Jantara Bhatta of Melauli is not satisfied with the people's representatives who have won the elections in the past. She said she is fed up with the habit of leaders who come to the door to campaign but do not listen to the problems after winning.

‘The youth movement was natural because the old leaders did not listen to our problems,’ she said, ‘so now we should vote only after thinking, not after being tricked.’

Melauli has been facing a drinking water problem for years. Hoteliers in the market are running their business by ordering water in tankers, while they are forced to carry it from a distance to the village.

The drinking water tap built by a years-old organization only comes out occasionally. On the day when water comes, we have to wait in line at the tap. Bhatta said that even while waiting in line, there is a fight over water.

Although the issue of drinking water always comes up in provincial and federal elections, she said that the issue disappears after the elections are over. She said that even now, there is a shortage of water in the Melauli market area and surrounding settlements. Lokraj Bhatta, ward chairman of Melauli-9, said that the Dhanaun-Melauli drinking water project has been operational under the provincial government since last year, but work is being done at a snail's pace due to budget problems. He said that the budget for the project, which will cost crores, was Rs 1 million last year and Rs 2 million in the current fiscal year.

Tara Bhatta of Gothalapani, the district headquarters, said that she would vote for the one who will save the country. 'I don't say new or old, the country needs leadership that will protect the sovereign territorial integrity of the country,' she said, 'The candidates may have the same old commitments, but they are never fulfilled.'

She complains that despite the many new leadership parties and candidates coming to the country, they have not been able to do anything. She said that she will vote for a patriotic candidate who is worthy of the country's prosperity and peace in the upcoming elections.

There is a century-old dilapidated suspension bridge at the Julaghat checkpoint in Dasharathchand Municipality, the only one in the district. The candidate who has been winning the election from Baitadi by promising to build a motorable bridge at Julaghat in every election is talking about the bridge this year too. Voters are not at all convinced about this this year.

There is a district hospital with a state-of-the-art building in Gothalapani, the district headquarters. There are no doctors on duty at the hospital, and patients in the district are forced to go to India or Dhangadhi for treatment.

Karbir Chand, 79, of Pancheshwor, has experience of voting in elections ranging from panchayats to democratic republics. He is also preparing to vote in the House of Representatives elections on Falgun 21. He said that he is not in favor of voting for him immediately, like in other elections, in this election. ‘I always listen to the radio and listen to the debates of different party leaders every day,’ he said. ‘When they come to seek votes, they say they will do everything they say, but after winning, they forget all their promises and go to the pits of power.’

Similarly, Madan Saund of Shivnath Rural Municipality said that they will vote only for candidates who can work by prioritizing the problems of the local people and the conduct of the leadership rather than making big promises.

Saund said that the residents of Pancheshwar and Shivnath Rural Municipality risk their lives and cross the Mahakali River by boat to India for daily necessities and even medicine. ‘The main demand of the people here is the construction of a suspension bridge on the Mahakali River,’ he said. ‘Even though they have promised to build a suspension bridge on the Mahakali in every election, they have not been able to build it yet.’
A suspension bridge is built over the Mahakali River in one or two places every year in Darchula, but in Baitadi, he complains that it is limited to election slogans only.

Along with the excitement of the election, Deep Pant (Satish) of Patan Municipality-8 also seems eager to vote for the first time in this election. He says that even though he belongs to the Gen-G generation, he will vote only after thinking carefully before voting. ‘We know what kind of candidate the district is, his capabilities and what contribution he has made to the district and the country in the past,’ he said. ‘We knowingly vote for those who are affiliated with nepotism and paternalism, and as a result, we have to suffer.’ He said that he will vote for those who have a good vision for the district and the country and look after collective interests rather than their own.

It has been years since Patan Bazaar, which falls in Panta’s municipality, was declared the tenth model city in the country. He complains that the tenth model city that he heard about when he was young has not yet become a model. The work on the model city is in a state of disarray. He said that the bus park built in the name of the model city is also dilapidated without being used. He said that the one airport that was built has also become a place for making tik-tok without flights. Pant complained that even though the agenda of the airport and model city will be raised in the election, it will fade away after the election.

Bira Pant of Gothlapani-5 of Dasharathchand Municipality says that he plans to vote only for the candidate who will answer the questions he asked in the House of Representatives election. He has said that he will ask the candidate questions related to change and maintaining good governance. ‘Until now, we and the country are experiencing the results of casting our votes without asking the candidates for answers,’ he said, ‘Now we will vote, but first we will openly question the candidate about yesterday and the future.’

There are no students in the district's schools and campuses. There are no employment opportunities in the district. There is a compulsion to go to India to work. He said that the district's migration rate is high and the number of unemployed is high. He complained that even though the candidates mention these issues of the district in their manifestos every year, they have not been able to fulfill even one percent after winning the election.

UML leader Damodar Bhandari, who was elected as a member of the House of Representatives with 33,611 votes in the last election, is a candidate for the fourth time. Bhandari had won the second Constituent Assembly election in 2070, the House of Representatives election in 2074 and 2079. He has been the Minister of State for Finance once and the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Supplies three times. All the other candidates are contesting the election for the first time. Bhandari said that he has filed his candidacy again with clear policies to fulfill the demands, issues, development and prosperity goals of Baitadi.

Similarly, Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) President Chatur Bahadur Chand is a candidate from the Congress. He also said that he has filed his candidacy for the overall development of the district. Former District Development Committee President Parmananda Bhatta from the Nepali Communist Party also said that his candidacy is for the good governance and prosperity of the district. Bhupen Bahadur Chand, son of former Prime Minister Lokendra Bahadur Chand, is a candidate from the Rastriya Prajatantra Party and Harimohan Bhandari is a candidate from the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSWP).