There are still two months to go before<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/managing-the-monsoon"> the monsoon </a>breaks, but Roma Gurung who survived last September’s flash flood in Panauti is worried about what the rainy season has in store.&nbsp; The <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/60-dead-64-missing-in-nepal-floods">massive debris flow of 28-29 September</a> was unleashed by record-breaking rainfall, but it was <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-revenge-of-the-rivers">made worse by stone quarries and sand mining</a> as well as encroachment along the floodplains. “The rains will arrive soon, and we don’t know where we should go,” says Gurung, who was nearly swept away last year. “Last time I ran up the hill with my husband and two children and watched our house being swept away by a flood. I do not know if I have the strength and courage to go through that again.” &nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250501090520_9e326638721bcae722ab1e86d76aa536132b2eb9e9322bc6fd3616d1d0693e25.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20250501090520_9e326638721bcae722ab1e86d76aa536132b2eb9e9322bc6fd3616d1d0693e25" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1200" loading="lazy" alt="Rosi Panauti nepal floods NT 1"> <figcaption>187 houses were destroyed and five people were killed, in Panauti's Ward 12. </figcaption> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250501090524_dc37a55035b9a160c48fea0e09e4745f8fdcdddf08021aff3a52efd162dc829b.jpg" data-media-id="editor_4" data-image-id="20250501090524_dc37a55035b9a160c48fea0e09e4745f8fdcdddf08021aff3a52efd162dc829b" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1200" loading="lazy" alt="Rosi Panauti nepal floods NT 1"> </figure>  For residents of Ward 12 in Panauti, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/multimedia/a-flood-of-tears-on-the-rosi">the flood seven months ago</a> is still etched in their memories. The unprecedented precipitation killed 224 people across the country, 32 of them just in Panauti. Five people were killed in Gurung’s neighbourhood where 187 houses were destroyed. The floods also destroyed <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-s-first-hydropower-from-a-glacial-lake">hydropower plants</a>, slashing Nepal’s generation capacity by half, and damaged parts of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/nepal-needs-wildlife-friendly-highways">national highways</a>. About 25km of the BP Highway was washed away, and the temporary road is along the riverbed. This monsoon, the highway will have to be closed. &nbsp; “If I were alone, I would have stayed home and let the flood and landslide take me away,” says another Ward 12 resident, Jamuna Biswakarma. “I ran for the sake of my family and my 10-day-old granddaughter.”&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250501090524_a4b5d3bdf31b9433789a041eab51c89bd3d11a5373749a5fcd40321b55765a1a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_8" data-image-id="20250501090524_a4b5d3bdf31b9433789a041eab51c89bd3d11a5373749a5fcd40321b55765a1a" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1200" loading="lazy" alt="Rosi Panauti nepal floods NT 1"> <figcaption>Jamuna Biswakarma is dreading the coming monsoon season. She has not received any compensation from the government or crusher companies for the damage to her house.</figcaption> </figure>  Locals here did not just lose loved ones or their homes: many also lost their livelihoods. On a recent visit, Sangita Pariyar was pleading with the ward chair for a sewing machine. “A machine would help me earn a living. I could repay my loan and pay for the school admission of my children,” she said. Pariyar and her husband had been running a tailoring shop in Ward 12. They had a decent income and were planning to expand their business. But the flood washed away everything: the shop, sewing machines, cash saved for Dasain, new clothes for sale, and some crucial documents. &nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250501090524_18f5df73e621426c5a8d3509fd0d6b910d843ff9ddd1ed6262da512638470ff7.jpg" data-media-id="editor_9" data-image-id="20250501090524_18f5df73e621426c5a8d3509fd0d6b910d843ff9ddd1ed6262da512638470ff7" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1200" loading="lazy" alt="Rosi Panauti nepal floods NT 1"> <figcaption>Sangita Pariyar and her husband ran a tailoring business, and were planning to expand before the flood washed away everything, including their sewing machines.</figcaption> </figure>  Much of the death and damage was due to the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/politicians-and-cronies-blamed-for-kavre-floods">unchecked operation of stone quarries and crusher companies</a> in the catchment of Rosi, and much less with heavy monsoon rains. There are 25 crusher and mining companiesin the Rosi catchment—many of them illegal—extracting sand, stones and gravel to feed the capital’s construction boom. This makes the slopes and river bed very unstable and greatly increases the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/a-disaster-resilient-nepal-is-possible">risk of landslides and floods</a>. A government report has recommended shutting down some of the mining and crusher operations in the area. Some were running without registration, and others were not adhering to guidelines. According to Standards on Extraction, Sale and Management of Stones, Pebbles, and Sand (2020), such plants must be situated 2km away from any settlements. But that was not followed near the Rosi, and mining operations have resumed.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241007131020_c55becabe58855ee897cacf411e0889923bd699b07d563444f16c009362ed50e.jpg" data-media-id="editor_12" data-image-id="20241007131020_c55becabe58855ee897cacf411e0889923bd699b07d563444f16c009362ed50e" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="702" loading="lazy" alt="Rosi flood"> <figcaption>Panauti and the Rosi watershed area, taken from Google Maps in May 2024.</figcaption> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250501090524_a9e458cf15367c4b3038c9ac5dad6bd87a05bd962bfdc256e43cb3ca25b1131e.jpg" data-media-id="editor_13" data-image-id="20250501090524_a9e458cf15367c4b3038c9ac5dad6bd87a05bd962bfdc256e43cb3ca25b1131e" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1200" loading="lazy" alt="Rosi Panauti nepal floods NT 1"> <figcaption> The damage of the record-breaking rainfall on 28-29 September 2024 was amplified by stone crushing operations on the Rosi Khola.