Teenage girls in Rukum East live in terror of outdated traditions

Deep-rooted customs where young girls are forcibly hauled away and abducted by men for marriage persist in several areas of the western Nepal district.

Last year in June, the locals of Putha Uttarganga Rural Municipality, Rukum East, held the Bhume festival involving shamanistic rituals practised by the indigenous population. It is considered a major festival in Rukum and is celebrated around mid-July, mid-January and during Buddha Purnima which falls in April.