GORKHA, Oct 15: Women of Siranchowk Rural Municipality-4, Amarai have joined hands in order to take initiatives to save their village which is at a high risk of landslide and flood.
There are around 40 houses in the village which can be swept away by landslides and inundated by floods. The river flowing by the side of the village poses threats to the settlement area. In recent days, water from the river is slowly entering the settlement area which has scared the villagers. Hundreds of locals might be driven out of their homes if the risk is not mitigated or proper measures are not taken.
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So, as many as 30 women of various age groups decided to take some efforts for solving the problem. They even knocked doors of various organizations seeking help. These women tried to create an embankment to prevent the river water from entering the village. "We don't want to lose our hard earned house and property so we decided to do something for not allowing that to happen," said Sumitra Kumal, a local.
Som Bahadur Kumal, who has been taking the leadership of the campaign to protect the village from landslide and flood, informed that organizations like Care Nepal and Unification Nepal have been co-operating with the campaign. The Land Conservation Office (LCO), Gorkha has offered technical assistance and also provided necessary materials for fencing.
After hearing the miseries of locals, the LCO has been concerned about their safety. According to Shatrughan Shah, a technician at LCO, the risk of landslide will be reduced if forestation is carried out on the hills and cliffs. "Planting trees could be a permanent solution to landslide and soil erosion," he said.
Landslides are very common in various parts of Gorkha such as Barpak, Laprak, Sulikot among others due to slopy land. The catastrophic earthquake of 2015 resulted in several cracks and fissures in lands of Gorkha. These days such cracks have been the major reason for landslides.
