<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022120710128/639058739c7e80680e0ce1a4jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"/><figcaption>Chinimaya lama with her two children. All photos: ANITA BHETWAL</figcaption></figure>Chinimaya Lama, 30, cannot walk up the slope to fetch water for her livestock. Her lower abdomen hurts and she has difficulty sitting down. At home she looks after her husband and five children.She went to a health post six months ago, but the staff there did not even have painkillers. Lama has a uterine problem and cannot afford to go to a city hospital to have it treated.Every few years at election time, political leaders campaigning house-to-house come by to the village of Syaule promising to upgrade its health post. This year, too, the candidates have trooped in, but residents of this scenic village with 52 households have heard it all before.Lama’s neighbours Pemsang, Rammaya, Dilmaya and Kanchi Tamang all have uterine problems like her, caused by multiple pregnancies, hard work in the fields and poor nutrition. None of them have access to diagnosis or treatment.“Candidates asking for votes would have got a much better response if they had also come up with health camps for women and brought medicines for us,” adds Lama, bundling grass for her cows.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022120710128/639058779c7e80680e0ce1a5jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>As in other parts of rural Nepal, there is little excitement about the 20 November elections in Syaule, which is a 4 hour drive northeast of Kathmandu. There is a look of quiet dejection and much grimacing, when residents are asked if they will vote.“From before I was born, we have faced lack of water, proper medical care and joblessness. When these candidates come asking for votes, I just get furious,” says Wakab Tamang, 80, scowling through his wrinkles.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/depending-on-independents/">Depending on independents</a>, Shristi Karki<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022120710128/6390587b9c7e80680e0ce1a6jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="372" height="355"><figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022120710128/6390587d9c7e80680e0ce1a7jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure><figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022120710128/639058809c7e80680e0ce1a8jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Syaule villagers have therefore collectively decided to boycott the 20 November elections. Says Chinimaya Lama: “I would rather go to my daily job and earn a few hundred rupees to buy food for my children instead of wasting my time voting for leaders who do nothing for us.”Residents of the adjacent village of Sanghachok have also decided not to vote. Mishri Lama, too, has faced water scarcity for three generations.“They tell us we will get water but it is only because the election is here and they want our votes,” says Lama. “They act as if we are family at election time, and then abandon us. No, we are not voting.”<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022120710128/639058849c7e80680e0ce1a9jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1122"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Springs going dry due to over-extraction and climate change is a problem across Nepal’s mid-mountains, but is especially acute in ridge-top settlements like Syaule and Sanghachok.Dhan Bahadur Tamang spent thousands of rupees to fit a tap a few years ago, only to find that the spring had gone dry. No politician came to help. “I won’t even open the door for these candidates when they come by, I’m sick of them,” he adds.Last year’s monsoon floods destroyed the main road from Chautara, and there has been an effort to repair the landslides which children have to make a dangerous traverse every day on their way to school and back.“For me the word politician is synonymous with inaction,” says Mishri Lama.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022120710128/639058889c7e80680e0ce1aajpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Pema Rinchi Sherpa had actively campaigned in the 2017 election for Mohan Bahadur Basnet who is now contesting from Sindhupalchok-2, but after repeatedly being denied a meeting with the man to discuss road and water issues, he has learned his lesson.“I won’t be voting for these leaders who just want power in Kathmandu,” he says. Basnet is contesting again from the governing coalition against Sher Bahadur Tamang of the opposition UML.In the village of Dumre between Sun Kosi and Indrawati rivers, many residents do not have land ownership rights despite having lived here for generations owing to a random border division three decades ago.People here have homes in Sindhupalchok but many got their citizenship from Kavre. Two brothers from the same family have to go to different constituencies in different districts to cast their votes.“We have been living here from the time of our forefathers but we have fallen between the cracks,” says Khadga Bahadur Pahari (pictured below). “It does not matter how many times we voted in the past, no one has ever heard us. So we won’t vote at all this time.”<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022120710128/6390588b9c7e80680e0ce1abjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="997">Dumre is home to 60 Majhi fisher families who have lost their livelihoods because of an illegal sand and boulder mining operation owned by a businessman with political patronage. They too are not going to bother voting this time.Masali Majhi cannot fish anymore, and has lost her income because of the ‘crusher’ operation. She says: “What is the point of voting for these people who do not care for us?”Ward chair Roshan Giri was elected in the local polls in May, and Sunday’s elections are for federal and provincial assemblies. UML candidate Sher Bahadur Tamang says he will resolve the fishing crisis by building a reservoir on the Sun Kosi and stopping illegal sand mining.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022120710128/6390588f9c7e80680e0ce1acjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>But these promises do not impress many locals who are boycotting the polls. They may not know all the candidates, but they know they have not performed in the past. They are punishing their inaction by exercising their right not to vote.By doing this, they are also rejecting younger candidates and independent hopefuls. Locals do not seem to be very impressed with the choice of alternative candidates either, or much informed.The governing coalition’s Mohan Basnet says he will amend the law if required if he wins the election. He says: “I will help the fisher people if I am elected. They should give me one more chance.”But at least in these villages of Sindhupalchok it looks like the residents feel they have already given the candidates one too many chances.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/election-climate-in-nepal/">Election climate in Nepal</a>, Shilshila Acharya<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/battle-of-ballots/">Battle of ballots</a>, Shristi Karki

