The residents of Khatyad, a remote rural municipality in Mugu district, have to walk for two days to reach the district headquarters, Gamgadhi. Their dream of visiting Gamgadhi quickly by vehicle has been delayed as roads could not be constructed through the Rara National Park.

There lies a forest belonging to the country’s smallest national park between Gamgadhi and Khatyad Rural Municipality. The local unit has a plan to construct a road to connect to the district headquarters, but the national park opposes the road construction, citing potential adverse impact on biodiversity in the area.

“We have to visit the district headquarters quite frequently for various tasks. Due to the lack of road, we have to walk for two days to reach there and two more days to return home. The local people do not get any direct benefits from the national park. And its obstruction to road construction causes significant hardship,” said Ram Bahadur Rawat, a local of ward 8 of Khatyad. He complains that the pedestrians have to risk their lives while walking through the park’s forest. “Wild animals, mainly bears, attack us in the forest. It is quite difficult to walk during the rainy season and the snowy winter.”

Around a 16-km section of the proposed road would pass through the national park to create the shortest road to link Khatyad with the district headquarters. The local people of Khatyad are growing increasingly frustrated with the park administration, blaming the latter for the lack of development in Khatyad due to the obstruction in road construction.

Khatyad residents have to go to Gothijyula in neighbouring Jumla district if they want to visit Gamgadhi by road. The road is around 35 km long and also not in good condition.

People of 57 settlements in Khatyad have to visit the district headquarters to acquire citizenship certificates and register land. Similarly, they have to visit Gamgadhi for project agreement and budget payments for various development activities under the Division Forest Office, Irrigation and Drinking Water Office, Infrastructure Development Office among others.

The locals of Khatyad buy essentials from Kolti in Bajura district as it is quite difficult to transport daily commodities from Gamgadhi due to lack of roads. “We have no alternative to taking the patients to Kolti as it is almost impossible to visit the district hospital in Gamgadhi,” said Ajaya Bahadur Shahi, chairman of Khatyad Rural Municipality. “The villagers (of Khatyad) have to endure pain and sufferings due to the legal hurdles in constructing roads through the national park area,” he added. The rural municipality chair vented his ire saying that highways have been constructed through national park forests in the Tarai, yet hurdles have been created in the Rara area.

Following the obstruction by the national park, the Karnali Province government developed a plan to build a 13 km long alternative road from Seri Narange to Tarapani three years ago. However, the construction has not started yet in the proposed section. According to the Infrastructure Development Office, the road project is left in limbo due to lack of budget.

“Roads cannot be constructed through national park forests as they affect biodiversity and wildlife,” said Jayahari Dhital, the information officer at the Rara National Park.