NUWAKOT, May 13: Three years after the devastating Gorkha earthquake, Sitaram Tamang of former Ghyangfedi VDC-6 in Nuwakot district finally got land to build his home. Following the earthquake, geologists had put Tamang's name in the list of the households which needed to be relocated. Now that the National Reconstruction Authority (NRA) has made land available to the family, they are hopeful of seeing their new house, three years after their earlier house was badly ravaged by the 2015 disaster.

“We spent three monsoons and winter seasons in a flimsy makeshift tent. It's painful to remember our pathetic condition when rain waters seeped through the roof,” said Tamang. “Now that the government has finally provided us the land, hopefully we can spend all the upcoming winters and monsoons in our own concrete house.

”As many as 46 households were displaced by the earthquake and landslides in Ghangfedi. The government has initiated a process to relocate them to former Shikharbesi VDC-1. NRA has provided a grant of Rs 200,000 per household, allowing the victims to build houses in the place of relocation.Aaitaman Tamang, Daman Singh Tamang and Yudin Kumar Adhikari among other displaced locals of the place are finally taking a step towards constructing their houses.

However, they are also saddened to leave their ancestral home.“We cannot rebuild our houses at the old location as we have been told that the land there has been greatly weakened. Although we are very sad to hear this, we can only hope that the next generation of our families would not inherit our troubles,” said Sonam Lama, another local. “Although we are a step closer to having our own houses, we still have to struggle for daily meals. That problem still continues.

”In order to relocate households of Dupcheshwar Rural Municipality, a committee had been set up for determining the relocation area. Karmajeet Tamang, one of the members of the committee, informed Republica that it took them a lot of time to find the suitable place, causing the delay.“At the end, we were able to find land for relocation despite the delay.

The only problem now is how these families would make their living,” he said, adding that helping hands for them would be necessary.As many as 74 households of former ward numbers 3, 6 and 9 of Ghyangfedi VDC were displaced. However, land has been made available to only 46 of them. According to Bed Prasad Godel, acting chief of Nuwakot chapter of NRA, 19 ropanis of land has been bought for 46 households at the cost of Rs 9.2 million.

 
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