</figcaption> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250501090524_46cc1011c451a14e4dca455c31ebb7f560d599d3b45dfc301e964f18fc30d253.jpg" data-media-id="editor_14" data-image-id="20250501090524_46cc1011c451a14e4dca455c31ebb7f560d599d3b45dfc301e964f18fc30d253" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1200" loading="lazy" alt="Rosi Panauti nepal floods NT 1"> </figure>  Residents along the riverbanks had long feared that these industries would trigger disasters. “The operators of these mines and crushers are powerful and influential people. We had protested to stop them, but who listens to ordinary people like us?” asks Biswakarma.&nbsp; Some locals are now building shelters while others have sold their land and have moved elsewhere, fearing more disaster as<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/abnormal-rise-in-monsoon-lightning-in-nepal"> pre-monsoon storms</a> lash the mountains. “My neighbours have started building temporary houses, but I don’t have the money,” says Gurung. “If the floods come, we could climb the slopes for safety, but now there is the danger of landslides too. How are we supposed to get through this monsoon?”  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250501090524_bbc1bc045596f615659a8361109d837b4ff9ab56925c6c64aa6eed2adbc7e683.jpg" data-media-id="editor_16" data-image-id="20250501090524_bbc1bc045596f615659a8361109d837b4ff9ab56925c6c64aa6eed2adbc7e683" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1200" loading="lazy" alt="Rosi Panauti nepal floods NT 1"> <figcaption>Many of the houses damaged in the floods last year, like this one, are yet to be constructed. Most do not have the money to rebuild.</figcaption> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250501090524_1b238fa1d116ae12c48f78843043518a1077acda052c8c91641517298efbc8b4.jpg" data-media-id="editor_17" data-image-id="20250501090524_1b238fa1d116ae12c48f78843043518a1077acda052c8c91641517298efbc8b4" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1200" loading="lazy" alt="Rosi Panauti nepal floods NT 1"> </figure>  Ward chair Jaya Ram KC says that there are preparations to reduce the risk of floods and landslides this monsoon season. Flood control measures are also planned along the Rosi to protect Ward 12.&nbsp; But locals are still haunted by the trauma of last September and do not feel prepared at all. They say <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-flood-survivors-still-waiting-for-relief">they have received no support</a>, not from the government, nor from the illegal stone quarries and crushers which are again operating with impunity. Says Jamuna Biswakarma: “We are living with uncertainty and anxiety about the rains. Will anyone be held accountable for our suffering this time?” In collaboration with Sajira Shrestha.&nbsp; <div class="embed-block"><iframe width="750" height="400" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/RTU5IUw6A_w?si=bUK1M6ePu3q0zCHL" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>

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Before the next monsoon

Six weeks after unprecedented floods ravaged the Rosi Khola valley east of Kathmandu, what little relief has reached the survivors is from charities and volunteers. More than 60 of the 250 people killed in the floods in Central Nepal were here in Kavre district, where the Rosi turned into a deadly mudflow from dozens quarries and crusher units upstream. Some 36 of the dead were children.&nbsp; The record breaking rain turned even more destructive because it swept debris down from the sand and stone mining operations in the catchment area of the Rosi. <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/politicians-and-cronies-blamed-for-kavre-floods" target="_blank">Sand and boulder removal by contractors</a> along the river bed over the past decade also meant that the river was flowing at extra high velocity.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241119121120_7147fa6c8b2af6b93d9fe5a28076732edc0a6d00d053d3025a35d01e47735b3f.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20241119121120_7147fa6c8b2af6b93d9fe5a28076732edc0a6d00d053d3025a35d01e47735b3f" data-rendition-name="original" width="2560" height="1184" loading="lazy" alt="Nepal flood survivors still waiting for relief NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241119121120_6569881fdfa42ff16c6925109ba444620fd309dc7630fb8ca088eeba44138223.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20241119121120_6569881fdfa42ff16c6925109ba444620fd309dc7630fb8ca088eeba44138223" data-rendition-name="original" width="1930" height="942" loading="lazy" alt="Nepal flood survivors still waiting for relief NT"> </figure>  ‘Khola’ in Nepal means ‘stream’, but the Rosi on the day of the deluge on 28 September looked like <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-revenge-of-the-rivers" target="_blank">an angry river of mud</a> that burst its banks and entered settlements, taking away homes, roads, bridges and a 200m portion of the BP Highway linking Kathmandu to the eastern Tarai. The damage to highways alone is Rs 2.5 billion according to the <a href="https://www.bipad.gov.np/uploads/publication_pdf/SitRep_3_-_2024_September_Floods_and_Landslides_Working1.pdf">National Disaster Reduction and Risk Management Authority (NDRRMA)</a>. The Highway has still not been repaired, and a rough bypass track along the river bank has been opened for traffic. <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/politicians-and-cronies-blamed-for-kavre-floods" target="_blank">A Himalkhabar/Nepali Times</a> investigation last week found out that many of the owners of crushers mining the mountains to feed Kathmandu’s construction boom are local politicians who awarded front companies contracts. Besides floods, the historic rainfall that dumped half a year’s rainfall in less than two days <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/multimedia/the-mountain-fell-on-top-of-us" target="_blank">triggered massive landslides</a> all over the district. The rain was so heavy that even heavily forested mountains are scarred by slope failures.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241119121120_f21a1a453dc88e2bf266aca7af983cab58d1ca64b76654d99a03de7d8248e149.jpg" data-media-id="editor_7" data-image-id="20241119121120_f21a1a453dc88e2bf266aca7af983cab58d1ca64b76654d99a03de7d8248e149" data-rendition-name="original" width="2947" height="1513" loading="lazy" alt="Nepal flood survivors still waiting for relief NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241119121120_84f57a619128f88fdd04091dfd5b1c492538e9a3cde0464ae0b42431950eccb8.jpg" data-media-id="editor_8" data-image-id="20241119121120_84f57a619128f88fdd04091dfd5b1c492538e9a3cde0464ae0b42431950eccb8" data-rendition-name="original" width="4080" height="1884" loading="lazy" alt="Nepal flood survivors still waiting for relief NT"> </figure>  More than 9,500 houses were destroyed or damaged in the floods and landslides in Kavre and southern Lalitpur district and more than 16,000 people have been displaced. Like earthquakes in 2015 and 2023, the disaster is expected to increase the already high rate of outmigration from the affected areas. Nearly 100 schools and 70 health posts were damaged, 54 suspension footbridges were destroyed. That is besides Nepal losing 1,200MW (half its hydropower generation capacity) although 700MW are now back in operation. The government in Kathmandu announced a Rs200,000 cash relief to families with fatalities, however many families have not yet got the money. The NDRRMA has also announced the distribution of Rs100,000 in two installments to each family with destroyed or damaged homes for the construction of temporary shelters.