In an attempt to expedite recovery, rehabilitation, and reconstruction work in the 14 districts that were most severely affected by last week’s monsoon rains, the administration has designated dozens of local units as “disaster crisis zones.”
According to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA) of the Ministry of Home Affairs’ suggestion, a number of local units were identified as the most affected during a Cabinet meeting on Friday.
Government officials said they will take a victim-oriented approach. “With the declaration of disaster crisis zones, the government will focus on relief distribution with a special focus on the people of the local units in the 14 districts,” Kali Prasad Parajuli, the federal affairs and general administration ministry spokesperson, told the Post.
Every place has its unique problems: in some areas the agricultural sector has been the most hampered and the government will pay more attention to addressing that problem, whereas in the places where physical infrastructure is damaged, the authorities will focus on addressing the particular issue with urgency, Parajuli said. According to him, they will prioritise work based on local needs. “Declaring disaster crisis zones will give authorities extra leverage, allowing them to fast-track the procurement process and many other things to immediately address local problems,” Parajuli said.
Though the Cabinet has declared the disaster zones, the names of the districts and the local units will be clear only after the decision gets published in the National Gazette with details, officials said. Although 26 districts are affected, the number of declared crisis areas is said to be only around a dozen. Officials say their exact number will be known only when a related notice is published in the national gazette.
Under the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act 2017, the government can announce a disaster-crisis area to respond to a calamity by specifying its boundaries and a time limit. In crisis-designated areas, the government can make decisions such as prohibiting any operation that may adversely affect rescue work, employing government or non-government sector employees, and using government, non-government, or private movable and immovable property as needed for disaster rescue work, as per the Act.
If necessary, the government can get hold of the vehicles of any agency or person available in the designated areas and use them for relief and rescue, the Act says. Phidim Municipality, one of the areas in eastern Nepal most affected by the continuous rain on September 27 and 28, has been named a disaster crisis zone. Parts of the Mechi Highway and the Phidim-Phalot road swept away by the floods have yet to be restored.
Mayor Mitra Prasad Kafle of Phidim Municipality welcomes the government’s decision to label the municipality a disaster crisis zone. “Due to floods and landslides, our municipality alone witnessed seven deaths, whereas 75 houses were fully damaged,” Kafle told the Post. “When the floods hit the Mechi Highway and the Phidim-Phalot road, the vehicular movement here was severely disrupted.”
Kafle said the local government distributed relief materials but it was insufficient. Arjun Jung Thapa, former director general of the department of roads, said that after disaster crisis zones are declared, the government will be accountable for rehabilitating the displaced people there.
Source: Here
