Five Missing in Bhote Koshi Flood in Nepalgunj

Banke. After the Bhote Koshi flood made five villagers disappear, the courtyards of houses in Thapuagaun, Nepalgunj Sub-Metropolitan City-20, Banke, have become deserted. Every year, with the arrival of Teej, this village used to be filled with a unique splendor, always echoing with the rhythm of the madal, the colorfulness of red saris, and the musical tunes emanating from the courtyards. This year, however, the sky of Thapua is covered by a different kind of sorrow. The rhythms of the madal have stopped, and the tunes of joy have turned into deep lamentation. On August 27, the Bhote Koshi flood suddenly swept away five members of the village, plunging the entire Thapua into a whirlpool of grief. Sher Singh Rokaya, 53, and Bishnumati Rokaya, 56, who were sweating it out at the Rasuwa Customs Office, Timure area, and their 19-year-old son Deepak Rokaya, who had gone to visit them and pay homage to Gosainkunda, have gone missing along with the flood. With their only son, considered the support of their old age, and their brother and sister-in-law, who were the pillars of their lives, disappearing all at once, only silence and tears remain in the house of Anlal Rokaya. Standing at the threshold of the door, with a faint hope that they might return, and enduring unbearable pain within, Anlal's family is compelled to bear the burden of separation. On the other hand, with Aram Damai and Ujina Damai, who had gone to Rasuwa for their livelihood, also swept away in the flood, it is as if the lamp of their home has been extinguished. 16-year-old Subash Nepali, 11-year-old brother Ashwin, and 9-year-old sister Smarika spend their days in a daze, waiting for their mother and father to return. In this bright season of Teej, the tender lives of these innocent children have fallen into a dark tunnel overnight. Local resident Tekraj Jaisi said that no one in the village has felt the festive spirit due to the unimaginable grief. 'With five members of the village missing, the entire village is in unbearable pain,' Jaisi said, 'How can we celebrate Teej at such a time?' He informed that the villagers are currently trying to console the grieving families by foregoing the festivities. The acting ward chairman of Nepalgunj-20, Chakrabahadur Buda, has pledged to continue the search for the missing and to coordinate and provide necessary support for the care and education of the affected families, especially the orphaned children of Aram and Ujina. 'This year, Thapuagaun has chosen grief and prayer over songs and dances for Teej,' Buda said, 'We hope that those beloved faces who are missing will return safely from somewhere.'