Anita Bhetwal

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Dejected voters reject polls

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111410118/637205999c7e80680e0b28c6jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1920" height="1080"/><figcaption>When the only ambulance in Diprung Chuichumma could not attend to all the emergencies, Chair Bhupendra Rai himself drove the infected to health centres.</figcaption></figure>KhotangLast year, as Nepal plunged headlong into <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/the-real-cost-of-nepals-second-wave/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the second wave</a> of Covid-19, cities around the country including Kathmandu Valley announced lockdowns, and people of Diprung Chuichumma Rural Municipality of Khotang streamed back home.The people were home, but they also brought the virus with them. The only ambulance in the municipality could not attend to all the emergencies, so Chair Bhupendra Rai donned a PPE and started driving the infected to the health centre in his own car. Sometimes, he would go door-to-door carrying patients on his back to the car.The municipality set up a 25-bed isolation centre, ramped up awareness campaigns, and carried out antigen tests. Vice-chair Sapana Rai was equally involved. Those who couldn’t be treated inside the municipality were taken to hospitals in Kathmandu and  Biratnagar.“We entered politics for the people. So, when they were suffering, we couldn’t just sit back and relax, we had to be hands-on in serving them and taking the lead from the front,” Bhupendra Rai told us on the phone from Khotang as he waits for word on <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/dance-of-democracy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the date for local elections slated for April</a>.This <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepals-local-governments-lead-from-the-front/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">local government team was proof</a> that elected grassroots politicians understand the need of their area, are more accountable, and are willing to serve their constituents.The Omicron surge is spreading, but this time there are not as many cases of Covid-19 in the village. But the Rais are not taking any chances. The municipality has increased the number of antigen tests and encouraged the infected to isolate at home.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111410118/6372059c9c7e80680e0b28c7jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2048" height="1152"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Kathmandu may have a shortage of cetamol painkillers, but there is plenty stockpiled here to meet villagers’ needs. And the municipality has deployed health volunteers to accelerate the vaccination drive.“Whoever could walk to the centre are all vaccinated, now we need to reach those who cannot come on their own,” says Rai.As schools nationwide remained closed during the lockdown, the municipality deployed more than 200 teachers with masks on who went house-to-house tutoring students. It also bought produce from local farmers who could not take it to market due to the lockdown and distributed to needy families. This ensured food security as well as income for the local farmers.When Bhupendra Rai was elected in 2017, there were not enough roads in his rural municipality. Every monsoon, the constituency would be locked in as the Sunkosi and Sapsi river flooded. Today, a motorable bridge connects this remote village to the rest of the country. Every household has electricity and access to drinking water.“All this would not have been possible without the local elections and local representatives in place, it forced us to perform,” says Rai.Tehrathum<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111410118/6372059f9c7e80680e0b28c8jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2048" height="1149"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>To the east in Laligurans Municpality, Tehrathum Mayor Arjun Mabuhang also worked on connectivity as soon as he got elected five years ago. Having seen <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/uncategorized/elected-contractors/">rampant corruption in road contracts</a>, Mabuhang got the municipality to buy its own excavators to build roads with the help of locals, cancelling out middlemen.