Arjun Chaupari Rural Municipality
अर्जुनचौपारी गाउँपालिका — a mid-hill rural municipality of six wards in Syangja District, formed by merging the former Rapakot, Aruchaur and Sataudarau village councils with two wards of Panchamul under Nepal's 2017 federal restructuring.
01 · Nation & Place
Overview & Vital Statistics
Arjun Chaupari sits in the mid-hills of Syangja District, one of eleven local levels in the district and one of 753 local units nationwide under Nepal's federal structure.
Formed by Merger
Arjun Chaupari was created on 12 March 2017 by merging four former village units:
- Rapakot VDC
- Aruchaur (Aaruchour) VDC
- Sataudarau VDC
- Wards 3 & 7 of Panchamul VDC
Merger completed under the 2017 nationwide restructuring into 744 (later 753) local units.
Male Population
Female Population
Eligible Voters (2022)
Households (municipal survey)
Three separate population counts circulate for Arjun Chaupari: the 2011 national census (16,176), the 2021 national census (14,045), and the rural municipality's own more recent household survey, which recorded 16,680 residents across 3,484 households and roughly 200 named settlements. The gap reflects both census methodology and the steady outmigration for foreign employment discussed under Economy below.
02 · Nation & Place
Origin & Naming
No single documented source fixes exactly how Arjun Chaupari got its name — the municipality's own official history is candid about this.
The Blacksmith's Rest-Stop Theory
According to local elders cited on the municipality's own website, the area was once known for an "aran" (a traditional blacksmith's forge) with a nearby "chautari" — a stone-and-tree rest platform where travellers paused in its shade. Over time, local memory holds, the combination of forge and rest-stop gradually settled into the name "Arjun Chaupari."
A Place Shaped by Roads
The municipality's history notes that construction of the Helu–Arjunchaupari–Parbat road has been a turning point for local development, cutting travel time to the district headquarters and neighbouring areas and pulling the settlement out of relative isolation.
Because the naming story rests on oral tradition rather than a single written record, it should be read as the municipality's own account of its heritage rather than a settled etymology.
03 · Nation
History & Local Governance Timeline
From a patchwork of Village Development Committees to a single federal rural municipality with its own elected council.
Village Development Committee era
The area existed as separate VDCs — Arjun Chaupari, Rapakot, Aruchaur (Aaruchour), Sataudarau, and parts of Panchamul — each with its own local committee under the old district panchayat/VDC system.
Arjun Chaupari Rural Municipality formed
Under the Government of Nepal's restructuring into 744 new local units nationwide, the four VDC areas were merged into a single rural municipality, headquartered at the former Arjun Chaupari settlement.
First local election
In Nepal's first local elections under the 2015 Constitution, Dirgha Narayan Aryal of the Nepali Congress was elected as the rural municipality's first chairperson.
Second local election
Prakash Tiwari (Nepali Congress) was elected chairperson with 5,291 votes, defeating Chin Maya Gurung of CPN-UML, who received 3,347 votes, out of 13,867 eligible voters.
Infrastructure push
Road-upgrading tenders were issued for the Arjunchaupari–Rapakot–Taalpokhari Road and the Aaruchaur Road in Ward 5, aimed at blacktopping and widening to reduce monsoon-season disruption.
Navagraha Temple consecrated
A shrine dedicated to the nine Navagraha celestial deities — described as the first of its kind in Nepal — was completed in the Jalbaraha religious forest of Ward 1, drawing daily devotees and reviving local trade in a village that had seen many houses close up due to migration.
04 · Land
Geography
A mid-hill (Pahad) landscape typical of Syangja District, of terraced farmland, river valleys and ridge settlements between 800 m and 2,150 m above sea level.
Borders
Arjun Chaupari is bordered by Aandhikhola Rural Municipality to the north, Putalibazar Municipality to the east, Parbat District to the west, and Bhirkot Municipality to the south.
Coordinates & Terrain
Centred near 28°04′51″N, 83°45′41″E, spanning roughly 83°42′–83°48′E and 28°04′–28°08′N. The terrain is characteristic mid-hill Syangja topography — terraced slopes, scattered forest patches, and village clusters along ridge lines and river valleys, with a temperate climate at these elevations.
Elevation Character
Mid-hill (Pahad) zone from 800 m to 2,150 m — terraced agricultural slopes and ridge villages, not part of the high Himalaya.
River System
Local streams draining toward the wider Aandhi Khola / Kali Gandaki river system that runs through Syangja District — see Rivers & Streams below.
