Key Takeaways:
- 22 families in Kailali hold land certificates but lack registered records
- Confusion over federal, provincial and local responsibilities stalls progress
- 32,509 Kamaiya families received ID cards; 27,021 got land or housing support
Twenty-six years after Nepal abolished the Kamaiya bonded labour system, hundreds of freed Kamaiya families in the western Tarai continue to face unresolved rehabilitation issues, including land ownership disputes, incomplete resettlement and administrative uncertainty.
For 22 freed Kamaiya families living in the Bijaypur settlement of Godawari Municipality-1 in Kailali, the promise of a secure future remains unfulfilled. Although the government provided them with land ownership certificates after the Kamaiya liberation programme, many say the land records have never been formally registered, preventing them from exercising full ownership rights.
"We have land ownership certificates, but the records have not been maintained. We cannot use the land for any official purpose," said former Kamaiya Fulmati Dagaura Tharu.
The issue extends beyond a single settlement. As Nepal marked the 26th anniversary of Kamaiya liberation on July 18, many former bonded labourers still lack proper rehabilitation. Some possess identity cards but were excluded from resettlement programmes, while others have received land titles without corresponding land records. Several families also remain vulnerable to floods and river erosion.
Former Kamaiya rights activist Pashupati Chaudhary blamed the slow pace of rehabilitation on confusion over responsibilities following Nepal's transition to a federal system in 2018.
"The federal government says the responsibility has been devolved to provincial and local governments. The provinces do not clearly accept that responsibility, while local governments lack both the budget and authority to distribute land," he said. "As a result, rehabilitation efforts have virtually stalled."
On August 2, 2000, the government formally declared the Kamaiya system abolished and waived all debts owed by bonded labourers. The Kamaiya Labour (Prohibition) Act, enacted a year later, legally banned the practice and invalidated previous contracts and debt agreements.
The government subsequently launched rehabilitation programmes, including land distribution, housing support, cash assistance and skills training.
According to official data, identity cards were distributed to 32,509 Kamaiya families in Dang, Banke, Bardiya, Kailali and Kanchanpur districts. Of the 27,570 families deemed eligible for rehabilitation, 27,021 received land or housing support. By fiscal year 2018/19, more than 19,500 individuals had also received vocational training.
Advocate Balaram Bhattarai said the programme had transformed the lives of thousands of former bonded labourers, many of whom have gone on to become entrepreneurs, elected representatives and community leaders.
"Kamaiya liberation changed countless lives," he said. "However, unless the remaining rehabilitation issues are addressed, these achievements will continue to be overshadowed by unresolved grievances."
