Weekly commentary After the Great Quake, it is now time to rebuild
Two weeks after
the calamitous earthquake, the country is slowly limping back to life. The
quake brought death and destruction, especially to the central part of the
country, with the latest death toll according to the official count hitting
7,912 and the number of injured at over 17,871. Hundreds of thousands have been
rendered homeless. As of Saturday, 297,266 private houses have been completely
damaged and 277,050 houses partially damaged. Still, the casualty figure is
expected to rise as more information comes in from the districts which have
been hardest hit.
The rescue and
relief operation is in full swing now, although it was belated in the
beginning. The first couple of days after the quake, the government were in a
kind of confusion regarding how to go about the rescue and relief works due to
the sheer large scale damage and its ill-preparedness. But later on the
government came to its senses and started expediting the rescue and relief
distribution works in a systematic and well-coordinated manner. The rescue and
relief operations are intensified by the Nepalese Army, police and numerous
international teams. However, there are reports from many quake-ravaged areas
of relief not reaching the needy people. Or even if relief has reached to these
remote places, it is inadequate.
Amidst all this,
Prime Minister Sushil Koirala has announced that special relief and
rehabilitation package would be brought for the earthquake affected people, now
languishing in makeshift shelters or in some cases under the open sky, without
enough food. Addressing the Parliament session on Friday, the Prime Minister
called for greater unity among all the parties and the people at this difficult
time to overcome the adversity. He exhorted the people to have composure and
join hands to ameliorate the situation.
Premier Koirala,
along with CPN (UML) chairman KP Oli and the Unified CPN (Maoist) chairman
Pushpa Kamal Dahal, on Thursday visited Rasuwa, Nuwakot and Dhading districts
to take stock of the damage caused by the April 25 earthquake. Before visiting
these districts, the PM on Wednesday visited Gorkha and saw for himself the
extent of damage there. On Tuesday, the Prime Minister had visited
Sindhupalchok district, another hardest-hit district. Barpak of Gorkha district
is the epicentre of the 7.6-magnitude quake. During his field trips to these
quake affected districts, Prime Minister Koirala tried to assuage the people
that although the political parties might differ on matters political, they
were one on the question of relief and rehabilitation. He reiterated that the government and the
major political parties are agreed on providing short-term relief to the quake
victims and their long-term rehabilitation.
The immediate
task at hand now is to provide relief to and make arrangements for temporary
shelter for the quake victims. The need for speeding up the rehabilitation
works is also more pressing as monsoon season is barely two months away. The
State should also not lose sight of the need to plan for the long term relief
and rehabilitation of the quake affected people.
The government
has also announced a resettlement programme for the quake victims. Individuals
and organisations in the private sector have also announced that they are going
to help build temporary shelters and permanent houses for the homeless. These
are some welcome news but attention should be given to undertaking the
rehabilitation and resettlement programmes in a coordinated manner. The poor
should be prioritised in this task.
A vital point
would be missed here if the destruction by the devastating earthquake of many
of our historical heritage sites is not mentioned here. Many temples and old
buildings at the Kathmandu Durbar Square, Bhaktapur Durbar Square and Lalitpur
Durbar Square, listed under the UNESCO World Heritage Sites list, have been
razed to the ground. It is said that the quake demolished 116 such heritages in
Bhaktapur alone. The Dharahara, another ancient monument, is gone and what
remains of it is only a stump. We will have to restore and rebuild these
important heritages to preserve the identity of Kathmandu and the landmarks of
our civilization.
After the rescue,
rehabilitation and recovery phase is over, then, the country will move on to
the phase of rebuilding. The nation must pull its resources together for this
rebuilding phase for it is going to require much investment and efforts. The
rebuilding should be sustainable. The April 25 Great Quake has taught us a
great lesson. Now, we cannot afford to take things for granted and remain
complacent it comes to rebuilding our towns. We should make it a point to
strictly adhere to the building code, always keeping in mind that we are living
on a geological fault line and therefore always vulnerable to quakes - big and
small.
Moreover, this is
a testing time for our country. In a
way, this earthquake has foisted an opportunity upon us the opportunity of
building a new Nepal. It is at trying times like the present one that a
nation's strength is put to a test. It is an occasion for all Nepalis to rise
with a new mindset and rebuild its damaged infrastructure. Let us all call to
our collective responsibility and turn this adversity into one of opportunity
for development and renewal.