Government’s plan: Relief to flood victims after completing search and rescue within two days

KATHMANDU: Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has said that relief distribution for victims of the continuous rains, floods, landslides, and inundation on Ashwin 11th and 12th has begun.

In a press conference held on Tuesday at the office of the Prime Minister and the Council of Ministers at Singha Durbar, he also stated that the search and rescue work in the flood-affected areas will be completed within two days.

Prime Minister Oli further said that the injured would receive free medical treatment. He assured that necessary measures have been put in place to prevent and control possible diseases that may spread following the disaster.

He also informed that the process to restore damaged services such as drinking water supply, roads, telecommunication, and electricity has already been initiated.

On behalf of Prime Minister Oli, Chief Secretary Eak Narayan Aryal presented the government’s detailed response efforts.

According to the government, 224 people have died, 24 are missing, and 158 have been injured as a result of the latest disaster..

Aryal said that 4,331 people who are at high risk have been rescued and relocated to safer places.

The continuous rains have severely affected 21 districts, including Kavrepalanchok, Lalitpur, Dhading, Kathmandu, Sindhupalchok, Sindhuli, and Makwanpur.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Oli also acknowledged that the disaster was greater than the government’s prior preparations, which may have led to shortcomings in the rescue and search operations. He also expressed his commitment to rectifying such issues in the future.

He urged everyone to treat the suffering of the people as a collective national pain and called for unity in search, rescue, relief, and support efforts.

“This is not just the government’s concern; it is a sorrow for the entire society. We are all deeply saddened by these disasters,” said Prime Minister Oli. “Some damages were also caused by structural flaws. In the future, while constructing infrastructure, we will focus on creating disaster-resilient and long-term sustainable structures.”