Every monsoon, Khalla Musetti village in ward 9 of Bhimdatta Municipality, Kanchanpur, is cut off by landslides while floodwaters in the Mahakali river threaten to sweep away electricity poles, leaving hundreds of families stranded without reliable road access or power.

The annual disruption has once again begun with the onset of this year’s rains.

The monsoon turns everyday errands into an ordeal. For resident Rup Singh Pali, each rainy season begins with the same worries.

“As soon as it rains, landslides block the road, and it has to be cleared again,” Pali said. “We can get around during the dry season, but heavy rain makes the road completely impassable.”

He said the recently opened alternative track has also failed to provide reliable access.

The old riverside road linking Khalla Musetti and Brahmadev became unusable before the monsoon, prompting authorities to open a new track through the Chure hills under the Mahakali Corridor project. But the alternative route has also been repeatedly cut off by landslides since the rains began.

Vehicles can barely make it from Brahmadev to Selfie Danda, but the road beyond that to Musetti is completely cut off after floodwaters swept away culvert pipes at the Kaligad river.

“When the river is in flood, even pedestrians cannot cross,” said resident Harish Saud. “The culvert pipes were washed away as soon as the monsoon began, leaving all vehicles stranded. If someone falls seriously ill at night, there is no way to get them to a hospital.”

More than 200 families live in the Musetti area alone, he said.

Residents are also increasingly worried about electricity.

Power poles left in a channel of the Mahakali river during construction of the Mahakali Corridor are now surrounded by floodwaters. As the river has risen, the poles have been submerged by nearly four feet. Two collapsed earlier this week and had to be replaced, while several others remain at risk of being swept away.

“The road is already in poor condition, and we don’t know when the power could go out,” Pali said. “We’ve appealed to the local government, our provincial and federal representatives, the Nepal Electricity Authority and the district administration to relocate the poles, but they are still standing in the middle of the river.”

Brahmadev serves as the main commercial centre for residents of Khalla Musetti. People depend on the town for daily essentials and government services, while those needing medical treatment must travel either to Mahendranagar or across the border to the Indian town of Tanakpur. When the road is blocked, even reaching Brahmadev becomes difficult.

Residents say they have repeatedly urged local authorities, the district administration and the Nepal Electricity Authority to repair the road and relocate the power poles to safer ground, but little has been done.

With the Mahakali river still rising, locals fear the remaining poles could be washed away, plunging around 400 families into darkness while leaving them cut off from essential services for yet another monsoon.