Government statistics say that out of 753 local levels in Nepal, Junichande Rural Municipality of Jajarkot is at the top of the poverty list. This 'number one' tag is causing pain to 24-year-old Neera Shahi of the same rural municipality-6.

Neera, who is studying for a Diploma in Pharmacy at the Polytechnic College in Mangalsen, Achham, is currently weighing the gap between her future and the fate of her village. She is getting the opportunity to vote for the first time.

As the excitement of the Falgun 21 House of Representatives elections increases, these voters from the country's poorest local level seem to be untouched by the election slogans. 'I am studying pharmacy (pharmaceutical science) in Achham.' But my mind is stuck in the ups and downs of the village,' says Neera. 'I am learning which medicine to give to the sick, but which election will bring the cure to the disease of remoteness and poverty in my village? We don't need big dreams, we need reliable roads to reach hospitals when we get sick and Citamol at health posts.'

A paved road with bridges to transport valuable herbs and local products to the market, a well-equipped hospital in the village and the presence of doctors according to the schedule, a technical school nearby and a policy to 'adjust' educated youth in the village, expansion of the national electricity transmission line and access to the internet are the needs of Junichande, says Neera.

Junichande has always been known only as a place where rice subsidies are given, and now the demands of new voters are different, she said. 'During the monsoon, landslides block the road, vehicles carrying patients get stuck in the middle.' Still, when a woman in labor in Junichande is overwhelmed, there is no option but to charter a helicopter,' she says. 'Who can afford to call a helicopter in a poor slum by spending lakhs?' If there are no citalopram and doctors at the health post, what is the point of studying pharmacy?'

Sushil Bohara, 18, of Bitthadchir Rural Municipality-2 in Bajhang, is also studying 'Diploma in Pharmacy' at the Polytechnic College in Mangalsen. He is also voting for the first time this time. As excited as he is about his first vote, he also has questions. 'Our generation (Gen-G) has heard many assurances from leaders on radio, TV and from our parents,' he says, 'Now we need leaders like 'doctors' who can cure the suffering of Bajhang, not leaders who make speeches.'

He believes that voting should be based on efficiency rather than party loyalty. 'Dozers were used in the name of development, but instead of connecting the villages, roads caused landslides. Not only houses were destroyed by the earthquake, but people's minds have not yet been connected. We are now aware,' he said, 'The old party made history, but could not improve the present. The new party shows energy. But the test of its ability to understand the reality of remote districts remains.'

He says that he will vote in the Falgun 21 elections as an investment in the future. 'I will vote as an investment in the future, not as a blind support for any party. The voices of the remote settlements will also create pressure on the candidates to focus on a concrete development agenda,' said Bohara.

A double elder from Turmakhand Rural Municipality-4, who is studying 'Diploma in Pharmacy' at Mangalsen, says that it is necessary to put forward a leadership that will show action rather than just coming with an agenda. 'We have heard a lot about the plans written on paper, but they have not been implemented in practice.' Now, we need a leadership that delivers results, not a slogan of development.'

He believes that no political party has been able to effectively advance a clear plan to improve the situation of Achham, which is at the top of the poverty list among the 77 districts of the country. He says that a program with a long-term perspective is necessary to lift the backward district in terms of development.