“Now all the wards have roads and there is ownership amongst the people because they themselves were involved in building them,” says Mabuhang.He also introduced a program to upgrade agriculture by supporting dairy farmers and offering grants for vegetable and fruit farming, poultry, and pig farms. The roads helped get the produce to market.Says the mayor: “Because I am from here and I myself have seen the ground reality and know what the people here need, I work in the areas that benefit the people most. We did what we could with the budget we were given, but we need to work more on improving schools.”Sindhupalchok<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111410118/637205a39c7e80680e0b28c9jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="960" height="720"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>In Sindhupalchok’s Jugal Rural Municipality, Deputy Chair Srijana Tamang has been single-mindedly working on improving education. As a child, she remembers walking for hours from home to school and back. In winter night fell quickly on her way home, and during the monsoon she would be covered from head to toe in leeches.When she was elected five years ago, one of the first things Tamang and Chair Hom Narayan Shrestha worked on was to appoint new teachers and upgrade school buildings, some of them destroyed in the earthquake.Having worked as a social worker in the past, Tamang recognised the priority areas for her rural municipality, and her background and familiarity with the people helped her not only gain an edge during the elections but prepared her to deal with the problems of her community.“When I was elected, I really wanted to prioritise roads and education, but <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/rural-nepal-fights-back-covid-19/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the pandemic meant we had to address more urgent issues</a>,” adds Tamang, who offered RT PCR testing and monitored the spread of the disease, turning a local school into an isolation centre. With Omicron, Tamang believes the people are more aware, and better prepared.“The pandemic was the first big challenge for me as a local representative,” says Tamang. “But knowing that we are working for our people and our families, there is always a greater sense of responsibility.”In 2020, while Tamang was away on official business, a <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/deadly-monsoon-in-nepal-turns-deadlier/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">massive landslide at Lidi</a> killed 39. She travelled overnight to help with the rescue and relief effort and got support to rehabilitate those made homeless. She got geologists to prepare a disaster risk map of her municipality to prevent future disasters, and prepare for them.Jhapa<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111410118/637205a69c7e80680e0b28cajpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2048" height="1536"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Jhapa’s, Kamal Rural Municipality has the distinction of being among <a href="https://www.himalkhabar.com/news/125595?fbclid=IwAR1g00nElAMlIzStd-FiN7M-f6PZ1H3KQXE6V0f8Y4ztDNxclOSJ9KWQPZs" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">four of the 753 municipalities around the country ranked cleanest</a> in budget disbursement by the Office of Auditor General. It is a well-deserved recognition for Chair Menuka Kafle for whom tackling leakage and corruption was a priority.For any project with a budget over Rs5 million, the municipality went through a strict tender process. It also stopped giving out advances for projects and kept track of expenditure.“For the others to follow the rules, we had to lead by example, so we made sure that we were meticulous about accounting,” says Kafle.Over the last five years, the rural municipality has constructed more than 70km of roads, upgraded bridges, and ensured that all wards have electricity. Kafle distributed carts to women fruit and vegetable vendors and launched income generation activities for women.“When women are economically independent, they don’t have to depend on others and can make their own decisions,” says Kafle.The municipality offered cash incentives to encourage pregnant women to visit health centres for regular check-ups and registration of new-borns. When Kafle first got elected, many people in the community <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/is-democracy-too-expensive-for-nepal/">did not believe that a woman could run the office</a>.During important meetings people would ignore her and seek out the male Deputy Chair. These days Kafle is in high demand.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111410118/637205a99c7e80680e0b28cbjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1080" height="486">Says Kafle: “We women who are in power have to work hard to build trust in the community and do everything within our power so that women who come after us don’t face so much difficulty.”

