Bhaktapur, January 31

Reconstruction of heritage monuments in Bhaktapur has failed to get momentum due to lack of skilled manpower in the district. Bhaktapur is facing crunch of skilled manpower after many sculptors and craftsmen left the district in search of better wages.

Surya Bahadur Ranjitkar, a sculptor from Bhaktapur, is now working on the reconstruction of Krishna Mandir of Patan Durbar Square along with his father Asha Bahadur Ranjitkar, 60. Bhaktapur Municipality had offered him reconstruction work at the Bhaktapur Durbar Square, but for very low wages.

“Though the municipality had offered work at reconstruction sites in Bhaktapur Durbar Square, we chose to work in Lalitpur,” said Surya Bahadur Ranjitkar. I have been working with Kathmandu Valley Preservation Trust for 16 years and I am getting satisfactory wages,” he said.

In the same way, Kancha Ranjitkar,76, another sculptor, who is working on reconstruction of Krishna Mandir in Bhaktapur, said that he was paid Rs 1,000 per day by the municipality for his work.

“There were more than 10 sculptors in Bhaktapur, but all of them have moved to other districts after getting better wages. My two sons recently returned home from Gorkha after completing reconstruction of Manakamana temple,” said Ranjitkar. He said if the municipality paid enough wages to skilled workers, there would not be any delay in the construction of heritage monuments in Bhaktapur.

Ram Govinda Shrestha, an architect and chief of the culture section at Bhaktapur Municipality, said  some of the heritage sites in Bhaktapur were still under construction due to lack of skilled workers.