A Review on Rainfall Induced Disaster in Nepal
- By : resourceshimalaya.org
- November 1, 2021
Resources Himalaya Foundation organized a talk program on “A Review on Rainfall-induced Disaster in Nepal” on November 1, 2021. The program was moderated by Dr. Basanta Raj Adhikari (Assistant Professor, Institute of Engineering, Tribhuvan University). The panelists were Ms. Shanti Kandel (Senior Divisional Meteorologist at Department of Hydrology and Meteorology (DHM)); Mr. Pradip Khatiwada (Executive Director, Youth Innovation Lab); Dr. Dijan Bhattarai (Under Secretary and Spokesperson, National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA)); and Prof. Dr. Bishal Nath Upreti (Academician, Nepal Academy of Science and Technology (NAST)).
Ms. Kandel highlighted the climate trend in Nepal and Mr. Khatiwada talked about the disaster status underlining the damage and loss. Dr. Bhattarai discussed the government’s stand in solving the issue and Dr. Upreti discussed the approaches required to have an effective solution. A discussion on how the high intensity of rainfall in short period of time resulted in damages were highlighted. Not only the loss and damages from disaster, but also the irregularities of such occurrences are also increasing. It cannot be denied that the country is moving towards acquiring and managing data but its use in decision making is still unclear. From the government’s standpoint, the step towards disaster minimization and management is relatively new in the context of Nepal. Moving from no legal ground for disaster management in the past to developing some act and policies, Nepal’s step to mitigate the recurring disaster is praiseworthy to some extent. However, a strong technology and early warning system is still required in addition to flood and landslide specific hazard map. The speakers emphasized that a strong coordination as well as knowledge and resource exchange between DHM and NDRRMA is a much needed approach for a better disaster management in Nepal. The program ended with closing remarks from Dr. Dinesh Raj Bhuju, General Secretary at Resources Himalaya Foundation.
