Land identified for rehabilitation of Bhotekoshi flood victims

The Ministry of Land Management, Cooperatives, Federal Affairs and General Administration has said land required for the rehabilitation of people affected by the Bhotekoshi flood has already been identified.

Ministry Secretary Madan Bhujel gave this information at a meeting of the National Assembly's Special Parliamentary Committee for the Study and Monitoring of Disasters in the Bhotekoshi and Kali Gandaki Corridors.

He said a committee led by the Director General of the Survey Department has identified around 277 plots of land.

Secretary Bhujel said land was chosen as close as possible to the affected areas since moving people far from their previous settlements could create problems in rehabilitation.

Settlement development and rehabilitation work on the identified land will be carried out by the Ministry of Infrastructure Development.

He said that since land identification has been completed, rehabilitation work would move forward soon.

There have been complaints that land acquisition carried out only by the federal government takes a long time.

Discussions are therefore underway on amending the law to make it easier for local levels to purchase and acquire private land.