Nepal Prepares Legal Changes for Missing Flood Victims as Camps Struggle
The disaster authority is preparing legal amendments so families of roughly 5,000 missing flood victims can receive death certificates and relief, while displaced survivors in Nuwakot struggle in tents as temperatures drop.
Nepal is moving to amend three statutes to allow families of roughly 5,000 people missing in catastrophic floods to receive death certificates and relief, as displaced survivors endure harsh conditions in tents.
National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA) spokesperson Shanti Mahat acknowledged that current legislation hinders treating missing disaster victims as deceased, Himal Press reported. While disaster guidelines grant Rs 200,000 per deceased person, certifying deaths and distributing relief requires amending the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act, the National Civil Code 2017, and vital registration laws. Nepal Samaya also reported Mahat's remarks, noting that revisions are vital to confirm missing counts after floodwaters displaced local government offices in Rasuwa.
Authorities are also pursuing legal measures to prohibit reconstruction in eroded riparian zones, Himal Press reported. A committee led by the director general of the Survey Department has proposed resettlement options balancing property rights with safety, aligning with policies barring settlements up to flood erosion boundaries.
Downstream in Nuwakot, survivors displaced by the August 26 (Bhadau 10) flood along the Lende Khola and Trishuli River face acute shelter shortages, Annapurna Post reported. Nuwakot District Administration Office officer Rupesh Prasad Nepal said 183 displaced people, including 91 women, are sheltering in eight holding centres across Vidur and Belkotgadhi municipalities.
In Vidur-5, about 600 people, including 250 children and 40 elderly individuals, are staying in 250 tents across five sites, volunteer Dipendra Poudel said. Chronic health issues are mounting as temperatures drop. Birbal Tamang, 72, who has asthma, needs daily medicine, while Birman Tamang, 70, is on oxygen. Birbal’s family, previously relocated from Haku to Khalte after the 2015 earthquake, was displaced again. Local activist Harisharan Gajurel urged all three government tiers to implement permanent resettlement.