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241119121120_15e9041051f13cba05ca54ded692cc3a9ad69d8781d2cae114812725031417f4.jpg" data-media-id="editor_9" data-image-id="20241119121120_15e9041051f13cba05ca54ded692cc3a9ad69d8781d2cae114812725031417f4" data-rendition-name="original" width="1062" height="1416" loading="lazy" alt="Nepal flood survivors still waiting for relief NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241119121124_0a136906e013bec344930dcc9ddc71f4e0e427f58f14edb2e7719280cde1cf17.jpg" data-media-id="editor_10" data-image-id="20241119121124_0a136906e013bec344930dcc9ddc71f4e0e427f58f14edb2e7719280cde1cf17" data-rendition-name="original" width="854" height="481" loading="lazy" alt="Nepal flood survivors still waiting for relief NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241119121124_cf3d55a9b1c17330bde330a9fe791d04f4c3a5ded3baec50cd11672a78e32efc.jpg" data-media-id="editor_11" data-image-id="20241119121124_cf3d55a9b1c17330bde330a9fe791d04f4c3a5ded3baec50cd11672a78e32efc" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="1206" loading="lazy" alt="Nepal flood survivors still waiting for relief NT"> </figure>  The damage that has affected local communities the most is the loss of drinking water supply, pipes bringing spring water to villages were taken out by landslides. This has meant that many local families have been forced to drink contaminated water with children becoming sick. The NDRMMA says about 2.5 million people in Central Nepal are affected by the damage to drinking water supply because pipes, water tanks, treatment plants and other facilities were swept away. The damage is estimated at Rs3.5 billion and the Authority has appealed to donor agencies for relief. Kavre’s Malpi City School which was also damaged in the floods, organised a fund-raiser among faculty and alumni to buy 2,000m of piping for the communities of Bethanchok which was badly hit by landslides.&nbsp; Photos: JYOTI MAN SHERCHAN, ARCHANA DARJI, AND SHAMSHAD AHMAD

Nepal flood survivors still waiting for relief

Rajesh Humagain lives by the Rosi River in Panauti, directly downstream from a quarry company. His was one of many houses swept away by the deadly mudflow on 28 September. The flash flood last month was not the first time stone mining has caused problems for Humagain and other residents of this village 40km east of Kathmandu. They have protested unregulated quarrying and sand mining on the river that has caused sedimentation and springs going dry downstream.&nbsp; “When it rained, the debris that had piled up in the quarries was swept down in a wall of mud that took away my house and everything I own,” says Humagain, who now rents a single room in Panauti town.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241109031116_c5205455f0fd42af5c3048a5a1cffd46fe7eccd045591ed09fa06c34156fd66a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20241109031116_c5205455f0fd42af5c3048a5a1cffd46fe7eccd045591ed09fa06c34156fd66a" data-rendition-name="original" width="2166" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Politicians and cronies blamed for Kavre floods NT"> </figure>  Before the flood, boulders would fall on houses below, and dust clouds from the crushers that produced aggregates to feed Kathmandu’s construction would shroud the village. The air would be thickly polluted in an otherwise pristine valley. “The rain was very heavy, but these mines and crushers made the destruction much more serious,” Humagain says, while his neighbours nod in agreement. The quarry is owned by Bhaleswar Roda Dhunga Udyog and its directors Rabi Shrestha and Ramhari KC. It started operating in 2022, and because it provides locals with employment many people we approached were reluctant to talk.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241109031112_cae205269705aa8e60c3e33ccdcd2204360f68280fba701efbcfa52988ebf658.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20241109031112_cae205269705aa8e60c3e33ccdcd2204360f68280fba701efbcfa52988ebf658" data-rendition-name="original" width="1333" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Politicians and cronies blamed for Kavre floods NT "> <figcaption>Tipper trucks owned by crusher companies were swept away along with homes, roads and bridges along the Rosi.</figcaption> </figure>  Humagain himself was a tripper operator for a decade at Diamond Roda Dhunga Udhyog, another crusher company nearby. He ferried aggregates to Kathmandu every night. Now, most of the quarry has been swept away, and all that is left are overturned trucks, earth-movers and equipment scattered about. A mudslide also destroyed Rajesh Khatri’s house and shop near the quarry, and his family is now a refugee in the town. “The mines and the crushers are entirely responsible for our plight,” he tells us, looking over his shoulder to see if anyone is within earshot. The flood swept away 500 houses and killed 20 people in Panauti Municipality alone. Farmers lost 2,000 livestock, and paddy ready for harvest was destroyed. Downstream along the Rosi, dozens more were killed. Across central Nepal, nearly 200 people were killed.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241109031112_09c6e62f9bb53ac993b0216646b0c2bc09f64c8b53420fe3d86a0bf81d58731c.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20241109031112_09c6e62f9bb53ac993b0216646b0c2bc09f64c8b53420fe3d86a0bf81d58731c" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1334" loading="lazy" alt="Politicians and cronies blamed for Kavre floods NT "> </figure>  The Rosi River had also flooded in 1981, but there had not been nearly as much damage and the river’s course did not change. Last month, the river flowed through towns and streets.&nbsp; In the village of Bhaleswar, the river now flows through a gaping hole in Kumar Tamang’s house, cutting through what used to be his farm. “We have been living by the Rosi for generations, but never once had the river ever caused us such grief,” says Tamang, looking forlornly at an overturned tanker truck that washed up on what used to be his doorstep from a stone quarry upstream. Section 11 of Nepal’s Standards Related to the Sale and Management of Stone, Gravel, and Sand Excavation 2020 states that crusher companies must operate at a distance of 2km from residential areas.