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Since 2017, four governments have been formed in Karnali, all of which have upheld the vision of making Karnali an organic province. The initiative began with the first state government under Chief Minister Mahendra Bahadur Shahi, whose government prioritized this goal in its inaugural meeting. Since then, the concept of an organic province has been a recurring theme in the provincial government’s policies and programs.

However, progress on making Karnali an organic province has been slow. The provincial government is now focusing on a key step: banning chemical pesticides. To achieve this, the government has outlined two main strategies: first, prohibiting the entry of pesticide-laden food products from outside Karnali, and second, eliminating the use of chemical pesticides and fertilizers within the province. These strategies aim to make Karnali a pesticide-free region.

Karnali currently imports vegetables, fruits, and other food items from India and other provinces, many of which are at risk of containing pesticide residues. Additionally, pesticides are still being used in agriculture within the province. Given these challenges, transitioning to a pesticide-free or organic province will not be easy. Nonetheless, Minister of Land Management, Agriculture, and Cooperatives Binod Kamar Shah, who is also the spokesperson for the provincial government, is committed to the plan. He stated: "We will not allow our citizens to consume food contaminated with pesticides under any circumstances. We will stop pesticide-laden food at the main entry points and discourage the use of chemical pesticides within Karnali."

In the first phase, the government plans to raise awareness among farmers, encouraging them to switch from chemical to organic fertilizers and pesticides. Minister Shah highlighted the harmful effects of chemical pesticides on human health and the environment, emphasizing that the government's organic province plan aims to address these issues. "We will make Karnali an organic province with the cooperation of everyone," he said, assuring collaboration between provincial and local governments.

Pesticide testing at checkpoints

To prevent pesticide-contaminated products from entering Karnali, pesticide testing will be conducted at the main entry points. The provincial government is establishing pesticide testing laboratories at Harre in Surkhet and Kapurkot in Salyan, two key checkpoints. Buildings for these laboratories have already been constructed, and operations are set to begin this year. The government plans to only allow pesticide-free food into Karnali once the testing system is fully operational at these borders.

Minister Shah noted that vegetables and fruits currently arriving through these checkpoints often contain pesticides, but this will change once the testing labs are operational. Any produce found to contain pesticides will be barred from entering the province.

In addition to border controls, the government will conduct public awareness campaigns and monitor local farmers to ensure they are not using chemical pesticides. Minister Shah also mentioned plans to introduce new legislation on pesticide management, which will penalize those who compromise public health by using harmful pesticides.

Meanwhile, a pesticide laboratory has been established in Birendranagar by the Central Agricultural Laboratory under the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development. Once operational, it will test samples of vegetables and fruits before they are sold. If pesticide levels exceed permissible limits, the contaminated produce will be destroyed. "We are consuming vegetables and fruits along with the pesticides they contain," said Mahesh Chandra Acharya, head of the Central Agricultural Laboratory. "This laboratory will ensure that only safe, edible items reach the market."

If more than 45 percent pesticide residue is detected in any sample, the produce will be destroyed, Acharya explained.

Local officials are also emphasizing the importance of awareness. Nilakantha Khanal, deputy head of Birendranagar municipality, stressed the need to educate farmers about the benefits of pesticide-free food. District Coordination Committee chief Gangaram Sunar believes that Karnali can achieve its organic province goal by encouraging farmers to adopt organic practices. Similarly, Chitra Rokaya, head of the Integrated Agricultural Laboratory, urged the government to promote pesticide-free production throughout the region.

Greetings from the picturesque and remote landscapes of Karnali! Here, where the sun is known to rise in the east and set in the west, I found myself witnessing a rare phenomenon—the sun rising from the west, or rather, from the heart of Karnali. And what led me to this unique experience? A travel grant to the UN Climate Summit COP28 in Dubai, courtesy of UNDP. As I pen down my thoughts, let me take you on a journey through the lens of a journalist from the often-overlooked Karnali province, who found himself amidst the global discourse on climate change.

