HELAMBU: The Melamchi River flowing through the middle of the mountain is shrouded in fog. When the fog thickens and the heart of the people of Helambu begins to tremble and then they are forced to spend the night in fear of nature’s fury.
On Saturday, the weather in Helambu area of Sindhupalchowk was clear throughout the day. Therefore, the right and left bank of the Melamchi River could be seen from where the coastal settlements and remote villages were clearly visible. Hundreds of meters above the river bank, the mountain seemed to have collapsed.
Even now, even without rain, the mudslide is falling from the mountains in some places. In the middle of the forest, streaks of white camel soil are formed by leaking from the same hill of Helambu. Looking at it like this, it seems that the hill of Helambu is still sliding. And the inhabitants are living in the terror created by nature.
In some places, dry landslides were falling from the hills, while in others, there were mounds of rocks and mud. The lower level of the river bank has been piled up by the floodwaters from above. The river continued to cut along the banks of the river.
The rising water level in the upper part of Helambu has not stopped flowing as it reaches the lower level. “Whenever there is low rainfall, the lower coastal area is at risk. Not even 10 percent of the collapsed mountain has fallen. There is still a lot to fall, so Melamchi and Helambu residents are forced to spend their days at risk,” said Helmurural municipality chairNimaGalgen Sherpa.
There is still a risk that the mountains, which look like corn from the outside, will collapse and cause a flood. Therefore, the residents of the lower coastal areas do not get any sleep at night even when there is little rain. Efforts were also being made to dig up the houses buried around the river including Melamchi bazaar and restore them to their old condition even though the flow of gags at the upper level has not stopped.
MaiyaDulal’s house in Melamchi Municipality-11 was filled with muddy water two floors like other neighbors. After installing the excavator, he has now found the floor of the house. Digging houses with the help of laborers, she has not lost her fear of coming to Melamchi. Some houses have been buried in the river and some houses have been washed away. Displaced people are living in makeshift tents after riverbanks in parts of the upper region of Helambu were destroyed. They are demanding permanent residency.
Ganeshebagar of Helamburural municipality-2 is suffering from the same flood after the heavy rains this monsoon. After the name Bagaror bank was turned into a real Bagar, the houses of 45 families here have been washed away by the river. Some houses are lying in the middle of the river.
Some have been buried inside the rubble, while the roof of some houses has been wiped out. The flood survivors are sitting on the rubble watching the river in awe and disbelief. The river has flown through their concrete houses and they are now living in temporary tents. “How long will we stay in temporary tents? We need permanent residence,” flood survivor Ram Tamang pleaded before Home Minister Bal Krishna Khand on Saturday.
He lamented that he had a big problem managing his day-to-day life even though he ate in a group. Home Minister Khand has returned with the assurance that the government is serious about the necessary management and will find a way out soon. He also instructed the disaster management agencies to work out a plan of action to be taken immediately.
“The first thing is roads, bridges, relief, rescue, food and shelter,” said the Home Minister, After the aerial and on-site inspection study, Home Minister Khand said that the area was devastated due to low topography and pointed out the need to build causeways and suspension bridges in necessary places. Koshi and Kamala are directing towards the settlement Mountains and mountainous areas are at great risk of landslides.
At a time when landslides and subsequent floods are wreaking havoc on many hilly and mountainous areas, including Helambu and Melamchi, flooding in the Tarai and trying to divert large rivers has become another challenge. This time too, Saptakoshi has cut about one and a half kilometer area in Belka Municipality-8 of Udayapur on the border of Chataraghat of Sunsari.
“Some time ago, the flood had penetrated within 100 meters of the area, but now if only 20 meters had been cut, the course of the river would have changed,” said local Raj Kumar Chaudhary. After an on-site visit to the area on Saturday, Home Minister Khand said the river was changing its course due to climate change. He said that the government was focusing on how to make the people safe from the Koshi floods.
The Kamala River is also affecting many areas of Dhanusha and Siraha. In Saptari area, four excavators and three excavators were used to open and divert the river. At the same time, security personnel and locals controlled the river by filling thousands of bags with sand.
Therefore, the flood that came in the first week of July could not enter the settlement, says Chief of Kamala River Control Project EkrajBhattarai. At present, about Rs. 25 million has been spent for the temporary embankment. The permanent embankment here is estimated to cost over Rs. 400 million. The Home Minister had also inspected the area and obtained information through on-site inspection and observation.
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