I am sure the handle is original, but it has lost its wrapping. The handles of dha are, characteristically, round in cross section, and wooden covered in metal or wrapped with cord, rattan, ray skin, etc.
Here are the pictures of the Kachin-style dao I was sent. The owner wrote the following about the sword and where it came from:
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This is what I know about the sword, my dad brought it back from Burma at the end of World War II. He at one time said it was from a tribe of Native Headhunters, I am not sure if there is any truth to that or if it just made a good story line. He was with the 236th Engineers Combat Battalion in June of 1945 and that is about all I know of Him, His name was Edgar F. Moore. The Handle of the sword is 11 inches and the blade is 21 inches, and the blade has the marking of a 50 inside a symbol like maybe a shield. The blade and scabbard are in very good condition and the blade is still very sharp.
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I replied with my thoughts about the Kachin Rangers, and it being likely that his father worked on the Burma Road, and he wrote back:
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I did see the Kachin Rangers on your web site and meant to tell you that one of those individuals is carrying a sword that looks something like mine, well, at least the outside does. Yes, you would be right, in that he was working on the Burma Road in support of a water unit. I have a letter written by him to his father and he says that he is writing from somewhere in Burma!
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Yours looks very similar to this one, and it may just be a case where a Kachin Ranger used his own dha in an army-issue scabbard. You also could try gently pulling off the handle, as I can see that it has gotten compressed onto the blade a bit, and see if there are marks covered by the wood.