They say the first time is always special, and indeed, I stand as possibly the first journalist from Karnali to attend the COP28. It was not just an opportunity but a responsibility to bring the unheard voices of my region to the forefront, and I was ready for the challenge. My preconceived notions about climate change were shattered like glass. It was not merely about taps running dry in Surkhet or the ravaging floods and droughts. COP28 unfolded before me a complex tapestry of issues—loss and damage, climate financing, and a plethora of intricacies I had not fathomed before. My understanding of climate change took a leap from the shallow waters into the depth of its complexities.

One of the most surprising revelations was the structure of COP itself. Before attending COP, I thought COP meant a grand conference hall with high-profile individuals delivering eloquent speeches while we applauded. To my amazement, there were numerous meetings and pavilions, each dedicated to different topics and countries passionately raising their concerns. Amidst this diverse gathering, Nepal stood out, but not for the reasons I anticipated. 

Our officials seemed fixated on a singular demand—money. While other nations showcased innovative solutions and offered assistance, Nepal appeared to be on a different wavelength, asking for financial support without contributing substantial ideas or learning from others. We should perhaps focus more on what we can offer, what policies we have in place, and learn from the successes of others.

The international community, in response to Nepal’s grant requests, expressed doubts about our capacity to utilize the funds effectively. Instead of wholeheartedly supporting our plea, they questioned why Nepal struggled to maximize the benefits from existing grants. It was a stark reality check, urging us to introspect on our implementation strategies. On a lighter note, for my fellow journalists, having a press pass is the golden key to expedited access. My lack of one led me to endure a three-hour queue before gaining entry to the conference venue. Note to self: Always secure that press pass!

As I reflect on this unparalleled opportunity bestowed upon me by UNDP, I can’t help but advocate for similar chances for journalists outside the Kathmandu bubble. There’s a treasure trove of stories waiting to be uncovered in Madhes Province, Sudurpaschim Province, and even in remote districts of Karnali. UNDP, you’ve opened a door; let’s ensure more windows are unlatched for those in the overlooked corners of our nation. In closing, from the heart of Karnali to the global stage in Dubai, my journey at COP28 has been nothing short of extraordinary. The sun may rise in the east, but the stories from the west are equally compelling and deserve a place in the grand narrative of climate change.

A fruit promotion program is being implemented in nine districts of Karnali Province, with the aim of uplifting the living conditions of local communities.

According to the Nuts and Fruits Development Project Implementation Unit in Surkhet, the ambitious program will be rolled out across 20 local units within the province. The focus of the initiative will be on the cultivation and commercialization of fruits such as apples and oranges, along with nuts like walnuts, groundnuts, and pecan nuts.

Chitra Bahadur Rokaya, the project manager, said Karnali has immense potential for fruit farming which is already a significant source of income for many farmers. The program seeks to expand and promote fruit and nut farming in the selected local units of these nine districts, he added.

As part of the initiative, apple farming will be expanded to cover 1,450 hectares, while orange, walnut, pecan nuts, and groundnut farming will extend to 350, 600, 100, and 100 hectares, respectively. The program will specifically promote apple and walnut farming in Jumla, Dolpa, Humla, Mugu, and Kalikot. Meanwhile, orange, groundnut, and pecan nut farming will be promoted in Dailekh, Jajarkot, Salyan, and Rukum West districts.

The unit plans to collaborate with large-scale cooperatives and private sector companies to promote nuts and fruits farming. Farmers with at least four ropani of land are eligible for selection in the program. Funding for the initiative will be facilitated through concessional loans, partial grants, and equalization grants, Rokaya added. “Proposals for investments up to Rs 5m will be handled by the unit itself, while those above Rs 5m will be forwarded to our central office,” he added.