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241109031112_2ec425286997c5f75e6d43e8e6a6c5cbf17d9bfe55899518fbddcb9bb87f34ce.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20241109031112_2ec425286997c5f75e6d43e8e6a6c5cbf17d9bfe55899518fbddcb9bb87f34ce" data-rendition-name="original" width="720" height="960" loading="lazy" alt="Politicians and cronies blamed for Kavre floods NT "> <figcaption>Quarries along the Rosi River in Khusadevi.</figcaption> </figure>  It is clear from this trip that the law has been openly flouted, which would not be possible without collusion of local government. The mountains above Ramesh Khatri’s house have been gouged out by bulldozers, and rocks used to fall on his house frequently. “And the constant noise from the crushing equipment was unbearable,” he said.&nbsp; When the village became unliveable, Khatri’s family—like many others in his village of Kharkhola—sold the land to the quarry company for Rs6 million. But that was just on paper. The company agreed to pay the money within a year, but so far Khatri has only received a Rs1.6 million advance.&nbsp; “They have taken away our land documents and used them to obtain bank loans to operate their mines and crushers, but are not paying us,” says Khatri. “What’s more, the owners are not even from here. We have not received the money, and the flood has made us homeless.”  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241109031112_8b9c2abaf5b68480ef228f5e6e3ef5b84918b2bf6b6f3ac53988dd4b453e84df.jpg" data-media-id="editor_4" data-image-id="20241109031112_8b9c2abaf5b68480ef228f5e6e3ef5b84918b2bf6b6f3ac53988dd4b453e84df" data-rendition-name="original" width="1572" height="1502" loading="lazy" alt="Politicians and cronies blamed for Kavre floods NT "> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241109031112_18a76189ac4a58707948e5322853385116da9b0ffcca08447b8961e19cb4c940.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="20241109031112_18a76189ac4a58707948e5322853385116da9b0ffcca08447b8961e19cb4c940" data-rendition-name="original" width="737" height="879" loading="lazy" alt="Politicians and cronies blamed for Kavre floods NT "> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241109031112_58291bd307770c1a5e4427eb17a55a6cc91d8ff1ce5aa66505fee09778731ec8.jpg" data-media-id="editor_6" data-image-id="20241109031112_58291bd307770c1a5e4427eb17a55a6cc91d8ff1ce5aa66505fee09778731ec8" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1274" loading="lazy" alt="Politicians and cronies blamed for Kavre floods NT "> <figcaption>Government documents bearing the names of the owners of the quarries in Rosi and Panauti.</figcaption> </figure>  The Khatri and Humagain families have been complaining about the unregulated mines for the last two decades, but no one has listened. Says another Bhaleswar resident Dinesh Gurung: “The mining companies are owned by powerful people so our problems and pleas have fallen on deaf ears.” Section 11 of the guidelines also stipulates that highways must be given a right of way of 500m from quarries. But the Nangsal Dhunga Roda Udyog had damaged the BP Highway even before the floods and was documented two years ago by the Kavre District Coordination Committee. The report blames the industry for not following directives to reduce &nbsp;dust and debris produced by its quarry and crushers, as well as to level the ground after excavation.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241109031116_52841444209c5ddfbae4bf400070bc48e9c448dabf304d188cc5d2476fddb5e1.jpg" data-media-id="editor_7" data-image-id="20241109031116_52841444209c5ddfbae4bf400070bc48e9c448dabf304d188cc5d2476fddb5e1" data-rendition-name="original" width="2166" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Politicians and cronies blamed for Kavre floods NT"> </figure>  Nangsal was registered at the Kavre Office of Cottage and Small Industries in 2009 and after federalism also registered with the Kavre District Coordination Committee to operate a crusher unit. Documents from the Cottage and Small Industries office show that two of the company’s directors are Bagmati Province Minister for Water Supply, Energy and Irrigation Tirtha Bahadur Lama from the governing Nepali Congress (NC) and Grande International Hospital Chair Deepak Kunwar. The third director is Sujan Lama. Grande Hospital Chair Deepak Kunwar is also a shareholder of SM Baluwa Dhunga Udyog which has been operating since 2015. Kunwar joined company directors Maheshwar Gautam and Sulabh Karki as a shareholder in 2021. The NC’s Ganesh Lama, who has a fearsome reputation here, is also the owner of Om Satya Sai Stone Crusher Udyog on the banks of the Rosi near the densely populated village of Kutunge right off the BP Highway that connects Kathmandu to eastern Nepal.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241109031112_6069bafb88696aa694334a04a3c01ed9c1c5d5eda3c5690068f21e3c85fa549e.jpg" data-media-id="editor_8" data-image-id="20241109031112_6069bafb88696aa694334a04a3c01ed9c1c5d5eda3c5690068f21e3c85fa549e" data-rendition-name="original" width="400" height="500" loading="lazy" alt="Politicians and cronies blamed for Kavre floods NT "> <figcaption>(Clockwise) Bagmati Province Water Supply Minister Tirtha Bahadur Lama, Bagmati Province Health Minister Kiran Thapa Magar, NC leader Ganesh Lama, and Grande International Hospital Chair Deepak Kunwar are among those who own mining and crusher companies in Kavre.</figcaption> </figure>  Lama’s company is only licensed to operate a crusher, but has also been sand mining without a permit. Debris and other waste material produced by the crushers and the mine were piled high by the river when the floods came.&nbsp; Bagmati Province Health Minister Kiran Thapa along with Sur Krishna Vaidya and Govardhan Shrestha are owners of another company, the Kaldhunga Aggregate in Kaldhunga village. Thapa has since sold his shares to Rabi Shrestha, but an official change of ownership has not been registered, and documents still list Thapa as a director. Thapa told us he had sold his shares and the quarrying had been going on in an unregulated manner. He said: “As Health Minister, I myself inspected the Rosi damage after the flood, and saw the destruction. The local government has been awarding contracts purely to increase its tax revenue without any monitoring. But the damage from the flood is far more than the revenue will ever be.”  