District Context
One of 11 local levels in Syangja District (1,164 km² total), alongside Chapakot, Kaligandaki, Biruwa, Harinas, Phedikhola and Aandhikhola.
05 · Land
Rivers & Streams
Arjun Chaupari's hills are cut by a network of small rivers ("khola") that feed the wider Aandhi Khola and Kali Gandaki drainage of Syangja District — the lifeline of its terraced farms and drinking-water sources.
Gadyauli Khola
Flows through Ward 1 near the municipal centre; the stream corridor is also home to the Gadyauli Khola Botanical Park, a locally identified natural and tourism site.
Darau Khola
Runs through the Darau (Sataudarau) area of Ward 6, giving its name to several local cooperatives — including a labourers' savings cooperative registered along its banks.
Aandhi Khola Basin
The wider drainage basin that Arjun Chaupari's local streams ultimately feed, shared with neighbouring Aandhikhola Rural Municipality to the north, before joining the Kali Gandaki system.
Smaller unnamed seasonal streams also thread the ward landscape, feeding the drinking-water intakes and terraced paddy of individual settlements; comprehensive hydrological mapping beyond these named watercourses is not yet published in open sources.
06 · Administration
The Six Wards
Arjun Chaupari is divided into six wards, drawn from its four constituent former VDC areas and their own sub-wards.
| Ward | Formed From (Former VDC & Old Ward Nos.) | Area (km²) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ward 1 | Arjun Chaupari VDC, old wards 1–5 | 13.07 | Municipal centre; home to the Gadyauli Khola Botanical Park and Jal Baraha / Navagraha Temple area. |
| Ward 2 | Arjun Chaupari VDC, old wards 6–9 | 6.01 | Includes the Lamdanda and Tamu Juro temple clusters. |
| Ward 3 | Rapakot VDC, old wards 3, 5–8 | 8.68 | Home to Jana Secondary School, Rapakot. |
| Ward 4 | Rapakot VDC (old wards 1,2,4,9) + Panchamul VDC ward 3 | 8.21 | Includes Rapakot Kalika Temple and Khewang Kalika Temple. |
| Ward 5 | Aruchaur (Aaruchour) VDC, old wards 1–9 | 11.02 | Most densely settled ward (about 52 named settlements); site of the 2024 road-upgrade project and a locally funded cricket ground. |
| Ward 6 | Sataudarau VDC (old wards 1–9) + Panchamul VDC ward 7 | 10.24 | Covers the Darau / Thaple area. |
Ward-to-old-VDC mapping above follows the rural municipality's own published table. Ward 5 (Aruchaur) has the most named settlements of any ward, while Ward 3 (Rapakot) has the fewest.
07 · Nation
Local Government
Like all 753 local units in Nepal, Arjun Chaupari is governed by an elected Rural Municipal Executive under the Local Government Operation Act, 2017.
Current Chairperson
Prakash Tiwari (Nepali Congress) — elected in the 2022 local elections (Sthaniya Chunab 2079) with 5,291 votes, defeating Chin Maya Gurung of CPN-UML (3,347 votes). See his full profile below.
Executive Structure
A Rural Municipal Assembly comprising the chairperson, vice-chairperson, and the elected chairs and members of all six wards, responsible for local budgeting, infrastructure and service delivery.
First Chairperson (2017–2022)
Dirgha Narayan Aryal (Nepali Congress), elected in Nepal's first local elections held on 14 May 2017 following the federal restructuring.
Oversight
Falls under the jurisdiction of the Syangja District Coordination Committee and Nepal's federal anti-corruption bodies; local media have reported a corruption case filed against individuals including a former chairperson.
08 · Administration
Chairperson Profile: Prakash Tiwari
A closer look at the rural municipality's sitting chief executive.
Prakash Tiwari, Chairperson
Prakash Tiwari of the Nepali Congress has served as the elected chairperson of Arjun Chaupari Rural Municipality since the 2022 local elections, in which he won 5,291 of 13,867 eligible votes cast against CPN-UML candidate Chin Maya Gurung. He succeeded Dirgha Narayan Aryal, the municipality's first chairperson since its 2017 formation.
Door-to-Door Social Security
Soon after taking office, Tiwari coordinated with local banks to deliver social-security allowances directly to elderly and disabled residents in their own settlements, in response to complaints that beneficiaries were struggling to reach bank branches — a commitment he had made during his election campaign.
Championing the Navagraha Temple
Tiwari has publicly credited the construction of the Navagraha Temple in Jalbaraha forest — billed as Nepal's first shrine dedicated solely to the nine Navagraha deities — with reviving economic activity in a ward that had been hollowed out by outmigration, describing the daily influx of devotees as a turning point for the village.
