Unlike the rush of tourists before the earthquake, the flow of visitors to the heritage sites is low but is on a gradual rise. Despite the heavy damage caused by the quake, there was normal movement of people at heritage sites. Thanks to local people's resilience, many shopkeepers have already started opening their shops amid the rubble as if nothing had happened.On a sweltering afternoon on Monday, a group of young students sat under the shadow of a partially damaged temple at Patan Durbar Square. After the earthquake, visitors were not allowed to enter the square or get near damaged monuments. Now, the restriction has been lifted and anyone can enter the square.
Despite the sweltering heat, students looked more than happy to be there. "The earthquake has caused a huge damage to heritage sites. But I believe all the damaged monuments would soon be rebuilt. I always felt good being here and I experience the same feeling now," said one of the students.
Another local of Lalitpur-13, Gandhi Satyal hailed the government's decision to reopen the heritage sites to visitors.
"Many temples in the area are in need of immediate reconstruction and renovation. But, closing the sites to visitors for forever is not going to help things. Reopening the sites would bring in tourists and send the message that Nepal is eventually rising from the rubble," he said.
Comparatively, the major tourist hub of Kathmandu, Basantapur Durbar Square, has been largely damaged by the earthquake. Almost all the major temples and monuments have collapsed in the quake. It had taken locals, Nepal Army and Nepal Police personnel weeks to clear the debris and recover lost idols and historic artifacts.
According to the DoA, a total of 721 monuments have been damaged in 20 districts across the country. Of these, 33 have been destroyed completely. The data also shows that 90 percent of the monuments in the seven heritage sites in Kathmandu Valley have been affected by the quake.
However, some locals in the area were not happy about the government's decision to reopen the heritage sites to visitors.
"Safety matters the most and reopening these heritage sites would only risk more lives. Personally, I think the heritage sites should have been reopened after renovation," said Amit Amatya, a local.
Minister of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Kripasur Sherpa on Monday officially reopened the World Heritage Monuments in the Kathmandu Valley to tourists. The function held in Bhaktapur was attended by Secretary of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Suresh Man Shrestha, Director General of the Department of Archaeology Beshnarayan Dahal, Director General of the Department of Tourism Tulasi Prasad Gautam, board Member of Nepal Tourism Board Rajendra Sapkota, among other government officials.
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