Struggle for immigrants of Kathmandu | काठमाडौँ बासिन्दा को समस्या हरु | Yashali Lifestyle Blog

Picture: Street Market Nepal Kathmandu from Pixabay

No city is perfect but we can make it better. As we know, Kathmandu is the capital city of Nepal and it offers us so many things than other towns and villages of Nepal. The city is home to many aspiring students, middle class families and all kind of people from all parts of country. It is situated at the central development region where the climate is neither too hot nor too cold. The climate is also suitable for all the time and it is very low risk of landslide, flood etc. It is an ancient city, steeped in Buddhist and Hindu culture. The city is not just hub for opportunities but also a dream city from many Nepalese. Being economic strong city, availability of facility, rich in art and culture Kathmandu valley is surrounded by many problems. People of us aspire to live in Kathmandu as it is the most developed city in Nepal but we all know how polluted and populated the city is. And if you are new to live in Kathmandu you must know the following challenges which are mainly divided into four different categories. They are:

• Shelter problem
• Problem of Food and Water
• Environmental problems
• Social problems

The challenges are described below:

Shelter problem

Rental issues:

Kathmandu valley is the smallest city with highest population density. Almost half of the population living here are outsiders. Once someone arrives to the Kathmandu valley for temporary residency with the purpose of study, visit, business, job etc. The first problem they face is about shelter. The problem of room to rent is very common in Kathmandu. Rooms or apartments are not easily available here. The rent cost is also expensive and have to pay for basic facilities like electricity, water, TV etc. And this is very tough to find a single room. If the room is fit the owner is troublesome, or if the location is good the price is too much high. One has to knock door to door to search rooms. It is not allow many friends or relatives to stay in a room, and the rent should be pay on time to the owner of house.

Problem of food and water

Scarcity of drinking water:

Another main challenges in Kathmandu is shortage of drinking water. Demand of people is high and supply is less therefore people have to pay high price even for the drinking water. Some people drink expensive mineral jar, some use water from tanker suppliers, where some are forced to drink water from tube well too.

Price hike and food:

Price hike is another evil problem in the city. From vegetables to grocery item and from cereals to dairy products are so expensive in Kathmandu that it is really difficult to raise a family here in city. And price of daily consumption commodities rise every day. You can’t buy enough vegetables for a day with no less than five hundred note. Not only vegetables and fruits, water is also expensive to drink. We have to think twice before to consume anything here in Kathmandu.

Environmental problems

Pollution:

Despite being the city most ahead in education and with the most educated people it is a shame that Kathmandu is most polluted city in the country. We can see piles of garbage wherever we travel in the city. Smoke and dust coming from factories area and old vehicles added more ugly. If you forget to wear a mask for a day, you will get eyes irritation and throat infection later. Nowadays roads and garbage are managed by the concerned authority but still rivers are flowing with wastes, air is mixing with dust and harmful smokes.

Over populated:

The current metro area population of Kathmandu is 1,521,000 according to the data of 2022 and it is increased from 2021 with the rate of 3.33%. Different facilities like education, better health facilities, tourism, job opportunities, infrastructure, transportation and communication attracts the people so, nearly thousands of migrates here in the city with the purpose of job, business, tourism etc. There is crowd everywhere. Due to high demand of resources there may cause scarcity. It is at risk to transmit any communicable diseases. There is competition everywhere and conflict might be the result of high crowd.

Traffic jam:

Despite the lack of effective traffic management measures in the city, traffic congestion has increased. With so many population it is sure that roads are always busy which invites many accidents. Traffic jams have become a headache for everyone and the passengers are also suffering from great mental stress. The number of vehicles on the roads are continuously increasing and the length of the road remains same. Horns and traffic noise are another level of headache. Failure to reach the destination on time is the main problem caused by traffic jam. Driving vehicles in this heat, pollution and being stuck in jam is the worst feeling ever.

Social problems

Social security issues:

The residents who were eligible for social security allowances have not received them and they had to go to the place of their origin to receive their amount other forms of social protection have not been provided to them. Children are not safe in school, women are not safe in workplace. Kidnapping, cyber-crime, rape, robbery, harassment, blackmailing etc are the question marks to those to live in the city.

Difficult to find a job:

Kathmandu city have a high rate of employment opportunities in private as well as public sectors comparison to all other cities. There is also a huge competition to grab the opportunities. You may not have strong network at the starting. Corruption, nepotism, favoritism, political instability etc are the difficult stones to find a job. Without better skills and knowledge it is very rare to find a job but you can build your technical and communication skills in parallel and polish your profile, job will definitely find you rather than you searching for job.

Location issues:

If you’re new in Kathmandu city, the very first problem is about location. Even it’s been almost 19 years I’m living in the city but still I have to use Google-map to reach my destination. Location problems are intensively used for designing of networks like school, post office, roads etc. You have to think twice before you plan to travel in the valley. Roads are almost same and confusing. You can have some guides to visit inside the valley if you’re new in the city.