Sahina Shrestha

All politics is local

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121148/636b93cb9c7e80680e06f1c3jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"/><figcaption>Sambhu Kumar Mandal and dozens of his colleagues have been in Sindhupalchok working on reconstruction after the 2015 earthquake. All photos: AMIT MACHAMASI</figcaption></figure>Sambhu Kumar Mandal is from Sitamarhi in Bihar. Like hundreds of other migrant workers from India, they have been in Nepal working in reconstruction jobs after <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/being-prepared-for-monsoon-and-outbreaks,2293" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the 2015 earthquakes</a>.What they did not realise is that the district most affected by those earthquakes would be ravaged by yet another disaster six years later – <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nepal-valley-suffers-quadruple-disaster/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the deadly flash floods on 14-15 June</a>.Mandal and dozens of other carpenters, plumbers and painters had been working in Sindhupalchok, hired by people rebuilding homes that had been destroyed in 2015. One week after <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/monsoon-hits-nepal-with-a-bang/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the massive flood</a>. Some of those same houses they helped rebuild are buried up to the second floor in sediment.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121148/636b93ce9c7e80680e06f1c4jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Ironically, Indian migrant workers have filled jobs left vacant by young Nepali men from here who themselves have migrated to Qatar or Malaysia.“When we crossed the bridge after work on Tuesday, the water was rising, but we didn’t think anything of it,” Mandal, 38, recalls. “We cooked, ate and went to sleep, but suddenly at night there was a big commotion and we saw the water rising. We ran to high ground and saved our lives. We could not sleep the whole night.”On Tuesday, Mandal and a dozen other Indian workers were helping their employers dig up valuables in rooms that are buried in silt up to the ceiling. Others are busy retrieving furniture and anything else that can still be used.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121148/636b93d29c7e80680e06f1c5jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121148/636b93d59c7e80680e06f1c6jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121148/636b93d99c7e80680e06f1c7jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121148/636b93dd9c7e80680e06f1c8jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>The streets of <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/disasters-in-nepal-come-in-waves/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Melamchi Bazar</a> are buried in mud, there are people’s possessions scattered everywhere, and by the river that now flows through homes there is the stench of bodies.Officials here estimate that at least 50 people are still missing, although the official death toll in Sindhupalchok is 17, among them Chinese, Indian and Nepali staff of the Melamchi Water Supply Project upstream.Satellite images from Sentinel and Planet Labs show that landslides triggered by the 2015 earthquakes in the Melamchi and Indrawati basins (see map) grew bigger during heavy precipitation on 15 June as <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-braces-for-monsoon-pandemic-double-hit/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the monsoon</a> broke over Nepal.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121148/636b93e09c7e80680e06f1c9jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1924" height="1284"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>There is a very large slope slide below the village of Dongdhing that appears to have blocked the Melamchi River, and it was the river breaking through this and other landslides that caused t<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/manpower-and-hydropower/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">he devastating flood downstream</a>.In Melamchi, the municipality’s head of social security Yadav Khanal is busy collecting data of fatalities, and damage to classify families according to the urgency of their need. He is also coordinating three meals a day and blankets for 30 families with 300 individuals who are sheltered in a school above the town.“We are doing what we can, but because the road up the river has been cut off, we still have not heard from outlying areas about casualties and damage,” Khanal says.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121148/636b93e49c7e80680e06f1cajpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121148/636b93e79c7e80680e06f1cbjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121148/636b93eb9c7e80680e06f1ccjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121148/636b93ee9c7e80680e06f1cdjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>There is <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/a-disaster-resilient-nepal-is-possible/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">more rain</a> forecast, so the municipality is on high alert since the unstable slopes could block the Melamchi and Indrawati Rivers again. It is also trying to use excavators to divert the river to its original channel, away from the town.Many of Sambhu Mandal’s colleagues, including a carpenter who lost all his belongings when his room was submerged, have returned to Bihar. But he and a few others are staying on since they are still needed by employers for mopping up.“We will also go to Kathmandu in a few days, and try to find work there,” says Mandal in smooth Nepali from the years he has spent here. “After that I may even come back to Melamchi, since there is bound to be more reconstruction work.”

