Owner of damaged house gets insurance amount under insurance scheme in Nepalgunj

By Siraj Khan, Nepalgunj, May 6: Nepalgunj Sub-metropolitan City has provided insurance amount to insurer under the house insurance scheme.

The scheme is something the first initiated by any local level in Nepal, and it was introduced last year to minimize disaster risk and provided to owner/insurer of a house that was damaged by the flood.

Uttam Singh Panjabi, a resident of Pipal Chautara, Gagangunj, in Nepalgunj-7, got on Tuesday an amount of Rs. 232,000 as he had insured his house in the municipal scheme and his house collapsed due to rains.

Prashant Bishta, mayor of Nepalgunj submetropolis, handed over the check to Panjabi and his spouse Lila Acharya amid a programme.

The sub-metropolis had started the insurance scheme nearly 15 months ago covering old houses that were under risk of rain-induced disaster in wards 3 and 7.

Receiving the check, Panjabi said that he would use money to make a new house.

184 houses have been insured, according to Navin Sharma, manager of Rastriya Beema Company, Nepalgunj.

With EU's financial assistance and technical assistance from UNDP, UNICEF, UN Woman, HI and CDM Nepal, a super programme has been operational for disaster preparedness and resilience, according to Rupan Gyawali, information management officer of Emergency Work Operation Center.