Indian Jesuit: The earthquake victims in Nepal are devastated, but never defeated
Mumbai (AsiaNews) - A country and a population, "devastated by the earthquake, but not defeated", says Fr. Prakash Louis SJ, director of the Indian Social Institute in Bangalore and former director of the Jesuit Refugee Service for South Asia, describing Nepal in the wake of the April 25 quake, the most violent earthquake in its recent history. Since last May 1, the Jesuit has been in Kathmandu valley to provide aid and relief along with the local Church. He has prepared a brief report on the current situation in Nepal for AsiaNews.
It is obvious that Nepal is a landlocked country in South Asia, and located in the central part of the Himalayas bordering to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India. With an area of 147,181 square kilometers and a population of approximately 27 million, Nepal is geographically diversified into different regions. Kathmandu, which is located in the valley, is the nation's capital as well as largest metropolis.
From the administrative and political point of view, Nepal is divided into 14 zones and 75 districts, grouped into five development regions. Each district is headed by a permanent Chief District Officer (CDO) responsible for maintaining law and order and coordinating the works of field agencies of the various government ministries. The Interim constitution of Nepal, 2007 has declared Nepal as a federal democratic republic country; however it has yet to finalize its new federal structure based on geography, culture, religion natural resources, sustainability etc. Nepal is typically endowed with cultural and natural heritages.
After Effects of 25th April Earthquake
Up to 90 per cent of the houses in Gorkha and Sindupalchowk districts have been destroyed. Across large parts of Dhading, Dolakha, Rasuwa and Nuwakot districts, more than 80 per cent of houses have been flattened. The Government is currently projecting the caseload to increase to a total number of 500,000 destroyed houses.
In Chapagaon Village Development Council (VDC) out of 2,500 Households 900 have fallen down and other 400 HHs are no more in livable condition. So 1,300 households are homeless there. More than 200 are living under one tent among which there are more women.
Over 3.58 billion worth of crops and livestock have been destroyed. Over 3 million people are estimated to be in need of food assistance. Of them, an estimated 1.4 million most affected people have been prioritized for immediate food assistance.
The World Food Programme’s (WFP) preliminary assessment estimates that 50 per cent of 91 already assessed markets are functional or showing signs of recovery. Another 50 per cent of shops have been damaged or destroyed. Food stocks have been depleted or ruined and shopkeepers have been displaced or affected.
According to Government data from 26 districts, about 1,383 schools have been damaged by the earthquake.
Summary of data:
- Dead: 8,346
- Injured: 14,556
- Unknown dead: 125
- Being treated: 3,920
- Homes completely destroyed: 1,60,786
- Homes partially damaged: 1,43,673
- Office & Schools completely destroyed: 10,445
- Office& Schools partially damaged: 14,201
- Foreigners dead: 43
- Foreigners injured: 46
- Foreigners not traced yet: 41
- Population of districts affected: 1,36,52,804
- Pregnant women affected: 1,26,000
- Women and girls of reproductive age affected: 20,00,000
- Women who may be affected by obstetric complications: 2,100
- Women and girls who may face gender based violence : 40,000
Devastated but not Defeated
The people of Nepal as ever strong, powerful, and resilient and cheerful in every circumstances, even in the most crisis moments have and are springing back to normalcy. Right after the earthquake, people of Nepal began to respond to the situation and engage in rescue operations along with the government agencies and aid agencies. Not only those who are not affected but even the survivors were engaged in rescue and emergency relief. Youth clubs, women’s groups, business concerns, schools and colleges, NGOs and INGOs, secular and faith based organizations were and even now are with the people not only through their relief response but also through their accompaniment. the earthquake survivors
4-year old Sujina Ghale – who escaped cremation - in her maternal aunt’s house at Banyatar hilltop overlooking Kathmandu on April 30 with her mother Chaju Ghale near her. Sujina was presumed dead and was kept among dead bodies for cremation after she was pulled out of the debris of the house two hours later in Tipling village – 160 kms from Kathmandu and day’s road travel. When her mother Chaju Ghale who had gone to graze the cattle rushed home after the quake asked village health worker Phullu Tamang to check, it was found that Sujina was alive and she was airlifted by helicopter along with the mother to Kathmandu. Since the hospital was teeming with seriously injured people, doctors arranged the child and her mother to be airlifted by helicopter to the aunt’s house on the Banyatar hill on April 28.
