Surkhet, May 16: The Raute community, an indigenous nomadic group living in Surkhet, has been facing a severe food crisis due to delays in receiving social security allowance from the government.
For the past four months, Raute households in two locations—Sotkhola of Barahatal Rural Municipality–9 and Karekhola of Birendranagar–13—have not received their allowances. The group living along the Sotkhola River has been hit particularly hard.
Their situation worsened after the death of their settlement leader, Surya Narayan Shahi, on April 28. Since then, the 19 households in Sotkhola have been left without a leader, and no decision has been made about his successor. The settlement, located a 90-minute walk from Baddichaur, has not received any external support for over a month.
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“We used the little rice we had for the funeral rites of our chief,” said Sher Bahadur, the late leader’s brother. “We haven’t received the allowance for four months, and no one has come forward to help. We’re struggling to survive.”
Sher Bahadur urged the government to release the allowance immediately, adding that their handmade wooden goods are not selling, further compounding their hardship.
The Raute community, which traditionally received its allowance from Gurans Rural Municipality in Darchula, used to receive payments every three months. However, despite four months passing, no disbursement has been made this time.
Bir Bahadur Shahi, the head of the Sotkhola settlement in Birendranagar, said the community was even unable to perform proper death rituals for the late chief due to the lack of rice. “Traditionally, for 13 days, each household prepares food and home-brewed liquor to share with others. We haven’t been able to uphold these customs because of the food shortage.”
While the Karekhola settlement—closer to Birendranagar’s market—has received some small donations, Sotkhola remains without aid. “The situation here is worse,” said Bir Bahadur. “No vehicles can reach us, and no one comes to help. We either need rice or the allowance to survive.”
Dipendra Wali, spokesperson for Gurans Rural Municipality, said the delay was caused by a holdup in sending the community's details to the federal government. “Once we send the updated list of Raute households, the allowance is released every three months,” he said. “This time, there was a delay, but the allowance for the past three months will be distributed in a lump sum next week.”
The Raute community currently has a total population of 135—75 women and 60 men.
