Quake-stricken desperately waiting for
government aid
(By Sitaram Adhikari)
(By Sitaram Adhikari)
Malekhu (Dhading), Feb 12: Chandra Bahadur Chepang's house at
Simthali of Mahadevsthan VDC – 2 collapsed during the earthquake, but he is yet
to receive housing reconstruction grant.
He had shown his demolished house to a team of technical experts
dispatched by the government but the team did not mention his house in the
reconstruction aid list. Chepang's family is currently living under a makeshift
shelter with a thatched roof.
Chepang has already notified the VDC office of the need for
support as he has been living in the vulnerable shelter for the past two years.
One non-governmental organization had arrived and promised to
build a toilet for the family but no one has pledged to build his home, a local
teacher Tilak Chepang shared. "My two daughters have been handicapped, in
such a situation why isn't the government seeing anything?" Chepang
complained. "We are going to die in the field's track waiting for the
government money," he added.
Many Chepang people are living in the primary school building
after their houses were razed during the massive earthquake of April, 2015. The
children are now feverish with deteriorating health conditions after spending
prolonged time in makeshift shelters built in the open fields.
A total of 25 Chepang families living in Mahadevsthan – 2 have
not made it to the reconstruction aid list. In ward no 3, there are 15 such
families. The carelessness on part of the technical team have deprived them
inclusion in the list of those entitled to receive reconstruction grant.
In Jogimara VDC, 52 households of the Chepang community have
also not been listed. They complain that the government has neglected them. There
are a hundred such families in Dhusha VDC – 3 and 4, according to Nepal Chepang
Association.
From across the district the government authorities have
received 15,000 complaints but none of them have been addressed as yet. RSS
(Photo Available)