Immediate Rescue and Relief Efforts
a. Government Response
The Government of Nepal has done a very good job in terms of rescue and emergency relief to the affected people. Though the disaster is massive, the Government of Nepal responded to the situation with all its personnel, infrastructure and resources. Some of the responses are highlighted here:
- Over 100,000 National Security personnel were and are engaged in rescue operations.
- Ministry of Federal Affairs and Local Development, in its Operational Guidelines issued on 30th April, 2015, stated that a committee coordinated by Village Development Committee Secretary or Municipal Ward Secretary should spend more than Rs. 452 million within 30 days (temporary repairs, water, food first aid shelters):
- Over 2,500 children have been immunized so far by the Ministry of Health and Population and over 39,000 people injured in the earthquake have been treated.
- Around 2,60,799 tents and tarpaulins have been distributed to the survivors.
- Along with this, nearly 96,236 quintals of rice, 1,81,134 cartoon of noodles and food items, 620 quintals of sugar, 574 quintals of salt have been distributed to the survivors.
- A Joint Secretary has been appointed to the Chief District Office in the most affected districts to support with monitoring and coordination.
- According to the Government news, from the National Reconstruction Fund Rs. 200 billion have been allotted for relief and rehabilitation.
- The Government of Nepal has shown its resolve to engage in recovery and reconstruction and has directed the schools to be opened on 15th May, 2015.
b. Response of National and International Aid Agencies:
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) have reported that 25 National Societies are supporting the Nepalese Red Cross Society providing critical life-saving relief. They have provided nearly 15,000 tarpaulins and some 1000 blankets, as well as several hundreds of hygiene kits and thousands of water purification tablets.
One week into the response, multinational forces along with the Nepalese Army have treated 570 patients, conducted major surgeries, rescued 942 stranded people, including 20 foreigners, delivered over 100 tonnes of food and relief supplies. Forces have cleared roads in Sindhupalchowk, Dolakha, Dhading, Gorkha, Okhaldhunga, Kavre, Ramechhap, Rasuwa, Nuwakot, Makawanpur, Bhaktapur, Lalitpur, Kathmandu and Solukhumbu districts.
Health teams have been deployed to Gorkha and Sindhuli districts to respond to reports of influenza and diarrheal cases.
The Education and Protection clusters have established 13 Child Friendly Spaces for displaced communities in Kathmandu, Kokhana, Halchowk and Bhaktapur districts serving over 1,300 children. These will includeArt activities, games, sports, and psychosocial support and key life-saving messages relating to WASH, Nutrition, Health, and Child Protection are being provided.
Major Challenges
Health care services, including for pregnant women, remain a key concern. Complications during and after delivery are amongst the main causes of mortality and disability for women. In the case of the disruptions to medical services, the numbers of complications are likely to increase. Minimum Initial Service Package (MISP) calculations project that for an estimated 8 million people affected, approximately 2,400 women are at risk of suffering maternal or obstetric complications.
Debris management is required to enable continued search and rescue and humanitarian relief operations. Restoring community infrastructure to deliver public services is essential. Main roads are open. However, landslides have challenged transportation of relief items to some areas. Many affected villages are without road access at all.Access to districts beyond the Valley continues to be a major challenge.
In some places, relief trucks have been stopped and diverted by communities. This poses additional challenges to the Government and humanitarian partners who work around the clock to transport aid to those in need.
Information on the full extent of damage to educational facilities in Gorkha, Sindhupalchowk, Dolkaha and Rasuwa districts is still not available.
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