Karnali government to set up ‘Raute Protection Fund’

Kathmandu / Oct 25: The Karnali provincial government has decided to set up a fund for the protection of Rautes, the nomad community living in jungles especially of mid-west and far-west of Nepal.

The fund is focused on the management of clothes, housing and nutritious food for the nomadic community. Chief minister of Karnali Province government, Mahendra Bahadur Sahi, made such an announcement while distributing food to the Raute people at Deurali of Chinggad Rural Municipality-4 in Surkhet district today. Every Raute gets Rs 2,000 per month from the fund.

The federal government too has been providing Rs 3,000 to each Raute as social security allowance. The amount to be provided by the province government would however be used for daily essentials and housing facilities.

The Rautes are an endangered community of South Asia. There are 153 Raute people in the jungles of Karnali Province.

“Raute people are the ornaments of Karnali. The province government is committed to protecting this endangered community,” CM Sahi said, adding that a proper mechanism would be set up to ensure a decent living for the Raute people.

Also speaking on the occasion, Minister for Social Development Dal Rawal said the province government was aware that the endangered community would not need to beg for a living. According to him, the art and skills of Raute people could be protected in cooperation with the community forest users’ groups. RSS