BHOJPUR, JULY 27

Every household at Homtang village of Hatuwagadhi rural municipality in the district is engaged in weaving a traditional houseware, 'nanglo'. It is made by weaving wicker, or the cleft slices of bamboo.

Mostly, the cleft slices of bamboo are the raw materials which are woven to prepare an essential houseware- nanglo- in the hilly region of the country. The nanglo is used for winnowing. Chaffs are removed from grain and flour with it.

Nanglo weaving is a reliable source of income. So, every household here is involved in it.

As many as 75 families from Lankha, 165 from Bithara and 135 from Lumbuwa of Hatuwagadhi-6, and some 40 families from Soya village of Hatuwagadhi-5 are producing nanglo in a commercial manner.

A nanglo entrepreneur from Hatuwagadhi-6, Rajendra Rai, informed that they produce the essential kitchen tool in the months of Bhadra, Asoj and Kartik. Dashain, Tihar and Chhath festivals are peak season for nanglo business.

The traditional bamboo product is also sold out to other districts. Rai shared that nanglo in a number from 18,000 to 20,000 are taken to market every month. Average price of a nanglo is Rs 100 to Rs 150.

'Most of the people in our village weave nanglo. It is a good source of income for us,' Rai reminded.

It is collected from every house and taken to the market. The village alone earns Rs 2.1 million by selling nanglo in a month. The annual income for the village from this business ranges from Rs 20 to Rs 25 million, according to him.

A single family produces and sells 150 to 300 such bamboo products in a month.

Biratnagar and Itahari cities are also the markets for these rural products.

Another entrepreneur Prakash Rai said the local government needs to pay heed to promote this business.

Puja Rai, who has been managing household spending by weaving nanglo, viewed all members of her family are dexterous at chopping and chipping bamboo to weave nanglo.

They weave as many as 150 nangos in a month. Annually, her family makes Rs 200 to 300 thousands by selling the bamboo-made houseware.

'We sell a nanglo at Rs 110 from the house itself,' she said, adding that she had insufficient land for cultivation. So, all of them weave nanglo regularly in the season.