Seventy-four-year-old Tika Bahadur Rayamajhi leaned on his crutch as he waited outside the District Administration Office in Gulmi on Wednesday afternoon. A resident of ward 2 in Isma Rural Municipality, Rayamajhi struggles to walk, let alone ride or get off a vehicle without someone’s help. Yet here he was, standing in a long queue because the government has made the National identity card mandatory to access social security allowances.

“Without this card, they say we won’t get our allowance. I had no choice but to come, even though it’s very difficult at this age. Life itself is hard, and now they’ve added more trouble,” Rayamajhi said, visibly tired.

The septuagenarian, who is also a fire victim from last year’s inferno in Isma, is not alone. Dozens of senior citizens and people with physical disabilities like him were seen waiting outside the district office on Wednesday, many struggling to get off buses or climb the office stairs.

Tara Devi Nepali, 77, from the same rural municipality, shared a similar ordeal. “We used to get the allowance easily before,” she said, leaning on her daughter for support. “Now, suddenly, they made the ID card compulsory. For old people like us, it’s a big hassle.”

The federal government had announced that all beneficiaries of social security allowances—including senior citizens, single women, people with disabilities, and endangered communities—must present a National identity card to receive payments. The Ministry of Home Affairs had issued a notice in June 2024, making the card compulsory to receive social security allowances from mid-July.

The government was criticised for making the National ID mandatory to get social security allowances without making preparations necessary for that. The government officials, however, claimed the issuance of National ID cards aimed to curb duplication and ensure transparency in the system.

But in rural districts like Gulmi, a hill district of Lumbini Province, the mandatory provision of National ID has left many struggling. At the district administration office in Gulmi, crowds of elderly people, some in wheelchairs, others leaning on crutches, have become a daily scene. While priority services are provided, the journey itself is exhausting for many.

Phursi BK, 68, from ward 7 of Malika Rural Municipality, said she had already made an ID card during a mobile camp in her village, but it is missing when required. “I had to come all the way again. One card, but twice the trouble,” said BK.

People’s representatives have stepped in to help the needy people. Dol Bahadur Nepali, an executive committee member of Isma Rural Municipality, said he has personally accompanied elderly residents multiple times. “This month alone, I’ve brought at least four elderly people for their cards. They can’t travel alone. We have to help,” said Nepali.

Distribution of National ID cards is quite slow. According to the District Administration Office in Gulmi, a total of 119,000 people have registered for National ID cards through ward-level mobile camps organised a few months ago. Of these, 60,168 cards have been distributed.

Among those who registered directly at the district office, only 23,000 of the 50,200 printed cards have reached beneficiaries so far. “On average, 120 new cards are issued daily, while around 100 are distributed,” said Tara Bhandari Bohara, a computer operator at the district administration office. “But the demand is growing as the allowance deadline nears.”

Chief District Office of Gulmi Bishnu Prasad Koirala acknowledged the challenges but said efforts are underway to ease the process. “We’ve increased staff and started mobile distribution camps from local units,” he said. “We began from Madane Rural Municipality on Wednesday and will cover other areas soon. Our aim is to make sure no one loses their allowance because of this.”

However, the senior citizens and people with disabilities remain anxious. With Dashain approaching, officials expect even larger crowds in the coming weeks. Whether mobile camps will ease the pressure remains to be seen.

The government had officially launched the National identity card distribution campaign in 2018 by presenting a card to a 101-year-old woman in Panchthar district and to government employees at Singha Durbar. It announced plans to digitally integrate the driving licence, vehicle ownership certificate, banking services, tax payment system, voter ID card, and social security system, among other things, into the National IDs.

The National ID card is a federal identity issued by the Department of National Identity Card and Civil Registration. It has a unique number assigned to each person and can be obtained by Nepali citizens based on their biometric and demographic data. The card features a unique number, photo, personal information, and fingerprints of the bearer.