KATHMANDU, JULY 5
As many as 19 people were killed and 10 others injured in the floods and landslides triggered by heavy rainfall throughout the country after the onset of monsoon on June 14. Similarly, 25 persons have gone missing.
According to data released by the Ministry of Home Affairs, 17 districts have been affected by rain-induced disasters. They include Bhojpur, Nuwakot, Sankhuwasabha, Taplejung, Panchthar, Ilam, Tanahun, Gorkha, Okhaldhunga, Sindhuli, Dailekh, Achham, Jumla, Rukum East, Sindhupalchowk, Kaski and Rupandehi districts. Of them, Sankuwasabha, Nuwakot, Bhojpur and Taplejung are the worst disaster-hit districts.
The MoHA informed that 192 houses were damaged or destroyed due to floods and landslides, adding that damage assessment was under way. It said the government would provide free treatment to those injured in floods and landslides. The search for missing persons continues. The MoHA has instructed the local administrations to provide relief and rescue to people affected by natural disasters.
As per the existing provisions, the government should provide Rs 500,000 to those displaced in the mountain region, Rs 400,000 to those displaced in the hills, and Rs 300,000 for victims of floods and landslides in the Tarai region to rebuild their houses. If people displaced by floods and landslides don't own land to build houses, they will get additional Rs 300,000 to purchase land.
If the government cannot provide land to the displaced people, it will build houses for them. The government has also decided to provided cash relief of Rs 200,000 to the kin of a person killed in a natural disaster and additional Rs 100,000 for another death in the family.
Meanwhile, National Emergency Operations Centre under the MoHA has requested all federal and provincial ministries, local levels, and districts to coordinate with for effective disaster preparedness, response, and relief operation.
Under the inter-agency coordination, the concerned districts and local levels will be required to conduct monsoon preparedness publicity campaign via community FMs and other media. Similarly, the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport will keep trained human resources with heavy equipment in strategic locations of national highways to clear possible obstruction of roads and restore water supply. The Nepali Army, Nepal Police and Armed Police Force will extend necessary support to the concerned agency in search, rescue and relief operations.
A version of this article appears in the print on July 6, 2023, of The Himalayan Times.
