Seti Flood and Landslide in Hemja: Check Videos
POKHARA, JUL 06 - Around 150 households on the banks of the Seti
river at Masinabagar and Hemja in Kaski district are precariously perched on
land that is being fast eroded by the
rising waters.
With the onset of the monsoon,
the rising water level is eating away the river banks, exposing the settlements
to the threat of landslides.
Fearing landslidps that may take
down their houses any time, some people of the 68 households at Masinabagar are
taking shelter in tents, while others are living in their relatives’ houses.
“We work as labourers all day
long and return to a safe place in the evening. We are finding it increasingly
hard to save ourselves,” said a local resident, Lal Bahadur Gurung.
“The government has made no
efforts so far to tame the river,” said another local, Santa Bahadur Gurung.
An official at the Kaski branch
of Nepal Red Cross Society, Khemraj Sapkota, demanded the government shift the
local people to safer places.
“Around 100 households at
Masinabagar and Hemja are at risk. We have failed to do anything concrete
except ask them to move to safer places,” said Hemja VDC secretary Bharatraj
Poudel.
Chief District Officer Chetnath
Bhattarai said constructing a dyke in the river now is not possible as the
water level has already gone up.
The Seti river also continued
eroding its banks at Yamdi in Hemja VDC, posing a threat to the Pokhara-Baglung
Highway.
Mukunda Sharan Upadhyaya
Mukunda Sharan Upadhyaya
‘Let’s make language strong’
Posted on: 2012-02-26 08:31
HEMJA (KASKI), MAR 16 -
Farmers in Hemja, Kaski have been producing potatoes worth Rs 130 million annually. About 500 farmers out of 1,100 households in Hemja village, located 10 km west of Pokhara, are engaged in potato farming. Hemja has gained fame as a potato village due to its large scale production of high quality potatoes.
A total of 450 hectares of land in the village are being used for potato production. Chitranath Paudel, a senior inhabitant, said a farmer sold around 15 tons of potatoes annually. “At the rate of Rs 18 per kg, the village is earning more than Rs 130 million every year,” said Paudel. “The amount could be a little more as many other farmers are also engaged in potato production, although in small quantities.”
According to the Agriculture Office at Kaski, a favourable climate and soil along with access to irrigation and hard work of the farmers have resulted in high productivity. “Out of the 1,900 hectares of land in Kaski being used for potato production, productivity is the highest in Hemja,” said Beni Bahadur Basnet, senior agriculture development officer. “It is conveying a good message to youths who have been wandering in search of employment.”
Also, the potatoes grown in Hemja are very popular among locals, and are even given as a gift on various occasions. The farmers have been using organic fertiliser composed of poultry droppings instead of chemical fertilisers. Kaski imports organic fertilisers worth Rs 30 million annually.
The farmers who started potato production two decades ago have now gone into commercial farming. Their living standards have also improved with the growth in business. Paudel said he was earning Rs 250,000 annually by growing potatoes. “The young people here are not interested in going abroad to work as they are making good money from the business.”
The farmers in Hemja have been growing potatoes of the MS 42-3 variety which appear blue in colour. The type of potatoes grown has to be changed every four-five years so that the rate of production does not decline. The farmers recently started planting species like Janakdev and a small amount of Kandinal as the output of the MS 42-3 variety has begun to drop. However, demand for the blue coloured potato is high in the market. According to Basnet, they have started producing pre-basic seeds developed from pure tissue of the potato which is free from viruses.
Meanwhile a multi-purpose cooperative in the region is also helping the farmers by providing seeds. “Potato cultivation has brought a significant change in the daily life of the people,” said the chairman of the multipurpose cooperative Dharma Raj Bastola. He added there was a possibility of developing the village as an agriculture tourism destination. According to him, more than 700 farm workers including people from outside the village are employed in potato production.
Posted on: 2012-03-16 09:28
http://www.ekantipur.com/2012/03/16/national/kaski-village-produces-potatoes-worth-rs-130-million-annually/350641.html
Changing Occupational Pattern among the Bishowkarmas: A Case Study of Hemja VDC
Abstract
This paper deals on the current issues of changing patterns of traditional occupational skills and technologies and management of the traditional skills and technologies of Bishowkarmas of Hemja VDC from an anthropological perspective. This paper highlights the salient traditional occupational features and recommendations of policies for the promotion of traditional occupation for self reliant. It also deals with the causes of intergenerational occupational mobility and shift from the traditional occupation of Bishowkarmas. The indings are based on a ield level investigation, observation and focused group discussion among the Bishowkarmas and analysis from multidisciplinary and participatory approach. Major causes for the occupational mobility issues among the surveyed population include socio-cultural practices, modernization, industrialization, urbanization and widespread use of western education system. The main management and promotional issues includes reservation, strong law against touchable practices, arrangement of raw materials and market. Promotional strategy comprise of socio-cultural and improved institutional capability aspects which emphases on issues like giving importance to native products and traditional occupational skills and technologies and create space for native products for conserving traditional art and promoting for the self reliant.
KEYWORDS: Traditional occupation; Patron-client; Hill Dalits; Occupational Preference; Occupational Mobility.
Himalayan Journal of Sociology and Anthropology Vol.IV (2010) 49-60
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