By Arjun Kalfe, Syangja, Jan. 24: It has been 17 years since Rupa Katuwal, aged 80, of the Aandhikhola Rural Municipality, 1, Rajashwori, Syangja,  took over the ancestral job of the Katuwal (traditional messenger).

It has been running in the family, after her father in law, her husband, took over the ancestral job of a traditional informer, delivering the message to the people about important dates and events by shouting out loud, and after his passing, Rupa Katuwal took over this family's ancestral job.

Her job is to inform 113 households of the five villages about any important events that are to follow in the village.

Rupa said that even though new information mediums and advanced technologies have rolled out, she has been continuing with her role of the traditional messenger.

She claims that even though the news of any program in the village is spread by electronic means and technologies, landline and cellphone, her work is still reliable to everyone.

She said that she is told to recite the messages from the mobile phones by the ward chair, coordinator of the program and chief at the organisations to disseminate information.

According to her, the traditional messengers speak out loud residing at a higher and middle place of the village and then only the villagers gather for the vent.

This traditional profession was regarded as high as the head of the District Development in the period of the Shah Dynasty and was continued in the republic period as well. 

The octogenarian messenger said that she gets two bushels of maize, one pathi (traditional measuring system) of paddy and millet and one mana (traditional measuring system) rice annually from a household.

Rupa complained that she has been working as a traditional messenger after getting the responsibility from her husband and it would be better if at least the government pays some heed on the protection of this tradition.

Stating that her two daughters are already married, Katuwal said that she is struggling to make the ends meet by her profession.

Stating that she was surnamed after the profession, ‘Katuwal’, she said there is no one to continue this traditional profession therefore, she is the first and last female traditional messenger in her village.

Padam Kaji Adhikari, a local, claimed that the profession which has been running in the country since medieval Nepal will be just history as the medium of communication is improving.

He said even though the information about the important program is spread by modern technologies, but, it is still not reliable until it comes from the traditional messenger.

The Katuwal profession is still being practiced in the rural areas of the five municipalities, six rural municipalities, and 11 local levels in Syangja district.

The locals said that the sound of the traditional messenger is very much a reality and an important source of information in the rural areas of Syangja now as well.

Similarly, Nara Bahadur Katuwal, aged 57, from Sirubari, the country’s first touristic village, has been disseminating information and messages in a traditional manner. He conveys important information and messages to the locals by shouting out loud and gathering them for the upcoming important event.