ACCHAM: Transport services ferrying passengers to Mangalsen in the far western region has been shut down for six days. Vehicles have not been able to ply on Dhangadi-Mangalsen section of the road as the twenty-kilometre stretch has been damaged by the continuous rainfall during the past couple of days.

The ferry at Karnali river carrying vehicles across the river has also been shut due to the increase in water level. One bus each to Dhangadi and Surkhet districts which were in operation has stopped after the roads were damaged due to continuous rain in the past week. Transportation services on the area are shut down during the monsoon season as vehicles are unable to ply on the stretch.

According to Rajesh Bogati, a bus entrepreneur, they stopped transportation services in the monsoon due to the bad condition of the roads. He informed that they could not resume transportation services in the rainy season until the roads were reconstructed.

Passengers are compelled to walk towards their destinations due to the lack of transport facility in the area in the monsoon season.

Chet Bahadur Shah, a local of Birpath VDC-1 said that people suffered due to the seasonal operation of transport services due to the condition of the road and complained that nothing had been done by the government for the welfare of the people. Business of hotel entrepreneurs in Mangalsen have also been affected due to the closure of the transportation service. Hotel entrepreneur Pushpa Bhandari said that he had no options by to shut down his hotel.