COVID19
News
1 MIN READ
Due to the closed border, a migrant worker is unable to fulfill his funeral duties upon his mother’s death
Basudev Bhatta, a migrant worker, shares his condition as he is forced to mourn the death of his mother in quarantine across the border. As told to Kiran Dhami.
My name is Basudev Bhatta. I am a resident of Shailyashikhar rural municipality in the district of Darchula. For the last three months, I have been working in road construction at Ghatikhola in the Pithoragarh district of Uttarakhand.
On 27 March, we decided to return as we had no more work due to the coronavirus. We weren’t getting paid and it was becoming harder to survive. I arrived along with several others on 30 March at the border to find that it was already closed. We pleaded with security personnel to let us in but they didn’t listen. We were left stranded without food or water and Indian officials came forward to help only much later. We have been kept in quarantine ever since.
Five days ago, my mother, Gautami Bhatta, died. She was 65 years old and passed away from a heart attack. Her health had been suffering and she was worried about me and my brother who still remains stranded in Bangalore. As soon as I found out about her death, I tried calling people up and requesting authorities to let me cross the border. So far, I have talked to our mayor and ward chairman back home and to many journalists. They said that I would be allowed to return, but I’m still here. I have even filed a complaint on the police helpline. No matter how many times I tried to call the chief district officer, he wouldn’t take my call.
I am the oldest of five brothers. With two of us brothers still in India, only the youngest three are at home to do the final rites. My mother carried me in her womb for nine months and raised me. Today, look at my condition. I couldn’t even mourn my mother’s death properly. Is it not my right to mourn my mother’s death?
I don’t know what to say to a government that doesn’t understand the plight of its citizens. I would like to thank the two-thirds government. Let them thrive and prosper as we suffer.
:::::::::::
Features
4 min read
Tiny mountain birds are like the superheroes of the bird-world, surviving by adapting to freezing temperatures with the help of their feathers.
COVID19
Features
6 min read
The govt has finally heeded expert suggestions to create a hospital dedicated only to treating coronavirus cases
COVID19
Explainers
3 min read
A message circulating on WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger claims that an Indian student from Pondicherry University has found a cure for COVID-19, and the "home remedy" has been approved by World Health Organization (WHO).
Features
5 min read
Nepal is shrouded in smoke and pollution from wildfires with air quality levels at ‘hazardous’ for the past three days.
Features
6 min read
When it comes to climate change, Global media attention has stayed on island nations but the Himalaya have their own unique vulnerabilities.
COVID19
Opinions
3 min read
Ordinances may have been scrapped but Oli’s credibility as the nation’s leader has reached a point of no return
Features
5 min read
Wild Yak Records is attempting to bring the nostalgia and analog quality of vinyl to a new generation of music aficionados.
Perspectives
7 min read
With over 7,000 cases over the past 24 hours, Nepal has crossed the point of no return. The best time to act was yesterday; the second best time is now.
