Added At: 2010-12-16 11:00 PM
Last Updated At: 2010-12-17 11:00 PM
KUBER CHALISE
BAITADI: Kotila Haat — a small market in the Baitadi district in the Far West — will be linked to Shreevawar by coming October and connect the remote village market to the highway, where villagers can sell their farm produce.
“The road is not only going to link our village to market place but will also be a source of income for us now and in future too,” said Prama Dhanuk, a woman in her late thirties from Bhumiraj VDC. She is one of the members of 88 Building Groups, where there are a total of 983 men and 719 women, who are earning a regular income for the last three years due to road construction project.
Those Building Groups —formed with the participation of communities around one kilometre off the road in three VDCs — are engaged in the road construction and each one of them earns equal wages, which is worked out based on their performance.
“I earn something around Rs 300 to Rs 500 per day,” said the lady, who never thought she could earn some money herself due to lack of education and opportunities in this remote Far-Western Nepal.
Currently, people of Bhumiraj VDC are working on a 15-km stretch of the 24-km of Shreevawar-Kotila Haat road, which has already opened 12.7-km track using manual labour.
“We have adopted labour-based, environment-friendly and participatory (LEP) approach,” said Amulya D Shrestha, Project Implementation Officer (Transport), Nepal Resident Mission of Asian Development Bank (ADB) that has designed and funded the project during the conflict period to engage the locals in development activities that could also generate income.
Though, it is a little costly and time consuming to construct a road in this geography with manual labour without using machines, it has given an alternative source of income. They are now having a regular income that has helped them pay their loans and buy land.
“Earlier, our men used to go to India for six months to earn a living as we had no option other than farming and that would help us for some months only,” said another busy construction worker Bishnu Dhanuk, who has saved some money and bought gold ornaments.
Each family of Bhumiraj earns around Rs 70,000 to Rs 400,000 per year from the employment in road construction. The project also offers skill-based trainings apart from employment opportunity so that they could involve themselves in economic activities after the phase-out of the project that will close in October 2011.
Approved in September 2004, the project cost was pegged at $69 million out of which ADB has funded $40 million in loan in 2004.
The Ministry of Local Development, and the Department of Local Development and Agricultural Roads are the executing agencies of the project that is aimed to address the development needs of conflict-affected communities by promoting inclusive processes that seek to restore incomes and connect rural poor to markets and economic avenues through investments in rural infrastructure and livelihood restoration facilities of 18 very poor and remote districts.
“The road is not only going to link our village to market place but will also be a source of income for us now and in future too,” said Prama Dhanuk, a woman in her late thirties from Bhumiraj VDC. She is one of the members of 88 Building Groups, where there are a total of 983 men and 719 women, who are earning a regular income for the last three years due to road construction project.
Those Building Groups —formed with the participation of communities around one kilometre off the road in three VDCs — are engaged in the road construction and each one of them earns equal wages, which is worked out based on their performance.
“I earn something around Rs 300 to Rs 500 per day,” said the lady, who never thought she could earn some money herself due to lack of education and opportunities in this remote Far-Western Nepal.
Currently, people of Bhumiraj VDC are working on a 15-km stretch of the 24-km of Shreevawar-Kotila Haat road, which has already opened 12.7-km track using manual labour.
“We have adopted labour-based, environment-friendly and participatory (LEP) approach,” said Amulya D Shrestha, Project Implementation Officer (Transport), Nepal Resident Mission of Asian Development Bank (ADB) that has designed and funded the project during the conflict period to engage the locals in development activities that could also generate income.
Though, it is a little costly and time consuming to construct a road in this geography with manual labour without using machines, it has given an alternative source of income. They are now having a regular income that has helped them pay their loans and buy land.
“Earlier, our men used to go to India for six months to earn a living as we had no option other than farming and that would help us for some months only,” said another busy construction worker Bishnu Dhanuk, who has saved some money and bought gold ornaments.
Each family of Bhumiraj earns around Rs 70,000 to Rs 400,000 per year from the employment in road construction. The project also offers skill-based trainings apart from employment opportunity so that they could involve themselves in economic activities after the phase-out of the project that will close in October 2011.
Approved in September 2004, the project cost was pegged at $69 million out of which ADB has funded $40 million in loan in 2004.
The Ministry of Local Development, and the Department of Local Development and Agricultural Roads are the executing agencies of the project that is aimed to address the development needs of conflict-affected communities by promoting inclusive processes that seek to restore incomes and connect rural poor to markets and economic avenues through investments in rural infrastructure and livelihood restoration facilities of 18 very poor and remote districts.
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