After the news coverage from the past couple of days, there is little need to describe what befell the mountain communities of Rasuwa District, north of Kathmandu two days ago. Suffice to say that the rock-ice landslide that ripped through that valley struck with 6.3% of the impact of the Hiroshima atomic bomb.
We all feel the need to do something to help and to respond immediately. But the best response shouldn’t be based on an assumption by us of what is likely to be ‘needed’. Instead, we should tune into what those in the frontline advise us.
This morning I received this message from my colleague Dev Narayan Mandal who has travelled to the mountains to join the relief effort. He is well informed also through his close connections with the authorities, including the PM’s office. Here is an extract from what he wrote to me:
‘Thank you so much for your quick decision on helping victims of Rasuwa flash flooding.
Yesterday, I spent eight hours in Prime Minister’s Control Room in Kathmandu to help streamline the information system. I must admit that all the government agencies are working at their fullest. Nepalese Army, Armed Police Force and Nepal Police have deployed more than 2,000 individuals with a backup plan of additional 1,500 manpower and they all are very active on the ground rescuing the living and searching for bodies. The situation at the control room is so disturbing that I couldn’t sleep even for a minute after seeing the scattered body parts of children, young, men, women and the old aged. What actually requires now are being done at fullest.
Our Prime Minister Disaster Relief Fund has received more than 2 billion rupees [£10 million pounds] within 24 hours. There are an additional 1.2 Billion remaining from [2015] earthquake relief which was not spent by Oli government. There are additional 1.8 billion commitment from several nations which will come later on. The government has also announced that all the donations by Nepali businesses will be 100% exempted from Income Tax. So, donations are coming in from local and national level businesses as well.Â
Right now, there are 2 tonnes of medical equipment, 38 loads of groceries and so on stocked and distributed through one-door system. The trust from Nepali citizens is beyond imagination this time. And, I could observe personally, there is no limitation from government side on the expenses, in kind distribution through government setup and manpower deployment.
What I’ll personally recommend is allocate funds from Pipal Tree in the name of Rasuwa relief and hold it for a while with you. There are dozens of children found without parents. Once this immediate response is over, Pipal Tree can help give them a better life.‘
So, we have set up an emergency Rasuwa Relief Fund through which we are aiming to raise £1 million towards the long term care needs of survivors and especially to the care of orphaned children. We will be able to work out the specifics of this further down the line, so that funds can be invested wisely rather than in a knee-jerk response.
The fund will be launched through a Big Give appeal that launches today. You can donate through the button below, with all gifts automatically doubling in value. Thank you.
