3 Jan, Melamchi: The increasing cold has made life difficult in the alpine areas of the Sindhupalchowk district with quake-stricken at the receiving end of the government’s apathy and the inclement weather.
The slight drizzle accompanied with the chill weather and a thick blanket of dense fog in the mountainous regions from Sunday has disrupted normal life. Many villagers rendered homeless in the massive earthquake of April 25, 2015 are facing another winter in temporary shelter.
A local villager, Karmatokpe Lama, has been living under a temporary shelter at Shermathang, after the earthquake destroyed his only residence. “We have spent two winters in the shelter and again it seems we have to brace the hardship,” Lama said, emphasizing that the cold is unbearable inside the shelter.
Many villagers complain that the government has been postponing the reconstruction of permanent residences under various pretext.
When the sun shines, it is easier but as the night sets in all of us are worried as to how we are going to spend the night, said Bishnu Gajurel of Melamchi Municipality – 12.
The villagers living near the Ganesh mountain, located north of district headquarters of Chautara, are having to tolerate the cold wave coming from the Himalayas. More than 20 families in Bhotang area are facing the same plight while many have migrated to the capital city looking for shelter at their relatives’ places. Many have been displaced in Helambu, Bhotang, Baskharka, Golche, Gumba, Syaule and Selang and are now living under temporary shelter at Baskharka.
Meanwhile, Local Development Officer (LDO), Krishna Bahadur Shahi, said the displaced locals have already received Rs 50,000 in grant for reconstruction. He added that the authorities were now preparing to segregate the actual homeless people from the fake ones.
Chief District Officer (CDO), Antar Bahadur Silwal, said the actual data on the number of the displaced was yet to be collected. RSS
By Aditya Dahal