Contact
Office of the Chairperson, Arjun Chaupari Rural Municipality · Phone: 9851189299 · Municipality general line: 9856053133 · Email: arjunchaupari11@gmail.com
Biographical detail on Chairperson Tiwari beyond his election record, office actions reported in local press, and public contact information is not comprehensively available in open sources; this profile will be updated as further verified material becomes available.
09 · Faith & Heritage
Temples, Caves & Sacred Sites
The rural municipality's own tourism inventory lists 24 temples, caves, and historic or scenic spots spread across its six wards — a striking density of shrines for a hill area of just 57 km², and a resource local officials hope to develop for rural religious tourism.
| # | Site | Settlement | Ward |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gadyauli Khola Botanical Park | Arjunchaupari | 1 |
| 2 | Gupteshwar Mahadev Cave | Daregauda | 1 |
| 3 | Panchakanya Temple | Kerichaur | 1 |
| 4 | Jal Baraha Temple (Navagraha shrine, Jalbaraha forest) | Kalimati | 1 |
| 5 | Ketichaur Tourist Area | Simalchaur | 1 |
| 6 | Kamala Devi Shrine | Lamdanda | 2 |
| 7 | Kalika Devi Temple | Lamdanda | 2 |
| 8 | Siddha Baba Dham | Tamu Juro | 2 |
| 9 | Siddha Shila | Tamu Juro | 2 |
| 10 | Bhagwati Mai Shrine | Majha Chautara | 2 |
| 11 | Shivalaya | Lindi | 2 |
| 12 | Shivalaya | Majuwa | 2 |
| 13 | Ekant Shivalaya Cave | Ekakane | 3 |
| 14 | Kalika Temple, Rapakot | Rapakot | 4 |
| 15 | Khewang Kalika Temple | Khewang | 4 |
| 16 | Dahare Deurali (religious site) | Lahare | 5 |
| 17 | Devithan (religious site) | Arjunchaupari | 5 |
| 18 | Ghante Deurali (historic wayside shrine) | Ghante Deurali | 5 |
| 19 | Tal Pokhari (historic pond & shrine) | Talpokhari | 5 |
| 20 | Thaple Tourist Area | Thaple | 6 |
| 21 | Dashain Shivalaya Temple | Darau | 6 |
| 22 | Bhumiko Than (earth-deity shrine) | Bhaktikot | 6 |
| 23 | Ram Sita Temple | Kunchewari | 6 |
| 24 | Kaule Devi Temple | Kaule | 6 |
The Navagraha Temple, Jalbaraha
The most recently built and most-visited site on this list, the Navagraha Temple stands in the religious forest of Jalbaraha (Ward 1) and is described as Nepal's first temple dedicated exclusively to the nine Navagraha (celestial) deities, arranged as a formal Navagraha Shakti Peeth and surrounded by sacred peepal trees. Chairperson Prakash Tiwari and local businessman Prem Dhakal of Arjun Chaupari Bazaar have both spoken publicly about its role in reviving the local economy, with daily devotees and regular Gita discourse gatherings.
Caves & Wayside Shrines
Beyond temples, the inventory includes natural caves used as meditation and worship sites — the Gupteshwar Mahadev Cave in Daregauda and the Ekant Shivalaya Cave in Ekakane — along with wayside "deurali" shrines such as Dahare Deurali and Ghante Deurali, traditionally marking ridge-top rest points on old foot trails between villages.
This list reflects the rural municipality's own published inventory of religious and historic sites; precise architectural dates for the older temples are not comprehensively documented in public sources, and most (apart from the Navagraha Temple and the Thaple Buddha statue) remain modest community shrines rather than developed tourist attractions.
10 · Nation at Work
Economy & Livelihoods
A predominantly agrarian, remittance-supported hill economy typical of Syangja District, increasingly organised through local cooperative societies.
Agriculture
Maize, millet, rice in lower valleys, potato and seasonal vegetables form the subsistence base, alongside livestock rearing common across Syangja's hill wards.
Coffee, Fruit & Herbs
Coffee has become a notable cash crop: Ward 1 alone hosts a dedicated Coffee and Fruit Cooperative and a separate Khalte Coffee Producers' Cooperative, alongside herb ("jadibuti") cultivation supported by an agriculture-and-herbs cooperative in Ward 3.
Foreign Employment
As in much of hill Syangja, a significant share of working-age residents migrate for foreign employment, making remittances an important part of household income and contributing to the many closed-up homes noted around Arjun Chaupari Bazaar before the Navagraha Temple's construction.
