Residents of Panipokhari are livid due to construction of a new building for the American embassy in Maharajganj. To make the building earthquake resistant, workers are driving cement pillars into the ground with the help of a crane, which has triggered cracks in more than two dozen buildings in the area. As soon as local residents saw the damage, they protested and the embassy promised to stop construction and pay for repairs. In protest, hundreds of people gathered in front of the embassy last week but officials there still have not granted them a hearing. "As soon as they start driving the pillars in, it's like an earthquake of 7 on the Richter scale has hit the area," says Sudharshan Gurung.