Families affected by a dry landslide in Khaldhunga village of Hima Rural Municipality–6, Jumla, have demanded immediate relief and relocation of the settlement to a safer area. Following the incident, the affected families have been forced to take shelter in neighbors’ houses, while no effective relief or rehabilitation efforts have been initiated so far. The dry landslide that occurred on the afternoon of March 31, from above the village, damaged three houses. Due to the landslide, one of the two houses belonging to local resident Lalijan Adhikari was completely destroyed, while the other was partially damaged. The house of Buccho Adhikari in the same area was also affected. Food grains, utensils, and other household materials inside the houses were completely destroyed.
According to locals, the incident caused an estimated loss of around Rs. 2 million. As the landslide occurred during the daytime, there were no human casualties. Locals have complained that although the village youth had submitted an application to the local government a week prior, warning about the landslide risk, timely and effective action was not taken.
Although elected representatives conducted a field inspection and assured that the problem would be addressed, locals say no concrete steps have been taken. According to Rural Municipality Chairperson Laxman Bahadur Shahi, a team of municipal staff and police monitored the site on the same day of the incident, and the Disaster Management Committee has prepared to provide initial relief.
Chairperson Shahi stated that the Khaldhunga area is at high risk of landslides and informed that the issue of relocating the settlement had already been decided by the District Disaster Management Committee in 2023 and forwarded to the provincial and federal governments. A landslide had also occurred at that time. However, no concrete action has been taken on the matter so far, he added.
He further stated that relocation of the settlement is not possible through the municipality’s budget alone and requires support from the provincial and federal governments.