Sundari Devi Chaudhari doesn't know how she will come up with Rs 50,000 that her late husband, Bel Bahadur Chaudhari, borrowed to pay the 'donation' that the local Maoists demanded for the family's safety. Her husband, a former chairman of Pathariya VDC in Kailali, borrowed the money from the village moneylender at 60 percent interest. The Maoists were paid but it failed to buy Bel Bahadur security. On 25 November last year, just a few days after handing over the money, the Maoists killed him anyway. "The Maoists have to either repay the loan with interest or take responsibility for my four children," says a grieving Sundari Devi.

She recently had to borrow Rs 1,000 again from a neighbour so her eldest daughter could appear for the SLC exams. Now her neighbour wants to be repaid as well. With only a hut and small patch of land, Sundari Devi's assets are minimal. She was unable to return to her village after her husband's death, and lives with her children with a relative in Lamki Bazar. "Neither the party that spoke of relief for the poor, nor the government that made high promises came to help," she says angrily. The government announced a relief package for conflict victims but though the local administration sent a list of the affected to the Home Ministry in Kathmandu, victims like Sundari Devi are still waiting for assistance.