Landowners in Thrimshing have their census in Khaling and vice versa 

Land: Following the delimitation of parliamentary and local government constituencies in 2007, some households of Thrimshing and Khaling gewogs have their census registered with one gewog while thrams are registered with the other.

After the delimitation, about 16 households of Khaling came under Thrimshing gewog while about 15 households of Thrimshing came under Khaling. Acres of land belonging to households of one gewog suddenly fell in the other.

Since then, it has become a problem for the households of Thrimshing when they have any work related to land.  Today, villagers have to travel more than 40km to reach the gewog center in Khaling.

Thrimshing Tshogpa, Che Dorji said that villagers needed to get their thram documents from the gewog centre when they process loans and get forestry permits for procuring timber from their land.

“Given the remoteness of the villages, there are hardly any vehicles that come by when we need them. Villagers have had to walk for more than five hours at times,” he said.

Thrimshing gup, Ngawang Dorji said that the affected households in the gewog owned land at Bephu and Brekha chiwogs in Khaling gewog. Describing it as a nagging issue, he said it was also brought up during one of the annual conferences of local leaders.

“Officials from the National Land Commission said that the issue had to be deliberated in the Parliament since the decision was made by them,” he said.

People of Thrimshing also raised the issue when Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay visited the gewog recently. Works and human settlement minister, Dorji Choden advised people to route the issue through the dzongkhag tshogdu so it could be resolved by the Parliament.

The solution to this problem, Thrimshing gup said could be the integration of the area below Kharungla in his gewog. Should this be done, both the chiwogs of Brekha and Bephu would fall under Thrimshing.

Bephu is located towards the south of Thrimshing on the other side of River Phegpari while Brekha is towards the northern side and below Kharungla. The highway toward Khaling connects from Kharungla.

“I have been discussing this with Khaling gup as well. This would even benefit villagers of Brekha and Bephu,” he said.

On the other hand, Khaling Mangmi, Tshewang said that transferring census of the affected people from the two gewogs where their thrams belong could be a way forward.   When people of Khaling were given the option to transfer their census to Thrimshing in 2007, only eight households agreed.

“If the concerned authority could transfer the census, matters would be solved. Otherwise, villagers have different opinions that would only complicate matters and the problem would never be solved,” he said.

Meanwhile, villagers of Brekha and Bephu are asking for the creation of a separate gewog by clubbing the two chiwogs together.

“The gewog centre is very far. Even for a mere signature from the gup, we have to travel kilometres,” Brekha tshogpa Sonam Choden said. “Moreover, the affected villagers of Thrimshing would also have their gewog centre very close should the proposal come through.”

Tshering Wangdi, Trashigang