Quiet exodus leaves Baitadi’s villages desolate

By Gokarna Dayal, Baitadi, Oct. 3: The traditional houses in Pallachaudali village of Dasharathchand Municipality, with intricately carved wooden doors and stone-slate roofs, now stand faded as if narrating tales of a bygone era. 

Rusted locks hang from the doors, while nettles and invasive shrubs have overgrown the courtyards. Elderly people sit at the village rest stops with forlorn eyes, waiting for their children who have moved to the Tarai or grandchildren who have gone abroad in search of opportunities. This is the bitter reality of Baitadi's rapidly emptying villages.

Places such as Dehimandau, Shahilek and Dewalhat, once bustling with people and activity, have now fallen into an eerie silence. Over the past decade, major national pride projects worth billions of rupees, including the Mid-Hill Highway and Mahakali Corridor, have reached Baitadi. Motorable roads have been opened in all 84 wards of the district. Ironically, however, the vehicles travelling on these roads often have no passengers.

As people have moved to the Tarai and urban centres in search of jobs and opportunities, villages and market areas have become deserted.

Student numbers fall by 60 per cent in five years

The depopulation of villages has directly affected educational institutions. According to Dr. Surendra Bam, a professor at Jagannath Multiple Campus, only 240 students now study at the campus, down from 600 five years ago. There are currently no students studying mathematics at the campus.

Six schools in the district headquarters, Dasharathchand Municipality, have been merged with other schools due to a shortage of students. According to Pushkar Raj Sharma, information officer at the Education Development and Coordination Unit in Baitadi, 114 basic-level schools across the district are at risk of closure or merger.