Kathmandu, April 25: A decade has been elapsed since the ‘2015 Gorkha Earthquake’ struck but its scars have yet to be healed.
One cannot forget the devastating day i.e. 12 Baisakh 2072 (25 April 2015) that caused huge loss of lives and properties in Nepal. The haunting memories of the 2015 earthquake are reminding Nepali people of the fear time and again.
The houses collapsed in the heart of the federal capital and other places have not yet been rebuilt. Even after a decade, Nepali people are still eagerly awaiting for reconstruction.
The process of rebuilding private houses, schools, archaeological sites, and various government buildings that were destroyed by the earthquake is underway.
On Saturday, 12 April 2015 at 11:56 am, a 7.6-magnitude earthquake rattled Barpak, Gorkha, resulting in the loss of 8,979 lives.
In the same earthquake, 22,309 people were injured. The earthquake caused total damage to approximately 1 million private houses, 7,553 schools, 49,681 classrooms, 544 health institutions, and partial damage to 653 health institutions.
Similarly, 415 government buildings, 920 cultural heritages including 170 World Heritage sites, and 383 security agency buildings were damaged.
Furthermore, 3,212 water supply structures, 53 roads, and 299 human settlements were affected.
The Department of Urban Development and Building Construction, through its Implementation Unit (Buildings and Housing) and its subordinate bodies, has also published details of the projects undertaken.
According to the unit’s engineer Kishor Bikram Shahi, out of 835,185 beneficiaries identified for private housing reconstruction, 834,267 have received the first installment.
Among those who received the first installment, 770,774 (92.4%) received the second installment, and 744,045 (89.2%) accessed third installment.
The 62nd Annual Report of the Office of the Auditor General highlighted that the work areas of the project included 31 districts, 14 severely affected and 17 less affected by the 2015 earthquake.
The projects are for the sustainable and planned reconstruction of earthquake-damaged structures and the rehabilitation and relocation of displaced individuals and families.
The report pointed out that the work for the sustainable and planned reconstruction of structures damaged by the earthquake and the rehabilitation and relocation of displaced people was not effective.
“In terms of private housing reconstruction, agreements were made with 834,821 people, spending NPR 231.61 billion, and in terms of retrofitting, agreements were made with 33,905 people, spending NPR 1.7431 billion, totalling NPR 233.35 billion.” the report states.
As of the end of Asar 2081 BS (Mid-July 2024), a payment of NPR 29.25 million remained pending for reconstruction and retrofitting.
The report also stressed the monitoring of beneficiaries who did not receive the first, second, or final installments after the grant agreements.
