KATHMANDU: Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba has accused the incumbent government of being negligent and charged the Prime Minister and his cabinet for having shirked from its essential responsibilities of the state when the entire country was caught in flood, inundation, and landslides.
He was speaking with dissatisfaction at the House of Representatives (HoR) while participating in the proposal of public importance.
Deuba hurled a charge on the government for delayed response in reaching out the victims of natural disaster that the country saw this monsoon.
He further made a note with a tinge of sadness that the government was not prompt and sincere at a time citizens of Nepal were in grave distress and struggling to cope up in the sudden spell of continuous rains bringing deluge all around especially in the Terai region.
Deuba wondered, ”Do helicopters rescue and restore the victims in a situation like this? Isn’t it the duty of the state to stand by the side of citizens in hours of distress like this?”
It was apparent from the decisions and actions of the government that they chose not to act and preferred to remain inactive deliberately. “If the entire state machinery lies dormant in the face of the onslaught of a natural disaster of such a huge magnitude like this, then what a mere political party in opposition can do?” Deuba questioned.
He further pointed out referring to victims of the flood that some sections of the Terai got inundated due to high walls built up by India near to border areas and victims of adjacent villages in border areas wanted Nepal’s government to talk to India for a long-term solution to the problem which plagues them every monsoon.
“How far can we go by accusing each other of disasters like these as two countries are neighbors for eternity?” he questioned adding, “’Let us find out the solution by sitting across the table and talk out all that we are facing to arrive at the mutually agreed solution.”
Deuba suggested affirming that it is the responsibility of the government to find out the permanent solution to the problem that monsoon triggers every year. Deuba continued, ”India has been cautioning people who live and do business near the banks of rivers and has been asking them to leave the place in face of palpable danger right since the day Koshi Barrage was built.”
He said, “Why the government not tried to understand the whole issue and has come forward to suggest a viable alternative to these people living at the banks of the river?
He urged the government to take up the diplomatic route in order to talk to India so that those who have been living near the bank of Koshi much before the time when Koshi Barrage was built so that they are not displaced.
Comment