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241109041144_1c30037b60694522884f75f695bbf2c520e930320442c5f969a7b047a19c3346.jpg" data-media-id="editor_9" data-image-id="20241109041144_1c30037b60694522884f75f695bbf2c520e930320442c5f969a7b047a19c3346" data-rendition-name="original" width="1777" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Politicians and cronies blamed for Kavre floods NT"> </figure>  Former Ward Chair Pravin Lama of Kavre’s Temal Rural Municipality owns three mining and crusher companies with various partners in Rosi Rural Municipality. His Gauri Shankar Roda Dhunga Udyog, Jay Nepal Suppliers, and Mangal Roda Dhunga Udyog have all been found to be operating in violation of mining and excavating guidelines. They don’t have proper permits from the rural municipality, and financial or other relevant details of these companies have not been made available to local governments. Excavation debris was just dumped along the Rosi banks, and Mangal Roda Dhunga Udyog was found to have exceeded its permitted volume.&nbsp; In total, there are 46 stone quarries and crushers on the banks of the Rosi in Panauti and Rosi Municipalities. All had been found to have violated existing mining guidelines and laws even before the floods last month.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241109031112_87182a3f9aefd14673125c734790be95c98e97dd0d837c31beccf26a42e993c4.jpg" data-media-id="editor_10" data-image-id="20241109031112_87182a3f9aefd14673125c734790be95c98e97dd0d837c31beccf26a42e993c4" data-rendition-name="original" width="2049" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Politicians and cronies blamed for Kavre floods NT "> </figure>  A monitoring report by the Kavre District Coordination Committee two years ago had concluded that quarries and crushers did not have proper permits and did not fully comply with the laws, resulting in over-mining. The report stated that waste material from the mines had been poorly managed, excavation areas had not been mapped and relevant registration and accounting documents of operational mines and quarries were nowhere to be found. The monitoring committee subsequently recommended that the local government close down unlicensed mines that had been operating on public and private land without permit. But the municipality did not heed the directive, nor did other government agencies. Impunity is rife, and mine and quarry operators openly admit to violating standards. Most are said to have powerful protectors in local wards, municipalities and provincial councils. One crusher operator told us: “Most of the mines and quarries here have been running like this even after their licences expired. It is just the way it is done here and everywhere. The local government is letting this happen because they only care about the revenue.” &nbsp;&nbsp;

Politicians and cronies blamed for Kavre floods

Fenerbahçe Beko won the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague finals in Abu Dhabi, held 23-25 May, defeating Monaco 81-70 in the final. Olympiacos, who defeated Panathinaikos 97-93, finished the series in third place. The Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the final match, Nigel Hayes-Davis from Fenerbahçe Beko, received a prize of 1,000,000 Miles&amp;Smiles from Turkish Airlines’ Chief Commercial Officer Ahmet Olmuştur. The carrier has been the title sponsor of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague, a top tier tournament, since 2010.

Turkish Basketball

Thousands of Nepali students dreaming of an American education have been forced to look elsewhere as the Trump administration’s visa restrictions make their future uncertain.
The US was long considered a top destination for higher studies, making Nepal the 10th biggest country of origin for international students in America.&nbsp;
However, that number has seen a significant decline with the total for Nepali students now at 16,482. Some 8,000 Nepali students obtained no-objection certificates to study in the US from the Ministry of Education in the past year.&nbsp;
India, Australia, Canada, South Korea, United Kingdom and Japan are the other popular destinations for Nepali students. There are no clear numbers for Nepalis going to India, but a slight decline was noted this year after the deaths of two female students.
The US State Department has issued a circular to its embassies not to issue new visas to applicants until further notice. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in the directive stated that the department planned to expand the screening of applicants' social media.&nbsp;
While new applicants are barred including those applying for visitor visas, students with scheduled interviews are allowed to proceed.
“Many of our students are affected by the new restrictions, but those who had applied for student visas earlier have got interview dates,” one Kathmandu-based college counsellor told us.
Meanwhile, even foreign students with spotless records already in the US have not been spared, as visa scrutiny intensifies under the new policy. In a move that underscores the growing sense of insecurity, many US colleges advised international students to carry their passports and documents at all times, even when traveling locally.
“Me and my friends did not go home this summer because we were not sure we would be allowed back, so we just went to Niagara Falls,” said a Nepali undergrad in Ohio, who like many interviewed for this report did not want her name used for fear of repercussion.
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Nepali students have adopted a cautious stance, with many choosing not to return home during summer vacation due to fear of visa revocations as well as travel bans. Meanwhile, over 7,000 Nepalis with Temporary Protected Status (TPS) will have to come back to Nepal by 5 August or face deportation. Thirty-seven were flown back to Kathmandu on Omni Air last week.
“The US is one of the most sought-after destinations for higher education, and the ban will definitely impact bright students,” says Narottam Aryal of the King’s College in Kathmandu.
Indeed, Nepali undergraduates admitted into Ivy League colleges for the 2025 academic year have been asked to look for alternatives. The entire Fulbright Foreign Scholarships Board resigned on Wednesday citing interference from the Trump administration on the selection of this year’s cohort. Some Nepali students already on Fulbright scholarships have noted disruptions, delays and even cancellation of stipends.&nbsp;
The student visa restrictions were initially just for foreign students admitted to Harvard University, but it was later extended to all Chinese students and now to all students. Universities like Columbia which actively recruit foreign students, face sharp enrolment declines, threatening their financial stability and diversity.
