KATHMANDU, Sept 17: As soon as he received news of the flood in the Bhotekoshi River on August 26, DSP Pradip Rai, chief of the Armed Police Force (APF) in Rasuwa, tried to contact his colleagues stationed in Timure. None of the calls went through. The sound of the flood could be heard as far as Dhunche, but before Rai could find out what had happened to personnel stationed farther north, communication across the district had been cut off.
Unable to contact personnel deployed in Timure, Syabrubesi and various hydropower projects, Rai headed toward Syabrubesi himself. He took a force of 134 personnel but could not proceed beyond 12 Ghumti because the flood had destroyed virtually every structure along the route.
“We were completely in the dark. Everything above Rasuwagadhi had been destroyed. Only the APF Border Outpost remained,” Rai said. Nine personnel stationed at the outpost were swept away by the flood, while the remaining 15 immediately joined the search and rescue effort.
The August 26 disaster has deeply shaken the APF. Had the force had its own helicopter for disaster response, it could not only have assessed the condition of the 15 personnel stranded in Timure but also sent additional security personnel from Dhunche for immediate rescue.
No government structure now remains in Timure. Although the area has been completely cut off from the road network, the APF has continued border security operations and the collection of bodies. The personnel deployed there when the flood struck were brought back to the district headquarters and replaced with a new team.
Rai stayed in Timure for seven days after the flood.
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“Nothing remains there. Relatives keep asking us to search for their missing family members. Bodies are visible everywhere. We are still collecting bodies from buried sites and searching for missing people based on information provided by their families,” he said. “We cannot abandon our duty simply because no one remains there.”
The APF is a specialised security force for disaster response, but the absence of a helicopter prevented it from deploying its rescue teams effectively. Much of Rasuwa’s road network has been destroyed.
An APF official said the force had prepared divers, personnel specially trained to clear debris and teams capable of conducting rescue operations in mountainous areas. Since it had no helicopter of its own, however, these teams had to be transported to Rasuwa by road through the Trishuli corridor.
According to Rai, 75 personnel trained in disaster management, 15 specially trained in debris removal, 18 trained in mountain rescue and seven trained in high-altitude rescue reached Rasuwa. But they could not be fully deployed.
“The road network has been destroyed, so we cannot reach the sites ourselves, and we do not have a helicopter,” Rai said. “I wish we had been able to deploy our rescue teams to search for and rescue those who remained trapped in the gorges for so many days, but that was not possible.”
APF shaken over its own safety
All three security agencies have been working hard in the aftermath of the Bhotekoshi flood, but the disaster has raised particular concern within the APF.
Although the government deployed up to 20 helicopters a day for rescue and relief operations, none was assigned to the APF specifically for rescue. Despite the force having demonstrated its disaster response capabilities during the earthquake and other emergencies, it received access to a designated helicopter only four days after the Rasuwa flood. Even then, the helicopter was reportedly assigned for relief distribution, not rescue.
The APF received the helicopter only after Home Minister Sudhan Gurung visited Trishuli and Rasuwa. Since it was designated for relief operations, the force could not use it for rescue missions.
A joint secretary at the Home Ministry said the Nepal Police should have been provided helicopters for relief operations while the APF, with divers and personnel trained in advanced disaster response, should have received a separate helicopter dedicated to rescue.
The flood has also increased concerns within the APF about the safety of its personnel stationed along the Chinese border in high Himalayan areas.
“Eleven border security posts have already been established along the Chinese border. All are located in high Himalayan areas. The flood has shown how vulnerable the Himalayan region has become because of climate change,” an APF AIG said. “Yet when personnel deployed in the mountains face an emergency, we do not even have a helicopter to evacuate them immediately. The government needs to understand this.”
The APF has more than 3,200 personnel specially trained in disaster management. It has also established a training centre in Manang to develop specialised personnel for high altitude and mountain rescue.
The force has more than 400 personnel trained to conduct rescue operations from large collapsed structures and more than 500 highly trained personnel capable of high altitude and cliff rescue, including rope rescue.
Former APF Inspector General Pushpa Ram KC, however, says simply providing the force with a helicopter would not solve the problem.
“What is the point of giving the APF a helicopter if it cannot develop the necessary personnel or arrange the required facilities and operating costs, including those at an airbase?” KC said. “It is not enough to provide a helicopter for show. If the government gives the APF a helicopter, it should be used specifically for its operations and coordinated with the Nepal Army. Maintaining a separate helicopter fleet would be difficult.”
KC suggested that the government establish a system under which the APF could operate alongside the Nepal Army, particularly during emergencies. Such an arrangement would make it easier to transport food and personnel to high Himalayan posts and conduct rescue operations. He said clear operational standards could allow the APF to work under the Army during conflicts while maintaining a dedicated helicopter capability for its disaster response and border security duties.
