Phurpa Lhamo | Gasa

As winter nears, men from Lunana left for Sephu gewog in Wangdue and Goenshari gewog in Punakha with 900 horses to bring home essential items.

Of 900, 500 are headed to Sephu.

According to Lunana Gup Kaka the first group reached Goenshari and Sephu yesterday. “One person left from one household in Lunana.”

Two more groups will reach Sephu and Lunana today and tomorrow.

Lunana has around 185 households.

Every year, starting late June, Lunaps come to Punakha bringing cordyceps for sale. They spend about five months stocking and transporting essential food items to Lunana.

Routes to Lunana close due to snow by November. The snow doesn’t melt until late June.

Since the lockdown, Lunaps have been worried about exhausting food stock.

Kaka raised this concern to Gasa dzongkhag administration a week ago. The officials discussed the concern with Punakha and Wangdue dzongkhag administrations.

  Horses lifted the goods from Goentshephu

Horses lifted the goods from Goentshephu

Supplies are made available at Lubzur in Sephu and Goentshephu in Goenshari gewogs. Journey from Lunana to Sephu and Goenshari gewogs takes around seven days and six nights.  

Yesterday, Punakha dzongkhag officials took four truck and two bolero filled with essential times and vegetables to Goenstephu in Goenshari gewog. The goods were worth Nu 3 million (M).

De-Suup, police, gewog officials, shopkeepers and individuals from the Bhutan Development Bank (BoB) are at Goenstephu today.  The officials will be at the site until all the goods are loaded and taken to Lunana.

According to Punakha Dzongkhag Planning Officer, Phub Tshering, the goods were brought from Gelephu two days ago.

A list of the essential items needed in Lunana gewog was also shared.

Phub Tshering added that this was a dzongkhag to dzongkhag support initiative.

Apart from essential items, 200kg vegetables (potatoes and chilies) were also taken to Goenstephu.

In Sephu, around three shop owners are identified to supply to the demands from Lunana.

Sephu Gup Rinchen Penjor said that the shopkeepers volunteered to supply goods and had been dealing with the Lunaps in the past.

The essentials will supply to 12 of 13 chiwogs in Lunana.

“Ramina chiwog is near Punakha and has easy access to essential items,” Kaka said.

It will take the Lunaps around a week or more to reach Lunana with the essential items.

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