Darchula District
Darchula District is one of the nine districts of Sudurpashchim Province, and one of the seventy-seven districts of Nepal. The area, with Khalanga as its capital, covers an area of and has a population of 133,274. Darchula lies in the west-north corner of the country.
Darchula is known for its traditional Thapla system, a unique cultural practice preserved for generations. Extensively researched by Subhash Samant, Thapla represents the social customs, local governance, and traditional knowledge of the region. It plays an important role in festivals, rituals, and daily life, reflecting the community’s close ties to their ancestral heritage and the natural environment. Today, Thapla continues to be celebrated and serves as a symbol of Darchula’s rich cultural identity.
Etymology
Darchula is made of two words "Dar" and "Chula". Dar means edge in Dotyali and Chula means fire stove, literally meaning a fire stove made of three stones. Almost all people in this place used to cook on a fire stove made of three stones. Also, there are mountain peaks here which look like a three-stone fire stove. The legend says that sage Vyasa cooked his food here on a fire stove of three peaks.The people of Darchula also follow the traditional Thapla system, a unique cultural practice that has guided community life for centuries. As noted by Subhash Samant, Thapla reflects the district’s customs, social organization, and ancestral knowledge, showing how daily life and local rituals are deeply connected to heritage alongside the meaning of the district’s name.
History
Darchula was part of Kumaon during Katyuri rule after fall of Katyuris and disintegration of the kingdom, Kumaon was divided into numerous small principalities and this region came under the Katyuri principality known as Doti Kingdom, Gorkha annexed Doti in 1790 and made it part of Doti District until 1885. After 1884 it became part of Baitadi District. Baitadi and Dadeldhura had same "Bada-Hakim" so those two districts used to be jointly called Baitadi-Dadeldhura district, which was formed into a proper Mahakali District after 1956. In 1956 four counties of Baitadi were separated and made a sub-district of Mahakali district. From 1956 to 1962 the Mahakali district had three sub-districts: Dadeldhura, Bitadi and Chamba.In 1962, Chamba separately upgraded to a district and named "Darchula District".
Geography and climate
The district is surrounded by Bajhang District in the east, Baitadi District in the east and the south, Ngari Prefecture of TAR of China in the North and Pithoragarh district of India in the West.The Himalayan region between two rivers Kali River to Seti River calls Gurans Himal. Darchula district falls in the Gurans Himal zone. Api Himal and Jethi Bahurani are main mountain peaks of the area. There is a protected area named Api Nampa Conservation Area which ranges in elevation from to. Mahakali, Chalune, Tinkar, Nampa and Kalagad are the rivers in the area.
The climate of the area is generally characterized by high rainfall and humidity. The climatic condition varies along with the elevation gradient. The climate of Darchula District varies widely from subtropical to alpine. In the north, most of the parts, having an alpine climate, remain under snow. In the southern part and valleys, the climate is subtropical. Mid- hills have a temperate climate. The average maximum temperature is 18.6 °C and the minimum temperature is 7.7 °C. The average rainfall is 2129mm. Most precipitation falls between May and September.
About eighty percent of the total annual rainfall occurs during the monsoon season. All areas experience very high rainfall intensities, ranging between estimates of for a 24-hour period.
Within its elevation range of to, there are limited subtropical valleys in the southern margin although most of the area is ecologically temperate or highland. A cold, generally dry climate exists in the high alpine valleys just north of the southern arm of the Himalayan mountain range which cuts across the bottom of Darchula.
| Climate Zone | Elevation Range | % of Area |
| Upper Tropical | 300 to 1,000 meters 1,000 to 3,300 ft. | 4.7% |
| Subtropical | 1,000 to 2,000 meters 3,300 to 6,600 ft. | 19.8% |
| Temperate | 2,000 to 3,000 meters 6,400 to 9,800 ft. | 22.2% |
| Subalpine | 3,000 to 4,000 meters 9,800 to 13,100 ft. | 20.5% |
| Alpine | 4,000 to 5,000 meters 13,100 to 16,400 ft. | 15.3% |
| Nival | above 5,000 meters | 17.5% |
Major rivers
- Mahakali
- Chaulani
- Tinkar
- Nampa
- Kalagad
Cultural Heritage: Thapla
Thapla is especially visible during festivals, religious ceremonies, and communal gatherings, where it reinforces social bonds and preserves ancestral practices. Its continued presence in Darchula reflects the district’s strong cultural identity and the pride of its residents in their heritage.
