Rights activists demand immediate shelter, special package for flood victims

Six rights-based organizations have demanded that the government immediately provide safe shelter and a special livelihood package for flood victims in the Rasuwa, Kaligandaki and Budhigandaki areas.

In a joint statement issued on Tuesday, they said families displaced by the Bhadra 10 flood in Rasuwa still lack proper housing.

They urged immediate construction of temporary shelters for families whose homes were fully or partially destroyed and who cannot return to their own settlements.

The statement said the government should make public a plan for permanent housing with defined standards, a timeline and a budget.

They demanded cash support, employment, means of production and skills-based assistance for families who lost jobs, businesses, farming and livestock.

The organizations also called for publishing accurate damage details and an updated list of those affected.

They said relief distribution alone is not enough; programs are needed to help the affected stand on their own feet.

They stressed prioritizing the education, health and employment of those affected, and giving special protection to at-risk citizens.

The organizations behind the statement include the Accountability Monitoring Committee, Amnesty International Nepal and the Community Self-Reliance Service Centre, among others.

According to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority, the flood affected about 33,000 people across Rasuwa, Dhading, Nuwakot, Gorkha and Chitwan.