A 28-year-old local, Narayan Budhathoki, went missing after falling into the Mahakali River when a tuin (swing bridge) snapped in Dumling, Biyas Rural Municipality-2, Darchula. The incident happened around noon while Budhathoki was crossing the tuin en route to the Indian market.
District Police Office Darchula Chief, DSP Prakash Dahal, confirmed the disappearance and said that police, armed police, and locals are actively searching for him. All police units in the lower Dumling area have been deployed for the search operation.
Despite repeated government promises to replace unsafe tuins with suspension bridges, progress remains limited. The government, including Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli since 2072 BS, has pledged multiple times to make Nepal “tuin-free” within two years, a goal reiterated in this fiscal year’s policy program with plans to replace all tuins with suspension bridges.
