Many senior citizens in Taplejung and Dolakha will not receive their social security allowance before Dashain because the concerned authorities are still updating the state allowance recipients’ list for a new computer software.

As the district administration offices are making a switch to a computerised record keeping from the  traditional paper and ink based system, they have provisionally halted the allowance distribution.

Senior citizens are not likely to receive their allowances before Dashain.

Lal Bahadur Bishwokarma, a senior citizen from Taplejung Municipality-7, laments that Dashain without money to spend will be a sad affair.

Acting Chief of Taplejung Municipality Bimala Thapa said they have completed updating the social security allowance list and they were waiting for the District Development Committee (DDC) to release the fund.

Many VDC secretaries in Dolakha district also said that they will be unable to distribute the social security allowance in time as they were busy updating the list.

The DDC has also not sent the amount yet, they added.

Local Development Officer Bishnu Prasad Sharma said that they were trying to release the allowance as early possible.