Cooperative Societies & Financial Institutions
Eighteen registered cooperatives operate across the municipality's wards, most concentrated in Ward 1 (Arjun Chaupari Bazaar) and Ward 6 (Darau).
| Cooperative | Settlement | Ward |
|---|---|---|
| Rural Self-Reliance & Agriculture Cooperative | Arjunchaupari | 1 |
| Kalika Savings & Agriculture Cooperative | Arjunchaupari | 1 |
| Ex-Army Multipurpose Welfare Cooperative | Arjunchaupari | 1 |
| Coffee & Fruit Cooperative | Arjunchaupari | 1 |
| Darau Khola Labourers' Cooperative | Arjunchaupari | 1 |
| Khalte Coffee Producers' Cooperative | Arjunchaupari | 1 |
| Bhagwati Mai Multipurpose Cooperative | Arjunchaupari | 1 |
| Arjunchaupari Agriculture Cooperative | Arjunchaupari | 1 |
| Rapakot Multipurpose Women's Cooperative | Simalchaur | 3 |
| Janavikas Small Farmers' Agriculture Cooperative | Simalchaur | 3 |
| Darau Khola Multipurpose Cooperative | Arjunchaupari | 3 |
| Biji Agriculture & Herbs Cooperative | Arjunchaupari | 3 |
| Rapakot Kalika Small Farmers' Cooperative | Rapakot | 4 |
| Sustainable Agriculture Savings & Credit Cooperative | Aruchaur | 5 |
| Dahare Deurali Small Farmers' Cooperative | Aruchaur | 5 |
| Tamakhubari Agriculture Cooperative | Tamakhubari | 6 |
| Darau Small Farmers' Agriculture Cooperative | Darau | 6 |
| Darau Multipurpose Cooperative | Darau | 6 |
Cooperative names are translated from the municipality's official Nepali listing; several combine savings-and-credit functions with agricultural input supply for their member-farmers.
11 · Nation at Work
Marketplace & Trade
Arjun Chaupari's commercial life is anchored by small ward-centre bazaars rather than one large market town.
Arjun Chaupari Bazaar
The settlement at the rural municipality's own centre (Ward 1) is its principal marketplace, home to the municipal office, several cooperatives, and small shops and businesses — including that of Prem Dhakal, a local businessman who has spoken of the Navagraha Temple's daily crowds boosting trade after years of quiet, half-emptied streets.
Ghante Bazaar & Ward Centres
Smaller trading points such as Ghante Bazaar near Aruchaur (Ward 5) and the ward-centre markets at Rapakot and Darau serve as local exchange points for farm produce, household goods and transport links onward to Putalibazar and Syangja bazaar.
What's Traded
Seasonal vegetables, maize and millet, coffee cherries and dried coffee, livestock, and household provisions carried in from Putalibazar and Pokhara.
Road Links
The Helu–Arjunchaupari–Parbat road and the newer Arjunchaupari–Rapakot–Taalpokhari and Aaruchaur roads connect the bazaars to district and provincial trade routes.
Religious-Tourism Trade
The Navagraha Temple's daily devotee traffic has become a new, if unconventional, driver of footfall and small-business activity around Arjun Chaupari Bazaar.
Arjun Chaupari does not have a large wholesale market of district-wide significance; its bazaars function primarily as local retail and cooperative hubs serving surrounding farm settlements.
12 · People & Life
People & Lifestyle
Daily life in Arjun Chaupari follows the rhythms of hill-terrace farming, close-knit ward communities, and a calendar shaped by Hindu festivals and, in Gurung and Magar settlements, their own cultural traditions.
Communities
The population is a mix of Brahmin-Chhetri, Magar and Gurung households, spread across roughly 200 named settlements of varying size — from around 52 settlements in populous Ward 5 to as few as 17 in smaller wards. Most homes are built on terraced hillside plots with adjoining farmland.
Sirubari — A Model Gurung Village
Sirubari, a Gurung village within Arjun Chaupari at about 1,690 m elevation and roughly 46 km from Pokhara, is one of Nepal's earliest and best-known community-homestay destinations, with around 43 registered homestays. Visitors are hosted in Gurung households and can take in daily farming and craft routines, traditional dress and food, festival dance, and, on clear days, views toward Dhaulagiri, Annapurna, Fishtail (Machhapuchhre) and Lamjung Himal.
Daily Rhythm
Mornings centre on livestock care and terrace farming; many households also run a small cooperative share, shop, or coffee plot alongside subsistence crops.
Festivals
Dashain, Tihar and Maghe Sankranti are observed across the municipality, with Gurung communities such as Sirubari also marking their own cultural festivals and dance traditions.
