18 Families Displaced by Landslide Live in Temporary Camp for Five Years

Nawalparasi. Eighteen families displaced by a landslide in Hupsekot Rural Municipality-5, Baghkhor, Nawalparasi (Bardghat Susta East) have been forced to live in a temporary camp for five years. After the severe landslide on Asar 24, 2078 BS, the settlement was displaced and they were moved to a safe location, but the process of permanent resettlement has not yet been finalized.

Initially, after the landslide, the displaced took shelter in schools and community buildings. They are now living in temporary shelters built in a small field in Jukepani, Hupsekot-1. Their daily lives are spent in narrow rooms made of blocks and tin, with limited open space and a lack of basic infrastructure.

The five years that have passed with the hope of permanent settlement have now increased their despair. The members of the displaced families, who earn a living through daily wage labor, are forced to spend nights in fear of water and snakes as soon as the monsoon begins.

Local Til Bahadur Somai Magar said that the hope of getting a permanent house is gradually diminishing as years pass in the temporary camp. "The camp, which was meant for a short time, has already been five years. Every year, as soon as the monsoon starts, the same fear repeats. It is very difficult to keep children, the elderly, and women safe. We just need a permanent settlement in a safe place," he said.

Before the landslide, the displaced families had one to three bigas of arable land per household, a house, and a basis for animal husbandry. The landslide washed away not only their houses but also their means of livelihood. Now, most families are surviving on daily labor.

Local Dilmaya Somai Magar said that the scene of the entire village collapsing due to the landslide has not yet left her eyes. "After the landslide, I gave birth in this camp. My child grew up here and is now five years old," she said, "but the matter of building our permanent house is still uncertain. We are worried about how long we will have to live a temporary life."

Khem Bahadur Somai Magar said that the displaced are suffering because the three-tiered government has not been able to coordinate to solve their problems. "The government says the process is moving forward, but our lives are being spent in this temporary shelter," he said.

Hupsekot Rural Municipality has completed all the necessary processes for permanent resettlement years ago, informed Rural Municipality Chairperson Laxmi Devi Pandey. However, she said that the work could not move forward because the necessary decision for resettlement has not come from the Ministry of Home Affairs.

"The rural municipality has completed all the necessary processes from its side for the construction of permanent housing for the landslide displaced," said Chairperson Pandey. "However, the resettlement work has not been able to move forward due to the lack of a necessary decision from the Ministry of Home Affairs. The rural municipality is ready to start the construction process as soon as the decision is received."

According to her, most of the hilly settlements in Hupsekot Rural Municipality-5 and 6 are still at high risk of landslides and soil erosion. She said that every year, as soon as the monsoon begins, the locals living in those areas have to live in fear.