"Prices of daily necessities have soared after the earthquake. Arbitrary price hikes are making our lives very difficult," said Suman. He has to walk uphill for three hours with the heavy load on his back to reach home.
Chandra Lal and Saili Tamang, a married couple from Panggarpu village, got into a minor argument recently with a shopkeeper over the high price of commodities. They felt utterly disappointed.
"Prices have reached a new height recently. How are poor people like us supposed to survive?" said Saili, venting her frustration. "We had allocated Rs 2,000 to buy some basic commodities. However, the prices have doubled or reached even higher."
The couple depend on daily wages for their livelihood and have been living in a makeshift shelter after the devastating earthquake of April 25 leveled their house. "The quake also destroyed our harvest. Even a little millet we had cultivated was overtaken by disease and didn't grow well. With no additional income apart from daily wages, we are very badly hit by the drastic hike in prices," said Chandra Lal.
Kartike Bazaar is the nearest marketplace for the locals of Gumba, Golche and Pangtang VDCs. They have to walk at least one-and-a-half days to reach there for their supplies. They have to pay Rs 170 for the oil which used to cost them Rs 70 in normal times. Similarly, a crate of eggs now costs Rs 2,500, against the normal rate of Rs 1,800.
Gumba VDC is not very accessible to the outside world. So most of the locals do not know that they are paying the price of the proglonged Madhes agitation and the ongoing Indian blockade. They are also not aware that the country has promulgated a new constitution, nor are they interested to know. Reeling under extreme poverty and hardship, all that they worry about is how to manage their daily bread.
"There is nothing but stories of plight in our village. The already stressed villagers have been hit hard by the devastating earthquake. Our problems are mounting day by day," said Prem Tamang, a social worker in Gumba.
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