Kathmandu. The government’s decision to provide monthly housing rent of Rs 15,000 to the families rendered homeless by the Bhotekoshi flood has not been implemented. Even after two months of the cabinet’s decision, the main reason why the affected families have not received assistance is the delay in the administrative process of beneficiary identification, details verification and requesting funds.
The cabinet meeting held on August 25 decided to provide house rent for temporary housing to the families whose houses were damaged due to flood. It was decided to provide Rs 15,000 per month to a family of up to four members and additional Rs 2,000 per person if there are more than four members. However, the aid distribution has been stopped due to the completion of the necessary procedures for the implementation of the decision.
According to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority, since the local level did not enter the details of the affected families in the Reconstruction Management Information System (RMIS) and did not formally request funds, the funds could not be released from the center. In other words, even if the government decided to provide assistance, the victims could not get assistance because they could not reach the stage of requesting the money after verifying the details of the real beneficiaries.
The local level is facing various problems in beneficiary identification and collection of details. The flood has damaged the building and documents of the ward office. Many of the affected families have taken the shelter of their relatives in various places in Kathmandu, Dhading and Nuwakot. According to the local level, it is difficult to collect and verify the necessary documents by bringing them in contact. Similarly, there has been a problem in identifying the actual victims due to difficulties in determining the number of family members and collecting details of tenant and squatter families.
While entering the details in RMIS, the local level staff may have encountered technical problems and the authority has mobilized a team for facilitation. The team is training the affected wards and municipal employees of Rasuwa, Nuwakot and Dhading on how to enter details into the system.
Another reason for the delay in aid distribution is that the federal government sent the necessary forms and procedures late. According to Vidur municipality, the online form and procedure for relief and housing assistance has been provided by the federal government only recently, so it has taken time to proceed with the work.
After collecting the details of the affected families, the local level has to confirm the condition of the damage, verify the details of the beneficiaries and enter them in the online system. Only then can the money be demanded from the center. Municipalities say that it is taking time to complete this process due to the large number of affected families.
According to preliminary data, 1,786 houses have been completely damaged in Vidur Municipality alone, while 2,657 plots of land have been damaged. Although the city decided to demand three crore rupees in the first phase, the amount from the center has not reached the bank account.
According to the municipality, information collection can be done quickly in the less affected wards, but in the wards where more than 450 houses have been lost, it is complicated to call the affected families to the office, collect documents, take fingerprints and enter the details online. According to the municipality, it may take more than 15 to 20 days for this. Last August, the Prime Minister’s Divine Disaster Relief Fund Management Committee decided to provide one billion rupees from the amount in the fund for disaster risk reduction and management. Currently, it is said that the fund has 18 billion 28 billion rupees.
But since there is no demand for additional funds from the authority, the fund management committee has said that no additional funds have been allocated. According to the committee, it is the responsibility of the committee to make the necessary decision and provide the funds after the request, while the authority is responsible for spending the funds in coordination with the district and local levels and proceeding with the relief distribution process.
Meanwhile, the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers said that cash was distributed to 4,108 households in Rasuwa, Nuwakot and Dhading at the rate of 45,000 rupees per family till October 28. The government said that the money provided by the World Food Program was distributed through a one-door system. Red Cross, Plan International and World Food Program have also provided cash and food assistance to the families of various affected wards. But the 45,000 rupees distributed by the government and the 15,000 rupees per month that is supposed to be given for house rent are separate assistance. Not all families who received Rs 45,000 have received house rent assistance.
According to the Temporary Housing Construction Subsidy Standards, 2081, the affected families should construct temporary or medium-term housing within six months. It is the government’s plan to provide house rent assistance for the same period. But since the list of beneficiaries has not been finalised, the citizens who have lost their homes are struggling to find a room for rent, pay rent and manage their daily living.