Floods in Nepal 2024
Exploring the culture of Kathmandu Valley is a journey through time, art, spirituality, and tradition. The rich heritage of this vibrant valley offers endless discoveries and a deeper understanding of Nepal’s heart and soul.
Unfortunately the rulers of Nepal in the past have oppressed the local population of Kathmandu Valley for long periods of time. Education was banned till 1950 except for the families of rulers and the citizens who served them. Most of the illiterate mass spent all their valuable times into unproductive god fearing rituals making them incapable of comprehending the scientific realities of the very vulnerable areas like earthquakes and floodsand landslides. This society should be transformed so that they become capable of internalizing the inputs from academia and researchers for continuity in efforts to work to increase the reliability of forecasts, to roll out early warning systems, and to advocate for planned settlements and nature-based solutions to mitigate flood risks.
Nepalese meteorologists had warned about potential hazards of heavy rain . Lack of infrastructure and poor urban planning are largely to blame for the escalation of the disaster. The data recorded this [Sunday 29th September 2024] morning by nine stations in Kathmandu is the highest in the past 54 years.
The key reason for the rise in the impact of floods is the built environment, including unplanned construction, especially on floodplains, which leaves insufficient area for water retention and drainage.
The central government and city planners should urgently increase the investment in and planning of both ‘grey’ (engineered) and ‘green’ (nature-based) infrastructure: such as underground stormwater and sewage systems; and the restoration of wetlands or the introduction of permeable pavements and ‘rain gardens’ to increase cities’ capacity to absorb water and help communities adapt.
The unprecedented rain of 27th and 28th September 2024 has fallen on soil already saturated following a more than 25% above normal rainfall this monsoon in Kathmandu. Its impact is aggravated by poor drainage due to unplanned settlement/haphazard urbanisation, construction on floodplains, and lack of areas for water retention, and encroachment on the Bagmati river.
How many of the locals understand the sensitivity of the directives issued by authorities and disaster management agencies to remain on high alert as weather forecasts predict heavy rainfall in the Koshi and Bagmati provinces, as well as in the Kathmandu Valley, through the flooding durations.
Urban planning needs to be improved and efforts should be made not to disrupt the original course of the river.
Roads and access routes have been destroyed, and hundreds of acres of land ready for harvest have been wiped out. Paddy fields have turned into barren embankments filled with boulders and stones.
Human capital development programs seriously lack input from professionals.
Dissemination of warning information should be made effective and awareness should be raised about the safety measures during floods and other water induced disasters. Earth Observation tools are available with government agencies and first responders, including those in humanitarian agencies, to help them anticipate major events and preposition aid. Detectable changes – with the greater variability in rainfall posing challenges for weather and climate predictions, as well as for resilience and adaptation by societies and ecosystems. Government agencies should collaborate with research institutions on developing research-based solutions to flood and water-related problems.
Nepal government should allocate budget for youth to make them capable of integrating AI tools to solve natural disasters.
We cannot blame climate change alone to hide our management of rivers by unprofessional practices . Climate change is not only resulting in more extreme precipitation, but also greater variability in rainfall – with greater swings between intense rain events.