Bajura, September 25

Locals of far-flung villages in Himali Rural Municipality of Bajura district are deprived of basic health facilities due to geographic remoteness.

The villagers are compelled to live with diseases as it takes them days to reach a nearby health facility.

Chairman of the rural municipality Govinda Bahadur Malla said that villagers in wards 1, 2, 3 and 4 of the rural municipality were deprived of health facilities. He said that Kot Gaun Health Post in Ward No 1 was a one-day walk from their houses.

Nani Bohora, a local, said villagers had to rely on medicinal herbs when taken ill.

Similarly, the health post in Ward No 2 is a two-day walk from their houses. The villagers of Gumbagaun in Ward No 3 never visit the health facility for minor ailments.

Rural municipality Vice-chair Chandrakala Budha said that only patients with serious diseases were taken to health post due to lack of easy access to health facility.  Likewise, patients have to spend the whole day to reach Rugin Health Post from Kiudi village of in Ward No 4.

Auxiliary nurse midwife Prem Kala Malla said villagers were deprived of health services due to geographic remoteness. “We even have to halt the government’s immunisation programme during the rainy season,” she added. Malla said women were compelled to give birth at home due to lack of health posts. “No woman of Kiudi village has given birth at health facilities till date,” she added.

Not only villagers of far-flung rural municipalities, but also the locals of Swamikartik Rural Municipality, Jagannath Rural Municipality and Budhinanda Municipality do not have easy access to  health facilities.

According to Bajura District Health Office, locals in the far flung areas don’t have easy access to health facilities because of lack of road.