Embankment built to save river bank Ram Temple

By Thakur Prasad Acharya, Myagdi (Beni): Feb. 17: A concrete embankment has been constructed to protect the Ram Mandir, a religious place which was at high risk of being eroded by the Kaligandaki and Raghuganga Rivers. 

A composite wall of 138 meters long has been constructed on the bank of Kaligandaki River under the Ram Temple Conservation Plan at Jaljala Rural Municipliayt-2 of Parbat in the Galeshwor area. 

The Rupatal Conservation Integrated Development Project of Pokhara under the Department of Water Resources and Irrigation had signed a contract with Machhapuchchhre Construction Service on January 23, 2023, for Rs.  43.2 million to complete the embankment within two years. 

The contractor started the construction works by mobilising sufficient workers and equipment. Although the contract was signed to complete the project by December 22, 2024, it is going to be completed 10 months before the deadline.  Now, the construction work has reached the final stage. 

Bal Bahadur Sunuwar, an assistant contractor of Machhapuchhre Construction Service, said, “We commenced construction works in February/March last year. 

The work was stopped for a few months in the rainy season. We have accelerated the construction by mobilising 30 to 40 workers daily, and we are preparing to complete all the work within this month.” 

Ashok Timilsina, sub-engineer of the Rupatal Conservation Integrated Development Project, said that a two-and-a-half-metre cut-off with a width of 50 centimeters has been constructed under the ground and a four-metre wide composite wall with a height of three meters has been erected above the ground. 

Three years ago, a massive flood in the Kaligandaki River damaged the famous Ram Mandir, located at the confluence of the Kaligandaki and Raghuganga Rivers.

The structures including the Dharamshala of the temple were washed away by the flood. The temple, the priest's residence and the suspension bridge connecting Galeshwor to Ram Temple were also damaged.  

Eight major projects are currently under construction to protect Beni Bazaar and surrounding settlements, which are at high risk of erosion by the Kaligandaki and Myagdi Rivers.

The Rupatal Conservation Integrated Development Project, Pokhara, has been implementing projects worth Rs. 480 million since last year to protect the settlements around Beni Bazaar, Galeshwor area and Parbat Beni area.