Kanchanpur, Dec. 16: Ganga Magar from Dharmapur of Bedkot Municipality-5 in the district is elated now. He has boundless happiness indeed after he shifted from a hut to a concrete house.

Magar, who faced tough time to run the family with daily wage, had not imagined that he would get such concrete house in life.

Magar's grandfather had migrated from hilly Dailekh district to Tarai's Kanchanpur four decades back in search of better life- a house. Since then, he was staying in a nomadic way- shifting from one place to another. "As we had no land, we arrived here in search of land to build house. My family lived under tent with much suffering," he shared, adding that there was leaky roof. Saving children from cold was an arduous responsibility, as he said.

Magar further said in the recent time, the leaders elected from his area were delivering good service- a concrete house to the landless people.

There are 85 such houses in the settlement but none has owned land. Even the drinking water is not accessible. They have to fetch water from remote place in the dry season.

Another dweller in the settlement, Padam Tamata said, "Now, we are assured of house. We need employment to feed the family. Daily wage is the income source which is meager to manage family."

In the past, most of the people here had gone to Indian cities for job. Currently, they are in the village due to Covid-19. They are engaged in agriculture and labour. Almost all do not get work, according to District Vice President of Land Rights Forum, Khem Nepali, adding that eight such families have now got concrete houses along with toilet facility.

Nepali further informed that five other houses were completing soon. The houses are constructed under the Tarai-Madhes Prosperity Programme at the cost of Rs 9.5 million.

Nar Bahadur Dhami, representing in the House of Representatives from this area, said the housing construction for the landless and homeless people would be continued.

There is a plan afoot to ensure concrete houses to 246 families under the Safe Housing Programme. Similarly, the Ministry of Land Management, Agriculture and Cooperatives in Sudurpaschim Province has forwarded the works to build 25 houses for the landless and homeless people here.

Of them, Habitat, an NGO, vowed that it would take the responsibility for building five houses.

Ministry’s Planning Section Chief Gokul Bohara said under the programme, an integrated settlement would be developed targeting those homeless families from different areas. “The government is responsible for guaranteeing basic needs of the homeless families,’’ he said, adding that the government in policies and programmes for the current fiscal year has promised to end homelessness of such a section of population.

Housing construction for the marginalized communities in four districts of the province is about to kick off, according to him, The selected areas are Bedkot of Kanchanpur, Bhajani of Kailai, Silgadhi of Doti and Melalek of Achham. Houses to be built at Bhajani will be for the Raji community and at Silgadhi will be for the Badi people. The new settlement will have drinking water, road and electricity facilities. “Only home is not sufficient to earn a decent livelihood for such people. Additionally, our further efforts will be for making them self-employed and thus self sufficient through the means of agriculture and livestock farming."

Minister for Land Management, Agriculture and Cooperatives Binita Chaudhary said the programme would be implemented keeping in priority the backward, vulnerable and homeless communities.

During the first year, houses will be built for four specific communities in four districts, according to her. Besides, income generating programmes will be launched targeting them.

As she shared, programmes aim to make landless people self-employed would be implemented in a planned way.

Sudur Paschim provincial assembly member Lal Bahadur Khadka said he had talked with the ministry for the implementation of a programme to make the homeless of Dharmapur to be agriculture entrepreneurs along with housing. More, the construction of drinking water project has already begun here to address the shortage of drinking water issue facing the Dharampur folks for long. The deadline of the project is 18 months.

Bedkot Municipality Mayor Ashok Chand said constructions of safe (cemented) houses for 85 families were underway. He added the local government is committed to providing safe housing for the homeless. “Besides, we are soon processing towards providing land for the landless by signing an agreement with the Landless Squatters’ Problem Solution Commission. Homeless people have been residing at Dharmapur since 2059 BS.