After the deluge in Nepal

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121144/636b92da9c7e80680e06f171jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="960" height="640"/><figcaption>All Photos: Amit Machamasi/Nepali Times</figcaption></figure>Within six days of the start of the rainy season, the monsoon of 2021 has already caused death and destruction across central Nepal.Heavy showers continued on Wednesday in one of the worst affected areas 40km northeast of Kathmandu in Melamchi Bazar, where dozens of people are reported missing and infrastructure washed away by flash floods.Video posts on social media showed walls of muddy water with floating logs and trees rushing down the streets of the town, located at the confluence of Melamchi and Indrawati Rivers.When this photographer reached the town on Wednesday afternoon, both rivers were still flowing high, heavy with mud and silt.The rainfall has been unusually heavy in Sindhupalchok district, with some monitoring stations registering above 100mm in the 12 hours between Tuesday and Wednesday morning.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121144/636b92dd9c7e80680e06f172jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="394"><figcaption>Weather satellite radar image showing the monsoonal system with heaviest rain in red, over central Nepal on Wednesday afternoon. DoHM</figcaption></figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121144/636b92e19c7e80680e06f173jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="960" height="640">Also contributing to the high sediment load were mountain slopes destabilised by the 2015 earthquake as well as haphazard road-building, leading to frequent landslides for the past five years.In addition, boulders and sand banks that would have reduced the velocity of the water in the rivers have been mined and picked clean by construction contractors, making the flood more destructive.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121144/636b92e39c7e80680e06f174jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="538"><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121144/636b92e69c7e80680e06f175jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="960" height="640"><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121144/636b92e89c7e80680e06f176jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="427"><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121144/636b92eb9c7e80680e06f177jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="427"><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121144/636b92ed9c7e80680e06f178jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="427"><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121144/636b92f09c7e80680e06f179jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="427">The floodwaters seem to have started right at the upper reaches of the rivers since some of the headworks of the Melamchi Water Supply Project were damaged by the rising waters. Eight workers at the Melamchi project, including three Chinese and three Indians and two Nepalis are said to be missing when the flash flood entered the project site.Fortunately, the 26.5 km tunnel that brings water to Kathmandu Valley had been closed for testing a few days earlier.Two highway bridges and three suspension footbridges on Melamchi road were destroyed. Several trout farms and paddy terraces were also washed away. In the Bazar itself, most of the damage could be seen in the new construction on the floodplain of the river.Geographer Narendra Khanal says the Indrawati River appears to have been blocked by a landslide between 5-6pm on Tuesday evening. The water level monitoring station shows the flow at 4.7m decreasing suddenly to 3m, and then shooting up to 6m at 6:45pm."This is an indication that the river was blocked for about 45 minutes about 20km upstream in an area with major landslide after the 2015 earthquake, and suddenly the water burst through," Khanal says. The Indrawati meets the Melamchi just above the Bazar, and the combined flow changed the course of the river, forcing it to disperse over its flood plain.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121144/636b92f29c7e80680e06f17ajpeg.jpg" alt="" width="960" height="640"><figcaption></figcaption></figure><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/11uv1E3NjRSHrrXHs7RPCbQboPtxyMlk3/view?usp=sharing" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Radhika Shrestha</a>, Melamchi-11We live in lower Melamchi near the bridge. I was working in the fields when I got a call from my brother-in-law saying that the river was blocked upstream and to move to higher ground. We ran towards the road that is at a higher level than our house. After a while we saw that the level of water in the river had decreased, so we went home to cook and eat dinner. We were still cooking when we got another warning to leave.We have eaten biscuits and packaged noodles. We are four people in the family. All our assets have been lost to the flood but we will survive even if we have to beg or do physical labor.<a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1F0E3VJWfzVdUFWDDDXOmlB4pWouRb-A0/view?usp=sharing">Laxmi Prasad Shrestha</a>, Melamchi-11Last night, it was the Indrawati river that flooded first. Two hours later, the flashflood in Melamchi destroyed the entire market and houses here.The police informed us that the flood was coming, so we ran from our houses to higher ground. We are now taking shelter at the school here.We have lost everything. Our house, the lodge everything was submerged and is now covered in mud. Whatever we had was inside the house and now it is impossible to retrieve. We haven’t thought of the future, we don’t know how we will survive.<a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1IK6Ocz83-pEYi-AUcMcROpfuuY5v-ugO/view?usp=sharing" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Rudra Prasad Dulal</a>, Ward Chief Melamchi 11Ward number 10 and 11 were worst affected by the flood. Yesterday around 5pm, we received an early warning and we mobilised our team, informed everyone including the security forces. This is the only reason why we didn’t have any casualties in our community.More than a hundred houses have been inundated in Melamchi. We have rescued four people, with the help of security personnel.A lot of infrastructure has been destroyed, including bridges and transmission lines.We have asked one family to stay in one room of the school and are arranging food for them.

