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Kathmandu, March 26

Santosh Kumar, 16, Mohan Kumar, 17, and Dipak Kumar, 16, were sitting in front of a closed shop in Kuleshwor this afternoon, fiddling with their smartphones. The three residents of Farhadawa, Rautahat, were not supposed to be hanging outside, as the government has clamped a week-long lockdown since Tuesday to prevent the spread of deadly coronavirus disease, instructing everyone to stay indoors.

“We come out every now and then to get fresh air, as the room where we live is pretty small,” said Santosh.

The Kumars came to Kathmandu around four months ago after one of the people from their village who runs a fruit shop in Kuleshwor promised them a job with a monthly salary of Rs 5,000 each. Since arriving here, all of them have been working as fruit street vendors.

“Everything was going well and we were sending home money,” said Dipak. “Then suddenly everything was locked down, rendering us jobless.” The three have not sold any fruit for the last three days. And their employer has clearly said he would not pay them during the lockdown period.

“Luckily, our employer has allowed us to stay in the room that he had rented and he gives us two meals a day,” said Santosh. Yet they are worried about being “evicted” if the lockdown prolongs. “That’s why we want to go home but we cannot do that either now,” said Santosh. Several hundred metres away from where the Kumars were hanging out, Dipak BK was sitting on the stairs of another closed shop with his back hunched. The area where the 45-year-old was seated is renowned for its fruit wholesale market, where BK works as a porter. “But with the closure of the market I barely earn anything as everything has been shut down and there is no supply of fruits,” said the resident of Ghorahi, Dang, who used to earn up to Rs 2,000 per day before the lockdown.

The father of three sons and a daughter has increasingly started feeling insecure about his future as his 19-year-old son, who used to work as a bus driver, and 16-year-old son, who used to work as a bus helper, are out of job as well. “Fortunately, I don’t have to pay house rent as I stay at my sister’s place. But I’m worried about putting food on the table,” said BK.

Lockdown was a necessity for Nepal where the healthcare system is not robust. And many have praised the government for introducing this sweeping measure. But in a country where close to 85 per cent of workers are employed in the informal sector, the shutdown will have a crippling effect on people like the Kumars and BK as they are not covered by social security.

“The lockdown should not starve th

Read the full story on The Himalayan Times

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