According to the unit, the program will be implemented in Banphikot, Musikot, Sani Bheri, Dhorchaur and Sharada of Salyan; Chhedagad and Junichande of Jajarkot; Aathabis, Narayan and Chamunda Bindrasaini of Dailekh; Shubhakalika and Narharinath of Kalikot; Hima, Sinja and Kanaksundari of Jumla; Khatyad and Soru of Mugu; Tanjakot and Adanchuli of Humla; and Mudkechula of Dolpa.

The program will be divided into three phases. The first phase will focus on creating awareness about fruit and nut farming. The second phase will emphasize production, while the third phase will center around marketing the products effectively. Along with nine districts of Karnali, the project will cover a total of 100 local units in 34 districts across the country. The targeted fruits include orange, sweet orange, lime, apple, walnut, kiwi, avocado, pecan nuts, and groundnuts. The project will cover 10,000 hectares of land and 30,000 farmers. The program is being funded by the concessional loans and grants from the Asian Development Bank.

The federal government’s plan for an industrial estate in Karnali province has not moved beyond location-scouting and feasibility study in the past five years.

Search for a suitable place for the project development began not long after the federal government announced the plan to build industrial estates in each of the seven provinces. But five years down the line, the location for the proposed industrial estate is yet to be decided.

Two locations were initially proposed—first at Satakhani and the second at Lekbesi, both in Surkhet. But the subsequent feasibility studies rejected both the sites. Two years elapsed in the process.

Two other sites—Chhinchu in Surkhet and Chupra in Dailekh—were next considered. This time, Chhinchu was proposed as an ideal site for the industrial estate, as it had a good highway and electricity access. But the proposal was never followed through.

There have been several inspections and studies for a potential project site, but none has been approved, says Jiva Narayan Banjade of Industrial District Management Limited, Birendranagar.

“The plan for the industrial estate has been limited to pow-wows and proposals,” he says. “Without confirming the project site, we can’t tell if or when the project will start.”

Industrialists in Surkhet say lack of coordination between the federal and provincial governments has also caused the delay in project development.

They say their repeated requests to the authorities at both federal and provincial levels to expedite the project have gone unheard. They even drew the attention of the President, Vice President, prime minister and chief minister to the problem, but to no avail.

The concerned industrialists say that the federal government announced the plan, but it didn’t deem it necessary to coordinate with the provincial government for its execution. The provincial government also didn’t take the initiative to see the project through.

The Karnali provincial government has instead proposed its own plan for an industrial area.

“We were working on our own plan for an industrial estate in Karnali province last year, so we could not coordinate on the federal government’s project,” says Sher Bahadur Shahi, information officer at the provincial Ministry of Industry, Tourism, Forest and Environment.

Dhanmaya Shahi of Surkhet lost her husband during the decade-long armed conflict.

Shahi, whose husband was killed by the then CPN-Maoist rebels, had filed a complaint at the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) demanding action and justice for her husband’s killers.

Earlier, she had even submitted several petitions to the local peace committee and the administration. When, five years ago, she petitioned the TRC, she had hoped that action would finally be taken against her husband’s killers. That hope is now fading. “By delaying justice, the state has sprinkled salt on my wounds,” she rues.

This is the story of many Dhanmayas across the Karnali region who are yet to get any relief or justice from the state. Complaints lodged by victims seeking justice are rather being stowed away at the TRC headquarters in Kathmandu.

Another victim, Shanti Dhamala, who also lost her husband, says, “I have filed many petitions in the hope of getting justice. I have even gone to the International Court of Justice. To date, the commission has only exacerbated my wounds.”

According to official figures, the commission has received 11,000 complaints from Karnali, the region most affected by the conflict. But the commission is yet to investigate any of the complaints.

Kaviram Khadka of Mantada in Bheriganga Municipality, who was injured during the conflict, did not get timely treatment, and he to this day cannot move the lower half of his body. He was neither a Maoist nor a security guard. Khadka still had to suffer when he was shot, in two places, during the conflict.