Nepal valley suffers quadruple disaster

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIdbmBlnVZI&amp;feature=youtu.beNearly 25 years after it was first mooted, there is light at the end of the tunnel for Melamchi, Nepal’s biggest and most expensive infrastructure project that will pipe glacier water from Langtang National Park to Kathmandu Valley.The $800 million undertaking has been near completion several times, but government interference, corruption and extortion have taken their toll. The headworks construction is now half finished here at Ambathan 70km by road north of Kathmandu where the roar of the Melamchi River drowns out the sound of excavators that will allow the water into the tunnel.On Sunday, the project sent water 800m down the tunnel to its first adit tunnel as a test from the overflow reservoir at Ambathan. At this rate, project officials say the first Melamchi water could flow down to Melamchi by September.  They say 99% of the 26.5km long tunnel and the treatment plants at Sundarijal in Kathmandu Valley are complete.  Kathmandu <a href="http://nepalitimes.com/article/nation/Melamchi-flows-to-Kathmandu,3397">roads have been dug up</a> and used to be <a href="http://nepalitimes.com/page/every-breath-you-take-air-pollution">shrouded in a perpetual pall of dust</a> as new water mains were laid to distribute the water when it arrives. <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/page/melamchi-coming-to-kathmandu">Melamchi not a mirage anymore</a>, Sonia Awale <figure><img width="1580" height="908" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109141132/636bac6f9c7e80680e077f30jpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>With 99% of the tunnel and the treatment plants at Sundarijal now complete it may be possible to send water to Kathmandu by September. All photos: SURENDRA PHUYAL</figcaption></figure>The new target date for consumers to actually get Melamchi water flowing through their pipes is late 2020, but even that could be delayed due to the COVID-19 lockdown. The Melamchi Water Supply Project is the largest infrastructure scheme in Nepal today, and with a $800 million price tag, including the future extension, the costliest as well. Its 26.5 km long and 3.7m wide tunnel in Phase 1 is the second longest tunnel for water supply in Asia.It is being built with a soft loan from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and will bring 170 million litres a day to Kathmandu. A proposed Phase 2 of the project could also connect the Yangri and Larke Khola through two more tunnels and nearly triple the daily water flow (see map).The project has been plagued by chronic delays due to <a href="http://nepalitimes.com/issue/350/Nation/13560#.WMEfpPInLK8">political meddling</a>, the 2015 earthquake, the Indian blockade and most recently by the COVID-19 lockdown.  It was 2010 when a Chinese contractor finally started digging the tunnel but could only finish 6.4km in three years. It was  replaced by the Italian CMC di Ravenna company which took over where the Chinese had left off. The earthquake and blockade led to more delays. <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/dont-wait-for-melamchi-nepal,3765">Don't wait for Melamchi</a>, Tyler McMahon <figure><img width="1641" height="920" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109141132/636bac729c7e80680e077f31jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>But the project could not meet its completion date of March 2018 because the government cancelled CMC di Ravenna’s contract, reportedly because it refused to <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/from-the-nepali-press/melamchi-delayed-by-government-extortion/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">pay extortion</a> to bureaucrats in Singha Darbar. China’s SinoHydro then took over, and had been rushing to catch up with the schedule when the COVID-19 lockdown hit.  Contrary to popular belief, the water will not be gushing through the tunnel. In fact, it has a gradient of only 8m between the intake in Melamchi and the outlet in Sundarijal giving it a water velocity of only 0.5m/second which means it will take 45 hours for the water to complete its underground journey.  This is the monsoon, and the water flow in the Melamchi makes it a raging torrent. However, in the dry season flow goes down to 2.4 cubic meters per second (cumec) of which only 2 cumec of water will be diverted into the tunnel. There are 1.5 km of access tunnels located near the intake in Ambathan, in Gyalthum and Sindhu.  On 5 July, the first water was let into the tunnel amidst a religious ceremony. Tiresh Khatri of the Melamchi project said: "This is a milestone, we will be doing more tests and hopefully water will reach Kathmandu by September."However, engineer Shekhar Khanal said there still a lot of unfinished work that will take months. His estimate for water to reach Kathmandu: early 2021. <p style="letter-spacing: normal; margin: 0in 0in 8pt; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; line-height: 15.693333625793457px;">Read also: <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/renew-commitment-to-preserve-ancient-water-spouts,2931">Going with the flow</a>, Liew Yu Wei

