The Rais and Sherpas from the eastern Nepal who reached Ghandruk, also in search of opportunities, are living in the houses left vacant by the Gurungs. They work in hotels and trekking business in the village.
Interestingly, they do not have to pay rent to the Gurungs for living in their houses. Those who left the village do not charge outsiders for living in their houses as they are treated as caretakers rather than tenants. Some 15 houses left by the Gurungs are inhabited by the Rais and Sherpas, accoding to Ghandruk’s VDC secretary Chabilal Poudel.
“This might eventually end Ghandruk’s identity as an exclusive Gurung settlement,” said Poudel.
According to Poudel, the Rais and Sherpas living in the village are from Shankhusabha, Ilam, Paanchthar, and Makwanpur.
The Gurungs, who started migrating out of Ghandruk owing to insurgency in the past and other reasons, have continued to leave the village, said a local Nepali Congress leader, Prakash Gurung. This has made it possible for the village to accommodate more outsiders.
The insurgency served as a catalyst for the Gurungs to get out of their confort zone and look for better opportunities. That search and the subsequent enterpreneruship by some has encouraged more and more Gurungs to leave the village and opt for business, employment and dreams of a more luxurious existence.
“The elderly left because they could no longer continue with physical work,” Poudel said. “The youth left for education and foreign employment.”
According to Poudel, some 24 Gurung families have left the village so far. The end of the Maoist insurgency has not brought back any Gurung family to the village.
Though there are still about 1,000 Gurung households in the village, they are continuing to leave the village, according to Poudel.
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