1,600 Flood-hit Residents to be Evacuated in Banke

1,600 Flood-hit Residents to be Evacuated in Banke

Surendra Kafle
Nepalgunj, August 8

Plans are afoot to shift 1,600 residents of Holiya and Betahani -- who are under the threat of the swollen Rapti river -- to a secured location.
A total of 1,302 families of some areas in Betahani and Holiya will be evacuated and relocated to save them from land erosion and inundation, the Banke chief district officer, Narendra Raj Sharma, said.
The Uchuwa area in Jhora jungle of Betahani VDC ward no-6 is being considered a safe place.
Floodwaters from the Laxmanpur dam inundate the two villages every year, damaging houses and destroying crops.
A high-level technical committee that will study the flood situation was sent to the areas on Tuesday following demands and pressure from the flood- hit people there, CDO Sharma said.
The committee is expected to prepare a report in a few days and a detailed planning would be done after that, he said.
The high-level panel had been formed at the direction of the Ministry of Home Affairs. Home Minister Krishna Prasad Sitaula had toured the areas recently.