An Indian female PhD candidate at Columbia University had her visa revoked by the US State Department, and said she was targeted on the basis of her social media posts on Israeli military attacks in Gaza. Social media vetting of political activism has raised concerns about privacy and freedom of expression in a country where such rights were a given.
Many students have been informed via email that their visas have been revoked for getting speeding or parking tickets, but even others with no criminal record have been affected. The fear of deportation looms large amongst international students, including those from Nepal.&nbsp;
For most Nepalis who migrate to the US for education, the journey is a high-stakes investment. They come largely from middle-class families, often rely on a patchwork of scholarships, work-study programs, loans, or even the sale of family assets to afford fees.
Most Nepali students pursue STEM subjects which offer extended Optional Practical Training (OPT) periods that help fund their education. But with the US backsliding on education and humanitarian matters, countries like the UK and Canada are becoming more attractive despite their own recent stricter controls on student visas.&nbsp;
The UK universities saw a 63% rise in Nepali students’ admissions in 2024. Japan is another popular destination with 64,816 Nepali students enrolled as of 2024.
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Already, China, Hong Kong and Malaysia are poised to benefit from the increased scrutiny of US student visas. Several Hong Kong universities are offering unconditional admission to affected students, while Malaysian institutions are targeting previously US-bound Asian students. China and India have 330,000 and 280,000 students respectively in America, but the numbers for China have seen a sharp drop in the past year.
Elsewhere, branch campuses of American institutions such as NYU in Abu Dhabi, Georgetown in Dubai and Northwestern in Doha are getting more admission applications, and universities in the Gulf region are expanding infrastructure to accommodate those who would otherwise have gone to the US.&nbsp;
Even educational institutions in Nepal are hopeful that the US visa restrictions can be an opportunity to at least keep Nepali undergrads in Nepal, and also attract foreign students from the region.&nbsp;
“Many students might choose to complete their undergraduate degree here in Nepal and then move abroad for their Master’s degree later,” says Aryal of King’s College. “There was a need for quality higher education in Nepal anyway in terms of innovation and opportunities, so this could be the time to reduce our dependence on other countries.”
Nepal’s strategic position between India and China makes it sensitive to US policy shifts. India, a key ally, is also under US scrutiny for potential student travel restrictions. Chinese universities are already offering more scholarships to Nepali talent to capitalise on the US retreat.
American universities have challenged student visa restrictions in the courts. A federal court in Boston revoked the blanket ban on Harvard, and the State Department has ordered the resumption of processing student and exchange visitor visas.&nbsp;
Some are still hoping that President Trump will backtrack on the student visa restrictions, just like he has done with many of his more drastic executive orders.
Even so, the visa see-saw and longer-term uncertainties about living in the United States and its education system means students across the world are making alternative plans.
Says Aryal: “Policies of foreign countries change according to their needs, so excessive dependence was never a good idea. We should work to create different opportunities and choices of higher education within Nepal, so students are retained.” &nbsp;

America no longer prime destination for Nepali students

While Nepal was hosting the Sagarmatha Sambaad international climate conference in Kathmandu this month, on Mt Everest it was pretty much business as usual.&nbsp; The signs of climate breakdown are all there: a river now runs through Base Camp in summer, the Khumbu Icefall is more unstable, and there are more &nbsp;frequent avalanches. When expeditions arrived in March, the mountains were bare: it had not snowed since September, but then blizzards dumped unseasonal snow in May. And despite climate worries, such is the pull of Himalayan mountaineering that the Everest Industry showed no signs of slowdown. More than 600 international climbers and their Nepali guides had made it to the summit of the world’s highest mountain. At one point there were an estimated 2,000 people in the tent city on the Khumbu Glacier. All the ropes and ladders on the Icefall came down on Thursday, marking the official end of the spring climbing season, and just in time to avoid a monsoon cyclone approaching from the Bay of Bengal. It has been an action-packed season. One factor could be that Everest fees will go up from September: each foreign climber needs to pay a $15,000 royalty, up from the present $11,000. The cost for a Nepali climber on the South Col route will also go up: from Rs75,000 to Rs150,000.&nbsp; The fee to climb Everest in autumn is $7,500 (up from $5,500), but most climbers still prefer spring. Winter permit fee (December-February) is only $3,750 per person and the mountain is now also open for monsoon (June-August) climbs, when the fee is ever lower at $2,750. The revised rule also makes it mandatory for every two climbers on an 8,000m peak to hire one Nepali mountain guide.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025053004050_67f856fe52714e4bdcf21ae7d45c6f18c82117b9d0a5f73ed1efa04c96de1046.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="2025053004050_67f856fe52714e4bdcf21ae7d45c6f18c82117b9d0a5f73ed1efa04c96de1046" data-rendition-name="original" width="931" height="732" loading="lazy" alt="The Everest Industry graph 1"> </figure>  In addition, climbers also have to pay for porters and guides, equipment, Base Camp costs, Ice Fall and fixed rope team fees, so climbing Everest does not come cheap. But such is the draw of climbing the world’s highest peak that some say the increased fees will not diminish the crowds next year. The government has tried to spread expeditions out to other seasons and other 8,000ers, but with not much success. Earlier this year, Nepal unilaterally increased the number of 8,000m peaks to 14 by adding six more sub-summits to broaden the choice for climbers. Added were: Yalung Kang (8,505m), Yalung Kang West (8,077m) &nbsp;Kangchenjunga Central (8,473m), Kangchenjunga South (8,476m), Lhotse Middle (8,410m) and Lhotse Shar (8,400m).