Canon, projectiles taken back to Dailekh 50 yrs later

A cannon and 81 projectiles that have been related to the history of Dailekh district have been taken back to the district after 50 years. The Jwala Dal Battalion previously located at Kotgadhi in Dailekh was shifted to the Rajdal Battalion in Surkeht district. The battalion took the firearm and its ammunition with it. The cannon named ‘Sundari’ and its ammunition were handed to Dinesh Lama, commander of the Indradal Battalion at Kandachaur in Dailekh amid a function.

An army vehicle today transported the firearm and its ammunition to Dailekh after conducting a puja at the training center of the Rajdal Battalion. “The firearm and ammunition will be kept at the battalion at Kandachaur until the construction of a cannon house at Kotgadhi is over,” said Lama. The project funded by Narayan municipality aims to develop tourism of archaeological heritage, Kotgadhi owned by the Nepal Army. Earlier, the Narayan municipality and the Indradal Company were remanding to restore the objects in Surkhet. According to collective memory, the military troop was shifted to Surkhet in 2028 BS due to hunger in the district.

Following the food crisis in the district, the government had decided to shift the Kotgadhi-based battalion to Surkhet as the government found no easy means of food supply for the troop. The ‘Sundari’ cannon made of metal was believed to have been manufactured in around 1846 BS. Narayan municipality mayor Tirtha Narayan Shrestha believed the restoration of the antique would help promote tourism industry in the district. Construction of physical infrastructure required to preserve the historic artifacts is underway in Kotgadhi. “The collection is an invaluable treasury of the entire district,” Shrestha said, adding that the local government was committed to the preservation of the objects in collaboration with the NA.