Most of Karnali Province’s population depends on the highway. According to the 2021 census, 73.7 percent of the province’s population is engaged in agriculture. The highway serves as a vital means of transporting products to markets and accessing health services, education, employment, and trade.
Tek Bahadur Shahi, an apple farmer from Chilkhaya, Kalikot, said, “The highway gets blocked by landslides just when it is time to take apples to market. This affects our annual income. Trucks carrying apples stop every day near the Gagane River. Many apples rot on the way. Our product struggles to reach the market, and this has reduced our earnings.”
The Karnali Highway is equally critical for health services. It is the only convenient route for transporting seriously ill patients from remote districts such as Mugu, Jumla, and Kalikot to well-equipped hospitals. Even in districts with air services, flights are often grounded during the monsoon due to bad weather, leaving the highway as the only option.
Kalikot MP and Deputy Speaker of the Karnali Provincial Assembly, Yasoda Neupane, said, “The government does not listen to Karnali’s suffering. We have repeatedly requested sufficient budget allocations for landslide management and for building better roads along the Karnali Highway. But the government ignores us and our representatives. People here are suffering, and we are even being insulted.” She recalled that when a landslide blocked the Gagane River road for five days, apple trucks from Jumla and Kalikot were stranded along the way.
The tourism sector in Karnali is also badly affected during the rainy season. The province is home to many attractive destinations that remain popular year-round, especially during the monsoon when the greenery is most vibrant. However, tourism entrepreneur Kamal Gautam said, “Visiting Karnali in the rainy season is not easy because of floods and landslides. Transportation and air services are convenient only in the dry season, but that is not when Karnali’s true beauty is revealed. Moreover, climate change is now seriously impacting tourism here. This has long-term negative effects on the province’s economic development. The government must improve road infrastructure and make Karnali a destination accessible to tourists year-round.”
Karnali’s geography is complex, with many areas prone to landslides due to weak ground stability and fragile terrain. Heavy rainfall and flooding further destabilize slopes, while human activities such as deforestation, unplanned construction, and haphazard road building exacerbate the problem. Addressing these challenges requires modern technology and long-term planning for effective disaster risk reduction in Karnali.