Migration's Mark
Foreign labour migration has left a visible mark on village life, with locked or half-used homes in some settlements — a pattern local leaders have pointed to when discussing revival efforts like the Navagraha Temple.
13 · People & Life
Education
Arjun Chaupari's own household survey counts 32 schools (26 basic-level, 6 secondary), while the national IEMIS education-management report for the area separately records 29 institutions — a difference that mainly reflects which reporting year and which private schools are counted.
Schools (municipal count)
Basic / Secondary
Schools (IEMIS count)
Public / Private (IEMIS)
Public Schools (Selected)
Amarjyoti Secondary School (Arjunchaupari) · Jana Secondary School (Rapakot) · Ghante Secondary School (Aruchaur) · Darau Secondary School (Darau) · Panchakanya Secondary School (Arjunchaupari) · Sarbodaya Secondary School (Aruchaur) — plus 26 basic-level (grades up to 8) schools spread across every ward, including Kalika, Krishna, Ganesh, Chandidanda, Deurali, Devisthan, Navadurga, Bhawani, Laxmi, Lakuri, Bayale, Saraswati, Siddha and Suryoday basic schools, among others.
Private Schools
Sitala Devi English Boarding School, located at Beltari in Ward 1, teaches from Early Childhood Development (ECD) through Grade 8 and had 113 enrolled students as of the 2081 BS (2024–25) IEMIS report. Arjunchaupari Children Academy, also in Ward 1, runs from Nursery through Grade 10 and is the municipality's other main private institution.
Literacy rate: 79.21% (2021 census) — broadly in line with the wider Syangja District average. School counts and enrolment figures above are compiled from the rural municipality's household survey, the CEHRD IEMIS report, and Edusanjal's school directory; exact current enrolment for every individual school is not publicly itemised.
14 · People & Life
Culture, Sports & Local Life
Culturally part of the wider Syangja hill belt — a mix of Brahmin-Chhetri, Magar and Gurung communities practising terraced-hill agriculture and observing the shared Hindu festival calendar of Dashain, Tihar and Maghe Sankranti.
Setting & Homestay Tourism
Beyond Sirubari's established homestay circuit, the municipality's ridge villages offer terraced-farmland views typical of the Gandaki mid-hills, with the Navagraha Temple now emerging as a second, faith-based draw for visitors.
15 · Data
Statistics Dashboard
Key population figures rendered with plain Canvas — no charting library required.
Population by Gender (2021 Census)
Census Comparison (2011 vs 2021)
Population by Ward (Municipal Household Survey)
Local Level Population, Syangja District (approx., thousands)
16 · About This Project
Developer Profile: Chandra Kafle
This encyclopedia was built and is maintained by Chandra Kafle — himself a resident of the very municipality it documents.
Chandra Kafle
Born 13 February 2005 and originally from Arjunchaupari-3 in Syangja, Chandra Kafle works as a social media manager and IT professional focused on digital-identity verification and search-entity optimization for public figures. His work centres on organising a person's scattered public information into a coherent, verifiable online profile, in line with search-quality standards such as Google's E-E-A-T guidelines, and on securing official verification badges across social platforms.
Digital Security Work
Kafle has helped secure verification for more than 60 high-profile social accounts and offers related digital-defence services, including technical account hardening and the removal of impersonating or fraudulent profiles impersonating his clients.
Writing
Alongside his technical work, Kafle writes poetry and personal essays in Nepali, with pieces published in outlets including Onlinekhabar and Setopati — several touching on themes of migration, rural life and family that echo the demographic story told elsewhere on this page.
Contact & Links
Email: contact@chandrakafle.info.np · Website: chandrakafle.info.np
Biographical details above are drawn from Kafle's own public professional website and press coverage of his work; treat this as a self-published profile rather than independently verified biography.
17 · Reference
Glossary & Sources
Glossary
Gaunpalika — Nepali term for "rural municipality," the lowest tier of local government in predominantly rural areas.
VDC — Village Development Committee, the pre-2017 local administrative unit replaced by wards.
Sthaniya Chunab — "Local election," Nepal's local-level elections (2079 BS = 2022 CE).
Chautari — a stone-and-tree rest platform built beside trails, traditionally used by travellers and porters to pause and set down loads.
Navagraha — the nine celestial bodies of Hindu astrology, worshipped together as a set of deities.
Figures on this page are compiled from public census, government-election and municipal records for educational reference; ward-level detail and recent infrastructure notes should be verified against the municipality's official website for current accuracy. Where sources conflict (population counts, school totals), this page presents each figure alongside its origin rather than picking one silently.