Incessant rains prevent Nepalese pensioners from visiting Indian banks

Incessant rains in the high altitudes of far-western Nepal caused further inconvenience for Nepalese nationals in drawing their monthly pensions from the bordering town of Uttarakhand’s Pithoragarh district, as they have not been deprived of the facility since end-March because of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic, an official said.

On Thursday, only 132 Nepalese nationals could draw their monthly pension from Pithoragarh district, he added.

Entry points and bridges on the Indo-Nepal border at Jhulaghat, Jauljibi and Dharchula areas of Pithoragarh district have been opened for three days from Wednesday amid the Covid-19 outbreak.

Around 2,000, 700 and 800 Nepalese nationals from Kanchanpur, Baitadi and Darchula districts, respectively, from far-western Nepal, have not been able to withdraw their monthly pensions after the Indo-Nepal border check-post was sealed because of the lockdown restrictions, which were imposed in Uttarakhand on March 22 to contain the spread of the Covid-19 outbreak.

Earlier, the Nepalese nationals had demanded the Indian authorities for the opening of the international border check-post in a bid to withdraw their pending monthly pensions from the Indian banks amid their deepening financial woes and acute cash crunch.

On Wednesday, incessant rains prevented many Nepalese pensioners from visiting Pithoragarh district, even though the border check-post is opened from Wednesday till Friday.

Official data showed that 86 and 51 Nepalese pensioners visited banks at Jhulaghat and Dharchula, respectively, on Wednesday to withdraw their monthly pensions, while nobody turned up at Jauljibi area because of heavy rainfall.

Nepalese pensioners are allowed to enter India only after they produce a medical certificate declaring them Covid-19 negative at the international border check-post, officials said.

“I had to obtain a fitness certificate from Dasharathchanda, the headquarters of the Baitadi district. I could only enter India after I showed the certificate and underwent a thermal screening at the border check-post,” said Mahadev Bhatt (62), a pensioner and a resident of Baitadi district in far-western Nepal.

The monsoon fury makes it an arduous trek to India for the Nepalese pensioners, who have a tough time to make the journey amid negotiating gushing mountain streams and overflowing nullahs that are swollen due to incessant rains.

“Most senior citizens are avoiding the journey to India because it has become doubly risky to travel to their respective district headquarters for obtaining the fitness certificate and then visit an Indian bank in Jhulaghat to withdraw the monthly pension,” said Prem Chand, a Nepalese pensioner’s son, who accompanied his elderly father to Pithoragarh district.

Some of the veteran ex-servicemen pensioners were carried on backs by their sons on Thursday, as they are too weak to walk.

Jhulaghat market was shut on Wednesday in the wake of the Nepalese nationals’ arrival amid fear of a community transmission following a spike in Covid-19 positive cases in some districts in far-western Nepal.

“Jhulaghat market was shut down on Wednesday amid fears of Covid-19 pandemic that’s spreading in far-western Nepal and the arrival of Nepalese nationals. So far, Baitadi district has reported 239 Covid-19 positive cases,” said Pramod Bhatt, who owns a mobile phone shop in the market.

Kamlesh Joshi, the bank manager at State Bank of India’s Jhulaghat branch, said: “132 Nepalese pensioners withdrew their monthly pension till 2 pm on Thursday. Wearing of masks and maintaining of social distancing is our priority. The bank premises were sanitised on Wednesday, as a precautionary measure.”

Dhan Singh (78), a Nepalese national, died on Wednesday evening after withdrawing his monthly pension. He was suffering from asthma, his son had told the police. Singh died on the Indian side of the border check-post on his way back home. Later, his body was handed over to the Nepalese authorities, the police added.

Nepalese are recruited in the Indian Army as per 1950 Indo-Nepal Treaty.

The Nepal government allows its citizens to serve in Indian Armed forces and in return India permits Nepalese to work anywhere in the country, except the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), in accordance with the treaty.

Many Nepalese nationals serve in the Indian Army and after retirement they return to their respective native places in Nepal.

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