The three-year-old daughter of Deepa Thapa of Ghiya, Tikapur-5, is down with cold and fever for the past five days. Deepa said she cannot take her child to hospital as the town is under curfew.

Deepa’s husband Purna Thapa is a migrant worker in Malaysia. Worried about his daughter’s condition, he has been calling home every day to enquire if the curfew has been lifted yet.

“My wife cannot take our daughter to hospital because of fear,” said Purna over telephone. He requested the local bodies to help his wife take their child to hospital.

Dhanasara Tamatta of Rajipur, Tikapur-8, said after she suffered from some health issue recently one of her family members decided to take her to hospital on a motorcycle despite the curfew. On the way to hospital, Tamatta said, they were stopped by security personnel.

After Kailali District Administration Office clamped curfew in and around Tikapur following last week’s deadly riot, people who are in need of immediate medical attention have been facing difficulty getting to hospital.  

The number of patients visiting Tikapur Hospital has gone down drastically these past few days.

The hospital officials said around 300 people used to visit the hospital during normal days, now hardly 30 people visit.

Moreover, the officials said, the people from Tharu community have stopped visiting the hospital because of the fear that they might be shot.

“People are terrified to come to hospital because of the curfew,” said Basudev Bajgain, information officer of the hospital.

Meanwhile, local administration claimed that they have not barred the sick people from receiving medical help. One official said that in case of medical emergency, one could visit hospital by coordinating with the security personnel.