Light at the end of the Melamchi tunnel

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vGngulAKKQc&amp;feature=youtu.beAt the edge of Tika Vidyashram School in Sanepa rises a new, three-storey building, much bigger than the one damaged in the earthquake. The classrooms are airy, bright and spacious, the staircases are wide and there is even a balcony that overlooks the grounds.The government school was built 70 years ago with traditional mud mortar and bricks, and had to be demolished after the <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/2015/04/25/massive-earthquake-rattles-nepal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2015 earthquake</a>.  The new blocks have been designed and built with reinforced concrete to be earthquake resistant, as well as to provide a child friendly, comfortable environment.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108111156/636a36419c7e80680e0482fajpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1000" height="454"/>“The old school was dark, and the students looked gloomy. But the new classrooms provide a much better environment for children, and even the teachers are happy with the improved facilities, which means a better learning experience,” says principal Bimala Lamichhane. Like Tika School, many government schools in the earthquake areas have not only been rebuilt, but they have been built back better.Read also:<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/?p=25110&amp;preview=true" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Shaking up the health sector</a>, Sewa Bhattarai<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/?p=25092&amp;preview=true" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lessons Unlearnt</a>, Editorial<a style="background-color: #ffffff; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/tall-order/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tall order</a>, Sewa Bhattarai and Prakriti Kandel<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108111156/636a36429c7e80680e0482fbjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1400" height="1028"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Tika School’s reconstruction is financed by loans from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) to the Nepal government. The main academic block of the school now has nine rooms, a building for science practicals is being erected nearby with four large rooms spread over two floors that will house a library, science lab, computer room and music room.Tika School is among 8,000 schools undergoing reconstruction after being damaged in the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/past-disasters-foretold/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">earthquake</a>. A majority of them are government schools and follow similar earthquake-resistant designs created by the Central Level Project Implementation Unit under the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/hired-fired-rehired/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">National Reconstruction Authority (NRA)</a>.Engineers from the District Level Project Implementation Unit (DLPIU) oversee the construction and ensure that quality is maintained. The NRA says 4,201 of the damaged and destroyed schools have been rebuilt while 2,619 schools are under construction with help from various donors like JICA, USAID, and private groups.Read also:<a style="background-color: #ffffff; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/?p=25101&amp;preview=true" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nepal’s traditional seismic resistant designs</a>, Sheilin Teo<a style="background-color: #ffffff; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/?p=25102&amp;preview=true" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Building back cheaper and stronger</a>, Sapana Shakya and Aman Raj KhatakhoOne private group working to rebuild schools is Sustainable Future, which uses non-traditional building technologies that are said to be <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/rebuilding-environmentally-friendly-cheaper-houses,2826" target="_blank" rel="noopener">environmentally friendly</a> and earthquake resistant. Two schools destroyed in the earthquake, Dwarpaleswor and Bageswori schools of Kavre district, are being rebuilt using rammed earth technology.Sustainable Future is also involved in the project that is using the same technology to expand Bayalpata Hospital in Achham, a facility run by the organisation Possible under a public-private-partnership with the central government. Sustainable Future collaborated with Namaste Nepal in building Bageswori school.“Rammed earth uses locally available mud and minimal cement to construct the walls of the schools, making the buildings better suited for the local climate,” explains Narayan Acharya of Sustainable Future. Cement is used in the upper and lower tie beams so that the vertical and horizontal rods going within the mud walls are well connected. This makes the buildings stronger than traditional <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/A-concrete-future,2251" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reinforced concrete structures</a>.“At first we thought 'How can we build a school out of mud?', but we realised that there were huge benefits,” recalls Shiva Prasad Bajgai, chairperson of Dwarpaleswor School Management Committee. “It is hot here in the summers and very cold in winters, and the mud architecture has insulating properties.”Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/class-struggle/https:/www.nepalitimes.com/banner/class-struggle/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Class Struggle</a>, Prakriti KandelTo the north in Sindhupalchok, the Bhote Namlang Secondary School was also completely destroyed during the earthquake and was reconstructed with the support of Helambu Education Livelihood Partnership (HELP). The school now has 22 rooms: 12 were newly constructed, 4 were retrofitted and 6 additional rooms were built by the DLPIU.Bhote Namlang school serves as the education hub of its community, and it was the local people who took charge of the reconstruction, with help from New Zealand  and UK-based organisations. The school was reconstructed using local skills and material without any contractors. Architects listened to the local people’s needs before submitting their design. The school's frame structure ensures that it is earthquake resistant.Read also:<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/nepal-is-being-loved-to-death/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nepal is being loved to death</a>, Anil Chitrakar<a style="background-color: #ffffff; letter-spacing: 0.01em; font-size: 15px;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nirmala-pariyars-2nd-life/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nirmala Pariyar's 2nd life</a>, Ramu SapkotaBhote Namlang has 675 students, and faced a shortage of classrooms and furniture for four years after the earthquake. But today, there are bright modern classrooms, and the students are happy, says Jimmy Lama of HELP, adding that now new sections can be added to accommodate more students.Apart from being earthquake resistant, many of the rebuilt schools now have much better infrastructure than they did before 2015, allowing them to focus on <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/after-quantity-nepals-education-needs-quality/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">improving the quality</a> of instruction.The only problem is that with accelerated outmigration after the earthquake, the villages are being depopulated and there are fewer children. The hope is that with better schools, some of the families who have migrated to the cities may actually return.Says Bajgai of Dwarpaleswor school, “Now that we no longer have to worry about infrastructure, we are thinking of expanding the school to Grade 10 and investing in better teachers and improved quality.”

