A not-so-deserted Dashain

ANKIT ADHIKARI
KATHMANDU, OCT 14

 
Natives of Kathmandu Valley, won’t be experiencing a deserted Dashain this year because unlike in the past years not many people are leaving for their homes in the villages.

“Every year I look forward to Dashain, not particularly for the festivities, but for a time when I can relax and take a deep breath without having to worry so much about the people, traffic and pollution,” said Sujan Shrestha, a local of Kathmandu. Kathmandu has been swamped by internal migrants in the last few decades. The local population is outnumbered and that has certainly created some resentment between the two communities. The neighbourly barb often comes out in candid discussions among friends. “Till Saptami (seventh day of Dashain festival) it felt as if most of the people are still here,” said Nasana Badyakar, a native of Patan. “This is unlike my experience in the past.”

There is no exact figure on the valley’s population, but it is estimated to be around four million. That may a reason behind the hustle and bustle still seen on the capital’s roads. Meanwhile, pictures of people travelling on roof-tops of buses due to unavailability of tickets have been circulating for the last few days. Police report that the highways are more crowded than in the past years. Plane tickets have sold out, despite an increase in the number of flights. Yet, that hasn’t significantly affected the number of people in the markets, or the number of vehicles plying on the roads.

“It doesn’t feel like a lot of people have left the Valley,” said Yekendra Aryal of Anamnagar who has been living in Kathmandu for the last 50 years. “It may be because more and more people have started to own a house and settled inside the valley,” he said. “In yesteryears, people used to leave for their villages. That’s what Dashain meant. But these days, the number of people coming from villages to meet their relatives in the valley has also gone up.”

Published in The Kathmandu Post -- October 15