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Janakali Malla of Birendranagar has not been able to see her daughter for well over a decade now. “Years have passed since my daughter went missing, but the government and the commission investigating the disappearance have done nothing,” she complains.

The pain of the victims’ relatives is no less. The TRC had set up offices in every province in order to facilitate preliminary investigation of complaints collected in respective provinces and to take the victims’ statements.

But lately, the offices of the commission have become inactive, which TRC Chairman Ganesh Datta Bhatt blames on lack of staff and resources. In Karnali, the commission had set up an office in Birendranagar, which is now closed.

The lack of functioning of the headquarters has also affected investigation of the complaints, delaying justice-delivery. Chairman Bhatt vows to resume operations soon. “We will open new offices too in order to speed up our work,” he says.

The TRC has promised to investigate and resolve all complaints within the next two years. According to the commission, 63,718 complaints have been registered from across the country. Bhatt says work was also affected due to the Covid-19 epidemic but now investigations are being sped up.

Surkhet: The provincial and federal governments’ plans to expand the runway of a key airport in Karnali Province is in limbo after residents living near the airport protested against the idea.

A budget of around Rs 1 billion allocated for the expansion of Surkhet Airport’s runway has been frozen due to lack of progress in the project this fiscal year. The Karnali state government had allocated Rs 500 million and the central government Rs 510 million for the expansion work. 

Currently, airports in Karnali Province are small and their runways do not support big aircraft. After it was named the province’s capital, the provincial government planned to expand the airport so that big aircraft could also land in Karnali. The runway is only 1,255 meters long and does not support the landing of big aircraft. The government plans to increase the length of the runway to 1,555 meters. 

At the heart of the controversy is the government decision to acquire 30 bighas (12.5 acres) of land for the expansion work. Around 200 households living on the soon-to-be-acquired land are demanding that the government provide adequate compensation for their land. However, officials and the land owners are yet to reach a consensus on the issue.

If the obstruction continues, the project may not kick off even in the next fiscal year, officials warn. The federal government has said it has allocated a budget for the airport for the coming new fiscal year, but the amount allocated has not been confirmed.

However, Civil Aviation Authority, Surkhet, expects work to start from the new fiscal year. Umesh Kumar Panthi from the authority said that the expansion work will be completed as the central government has already allocated a budget for it. 

The Karnali government has also stated that it will continue to push the plan to expand the airport. Minister for Internal Affairs and Law Sita Kumari Nepali, also the spokesperson of the government, says, “We will expand the airport in the coming fiscal year by addressing the demands of the locals.”

She says that the project will be taken forward on the basis of consensus by addressing the demands of the locals. “The government is ready to address the demands of the locals,” she adds. “The airport will be expanded based on consensus.”

Mamata Sunar of Birendranagar-6, Surkhet, in Karnali Province still has to endure caste-based discrimination in her daily life. She is discriminated against by non-Dalits in the neighborhood.

When she crosses paths with her neighbors, they sprinkle gold-infused water on it before walking. In the public wells and water-sprouts, Mamata only gets her turn after the so-called higher castes have filled their utensils.

The law does not recognize the insults and discrimination suffered by Mamata. Mamata, born into a Dalit family who have been given the tag of low-caste for centuries now, has had to endure the curse of untouchability in her village and community. “The books of law say Nepal is free from untouchability, but in practice, it is still prevalent. Dalits like myself are discriminated against in our own localities,” she says.

The sufferings of Batuli Sunar from Birendranagar-2 are similar. Even though the law prohibits any discrimination based on the caste system, the community she lives in has not accepted it. “We have to be careful not to touch others while walking on public roads,” Batuli says. For her, the discrimination laws against Dalits are as good as non-existent. It is because of non-implementation of laws at local levels, she believes. “The law is limited to paper and has never been applied in practice,” Batuli says, “When the state does not implement the law properly, the perpetrators are not punished and we have to suffer eternally.”

