BAJURA, July 27

With the onset of monsoon, most rural roads in the hilly districts, mainly in Bajura, Accham and Bajhang in the far-west region have been obstructed.

In Bajura, Betalmandau-Martadi, Martadi-Kolti, Sera-Aatichaur, Martadi-Bhaunera and Betalmandau-Pudababala road sections of the Sanfe-Martadi road have been completely obstructed.

Likewise, in Achham, over a dozen road sections including Sanfe-Payal, Sanfe-Budhakot, Jayagadh-Nandegada, Sanfebagar-Mujabagar, Mangalsain-Binayak and Timelshain-Mujabagar of the Sanfe-Martadi road section have been obstructed in the wake of the monsoon.

Landslides in a number of places and the fact that diversions in local rivers have been swept away have also added to the woes of transport operators.

While the rise in water level in the Karnali River has shut bus services from Mangalsen to Surkhet in Achham, transportation services between Achham and Dailekh too have been blocked after the water level rose in the Karnali River and the ferry service at Sai was halted.

With most of the roads obstructed, prices of daily commodities have skyrocketed in many parts of the district.  According to Anil Shahi, a local trader in Kolti, prices have risen by 30 per cent. Similar is the condition in other parts of the district known for its difficult topography. In Rugin and Bichhyan, there is crunch of salt and rice.

While 50 VDCs and two municipalities are linked to the road network in Achham, in Bajura only 11 VDCs are linked to the road network.