The musical environment of the festival has been replaced by protest and agitation slogans of Jindabad and Murdabad."It seems like there is no Dashain for businessmen like us this year. Even if the blockade gets lifted now, there is no time left for bringing the goods on time," said a textile entrepreneur Sachin Agrawal.
Meanwhile, he also shared his grievances regarding government's indifference towards demands of Madhes community.
Agrawal added, "We thought the ongoing protest would help us end our miseries when our demands get fulfilled. But that hope does not seem to come into reality as government still has not taken our demands into consideration."
The entrepreneurs said that it would take years to compensate the amount of loss they had to endure due to the strike and blockade.
Dhruva Shah, operator of Trishakti Tractors, said that the two months strike has financially pushed him two years behind.
"Comparing the loss in my small business, I can only imagine how it must have impacted large businesses and the economy as a whole in Birgunj," he added.
According to sources in Birgunj Udhyog Banijya Sangh, there are around 650 large-scale and 1,500 small-scale industries in Birgunj.
Additionally, about 100 business associations -- 90 banks and financial institutions are in operation and above 4,000 vehicles are operated from here -- which have been largely impacted.
According to Shah, the protest meant for fulfillment of public demands has instead made public's life difficult.
Twenty-year old Naina Devi of Parwanipur village had a hard time bringing her four-year old daughter's dead body back home from hospital due to the strike.
She had arrived in Birgunj on Tuesday morning where her daughter was announced dead. "We could not afford ambulance services due to its high cost. Even the rickshaw pullers did not take us to hospital," she added.
Her husband Rajesh Kumar had to walk two kilometers carrying his daughter's body when a bike-rider gave him lift to their destination.
Other sectors of local market area, educational institutions and hospital services have been affected as well.
Mukhdev Shah of Birgunj-13 expresses his frustration for needing to wait for four days to get a gas cylinder at doubled price rate.
"Along with daily commodities, essential supplies of medicines are getting scarce by the day. The protest enforcers need to seek an alternative to this," he said.
Thousands of vehicles carrying daily supplies have been blocked in the border area.
Sixty three tankers with petroleum products are stalled in Raxaul whereas 400 bullets of LPG gas are stopped in the border zone currently. Banda in Birgunj is still in place.
India had stopped transporting fuel and other daily consumption goods from September 24 citing security issues due to the ongoing Madhes agitation.
Along with the month long strike, a curfew was clamped on Birgunj from August 31 to September 23.
Six locals died during the protests with about hundred injured.
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