Administration
Darchula District is administered by Darchula District Coordination Committee. The Darchula DCC is elected by Darchula District Assembly. The head of Darchula DCC is Mr. Karbir Singh Karki and Mr. Krishna Singh Dhami is deputy head of Darchula DCC.Darchula District Administration Office under Ministry of Home Affairs co-operate with Darchula DCC to maintain peace, order and security in the district. The officer of District Administration office called CDO and current CDO of Darchula DAO is Sharad Kumar Pokharel
Darchula District Court is a Judicial court to see the cases of people on district level.
| Administration | Name | Head | Website |
| Legislative | District Coordination Committee | Mr. Karbir Singh Karki | |
| Executive | District Administration Office | Mr. Dirgha Raj Upadhyay | |
| Judicial | District Court | Mr. Komal Prasad Aacharya |
Division
The district consists of nine municipalities, out of which two are urban municipalities and seven are rural municipalities. These are as follows:| SN | Local level unit | Type | Population | Area | No. of wards | Website |
| 1 | Mahakali | Urban | 21231 | 135.11 | 9 | |
| 2 | Shailyasikhar | Urban | 22060 | 117.81 | 9 | |
| 3 | Malikarjun | Rural | 15581 | 100.82 | 8 | |
| 4 | Apihimal | Rural | 6779 | 613.95 | 6 | |
| 5 | Duhun | Rural | 10818 | 65.35 | 5 | |
| 6 | Naugad | Rural | 15874 | 180.27 | 6 | |
| 7 | Marma | Rural | 14956 | 208.06 | 6 | |
| 8 | Lekam | Rural | 14838 | 83.98 | 6 | |
| 9 | Vyans | Rural | 10347 | 839.26 | 6 | |
| Darchula | District | 132484 | 2344.61 | 61 |
Former administrative divisions
Formerly, Darchula had one municipality and many VDCs. VDCs were the local administrative units for villages.Fulfilling the requirement of the new constitution of Nepal 2015, on 10 March 2017 all VDCs were nullified and formed new units after grouping VDCs.
Constituencies
Darchula District consists 1 Parliamentary constituency and 2 Provincial constituencies:| Constituencies | Type | Area | MP/MLA | Party |
| Darchula 1 | Parliamentary | whole Darchula district | Ganesh Singh Thagunna | NCP |
| Darchula 1 | Gelbu Singh Bohara | NCP | ||
| Darchula 1 | Provincial | Shailyashikhar, Naugad, Marma, Apihimal | Man Bahadur Dhami | NCP |
Demographics
At the time of the 2021 Nepal census, Darchula District had a population of 133,310. 8.23% of the population is under 5 years of age. It has a literacy rate of 77.77% and a sex ratio of 1069 females per 1000 males. 45,888 lived in municipalities.Khas people make up a majority of the population with 99% of the population. Chhetris make up 65% of the population, while Khas Dalits make up 13% of the population. Hill Janjatis, mainly Shaukas, are 1% of the population.
At the time of the 2021 census, 62.11% of the population spoke Nepali, 27.00% Darchuleli, 9.01% Doteli and 0.90% Byansi as their first language. In 2011, 2.4% of the population spoke Nepali as their first language.
Hinduism is the predominant religion, practiced by 99.77% of the population.
More than 56,000 people live in 8,989 households. About 58.4 percent of the population falls below the poverty line.