k6yar.com

I took an interview with a female stone crusher working in Thankot as part of my duty to pick the most laborious person working in or around Kathmandu, who would be the winner of the “Name that Domain Contest” held in nepalvista.com for and on behalf of the k6yar.com.

To win that contest, users would have to send the correct domain name of the k6yar.com, and as there were no correct answers received, we had to go find the winner by ourself and we thought this would be a rewarding job!

I went to Thankot and picked, Gita among the many female workers working there in extreme hardship. She was awarded the domain name contest prize by k6yar.com  and here are my interview notes…

Name : Gita Lama
Address: Panighat – 1,Danda Goan, Thankot, Kathmandu

Gita was married at the tender age of 18, borne two child, a boy now 20 years old and a girl now twelve years old.

She had a happily married life for 13 years, then thunderbolt struck as her husband left her (don’t know for what reason as she didn’t want to tell) and the in – laws forced her out of the house and was forced to live in the cow – shed from then on. Her kitchen and beds is in the cow shed, and she often dreams of politicians of nepal fighting for what-ever they could bring to people like her!

All the responsibility of the children fell on her and the only job she could find was that of stone crusher, that too in Kathmandu.  She comes to Kathmandu from Thankot every single day and earns around Rs. 100 a day (Less than $2 a day), which is all that she earns daily and  that was all that she needed to feed her children and to educate her son up to SLC (School leaving Certificate).  Her son is now working in a hotel in Tripureswor, Kathmandu, but she doesn’t know its name. She hopes he will work hard and take care of her some day.  From last three years or so the in – laws gave her 2 ropanis of land (about 100 feet in length and 100 feet in width of land = 10,000 sq ft, not much of land at all!!), with the help of Ga. Bisa president (village development president), and is now doing khetipati (farming, in what ever little land she has!). She has a mediocre dream of having house of her own, with livestock and doing khetipati (farming) after her son completes his education and begins to earn.

She told me that lot of people (journalists) had visited her, took her photos and but she said nothing changed in this country! When I handed her the prize money, she had tears in her eyes, and said “what that’s for ?” I told her, she just won a contest! She cried and didn’t accept the money at first but after explaining to her, she accepted the money and offered me to visit her again at her cow shed where she promised me a cup of tea. She said she will spend part of the money for her son, buy some new clothes to change the clothes she has been wearing for nearly 3 years, and she also plans to spend part of the money to eat meat, which has been a luxurious item in Nepal for many years!

She says there is no problem  coming to Kathmandu from Thankot, but moist insurgency in the neighboring areas of Kathmandu along with Nepal banda and road blockades is hampering the business. And she says, her business in not about political agendas but bread and butter on her table! So she blames both sides for not listening to the needy people of Nepal.

Now she doesn’t want to change the occupation of stone crushing as she desires no other job and this is what she will be doing till the end. She, till now, has no health problem attributed to the job or I should say she is too poor to know that.  Cuts, bruises and dust poses no problem.

She says, a cut in my finger from a stone blade hurts less than the everyday unrest in Nepal!