identify them.

Details of voters who have gone to the valley and urban areas from Shey-Phoksundo, Dolpobuddha and Charkatangsong rural municipalities to escape the cold, seek medical treatment and other activities will be collected to identify them.

With the onset of winter, some ordinary people from Upper Dolpa have moved to the city along with Lower Dolpa for work, seeking medical treatment and other activities, and as a result, people's representatives have expressed concern that there will be problems in getting them to participate in the February 21 vote, according to the District Election Office, Dolpa. 'People's representatives from Upper Dolpa had requested the District Election Office and security agencies in writing to postpone the election date, saying that voters who have gone to the valley and urban areas to escape the cold may be deprived of exercising their right to vote.' Yesterday, a discussion was held on the same issue under the chairmanship of Chief District Officer Junu Dhakal in the presence of all stakeholders,' said Election Officer Dilkrishna Shrestha of the District Election Office, Dolpa, 'It has been decided to collect the details of the general public who have left all three municipalities within a week. Employees have also been assigned for that. We have also demanded details about the voters who have left the municipalities, as well as the condition of the polling stations.'

Schools in Upper Dolpa have been closed from Kartik to Baisakh due to the extreme cold. 'Some polling stations are in schools. That is why we are discussing how to coordinate in advance,' he added. He said that after receiving all the details in a week, a conclusion will be drawn after discussing with the concerned bodies on how to take the voters who have left with the onset of the winter season.

Upper Dolpa is still not connected to the national road network. It takes three days to a week from the district headquarters Dunai. In addition, since there has been heavy snowfall since Kartik, internal movement will be blocked by snow on the roads leading to Upper Dolpa before Chait.

The District Election Office has informed that the chairmen of Dolpobuddha and Charkatangsong rural municipalities submitted a statement two weeks ago demanding the postponement of the election.

The people's representatives of Upper Dolpa have expressed concern that 20 to 25 percent of voters in Upper Dolpa may be left out if the government fixes the election date at once, including the Himalayan region.

They say that if the election is fixed once, it will not only be a problem for voters but also for transporting the necessary materials, staff, and security personnel for the election. The security mechanism in the district has stated that the challenge is to conduct the election as per the schedule in the 23 polling stations in Upper Dolpa.

DSP Ruk Bahadur Khadka of the District Police Office, Dolpa, said that there is no option but to use helicopters entirely as it is a challenge to hold elections in the upper three municipalities on the specified date.

He recalled that a temporary policeman died of a concussion in the local elections held in 2079 BS while being sent on foot. It has been said that the employees deployed in Upper Dolpa can get concussions even if they are suddenly taken by helicopter, so they will be sent four to five days in advance to get used to the environment there, and that each polling station will be staffed with one health worker.