OKHALDHUNGA BAZAR , 2022

Siddhicharan, Okhaldhunga is only 220km from Kathmandu and takes about 6 hours to reach by car/bus. Okhaldhunga is the administrative headquarter of Okhaldhunga district. The city gets its name from ‘Okhal’ which means a grinding stone. here are many ancient stories about how the place got its name. It is said that during the Mahabharata period, Bhim had eaten his food by beating rice in a deep holed stone like Okhal. For the evidence, a large grinding stone still lies at the district headquarters, which is also named Okhaldhunga. Similarly, it is also said that during the Malla regime, King Lakshmi Narsingh Malla of Kathmandu has sent his troops for the extension under the leadership of Bhim Malla while reaching to this place, conquering the eastern parts. They ate food by beating rice in a deep holed stone like Okhal, so this place named, Okhaldhunga. Okhaldhunga is also the birthplace of a famous poet and writer Siddhicharan Shrestha known as the 'Yug Kabi’ of Nepal. Source: Nepal Traveller