Author: Raj Adhikari, Sadhana Acharya

Doi: 10.26480/mjhrm.01.2026.33.35

This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License CC BY 4.0, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited

Pattharkatta is the ethnic minority community of Nepal having stone-carving as the ancestral occupation. This study was conducted in Sawatikar village of Nawalparasi West district to assess the current status of the occupational shift of the Pattharkattas. A household survey was conducted, and data was analyzed using STATA and MS Excel. From the results, it was found that the respondents started stone-carving from the early average age of 12.64 years. However, in the present day, only about 1/3rd of the respondents had stonecarving as their primary occupation, while the remaining have already shifted to other occupations like agriculture, wage labour and business. The major reasons behind their shift were mass production of modern technologies, low earnings from stonecarving, lack of social prestige, and health hazards due to stone dust. Most of those who shifted were quiet satisfied with their new occupation. This shifting trend shows the decline of caste-based occupation, and projects that such occupations may go extinct sooner or later.