Students from all the schools in Patarasi Rural Municipality go to Patan. The students here leave the school and go in search of Yarsa. They go to Patan in Baisakh and return home only in Asar.
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Dilraj Rawat of Patarasi Rural Municipality-3, Chaurgaun in the district is preparing to go to Patan to pick Yarsa. Many of his friends who said that he was late are looking for Yarsa when they reach Patan.
This is not his first Yarsa trip. He said that he has already gone to Patan to pick Yarsa three times in a row. He does not want to leave his studies and go to Patan. Every year, he earns pens and pencils after picking Yarsa and selling them. He said that he picks 2.5 to 300 bags of Yarsa every year.
He says that even if he returns from Patan and sells them at the rate of 500 rupees per bag, he will earn 100,000 to 150,000 rupees. With the money he earns in this way, he not only buys pens and pencils, but also uses the same money to complete the studies (courses) he missed during the Yarsa picking period. ‘When I go to Patan to pick yarsa, I miss my studies,’ said Dilraj, ‘but I also earn the money I need for my studies.’ Patarasi has more than a dozen places like Chapkhola, Taklekhola, Mathinthan, Changri, and others. He says that he returns home after two months with his friends.
He is a student of Malika Secondary School, Lodchaur. This time he has passed the SEE. According to the data provided by his school, 50 out of 55 students in the upper class had reached Patan in 2080 BS, and 37 out of 48 last year. This time, they have gone to Patan before the school opened. Principal Jagat Bahadur Shahi said that the older students from classes 6 to 10 go to Patan to pick yarsa. ‘Because of this, there is no education here for two months,’ he said, ‘all the students go to Patan.’ The job of a secondary school teacher is only to ensure attendance.''
According to him, when upper-level students go to Patan, most of the lower-level students go to graze cattle. Otherwise, they are busy with household chores. The schools here are deserted for two months without students. Principal Shahi says that parents come to the school asking students to send them to Patan. 'We constantly request them to send their children to school,' he said. 'Parents keep pressuring students to go to Patan to pick Yarsa.''
The rural municipality has been reminding parents and teachers every year not to send students to Patan. Since it is a matter directly related to income, teachers are not able to cut taxes. Patarasi Education Branch Chief Ramchandra Regmi said that despite all their efforts, students have not been able to stop them. 'We emphasize education,' he said, 'students and parents earn.' That is why the rural municipality is not taking any initiative to stop students going to Patan.’
Students from all schools in Patarasi go to Patan. Students from Patarasi-1, 2 and 3 wards have been vacating their schools. They go to Patan in Baisakh and return home only in Ashar. Students who go to Patan have been participating in the exams on the basis of tuition. There are 16 schools in Patarasi. ‘We say that we should not leave our studies and go to Patan,’ said branch chief Regmi. ‘They keep going to Patan saying that there is no work for studies due to lack of income.’
Students from here also go to Patan in Dolpa and Mugu. Some students go with their parents. Most students go in groups. According to Rima Budha of Patarasi-2, Pere, Yarsa Sijjana students consider it a caste to go to Patan rather than go to school. In Patan, they don't just pick Yarsa. They also pay for family expenses, clothes, and pens.
Most of the houses in the municipality are locked for two months. Since everyone from young people to children go to Patan, only the elderly are found in the village. Rima said that it is compulsory to send students to Patan. Since all the students have to go to Patan, the teachers say that they are forced to appear for the exams before completing the curriculum. In the meantime, if the education is to continue, there is a possibility that most of the students will drop out. 'If we don't teach, the curriculum cannot be completed,' said Principal Shahi, 'We have to find a new option to prevent the students' education from being affected during the Yarsa season. But that option has not been found yet.'
Last year, it was decided that students would not be able to go to Patan after skipping classes, and that they would not be eligible to go to the next grade if they did not have 75 percent attendance at school. However, even this decision taken by the principal's meeting did not work. At least 75 percent of students are preparing to go to Patan this season. Yarsa Sankalak has demanded from the local government to arrange accident insurance as all the youth and students will go to Patan from Baisakh to Shrawan.
