ITAHARI, Aug. 7: Eighteen years have passed since the devastating Saptakoshi floods swept away homes, farmland and livelihoods in Sunsari, but for many survivors, the wait for government compensation continues.
For Dharmendra Kumar Karna of Koshi Rural Municipality, the flood is not just a painful memory — it remains an unresolved struggle. The river deposited layers of sand and debris on his farmland, leaving it unusable, yet he is still waiting for compensation promised to affected families.
“I have not received compensation for the damage caused to my land by the river. I am still hoping that I will get it someday,” Karna said.
The damaged land is registered in the name of his mother, Chandrakala Devi Kayastha. Karna said he has repeatedly approached the district administration office seeking compensation but has received no clear answer. While he received compensation for other plots of land, payment for his mother’s land was delayed due to a boundary dispute. Although the dispute was resolved years ago, the compensation has yet to arrive.
Karna is not alone. For many families living along the Saptakoshi River, government promises made after the disaster remain only partially fulfilled.
Sixty-year-old Sukdev Yadav of Koshi-6 received compensation for two bighas of damaged land at the rate of Rs 200,000 per bigha. However, the flood has permanently altered his farmland. Only about 10 katthas remains suitable for cultivation, while the remaining 30 katthas is still covered with sand and debris.
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Yadav is also waiting for timber promised by the government to flood victims. Authorities had decided to provide 30 cubic feet of timber to affected families, but repeated visits to the district administration office have yielded no result.
“I waited for a long time hoping to get the timber. After I failed to receive it, I built a small thatched house. I would like to build a better house if I get the timber,” he said.
Other survivors share similar stories. Amod Kumar Yadav of Koshi-6 said he received land compensation but never received the promised timber. He said affected families even collected Rs 5,000 each through the then Shreepur Village Development Committee in the hope of receiving the support, but their efforts went in vain.
Seventy-year-old Tileshwari Devi Shah is also among those still waiting. “I don’t know whether they will provide it now or not. It would be helpful if I received it. I could build a better house,” she said.
The Saptakoshi flood of August 18, 2008, breached the eastern embankment and submerged nearby settlements, displacing thousands of families. The government had announced a compensation package of Rs 1.6 billion for the victims.
The disaster displaced 7,563 families from Haripur, Shreepur, Pashchim Kushaha and Laukahi Village Development Committees, which are now part of Koshi Rural Municipality.
As part of the rehabilitation programme, the government purchased 29 bighas of land in Haripur to resettle around 900 landless flood-affected families. However, houses for around 522 families are still yet to be built.
Although the government decided to purchase up to two katthas of land per family for 1,422 landless households at a cost of up to Rs 25,000 per family, many victims are still waiting for the promised support. Records from Koshi Rural Municipality show that only around 900 families have received land and housing assistance.
Koshi Rural Municipality Chairperson Ayub Ansari said around half of the affected families have not received timber, while many landless families are still waiting for land and houses.
The 2008 flood forced the Saptakoshi River to change its course after breaking through the embankment. After three months of continuous efforts, the river was diverted back to its original channel. The disaster also damaged nearly 14 kilometres of the Laukahi-Bhantabari road section.
The flooding disrupted the East-West Highway, forcing travellers to cross affected areas by boats under dangerous conditions.
Long before the 2008 disaster, thousands of people displaced by Saptakoshi’s erosion between 2022 and 2045 BS from Prakashpur, Baklauri and Mahendranagar were temporarily settled on forest land by the government. These areas have now been incorporated into Barahakshetra Municipality.
Despite repeated decisions to provide land to displaced families, proper mapping and demarcation of occupied forest land has not been completed, creating uncertainty over ownership and settlement status.
According to the Divison Forest Office, Sunsari, flood-displaced families have occupied 461 hectares of forest land in Mahendranagar, 351 hectares in Barahakshetra and 299 hectares in Bharaula.
A high-level committee led by Ram Prasad Khatiwada reported in 2064 BS that more than 160,000 katthas of fertile farmland in Prakashpur, Mahendranagar and Barahakshetra had been lost to Saptakoshi erosion since 2022 BS.
Panch Narayan Mandal, who led the Saptakoshi Flood Victims Struggle Committee in 2008, claimed that large amounts of money allocated for victims remained unused at the administration office. He said many families had neither received land compensation nor the timber promised by the government.
The District Administration Office, Sunsari, said tracing old compensation records has become difficult. Accounts Officer Chakra Khadka said earlier records were maintained manually in registers, which were later stored in warehouses, making retrieval difficult.