&nbsp; The announcement could go against the accepted topographic criteria that a stand alone peak has to be at least 300m higher than an adjoining prominence, and at more than 3km isolation from it. The UIAA (Union Internationale des Associations d'Alpinisme) still recognises only 14 mountains as eight-thousanders, and only eight of those are in Nepal, or on the border with China. Nepal’s revised mountaineering regulations also increased the insurance coverage of high-altitude workers to protect porters and high altitude guides who usually take more risks on the mountains. Rescue teams and clean-up campaigners to collect trash and remove bodies of dead climbers up to Camp IV of Mt Everest do not need permits.&nbsp; The Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee is now using drones to fly down trash in 20kg sacks. Each climber is also required to bring down at least 6kg of waste and not just their own, but this rule is erratically enforced. With five fatalities on Everest and Lhotse, Spring 2025 had a historically low death toll. Another five climbers died on Annapurna, Kangchenjunga and Makalu.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025053004050_38681de22f0fefb6faa12b01755566d09c5064d0ff84e12ccc7b5d68ea9ba38a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="2025053004050_38681de22f0fefb6faa12b01755566d09c5064d0ff84e12ccc7b5d68ea9ba38a" data-rendition-name="original" width="665" height="740" loading="lazy" alt="The Everest industry graph 2"> </figure>  Journalist Ben Ayers who ran the Everest Live social media channel from Everest Base Camp with daily updates credited the low death rate to dramatic rescues of climbers from the ‘Death Zone’ by their Nepali guides and longline helievacs — the visuals all uploaded on YouTube.&nbsp; “Ironically, this perception of safety is bringing more and more inexperienced climbers to the mountain, and they need more rescues,” Ayers said in one of his dispatches.&nbsp; American expedition chronicler and summiteer Alan Arnette suspects there is a lot of under-reporting given that the jet stream and storms were lashing Everest even till late in the season. He told us: “I heard a lot about frostbite and rescues that were not made public. It’s become practically impossible to cover the details on Everest. All the teams report nice news, and they don’t talk about bad stuff to avoid hurting businesses.” Although trash on Nepal’s mountains makes headlines, what does not receive as much attention is the climate impact of so many expeditions. The Sagarmatha Sambaad conference sidestepped this issue, which is ironic given that the impact of climate breakdown is most evident on Himalayan peaks and their glaciers.&nbsp; <h2>Need for Speed</h2> The big stories this year have been about speed-running from their home cities to the top of Everest. Ukrainian entrepreneur Andrew Ushakov flew out of JFK on 15 May at 10:15AM Nepal time, and was on the summit 3 days, 23 hours, and 7 minutes later on 19 May at 9:22AM.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250601080640_1c5cc6fc991307861768f07037ed9d30930fb20f35dbb57dc31c9a92a9e1a885.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20250601080640_1c5cc6fc991307861768f07037ed9d30930fb20f35dbb57dc31c9a92a9e1a885" data-rendition-name="original" width="1440" height="1800" loading="lazy" alt="The Everest Industry"> <figcaption>Andrew Ushakov at the summt. Photo: ELITE EXPED</figcaption> </figure>  “I could never find the time for the traditional 40-50 days of acclimatisation,” Ushakov explained matter-of-factly. His ‘Everest Sea-to-Summit’ climb was possible because he spent 400 hours in hypoxic sleep tents over the past four years in New York. However, Ushakov did use ropes already fixed, hired four Nepali guides, helicoptered to Base Camp, and used much more oxygen than an average climber. And after the climb, Ushakov was arrested at Kathmandu airport for being in possession of $20,000 of undeclared cash and spent a night in jail and fined $60,000.&nbsp; The other speedsters were Garth Miller, Alastair Cairns, Anthony Stazicker, and Kev Godlington, all former British Army commandos. They left London and summited five days later on 21 May, and flew right back. They also used hypoxic tents to simulate the thin air high on Everest.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250601080644_90c8dd5cc07b4b43f2989b1dc0c0650ab80f10ebb06680c25a6909c519957bd8.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20250601080644_90c8dd5cc07b4b43f2989b1dc0c0650ab80f10ebb06680c25a6909c519957bd8" data-rendition-name="original" width="810" height="668" loading="lazy" alt="The Everest Industry "> <figcaption>All four members of the Furtenbach team at the summit. Photo: Sandro Gromen-Hayes</figcaption> </figure>  But more controversial was their use of xenon gas therapy in a German hospital to ramp up the production of oxygen-carrying haemoglobins in their blood. Xenon is banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency for being performance enhancing in sports. Expedition leader Lukas Furtenbach said this rule does not apply to mountaineering, as it is not a regulated sport like swimming. Nepal has no rules about xenon, but the Department of Tourism said it was launching an ‘investigation’ to decide on future policy since it is difficult to ban xenon, but allow oxygen. The controversy has also divided the mountaineering community, with some climbers saying they just want to maximise their chances of survival. Spending less time on the mountain could make climbing safer by reducing avalanche risk. It would also mean less trash on the mountains, but it would reduce the income of Nepal’s expedition industry. It is also unclear how much of the success was due to xenon therapy and whether the ex-special forces were already in good physical shape.&nbsp; The need for speed hides the fact that climbing in the Himalaya is dangerous business, and climbers cannot sprint to the top just by huffing xenon. But ultra-fast climbs could be charged more, and the revenue generated can be used to establish state-of-the-art rescue operations, and increase pay and insurance for guides. Two other speed chasers this season were Swiss-Ecuadorian Karl Egloff and American Tyler Andrews, both on Everest without oxygen. Andrews choppered to Base Camp to catch a weather window, but turned back from 8,500m due to high winds. Heavy snow and wind also forced Egloff to descend from 7,000m. Slow and steady climbers like Anja Blacha from Germany did make it to the summit without oxygen, while Kami Rita Sherpa broke his own record with his 31st Everest summit as he led a 26-strong Indian Army group. There were 468 permits issued for foreign climbers from 48 expeditions to Everest this spring. Nepal’s other eight-thousanders together had only 17 expeditions. Nepal has more than 1,000 peaks above 6,000m, and has opened only 476 of them for climbing.&nbsp;

The Everest Industry

