Manang, Sept. 22 -- The dreary dirt road from the Phu village in rural Manang to the district headquarters in Chame resembles a desert. There are mountains, but no trees. If the trail is ridden with dirt in the summer, it is covered in snow during the winter. It is this trail that the residents of the remote Phu village take to fetch daily essentials, from vegetables and rice to salt.

Phu locals buy government subsidised salt from the depo office of the Salt Trading Corporation in Chame. But to fetch that salt, they have to walk for two days. With government subsidy, one kg salt costs Rs 9 in Chame. But once it reaches Phu village, the same amount of salt costs Rs 41. Often, locals employ mules to carry salt and other goods.

The charge ...