Quake was a learning experience for Nepal’s schools

<h2>Even in developed countries, recovery and reconstruction takes much more than three years to complete</h2><figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110710114/6368ca909c7e80680e02f31bjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1350" height="544"/><figcaption>RSS</figcaption></figure>If I hear one more commentator saying 'nothing is happening' on the post-earthquake reconstruction front, I will scream. With the third anniversary upon us, observers and media from near and far, in their infinite wisdom, will be pronouncing that progress is minimal and looking for examples to prove their foregone conclusion.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110710114/6368ca939c7e80680e02f31cjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="130" height="101">So, which of the following stories do you prefer?Either: After three years, the community of Semphreng Gopte Gyang (Helambu Gaunpalika-6 in Sindhupalchok) and its 65 primary <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/rebuilding-Yangrima-school-after-earthquake-in-Sindhupalchowk,2779">school</a> students still do not know when help will come to rebuild their shattered four-room school.Read Also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/the-reincarnation-of-a-holy-valley/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The reincarnation of a holy valley</a>, Clara BullockOr: In the village of Bati Banjyang in <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/sindhupalchok-losing-hope%20,2224">Sindhupalchok</a>, at least 10 houses are under construction or completed, following the building code. Community members are helping each other, while masons and workers have come from as far away as the Tarai for the jobs.Take your pick. Both accurately represents community life three years after the April and May 2015 earthquakes. Many houses, schools, <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/being-prepared-for-monsoon-and-outbreaks,2293">health centres</a>, <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/righting-heritage-%20reconstruction-gone-wrong,3670">heritage</a> and local government buildings remain to be rebuilt or retrofitted. The most disadvantaged are struggling: to earn a living, to get their children into school, let alone take advantage of government support to acquire land, so that they can actually build a house of their own.But 'nothing is happening'? Come on.Here are a few statistics even though your eyes may be starting to glaze over already: as evidence of the 'slow pace' of reconstruction, a recent news report quoted the NRA's data that the reconstruction of 2,371 <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/keeping-the-children-in-safe-classrooms,3057">schools destroyed or damaged by the earthquakes of 2015</a> has yet to begin.Of course, in every community where rebuilding has not started, parents worry continuously about the educational future of their children. This is the downside, and they are right to want schools functioning in their communities again as soon as possible.Read Also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/thamel-gets-back-to-business/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Thamel gets back to business</a>, Nischhal Pradhan, Raila Rai, Prasong RupachaOn the other hand, out of a total of 7,553 destroyed or damaged schools, 3,079 (41%) have been rebuilt and another 2,013 (28%) are under construction. That is striking by any standard.Compared with progress in many disaster recovery situations around the world, this is not unimpressive, to say the least. Yes, reconstruction of 31% of schools has yet to begin, but 69% are either rebuilt or under construction: is this a slow pace? Is the bottle one-third empty or two-thirds full?Over the last year especially, progress has accelerated, much of it with government support, but also with many householders and communities raising their own resources.Look at housing: NRA data shows that in late May 2017, construction had started on 43,500 houses, while almost 27,000 had been completed. Eleven months later, construction has begun on 403,600 houses and 115,000 have been finished. That’s an impressive increase of well over 900% in housing starts and more than 400% in completed houses, in an 11-month period. Health centres, heritage buildings, rural trails and bridges, government buildings – whatever we look at, we are seeing progress.Yes, many people and communities have not yet started to rebuild their houses and schools, or are struggling to put together the resources. The struggle is particularly acute for the most vulnerable members of the population.There are problems regarding compliance with building codes, and unresolved differences on how to rebuild heritage structures.Read Also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/how-to-build-back-better/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">How to build back better?</a>, Suyog PrajapatiBut look at all the rebuilding that is going on now, from the remote communities of Sindhupalchok, <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/epicenter-barpak-born-again,2998">Gorkha</a> or Ramechhap to the buzz of <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/Epicentre-of-reconstruction,2286">reconstruction activity</a> (with those strikingly symmetric scaffoldings) on temples in Patan Durbar Square.Nowhere in the world has recovery and reconstruction been completed or neared completion after only three years -- it just doesn’t happen. Be it the Great Hanshin (Kobe) earthquake in 1995, Hurricane Katrina in 2005, or the Haiti earthquake of 2010, it takes close to a decade to rebuild and there is still residual evidence of damage in some places. Christchurch is still struggling to recover seven years after the earthquake that devastated it.Experience shows that on average, it takes close to a decade to rebuild from such major disasters - and even after that, there is usually still residual evidence of damage in some places.Japan, the US and New Zealand have well-developed infrastructure, local government networks and urban planning, significant financial resources, traditions of rigorous adherence to building codes and rapid accessibility to affected areas.Read Also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/mind-the-gap/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mind the gap,</a> EditorialCompare these with Nepal’s 2015 earthquakes: devastation over a wide geographical area, rugged, mountainous terrain, horrendous access problems to rural and isolated mountain communities, serious challenges on the planning, building codes adherence and financial fronts, of finding and/or training sufficient masons ... and you expect recovery and reconstruction to be completed after just three years?Name a reconstruction challenge and Nepal has it. Name an economic, budget or governance constraint and Nepal has it. Recovery is taking place as Nepal struggles to roll out an incredibly complex devolution process. But don’t stop there, and say that nothing is happening.Look around, go into rural areas beyond the motorable roads and you see women masons and builders working alongside the men.Reconstruction is underway, with and without government support. Government grants are not enough to rebuild houses, and are not meant to be.Yes, things could always go faster and better, but don’t fall for the 'nothing is happening' cliche. It’s too easy, and it’s wrong.Nigel Fisher has been an adviser to the CEO of the National Reconstruction Authority for the last two years, and has been involved in post-disaster recovery operations around the world.Read Also:<a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/rebuilding-Yangrima-school-after-earthquake-in-Sindhupalchowk,2779">School of hard knocks</a>, Wong Shu Yun<a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/builders-of-Barpak,3185">Builders of Barpak</a>, Manisha Aryal

1/3 empty or 2/3 full?

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.