Locals Demand Increased Height of Karnali River Embankment in Tikapur

Tikapur. Locals have demanded that the height of the embankment being constructed on the Karnali River in Daulatpur, Tikapur-5, Kailali, be increased due to its low height.

Locals complain that the low height of the embankment will not reduce the risk when the water flow in the river increases. They have demanded that the embankment be built to the same height as the riverbank, which is 12 meters, even though the embankment is being built at 9 meters with concrete and 1 meter of gravel on top, making it only 10 meters high. Singhraj Budhamagar of Kermidanda said that the embankment needs to be built with a long-term vision and that the embankment's height is insufficient to protect citizens who have already faced risks, adding that the height is 2 meters short and urging for efforts from all sectors to increase it, as there will be a risk if the water flow in the river increases during the monsoon.

Due to the low height of the embankment, if the water of the Karnali River enters the village during the monsoon, it will affect not only Tikapur-5 but also the lower wards 6, 7, 8, and 9. There is a risk of Karnali River water entering the settlement every year due to floods. Barghar Dharmaraj Jaishi of South Sahipur said that dozens of families in the coastal areas are forced to leave their homes every monsoon. "The risk is not expected to decrease due to the low height of the embankment being built now," Jaishi said. "The fear of the locals has not subsided."

The embankment is being constructed by a construction company that took the contract under the Rani Jamara Kulariya Irrigation Project. The construction company stated that they are working according to the cost estimate provided by the project. "Some places are being demolished and worked on during the construction. Construction is ongoing in the demolished areas," said Madhavprasad Lekhak, the site in-charge overseer of the construction company. "Work is being done as per the agreement."

Supervisor Ramkrishna Chaudhary of the Rani Jamara Kulariya Irrigation Project said that the current work is being done according to the cost estimate. "I have no information about why such a cost estimate was made; I am only responsible for monitoring my work," he said.

The construction company is building the embankment on the Karnali River under a contract for 2,363 cubic meters.