In reality, the government has dropped no amount at all for the quake victims in Gorkha. The money received by the likes of Chepang and Sarki was actually provided by the Red Cross Society - Nepal. And few people in the village are clear about the matter. But some are fuming against the 'government's discrimination'.
"We don't know the criteria of getting the money. The FMs tell that quake victims are being provided Rs 10,000 for winter. We are also quake victims, we haven't got it, but people in other villages have already received the amount," said Thapa. He added that organizations used to help quake victims in the past but even they do not appear these days. "Winter is killing us. We have no proper shelter to keep us warm. Neither do we have warm clothes," he added.
Meanwhile, Jummadin Miya of Taple village stated that it would be of no use if the government further delayed the winter relief. "Winter set in long ago, we are already in the middle of the season. These are the toughest days when warm clothes are needed. If the government can't provide the money now, what's the point in providing the winter relief after the winter is over?" he questioned.
The quake victims in Gorkha had heard of the relief amount when it was announced. Most of them had planned what to do with the Rs 10,000. However, whenever they approach VDC offices to claim the amount, the officials send them back empty handed stating that the relief had not arrived yet. While the government is yet to reach out to these victims, some organizations and volunteers have reached out to 24 VDCs of Gorkha with warm clothes, blankets and financial support, District Natural Disaster Rescue Committee informed. Nevertheless, quake victims of other 36 VDCs and two municipalities of the district have not received any kind of help from anyone.
According to Chief District Officer (CDO) of Gorkha, Uddhav Timilsina, a lot of quake victims call him everyday to inquire if the relief amount was in. "When will the government provide us the Rs 10,000 meant for warm clothes? Hasn't it come yet? The winter is going to be over now," Timilsina quoted the victims as questioning him over the phone. "Not only the quake victims, even the local leaders, youths, social organizations are curious about the matter. But the government has not sent the budget yet," he said.
Tired of giving the same answer to all, the CDO had held a meeting with local stakeholders to brief about the matter some days back. He expressed unhappiness with some NGOs for distributing relief as they pleased. "They (some NGOs) distributed relief in some VDCS of the district. But in doing so, some quake victims were left out. This was not good to give some and leave out some. So I warned them from doing so again," said Timilsina.
Following the direction, the organizations had worked in coordination with the Natural Disaster Rescue Committee.
The government had announced to provide the relief amount by the end of November. However, December is nearing its completion and the budget has not reached the concerned offices, let aside the recipients. According to Timilsina, after the budget reaches, it will take few weeks to distribute the money among the victims in the entire district. There are 60 VDCs and two municipalities in Gorkha.
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