While Nepal marked <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/mt-everest-pvt-ltd">Mt Everest</a> Day on 29 May, on the other side of the planet in the US state of Colorado dozens of Nepalis who have climbed the world’s highest peak multiple times were busy working as chefs and Uber drivers. Among them is Nima Doma Sherpa, who climbed Mt Everest in 2019 after her husband Tshering Wangchu was among 16 crushed by an avalanche on <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/on-thin-ice-in-the-khumbu">the Khumbu Icefall</a> five years earlier. A large serac broke off the West Shoulder of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-everest-industry">Mt Everest </a>and fell directly on a group of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/more-porters-sick-on-everest-trail">porters and guides</a> making their way up the Icefall at 5,800m. Their bodies were flown by helicopter to Khumjung where Tshering Wangchu was born. He was excited about climbing Mt Everest for the first time.&nbsp; In Khumjung, Nima Doma felt like her own life had also ended. This was the kind of news Sherpa wives, mothers and sisters dreaded every <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/peak-climbing-season-2025-s4abrxny">mountaineering season</a>. She stayed home for more than two years grieving, but ultimately gathered up all her emotional strength to take care of her 6-year-old son and 3-year-old daughter. Nima had grown up in Khumjung hearing <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/review/stories-of-nepal-s-summiteers">tales of adventure on the mountains </a>from their father, Ang Chubi Sherpa who had climbed Everest in 1993. He used to bring her and her sisters and brother European chocolates after every expedition, and used to tell them that the chocolate bars grew on the mountains. “It was only after we got older did we realise that he told us that chocolates grew in the mountains so we would not worry about him putting himself in harm's way,” Nima Doma recalled with a faraway look at her home in Boulder this week. Nima went to the school that <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/commemorating-edmund-hillary-in-nepal,4145">Edmund Hillary</a> opened in Khumjung till Grade 8, and then dropped out to help in the kitchen and <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/when-yaks-go-so-does-culture">tend yaks</a>. She was married off to Tshering Wangchu, who was also a high altitude guide. When Tshering went on expeditions, Nima also started working as a porter from Namche to Base Camp. It was perhaps her father’s tales of mountains of chocolates that had always attracted her to <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/knowing-our-mountains-43v4iyvo">the peaks</a>. After her husband was killed ten years ago this month, being a widow with children was not easy for Nima Doma. But she was not alone: there were at least 200 single mothers in <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/khumbu-since-1950-jaww4qn0">the Khumbu</a>, and 20 of them just in Khumjung whose husbands had been killed in <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/tragic-start-to-himalayan-spring-nepal,3695">mountaineering accidents</a>. Some were not even 20 years old, and had children growing up without fathers. But there were also women in the 50s whose husbands had been killed in the 1980s. Nima found sponsors for her children’s education, and moved to Kathmandu. In the capital, Sherpa widows used to meet to help each other. Some of them had joined the Nepal Mountaineering Association (NMA) training for rock and ice climbing. “I decided that it was no use sitting home and crying anymore, after meeting other single mothers I felt less alone,” remembers Nima, who joined the Juniper Foundation and enrolled in an NMA training camp in Manang. There she climbed Chulu East (6,584m) and met Furadiki Sherpa, whose rope-fixing husband had also been <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/on-mt-everest-s-70th-records-and-fatalities">killed on Everest</a> in 2013. They set themselves the goal of climbing Everest one day, and started a fund-raising drive.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250530090544_621be0724b9182c8e3594b2c562a71ec32ac01d985a71d0cf31646de9d51e15a.png" data-media-id="editor_12" data-image-id="20250530090544_621be0724b9182c8e3594b2c562a71ec32ac01d985a71d0cf31646de9d51e15a" data-rendition-name="original" width="2678" height="1274" loading="lazy" alt="Everest summiteers find new life in the US"> </figure>  “We decided we had to overcome society’s stigma of <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/widows-personal-happiness-comes-last-in-face-of-social-financial-hardships,1855">widowhood</a> and prove that <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/remembering-junko-tabei">women could also climb mountains</a>,” Nima said, adding that she was inspired by Nepal’s first woman Everest summiteer Pasang Lhamu Sherpa, who died during her descent in 1993. Nima Doma and Furdiki climbed the technically-difficult Ama Dablam (6,812m) and then arrived at Everest Base Camp in April 2019 as part of their Two Widows Expedition with the motto, ‘So Can We’. While climbing up the Icefall Nima passed the spot where her husband had been killed. It was a jumble of constantly-shifting ice blocks bigger than houses. She closed her eyes and said a prayer. “I remember thinking, this is so difficult and dangerous. This is what my husband had to do to support our family,” Nima Doma said. “I was determined to fulfil my husband’s dream of climbing Chomolungma, and to prove to ourselves that we two women could do it.” It was 23 May 2019 when <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/world/two-sherpa-widows-scale-everest-and-smash-stigma-idUSKCN1SU0MV/" target="_blank">Nima and Furdiki stepped on the summit</a> and looked over into Tibet, and down at Tengboche Monastery to the south.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250530090544_6b822582b5d88ba5e972db084f184690b40653c6efd9901b2dd082ffba2a263b.png" data-media-id="editor_16" data-image-id="20250530090544_6b822582b5d88ba5e972db084f184690b40653c6efd9901b2dd082ffba2a263b" data-rendition-name="original" width="2700" height="1522" loading="lazy" alt="Everest summiteers find new life in the US"> </figure>  Nima Doma hugged Furdiki, took off her mask and wept. But for the first time in five years, it was not from grief but relief — relief for being free of all the sadness and sacrifices and for fulfilling her husband’s dream. They had found <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/life-after-death">life after death</a>. “I felt this immense joy to be on top of the world, it was indescribable,” Nima Doma said, “I have wept only twice in my life. Once when my husband died, and once there on top of Everest.” The tears had frozen on Nima Doma’s cheeks, as she and Furdiki headed back down the mountain.