| Biswo |
Posted
on 14-Sep-02 01:05 AM
Maadi is a tract in southwestern Chitwan which is still considered to be one of the
most inaccessible ,but very fertile, places in Chitwan. Situated between Someshwar
mountains in the south and dense forests of Royal Chitwan National Park and crocodile
infested Rapti river in the north,east and west, Maadi is a fertile land, which welcomed
its first mountainous settlers in late 2010s.
---
With the herds of hungry and hopeful people, he also descended to Chitwan,
and lived with his small family in a Punarwaas(?) alloted land of Jaukaa in
east Chitwan. Just when he thought he sufficiently secured his little house,
a wife whose old face belied her age of late twenties, along with three kids,
he found out that Jaukaa was going to be annexed by government to provide
land for soon-to-be founded Royal Chitwan National Park.
There were some big Jamindaars around, called Maujaawaal, whose properties
were left untouched by the new rule. The homesteaders who were concentrated
in Jaukaa knew that they were the one specifically targetted. Poor, uneducated
and faithless in almost everything but god and King Mahendra, they decided to
form a party, 'Ghar Jaggaa Bihin ko Party', and go for a 'delegation' to the king.
'He' became the leader of the party.
That was when they were notified that local authorities had decided to allot them
a land in the forest: in the deep south, adjacent to India, but protected by ruthless
bandits of south by a dense tiger-roaring and wild-elephant-roaming forest and a
small mountain. And he was asked to go to Maadi to find a suitable land for him
and his men.
I don't know exactly how he felt when he stood at the bank of crocodile-infested
Rapti river, I don't know how he felt when he took a three-hours long trip from the
middle of spider-web infested jungle, and I still don't know how he felt when he
was confronted with the quicksand laden Riu river. A hope of land and fear of
having to go back to mountain propelled him forward.
Maadi was nothing but jungle, as he later figured out. There were some Tharus
and the social system of those tribals was somehow primitive: Ghuraus(kind of
doctors/pundits) were the richest people, and were living in a couple of villages
with a lot of servants. It was basically a feudalist society. A Chaudhari
arranged for some trained elephant for him and his friends so that he could
see land for him to settle down.He wondered for a few minutes, "how can
they live in the middle of the jungle like this?" and then wondered at his own
fate, and specially that he was also going to be their neighbor.
He travelled all day in the heat, and finally he reached what would later be called
Baruwaa, Shitalpur. A small creek was flowing down, and a lush jungle was next to
it. The land was convex right next to the river, and there were a lot of saal trees.
" Please,Stop the elephant here", he said.
In that drowsy hot summer, under the shade of nothing but his own old umbrella,
he pointed at the little mesa, and told the authority accompanying him, "I will
take that land."
---
Recently, I have heard that they built a bridge in the crocodile-infested Rapti
and another bridge is being built in Riu.
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| Biswo |
Posted
on 15-Sep-02 07:24 PM
Sally,
Not exactly my family story, but a story of a relative.
One day I was standing on the bank of Rapti, near crocodile preservation center in
Kasra. That was when it occured to me that those people who first went to Maadi
crossing that crocodile-infested river and wild-animal-roaming jungle were either
probably too desperate, or too brave explorers. So, I tried to figure out why
those people who went there to live went there.
In my life I have been to Maadi once. The day I went there, I became sick
because of (excessive) mosquito bite, and came back the very next day.
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