Temporary shelter construction begins in Roshi Rural Municipality

By Our Correspondent,Banepa, Dec. 20: Construction of temporary shelters for flood victims began three months after the floods and landslides hit Roshi Rural Municipality of Kavrepalanchok district. 

The effort targets families from Wards 2 and 9 whose homes were destroyed by the disaster.

Roshi Rural Municipality Chairman Dinesh Lama said that construction work has started in Narayantar of Ward 2 with financial support from Save the Children and technical assistance from Creeda Nepal. The municipality facilitated beneficiary selection and coordinated the shelter construction process. 

The supporting organisations are providing materials worth Rs. 50,000 for each shelter, temporary toilets for households in need, warm materials worth Rs. 12,000 per family, a 1,000-liter water tank, water filters and Rs. 15,000 as labour wages per household. 

Tsomo Maya Gurju Association has supplied materials for the construction of 15 temporary shelters in Ward 9. Each household will receive 3.5 bundles of zinc sheets, 1,400 blocks, 50 sacks of cement and 20 square pipes, according to Chairman Lama.

Creeda Nepal engineer Saroj Adhikari said that 20 out of 30 planned temporary houses in Ward 2 had been completed. Locally available materials such as stones and bamboo were used based on homeowners' needs. Additionally, 17 households had received temporary toilets and each shelter includes two rooms with an outdoor kitchen.

Some homeowners opted for reinforced iron trusses to construct their shelters. The roofs are made of zinc sheets and bubble wrap insulation has been added to protect against extreme weather.

Chief District Officer Umesh Kumar Dhakal said that organisations like Save the Children also had shown interest in supporting temporary shelter construction in other affected areas of Kavrepalanchok. These organisations have been directed to coordinate with the respective local governments. However, a unified report detailing the extent of damages from the floods and landslides in late September is still unavailable.