“The government only makes laws but doesn’t enforce them in practice,” adds Shanti Badi of Birendranagar-11. “While the government is silent, caste discrimination is same as it was in the past. Non-Dalits are taking advantage of them being so called high-caste.” The laws against caste-based discriminations are not being implemented due to the incompetence of the state, Shanti believes.

Lal Bahadur Nepali of Birendranagar-11 agrees with Shanti. The law has always been systemically discriminatory against Dalits, he believes. “Even when Dalits go to seek justice, they do not get anything. Police and CDOs do not register cases of caste discrimination in collusion,” he says.

Ratna Badi, a resident of Birendranagar-6, complains that discrimination against Dalits have not ended because of the state alone. “Many rules have been made to eliminate discrimination, but the state never implements them properly,” she says. “Because of the state, the Dalits have been living in humiliations for years. If the state doesn’t pay heed to us, who will listen to our pain?”

A Dalit child who was beaten for entering the kitchen of a non-Dalit some time ago in in Barahatal of Surkhet | Annapurna File Photo

Dalits are still discriminated against and insulted in public places, communities and neighborhoods because of their caste. Despite increasing public awareness about caste-based discrimination, discrimination against Dalits has not ended yet. Dalit rights activists claim that the nexus of caste discrimination has not been broken in the communities even now. This is the reason why non-Dalits have not stopped attacking Dalits, they say.

Even now, in most places of Karnali, Dalits are despised and humiliated in water sprouts, schools, roads and also at the policy making level of the state. Even the Dalit people’s representatives at the local level are falling prey to systemic casteism.

Karnali State Assembly member Sita Nepali says, “After federalism, there was a political change in the country, but there was no change in the attitude towards Dalits. Due to non-implementation of discrimination laws, we have not been able to enjoy the rights and entitlements given to us by the constitution.”

Incessant hail and rain destroyed apple blossoms back in May, resulting in a drastic reduction in apple production in the Karnali province this year. Apple prices, as a result, have gone up. Farmers in the area complain about scant production and lost income. Most of the produce from remote areas has to be airlifted to nearby markets, which makes transfer of low volumes unfeasible.

In the Karnali region, most apples are grown in Jumla, which produced 12,000 metric tons last year. But this year, only 5,000 metric tons have been produced. Chief of the Agriculture Development Office, Jumla, Bala Karam Devkota says apple prices have gone up after the decline in production. In Jumla, per/kg prices have been fixed at Rs 160 for A grade, Rs 155 for B grade and Rs 150 for C grade apples. According to Devkota, apple prices may further increase due to declining supply.

Similarly, 1,450 metric tons of apples were produced in Humla last year. This year, this volume has been halved. In Mugu—which yielded 1,500 metric tons of apples last year—production has declined by 70 percent. Chief of the District Agriculture Development Office, Mugu, Panchlal Budha informs that apples will not be exported to other districts this year due to low production. Buddhi Budathoki, assistant technical officer at the same office, adds that only 400 metric tons of apples were produced in Dolpa this year, compared to 3,296 metric tons last year.

Organic apples are produced in hugs quantities in Jumla, Dolpa, Mugu, Kalikot and Humla of Karnali province. But this year, apple production has dropped by about 70 percent. Bala Karam Devkota, chief of the Agriculture Development Office, Jumla, attributes this to the hail and rain in May that destroyed apple blossoms. “This year has been very bad for apple farmers,” says Devkota.

Devkota says commercial farmers have been hit hard. Most farmers in Jumla had only just started growing apples on a commercial scale. Apples produced in Karnali are sold in cities including Surkhet, Nepalgunj, Pokhara and Kathmandu.

The concerned District Agriculture Development Offices have been providing free packaging materials to farmers for apple export. Apples of varieties like Red Delicious, Golden and Chocolate are cultivated in the Karnali region.