KATHMANDU: Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, Physical Infrastructure and Transport, and Urban Development Kulman Ghising has urged Helambu Rural Municipality to take necessary steps to resolve the obstruction at the Melamchi Water Supply Project source area.
The minister made the request after locals affected by the project shut down the water intake, halting water supply to the Kathmandu Valley. The protesters have been demanding implementation of previous agreements with the government.
On Monday, Minister Ghising called Helambu Rural Municipality Chair Nima Gyaljen Sherpa, asking him to help mediate and support efforts to reopen the water source. Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Sushilata Karki, who currently oversees the Ministry of Water Supply, had directed authorities to address the issue immediately.
Minister Ghising said the government is ready to resolve the concerns through dialogue, adding that the Valley is already facing a drinking water shortage due to the shutdown. He urged local authorities to take the issue seriously so that water supply to Kathmandu can resume as soon as possible.
In response, Chair Sherpa stressed that the government must fulfill past agreements. He said the demands include payment for land and house rent acquired by the project, settlement of dues to suppliers linked with the former contractor CMC, construction of the Melamchi–Ghyang road, and allocation of 25 percent of the revenue earned from water sales in Kathmandu, based on the volume of water diverted from the Melamchi River, for Helambu’s development.
On October 7, 2024, an agreement had been reached among the then Water Supply Minister, the Melamchi Flood Victims Struggle Committee, Helambu Rural Municipality, and local political party representatives.
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