BLOG SURF: New drain system

Monsoon rains have always been a cause of pain and anxiety for the inhabitants in Nepal’s Terai, the southern plain area bordering India. This year, the monsoon has taken its toll of 75 dead and hundreds of houses destroyed so far.

Siddhartha Nagar, a town in the Nepal-India border named after the prince who later became Buddha, is also located in the Terai. The town has been vulnerable to flooding every monsoon season, causing loss of life and property, and consequently misery, frustration and anger.

Not anymore. This year, Siddhartha Nagar has stood more resilient than before to the seasonal downpours, with no casualties and hardly any damage to public property. In less than half an hour of heavy rain, the water drains out.

No ponding and no inundation. The town was established 50 years ago. It is spread out in the plains, a trade transit at Nepal-India border, and located as the nearest city to Lumbini to the West, the birthplace of Lord Buddha.